Joined: Nov 2011 Gender: Male Posts: 368 Location: Belgium
Ouch! ;D « Thread Started on Jan 10, 2012, 9:32am »
It's been a month now since I received the XPA-2. Because I live in Europe I had to pay lots more for it than the normal price (FedEx shipping, 4.5% duty fee, 21% VAT...) so in total it was just over 1051 to be precise. Still, I feel like it was worth even several times more than that! This amp is so big it makes me want to travel to the U.S. to visit Alice Cooper's restaurant and order myself a "Big Unit".
So then, how's the sound it gives? Well, I have connected it direct, i.e. using nothing more than a good quality screened and gold plated RCA cable, to my DAC. The DAC is the Eastern Electric MiniMax DAC Plus and I have applied an easy tweak to it, which is to just remove the vacuum tube from it to obtain an even much better quality sound than it already offers out-of-the-box (Mr. Bill O'Connell of Morningstar Audio has publicly stated this tweak has been confirmed by the designer of the DAC, Mr. Alex Yeung, to cause no potential harm).
My Windows 7 / Intel Atom netbook is plugged into the DAC using just a cheap USB cable (it being cheap has absolutely no effect on sound quality because the USB interface of the DAC is asynchronous, anyway). The volume control is handled within foobar2000, a free-to-use software which can run the DAC in exclusive mode so Windows does not interfere with sound quality (I am using ASIO4ALL for this). The DAC does not have an in-built volume control (and neither does the XPA-2) and, like I said I am not using a preamp. The digital attenuation of foobar2000 combined with 24-bit input on a DAC is better sound quality than an analogue volume control (because 24-bit audio has sufficient headroom and because the digital volume control of foobar2000 was implemented properly).
The XPA-2 is bi-wired to a pair of Canton Vento 890.2 DC speakers using in-akustik Reference LS-1002 cables, bare wire (not using plugs, on neither of both ends).
Here's what it sounds like. The amount of bass is on the edge of being obscene, it's much and MUCH more powerful than I had been expecting it to be. Ouch! And I do mean ouch, but I mean it in the positive way. It's too good to be true. But it's true nevertheless! The woofers in these speakers have a magnet that's sophisticated computer assisted design stuff. Marketing bullshit or not, I know my ears aren't deceiving me because I have been listening for a month. The bass is perfectly clean and so tight there's no bloom nor "post ringing" effect, just ridiculously detailed even in its deepest regions. This provides backgrounds as black as coal and of course there's no hiss nor hum whatsoever, because it's clean. It's as if someone shouts in your face. Only difference, you want to be shouted at again!
Alright, so then what about the mids and hightones? Don't they just get drowned in all that bass? Nope. Like I said the bass is extremely powerful but it's also so incredibly accurate it never feels like it's trying to compete. The invincible detail in the mids just shines through those coal black backgrounds as if it's the most usual thing to do on Earth. Yeah I know, "brightness" can easily be misinterpreted as "detail"... But nope. The word brightness isn't in Emotiva's dictionary. It's this true honesty that we're after (or at least, I am).
Those mids would not be mids if the extended hightones had messed it up. Ruler flat frequency response that ranges farther than the human hearing does, and at all power levels? Sure thing. It takes only 2 seconds of listening to piano music to know what's in there. The finest detail everywhere, no coloration nor harshness, no fatiguingness and no artificial character. Just that realism, convincingly. Natural. Musical.
The XPA-2 is one heck of a good amp. Not having auditioned it before I made my purchase, I can now conclude the XPA-2 brings out a soundstage and a level of separation unlike anything I have ever heard in this price range and the same thing goes for its wide open crisp detail, neutrality, dynamics and air, as well as its organicity and involvingness. It brings my speakers completely to life, period. In solid state amps, the hightones are often said to be a bit of a weakness. Let me debunk that for you, please!!
Without adding even the slightest exaggeration, my final conclusion goes exactly like this... EMO! EMO! EMO! :dances around in mad circles: EMO! EMO! EMO! :continues to dance around in mad circles:
Joined: Sept 2011 Gender: Female Posts: 79 Location: Between here and there... ;)
Re: Ouch! ;D « Reply #2 on Jan 10, 2012, 9:28pm »
Welcome to the forums yves.
Congratulations on your new amp! The XPA-2 certainly is a superb piece of equipment. You are not wrong about the "big unit", when I got my XPA-2 I really struggled getting the box into my little hatch back car when I had to pick it up from the post office loading dock. It was truly an exciting day though!
Main theater: Pan 54 G10, Onkyo PR SC886, PS3, Carver TFM 45, Emo UPA 7, Polk SDA 2, Polk CSi A6, Polk RTi4 X 4, Velo CHT 10 X 2, APC H15. Bedroom: Sony 40 XBR 4, Onkyo 805, Oppo 980, Emo XDA 1, Emo RPA 2, Polk RTi 10, Polk CSi5, Polk monitor 30 X 4, eD A5s-300 X 2, Belkin PF60. Matrix M stage, AH D2000, HD 650, ATH-M50, ER-6i MY GEAR@ http://s572.photobucket.com/albums/ss165/a1adjz/Gear
Re: Ouch! ;D « Reply #10 on Jan 12, 2012, 4:25pm »
Welcome to the Lounge!
Nice review. And I must give you extra credit for such good English and punctuation/spelling. I'm always impressed with/respect someone who speaks or writes such good English when it's not their native language.
I'm originally from Canada and took French throughout school (many, many years ago) but I wouldn't have a clue how to write a review....this is the best I could do...
Bonjour. Je suis FLCanuck.
XPA-2 - Tres Bon!! J'adore mon XPA-2!
Merci. Au revoir.
....I like your review much better.
Anyways, enjoy your new toy! It still puts a smile on my face when I crank mine up.
Re: Ouch! ;D « Reply #12 on Jan 28, 2012, 4:57pm »
Yves - another Alice Cooper fan! - I live in Tucson, AZ and he DJ's on our local radio station every night (96.1 KLPX). I really liked his music growing up, but listening to his show its interesting that he is also quite the rock historian. I must listen if you can get it via the internet.
Nice review. It's pretty much how I imagined it would sound. Speaking of sound, whats your opinion on the inakustik speaker cable? I've been looking at it for some time now, but never heard it....
Thanks! Honestly, I wouldn't know how the cables affect the sound. Many folks are claiming it's just overkill but others completely disagree so I decided to go for a little bit better quality after all. It's easier to be safe than sorry... I paid 126 in total for 2 x 3 meters, which seemed like a very reasonable price to pay compared to the 3198 that I paid for my pair of Canton speakers. The more I listen, the more I love the sound. That's all that really matters in the end!
Thanks! Honestly, I wouldn't know how the cables affect the sound. Many folks are claiming it's just overkill but others completely disagree so I decided to go for a little bit better quality after all. It's easier to be safe than sorry... I paid 126 in total for 2 x 3 meters, which seemed like a very reasonable price to pay compared to the 3198 that I paid for my pair of Canton speakers. The more I listen, the more I love the sound. That's all that really matters in the end!
Great review! Glad you like your amp. BTW, foobar has the capability to do WASAPI playback on windows 7. You just have to download an extra component and select it under your output section. I use it myself and it is pretty identical, but I thought you might like to know as WASAPI is the new version. Whether foobar 24 bit digitally volume control (with dither) is as good as a proper analog pre-amp however is debatable. Without having facts or experience to back it up, I would have to side with a proper analog pre-amp. I would try a good pre-amp and see if it makes a difference to you first. Hint: They sell a USP-1 on emotiva's website I only say that because of the price you spent on your other equipment, so it's obvious you are after ultimate sound quality. I have their UPA-2 amp, and I am just shocked at how much performance I get out of it and the power for how much I paid for it. One reviewer of some internet publication wanted to say that even the U-series are of such high quality that they can't be considered great amps for the price, but simply as great amps PERIOD So, yes there's some serious quality going to your XPA-2's and you will never lack for power Thanks for the review.
Great review! Glad you like your amp. BTW, foobar has the capability to do WASAPI playback on windows 7. You just have to download an extra component and select it under your output section. I use it myself and it is pretty identical, but I thought you might like to know as WASAPI is the new version. Whether foobar 24 bit digitally volume control (with dither) is as good as a proper analog pre-amp however is debatable. Without having facts or experience to back it up, I would have to side with a proper analog pre-amp. I would try a good pre-amp and see if it makes a difference to you first. Hint: They sell a USP-1 on emotiva's website I only say that because of the price you spent on your other equipment, so it's obvious you are after ultimate sound quality. I have their UPA-2 amp, and I am just shocked at how much performance I get out of it and the power for how much I paid for it. One reviewer of some internet publication wanted to say that even the U-series are of such high quality that they can't be considered great amps for the price, but simply as great amps PERIOD So, yes there's some serious quality going to your XPA-2's and you will never lack for power Thanks for the review.
I have tried WASAPI first. It caused volume actions to be delayed so that's why I switched to ASIO combined with ASIO4ALL, which has completely fixed that problem for me. The thermal noise caused by only 4 inches of your preferred RCA cable using your preferred RCA plugs does more harm to sound quality than changing only the least significant bit in a 24-bit sample stream. So on a 24-bit capable DAC, even an analog volume pot that's more expensive than the XPA-2 amp will still perform worse than properly implemented digital volume control. http://www.weiss-highend.ch/computerplayback/Digital_Level_Control.pdf However, if you somehow manage to accidentally mouseclick the foobar2000 volume slider to 0 dB then I guess it could easily mean the scare of a lifetime. Although I'll add I've seen the LED meters on my XPA-2 go up to as high as 10 on the scale of 12 with these smartass German speakers (without causing any noticeable distortions in any part of the frequency range at all). Anyway, a while ago I decided to write myself a nice little script for WSH Panel Mod component to work my way around the volume safety issue. http://www.hydrogenaudio.org/forums/inde....ndpost&p=785652 I am currently waiting for Emotiva to release the XMC-1 and then I will be upgrading from stereo to surround sound. I can barely wait to find out how well the XMC-1 combined with a pair of Airmotiv monitors or two can blend in with this crazy setup that I already have!
Great review! Glad you like your amp. BTW, foobar has the capability to do WASAPI playback on windows 7. You just have to download an extra component and select it under your output section. I use it myself and it is pretty identical, but I thought you might like to know as WASAPI is the new version. Whether foobar 24 bit digitally volume control (with dither) is as good as a proper analog pre-amp however is debatable. Without having facts or experience to back it up, I would have to side with a proper analog pre-amp. I would try a good pre-amp and see if it makes a difference to you first. Hint: They sell a USP-1 on emotiva's website I only say that because of the price you spent on your other equipment, so it's obvious you are after ultimate sound quality. I have their UPA-2 amp, and I am just shocked at how much performance I get out of it and the power for how much I paid for it. One reviewer of some internet publication wanted to say that even the U-series are of such high quality that they can't be considered great amps for the price, but simply as great amps PERIOD So, yes there's some serious quality going to your XPA-2's and you will never lack for power Thanks for the review.
I have tried WASAPI first. It caused volume actions to be delayed so that's why I switched to ASIO combined with ASIO4ALL, which has completely fixed that problem for me. The thermal noise caused by only 4 inches of your preferred RCA cable using your preferred RCA plugs does more harm to sound quality than changing only the least significant bit in a 24-bit sample stream. So on a 24-bit capable DAC, even an analog volume pot that's more expensive than the XPA-2 amp will still perform worse than properly implemented digital volume control. http://www.weiss-highend.ch/computerplayback/Digital_Level_Control.pdf However, if you somehow manage to accidentally mouseclick the foobar2000 volume slider to 0 dB then I guess it could easily mean the scare of a lifetime. Although I'll add I've seen the LED meters on my XPA-2 go up to as high as 10 on the scale of 12 with these smartass German speakers (without causing any noticeable distortions in any part of the frequency range at all). Anyway, a while ago I decided to write myself a nice little script for WSH Panel Mod component to work my way around the volume safety issue. http://www.hydrogenaudio.org/forums/inde....ndpost&p=785652 I am currently waiting for Emotiva to release the XMC-1 and then I will be upgrading from stereo to surround sound. I can barely wait to find out how well the XMC-1 combined with a pair of Airmotiv monitors or two can blend in with this crazy setup that I already have!
I haven't been able to get my XDA-1 to recieve 24 bit over USB so I havent been able to see whether it has any effect on the sound using a foobar volume control. If you have any clue how to fix this, let me know. However, on 16 bit audio, in a quick test, I felt like I was able to tell a difference in the sound. But I understand those two bit depths are very different in terms of dynamic range. My XDA-1 has a lossy volume control (assumed to be 24 bit) and at low volumes, even though I can't easily point to what's missing, things simply sound better at louder volumes, and this isn't the same deal as loudness = better quality. Interestingly my asus xonar essence st never had that problem and I have to assume it was digitally attenuated too. A few posters on this forums who have XDA-1's got themselves a USP-1 pre-amp and said it does better at low volumes using this method. I'm really not trying to argue, just telling you my experience. I'm glad you have a positive experience with software attenuation. Why waste money when you don't have to, right? We spend entirely too much on our hobby as it is!
As for WASAPI and the volume control change, you are quite right. It takes lots of time for it to change! I always thought it was just my laptop being slow. Ha!
Garbulky, for 24-bit input on the XDA-1 with a higher than 48 kHz samplerate you cannot use its USB connector. Instead, you need to hook it up through S/PDIF, preferrably with a quality coaxial cable. You can get excellent USB-to-S/PDIF adapters such as the M2Tech hiFace 2, Musical Fidelity V-Link and Audiophilleo2 but, personally, I don't need them because my DAC already came with a factory in-built M2Tech OEM asynchronous USB interface that supports up to 24/192 and IMO it just performs better sonically than any traditional S/PDIF communication. The XDA-1 not having any analog volume pot can be seen as a bonus. Just keep its digital volume at 100% and try my script. I think you'll be surprised how good a dithered 32-bit float (or 64-bit float) software volume control can be with 24-bit input on a DAC.
P.S. - I just noticed your post in the "XDA-1 with Windows PC" thread. I'll post there too.
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And I do mean ouch, but I mean it in the positive way. It's too good to be true. But it's true nevertheless! 
The woofers in these speakers have a magnet that's sophisticated computer assisted design stuff. Marketing bullshit or not, I know my ears aren't deceiving me because I have been listening for a month. The bass is perfectly clean and so tight there's no bloom nor "post ringing" effect, just ridiculously detailed even in its deepest regions. This provides backgrounds as black as coal and of course there's no hiss nor hum whatsoever, because it's clean. It's as if someone shouts in your face. Only difference, you want to be shouted at again! 
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