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Showing 1 of 94 conversations about:
Aurender Flow DAC/Amp
Marcus22687
301
Apr 5, 2020
Headfonics review of the Aurender Flow from a few years ago.
https://headfonics.com/the-flow-by-aurender/
(Edited)
Whitedragem
185
Apr 8, 2020
Marcus22687Decent write up:
covers power output into various headphones (yes to Senn HD800, Alpha Dogs/planar, and yes to a whole slew of IEMs -without hiss, as well as the experience of giving good headphones the actual drive they seek (review pg2 regarding the k501 headphone))
and highlights the cost of adding an m2 drive
(with added benefit of using said portable drive for any/all portable storage needs instead of carrying an external drive)
AND
whilst the reviewer quips that they hadn’t played with a Chord Hugo, the fact that they truly believe the Aurender Flow could be in said territory is a pretty HUGE statement with regards to the audio quality/capability through this device.
The takeaway from the headphonics review linked to above is that this is a high tier piece of audio kit.
The detailed descriptions of the genres of music they auditioned and the nuanced playback quality of the Flow just generally isn’t written about the lower couple of audio tiers equipment.
(Okay generally $400 desktop DAC have the same sort of prose written for them, but usually only by those new to HiFi and who think that their sub $1000 kit is ‘all that’ would go to the trouble.)
Fact: I’d take the Aurender Flow over any sub $1000 kit (for portable use).
At the present pricepoint, I am almost tempted to sell off my existing portable rig to cover the cost of the (significant) upgrade.
Go educate yourself further with regards to different hifi tiers and the sound quality to be found in each.
Entry level hifi (tier 5 kit/ aka ‘junk’ to anyone who has moved onwards and upwards) may feature DAC chips that are used in other devices, and most manufacturers like to quote the white sheet/DAC spec sheet with regards to the equipments capability....
But what happens to the signal the exits the DAC chip? How is it filtered? Is the electrical circuit capable of delivering even 16bit of audio dynamics? (Most of the great stuff tops out around 22bit, entry level kit that doesn’t deliver 13-14bit is ‘a thing’, even if the DAC is a 32bit capable chip with a Spec sheet to state so!)
Amplification: big numbers in tier 5 kit is often at the sacrifice of any actual quality, or ‘stability’.
Truth: the Flow (by Aurender) is a couple of tiers up from mainstream junk.
At Drops present price it is several tiers less cost than it should be.
Simply put: this is a bargain.
Its biggest caveat is whether the end user will ‘tool up’ and install a cheap m2 drive inside.
For those willing to spend five minutes (fifteen if we include the time to order from the net, receive the package and get the included screwdriver from the Aurenders’ box) it is a pretty big $$$ saving.
This level of sound equipment for such a low price is one of the many great things Drop.com give to the world (#1 being a great community space to forum around in); this level of sound, once heard, is hard to retreat from. Majority of people in the world have not heard tier 4 or even tier 3 hifi kit. It is why compressed audio files are argued, ad nausem internet wide, sound as great as lossless; “most people cannot tell a difference”.
Having converted (more than a few) people who understand, in less than ten seconds, why compressed files are useless junk other than when playing through computer speakers/phone speakers (or into tier 5 junk-fi); hi-res audio as it is being sold to us is basically a way for low cost/entry level parts to say ‘we are not junk’.
tier 5 audio kit from the nineties can outperform mainstream entry level junk of today.
Quite simply we have a growing population and not enough resources to build the stuff that people want.
Hence why used amplifiers from pre 1988 are ‘a thing’. (in ‘88 we switched to integrated circuits)..
It is why I could not advocate with enough enthusiasm why people should buy better kit, especially second hand, rather than pay for format wars with the end game being cheaper more ‘mass market’ cost reduced parts.
Dolby digital (and even mp3s) played into tier 3 kit parts from twenty years ago, sound better than dolby true HD and ‘CD quality’ sound files played into tier 5 (entry level/junk) stuff made today.
Buy stuff with the intention of keeping it.
I love passing stuff onto my kids from decades ago.
My pre teen would often call me out for changing a sampling rate, or ‘super subtle’ changes in audio setup. Those clinical ears are not just youth, but ‘experience’.
Giving a child a Chord Hugo and a set of Audeze Sine headphones would be a great investment.
You can pretty much bet they won’t get caught up buying mainstream junk, and wasting countless dollars ‘sidegrading’ mainstream consumer pieces of tech for their entire lives.
For those without deep pockets, and buying for themselves; starting a serious hifi chain with something like an Aurender Flow is a bargain,.. especially when we factor time and money saved in not having to keep buying like products for the subtlest of audio changes (or features).
This part, after serving its’ first owner for many years, will get handed on to a lucky cousin or nephew/niece who will learn about hifi and be ever so thankful for the doorway made open to them.
Just the sound difference that hi end parts give to every other piece of kit is ridiculous...
from lyrical clarity to low bass note power- changes that many think require altering speakers or amplifiers, can come from a better DAC/cleaner transport etc.
Safe investment- many years of enjoyment, with a fear free commitment to get it! (not being >$1k pricepoint)
Gofal
1
May 14, 2020
Whitedragem"Educate yourself" and then proceeds to spill a ton of audiophile religion false creeds adding some new interesting ones like a cheap dac somewhat losing bits in the output hahaha.
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