![]() I never change inputs, for example, so I'd be glad to have those arrows for left/right balance. The adjustment is definitely possible remotely with the HPA4, Benchmark just needs to let me assign a couple of keys to it. I had this on my Vinnie Rossi LIO pre-amp and it was great. For folks with pets or children who often displace them from a central listening position, being able to adjust the balance remotely is very very helpful. The biggest is that the left/right balance cannot be controlled via the remote. As you mention in your review, even the good 32-bit digital attenuator in the DAC3 affects the important fine details at lower (regular, for me) listening volumes. I think the Benchmark site significantly understates the difference the HPA4 makes. I was concerned that adding the HPA4 into the system with the DAC3 and AHB2 would not give me much improvement. The ease and naturalness of this degree of clarity and realism makes listening fatigue free and full of fun discoveries. In one piece of choral music I very easily clearly heard individual voices located in space without having to concentrate on listening. ![]() Everything is more easily discerned in the mix. There is better soundstage depth at regular listening volumes, and cymbals have a more realistic shimmer and natural clarity. Plucked acoustic bass notes are more textured and bass timbre is more rich (e.g. I just got my HPA4 yesterday, and I can already hear terrific improvement at regular listening volumes with my DAC3 and AHB2 through Harbeth 30.1 Anniversary monitors. John Gatski can be reached via email: you for a detailed review. Any unauthorized use, via print or Internet, without written permission is prohibited. Articles on this site are the copyright of the ©Everything Audio Network. Everything Audio Network is based in Kensington, Md. In 1995, he created Pro Audio Review, and he has written for SoundOnSound, Audio, Laserviews, Enjoy The Music, The Audiophile Voice, High Performance Review, Radio World and TV Technology. John Gatski has been evaluating consumer, audiophile, home cinema and professional audio gear since 1988. One for its headphone amp and one for its line stage. The line amplifier incorporates the finest gold-contact relays available.īased on my impressions, the Benchmark HPA4 receives two Everything Audio Network Stellar Sound Awards. Benchmark Vice President/Chief Designer John Siau said the THX-888 amplifier is driven by a custom-designed Benchmark line amplifier that features relay-gain control, relay input selection, and relay muting. The THX AAA circuit allows the HP amplifier to reach its maximum output power and sound pressure level (SPL), without producing the distortion that normally accompanies increased output levels in traditional amplifiers. At any level, it will let the music shine through with no added color. The HPA4 is sonically neutral, distortion free and deeply dynamic. I cannot stress enough how the HPA4 just gets out of the way so you can listen to your music and the components in your chain. According to Benchmark, it accomplishes “ultra clean” sonic delivery (.00006 percent distortion and an A-weighted S/N of 135 dB!) using a patented, feed-forward topology to null conventional distortion and noise mechanisms. According to Benchmark, the THX AAA™ reduces harmonic, intermodulation and crossover distortion by 20 to 40 dB to guarantee a realistic and fatigue-free listening experience. using the THX Achromatic Audio Amplifier (AAA™) technology that was implemented in the Benchmark AHB2 amplifier a couple of years ago. Some good options would be Aurender, Auralic, Antipodes, etc.Priced at $2,995, the HPA4 is a co-design by Benchmark and THX, Ltd. There are plenty of devices that don't require an off the shelf computer, but those devices are essentially just a purpose built audio computer. What devices, if any, are available that support streaming using ROON and do not need computer access? I've been considering the same thing myself and what I want to know is if you use this network interface, or one like it on another DAC, yet still have it connected to a generic computer like a MacMini, do you eliminate the negative affects the computer has in the chain, or are you still at a deficit by not having a purpose built computer? The advantage is you eliminate a digital cable in your system and dump the unaltered bits directly into the DAC.It is strictly for sonic benefit and does not eliminate a box in your system. Yes, even with the Roon ready network board the Mytek will require a computer to run Roon. Do the Mytek DAC’s that support ROON require connectivity to a PC or a MAC computer?
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