Burson Play
https://www.bursonaudio.com/products/play/

The Burson Play is quite the competent product! It only has one input, USB, and preamp outputs that can be used with a power amp or active monitors.
It's meant to be an AIO device that can be placed in a computer bay drive to integrate with your desktop in a sleek and minimalistic way. It can also be used as a standalone AIO solution.
Power is provided by an included power brick or SATA cable connection to your computer PSU. There is also a mic input on the front for a microphone for chat and online gaming. I did not try this feature.

One of the features of the Burson amps is Opamp rolling. I'm not sure which Opamps are in this particular model but assume they are the NE5532 X 3, NE5543 X 2 from the PLAY Basic option. I will try and find out.

Yup, my unit is basic option:


So, how does it sound? In a word, correct. It doesn't do anything to draw you in or have a crazy 3D sound stage, tube bloom or enhanced attack or extended decay. It just sounds correct.
It's funny, because I'm going back and forth between my main headphone rig and the PLAY and it's very enjoyable.



Singxer SU-1>Yggy Analog 2/Holo Spring L1>EC Aficionado/ECP DSHA-1>PMx2, Utopia, Elex, HD650, HE-500
vs
Burson PLAY>headphones

Listening was done at ~75dB with each headphone. I'll provide volume level used for each headphone.
(A note, as I saw some people saying they used vastly higher volume numbers, I do have Windows xCORE USB Audio 2.0 at 100%)

With PMx2, the sound is very clean. Bass is extended, without bloom or added mid bass. Midrange is present and voices and instruments are placed appropriately in the mix.
The highs are well integrated and sound clear but never harsh or brittle. Imaging is very good, layering is lacking compared to Multibit DACs but is more comparable to RME ADI-2 DAC. Volume at 5.

Paired with Utopia, you get a very reference sound. Sound stage with Utopia collapses a bit but you are left with not a window but a clear opening that lets you hear the music.
It's staggeringly clear and uncolored. Bass might be a little light for some with this pairing but it is well extended and fast.
Utopia can tend to have a forward sound and the PLAY does a good job of controlling this so music doesn't become fatiguing.
I did note some very slight noise with Utopia but it is one of the most sensitive headphones out there so this shouldn't be an issue. Volume at 5.

Elex didn't fair as well with PLAY. It's certainly not a bad pairing, but it didn't have that music engagement that Utopia and PMx2 were capable of with PLAY.
Treble was the biggest issue, being slightly unrefined with a couple hot spots at 6, 9 and 12kHz (These harmonic frequencies are present in Elex, Clear and Utopia to varying degrees.).
The overall sound was listenable but you might opt for warmer op amps than the ones I had in my PLAY. Volume at 6.

HD650M, like Elex was just passable on PLAY. It presented the music in a more mid focused/forward manner, which meant both bass and high frequencies were lacking a touch.
The sound stage was clear and well presented, a nice theme is seems. My HD650 is modded, thus the “M” designation, with custom rear damping and coin mod to remove the foam in front of the drivers.
This makes them have a little less bass than stock as well as a brighter/slightly more forward sound. I think a stock HD650/HD6XX would pair well with PLAY. Volume at 8.

Listening with HE-500, I start noticing a trend. There's that mid focus again. Bass and treble take a back seat. I wonder if this is a current limiting issue?
Compared to the DSHA-1 and Aficionado, power supply size is severely lacking. This isn't a fault or criticism of PLAY, it's just a fact.
Due to the size and features Burson wanted to incorporate in PLAY, compromises had to be made. Volume at 8.

I briefly tried using the PLAY as a preamp >Vidar>speakers. As soon as I turned it on, there was noise from the USB, a hash and digital sound that is the pest of digital audio.
I have heard very few systems that didn't have some level of noise, and only a few DACs and DDC converters have true isolated inputs.

I was worried when I read that Burson chose the SABRE32/ESS9018 DAC chip as previous implementations I've heard have been bright and unmusical.
Burson has done an excellent job of tuning the PLAY around the SABRE chip. I'm sure the pure Class A topology has a lot to do with that. The Xmos USB drivers are rock solid for me.
No stuttering or drop outs even when streaming music and playing games. Unfortunately, I can't isolate the DAC from the amp, so no impressions of how the amp performs with my other DACs.
It would be fun to try some of Burson's other dedicated amps to hear that Class A sound in all of it's glory.

For the price, the Burson PLAY is hard to beat. An AIO system that can integrate into your computer, with a preamp output, and accept mic input all while having clear and fatigue free sound, that's quite the feat for $300.

Cable + Pro Review

Gear used for review:

Steinberg MR816x > Schiit Gungnir Multibit > Eddie Current Aficionado > Focal Utopia / ZMF Auteur

The packaging on the Cable + Pro is tastefully minimalistic. You can tell that Burson's focus is on audio and not wowing you with fancy cases and expensive materials. I was provided the R2R version, which is RCA to RCA. They also include a power adapter and micro USB cable to power the active module.

The first thing I noted when listening to the Burson Audio Cable + Pro was the increase in gain compared to my other cables. The Cable + Pro has a an active buffer discrete op amp that is powered by a micro USB connector, common on a many electronics. This added 6dB of gain in my system. It wasn't easy to do quick A/B testing and I've found that that is usually a poor way to hear the differences between two components. Instead, I spent one day with the Burson Cable + Pro cables and then another day with cables I wished to compare. I ended up comparing 3 cables. The Cable + Pro, BlueJeansCables LC-1, and Pangea Audio Premier RCA cables.

I found the Cable + Pro to have a slight mid and lower treble focus compared to other cables. I don't want to say that the extension on either ends was less, just that there was a slight emphasis to the mid range and vocal region. This made music very easy to listen to and any harshness was eliminated. In my system, I prefer the Blue Jeans LC-1 as it's a little more balanced. Pangea Audio Premier is noticeably tighter in the bass and has more high frequency extension.

In terms of sound staging, the Cable + Pro seemed to have the best layering so sounds were well separated from front to back. LC-1 was the second best, a little more balanced between width and depth. Pangea cables push the whole stage away from you, which is useful when wearing headphones but they can also add a touch too much air and treble.

Differences in cables are small and are much more subtle compared to amps or even potentially tubes depending on the amp's design. Don't take these statements as absolutes, instead use them as reference points to tweak your system if it's too bright, dark, or doesn't have the extension you want.

Here is a comparison of the Cable + Pro vs the Pangea/LC-1 cables volume difference at the same potentiometer setting:


You can see the ~6dB difference between the two cables. I didn't have a problem with the volume increase but you could have problems with amps that have high gain settings if you listen at low volumes as you might get pot imbalance.

I also wanted to see if the higher gain would affect distortion at high listening levels. Both of these measurements were taken at 100dB SPL which is very loud. Normal distortion levels are excellent.

Cable + Pro distortion at 100dB SPL:


Pangea distortion at 100dB SPL:


I think the biggest benefit besides the impedance matching the active buffer provides is the gain increase for a low powered source like an ipod or phone aux output.

Thanks again to Burson Audio for letting me use the Cable + Pro in my system. I think it offers a practical advantage if you feel your system just doesn't have enough output. I didn't hear a distinct difference in detail or imaging in my system compared to the other cables I use but there were small differences noted above. The Cable + Pro could potentially offer an improvement in other systems. Burson offers a 30 day trial minus 5% and return shipping cost.

I first got into the headphone hobby for school since I was enrolled in a music recording and production class and needed a pair of headphones to use. My dad had a old pair of Sony MDR V600 and used them for the first week but felt they didn't meet my needs so I went to Guitar Center and bought my first pair of headphones, which I still own, Beyerdynamic DT800 Pro 250Ohm. I found out about Head-Fi and my wallet has never been the same.

Some notes about my listening preferences:

I listen at relatively low volumes, roughly 70dB SPL, keep this in mind as our perception of frequencies is dependent on listening level.

I prefer a sound signature that let's me hear the lowest bass notes, a smooth clear midrange and a non fatiguing treble without coloration.

Comfort is a big priority for me as I usually wear headphones for 4+ hours at a time. Weight isn't usually an issue but clamp and uneven weight distribution are deal breakers for me. Audeze headphones and surprisingly the Utopia are uncomfortable for me to wear.

Gear used for review: Schiit Eitr>Gumby>Freya>Eddie Current Aficionado/Black Widow
(Pangea Audio interconnects)

Auteur

My first impressions of the Auteur went something like this:

• Wow, there is weight and solidity to the sound, a dynamic headphone with sub bass!
• Vocals are so clear and placed right in front of me, not slightly above me.
• I don't hear any obvious faults like boomy bass, sucked out mids, or crazy treble spikes.
• These are kind of big and a little heavy.
• The stock cable is just okay.
• I don't care for the 360° adjustable gimbals as the cups move too freely and can shift when set down.

The Auteur is the closest headphone to meet my preferred sound signature. I find them to be a warm take on neutral with a slight emphasis at 6kHz like the HD800 but at a lower amplitude giving just enough coloration to add a sense of detail or engagement. I can hear an emphasis with snares and cymbals especially in this area so I decided to switch to the perforated Eikon pads. They do a better job of smoothing out the treble but add about 3dB below 800Hz. At first I thought the pads made the Auteur sound too dark and muddy but that slight treble coloration was all but gone. Unless I specifically say, my impressions will be using the perforated Eikon pads.

I'm usually not concerned with sound stage as long as it isn't inside my head or too 3 blob. As a generalization, dynamic headphones tend to place the sound stage further away from you compared to planars although there are always exceptions. The Aeon open had one of the worst sound stages I've heard from a planar being very inside your head like a line through your ears. On the other side of the spectrum are planars like the Code Sex and HE-1000 that have surprisingly vast sound staging. To me, it's a trade off, if you have a really wide sound stage music can sound unrealistic and the stage depth is usually lacking. I like an equally deep sound stage as I'm used to listening to speakers setup in an equilateral triangle to the listener.

The Auteur's sound stage is decently wide, a little wider than HD650, but has better depth. You can place instruments accurately in the mix. Some might find issue with the sound stage but I think it stems from the Auteur being more semi open than truly an open headphone. They don't sound as open as an HD650, or an HE-6 but are more open than a DT880. Placing my hands over the cups has a subtle but noticeable cup effect. There is a loss in clarity, most noticeable with vocal placement as they get blurred a tiny bit.

Here is a quick and dirty comparison of the sound stage between Auteur, HD650, and HE-6 (Code Sex):


Auteur does the best job of pushing the sound stage completely in front of you sounding more like speakers than headphones.

Technical Measurements:

Here are frequency response measurements showing left and right channel matching for the Auteur with Auteur and Eikon pads. ** channel matching is very difficult with certain headphones especially if they have thick leather pads as just a nudge and they measure very differently.

Auteur with Auteur pads:


Auteur with Eikon pads:


The difference in bass response on the Auteur pads seems to be partially caused by the coupler. I have to place the headphones a little differently when measuring right and left. When checking channel matching by ear with sine sweeps I found these to be very sensitive to positioning on my ears. I could hear subtle shifting off center in certain parts of the sweep but it's not a deal breaker by any means.

The impulse response is an interesting area that I think can shed some light on why the Auteur doesn't sound as open as some other headphones. The lack of rear damping and thick leather pads, even perforated, will create reflections that affect the driver and often truncate the initial rebound and add additional movement after the initial response. Shown below is the Auteur with Auteur pads:


Here is the Auteur's impulse response with Eikon pads:


You can see that the Eikon pads create less extraneous movement overall as the impulse response is tighter and resolves faster after 1ms. The CSDs also confirm that the Eikon pads have have better initial decay patterns compared to the Auteur pads.

Auteur with Auteur pads CSD:


Auteur with Eikon pads CSD:


The Auteur has a pretty clean CSD. It's not as clean as the HD800 or HD650 but it's better than the Atticus or Eikon. I certainly find no obvious faults with it. The ringing at 6kHz is on par with the HD800 but is less aggravating in listening. The minor ridge at 1.5kHz is most likely cup reverberation. It is there but not enough to be a distraction.

Distortion measurements are great for a dynamic driver. Unfortunately I didn't have a quiet enough ambient noise level to feel comfortable posting my distortion measurements as they could be misinterpreted taken out of context. I can say that with what I could measure, they averaged about 0.2% distortion above 200Hz and only had one small distortion peak at 1.5kHz that was at 0.35%. They have surprisingly low distortion for a dynamic headphone especially in the low end.

Comparisons

Compared to the HD650 which has the closest tonality, the Auteur is more laid back in the upper mids and lower treble but has the 6kHz bump that creates a little more excitement. I find the HD650 to be just a touch too forward in this region so the Auteur does better here. Although my measurements don't show it, there is no contest with bass response. Autuer has better bass definition and much better sub bass on par with most planars. HD650 is more open sounding, has a better attack, and decays faster so it's clearer overall. If you want an HD650 with sub bass the Auteur is an excellent headphone to consider.



The HE-6 is a unique headphone. It is one of the most visceral and engaging sounding headphones I've heard. However, to get the most out of it you need to give it a TON of power, use a warm amp/DAC, and listen at louder volumes. HE-6 is more open sounding and has better transients with faster attack and decay but has a more diffuse sound stage. Images are slightly clearer and placed better with the Auteur. The Auteur has more bass quantity and hits harder sounding less compressed. Mid range proper is also more coherent and clear on the Auteur. Treble is more linear and less harsh on the Auteur but some might find it boring in direct comparison. The tizz of the HE-6 is no where to be found with the Auteur. These two headphones require polar opposite amps to perform their best. Auteur loves tubes and doesn't need tons of power to shine. A brighter amp or tube is recommended to make the Auteur sound more alive and engaging.



Auteur Blackwood vs Teak

I had the opportunity to hear both versions. My review unit is Wenge wood. It sits roughly in the middle of the other two woods. Blackwood had a darker tilted presentation but had less resonance and sounds were more tangible and emanated from a blacker background. Teak is tilted the other direction. A little less bass and a little more treble. They seemed to have a more immediate and engaging sound, which seemed to be from sympathetic vibrations of the cups that excited and bolstered the sound.

System Synergy

I need to point out that the Auteur will probably be too warm and dark coming form most headphones, even the HD650. I was initially put off by this but instead decided to rework my system to be brighter to suit the Auteur since it did so much right. I changed my interconnects from Blue Jeans Cables to Pangea and the Auteur became much more neutral yet still musical and pleasing plus the sound stage just opened up even more. I plan on getting a silver cable for the Auteur to get the last bit of treble extension and tightness in the bass. If you find yourself wanting a little tighter bass and more treble, give the Pangea or maybe silver interconnects a try with the Auteur.

Summary

The Auteur has the frequency response cohesiveness of an open back headphone but the technical abilities of a semi open headphone. It won't sound as open as an HD800 or HE-6 but it's tone is tough to beat at any price point. Size and weight should be a consideration if you are coming from something like a HD650. Choose Teak if you want the most neutral sounding Auteur. Choose Blackwood if you want a slightly darker and smoother sound.

It might seem like I've been pointing out all of the little faults or quirks of this headphone but it's because I love it so much. My issues with it are so small in comparison to just how damn good it sounds. To put it in perspective, I could easily live with just the Auteur and Andromeda as my only two headphones.