Pushing back against the Pono critics

[kumakuma]

I strongly recommend that if you have headphones that you are using with the Ayre Player that can easily be used with a balanced cable, try it in balanced mode. Obviously I can't guarantee that you'll hear the magnitude of improvement that I'm hearing, but it's absolutely worth a shot.

 

Sounds like a compelling reason to buy one for some. Are there any other portable players in this price range that support balanced output?

[Mystic]

I strongly recommend that if you have headphones that you are using with the Ayre Player that can easily be used with a balanced cable, try it in balanced mode. Obviously I can't guarantee that you'll hear the magnitude of improvement that I'm hearing, but it's absolutely worth a shot.

 

Very compelling... I've decided to get some for my HD650, I just got to find a dealer here. I'm looking at the Cardas ones.

[beetlemania]

HOLY MOLY!

 

What does balanced mode give you? Lower noise floor, wider and deeper soundstage, maybe a little better transient response, beautifully tight and extended bass, dead-on instrumental timbre (to cite only one example, I can't remember ever hearing Lee Morgan's trumpet on "Moment's Notice" sound better on any mobile device with any headphones), maybe a little bit less of the "edge" that some people claim is characteristic of DACs built around ESS Sabre chips.

 

 

Where's your expectation bias, man? Didn't you read the gospel, oops, scientific edicts handed down from Gizmodo and something called "ars technica"?

 

[Please note the sarcasm font.]

[cgiammona]

I bought the balanced cables from the English Audio site and they are quite good.

 

Ultra low capacitance balanced cable for connecting the HD650 to the pono player

[burnspbesq]

Very compelling... I've decided to get some for my HD650, I just got to find a dealer here. I'm looking at the Cardas ones.

 

Try HeadRoom; that's where i got a balanced cable for my HD 800. Or Moon Audio.

[burnspbesq]

Where's your expectation bias, man? Didn't you read the gospel, oops, scientific edicts handed down from Gizmodo and something called "ars technica"?

 

[Please note the sarcasm font.]

 

Sarcasm noted, and appreciated.

 

In all seriousness, If anybody wants to explain how to do blind testing of IEM cables I'm all ... no, im not going there--that's a terrible pun.

[Mystic]

New firmware with support for DSD was just released. Installing now.

[fritzg]

I'll be very interested to see how the DSD implemented.

[Mystic]

I'll be very interested to see how the DSD implemented.

 

The DSD works fine although I have noticed it won't completely play back long songs. For example I copied Rush "Hemisheres" and Pink Floyd "Wish You Were Here" and it didn't completely playback the songs "Cygnus X-1 (18:09)"and skipped to the next song and it completely stopped playback before the last song "La Villa Stragiato (9:38)". Also "WYWH (13:32)" it skipped to the next song about a minute in. Not sure way this is, maybe someone has an answer?

 

Also, JRiver has to release a new version of the PMW software as it converts DSD files to flac when copying to the device. Instead transfer the files directly and ignore using PMW.

 

Just a few bumps that I'm sure will be ironed out.