There is plenty more. like Rupert Neve and other brands, but Rupert stands out the most for the likes of Phonitor and does not have issues.
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Interesting, I will look further in to the RND unit. Thank you very much for the suggestion
Much appreciated Tyler. I know 2 that use the HEDD and one uses the RME ADI-2 Pro and the other uses the HPA4. They are prominently on speakers and I will be traveling mostly. I know another that uses The Dave
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Yeah… all great options! Just comes down to budget and what you will be looking to get out of it.
RNHP is decent but might not power all your headphones properly. But would be a good portable solution. But if going for portable I’d look at something of an AIO like RME ADI-2DAC
Mastering friends use the following:
Phonitor X if not using software for cross feed
Bryston BHA1 primary
Budget options they recommend or use:
Any of the THX or Jotunheim (though Jot leans warm)
Also might be worth looking into Lake people amps 
Hope that helps!
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Again, Im grateful. I was looking at the Bryston and even considered the Pass Labs but know the Pass isn’t brutally honest. Any chance to have a brief video chat, Tyler?
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IMO the THX amps might be best for brutal honesty, as the higher-end products may not lead to the fatigue that THX can invoke.
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Thank you so much for the follow up @generic yeah Im not removing the HPA4 off the list that quick. Too much praise for it and one of my mastering mentors has one
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I think for serious mastering work you should have either the Phonitor or the HPA4 to cover the high-end potential, PLUS a THX amp too. This would parallel your headphone mix (i.e., HEDD, LCD-XC, and HD650). The THX amps correspond to the price range of the HD650.
I happily use a THX AAA 789 with the HD600 – the headphones don’t seem to have the potential to pick up on the worst of the rough edges of the 789. But oh boy, the 789 can have rough edges indeed!
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Yeah, those 2 are my first choices unless someone had something that they felt very strongly about and I would happily check it out. I will be relying most on the HEDD and the LCD-XC and need to be able to make final calls on these cans and not waiting until later when Im home to make final calls. Thanks again for your time. It’s appreciated very much
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The “One” series is now available. I looked over the manual and there’s no mention of having to take precautions other than being off when connecting to other devices or having volume at a minimum when powering on/off.
They seem to have raised output impedance to 20 ohm to protect the amp circuitry?
Would be interesting to see a comparison between this and the SE and X but there isn’t a whole lot of interest in the SPL line unfortunately.
Hi,
I am wondering if anyone has compared the RME ADI FS Black Face in Stereo headphone out mode to the X/XE, my understanding is that this headphone out configuration ups the output on the RME to close to the SPL units? Any thoughts? Thanks
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Are you asking if the RME as a stereo out with headphones is as good as the Phonitor X/XE? Just want to make sure I have the question right as I have both on my desk right now and I can try and see if I can tell you my experience with them 
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Hi, What I am asking is if the Pro FS model when used in stereo wired as in the diagram below, does this close the power gap between the SPL and The RME, I understand that the SPL is a better amp but I am wanting to understand if this RME usage improves the performance and by how how much?
RME Pro FS with dual 3/4 power = * Max power @ 0.001% THD: 2.9 W per channel
SPL Phonitor power =
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So, weird thing: about 4 weeks ago, after a summer of dead XE VU meters, the VU meters suddenly started working again out of nowhere. And they seem to work fine now upon various testing.
The only thing I can think of is they decided to take a summer vacation.
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Random guess - could it be something to do with humidity, with the needle sticking or something? (I know nothing about these things).
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Ok, so for those who might have an interest: I finally received the relevant info for the balanced outputs of the Phonitor 2:
- Output impedance: 75Ω
- Power rating: SPL has no measurements available, but state that it “has less output power than the Phonitor X and XE”
I guess that effectively rules out the balanced outputs for low impedance, current hungry planars like Abyss.
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Someone on YouTube recently stated that they simply contacted Focal Naim for a new replacement front panel for the XE and they were sent that free of charge. I sent a request to Focal Naim and they said they’d check on that. I haven’t gotten a response yet but I’ll post the answer when I get it.
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Hey friends! I hope you are having a wonderful Sunday. Just released, I hope you enjoy.
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You do the best 10 minute reviews out of everyone out there. Somehow you managed to fit in all the facts about the amp, comparisons and recommendations for usage in such a short time. 
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