EB03
The EB03 is a very polished, solid and premium feeling amp. It's made of metal(Alu) as should any high quality amplifier. The Knob is quite very large(Oh god) unlike amps like the E12 and other smaller fiio products. It's very easy to set up you have your RCA outs and in. In the box you get a 1/4 Adaptor and an RCA out lead.
The Specs are here
- Dimensions: 152 x 82 x 176 mm (W x H x D)
- Material: SECC, aluminum
- Inputs: RCA (2x Cinch)
- Outputs: RCA (2x Cinch), headphones (6.3 mm jack)
- Impedance: 16 - 600 Ohm
Now that's out the way how does it perform?
I like it.
It's a very full sounding amp, quite intimate but balanced sounding. It's on the warm side and matches up very well for those grainy, analytical headphones. I found it quite powerful, it powered my headphones better than the Vali in terms of volume but didn't quite have the imaging and spatial presentation of the Vali. It sounded more like the E12 which is also a more intimate and full balanced amp. The 03 is a bit grainier when directly compared to the E12, It wasn't an issue and only was noticeable when compared directly.
Some headphones used.
HD600 & HD650
I found it made the HD600 sound a bit tizzy up top but it also made them more full and harder sounding. For those who think the HD600/650 are too soft I think this is a good amp to give them a more energetic and stronger sound. I found this amp complimented the HD600/650's mids really well, mainly the HD650's as the mids are a bit more forward sounding.
I'd rate this paring 8/10
K712 Pro
Absolutely hated this paring. The upper mid peak of the K712 was aided by this amp giving it a more aggressive sound which is not what this already peaky aggressive phone needs. I like how it made the mids fill out more and give the bass a nice compliment. Overall There was trade offs but I felt this score is accurate
7/10
B&W P7
This basically made this already V shaped headphone just as V shaped but with a bit of tizz on top. It complimented the powerful bass and made the sound slightly fuller. The P7 is a detailed, treble extended and bass heavy headphone. It's airy and spacious but the mids are left balanced while the other two are elevated. The 03 was a pretty exciting paring at low levels of listening but at higher a bit sharp for my taste.
8/10
Overall I really like it, as long as you don't compare them to tube amps and overly warm amps you will find this fairly smooth sounding but with a good sense of fullness. For the price I think it performs fairly well, I think the Vali is better value and a more refined, spacious sounding amp but I don't have issues recommending this at all!
EB01-E
The 01-E shares a similar build to the 03 amp. You get your RCA ports and your USB and optical port so you have a few options.
• High quality DAC with improved performance
• Classic SilverStone Ensemble exterior design
• Easy one touch button for USB, optical or coaxial input
• Support highest format of up to 24-bit/192kHz
• Utilizes premium XMOS XS1 TQ128 USB decoder for accurate sound reproduction
• Includes TI PCM1798 D/A converter for producing high quality analog signal
• Includes TI NE5532 OP amp for optimal analog output
Specifications:-
- Material: SECC, aluminum
- Inputs: USB, TOSLINK (optical, coaxial)
- Outputs: RCA (2x Cinch)
- Sampling resolution: 16 - 24 Bit
- Sampling Rate: 32 - 192kHz
- Compatibility: Windows XP, 7, 8 and Mac OS
I found setting up not an issue, I went on the SS website and downloaded the driver, extracted then I was away! Like most DACs it's neutral sounding and quite refined. It's a definite improve in quality over most computers and laptops stock. I quite liked it for detailed listening and I found all my amps went very well with it and it was an enjoyable experience. Price wise I think it's pretty fair, the build quality is excellent and it preforms as expected.
This review will be added to my guide shortly.
The EB03 is a very polished, solid and premium feeling amp. It's made of metal(Alu) as should any high quality amplifier. The Knob is quite very large(Oh god) unlike amps like the E12 and other smaller fiio products. It's very easy to set up you have your RCA outs and in. In the box you get a 1/4 Adaptor and an RCA out lead.
The Specs are here
- Dimensions: 152 x 82 x 176 mm (W x H x D)
- Material: SECC, aluminum
- Inputs: RCA (2x Cinch)
- Outputs: RCA (2x Cinch), headphones (6.3 mm jack)
- Impedance: 16 - 600 Ohm
Now that's out the way how does it perform?
I like it.
It's a very full sounding amp, quite intimate but balanced sounding. It's on the warm side and matches up very well for those grainy, analytical headphones. I found it quite powerful, it powered my headphones better than the Vali in terms of volume but didn't quite have the imaging and spatial presentation of the Vali. It sounded more like the E12 which is also a more intimate and full balanced amp. The 03 is a bit grainier when directly compared to the E12, It wasn't an issue and only was noticeable when compared directly.
Some headphones used.
HD600 & HD650
I found it made the HD600 sound a bit tizzy up top but it also made them more full and harder sounding. For those who think the HD600/650 are too soft I think this is a good amp to give them a more energetic and stronger sound. I found this amp complimented the HD600/650's mids really well, mainly the HD650's as the mids are a bit more forward sounding.
I'd rate this paring 8/10
K712 Pro
Absolutely hated this paring. The upper mid peak of the K712 was aided by this amp giving it a more aggressive sound which is not what this already peaky aggressive phone needs. I like how it made the mids fill out more and give the bass a nice compliment. Overall There was trade offs but I felt this score is accurate
7/10
B&W P7
This basically made this already V shaped headphone just as V shaped but with a bit of tizz on top. It complimented the powerful bass and made the sound slightly fuller. The P7 is a detailed, treble extended and bass heavy headphone. It's airy and spacious but the mids are left balanced while the other two are elevated. The 03 was a pretty exciting paring at low levels of listening but at higher a bit sharp for my taste.
8/10
Overall I really like it, as long as you don't compare them to tube amps and overly warm amps you will find this fairly smooth sounding but with a good sense of fullness. For the price I think it performs fairly well, I think the Vali is better value and a more refined, spacious sounding amp but I don't have issues recommending this at all!
EB01-E
The 01-E shares a similar build to the 03 amp. You get your RCA ports and your USB and optical port so you have a few options.
• High quality DAC with improved performance
• Classic SilverStone Ensemble exterior design
• Easy one touch button for USB, optical or coaxial input
• Support highest format of up to 24-bit/192kHz
• Utilizes premium XMOS XS1 TQ128 USB decoder for accurate sound reproduction
• Includes TI PCM1798 D/A converter for producing high quality analog signal
• Includes TI NE5532 OP amp for optimal analog output
Specifications:-
- Material: SECC, aluminum
- Inputs: USB, TOSLINK (optical, coaxial)
- Outputs: RCA (2x Cinch)
- Sampling resolution: 16 - 24 Bit
- Sampling Rate: 32 - 192kHz
- Compatibility: Windows XP, 7, 8 and Mac OS
I found setting up not an issue, I went on the SS website and downloaded the driver, extracted then I was away! Like most DACs it's neutral sounding and quite refined. It's a definite improve in quality over most computers and laptops stock. I quite liked it for detailed listening and I found all my amps went very well with it and it was an enjoyable experience. Price wise I think it's pretty fair, the build quality is excellent and it preforms as expected.
This review will be added to my guide shortly.
