[elnero]

When I first saw the size of the Supermicro IV I was intrigued and now with some of the recent posts regarding it's sonic's I'm even more intrigued but I'm curious about a couple of things. First off how is the thumbwheel volume control, does it offer some resistence when turning or will it easily be turned if accidentally knocked? Second is in regards to the sonics, I keep reading that the mids are a bit tube-like but how is the bass extension and punch? What about overall PRaT? How well does the Supermicro pair up with the E500's? One thing I noticed using an original Porta Corda with the E500's was by the time the channels balanced out it was almost too loud, how is the volume sensitivity and hiss with E500's? Are there any other issues that may be of concern?

 

[mrarroyo]

Voltron1 and I could not find any hiss with IEMs. I had my Ety ER4S and he used his Shure E500 and the UM2. You may want to shoot Voltron1 a PM to get more details.

As far as the thumbwheel some people have reported an issue with it moving while the amp is pulled out of the pocket. IMO if you know of the possibility you can avoid it by being careful while inserting and withdrawal.

 

[mirumu]

In my opinion, the main concern with the E500s is that the highs are slightly rolled off so you don't want an amp that rolls off the highs even more. I'm not sure about the Supermicro but my Supermacro IV (also described as tube-like) had this problem in it's default configuration. I'd hazzard a guess that you'd want different opamps in a Supermicro to really synergize with the E500s.

 

[mrarroyo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mirumu In my opinion, the main concern with the E500s is that the highs are slightly rolled off so you don't want an amp that rolls off the highs even more. I'm not sure about the Supermicro but my Supermacro IV (also described as tube-like) had this problem in it's default configuration. I'd hazzard a guess that you'd want different opamps in a Supermicro to really synergize with the E500s.

You can not roll OP-Amps on the Supermicro IV and there is no need because the high end is not roll off. Actually the Supermicro IV came on top of the heap in our comparison.

 

[vorlon1]

The supermicro sounds excellent with the E 500s. The supermicro produces a large soundstage as does the E500, so together you have a very 3 dimensional sound. The highs are clear and do not sound rolled off once the micro is burned in it is quite open and crisp and very smooth. The sound has no grain in it and the smoothness overall does have a tubelike quality. The bass impact is also very good with the E 500s, but not so much with full size cans.

 

[tyrion]

If the thumb wheel on the micro is anything like the mini III, then it's dangerous. It's too easy to forget that it's a problem, reach for the amp in your pocket and the volume shoots up to ear damaging levels.

 

[elnero]

Thanks for all the replies. I actually probably wouldn't be using it in my pocket anyhow so that's not a big deal. It's more just for general moving around that I was thinking about.

Has anyone tried RS-1's with it? I haven't been using them all that much since the E500's arrived but it would be nice if the amp I choose paired well with them as well.

 

[mrarroyo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by elnero Thanks for all the replies. I actually probably wouldn't be using it in my pocket anyhow so that's not a big deal. It's more just for general moving around that I was thinking about. Has anyone tried RS-1's with it? I haven't been using them all that much since the E500's arrived but it would be nice if the amp I choose paired well with them as well.

Yes, Voltron1 and I did. The Supermicro IV pairs great with the RS-1, IMO.