[grizzlybeast]

I don't know about the Milo, but a headphone like the Kennerton Vali (quite sensitive) is well into the audible noise floor of the Enigma. Worth checking with Jeff how the Milo plays with sensitive headphones.

That is my main deterent.

 

[johnzz4]

It is grainless
Music is layered
It's is refined sounding
It is blackity black

I have the 12 db attenuation with Khozmo attenuator. I have the Hifiman HE-6 and LCD-4. The Milo drives them both with ease and louder than I personally can listen to.
This also allows me to have some play with the volume control when using more efficient headphones.

I have the LCD4 as well, and I find the extended treble a bit sharp. I'm running the following chain fully balanced:

Auralic Aries > Yggdrasil > Master 11 (just the amp portion) > LCD4

You seem to have experience with both the Master 9 (which should essentially be the same as the M11 amp section) and the Milo. In your experience, does the Milo smooth out the extended treble in comparison with the M9? I already have a decent AES cable and XLR interconnects but upgrading both when some higher end wireworld cables arrive to see how that impacts it.

Thoughts?

 

[Hifi59]

I have the LCD4 as well, and I find the extended treble a bit sharp. I'm running the following chain fully balanced:

Auralic Aries > Yggdrasil > Master 11 (just the amp portion) > LCD4

You seem to have experience with both the Master 9 (which should essentially be the same as the M11 amp section) and the Milo. In your experience, does the Milo smooth out the extended treble in comparison with the M9? I already have a decent AES cable and XLR interconnects but upgrading both when some higher end wireworld cables arrive to see how that impacts it.

Thoughts?

The Milo may seem like it's smoothing out the highs, but it's really just a total lack of grunge and grain.
The leading edge attacks seem very mildly rounded off in a good way, while still offering plenty of attack.

Since I haven't heard the M9 and Milo side by side, I am relying on audio memory. Whenever I heard the M9
at a meet, my impression was always smoooth,authoritive in the bass department, clean and effortless.With the Milo, my immediate impression was tubes,attack,clean and effortless, body and bass. I only suspect that the Milo is more to my liking but cannot swear to it until I get them side by side. I can also state that my Burson CV2+ had a touch more air on top than the M9 but not so vs. the Milo.

You can't go wrong with wireworld cables.

 

[Hifi59]

I don't know about the Milo, but a headphone like the Kennerton Vali (quite sensitive) is well into the audible noise floor of the Enigma. Worth checking with Jeff how the Milo plays with sensitive headphones.

I can crank the volume to max on my Milo (with source music paused ) and with my LCD-XC connected and not hear any hiss at all. Not sure if the Vali is more sensitive than the XC though. This is using the se inputs of the amp too. (Didn't order the xlr input option)

 

[drwlf]

I can crank the volume to max on my Milo (with source music paused ) and with my LCD-XC connected and not hear any hiss at all. Not sure if the Vali is more sensitive than the XC though. This is using the se inputs of the amp too. (Didn't order the xlr input option)

 
You're killing me.

 

[Astral Abyss]

I can hear a good amount of hiss on my Milo with the LCD-XC, fed by a DAC-19 via RCA. In fact, I don't really care for the combo. Now, with my HE-6, it's godly. In comparison, when using the C-2 in place of the Milo, it's completely silent with the LCD-XC.

 

[ProfFalkin]

I can hear a good amount of hiss on my Milo with the LCD-XC, fed by a DAC-19 via RCA. In fact, I don't really care for the combo. Now, with my HE-6, it's godly. In comparison, when using the C-2 in place of the Milo, it's completely silent with the LCD-XC.

How is yours configured? Khozmo? Attenuation?

 

[Astral Abyss]

How is yours configured? Khozmo? Attenuation?

Khozmo + Vishay z-foil and 7.5db attention.

 

[ProfFalkin]

Khozmo + Vishay z-foil and 7.5db attention.

So the only difference between yours and Hifi59's is the 7.5 vs 12 dB attenuation. I'm just trying to correlate why one person has a hiss and another doesn't.

Anyone else notice hiss? Could be a one-off kind of thing or systemic to attenuation methods.

 

[Hifi59]

So the only difference between yours and Hifi59's is the 7.5 vs 12 dB attenuation. I'm just trying to correlate why one person has a hiss and another doesn't.

Anyone else notice hiss? Could be a one-off kind of thing or systemic to attenuation methods.

I will amend my statement. I can hear mild hissing if I have my iPad volume at max (usually at 80%) and
Dac volume fixed (max output) . Under these conditions, I can hear mild hissing with the volume at max on the Milo. It's very low though. No hiss at all at 2 o'clock position.

 

[drwlf]

I will amend my statement. I can hear mild hissing if I have my iPad volume at max (usually at 80%) and
Dac volume fixed (max output) . Under these conditions, I can hear mild hissing with the volume at max on the Milo. It's very low though. No hiss at all at 2 o'clock position.

 
Hmm, good to know. A 2 o'clock position would be more than deafening I imagine nonetheless with the XC.
How would you "rate" the combo, as @Astral Abyss doesn't really care for it?

 

[nickosiris]

Not normally one given to hyperbole or indeed florid verbiage, when "The Kitchen System" recently evolved into:
 
AK 380 > Audioquest Big Sur > Wells Audio Milo > Silver Poison > LCD4
 
I could only really say one thing: "Wow".
 
That is all.

 

[Hifi59]

Hmm, good to know. A 2 o'clock position would be more than deafening I imagine nonetheless with the XC.
How would you "rate" the combo, as @Astral Abyss
doesn't really care for it?

I honestly haven't heard anything sound less than stellar on the Milo. Having said that, some headphones improved more than others (Hifiman) but every headphone that I've thrown at it all have some level of improvement over anything else that I've heard. The XC simply sound great on it. I use the Dac out (Ess9018) from my Burson and now use the Oppo Sonica Dac (Ess 9038).

I will say that my Burson CV2+ has a more upfront sound (3rd row vs 6th row) . This can lend some extra energy to
some songs that's appealing, but the Milo takes it back a notch but adds a more 3D experience to the sound. The Milo also has excellent midbass. This is what I immediately noticed when I first used my Hifiman HE-1K on it.

 

[drwlf]

I honestly haven't heard anything sound less than stellar on the Milo. Having said that, some headphones improved more than others (Hifiman) but every headphone that I've thrown at it all have some level of improvement over anything else that I've heard. The XC simply sound great on it. I use the Dac out (Ess9018) from my Burson and now use the Oppo Sonica Dac (Ess 9038).

I will say that my Burson CV2+ has a more upfront sound (3rd row vs 6th row) . This can lend some extra energy to
some songs that's appealing, but the Milo takes it back a notch but adds a more 3D experience to the sound. The Milo also has excellent midbass. This is what I immediately noticed when I first used my Hifiman HE-1K on it.

 
Good to know.
Anybody have direct comparisons with Milo vs. the Pro iCan/V281-V280/Phonitor e/x, (excluding any HE-6 impressions)? They're pretty much in the same price bracket within EU, or a quarter cheaper after customs fees+VAT.

 

[omniweltall]

Hhmm....in the CV2+, is it the Dac or the Amp that contributes more to the energetic Burson house sound? I am wondering if the sound coming out from your Milo inherits some of the Burson sound (since you're using the Burson Dac Out).