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Spider Cable Realvoice In-Ear Headphones

This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com

I'm a bit of a curmudgeon when it comes to the word "voicing." I want neutrality; I want absolute transparency; I want to hear exactly what's on the disk, nothing more nothing less. Problem is, it rarely, if ever, happens. Pretty much every headphone I've ever heard has its own character. I'm pretty sure most headphone makers shoot for neutral and miss; the resulting "voice" is a bit more random than by design in most cases, I suspect.

The folks at Spider Cable say they were shooting for a "voicing" with an "emphasis is on strong…

Spider Cable Realvoice In-Ear Headphones Page 2

Inside the Realvoice, you can see the slightly angled driver from the rear. Also note the small acoustic filter on the rear cover port.

Sound Quality and Intended Application
I'll quote Ronny Tsai, President of Spider Cable, on the intent of the Realvoice IEM:

"We didn’t name our earphone 'realvoice' by accident, it can represent singers’ true voice." The Realvoice IEM was designed to bring out the natural timbre of the human voice. Given my penchant for neutrality, and vast experience listening to "voiced" headphones that sound miserable, I was highly suspicious. Well, color…

Listening #204: the New Garrard 301

Some loss of innocence is expected with both age and experience. Because I tick both boxes, and in spite of my best efforts to the contrary, I'm often a bit blasé in the face of new review samples. I wasn't with this one.

A brief recap: At the 2018 High End show in Munich, UK-based SME announced that they had taken steps to reintroduce the classic Garrard 301, a transcription turntable that's been out of production for more than half a century (footnote 1). At the time of its introduction—production began in 1953—success for the British-built 301 was instant. It was also enduring; it…

Listening #204: the New Garrard 301 Page 2

The 301 fastens to the plinth with four bolts that pass down through its cast-aluminum chassis; the chassis is isolated from the plinth with thick, pliant washers, both above and below the wooden slab—here is the explanation why, in all the photos we've seen of the new 301, there appears to be a slight gap between the motor unit and the top surface of the plinth—and the bolts are secured from beneath with thicker-than-average nuts, just as I've seen on most original Garrards. I wasn't surprised to note that those nuts were scarcely more than finger tight, given my own observations that the…

AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt USB D/A-headphone amplifier

Unlike the world of recorded music, where streaming has decimated sales of physical products, book publishing is seeing the reverse trend: sales of eBooks are declining while those of both hardback and paperback books are recovering. I have been a book junkie all my life—the two long walls of my listening room are lined with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves and I have many boxes of books in storage—but these days almost all my book reading is with the Kindle app on my iPad mini.

Before I retired at the end of March 2019, most of my eBook consumption took place on the subway as I commuted to…

AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt USB D/A-headphone amplifier Page 2

I replaced the NightHawks with the brighter-balanced Audeze LCD-Xes I bought after reviewing them in March 2014, and despite the apparent incongruity of using $1500 headphones with a $300 D/A headphone amplifier, the pairing worked well. The double bass solo on Bill Evans's rendering of "Green Dolphin Street" (from Some Other Time: The Lost Session from the Black Forest, 16/44.1 Qobuz stream from Resonance Records) was reproduced with solidity and low-frequency weight; Evans's piano was way forward in the mix but didn't sound overly aggressive even when I played the music loud.

As you…

AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt USB D/A-headphone amplifier Specifications

Sidebar 1: Specifications

Description: Portable, USB-powered, MQA-capable digital-to-analog converter with StreamLength asynchronous USB code. Supported operating systems: Apple OS 10.6.8 and later, Apple iOS 5 and later, Microsoft Windows 7–10, Android 4.1 and later, Linux capable (no support provided). Sample rates supported: 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96kHz. Digital input: USB Type A, male plug. Analog output: three-conductor, 3.5mm phone jack. Maximum output voltage: 2.1V RMS into 10k ohms or higher; 16 ohms minimum headphone impedance. Supplied accessory: AudioQuest DragonTail USB A-to-C…

AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt USB D/A-headphone amplifier Associated Equipment

Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment

Sources: Roon Nucleus+ server; PonoPlayer, AudioQuest DragonFly Red, iPad mini.
Headphones: Audeze LCD-X, AudioQuest NightHawk, Ultimate Ears 18 Pro.
Cables: Headphones: manufacturers' own with AudioQuests; Nordost Heimdall with Audezes. AC: manufacturers' own.
Accessories: AudioQuest Niagara 1000 Low-Z Power/Noise-Dissipation System.—John Atkinson

AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt USB D/A-headphone amplifier Measurements

Sidebar 3: Measurements

I measured the AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 "As We See It"). I performed a full set of tests with WAV and AIFF test-tone files played with Pure Music 3.0 on my MacBook Pro running on battery power, and on my iPhone 6S using a Lightning to USB adapter.

A Drok USB tester (footnote 1) indicated that with no signal being passed, the Cobalt drew 50mA of current from the host's USB port, compared with the Red's 30mA. (Both measurements are ±5mA.) So while the Cobalt's microcontroller chip draws less…

GoldenEar Technology Triton One.R loudspeaker

The GoldenEar Triton One.R is the successor to the original Triton One (footnote 1), improving on that model in both appearance and function, with features that first appeared in the Triton Reference.

Externally, the Triton One.R is a 54" tall by 8" wide by 16.65" deep tower that appears even slimmer than those dimensions suggest. In lieu of the sock-like fabric covering used on GoldenEar's less expensive speakers, the One.R, like the Reference, is finished in a high-gloss black, with large rectangular grille-cloth panels on the lower portions of each side and a curved, full-height front…