Rocket_Ronny-
> What is the Vinnie mod and what does it $$$$?
Vinnie's site goes into much more detail on what the mods entail, but the short of it is that Vinnie taps into the line-level signal straight out of the wolfson dac and routes it direct to the output jack with Black Gate coupling caps. This eliminates a lot of the crap in the signal path, and really improves the way it sounds (although it's now a line-level signal, like a cd player - hence the need for the amp).
The cost is $200 plus your own iPod, and it's worth every cent of that. There are tons of posts at head-fi.org that attest to this.
> Do you have a link to the website for the amp?
Here's the site for the Xin supermicro iv (just page down a bit).
> I do not know the headphones you use. Can you tell us how they sound, say compared with other phones?
The triple.fi 10's just came out, I only got mine yesterday and I haven't had much time with them but so far I really like what I'm hearing. Bass extension is probably the weakest point (if you're a basss-head, look elsewhere) but the bass is very tight and coherent and the midrange is really nice. There's also a lot more treble extension than with my previous IEMs (ultimate ears studio.fi 3's) so I'm hearing a lot more nuance and detail than I have before. Serious eargasm stuff here. Unfortunately the only other good headphones I've heard are my AKG k27i's (not in the same league as the triple.fi's) and some Sennheiser 650's & 680's that I heard at RMAF and just didn't care for.
> While you are at it, how does all this sound compared to a stock i-pod?
Probably something like comparing the x-ls monitors with your OB's... it's low-end midfi vs. legit high-end audio. The iMod iPod has a liquid, analog-like sound that I prefer to many (far more expensive) cd players, and the amp is a little marvel. My goal with this system was to have audio quality I can live with when my 2-channel system is not available, i.e. when I'm traveling or when it's too hot in my AC-less listening room to be up there. I think I've succeeded.
> Thanks. I have a 80 gig wanting to know.
Unfortunately Vinnie's only doing this on the previous-generation iPods so you'd have to buy one of those to try it.
Randy -
I haven't heard the 5's, but my other headphones are the 3's and the triple.fi's are a pretty huge step up from them. The bass extends a bit lower and it's much more tuneful, the midrange is smoother, and the high frequency response is hugely improved. Way way more detail and air around the instruments. Supposedly the triple.fi's give you 90% of the performance of the custom 10's, but as I haven't heard those either I can't say for myself. I'm definitely liking what I'm hearing though, and it was a worthwhile upgrade for me but I can't say if the same would be true for someone coming from the 5's. Too bad there's not really a good way to demo them before taking the plunge and buying a pair.
Gary
