headphone amplifiers Archives - Positive Feedback

Topping A90 Discrete Preamplifier/Headphone Amp Offers Exceptional and Affordable Performance

Tom Gibbs — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 17:14:39 +0000

Mid last year, I reviewed the Topping E70 Velvet DAC, which is a Delta-Sigma design that in my view offered astounding performance at a surprisingly low price point. Most of my love of the E70 Velvet revolved around its very cool implementation of the recent new production AKM chipsets, and its use of AKM's Velvet... Read More »

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The Pass Labs HPA-1 - a Superb Headphone Amp to Grow Your System Around

Juan C. Ayllon — Fri, 10 Nov 2023 21:12:56 +0000

The Pass Labs HPA-1 Headphone Amplifier seen here is accompanied by the iconic Artemide Tizio Desk Lamp For many—especially those in their teens through their 20s—headphones are the preferred mode of listening to music, and when it comes to a quality sound experience, they offer them their biggest bang for their buck. "I never sold... Read More »

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Impressions: The TARA Labs Omega Live Headphone Cables with HFX Floating Ground Station

David W. Robinson — Fri, 13 Oct 2023 17:29:37 +0000

David W. Robinson photographing at Icicle Creek, Leavenworth, WA, during the great fires of 2012. (Photograph by Lila Ritsema; image processing by Robinson.) Headphones…dig it! The spring of 1970. Yeah, that's when it happened. That's when I bought my first pair of headphones. I needed them, since I had become very interested in reel-to-reel tape... Read More »

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Boxing Match: Bargain Headphone Amplifier vs. Audiophile Classic

Bob Katz — Mon, 13 Mar 2023 17:41:06 +0000

Headphone stuff comes up in my email feed all the time! Last week I received a notice from online bargain store Monoprice that an "audiophile" headphone amplifier, normally priced at $129.99, is on special for $67.99—the Monoprice Monolith Series Liquid Spark. Oh, come on! An "audiophile-quality" headphone amp at a bargain-basement price? This put me... Read More »

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Ready, Steady, Go, GO Bar, Go! An Uber Headphone Amp in Your Pocket

Juan C. Ayllon — Thu, 27 Oct 2022 21:52:42 +0000

Relished by many for their low cost, high quality audio components and accessories, iFi is renowned for enhancing sound quality and eradicating distortion, noise, and hiss from equipment like headphones, speakers, audio devices, cell phones, and televisions with their products. And, at a price of $329, the GO bar is their flagship pocket totable USB... Read More »

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HIFIMAN EF400 DAC/Headphone Amplifier

Malcolm J. Gomes — Tue, 27 Sep 2022 20:30:50 +0000

One of the more commercially successful combinations in the audiophile sphere, over the past decade, has been the amplifier/digital to analog converter combo. You can now choose this combo component from dozens of brands from prices that vary very widely from a few hundred dollars for a basic, no-frills component, to models like the Boulder... Read More »

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iFi xDSD Gryphon Portable DAC and Headphone Amp

Michael Wechsberg — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 17:46:10 +0000

iFi Audio has been on my radar for a couple of years mainly due to the excellent reviews for their affordable DACs, streamers, amps, and other digital accessories. The digital portion of my home audio system is currently in a transition phase. I had to give up my reference AURALIC Vega DAC, reviewed in Positive... Read More »

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The Soncoz SGA-1 Headphone Amplifier - a Great Value, Bringing New Meaning to 'Canned Music'

Juan C. Ayllon — Fri, 28 Jan 2022 23:49:42 +0000

If you enjoy headphone listening but prefer spending more of your cash on quality cans than amplification, the Soncoz SGA-1 headphone amplifier may be your new go-to device. Possessing XLR balanced and RCA outputs, teamed up with your favorite 'phones, a quality source and DAC, the Soncoz sets the stage for hours of pleasurable listening.... Read More »

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Travel with the Devil: A Review of iFi's Diablo

Nan Pincus — Mon, 17 May 2021 16:47:45 +0000

We're all thinking about travel. Where can we go? How are we going to get there? And what will we listen to on our way? The Diablo (Spanish for devil) is a battery-powered DAC/headphone amp that you'll be packing with you whether your next journey is to heaven, hell, or a more lateral journey across... Read More »

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Dual Duty - Questyle CMA Twelve DAC / Headphone Amplifier

Michael Laurance — Wed, 12 May 2021 23:21:23 +0000

It's funny. As we move up through the echelons of the audio world, the pieces that produce our sonic magic become more and more singular in function. The jobs which devices perform move into larger and more separate boxes as if no component can do two things well at once. Stay in your lane. In... Read More »

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The Little Devil - The ifi iDSD Diablo DAC/Amplifier

Al Chieng — Fri, 07 May 2021 22:03:30 +0000

Established in 2013, iFi currently has developed and manufactured over 30 products from its headquarters in Southport, UK. Sourcing parts from all over the world its main aim has been to create high quality audio wherever you are. Thus, the iFi iDSD Diablo would be the quintessential device to deliver on its mission statement. For... Read More »

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McIntosh MHA200 Tube Headphone Amplifier - World Premiere Review!

Robert H. Levi — Fri, 07 May 2021 01:23:30 +0000

Bob Levi with the brand new McIntosh MHA200 Tubed Headphone Amp (all photographs courtesy of Bob Levi) Once Upon A Time, in Binghamton, NY, a gathering of McIntosh engineers decided to produce an all-tube headphone amplifier without peer. They loved the sound of the Mc275 amplifier and its transformer circuit dating back to 1949, but... Read More »

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Violectric HPA V550 PRO Headphone Amplifier

John Hoffman — Sat, 01 May 2021 16:07:07 +0000

Headphones and the personal audio scene are a healthy and vibrant niche in our hobby, with a growth curve that has exponentially accelerated over the past decade. The selection of headphones, headphone amplifiers, and specialty cabling manufacturers is impressive, with a width and breadth of companies that is on par with any other sector in... Read More »

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ampsandsound Nautilus Amplifier

Sam Rosen — Fri, 01 Jan 2021 18:16:07 +0000

The ampsandsound Nautilus, 60+ pounds of single ended glory As both a reviewer and a consumer, I read a lot of reviews myself. I often see solid state amplifiers being commended for having tube amp like qualities in their mid-range presentation, or tube amplifiers being commended for having solid state bass or speed. I myself... Read More »

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Cheers to Lutz: Sparkos Labs Aries Headphone Amplifier

Al Chieng — Sat, 11 Jul 2020 16:10:17 +0000

Background In this time of Covid 19 it was apt that I was given the opportunity to review a product from a small company headed by a dog named Lutz. Cottage industry is the name of the game, and Sparkos Labs is an outfit out of Westminster Colorado, United States that was born from a... Read More »

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Audio Swiss Army Knife: Manley Labs Absolute Headphone Amplifier

Al Chieng — Sun, 05 Jan 2020 01:11:02 +0000

This review took a little longer than I thought. I originally found out about this amp from my colleague Robert Levi, and could not resist sending EveAnna Manley an email to see if I could procure a review model. She was more than willing to send it out with the 250 monoblocks that I also... Read More »

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ampsandsound Stereo ST15 Special Edition Amplifier

Gary Lea — Tue, 03 Dec 2019 19:03:34 +0000

Readers of Positive Feedback may already be familiar with Justin Weber's creations. At least two reviews of his products can be found in these pages. Known for elegant and physically small pieces that punch way above their weight class, this amplifier is no different, and this is actually the second review of this particular unit,... Read More »

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Hagerman Audio Labs Tuba Headphone Amplifier [UPDATED]

Robert H. Levi — Fri, 04 Oct 2019 20:53:33 +0000

The Hagerman Audio Labs Tuba Headphone Amp (image by Bob Levi) About 12 years ago I reviewed the Hagerman Trumpet, a very fine all-tube phono stage, built in Hawaii. It was impressive and musical and priced around $2000. It outperformed my Pass X Phono, a $4000 piece, and I almost bought it. When I was... Read More »

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ampsandsound Leeloo Mono Tube Amplifiers: Superior Single-Ended Triode Performance for Headphones and High-Efficiency Loudspeakers

Tom Gibbs — Mon, 30 Sep 2019 21:16:12 +0000

I've owned a pair of Zu Audio Omens—the Dirty Weekend (DW) variety—for over five years now. Zu builds high-efficiency loudspeakers that employ 10-inch full range drivers and compression tweeters, with many of their models approaching 97dB per 1 watt input. During operation, the 10-inch drivers, which are custom-manufactured for Zu by Eminence in Kentucky, run... Read More »

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Toes in My Head, er Sand - MrSpeakers' Aeon Flow Headphones, Schiit Gungnir Multibit DAC, and Ampsandsound Kenzie Amplifier

Larry Cox — Thu, 30 May 2019 22:29:52 +0000

This note reflects, essentially, my first toe in the water of a higher end headphone setup, at least as a reviewer. I've heard high end speaker systems for decades. My first "high end" headphone setup was sometime in the late 1970s, an unknown model of magical Stax "earspeakers." At the time I thought them better... Read More »

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Impressions: The HeadAmp Blue Hawaii Electrostatic Special Edition Headphone Amp & MrSpeakers VOCE Electrostatic Headphones

David W. Robinson — Wed, 27 Mar 2019 23:25:17 +0000

Yon Olde Editor (portrait by John Robinson) A prologue: of memories, music, and dreams… To start: An extended and quite famous passage from Proust. Just read it, it will do you good. Many years had elapsed during which nothing of Combray, save what was comprised in the theatre and the drama of my going to... Read More »

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PS Audio Sprout100

Steve Lefkowicz — Thu, 24 Jan 2019 16:11:21 +0000

A little over three years ago, I reviewed the original PS Audio Sprout integrated amplifier (HERE). That unit received widespread acclaim throughout the audio press for its feature set, performance and price. However, those who paid attention to my review would recognize that though I respected it for its effort and its potential significance in... Read More »

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CanEVER Audio La Scala Amplifier

Editors at Positive Feedback — Tue, 08 Jan 2019 02:39:32 +0000

This article was written by and contributed to Positive Feedback by Roland Dietl of our affiliate publication in Germany, HiFi Statement. You may remember the ZeroUnoDAC and the ZeroUno PLUS looking like a small, tubed power amp, which inspired me a lot. Now, CanEVER Audio has expanded its product portfolio through offering a real power amp – the... Read More »

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Impressions: The Ayon Audio HA-3 SET Headphone Amplifier and the Focal Utopia Headphones

David W. Robinson — Fri, 30 Nov 2018 00:11:02 +0000

High-end headphones and Personal Fi. I've evaluated a goodly handful of 'phones and headphone amps over many years, with some excellent results. Some were large cost-no-object designs, built for home, listening room, or office use only; others were compact and portable, for the music lover on the go. (I do a fair amount of flying,... Read More »

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Manley Absolute Headphone Amplifier - Premiere Review (Updated Price)

Robert H. Levi — Mon, 29 Oct 2018 16:03:50 +0000

The three available finishes of the absolute: copper, black, and silver (image courtesy of Manley) Let us just cut to the chase! I have reviewed countless headphone amplifiers and the Absolute is absolutely the most elegantly designed, intensely musical, and extremely flexible of them all! Add in the superb remote and it’s game over. Provided with... Read More »

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