128x128

hifihandyman

Responses from hifihandyman

Is all the hype warranted
I’m the proud owner of their Taboo headphone amp with all the upgrades.  It’s so totally boring, though because all you hear is exactly what’s on the recording and nothing else.  Meh.  Boring, just pure, clean music.  I don’t need lively.  
Looking for a narrow baffle small footprint speaker
I immediately think of the KEF LS60.  Hard to beat in my opinion for the size.  Simple.  
Best streamer, don't want Roon, don't want a screen, A DAC is OK but not necessary
I really love the SOtM SMS200 Ultra Neo.  Super simple and sounds great.  
Output from Mola Mola preamp to Headphone Amp?
To answer your question, the answer is NO.  The Makua has to sets of outputs, so if you plug your main amplifier into one and the headphone amplifier into the other, you will get no sound to either with the volume set to zero.  You need a preamp w... 
MoFi or Harbeth (used)
I have both SourcePoint 8 & 10 and I’m super impressed.  The imaging is astonishing and it’s a very natural sound.  I’m a big fan of coincentric drivers and have owned many Tannoy and KEF models.  This is a winning combination without the brig... 
What rear speakers would compliment my MoFi sp 10
SP8’s are the perfect rear speaker!  How can anyone say anything differently?  You guessed it, SP8 center also.  
Eversolo or Aurender: Options and Opinions
I was running the Denafrips Gaia DDC and Venus II DAC and I fed it with the SOtM  SMS-200 Ultra Neo with SPS-500 power supply and it was a killer combination. That’s right at $1,750 and the sound was detailed but easy to listen to.  A very natural... 
Stuff You Tried To Love
I bought a Benchmark preamp because it had nearly perfect specs and when I put it in my system it was just dull and lifeless.  I ran it for a month constantly and it just never seemed to sound good at all.  There was a time in my life where I boug... 
Flexible Power Cords
Very happy with my Straight Wire Pre Thunder power cords and they are nice and flexible and sound great.  Warm and detailed versus bright and analytical like some others I have tried in my home.  
Berkeley Audio Design and MQA?
I love MQA, it makes me happy.  Even my cat frolics while we listen with joy.  I dare you to come over and tell me it doesn’t sound amazing.  Your critical thoughts on MQA are fine, but in reality, it sounds really good.  Maybe not at your house, ... 
Help With New Preamp Decision
I recently learned of First Sound Audio and a friend of mine has one and absolutely loves it.  No remote, though.  I would love to try one in my system.  Does anyone else have experience with first sound audio?  
New classe delta preamp and classe stereo amp?
The DAC is excellent.  Very detailed and easy to listen to.  I also have the HifiRose 150b which is a tad warmer, but they are both very comparable.  The PRE is perfect for 2.1 because of the crossover, time-alignment, and available parametric EQ.... 
New classe delta preamp and classe stereo amp?
I have the PRE and MONOs and absolutely love them. The sound is very detailed, but listenable and smooth for long periods of time. It just sounds natural and right with my KEF Blades. My last amp was the Parasound JC5 which is such a great amp but... 
best cost no object single unit streamer/dac combo you have ever heard?
I have not heard it for myself, but the unit I would love to try is the Exasound S82 mk II.  I especially like the fact it has a Roon core built in, great streamer, preamp functionality, and purportedly, a killer DAC.  Currently using the HifiRose... 
Are cable “upgrades” just as likely to make your system sound worse?
That happened to me when I upgraded to more expensive silver cables.  They were far brighter in my system which led to listening fatigue.  I mostly stick with copper and my system sounds better than ever.  I noticed a big difference also when I we...