The best sounding audio integrated opamps

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leeperry

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Joined 2007
this guy said it helped on his soundcard: Burson Audio Blog: Auzentech X-Fi Prelude 7.1 upgraded with Burson Opamps

I was indeed getting VERY random pops on OPA-Earth, and Slash47(who modifies Prodigy HD2 cards w/ bursons professionally) said that it'd be a good idea to add decoupling caps anyway(even on IC's)...soundcards might just not be as high quality as you thought ;)

but indeed, I've never got pops with IC's and my intermittent bleeps are history since I've gone singles on browndogs..great news!

I'm afraid the soundcard won't be beefy enough w/o a final buffer to feed my Burson HA-160 headamp, though...but time will tell :)

it's got a built-in buffer like this thing, so maybe that'll still work: 6moons audio reviews: Burson Audio Buffer

and my extra AD797BN and browndog's have just been shipped :)
 
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Andrea:

Banned
Joined 2009
leeperry said:
this guy said it helped on his soundcard: Burson Audio Blog: Auzentech X-Fi Prelude 7.1 upgraded with Burson Opamps

I was indeed getting VERY random pops on OPA-Earth, and Slash47(who modifies Prodigy HD2 cards w/ bursons professionally) said that it'd be a good idea to add decoupling caps anyway(even on IC's)...soundcards might just not be as high quality as you thought ;)

but indeed, I've never got pops with IC's and my intermittent bleeps are history since I've gone singles on browndogs..great news!

I'm afraid the soundcard won't be beefy enough w/o a final buffer to feed my Burson HA-160 headamp, though...but time will tell :)

it's got a built-in buffer like this thing, so maybe that'll still work: 6moons audio reviews: Burson Audio Buffer

and my extra AD797BN and browndog's have just been shipped :)
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What a stupid thing that Burson audio buffer :shy:


Anyway no worries, the headphone amp surely has a high input impedance enough for your soundcard even with the buffer bypassed - which I don't recommend doing, because you might be bypassing some low-pass filtering, which would mean that inaudible dirt from the D/A conversion would be amplified and reach your headphones' voice coils freely :)
 
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leeperry

Member
Joined 2007
the buffer is said to sound really good! and anyway it's built into the HA-160, so that cannot hurt :)

no glitches so far, ah well maybe I'll try 2*1363 as final buffer for the hell of it...my browndog's have been shipped, so I'll try the 1028ACN8 anytime soon.
 
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Andrea:

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leeperry said:
OMG! :eek:

I've added 2*1363CS8 on a browndog as final buffer...need more time to evaluate, but this sure seems promising :p
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It surely is a good solution for a unity gain line level buffer. :)

If I should get the NG94, I'd like to use my two LT1028ACN8 Browndogs for the I/V, followed by the LT1363 Browndog for the line output buffer. While in the headphone amp gain stage I could put a LME49725. I said IF :p:spin:
 
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Andrea:

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Joined 2009
Maybe it would be more clever if I did those little final things on the SVDAC05 to make it as good as my creativity gets :)

And then I'd buy a separate headphone amp, so that I can finally do justice to my poor forgotten HD650. One of my two DACs could feed the headphone amp exclusively. Hmmm...good idea :)


Ah, naturally... a headphone amp with an opamp in the signal path :)
 
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leeperry

Member
Joined 2007
well that's what I told about for my soundcard:
Check out page 35 of this if you want to know how the opamps are configured on the HD2: http://www.asahi-kasei.co.jp/akm/en/product/ak4396/ak4396_f00e.pdf

Basically the first two just add drive (and thus dynamics) to the signal and the second one sums the plus and minus for unbalanced out. (That is very much in layman's terms, for the technicalities you can read the data sheet in the link.)
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1363 is indeed very nice...it doesn't seem to kill the AD797B SS like the 1028CS8 did, it's distorted and sounds tubey...but it sounds "good" in the end, vocals are amazing on the 1363/1364 :)

adding a final buffer does some LPF and increases the low end impact :)
 
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A

Andrea:

Banned
Joined 2009
leeperry said:
well that's what I told about for my soundcard:

1363 is indeed very nice...it doesn't seem to kill the AD797B SS like the 1028CS8 did, it's distorted and sounds tubey...but it sounds "good" in the end, vocals are amazing the 1363/1364 :)

adding a final buffer does some LPF and increases the low end impact :)
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The LT1028CS8 is much more like an open window on the recording than the LT1363 is. This applies to its ambience reproduction, too. The LT1028 is a much more capable opamp. But I won't deny that the LT1363 is pleasing and pretty good in its own right. I didn't find it to have such a big soundstage personally...the LT1677 is more of a soundstage opamp..


Regarding the way the opamps are configured in your soundcard...

Well, the first stage looks pretty much useless stuff. Instead the second is necessary, both as a summer and as a low pass filter. In sum, do not bypass it :)
 
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leeperry

Member
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if you remove the first stage, you can't hear a damn thing...they're mandatory for proper operation.

well I'll try the 1028ACN8 no worries, my browdogs should arrive early next week :)

the 1363 is indeed colored, but it has a very high PRAT...need more time to decide, and anyway, I wanna try 6*AD797BN :p
 
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Andrea:

Banned
Joined 2009
leeperry said:
if you remove the first stage, you can't hear a damn thing...they're mandatory for proper operation.

well I'll try the 1028ACN8 no worries, my browdogs should arrive early next week :)

the 1363 is indeed colored, but it has a very high PRAT...need more time to decide, and anyway, I wanna try 6*AD797BN :p
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Well, you would have to study the schematic to understand how to bypass the first opamp stage. But I think I wouldn't do it...I'd just fill it with some quality opamps :)

It's an occasion to pair different opamps that sound something like "complementary". So...I don't think that all-AD797 is the best thing you can do. :) Better AD797 & LT1363, or AD797 & OPA1611... if the AD797 is working properly in your soundcard, of course. Otherwise I suggest trying OPA1611 & LT1363...
 
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Andrea:

Banned
Joined 2009
leeperry said:
1363 really has that holographic sound...it's a real pleasure when fed w/ the 797 :)

yep, gonna try 1611/827/1028acn8/1677 etc etc ;)
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If I were you I'd add to the list the LME49725 :)

Let me suggest that the LME49725 in the first stage, with the LT1028 or the OPA1611 or also OPA827 on the output, could do a lot of good to your soundcard, as I have my reasons to believe. :)
 
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Andrea:

Banned
Joined 2009
I forgot to say... In my little headphone system, I've replaced the cmoy (OPA132UAized) with my Little Dot Micro+ ...and I like the sound! It's smoother and more 'flowing' than that of a cmoy whatever the opamp used. I'm not saying it's better overall... but it's an interesting change. I need to listen better. Anyway this little headphone amp uses the MAX9724 opamp, powered by a lythium battery that lasts loooong...
 
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leeperry

Member
Joined 2007
Andrea, I very much agree w/ what TI says about the 1612...most dual op-amps make a big blurry mess of the 2 channels. and they don't say that 1612=2*1611, they say that they kept the crosstalk at the lowest possible level...clearly not the same thing.

Germania says she prefers her cmoy, YMMV again :D

Why does my CMoy sound better than the Little Dot Micro+ ? - Head-Fi

what headphones do you use?
 
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