To negotiate the best possible price for our customers, we agree to hide prices prior to logging in.
2.5K requests
·
944 Sold
Product Description
An impressive hybrid headphone amplifier for the price, the Little Dot I+ combines the smooth, musical sound of vacuum tubes with the high output current of transistors. It’s specifically designed to drive low-impedance headphones that require a high current to perform to their full potential Read More
Share:
You Might Also Like
CAD Audio PM1300 PodMaster SuperD USB Microphone
$45
Sennheiser Accentum Wireless Headphones
$149.95
Cayin iHA-6 Headphone Amplifier
$449
Drop Earpads for HD 6XX & 58X
$29
ADV. CNC-Machined Aluminum IEM Carrying Case
$69
Dekoni Elite Earpads for HE5XX
$30
Campfire Audio Orbit Bluetooth Wireless Earphone
$149
Campfire Audio Andromeda Emerald Sea IEM
$1115
SMSL SH-8s Amplifier
$129
Dekoni x HIFIMAN Cobalt Closed-Back Dynamic Headphones
I also own the THX 789 and Koss 95X electrostats, but wanted to try the tube sound. Mostly I drive the Hifiman 400i. but I also run the Senn 6XX and Beyerdynamic DT880 (600 ohm). There is plenty of power to drive all of these 'phones.
I found the sound on this amp to be great. It is precise enough for newer all digital recordings, but forgiving for older stuff from the 1950s. It is not quite as bright as the Koss e-stats, but frequency response is similar to the THX 789, that is to say, flat with most tubes. As a hybrid I didn’t find the “tube sound” to be as different as I expected, maybe just a bit “rounder” or “softer corners”, but fun to compare nonetheless.
With regard to tube rolling, I opted for the 6CQ6 upgrade and it was solid. But I also ordered matched pairs of both JAN 5654W and Voskhod 6ZH1P-EV. I think both slightly improved the sound, good bass, clear mods, and solid highs, good separation too. My only niggle is the 6CQ6 is in a different tube family than the other two, so this required removing the two jumpers inside. It wasn’t that hard (though I did make a mistake of only removing one of the jumpers on my first pass), but knowing which piece to remove (the bottom) which 4 screws to remove (the bottom 2 on both the front and back), which you don’t have to (the ones that hold the feet on), saving the jumpers (i taped them inside the bottom cover), and screwing it back together means that it is hard to do any A/B comparisons across tube families. So I think I’ll stick to the 5654 and Voskhod since they are in the same family.
Sound great, but definitely roll the tubes for some Voskhod 6ZH1P-EV tubes, or try a few brands and see what suits you best. Make sure that the tubes are paired and that you have the jumpers in the correct position: I had a pair of Mullards that were definitely not paired and the sound was very strange and unbalanced between ears, also kinda noisy.
I did what you said, I stripped the screws a little bit but they came out, I flipped the 2 switches down, and the sound is much better. Thank you. Now I'm waiting for those GE JAN 5654W tubes from Amazon...
gmonty2712I use my little dot1+ with my he400i and he4xx and they’re both plenty loud.
and I’m pretty sure high gain is what you want to be using for those. They’re not very sensitive even though they’re low impedance, so they need a lot of current (versus higher voltage for high impedance headphones, which is why they work best with OTL tube amps like the dark voice with its higher output impedance). Maybe yours was on the low gain setting?
You might also also want to try the burson v5 opamp that they sell on massdrop too. Changes the sound signature a bit to one that’s more punchy in the bass and treble emphasis. More “V” shaped imho. It sounds good, but I prefer the stock one. Less fatiguing.
This thing is super fun for the price... Great way to first jump into the tube domain and experiment without the crazy prices. Easily powers my Beyer DT 990 - 600 Ohms, and great with a portable USB DAC attached (currently using the Caymin C5 DAC/Amp). Also, no need to upgare the tubes on the drop, as you can find the 408As on Ebay for cheeeeaaaap.