SMSL SP200 VS Massdrop THX-789 VS Benchmark HPA4 - Battle Of The THX-es!
Vložit
- čas přidán 10. 09. 2024
- Get SMSL SP200: bit.ly/2pA7eS8
Get Massdrop THX-789: bit.ly/34fRhj2
Get Benchmark HPA4: bit.ly/2XBl7w7
My written comparison review can be found here: soundnews.net/...
FOLLOW ME ON SOCIAL MEDIA:
📱 www. Soun...
📷 / soundnews.net_
🐦 / soundnews_net
🏠 soundnews.net/
#THX #AAA #Battle
My ratings are as follows:
I. Background Noise / Distortion
1. Benchmark HPA4: 100
2. Massdrop THX-789: 94
3. SMSL SP200: 91
II. Detail Retrieval
1. Benchmark HPA4: 100
2. Massdrop THX-789: 94
3. SMSL SP200: 95
III. Frequency Response
1. Benchmark HPA4: 100
2. Massdrop THX-789: 92
3. SMSL SP200: 94
IV. Linearity
1. Benchmark HPA4: 100
2. Massdrop THX-789: 93
3. SMSL SP200: 95
V. Soundstage Size
1. Benchmark HPA4: 96
2. Massdrop THX-789: 92
3. SMSL SP200: 91
VI. Depth / Holography
1. Benchmark HPA4: 100
2. Massdrop THX-789: 94
3. SMSL SP200: 93
VII. Transient Response / Dynamics
1. Benchmark HPA4: 100
2. Massdrop THX-789: 92
3. SMSL SP200: 95
VIII. Power Output
1. Benchmark HPA4: 96
2. Massdrop THX-789: 92
3. SMSL SP200: 93
IX. Total Points & Overall Score
1. Benchmark HPA4: 792 Points (Overall Score of 99)
2. Massdrop THX-789: 743 Points (Overall Score of 92.8)
3. SMSL SP200: 747 Points (Overall Score of 93.4)
I just received my new SMSL SP200 a few hours ago, and I can only say this is the best head amplifier I've ever listened. My entire cans stable has improved amazingly hooked up to the SP200 with special mention to my beyers. I don't care anymore about the friggin' Drop thing or that uber-expensive benchmark thing. The small beautiful chi-fi wonder is the best bang for the buck for sure. And kudos to Lucasfilm for creating the THX technology. I've finally found the sound I've been searching for since I started this crazy audiophile road.
Pity they took so long to create something like this. I would've saved a LOT of money on dacs, head amps and headphones...
Hi, I'm glad you like it, it's really good
Which Beyers do you own?
@@Ton-uy1xd I've had T1 years ago and DT880 + 990 about ~12 years ago. I miss T1 quite a bit
Its jsut a $200 amp, more expensive amps can sound much better just take a look on the forums.
What DAC are you using with it?
Just found your channel today, wow great comparison video. I love how it's not dragged out, straight to the point.
Glad you liked it.
You must have spent Many hours hearing and comparing these amps to give this review. Good effort. Cheers.
Yep, that is true. Comparative tests are the hardest since the mind can't focus for hours straight on single things. I did short brakes and it took me about 6 hours for the listening tests only
@@Soundnews I must ask, do you have any comparisons with headphone amplifiers from Wells such as the Milo?
Thanks! This is a very important review. It's amazing how the game has changed in just a few years.
Thank you too for liking. Agree, it is still changing
Nice review. I appreciate your 0-100 rating scales by category. So many reviewers fill with fluff vs. actual comparisons. Thank you.
I am glad I found your channel, Nice review of all listed.
Appreciate your time and effort....greatly appreciate u pointing out the unit w the most VALUE/bang for the buck.
Sublime the pyramid in the beginning! You are TRULY The Pyramid God, as one of my favourites bands use to sing. What I love about your review it's the fact you clearly rated every unit so everyone would know which to pick according to their taste. One last question: SMSL or AUNE S7 PRO? Thanks!👍
This is my honest opinion, I could say HPA4 is miles ahead compared to the rest, but that would a beautiful lie. I prefer the ugly truth and I am not mad at all that a $289 amp is so close to a $3000 amp, I'm actually very happy about this. More people can hop and enjoy great SQ without paying huge amounts of money.
A hard questions, both are great really, S7 is a genre master and can match with any source, SP200 can be dry and clinical with the wrong source, system matching is crucial with this one.
@@Soundnews Thank you, I will take that in consideration!
Amazing video!!
With SMSL SP200, resist the urge to use heavier AWG, "upgrade" power cables. Use the thin stock power cable, which really does bring out the SP200 strengths of raw clarity and speed... Sounds unbelievable with $5000 Abyss 1266 Phi TC.
93 for the shirt, 96 for the video:)
Thanks!
Helpful video, sir! Just bought an SP200 from apos audio. I'm stoked!
Yep, Apos rocks. Enjoy yours!
Haven't heard the SP200, but you are spot on with the HPA4 and THX-789. Very accurate and thorough review! Well done.
Thanks mate
hey Sandu, do you think the 789 or the sp200 are a significant upgrade over the internal headphone amp of the smsl m500? I have the m500 and have been debating with myself if it's worth the investment.
Fantastic job! Thank you for going through the effort to make such a difficult comparison.
Can you please help me decide if SMSL SP200 worth adding to Hugo 2 for HD800s and Z1R or Hugo 2 is good enough to drive both
Great reviews, continue the great work and the subs will come. Awesome gear.
Hello, how much is the difference in sound quality between the HPA4 and the DAC3? The DAC has also high quality headphone outputs. I’m using an older DAC1 and this thing have also very good headphone outputs. The weak point is the volume pot. After 10 years of continuous use I have had to „oil“ the volume pot due to some noise and Chanel differences. After oiling no problem at all. 😁
thks for the comparison. Hope you can get your hands on the Monolith THX AAA 788 for a one-box solution shootout.
I hope to listen to that one too
I'm in the process of slightly rearranging my budget to accommodate the Matrix Audio Element X. I was looking at a benchmark DAC-3 for quite a while, but I think you've convinced me that that I should look elsewhere. I'll pair it with a AHB2 to drive some LS50s. Did you compare the Matrix Audio Element X internal headphone amp to the others? Thanks!
Hi, I love my HPA4, (for me) it is the best headphone amp and pre-amp I ever heard. However I do not feel the same way about DAC3 and all its variations. It didn't impress me, it was just too boring at times and didn't awake emotions while listening to music. I would skip DAC3, even Topping DX7 PRO sounded better, much better. Element X is currently the best DAC I tried at home. Technical AND musical + a powerful streamer and internal music player. Read my written review on Element X to find more about its headamp section, it's Ok with dynamics and weak with planars.
Crezi ca ar avea vreun rost smsl sp200 combinat cu chord mojo?
Are rost daca vrei sa pilotezi ceva mai special
Can you put 2 headphones in any of these amps?
hi, between sp200 and massdrop thx balanced who has the best sound quality?
How would you compare the Benchmark to XIAudio Formula S, Headamp GS-X Mini, or Violectric 550 (or another violectric)?
Thank you for the nice comparison video. I currently have an spl phonitor x and I am quite happy, but I'd like to test the benchmark hpa4 in order to verify if is better than spl phonitor. Unfortunately here in Italy where I live it is quite difficult to find hpa4 to test. Did you already try spl headphones amp like the phonitor x?
Great again man! I am really curious about what would you say about the famous Rupert Neve RNHP amp created by a legend in the music industry or the Feliks Audio Echo. They are almost the same price and according to many sites they are really killer value for the money products... All the best man! Keep up with the reviews.
Will try to get some loaner units from them. Thanks for liking my stuff!
I’d love to hear your thoughts as well. I own the RNHP, and I love it. Also looking forward to Fidelice (new consumer Rupert Neve line) dac.
Dt 770 pro ?
Very helpful and detailed reviews. You are the best reviewer on CZcams. Please keep up the good work. SMSL 200 or Aune S7 Pro? Which one do you recommend? I want to be able to use with Fiio FH7 iems. Also looking for a DAC to go with it. Greatly appreciate your response. Thanks
Isn't the Sp200 rated at half the power of the 789?
What impedance headphones were you using to test power?
Yo Sandu, SP200+DX7pro is about half the price of Conductor 3. On sound quality alone, which one would you prefer? The C3 or the SP200+DX7pro combo?
Hard question. Conductor3 is very different sounding compared to DX7Pro + SP200, C3R is full-bodied, warm, inviting, even harder kicking but loses in ultimate detail or in linearity. Depends on what You want really. Musicality and warm tonality or super honest, revealing and linear type of sound. Pick your poison
which of the unbalanced sp200 and balanced monolith has the best sound quality?
If SMSL could release a SP2000 in a normal shaped box I'd buy it day 1. Right now, can't bring myself to buy it because I hate the way it would look on the desk. No idea why they made it slanted.
yes, the HPA4 is the best for a price of $3000.. but is it considerably 10x better?
My THX AAA 789 FINALLY arrived (4.5 months??!!!) yesterday and while I haven't dug in as much as I'd like, I was surprised at how it made the Sennheiser HD650, which I'm not the biggest fan of, sound better. It took the highest gain to bring it to life which is odd to me as I didn't think them to be power hungry. Prior to this I'd used a JDS EL stack or the EL DAC and a Darkvoice 336SE.
EL stack lacks soundstage and sounds sterile and boring while the thx series sounds fun and so clean n clear
@@ELSA-ex4ph So, what in your opinion, is a good DAC to pair with the 789?
StrikitRich topping dx7 is a good affordable pairing or for more up level the smsl D-1
Glad for you, enjoy some quality time with this combo!
@@Soundnews Using a balanced cable the HD650 sounds even better.
Nice - my new amp is 934 parts per thousand perfect !! But at 200 parts per thousand of the cost...
An amazing value and a great sonic performance! Enjoy
Excellent :) Thx, now waiting for some deals on any of the THX , or some concurrents (not at the same level though, but still great value & perf): JDS Lab Atom, EL Amp, Monolith Liquid Spark...
Will try to borrow those too for some tests.
@@Soundnews Ended up buying the SP200, for 260 ship included (got customs :( ) , with the SU-8 as a DAC, now waiting for it + cables to come! :O
:D
I also went for the SMSL SP200, not arrived so far. I will pair it with my ADI-2 PRO FS from RME.
I would love some dac comparison's too.
Would be interessted in:
SMSL _VMV_ D1
RME ADI-2 PRO FS
iFi Pro iDSD
Great, tell us how that combo sounds. RME ADi-2 is the most requested review on this channel, will try to get a loaner unit. iFi guys didn't want to send their entry level Zen DAC for a review, Pro iDSD will not happen very soon. As for SMSL, will see about that.
Thank you for the comparison , is it a good idea to pair smsl sp200 with Chris mojo as a DAC?
Thanks
If you mean Chord Mojo, then I can't really tell since I don't have one
Can you give us your thoughts on the Monolith THX amp?
Great comparision!
Do IEMs hiss on the SMSL?
On high gain they do and on low gain there is a tiny amount of it too
Soundnews which IEMs did u test? (I am hoping u did not test the notorious for hiss Campfire Andromedas, and tested other IEMs...) Kinda surprised a THX amp would create any background hiss?
Also....i use BALANCED 4.4mm male pin cables on all my IEMS, what are your thoughts on all 3 THX amps, on how best or not, to recommend an adapter to fit a 4.4 pin connector? Adding anything to a line out cable can alter sound, sometimes not.
I know SMSl can be a bit finicky with the wrong source, but how about the other 2 amps?
@@MrWkendwarrior I have the THX desktop and IEMs hiss with it.
Albeshr ok?...is it safe then to say.....if u have an IEM, u should not use THX if this hiss is noticeable? If true, that would suck, because THX seems like a great amp type. First thought i had was to ADD a GAIN switch with more than 2-3 adjustments, more like multiple levels (5-10+?), but if u could dial i a much lower gain on an IEM, or turn the gain OFF....MAYBE ....IEMs would lose the hiss...
@@MrWkendwarrior Yeah I can't use IEMs with it.
And it's not the THX module which causes the hiss, it's the whole system which determine the noise floor, from the AC plug to the 3.5mm out. The amp section is just one part of the chain.
Again great shootout.It is not a cheap stack but when I read reviews of Benchmark DAC3/HP4/AHB2 may be the best sound for the money or if in the case of the AHB2 the best available if your lookin for great specs which explain the sound.I love tubes but might go back to SS for the DAC3 and AHB2 and add tubes in between of just make it a whole Benchmark stack.Yes you can get good with say the SMSL headphone or with digital get the RME DAC but end game one company I think Benchmark loos pretty damn good.Of course hear in the USA that's close to $9K but something to shoot for
Great reviews
I like your voice, very nice video
What dac are you using ? What is the best dac of the THX amp especially the Benchmark ?
I’d like to know which dac as well.
What do you mean? I stated in the review what DAC I am using, its Matrix Audio Element X
@@Soundnews is it the best dac ever ?
@@nicktan4530 Of course not, I didn't test all DACs on this planet :)
But, up to $3000 I didn't test anything better that this. Firstly, it's not just a DAC, it's a streamer too with a dedicated app on your smartphone, has an internal music player, it is Roon enabled and it's a balanced headphone amp. It is a feature packed device and I love it.
@@Soundnews are there any difference with expensive and cheap dac for sound quality difference?
Great reviews ! I'm looking into getting one THX. Also considering Monolith and Topping D7x Pro for convenience. What's your input ? Thanks !
Couldn't find Monoprice Monolith around here and they didn't want to send a loaner unit, no Monoprice stuff for now. I would go DX7 Pro for convenience and versatility
Are you living in europe maybe you can review my Geshelli Archel2
Tnx
You're welcome
HPA4 really shouldn't be compared to the other two. I guess if you want to show how close to it the other two can get it makes sense but explaining how it does things better almost seems pointless. Just looking at it I had a feeling it was a monster that would break the bank but deliver when it comes to sound. I'm mostly curious as to whether the THX amps suffer from compression as one commenter said. I don't know if they are full of it or telling the truth, and that's pretty annoying since the way they stated their assertion makes it difficult to refute without hearing opposition from a reliable source.
Overall I liked the comparison.
What do you mean ? They sound exact the same
Go read tons of review on amazon, not just one outlier.
2k for benchmark. I doubt you can hear a difference in blind a b test.
I've got the SP200 for 320$ CAD tax in and i can say it rock.
Where from?
best review! best reviewer!
smsl sp400 ^^ ^^ 이것도 마찬가지
where is monoprice 887?
Here it is: www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=39359 :D
Thank you. This review is nothing alike zeos sponsor service. Made me cancel the massdrop piece. Incredible waiting time and custom fees discouraged me. And now having a regular eu distribution makes it so much easier.
You forgot value for money score:)
Well, SP200 would be at 100, THX-789 at 98 and HPA-4 at about 70 or so (it still has many additional features that SP200 or THX-789 are not having: an end-game line-stage, 4 {FOUR} analog inputs and 3 analog outputs)
@@Soundnews Mersi!
92,8 u say :D very specific scoring
Ну и где саунд демо?
Listen to Asgard 3 . Chifi sucks
Trust your ears only not politics
@@Soundnews Hi!. Any chance you can review the Asgard 3? I´m curious about how does it compare with THX offerings. Already have SP200. Thanks
@@jessreggae I can assure you that SP200 is better sounding and measures WAY better. Schiit is ignoring low subscriber channels as mine and I have no desire to purchase a Asgard3
@@Soundnews Thanks. Your channel is growing and gonna keep doing it
I have difficulty with this as I love the sound of some chifi...but Chinese company's are always linked to the communist dictatorship. I always try to vote with my dollars.
In all honesty, this is a very flawed review. I'll try to not just be negative and provide some constructive feedback as to why I find that:
No description of the I/O's, marketed specifications and independently measured specifications (ASR measured all 3). Because of that, you already missed out on 1 major aspect I think you should have mentioned; the fact that it doesn't have RCA line- or pre-outs. So you can't connect your active speakers or speaker amp to it to be able to use 1 DAC for both your headphones and speakers without needing to switch out cables. That can be an instant dealbreaker for everyone who uses speakers as well. The only technical piece of information I heard was that the 789's output is halved on the SE outputs.
SMSL has for some reason decided to use a linear attenuator instead a gradual attenuator, which causes the volume adjustment to increase at a constant rate, instead of a gradually increasing rate. That makes it practically unusable for highly sensitive IEM's if you don't have a way to lower your DAC's output voltage in some way. The 789 has a variable attenuator, and it's relevant enough that it deserves to be mentioned in your comparison.
The frequency response of all those amps has been measured to be dead flat from 10Hz - 40KHz, no differences there. So whatever you base your judgement of the frequency response on, it really isn't the frequency response. To my knowledge, no recordings contain any information below 20Hz, so I don't know if I can trust this review in that regard.
Besides, what you describe from your listening tests, is all subjective information. The human brain isn't a measuring instrument that will always give you the same result when you repeat a specific test, and no 2 humans will always hear the same thing under identical conditions. So I can't agree that this is an objective review, as it contains almost no objective information. Because of your FR description, I'm having a difficult time believing the rest of your descriptions about their sound as well.
All of this gives me the impression that you were paid for a positive review in favor of SMSL, which makes it more of a commercial than a review.
- Can a AP555x Audio Analyzer measure soundstage size and depth? Can it measure the impact and the punch an amplifier can have? It can't, but your ears together with your brain can do that.
- If you are listening to your music via a AP555x and not with your ears and your brain you came to the wrong place.
- If you think SMSL would pay someone with a 1k subscribers, think again.
- It is clear to me that you never watched or read this review where I clearly stated that for SP200 and HPA4 I already did separate reviews where all the specs, inputs and output were already mentioned, why would I mentioned them Again in this comparative review?
@@Soundnews What we perceive as differences in soundstage caused by DACs and/or amps, is partially caused by differences in crosstalk, channel balance, THD and transient response. Those variables can be measured. While it doesn't tell the full story, is can give us an indication on whether we can expect to hear differences in soundstage or not.
I didn't mean to imply that measurements are more important than listening with your own ears. I meant to say that a comparison based on listening tests, is in fact a subjective evaluation, not an objective one, as no 2 individuals always hear the same thing. Being a skeptic is in my nature, so when you mention hearing certain differences that don't make sense to me, I tend to look for scientific information to figure out if you could be right about what you claim to hear. All that matters in the end, is of course how it affects our listening experience. But with the amount of misleading information you find everywhere in the hifi industry, it's extremely difficult to know who you can trust.
Maybe you weren't paid by SMSL specifically to be positive in this review, but the SP200 is the only one which you have a referal link for, which suggests that incentivizing sales specifically directed towards the SP200 will be most beneficial for you financially. I'm not opposed to you earning money via that route, as evidently you invest a lot of time in your brand, so it makes sense that you're looking to earn some money from it. But when just 1 specific outcome of a 3-way comparison will earn you money, it's almost impossible to not let that affect your evaluation. It would have been better to do a comparison between products which you all have referal links for, so the outcome of the evaluation doesn't affect the financial outcome enough to be relevant.
I have indeed not seen or read the individual reviews, although I do think that specs and I/O's are absolutely relevant to also weigh in on the total scores. You could categorize your scores into objective performance, subjective evaluation and features & I/O's for example, to offer a suggestion.
To be clear though, I didn't mean to just be a hater, I pointed out some concerns I had with this comparison to give you the opportunity to respond. What you do with my feedback is completely up to you, but I do believe that there are some things you can do to improve the reliability of your reviews/comparisons, which could help your channel to grow faster. You seem knowledgable enough to share good quality reviews, I don't doubt that. I'd just like to be assured that what you're sharing isn't affected by financial intentions.
He just froze your statement
@@ELSA-ex4ph Thanks Elsa, my son is in love with you :)
Soundnews thanks 🙏 great review btw