🔷 Burson Soloist 3X

Equipment / Electronics / Gear / Accessories [Official] Headphone Amps
61

I just got my Soloist and love it. I can’t wait to pick up a Super Charger now!

62

i’m starting to understand their claim of charging the capacitors twice as fast and i never thought this amp was “running out of steam” in some songs (after the :30 bass slam and onward in kill jill by big boi) but just wow its so much more held together. i initially thought that was a bit of bass overlap in the song but it absolutely is not. noise floor is substantially lower than my a90 now (both high gain and max volume attenuated by my passive preamp volume knob) and that was honestly one of the only reasons i’ve kept the a90 around other than the no frills/no fun perfect flatness.

3 Likes
64

Well just got this email:

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Burson Soloist 3X Grand Tourer - 10Wpc Headphone Amp / Preamp

https://www.bursonaudio.com/products/soloist-3x-grand-tourer/

The GT is a result of collaboration between us and every audiophile who loves the Soloist lineage. It tackles engineering challenges and rejects industry assumptions.

The resulting Soloist 3X Grand Tourer is nothing the industry has ever seen before. It is a new level of musical experience.

Main Features:

  • Inside the GT, there are two independently powered mono amps outputting 10Watts pc for headphones. They are placed in mirrored symmetry to achieve the highest possible channel separation.

  • Five sets of Burson proprietary Max Current Power Supplies. (MCPS), Each tuned to maximise performance, so much so that they need active cooling.

  • Combining a new resonance-free enclosure with the quietest cooling fan money can buy, the GT is quieter than the ambient noise of an empty recording studio.

  • To eliminate cross channel interference, each channel has its own MUSES72320 + V6 Vivid discrete buffer volume control.

  • It can emulate speaker listening through three levels of hardware-based headphone crossfeed.

  • Its preamp allows the volume of each output to change separately. We call it soundstage centring for speakers.

  • The GT also allows Headphone + Subwoofer listening.

Limited production:

Due to a global shortage of IC chips (The GT uses two MUSES72320 and a range of controller chips and quality components), We can only produce a limited number of Soloist 3X GT in 2021. So get in quick and pre-order the GT before it runs out.

Ship from Early November 2021
MSRP: 2499USD shipping worldwide

Pre-order Offer + a free Cool Stand:

Webshop Link: https://www.bursonaudio.com/product/soloist-3x-gt/

2249USD + 55USD delivery* worldwide

2 Likes
65

yeah i saw that and it hurts. it’s calling me.

1 Like
66

the spread on selling the 3xp and buying one of these is too much of an L for me to take now. But is a product I will be watching in coming year or so.

67

looks like it takes a 24v 5a power supply so the super charger won’t work on it. i’m guessing they’re gonna release a super charger 5a sometime soon to go with it.

68

I asked them to compare the GT against 3XP… I asked about the SQ benefits and about the power supply; their response:

Thank you for your email and for your interest in our Soloist 3X Grand Tourer.

The Soloist 3X GT has a high output and its power supplies are tuned to about 10 times harder than the Soloist 3XP

Regarding its performance, It has a higher channel separation hence lower cross channel interference and noise.

It also has a lower output impedance which can match more power amps.

The power supply that comes with the Soloist 3X GT is bigger than the one that comes with the Soloist 3X Performance.

69

When you asked that, did you mention how it compares to the Soloist w/ a Supercharger?
I can guess maybe soundstage and blackness will improve but it seems to me it might be similar more or less.

70

Nope based upon the response it seemed like I was getting canned sales responses. I wanted to know specifically what I should expect for improvement with the TC over the standard 3XP. I also asked if the GT included the upgraded power supply or if they were going to be selling that as an ad on. The response I posted is what they sent back.

1 Like
71

Nice to see the addition of the Noctua fan. They make really solid and quiet fans for the PC.

I am currently using a Vornado desktop fan a buddy bought me for the Soloist. Works great. I had also purchased the stand for the unit: (What is great about this fan is if you hit the blades with your fingers or a cable it just slows down since they are soft nylon)

72

I think it’s interesting to have an active cooling solution like a Noctua fan inside the case and right on top of the circuitry.
Wouldn’t the fan induce EMF interference? It is a spinning flux inducing machine. I’m sure Burson would’ve thought about it but hmm…
Isn’t there a reason why Class A, heat exhausting amps all have passive cooling instead of a fan?
I have never seen an amp with fans inside.

73

Per Burson:

The power supply included in our Soloist 3X Grand Tourist is a standard 24V/5A power supply.

We don’t have a “Super Charger” for the GT at the moment but it is on our to-do list. But even with the standards 24/5A PSU, the GT is many times better than even the Soloist 3X-P. : )

75

This is just a guess but it probably has to do with form factor. A bunch of those class-A passive amps are not small.

76

True, I guess more surface area means better heat dissipation but if an active solution is way more efficient than passive as shown by CPU coolers, just weird that more amps aren’t doing the same.

77

i think that their reasoning is that the soloist 3xp doesn’t need the extra cooling and that it doesn’t make enough heat to hurt itself with the passive fins of the enclosure. yeah, it runs hot, but blowing that heat around isn’t going to do much i’m guessing. heat cycles are usually more detrimental to lifespan than just raw operating temperature alone. mine stays on 24/7 to avoid heat cycling and long ass warmup times. most other amps aren’t pushing full class a and don’t get nearly as hot (and most don’t pull 24v@3a and 5a on the gt is literally 66% more power draw)

1 Like
78

Usually because a (potentially whiny) fan inside an amp causes complains from customers.

In power amplifiers (for PA or cinemas, etc.), it is quite common to find (temperature controlled) fans.

1 Like
79

Yep. Audiophiles want their rooms dead silent and fan noise is antithetical to that.

And they can be LOUD. Back in my days of running PA systems I sat next to a rack full of QSC and Peavey amps and yes, when their fans kick on it can affect what you hear from the stage. I eventually had to rig up a system where the amps were moved underneath a platform that was boosting my chair.

1 Like
80

Hi guys! Can anyone compare the soloist vs the g111?

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81

I messaged burson about getting a sample of the soloist gt. If they decide to send me one im gonna do the whole 9 yards for a written review. Might even do a video review. I don’t want to get my hopes up but oh God I would love the chance to review the big boy soloist. I imagine based on the sound signature of the 3x that the GT could easily be my endgame headphone (and active speaker) amp.

82

what are some of the bigger differentior beetween the SA-1 and the Soloist you feel like?