"There is not much amplification," thought HiFiMan and designed the EF-6. Despite the fact that the company deals exclusively with headphones, in their arsenal there is such legendary model as HE-6, which has very low sensitivity and requires very powerful (by the standards of portable audio) amplification. It was for her that this device was first developed. The company positioned it as the top, and so far it is able to easily plug most of the competitors into the belt.
Of course, one HE-6 list of "hungry" headphones, loving more power, is not limited. There are also Audeze, other models HiFiMan, Abyss and many others, and mostly isodynamic models. In all these cases, similar amplifiers come to the rescue. Even the hybrid model EF-5, released in 2011, gave 2 watts per channel. But for the HE-6 even this was not enough, so the HiFiMan thought and released the hero of today's review.
Manufacturers decided to approach the design with all seriousness, a fully discrete amplifier operating in Class A, giving out 5 watts per channel at a load of 50 Ω (just what HE-6 is needed). Such circuitry has led to truly frightening dimensions and weight, at first glance it seems that before us - a typical power amplifier, oriented to use with large acoustic systems.
On the one hand, HiFiMan tried to create a truly high-quality solution, for example, as a volume control uses a 24-step switch, switching permanent resistors, which should provide an ideal balance of channels. On the other hand, the amplifier is not balanced. The 4-pin XLR socket on the front panel is made just for easy connection of the top isodynamic headphones, which are basically equipped with just such a plug.
Not quite human, and the price tag of the product. HiFiMan themselves ask for EF-6 about 1600 dollars, but taking into account its weight, delivery greatly increases this price, and we can buy it from us somewhere around 1800. I, as usual, took it for tests .
Specifications
- Output power: 5 W @ 50 Ω, class A
- Total Harmonic Distortion: 0.03% (1 W, 1 KHz)
- Signal to noise ratio: 95 dB
- Volume control: 24 position switch
- Dimensions: 330 mm × 310 mm × 105 mm
- Weight: 10.75 kg
Packing and delivery kit
Here HiFiMan approached the issue in the utmost utilitarian way: the EF-6 box is made of ordinary brown cardboard, inside it is the amplifier itself, protected from all sides by polypropylene inserts. In addition to it, you will receive a network cable, and that's it.
On the one hand, of course, a very meager set of supplies, on the other - what else could it be?
Design and management
EF-6 is not just a big, by the standards of headphone amplifiers - it's huge. This mastodon calmly takes a third of my desk, leaving not much room for everything else. The design of the device is simple and functional. Most of the body is made of black metal, except for the front panel of black plexiglas. The lateral faces are ribbed, since they act as radiators. The amplifier is heated very noticeably, although it is not prohibitive, so its design provides as many ventilation holes.
The rear panel accommodates the inputs / outputs: two inputs with RCA connectors, an output that allows the EF-6 to be used as a preamplifier, gain switch, power cable connector and a voltage switch in the network. The latter "away from sin" is closed with a protective plexiglas.
Front panel included: power switch with LED indication, volume control, three input selector buttons, 3.5 mm line-in jack and two headphone jacks, common for 6.3 mm TRS and 4-pin XLR. The line input on the front panel allows you to easily connect something like a player or laptop for quick listening. As I wrote above, despite the presence of XLR-sockets, the amplifier is not balanced.
In addition to the large size, it's hard to find fault with the amplifier: a solid appearance, reliable construction resembling a tank, the presence of all necessary options, quality assembly - everything that distinguishes premium segment products, there is.
Sound
To listen to the amplifier I used the following equipment:
- MacBook Pro Retina Late 2013 as a source
- Yulong DA8 as USB DAC
- DIY DAC on PCM1702
- Audirvana Plus as a player
- Headphones HiFiMan HE-4, HiFiMan HE-6, Audeze LCD-3, TDS-7 in the modification Snorry
- Entries in lossless format
The task of the EF-6 is to "pour in" as much power as possible into tight and demanding headphones without adding anything "on its own". Due to discrete performance and work in class A, he does it without much effort.
The bass of this model, of course, is good. It is the LF that first suffers from the HE-6 in case of lack of amplification. With an improper amplifier, they develop a good volume, but the pitch becomes very thin and cutting. EF-6 shows the best side of the company's isodynamic flagship: a superb bass, with excellent bodilyity and texture fills the imagination. This bundle clearly shows why the isodynamic headphones were so popular.
The middle frequencies are also expectedly live and detailed. I did not have enough time to work out the S-band at the edges of the imaginary "scene" - the sounds blown to the farthest sides of each channel quite a bit "do not hold out" for working up to 100%, but this is very, very rare. Except for this, the amplifier copes with the transfer and emotion, and the dynamics, and energy records are just fine.
The RF band is the most controversial part of many headphones. The LCD from Audeze he deliberately pushed into the background, which many do not like, with HE-6, on the contrary, it is transmitted with maximum detail, which also causes discontent among many. EF-6 manages to achieve the best possible result for any headphones. If with the LCD-3, no matter how hard you try, the HFs still remain slightly backward, although they gain a lot in control and extension, then the HE-6 situation becomes simply excellent. The "top" of the HE-6 turns out to be superbly transparent, realistic and tireless (at least, to my ears, "HF-Fobs" can still be unhappy).
In general, EF-6 is just the case when the amplifier does not bring any gags, just helping the headphones to "reveal" to the fullest.
Compatibility
EF-6 has a huge power reserve, and even in a low-gain mode it's too loud for many headphones. It is not actually designed for IEM and "simple" models with good sensitivity. Its task is to swing the tight models, and in this, of course, there are not many equal. In general, this is an amplifier that is bought for specific headphones, take it "in reserve" or as a universal solution - it makes little sense. Not surprisingly, the EF-6 best shows itself with the HiFiMan products of the same time when the amplifier itself was created, the HE-4, HE-5 and HE-6 are the best pair for it. Other isodynamic headphones are also good with this monster, especially under the condition of high impedance.
Genre of the EF-6 has no special preferences, it equally well copes with most styles and directions, swinging even very tight headphones to the required level.
conclusions
Partly a controversial decision. On the one hand, despite the very high price, the EF-6 does not even attempt to realize the DAC function, as it is done, for example, in the EF-100 amplifier. Again, unlike most of the top models of other companies, the EF-6 is not balanced. We add to this also a large size and weight. It would seem that there is no chance of success with such introductory notes. In fact, if you like top-of-the-line isodynamic headphones, the EF-6 is a very interesting model: a huge power reserve, combined with a neutral and balanced sound will allow the taut headphones to reveal themselves to the fullest, showing themselves from the best side.
The article is based on materials .
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