Tag Archives: Amp

Review of the Creative Sound Blaster E3 – A Versatile Portable Amp

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Before getting into this review, I would like to thank Creative for sending me the E3 for review.
It can be found on their website and on AmazonUK for around £100 & AmazonUSA for $130.

For full specs – visit Creative’s website.

Creative E3 - Top view

The Sound Blaster E3 sits in-between the E1 and E5 in terms of price point. I was thus curious to see how it performs for its price and more so interested to see how Creative were able to push through all their features in the small-factor size, without impacting the sound quality.

Before continuing the review, here”s my video review of the E3:

Let’s get on with the review!

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Firestone Audio FireyeHD Amplifier Review – A good contender

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First of all I would like to thank Firestone-Audio for sending me the amp for review.

The FireyeHD Headphone Amp costs: $130.00 / £170 / €200 and is available from:
–Firestone-Audio
–Amazon USA

Written review:
As I live in the UK – the review will be based on the product costing £170.

Packaging & accessories:
The FireyeHD headphone amp is a beautiful piece of kit, that comes in a nice little package which is quite simplistic. The amp includes a USB cable to charge the amp, a 3.5mm to 3.5mm interconnect to connect it to your given source and a charging wall brick.
I should say, that despite me living in the UK, Firestone Audio sent me a EU plug – thus I wasn’t able to use the wall charger at all. I don’t know if they provide a UK wall charger, but I would presume they would do so. Other than that, the amp came with what I would have expected from an amplifier package. It would have been nice to have had a little carrying pouch included for the FireyeHD as it is designed to be a portable amp.

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Impressions & Thoughts on Open Back vs Closed Back Headphones – Sennheiser HD800/700 & Fostex TH-900

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Introduction:

I’ve always been fascinated about audio and when I get the chance to hear new products, or even old products that have always been on my mind – I jump on the opportunity.
I recently was lucky enough to demo the Sennheiser HD800/700’s & the Fostex TH-900’s at P.J. Hi-Fi, a high-end audio shop located in Guildford. Before I get into my impressions, I would like to thank Andrew Holt for allowing me to spend as much time with these three headphones and more so being an extremely professional individual. I had a great chat with him both before and after my listening session; I found what he said really spot-on and honest. P.J. Hi-Fi is mainly a speaker/hi-fi shop, however they do store these three high-end headphones.

The headphones:
–Sennheiser HD700 : £500-700
–Sennheiser HD800 : £900-£1100
–Fostex TH-900 : £1100-1500

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Review of the Epiphany Acoustics EHP-O2D Desktop Amp – An Outstanding Amp and DAC

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Pros: Sound quality, near perfect transparency, DAC functionalities, driving capabilities, design and look, small size, price
Cons: Power adapter, usb wire length

Build Quality: 10/10
Design & Look: 10/10
Functionalities and ease of use: 10/10
Audio Quality: 10/10
Value: 10/10
My final Rating: 10/10

Purchase Date: September 2012
Purchase Price: £190

I first of all would like to thank Oliver at Epiphany Acoustics for selling me the EHP-O2D at a reduced reviewer discount price. I purchased this Amp/DAC combo after wanting a something better than my soundcard (at the time it was a Asus Xonar D1, which has now been replaced with the Xonar DX on my new 2012 built PC) for my headphones. I did quite a lot of research whilst thinking about DAC combos and the EHP-O2D not only caught my eye due to its capabilities, but also due to the fact that it was built based upon NwAvGuy’s specifications.

The EHP-O2D can be directly purchased from Epiphany Acoustics.

EHP-O2D - Front Facing

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