Since they still are triamping, doesn't an active (or passive) crossover have to occur before the amp stage(s)? Or are they just driving all of the amps full range and letting the passive crossover components take care of it?

no my understanding is the full signal goes to each driver

man I just did a back and forth between the JH13 and the jfetastic amp balanced and the 3a both playing 24/96 files and the 3a just mops the floor with the 13 balanced combo.

I am gonna see if I can get some time with the new amp to compare unfortunately it is also going to mean using demo 16s for the new 3a

By the way, although JH can decide not to support the older model units, they cannot require you to give them back. Just be ready if Logitech decides they want to sue you.

no my understanding is the full signal goes to each driver

If it's sending the same signal to all 3 drivers and just letting the passive component for each driver take care of it what's the point of the 3 amps in the first place?

I really doubt this is the case because they quote different EQ for different settings on the box. I guess time will tell.

Hopefully more clarity will arrive soon.

Didn't get to listen to the JH-3A at RMAF but spent time with it yesterday at the meet and I am listening to it now at home. I was not convinced in meet conditions but now that I am at home feeding it HiRes without all the meet distractions, I am sold.

VPI are the set you are listening to the new ones or the old design with the patent problems? With universal tips I assume?

edit: I see that the tips are universals in the NY meet thread... so I'm guessing it's their marketing pair and hence will be the new format.

Edited November 13, 201114 yr by Dreadhead

I tried the JH3A at Jp's meet and it was good but not nearly enough to justify the expense to me. The JH13's out of the HiFiman 602 and to lesser extent out of the iPhone works just fine for me.

The new 3a has a slight edge over my older unit even though I want to believe my older one is better due to the active crossovers. I fully believe that the older unit with active crossovers could be made to sound as good with eq tweaks.

The seperation the new 3a gets is pretty amazing when you listen to multi track guitar work like LZs the song remains the same each little part is very apparent. Mike glad to see you saved $1800!!

The seperation the new 3a gets is pretty amazing when you listen to multi track guitar work like LZs the song remains the same each little part is very apparent.

Blah, separation, blah, JH Audio, blah, blah, blah.

blah

separation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

blah . . . . . . . . . . . . ... blah . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . blah

. . . . . . . . . blah. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . . . . . . . . . . . . .... . . ... . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . . . . . . . . . . . . ...

Fixed

Edited November 13, 201114 yr by blessingx

I sent my 3A in two weeks ago for exchange for the newer unit & waiting for JHa to get more amps to come in.Hope no issues with quality control.

I was happy with the old unit even with the gain problem. Jps comments on sound quality of the newer units makes me happy.

Since I am selling my Big Speaker rig I'm toying with the idea of putting together a nice portable rig. Since Headcase is the known home of the JH Audio mafia I decided to ask here. My primary source (Mobile) is an iPod Classic and at home it is likely to be one of several D/A’s (PWD, Exemplar Audio 25.2, EAD DSP5000) or maybe SPDIF in to the 3a.

The systems I’m considering are:

1. JH13 or 16’s with a Fostex HP-P1
   
2. JH3a
   

I am a little confused as to the feature set of the 3a. I believe that it would have to use the analog out from the iPod, yes? Otherwise I’d need some kind of iPod dock like the Wadia 170i but portable (does such a thing exist?) to give me a spdif for the digital in of the 3a.

I’ve been trying to nail down the differences between the JH13 & JH16. I’ve tried going to peoples profiles to determine what full size cans are favored by the owners of the 13’s and 16’s so that I might extrapolate which model I might prefer, but most owners of both models are headphone collectors and therefore list many different full size cans.

So I would ask JH13 and 16 and 3a owners what are your Favorite full sized cans?

And considering that I will be using an iPod classic with all Lossless files which solution do you think would give superior results:

iPod > Fostex HP-P1 > JH13 or 16

Or

iPod > JH3a ----------------- With potentially adding an iPod to Digital SPDIF converter at a later time (too much money at this time)

And how would these setups compare to some beats by Dr. Dre? Or maybe some Quiet Comforts?

The 3a setup should sound better than any conventional amp. I compared directly the new 3a to a Hifiman HM801+Pico Slim, and the benefits of the 3a, especially in regards to imaging and spacial cues, were undeniable.

The JH16's have a bit more in the low bass, which is not an issue with the 3a, as that bass hump is controllable. When used with a normal amp, the JH13 is closer to "neutral," though even it has some built-in bass hump around 50hz, which I find beneficial to the overall listening experience (as an in-ear).

The beauty of the 3a is no need to spend money on the D-A portion of the chain (if it will be your main system). If you still need analog out to other devices, the point is moot.

I haven't used regular headphones much at all, lately, so I'm not sure my thoughts on headphones from two years ago would be terribly relevant to your buying decision. The best I've heard lately are the SR009 and LCD3, but again, I doubt you have, so again, rather moot.

The word moot is terribly underrated IMO. Very skillful usage there Peter (not sarcastic).

I have just plain old jh16s. Love them. Haven't heard any of the new stuff.

Thanks for the input. I have heard the SR009's and the LCD3 so the point was unmooted.

I am waiting for my 3a to come back to me I received my shipping notice for monday delivery.

I would go with the 3a ,for two reasons with the adapter coming out for the JH16s you can use it striaght out of your classic or use the analog input of the 3a with a lod to your classic.I use a Imod with my 3a using the analog input for portable.

.

The 3a using the spidf with your stationary components will raise the bar in sound Quailty.

PLus you can use the usb input with your laptop which I use.

Only downside to the 3a is battery life,about 6hrs when using it as a portable.

Sound quality alone the 3a is pretty damn amazing for a portable setup.

... the 3a is pretty damn amazing for a portable setup.

Thanks Tom. I'm leaning towards the 3a. I'll give Beth a call next week. Still does the 3a really need the qualifier "for a portable setup"?

Thanks Tom. I'm leaning towards the 3a. I'll give Beth a call next week. Still does the 3a really need the qualifier "for a portable setup"?

No its actually good enough to be a home setup no doubt about it.

Thanks for the input. I have heard the SR009's and the LCD3 so the point was unmooted.

In that case, the JH3A setup struck me as listening in a studio, whereas the LCD3 was a club, and the SR009 a concert hall. If that makes sense. All excellent technical performers, just differing presentations.

I would agree that the JH3A is certainly good enough for a home system, hell, the JH13 is good enough as mine

I really love my 3a and could be happy with it as my only system. It sounds good fed by USB or a LOD. It is great with a USB to spdif converter like the halide or stello units.

I got my new 3a today with the new adapter cable.have not listened to it yet.

when I opened the package up to check it out ,part of the cables on the ja16s turned green.

When I sent the unit in for exchange the cables looked new,I was pissed and called Jha.

they are going to send me out a new cable,not sure if they switched out the cable with another one by mistake.

I went to listen the 3a for the first time today & the 3a is DOA,green light on after charging it no lights on the front of the unit input selector on on switch.

I can hear the amp turn on but no sound.The 16s with the adapter cable work on my SR71b.

This is the 3rd time I have to send back the 3a on my dime,I liked the way the unit sounded I sent back other then the gain issues.

This is the third strike with the 3a & I am requesting a refund.

This time was the straw that broke the camels back.

That blows, Tom. I hope you get your money back quickly.

It is beyond my comprehension how a small company would go out of it's way to screw things up like this. Sorry Tom, hopefully you'll get your money back soon.