Disconnecting headphones before power-off and only reconnecting them after power on really has nothing to do with the type of connection. This process is done simply to avoid power-on/power-off pops/spikes/etc. from damaging headphones.
The only difference is that, with a true balanced differential amplifier, there’s the potential for four times as much energy to get dumped into the headphones vs. the same amplifier via a single-ended connection.
There is a more pronounced difference in the case that you’re connecting and disconnecting headphones with the amplifier already powered ON. Specifically, TRS plugs tend to momentarily short the connections as they are inserted - where as 4-pin XLR cannot do that.
So on something like the Phonitor X or XE, it’s a very bad idea to connect/disconnect 1/4" TRS terminated headphones with the amplifier running. At a minimum the volume should be set to ZERO, and better still engage the “Mute” function. Failure to do so can, and has, resulted in the magic smoke coming out of the unit. Where as there’s no issue with the 4-pin XLR connection.
Phil_Bog, I am so sorry to hear that you have lost such an expensive headphone! I know the feeling can be a lingering trauma that really dampens your enjoyment when using the same piece of gear. You will likely have to sell or return the Burson just in order to regain relaxation and enjoyment with your hobby.
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In the past year, I have had two headphones burn out from amplifiers. Topping L30 and Schiit Magni Heresy. In both instances I was inserting TRS plugs into the headphone connection. Having been an audio enthusiast for over thirty years and a headphone collector for twenty, I am shocked that the occurrence of headphone burn up has become too common.
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A great number of today’s amplifiers are quite powerful compared to what was available twenty years ago. Along with this increase of power output, the inherent risks of headphone burn out and blow out have also increased. I hold an exception with Headamp amplifiers, as they put out loads of power and have had a long positive track record. I trust Headamp as they seem bulletproof and exude solid high quality that reassures me that my headphones are safe. My Singxer on the other hand, is a relatively new amplifier that I love but has not earned my trust yet.
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I do not fear inserting four pin XLR plugs while amplifiers are powered on. However, I think that my days of plugging and unplugging TRS plugs on powered amplifiers has come to an end. I do not want to lose any more headphones.
I appreciate your condolences. RIP Left Channel, who is survived by his brother, Right Channel.
I’ll be returning the Burson and don’t anticipate any trouble - the dealer I bought it from seemed like an excellent guy, and I only bought it eight or nine days ago. As for the Susvara, the dealer I bought that from is getting in touch with the UK Hifiman rep to establish the best course of action for me. Hopefully it’ll all be taken care of going forward. I know a lot of people say that you need a speaker amp to experience the Susvara in its final form, but even with the GS-X Mini, it presents an incredibly lifelike sound that can’t be unheard.
I’m not trying to disparage Burson, and I haven’t been turned into some sort of raging anti-Burson avenger by what has happened. I totally appreciate that many people will have a good experience with this amp. However, I felt like this is the sort of thing that others who enjoy and invest in this hobby should probably know about, so I thought it was an important thing to share.
Just as a final note on this whole torrid tale, there’s a happy ending in sight.
It’s so long to the Soloist, which is going to be refunded by the dealer as soon as they receive it back.
The UK Hifiman rep has very graciously offered to replace my Susvara with a new pair which will be coming from him in the UK, so I won’t have to wait for my damaged ones to reach China.
Yes, balanced. I wasn’t wearing them at the time, I just powered on the amp and heard a pop come from them as they hung on their stand. Put them on and discovered the terrible truth.
As a point of reference for Susvara use, I found that high gain and the volume set to 50 was a loud but comfortable volume with the Soloist. Using the GS-X Mini, I could match the same volume using high gain and about 10 o’clock on the volume knob. I used a sound level meter to establish that they were the same volume (a peak of about 84db with the test track I was using).
My unit was also affected by the non-linear volume increment issue that others have described.
So sorry you made the same experience as me.
My FC were repaired by Focal free of charge and Burson sent NEW opamps for the Soloist.
I guess we both got lucky in the end. Anyways, the Bursons are good products. Maybe we just got a bad charge of opamps.
Those things can happen. As long as the manufacturers react in a good way as they did, all is well. Burson and Focal service have been nothing but nice and supportive so far.
I just wanted to check in and be counted as a very satisfied Burson customer. I purchased my soloist earlier this year from HiFi Heaven. No issues for me and am very happy with the unit. I do have the volume jump at 52, but I use it in power amp mode and control volume with my RME. So I don’t care about that. I do unplug my headphones every time I am done using it and turn it on before plugging anything in. I also make sure nothing is playing when plugging/unplugging. I have never heard any strange noises or pops. The amp has treated my Arya and Empyrean well.
I’m sorry to hear about the bad experiences, and I would definitely be upset if my expensive headphones were damaged.
Those of you who have tolerated talking to me on this forum know how picky I am about products.
I have to say, at least temporarily, this disqualifies burson from purchase for me. And I literally posted a few minutes ago how connecting it to a cayin n6ii r2r sounds like a dream combination.
I hope burson is watching/reading this and addresses it. Having had the he6se v2 die while connected to the topping a90/d90 stack (and it appeared to be the cup just dying, no popping or anything. stopped while playing), I still returned all of it.
The occurrences among this small group, and across too large of a time window, is not promising. Torq is right about the stats. This just put my second choice into first place (currently audio gd nfb1).
In light of last week’s hot topic, I thought it would be useful to ask Burson directly for additional data about these issues and share it here. I asked them two main questions – how widespread the ‘headphone destroyer’ issue is and why they recommend that specific method of unplugging/plugging headphones.
For the ‘headphone destroyer’ part…
"There have been one or two cases of headphones being damaged due to a badly soldered part on the main PCB. These are one or two out of a lot of Soloist 3X we have produced and in each case, we have replaced the customer’s headphones.
Please use our Soloist 3X with confidence as our QC is second to none and we’ll continue to look after our customers as we have done in the past. In many cases, we have looked after customers well beyond their warranty terms."
For the unplugging/plugging method (re:connect headphones before power-on/disconnect headphones after power-off)…
"Regarding your questions below. It is always better to disconnect something when the electronic is switched off. You won’t want to disconnect speaker cables while the power amp is live and the same goes for high power headphone amps such as the Soloist.
We also recommend removing the headphone jack after each use so that the spring mechanism inside can return to its natural state. This won’t make any difference initially but it makes a difference to the quality of connection after many long years of use."
Unfortunately, most of the response here isn’t as thorough as I had hoped, but this is what I got.
You received a textbook public relations (PR) response. Exactly how many items comprise “a lot” of Soloist 3X? Luxury brands (e.g., BMW) sometimes resort to more generous warranties when problems arise and when they can’t/won’t address reliability.
However:
Bad soldering = poor QC.
Forgetting to include a volume knob = poor QC.
Typos on the website = poor QC.
Still, don’t blame small vendors for having to put out many fires and struggling on some fronts. These kinds of issues affect technology companies from small to large. I’ll wait and see if similar issues persist over time before buying their products. Some vendors have persistent problems for decades, so I don’t buy from them.
This is really the issue. The only thing we can do is hold off purchase and watch. Of course, in the audio world, that really probably means “find something else that fits the need”. But, I agree, while this is a standard PR response, I don’t know that there is anything they can say that will mitigate the issue in the short term.
The fact that they take ownership and deal with the headphone losses is a huge plus. I know many companies that simply don’t take responsibility for their mistakes.
For me, if it proves to be 1) not as common as it currently appears and 2) they have a strong reputation of fully fixing the problem, I will get over it.
I always say: It’s not if a product has problems (all of them do), it’s how the company deals with them that makes a company good or not.
The X factor for me, is how long/how many good reports do I need before I am comfortable to spend money on it. I honestly don’t know the answer to that question.
Received my Conductor 3X Reference today. It sounds very nice. Controls are a little clunky, but I’m learning new controls, so that should smooth out. Breaking it in with my old Sennheiser HD595s.