toad
Been here a while!
I am the Super Toad, the Original Toad, the Whole Toad and nothing BUT the toad.... don't forget it!
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Post by toad on Oct 5, 2007 13:50:07 GMT
I've just swapped the OPA2134 out of my Zigis CMoy and put in a AD823. Initial results seem encouraging, greater detail and a wider soundstage although I can't say more than that as I'm only running on my portable CD player and PX-100s at work.
I'll report back tonight when I get a chance to listen on the HD595s.
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toad
Been here a while!
I am the Super Toad, the Original Toad, the Whole Toad and nothing BUT the toad.... don't forget it!
Posts: 1,223
|
Post by toad on Oct 5, 2007 20:20:44 GMT
OK time to reply to my own post and make a total plonker of myself Keep in mind although I've been into hi-fi for years I'm new to the terminology so I'll just bluff it and you pretend not to notice ok? Deal? Right this opamp is a real roller coaster of a ride. I plugged in the HD595s when I got home from work and was greeted with the brightest sound I'd ever heard. Maybe even Harsh was a way to describe the sound. listening at any decent volume was almost painful. Was this the same amp I was listening to at Lunchtime only a few burnt in hours ago? (I'd left the portable CD player running in a desk draw at work) I dug out the PX-100s unfolded them and slapped them on my head. The result. Audio Bliss. The PX-100s had never sounded so musical. They were so good I dug out half a dozen CDs and played a few favorite tracks. I almost forgot I was wearing a pair of £20 folding cans. The bass was rich and powerful without being over the top. Acoustic Guitars and Vocals were reproduced almost on par with a pair of ful size cans. The soundstage was way wider than the opa2134 and much more natural to my ear. Once again I slapped the HD595s back on my head and was again greeted with a bright blast of music although it seemed less harsh than before. The soundstage was ruined by an unnaturally huge left to right channel separation. About this time the other half came home and I lugged my 2 y/o upstairs and gave her a bath. I then came downstairs and pottered about for an hour or so eating, washing up etc. Meanwhile the CMoy was doing it's stuff through the HD595s. I went back into the lounge and slapped the HD595s back on my noggin and was greeted by music. OK it was still a bit bright but there was some bass in there now and the mid tones were starting to warm up. Mmmmm maybe it's me I thought and reached for the PX-100s. Nope there was the familiar PX-100 bass heavy sound starting to break through what was only a couple of hours previously a fantastic sound for such small cans. 30 minutes with the PX-100s convinced me that the AD823 was having a whale of a time burning in as the bass became more and more apparaent to the detriment of the mids and highs. It was by no means bad just more like the normal sound my PX-100s produce as opposed to the wonderful musical image they had produced a couple of hours earlier. So that's about where I am at now except the HD595s are back on my head and are sounding better and better as time goes on. Things are still not as musical as the opa2134 at the moment but they are getting there. The bass and midtones are much more pronounced than they were and I'm starting to tap my feet in time to the music as I write this. The huge seperation on the channels that the 595s were serving up earlier has been nicely filled by the midtones and overall the improvement in a few short hours has been nothing short of dramatic. Expect another update once the AD823 settles down. Will I keep the AD823 in the CMoy? If things stay as they are then I have to say no. However it's only got about 9 hours on it so far so who knows what tomorrow will bring. toad
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toad
Been here a while!
I am the Super Toad, the Original Toad, the Whole Toad and nothing BUT the toad.... don't forget it!
Posts: 1,223
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Post by toad on Oct 6, 2007 19:14:20 GMT
OK Time for another installment. Most likely the last. I left the CMoy running overnight with a freshly charged pp3 in it and didn't pick up the HD595s for a listen until about 10 o'clock this morning. Hoping for a miracle I plonked them on my head and wow what a transformation. The AD823 had really settled down a lot. It was noticible from the minute I put the cans on. The bass had really tightened up. The detail was still there but there was also a warmth to the midtones that was absent yesterday. The 823 wasn't as warm as the 2134 but I still knew I was going to be keeping it in the CMoy. Just to make sure I popped the lid and swapped the 2134 back in and played a couple of tracks. OMG it was to my ears a no contest. Apart from the slightly warmer midtones the 2134 had nothing going for it. The bass was lacking punch, almost wallowing compared to the 823. The top end was present but details were missing and the soundstage was no where near as wide or natural sounding as the 823. I put the 823 back in the CMoy and left it running returning to it a couple of hours ago. Yet another change. The midtones were now almost as warm as the 2134 and the bass was if anything tighter still. The soundstage and detail hadn't changed but were still excellent compared to the old opamp. It's warmed up yet more as I've been listening to it. In conclusion if the AD823 improves any further I'm going to need a change of pants. Without a doubt this opamp swap has completely revitalised what was already a great little amp. I advise anyone with a Zigis CMoy to at least consider swapping in an AD823. It may be a little bright for some tastes but to my ears this opamp is a huge impovement over the stock OPA2134. UPDATE: OK a few days on and this opamp has really blossomed. The bass is now not only tight but there's a lot more of it (provided you have decent interconnects... My portable sources are a little lacking in bass but I've got a better 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable on order to rectify that.) Mids have warmed up still futher. The amp now sounds even more appealing. The high brightness is less apparent as the bass and mids have filled out bringing a much fuller more natural sound. I'd now say that trying this opamp in your Zigis CMoy is a must. After all what have you got to lose. About £7 + P&P that's what In comparison I bought a OPA2134 for £1.83 The difference shows! The AD823 may work in other well executed CMoys but as it's a faster chip than the OPA2134 it can cause problems.
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