Iron_Dreamer

I tried them hands-on at CES. The two when put together do feel quite well integrated, the connection was not loose at all. It's a nifty setup, if slightly kludgey. I agree that a one-box solution would be more elegant, and possibly smaller. The Hugo 2 was where I was more impressed with audio performance, and it looks like they have solved some of the easily broken connectors of the original. However, despite being "higher power" according to the designer I spoke to, the headphone amp doesn't cut it compared to the Pico Power I had on hand. I found it odd that the main designer/engineer kept trying to impress upon me that the headphone amp was capable of driving speakers (all the statistics on it were quoted into 8ohm loads, rather than a more typical headphone impedance), and ignoring how it performed with actual headphones. Chord certainly can build a DAC, but their integration with the headphone world is definitely still a work in progress, IMO.

I'll be busy HeadAmping during meet hours, but I am definitely excited that we have a good contingent for NYC adventures. Here's a couple of spots I haven't seen mentioned, that I enjoyed on my last NYC trip, not sure if they will be convenient to any of our activities, but though to mention them: Big Alice Brewing, Long Island City - Super chill little brewery, great smoked saison, several different good sours, and more. Met the owner, a laid-back guy from Wisconsin, who was very accommodating, and opened a bottle of their gin-barrel-aged anniversary beer for me and my companion to try, even though it wasn't on the menu. Really enjoyed this spot. City Hops Beer Store, 60th and 2nd - Think SF's city beer in miniature. Maybe 5 bar seats total. High-quality small taplist and friendly staff Augur's Well, East Village - I really liked the tap list and vibe at this place, they were pretty focused on local stuff mostly unfamiliar to my west coast ass, and I had a few amazing beers here. Ginger Man is of course pretty close to our meet location, and has a great beer selection, if being a total clusterfuck both times I have visited.

Also happy belated Bday Adrian! I hope you are well!

Cheers and happy birthday big Mike! I hope we get a chance to hook up in Chicago in April

Merry happy birthday, Ken!

With Shelly and Michelle at Highland Park Brewing!

Hey guys, @justin and I are excited to make our first offer on the burgeoning deal site Massdrop: it's the Original HeadAmp Pico DAC/Amp! https://www.massdrop.com/buy/headamp-pico-portable-dac-amp Get in soon, to save up to 50% off the retail price of $499. This is a limited-time, limited quantity deal, and once the Picos at this price are gone, they're gone. The Pico DAC/Amp uses an ASRC to upsample signals of 16/44 and 16/48 to 24/96 before converting them with a well-regarded Wolfson DAC chip. The Pico DAC works without drivers on Windows and Macs, and works on some Apple iOS products when paired with a camera connection kit, and select Android devices with an OTG cable (have used successfully with Samsung Galaxy S4, and Note 4). The Pico DAC/Amp also accepts analog signalson its' 3.5mm input jack, making it simple and easy to pair with DAP's and smartphones. The two-way gain switch allows the amp to comfortably drive low-impedance IEM's all the way up to high-impedance cans like the Sennheiser HD600 series. Featuring HeadAmp's legendary fit, finish, and attention to detail, the Pico is a work of both art and science, designed to give you great sound for years to come.

I'll be there... Obviously Sent from my VS990 using Tapatalk

We've got the HE400i on sale for $249 also (we sold out on Amazon). http://www.headamp.com/order/hifiman-he400i-planar-magnetic-headphones/ To sweeten the deal, Head-Casers can use the coupon code headcase10 to take 10% off any headphones on our website, excluding STAX.

I guess that depends on what you mean by influence. Influential in terms of people seeing these photos, sure? Influential in terms of these photos shaping photography itself, some yes, some not so much. I think any number of photos/photographers have been more influential on the art form, itself.

Most influential? It looks more like most newsworthy. Any number of incredibly influential photographers are entirely absent from that list. It reads more like a list of the most well-known photos from major news events of the last ~200ish years.

Happy #brithday JP#'s!!! Cheers!

Just buy an HE400S. Better transparency, easier to drive, more comfortable / lighter. No need for this ancient headphone in Massdrop clothing. Sent from my VS990 using Tapatalk

Thanks, everyone. Michelle and I had a blast in Vancouver last night (highlight being the Shameful Tiki Room), and enjoyed wonderful scenery driving north to Whistler today. Beers in Portland tomorrow then on towards home. Sent from my VS990 using Tapatalk

Really? I've only ever heard one connected to a BHSE/009 system, and I thought something was broken. Soundstage was completely collapsed.

Happy Birthday Vicki! I hope we see you again sometime soon, and that all is well!

Indeed! I am clinging to my Verizon unlimited account, and sometimes use it to stream Tidal at meets/shows for days on end. I've used 10GB in a weekend doing just that! [emoji6] T-Mo has unlimited streaming for Tidal/Spotify/Netflix/etc. **BRENT** Didn't know they're exempting Tidal now! That's awesome! Sent from my VS990 using Tapatalk

Indeed! I am clinging to my Verizon unlimited account, and sometimes use it to stream Tidal at meets/shows for days on end. I've used 10GB in a weekend doing just that!

My Surface Pro 3 i5/8GB has been an excellent machine, and I wouldn't have any qualms about getting another one. For the size, it's an amazing amount of compute power that does a good job even on all bu the heaviest photoshop work.

I'm using a Dell Precision M3800, now discontinued, but the successor model looks to be about 1lb lighter (Precision 15 5000 Series). If you're going to end up needing even more graphics power, then you get into the heavy true desktop replacements.

I actually listened to these headphones on Friday. They are very quick and detailed, but smooth, with a somewhat forward presentation. I preferred them greatly to the withdrawn, distant sound of the HD800S I compared them with directly. There seemed to be a slight dip in the lower mids that made male vocals feel a little buried, and the bass punch was not to the level of the best planars. Soundstage size felt a bit limited for a TOTL headphone. They are fairly heavy, but clamping force is light, and the pads are well done, so I didn't notice any comfort issues. Overall, the detail they produce puts them in a very high class, and it's all personal preference from there. They wouldn't supplant the HE1000 as my personal favorite headphone, but they may be just what others are looking for.

Yeah, I've been crazy busy, and remiss to post this outside Facebook yet. I have something special up my sleeve for the d-_-b crowd! Sent from my VS990 using Tapatalk

Justin's giant boxes of headphone fun are on their way. Wish I were going to be there with y'all. Special extras we put in: Sent from my VS990 using Tapatalk

Happy birthday! Don't spend it ALL at redline in the Cayman!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TL;DR