The official amp buy list should be: JDS Labs Atom, THX AAA 789/788, RME ADI-2. (Honorable mention: Cayin IHA-6)
The Atom is perfect until you can get your hands on a THX amp, itās clean and powerful, even drives my Argons. RME has a great DAC and tons of features, 1/4 and IEM outputs. The Cayin is a fine amp, but not worth the price honestly, the Atom is almost as clean as the 789, so I would stick with that.
DAC buy list: Enog2 Pro/SMSL SU-8/RME ADI-2
I would just get an SMSL SU-8 until you can afford the ADI-2. IMO, there is very minuscule if not non-existent difference in sound between any decent DAC. The only reason to get an RME would be for the features, otherwise it aināt worth it.
Zeos always spending all my money. Got the 788, Geshelli, and 789. All amazing. You know what? It never ends and i wouldnāt want it to. Hearing and trying new gear is a privilege. Many thanks.
Hmmmā¦ I currently have the THX 788 as my Office desktop systemā¦and the THX 789 is sitting on a shelf not being usedā¦ I may have to swap them out, but I donāt feel like dragging my balanced DACs to the office. But the THX 789 is the ābetterā amp when paired with a better balanced DAC such as the ADI-2DAC
Current setup is ADI-2DACā>Phonitor XEā> headphone of choiceā¦
The Phonitor X/XE is the big brother to the THX-78Xs also I find the Phonitor slightly less fatiguing which is a surprise because the THX amps are damn near perfect, especially for the price!
It essentially dials up the THX 789 to 10, at least for me. Aesthetically very pleasing to my eyes, really enjoy the VU meters. Sound wise power by railā¦ does not color the sound, and has lots of power. Couple of quirks include needing to pause your music playback if swapping a lot between headphones using 1/4" I still do this even with balanced.
Lots of really cool features and pairs very well with my ADI-2DAC. My Solid State of choice. Tubes my favorites are the Bottlehead Crack, and the Cayin Ha-1a MKII.
Count me among the many who are giving up on this and going with the Monolith 124459. There wonāt be sufficient stock of the 789 until 2022 at this rate, if ever. The DAC portion is just icing on the cake for me.
Phonitor xe is in itās own league - would be my endgame if I had the budget and more so wife acceptence
The analog crossover function is unbeatable. The 3db balance correction is fantastic and so much headroom. ā¦ everything should have a vu-meter - love it
Questyle CMA 600i or 400i (without analog inputs) is my reasonable choice under 1000 for beeing available in germany unlike 789 - preordered the drop last time but 15tsd in the pole position. ā¦
I think the 788 is the better bang for the buck if you donāt have a balanced DAC, but if you have a capable DAC the 789 is just slightly better amp overall.
Also the difference between the two is minimum. The 788 has some odd quirks, such as the interface can take getting used to. Also the volume pot is digital and takes getting used to.
The 789 has a much nicer āfeelā to the physical interface
I have the THX AAA 789 with the SMSL SU-8. I also have the Monoprice THX portable. To be completely honest, anyone waiting on the Massdrop unit should just buy the Monoprice. Donāt get me wrong, I love both units but the portable is sooo good for only $279, just go get it now! They both sound amazing and the Monoprice has more than enough power to drive anything. I never move my 789 out of low gain. Itās almost too much. You canāt go wrong with either. I donāt think Iāll ever buy anything non-THX in the future.
It will be interesting to see how the FiiO AM3D THX module compares. Ordered this rather than the Monoprice mainly because I didnāt like the volume knob in Zās review, I also just think the Q5/Q5s looks a little neater.
If i get the THX 788ās would that really be enough to power my Argons effectively? Wouldnt I need a stronger AMP if say, i purchase an HP thats even harder to drive than the Argons? USD 249 is indeed a great deal for the quality of this amp but only if you have cans which are very efficient in my humble opinion.
Argh. I dunno if I should get one - Iām generally happy with my Liquid Spark right now, my DAC is okay but not in the same class as a SU-8ā¦ but then again as an amp the THX is that good.
Also why does everyone want to pair the THX with a balanced amplifier in the first place? I get that you want to use the balanced outputs for increased power, but not clear to me what the benefits of a balanced input would beā¦
Its USD 400 for this amp alone on Drop. The AMP & DAC combo from Monoprice is around USD 475. Granted the monoprice combo has lower power but i really dont see that many HPs utilizing the full capability of the 789ās. Not to mention, Drop delivers to very select countries/regions.
I have to agree with what someone said here that an amp not easily available shouldnt be set as a standard of comparison. How can people compare products when they cant personally experience/try them. Just my 2 cents.
