Here you go - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1NUtUluBUxQRRTw7uqGdvTF4hSAU2UkrmODxXYmF1BEY/edit?usp=sharing
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I just added an EQ pregain input which you can use to adjust for that if you use EQ/replay gain, etc. It nicely illustrates why something like an LCD2C that needs a lot of selective boosts might do fine on a phone without EQ, but struggles with it.
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@Torq - Have you auditioned the ampsandsound Kenzie / Kenzie Encore. I have an Encore, and just bought a second base Kenzie. Excellent tubed amps. Reasonably priced.
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The Pendant (number 8 in his list) is made by ampsandsound.
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The Pendant is fairly new. Curious if he tried the Kenzie or Encore. I bought my Encore from Zach.
Iāve tried both the Kenzie and the Mogwai.
Theyāre nice enough amplifiers and, as you say, at reasonable prices for what they are.
The original description of the 1626 being a āpoor mans 300Bā didnāt turn out to be true for me, however, and itād have been one more type of tube to mess about with beyond stuff I was already familiar with, for no particular benefit over the Pendant, and not being as good (again, for me) as the Stratus.
The noise floor was also higher than I was happy with - which is somewhat down to the tubes in use, but again - not having sets of appropriate alternate tubes around to play with - it was case of auditioning them as they were equipped.
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Thanks for the reply. I really like the AS Kenzie line of Darling amps. My second will come today or tomorrow. Options for the input tube are 2c52 and 12A_7 (socket adapter required) optionsā¦lots of them. 12B4A (adapter required) gives the output side more power. Tubes are plentiful. I find them quiet enough. I might have pulled the trigger on a Mogwai SE, but as you indicated, it would be another group of tubes to manage, I have a bevy of vacuum tubes for the Kenzie, and my Audio Horizons Tube Bufferā¦ Cheers.
Of the ampsandsound amps the Pendant has the lowest apparent noise floor, IIRC, to the point that Zach told me he would take it back if it had any that bothered me.
The next quietest is the Mogwai SE which has been revised over time to be even quieter. I have a very low tolerance for noise, so outside of the Pendant, I was hesitant about ampsandsound amps when I was looking for a tube amp. A lot of people really enjoy them though.
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The Pendant was functionally silent with the cans and tubes I tried it with (which included the stock tubes, so no post/pre purchase faffing about required).
One of the first things I do with any amplifier is a noise-level test. That involves playing 1 kHz test signals at -30 dB, -60 dB and -90 dB, turning up the volume until the test tone is just barely audible, stopping the tone playback and seeing if I hear any noise or hum.
Kenzie and Mogwai only passed the -60 dB tests with high-impedance cans.
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High impedance being 300 ohms and greater?
200 and 300 ohm nominal impedance.
In other words, LCD-4, Sennheisers and ZMF dynamics.
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A few thoughts/comments ā¦ mostly based on questions Iāve been asked over the last couple of weeks ā¦
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No, I am not starting an audio-related site, blog, forum, YouTube channel, Instagram or Twitter feed of my own.
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In terms of audio sites ā¦ I only post on this forum, Head-Fi, SBAF (though not in the last year and a half) and Audiophile Style/Computer Audiophile (maybe 5 times total). So, if you see the username āTorqā in use somewhere else, it is not me.
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I have no intention of starting posting on Reddit or ASR; I donāt even read those sites.
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I donāt regularly watch, nor follow/subscribe to, any YouTube channels, Instagram or Twitter feeds. So, I canāt give you a list of such.
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No, I really donāt want to join your new, āhas three members, including youā, audio site, forum or Discord*.
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And, as mentioned before, I probably wonāt respond to private requests for gear feedback or comparisons/impressions - that time is better spent on responses with a wider audience - so ask such things in the appropriate thread and more people can chime in.
*I only mention this so you donāt ask and then donāt get annoyed when I either donāt respond (because Iām not paying any attention) and to save me āpolitely decliningā, because I am spending much less time in online communities rather than looking to spend more.
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Will you join my admin team on my new site?
Itās called Audio Sciencey Graphs and Review Drabble. Or Asgard.
We review audio graphs mainly. Not the product, just the way the graph looks and how itās constructed, use of colours, clarity of the lines, appropriateness of the axis scale, things like that.
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No, I want him to join my site: Piggyback Bliss. Itās where content creators upload their content and bring eyeballs to my ads.
Heāll never catch on! 
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I already have Piggyback Bliss too. Itās where Torq sees how many amps he can run off one DAC by piggybacking RCA adapters.
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If you were subjectively reviewing those graphs I might be interested, but with objective people I just canāt seem to find common ground. 
I can find the + terminal, but not common ground.
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Ian,
Iām kind of late to the farewell party but I just wanted to once again thank you for your valuable contributions to our niche community. Your patience, knowledge, leadership, stewardship and wisdom kept this forum as friendly, useful and fun as one might wish for.
To be honest, I canāt really thank you enough for the guidance you provided on my audiophile journey and thanks to you Iām a proud owner of gear that makes me enjoy and get lost in the music.
I wish you and your wife a blissful world travel, fulfilled with fun, memorable moments and experiences. If you happen to sail around South Africa (Cape Town), hit me upā¦If Iām around, we might have a glass of wine or dive with some sharks.
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Itās hard to put into words my process. But Iāll try.
I started out by printing out Amirās graphs, A3, in colour. Then I rate them based on smell, taste, mouthfeel, temprature (straight off the printer) and face feel. From that point I have a pretty solid understanding of the enjoyment level and value for money the product has to offer. Without even listening to it.
If that isnāt objective, I donāt know what is @ProfFalkin
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10 Favorite IEMs (Provisional)
Bear in mind that I have no where near as broad experience with IEMs as I do with any other aspect of the personal-audio hobby. Iāve still heard a lot of stuff, but its easily the area in which I have the least experience.
Also, itās worth know that, until recently, IEMs were something I only did if I had no other choice. Which pretty much meant mobile use (i.e. walking or on a plane) or in situations where I simply couldnāt take anything larger with me.
- 64Audio - tia FourtƩ
- Unique Melody - MEST
- AAW - Canary
- qdc - Anole VX
- Empire Ears - Zeus XR (ADEL)
- Shure KSE1200/1500
- 64Audio - U12t
- Campfire Audio - Andromeda
- Sony - IER-Z1R
- Etymotic Research - ER4-XR
The provisional aspect is that I am not sure if I prefer the tia FourtĆ© or the MEST, more, at this point. Both have advantages and desirable traits vs. each other. But if value was a factor, itād be the MEST. And I will probably wait to draw final conclusions until I have a custom-fit set of the MEST as well, which is ways out.
Other thoughts ā¦
I really wanted to like the most recent round of Empire Ears stuff. Unfortunately the bass region is just too much and/or lacking control for me on the higher-end models (like the Legend X), and the stuff where the bass was more inline with what was my preference/was better controlled lacked in other areas. Fatigue (due to pressure) was also a factor vs. the top three IEMs on my list above - I liked it better when Empire Ears had ADEL as an option.
The KSE1200 needs EQ to not be obnoxious. The DAC in the KES1500 is not great (certainly not up to the abilities of the IEM itself). So I tended more towards the 1200 fed with something that had its own EQ.
The packaging/delivery/unboxing and overall non-listening experience with the AAW Canaries makes EVERYTHING else on the above list look like cheap shit.
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10 Favorite DAPs (Digital Audio Players)
I tend to use DAPs in two situations ā¦ for (trans)portable listening, and on my deck. They are not my primary means of listening by any stretch of the imagination, even if some more recent models have managed to attain serious desktop-level rigs in terms of quality.
- Cayin N8
- Astell&Kern SP2000
- Sony NW-WM1Z
- Astell&Kern SP1000M
- Lotoo PAW Gold
- Cayin N6ii
- FiiO M11 Pro
- Sony NW-WM1A
- Astell&Kern AK380
- Calyx M
Some notes are in order ā¦
The N8 vs. SP2000 is a VERY close-run thing. The N8 takes the top spot here because of its ātubeā output option. If we compared just the solid-state outputs, then I like the one on the SP2000 a little better. And the SP2000 can do on-device streaming, which is a big plus for general usability for me.
But most of my (trans)portable listening lets me tie the DAP to a laptop or computer and still stream, so the N8 just takes the cake. Take that option away, itād be the SP2000 ā¦ because as nice as that tube output is (and it really is quite seductive) ā¦ its no use if I canāt get access to the music I want to listen to!
I still have a soft spot for the WM1Z ā¦ and its battery life is amazing. But it finally started to show its age with the SP1000M level stuff, which was smaller and sounded better, and had a more fluid interface coupled with on-device streaming capability.
The Lotoo PAW Gold has great performance, but the UX is rather lacking. I havenāt had enough time with the newer āTouchā version to comment on it - so itās the original I am referencing here.
The Calyx M is quite a special player, sonically ā¦ but the UX was a total clusterfuck. To this day I am not sure if it just didnāt randomly decide where to navigate to regardless of what you touched.
iBasso didnāt make the list mostly because I got so pissed off with their earlier players randomly failing to index my music library (handled without issue by EVERYTHING else) that I swore them off for life.
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