[davidcotton]

Just thought I'd post the review I did of the x-cans v2 that I did for headwize. It's also got an update at the bottom of the page!


Hi heres a review of the x-cans v2 headphone amp!

First of the build quality is amazing for the price, but it does run very very hot and as for the crappy little 9v transformer plug in that came with it, well lets just say there was no WAY that I was leaving that in during the day when I go to work!!

Oh and it has THE worst volume control I have ever seen, anyone who has seen it will know what I am talking about!!

Sound

Now this is probably going to be subjective as I own a LOT of really badly recorded cds. They don't sound bad they just sound basic. I am also using a set of basic qed qunex 1 £20 each so I imagine that switching to better (more costly!!) would improve sound further, these are plugged into the tape loop in the marantz.

I plugged in the x-cans and let it warm up for an hour or so (most important apparantly) and then put on a couple of cds. First impressions were a bit mixed to be honest. There was a"bit" more clarity and a bit smoother treble and that was about that to be honest, so I left it for the evening (it being saturday) and went back to it at about nine o'clock. Things had changed drastically, like I said warm-up improves it. Vocals were much clearer so were instruments which were now located in there own spaces. What really cinched it for me though was when I put on the Pendragon cd "the masqurade overture" which has been one of my favourite cds since it came out, and if you are a pink floyd fan then you REALLY need to hear this cd. Put on track 3 and about half way through the response was "damn where did that keyboard solo come from!!!!!" Thats right solos that I hadn't heard before because the sound was a bit cluttered and merged had suddenly become much much easier to hear. So it went on through the evening, cd's that I thought I knew like the back of my hand had suddenly become massively unfamiliar to me.

Down Points.

Bass. The one point that was a little dissapointing was the bass that was a bit difficult to follow. Whether this is a combination of lack of running in (i've only had it a few days) basic recordings or leads I don't know. Ive just borrowed the x-psu from my dealer for a week so I am running that in now to see if that does make a difference lets hope so!!!

Bottom line

It's a fantastic little product that for a change doesn't mean giving your back a hernia every time you want to move the damn thing (think marantz ki sig amp big....) It has a nice sound to it and can drastically improve the sound of SOME of your cds while exposing others. I have purposley avoided using the usual cliches like bass was dramatically improved and so on ad nauseum as it is far to early to say.


Final Point (I promise!!)

At the end of the day only YOU can decide if you like this or any other product. So do what I did, find a friendly (hopefully local) dealer that has it in stock, ask is it possible to have it on loan for a week, they may need to take a deposit and have a play with the thing, you may like it you may love it but equally you may hate the thing with a vengeance, so trust your ears and happy listening!!!!!!!!!

PS apparantly there are rumours that both the x-cansv2 and xpsu are about to be discontinued, so if you want one get in quick!!

UPDATE:

That review was posted on the headwize headphone site about a month and a half ago and since then somethings have changed..

a)First and foremost have swopped from qed qunect1 to vdh diii 102b and it help warm the sound and improve the bass a bit!
b)Last week it started hissing on the left side so have taken it back to the dealer who sent it back to MF to be checked over and repaired or replaced! This will take about three weeks or so, not good obviously but at least it will give me a chance to do another a/b comparison to see how right or wrong I was in the first place. Other people have reported no probs with their x-cans, some have so it seems to be a bit hit or miss but give it a go as you may like it and have no probs at all...

PPS Ignore the three weeks mentioned in the above paragraph! It's now getting on for four

 

[Duncan]

Great concise review David

I think I see the difference between the 565s and the 580s very clearly now though...

Its in the bass, your review of the bass is almost negative.. whereas with the 580s, I have nothing but praise

It could be just a matter of ohmage... who knows

 

[Beagle]

Quote:

The one point that was a little dissapointing was the bass that was a bit difficult to follow

"Difficult to follow", yes that describes the X-Cans bass to a tee. I have such a hard time getting a bead on what the bass is or is not doing. It's like it is somehow invisible. You hear something going in the bass but when you pay attention it disappears.

 

[Braver]

damn, four weeks! you must be in pain man!

 

[blr]

Hey, everyone is jumping on the X-Can's bass. I find it not that bad at all, and this is providing that I did A/B against Creek OBH11 which is known here for it's weighty bass.
The Bass of the X-Can may not be the tightest ever but it's extremely musical and integrates well with the rest of the music. I have no problems following it at all. Mind also that everything from PSUs and tubes to cables moderates the bass performance of the X-CanV2.

 

[Tides]

I second what blr said above. the Bass issue of xcanv2 is so overblown imo. I am extremely happy with mine, and I am using the stock tubes too ! I like the fact with xcanv2 I can change the tubes and get a somewhat different sounding amp after the tube change. Sure it can be a hassle, but it is also quite rewarding.

davidcotton~ thanks for the repost of your review here

Tides

 

[Jacobh]

I also agree is blr and tides. While I find the bass a little loose, I'd say it is very easy to follow and very musical. The bass lines I hear with the X-cans sound the most like the electric bass my roommate used to play. Oh well, different strokes for different folks. It isn't the most punchy, so if that's what you're looking for I could see how it could be hard to follow.

 

[blr]

Well said Jacobh.
I used to play bass for about 15 years and got to know how bass guitar in particular sounds live. Now, listening to the can I don't feel that the bass sounds artificial. Some SS amps produce this extra punch and speed in the bass. It is pleasant to listen to, but not the most natural sounding.

 

[Beagle]

Quote:

the Bass issue of xcanv2 is so overblown imo

Perhaps, if deep bass is unimportant to you. You need that bottom end weight to make the bass happen. To say what is there is musical may be true, in that it is allowing you more access to the midrange, but I find the X-Cans a bit lightweight. A car radio is musical but it does not allow you to hear everything that's on the recording.

 

[Nacher]

I just received my X-Cans v2, and so far I think I'm dissapointed. It sounds identical to my protableCD headphone jack. Couldn't have a chance of separating those two in a blind test. I'm now running it out of aureal vortex 2 lineouts, but tomorrow I'll get the audio alchemy v1.0 to use, which I will connect to aureal optical outs. I really hope this helps even a bit, though I frankly don't believe that it's going to help =(

Feels like X-Cans have been overrated or something. Too bad, considering how long I had to save money for them.

 

[jude]

Nacher,

I'm sorry to read about your disappointment with the amp. A lot of people here really like it, as you well know, so maybe someone here can offer some advice to you in terms of whether or not it needs breaking in, whether or not it needs tube swapping, or maybe some comments about its compatibility with your source.

As I'm not familiar with an Aureal Vortex 2 (is that a soundcard?), I can't comment on your source. Are you listening to MP3's? If yes, that may be part of the problem.

 

[raymondlin]

Nacher, I think you should give the X-can a chance before you dismiss it completly. Let it run in for at least 30 hours or so and listen to it when it's warmed up. Or getting a pair of Senn 580/600 if the funds allows, you'll need good cans to make full use of it.

But even if you don't like it after all that, I am sure you'll have no problem selling it on ebay, they pay ridiculous prices for Musical Fidelity stuff. An used X-PSU went 50% above it's retail price! I am sure you won't lose much for what you paid for it and if you are lucky, a little profit even.

 

[chych]

Hm, he has the HD600s... There must be something wrong if there is no difference between portable->hd600 and amp->hd600... the source perhaps....

 

[jude]

Quote:

Originally posted by chych Hm, he has the HD600s... There must be something wrong if there is no difference between portable->hd600 and amp->hd600... the source perhaps....

I didn't see the 600's in his profile. Yeah, good point.

Though I've not heard the XCv2 before, their reputation for driving HD-600's makes the source issue a very real possibility. Again, if you're running MP3, that may be your problem right there. Your system is only as strong as the weakest link in the chain (yeah I know, how trite, but it's true), and MP3 is, in my opinon weak (can you tell I'm not a big MP3 fan?). Again, I'm not at all familiar with your source equipment, but it's possible that your old headphone output was good enough to take full advantage of all it had to offer, so the XCv2 would therefore not be much of an improvement.

Again, this is all guessing on my part as I've (a) no idea what your source equipment is, and (b) never heard the XCv2, so I'm anything but an expert on it.

 

[Jacobh]

Try letting it break in for a bit. What have you got to loose anyway? Even listening to mp3's out of my soundcard (on a vortex 2), I notice a difference. If you don't like it after a few days, then return it or ebay it.