Waiting for it to warm to room temperature before plugging inā¦
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I almost bought one of these last year, but the switching power supply was a bit of a turn off. Seeing all these posts about using a LPS really makes me glad I did. Is this a big issue, or an overblown one?
BF > balanced > Solosit 3xp > balanced T1.2nd
If I use med or high gain with balanced headphones out I hear a hissing noise. Also, using the balanced and SE headphones out sounds different, the balanced sounding warmer and the SE sounding brighter.
Yes, in my experience the balanced connection works best. The SE sounds a bit V-shaped and harsh, while the balanced sounds smoother and sweeter.
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Itās definitely possible to put too much power into dynamics. I read somewhere that the soloist puts out like 1.2w at 600ohm in real world testing which is way higher than advertised. I actually use the single ended for most of my dynamics to avoid the hum.
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I recently received my 3XP with supercharger. Iām using zen dac with it (SE connection) and Iām waiting for SMSL D1SE to arrive
First dayās impressions:
āMy zen dac makes me dance, my SW51 makes me dance and cry, my soloist 3XP makes me question reality. Why do most people even like this kind of sound?ā
I donāt even want to describe how bad 3XP sounded before I realized that it was powered by a surge protector that was powered by a surge protector that was powered by a mains outlet. Guess no one should power amps like that ever. Noob mistake, I get it
2nd dayās impressions:
āThat still makes no sense. Does it require burn-in or better dac or r2r dac or balanced input to shine and become holographic and impactful and emotional? Or am I fucked by the tube gear to the point where I need to forget about solid state amps for good?ā
After I plugged it directly into the mains outlet, the sound became a lot better, the low end and dynamics emerged. But I still prefer my zen dac over it, because to me it sounds more organic and for me SW51 is in a different league. So many people have said that 3XP sounds more holographic than most tube amps. I guess they are just crazy. With all my headphones 3XP sounds like an Asgard 3 on steroids - smoothened everywhere, flat and unimmersive. Iāve tried using SW51 as a preamp for 3XP, but it didnāt synergyze well. If D1SE or different op amps, or burn-in wonāt help, I guess no more solid states for me 
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I wish I could help you but I found none of what youāre describing. Iāve tried dozens of SS hp amps and the Soloist is just the best I have found (in the given price range) for my personal tastes. Iāve heard plenty of tube amps and own 2 but canāt say Iāve ever even heard of the SW51 (had to google it).
I mean if youāre into gooey tubes then yeah SS may not be for you. For me powering directly from wall or my surge protector didnāt change the sound that much.
I did prefer the Sparkos op amps to Vivids but I still enjoyed it in the stock setup. Perhaps tube hybrids would be a better solution for you.
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I feel the same. I only have 3 days with it. My supercharger hasnāt arrived yet though. I think the soloist could replace my G111 to run my t1.2nd but not the RNHP.
Something that bothers me is that the bypass mode (balanced and SE) sounds similar to the SE (not in bypass mode). It sounds more clear not as warm as the balanced.
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What headphones are you using and did you let it warm up first? Thereās a big difference in how it sounds warm
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Thatās weird. I didnāt hear any difference between having 2 hours of warm up vs zero warm up. Iāve tried HD Zeus, TYGR 300r, kph30i with 3xp
yepā¦ I typically let the Soloist and Holo Spring warm for about an hour before use. Itās probably gtg in 30 though.
I havenāt tried the soloist with many dynamic headphones that arenāt high impedance like a t1.2, 880/990 600ohm and hd800s. For my 177x I still use my a90 cause theyāre just too easy to drive but theyāre the only low impedance dynamics I have left. Not sure if maybe thatās the issue.
Iād be very interested in your G111 vs RNHP vs Soloist comparison.
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RNHP soundstage is not as wide as the other two. The RNHP is studio forward. Mids front vocals take center state and are well separated. Vocal sound tiny but with a 3D effect to it. I find it impactful, not the bass the presentation overall. BF2 and RNHP is a killer combo, almost everything sounds good so far (t1.2nd okish but not great). Best timber of the two.
G111 brighter with more bass than the RNHP. Soundstage is wide. Vocals are a little loss in the mix. Not as clear as the other two. The bass is not as tight but have more amount. Better stereo separation than RNHP (RNHP can sound closed in with layers).
Soloist 3xp seems wider than the G111. The soundstage have more height compared to the other two. First time I tried with the SE out, I thought it was more detailed and brighter than the G111 ( going back to the G111 it sounded muffle.). Then I run it balanced out. It sounded way warmer. The cymbals are really dial back. Going to the G111 from balanced out, the G111 sounded brighter. Vocals are really good in this one. Better separated with more 3D effect than the RNHP. It have good musicality wide and relaxed.
Overall Iām just testing the soloist 3xp. I have only used the t1.2nd SE and balanced. Going to use the balanced out for a few days and then go back to SE or bypass mode. I am waiting for the supercharger (which I bought from burson audio, will probably take about two weeks).
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Nice! I donāt really know much about balanced (which HPs can be ran balanced and which canāt etc ( except for things like the Argon Mk3)) so I think Iāll go with the RNHP for now. I can get it at its old price (price was raised 1-2 weeks ago) which is also nice if I decided to sell them. It did sound pretty (mid-)forward to me as well which should compliment most of my HPs.
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Burson Soloist 3X GT vs Burson Soloist 3X P
Revisited after DDC installed
Tracks and testing using the following:
Headphones: HE6se V2
DAC: D90se
Amps: Burson Soloist 3X GT vs Burson Soloist 3X P
DDC: Duok U2 Pro
Chain: PC > USB > Douk U2 Pro > HDMI > I2s connection on D90se > One Little Bear switcher > to each amp
TLDR
The Soloist 3X GT does the following better over the Soloist 3 XP:
- Improved layering and depth
- Better spacing (It is taller and wider)
- Improved Bass. It is a bit tighter
- Improved tonality
- Sound is smoother
- Vocals are clearer and less harsh
Tracks used for testing:
Silk Sonic - Skate
- GT has more vertical stage height in the sound
- GT has more depth
- GT bass is tighter
- GT vocals are clearer, less harsh
- 3XP sounds a bit more muffled or maybe smear when the track gets to busy?
Trapped by Bruce Springsteen (live recording)
Passion for sound - (track he used for comparison)
- There is better spacing in the GT (Think of this as the space is taller and wider)
- Sound is smoother on the GT. Vocals are clearer, less harsh
- The tonality is better on the GT.
Example: He mentions the sound of the woody sound of sticks hitting the drum and how there is a different tone in the hit. On the 3X it is more of a ātinkā instead of a āthunkā sound on the GT if that makes sense.
Free - Alright now
- Vocals are smoother on the GT. They really standout better on the GT. It is easier to pin point where each singer - is in the room.
- Tambourine that is playing is has better tonality on GT
- Snare drum that is playing during the track is tighter on the GT
- Better spacing on the GT once again. The room seems larger on the GT vs the 3X P
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Nice work, Sir. The work presents well. Iām taking it in, nowā¦
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Thank you this breaks it down very clearly!
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Alright, it took me a while to figure this amp out
First, it is a somewhat sensitive dude. It should be called the singleton instead of the soloist. It sounds best when powered by a separate breaker, and it has medium tolerance for neighbors or surge protectors. So, you have only one breaker available? Let me seeā¦ I sense that you have some lights - turn them off, the burson shines bright enough with itās oled screen. So, you have a nice noisy fridge, full of food? Food is overrated, just turn it off. Oh, you have a nice big tv and a beefy gaming pc? I know you have one, just plug them somewhere else. Well, you get the idea 
. But what about ground noise, wonāt I get plenty of it? No matter how Iāve connected it, Iāve never heard a single drop of ground noise, while most other amps would have been choked by the noise with these connections
Next, the tonality tuningā¦ Itās not ordinary. I was shocked by that for the first couple of days. With itās stock tuning highs and lows are about 5db recessed compared to most other amps Iāve heard. if you have a bright chain and canāt or donāt want to EQ, then this is the perfect amp for this kind of chain. For example, itās great for native DSD with bright headphones. Because of this excessive mid-forwardness, with stock tuning, this amp produces quite a small but deep soundstage; it sounds like a deep narrow tunnel with artificial depth with most headphones. Once Iāve reEQed everything back to my preferred tonality, which is Harman, the change was enormous. Cymbals gained their lost volume back, stage became wide and airy, holographic and natural sounding, dangerously close to my tube amp while being a lot more transparent and way more powerful
This amp probably should not be paired with excessively smooth dacs, because the sound will get too smooth, especially bass
Transient speedā¦ just perfect - it can produce both impactful bass and speedy highs just as well. Hi-rez sounds quite impressive and low rez sounds well
Separation? Youāll hear it all. There isnāt any unnatural amount of air between instruments, so stage is organic, while every instrument is well defined within itās space
I have a soloist / composer stack. I purchased some black friday sparkos op amps. Iām happy with what I have now ā¦ other than would like a wider sound stage. The composer is pretty laser focused and wall of sound like.
I use the soloist in power amp mode and control volume with the composer in pre out mode.
If I roll in a couple of these sparkos op amps, where would the best place be to open up the sound stage a bit
Thanks in advance for any input