Pangea HP 201 Tube Headphone Amplifier For Sale -

I bought this headphone amp about a year and a half ago from Audio Advisors when the headphone output on my vintage NAD preamp stopped working. I have since replaced my pre amp with a new Parasound Halo 5, so this headphone amp is not needed. I didn\'t like the China tube that came with it so I decided to replace it with a new JJ 12AX7S/ECC83S. I think it sounds much better with this tube. I also tried a vintage Mullard I had in my stash from the early \'60s made in Great Britain. Oh yah, now that tube is fantastic, sweet shimmery highs, liquid mids, and full tight bass. That tube has it all. Sorry but the Mullard is not included with this sale. If you can get one of these I highly recommendit. The JJ will be installed in the amp for sale. I will be including free of charge a 3 meter Pangea AC 14 high end power cable that retails for $59, an Audioquest Evergreen 2 meter RCA audio cable that retails for $39.38, a 1/8\" to 1/4\" headphone plug adapter and a usb cable.
I don\'t mess with sales. I set my prices low to sell fast. I can\'t find the original box but I assure you it will be packed well to arrive to the new owner in good condition. I will include the original manual. Package weighs 8lbs. 4oz. FedEx Home delivery is the cheapest but I can do USPS PriorityMail, but that would be higher. I do not recommendUSPS Parcel Select or Parcel Post on electronic items.
The following information is from the Audio Advisor web site:DescriptionSuperb Tube and Solid State Head Amp/DAC/Preamp with Pure Class A Design

The Pangea Audio HP201 hybrid vacuum tube/solid state headphone amp was designed by an engineering team led by renowned engineer/designer Jay Victor, who also carefully tweaked the circuitry for optimum performance. It uses a Pure Class A, single ended design with no negative response, which contributes to the amazing sound. It also has a built-in 24/192 DAC.

Unlike other manufacturers\' headphone amps in this price class, the HP201 doesn\'t use op-amps in its output stage. After testing a variety of op-amp output devices, Jay decided to use discrete MOSFET output devices for power amplification instead.

\"The MOSFETs we chose sounded better than all the op-amps we tested, including an extremely expensive model that cost $18 each,\" reported Jay, \"I don\'t understand why more manufacturers don\'t use MOSFETs in headphone amps.\"

\"I also tested the HP201 with a variety of vacuum tubes,\" Jay said. \"I settled on the venerable 12AX7 even though it costs four times as much as the next-best-sounding tube. The inclusion of the 12AX7 really brought out the best in the HP-201.\"

Premium Cirrus Logic USB DAC

In addition to its beautiful performance as a headphone amp, the HP201 also excels as a USB DAC. The 24/48/96/192kHz compatible input lets you play high resolution digital audio files directly from your Windows or Mac computer. The DAC chip used is the highly regarded Cirrus Logic CS4344 24-bit/192-kHz DAC chipset.

Use It as a Preamp, Too

The HP201\'s 1/4\" headphone jack is ideal for your audiophile headphones and features a healthy 350mV for compatibility with a wide range of makes and models. And thanks to its preamp functionality, you can connect the analog stereo outputs directly to a power amp or powered speakers without the need for a separate preamp. The preamp output is 3.5V. In addition to its USB input, the HP201 also features auxiliary RCA inputs. The precision-machined aluminum volume control makes operation a pleasure.

\'Swappable\' 12AX7 Vacuum Tube

\"One advantage of using a 12AX7 is that customers can feel free to try a variety of their own 12AX7 tubes,\" reported Jay. \"I dug into my collection of old tubes and plugged in a 1968 Mullard Blackburn short-plate edition – a personal favorite. Glorious! Before I tested the Mullard tube I first replaced the stock power cord with a Pangea Audio AC-14XL power cable. I think the Pangea power cable made a bigger difference than the Mullard tube!\"

Rigid, Non-Resonant Steel and Aluminum Housing

The HP-201 has 10mm thick aluminum front panel, 6mm thick aluminum back panel, and steel chassis. This makes for a very non-resonant housing structure. Most headphone amps in this class use inferior thin sheet-metal housings, which can degrade their performance.

Meticulous Attention to Detail

The HP201 uses fully discrete circuitry. There are no op-amps or other integrated circuits used anywhere in the signal path. Every component and detail of the HP201 was chosen for maximum performance. Jay insisted on using Wima coupling caps and Rubycon power supply caps, which contribute to the superior sound quality. These are the same electrical components used in many ultra high-end products. Most amps in this class use cheap Chinese no-name components.

Contributing to the superior performance is a precision linear internal power supply that is extremely quiet. The replaceable IEC power cable gives you an easy upgrade path if you want an extra performance nudge by using a premium audiophile power cable, such as the Pangea Audio AC-14XL.

A Tale of Two Headphone Amps

Our friends at Pangea Audio told Audio Advisor the story of how their new HP201 and HP101 headphone amps came to be…

Two years ago, while exploring a large product exhibition hall in Asia, we [Pangea Audio] happened upon a booth displaying beautifully made tube headphone amps. But these were tube amps with a twist. Tube headphone amps are fairly common in Asia, but these little gems were exceptionally well made and featured a USB input. They definitely caught our attention.

We asked the people in the booth if they made these headphone amps themselves or if they were merely reselling them. They told us that they manufacturer the amps and proudly showed us pictures of their factory. When we asked who designed them, they showed us pictures of their lead engineer and his assistant, who happened to be diehard audiophiles.

We Knew We Could Do Even Better

Although we liked these headphone amps, we knew we could make them better. Bandwidth on the USB input was limited to 16-bit and the amps were using a common, reliable, but not great sounding Chinese tube. Our customers would demand 24-bit USB and would want a better sounding vacuum tube.

Experience has taught us there is no substitute for a factory visit. Feet on the ground were the key to doing business in Asia. So we exchanged business cards in the very respectful Asian way and told them our agent would stop by for a visit.

We knew just the man for the job. We asked our friend, Jay Victor to investigate this factory. Jay is an internationally known engineer/designer who among his many other accomplishments designed Pangea Audio\'s line of best-selling, high performance power cables and AV cables.

A few weeks later, Jay reported back to us that he had visited the factory, which he told us was small, but very clean and well organized. Technically it was more advanced than many much larger factories Jay had visited. Jay agreed that we needed 24-bit USB and a more common American or European vacuum tube. We decided to use the very well regarded 12AX7. An added benefit of this tube was it\'s versatility. Jay told us that audiophiles would have fun substituting different tubes for the 12AX7 to tweak the sound quality.

An Impressive New \"Killer Amp\"

Months later, we heard back from Jay. The factory had redesigned the circuit to include a 24-bit USB DAC and a 12AX7 vacuum tube. Jay thought the sound of both units had significantly improved over the original. The factory engineer was so impressed by the improvement that he was planning to roll out the change in all their future headphone amps.

We were very excited, but Jay asked us to wait a bit longer for samples, as he wanted to tweak the design just a bit more. Months later, he got back to us again. Prototype version six – or was it seven? – was the winner, he raved By tweaking both units Jay had lowered the circuit\'s noise floor yielding smoother, purer sound. \"Now I can heard clear differences between my collection of NOS [new-old-stock] 12AX7 tubes,\" Jay explained. \"I think we\'ve got two killer amps on our hands – especially for the price.\"

Two weeks later our samples of the HP101 and HP201 arrived. After a 72-hour burn-in, we gave them a listen. It was hard to wait the 72-hours! Once again, Jay was proven right. The new designs sounded even better than the originals and were amazing for the price.

Features

• Headphone amp/preamp with built-in USB DAC
• USB 24/48/96/192kHz Compatible Input
• Cirrus Logic CS4344 24-bit/192-kHz DAC
• Swappable 12AX7 Vacuum Tube
• Full Size 1/4\" Headphone Jack
• Discrete MOSFET output devices
• Pure Class A, single ended design with no negative response
• Fully discrete circuitry – no op-amps or other integrated circuits used anywhere in the signal path
• Windows and Mac Compatible Over USB
• Audiophile-Grade Wima and Rubycon capacitors
• Rigid Steel Desktop Chassis
• 10mm thick aluminum front panel, 6mm thick aluminum back panel, and steel chassis
• Precision Machined aluminum volume control
• Front Panel ON/OFF switch
• Front Panel USB/AUX Selector
• Preamp output: 3.5V
• Headphone output: max output of 350mV
• Auxiliary RCA Inputs
• Internal Precision Linear Power Supply
• Upgradeable IEC-Type Plug-In Power Cord
• Designed in USA
• Specs
• Dimensions: 4.5\" high, 6.75 wide, 9 deep
• Weight: 5.5 lbs.
• USB 24/48/96/192kHz Compatible Input
• Cirrus Logic CS4344 24-bit/192-kHz DAC
• Swappable 12AX7 Vacuum Tube
• Full Size 1/4\" Headphone Jack
• Preamp output: 3.5V
• Headphone output: max output of 350mV

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