Is TheAudioStore.in trustworthy?

Stronk

Stronk

Adept
Hi all,
Looking to order a dac amp from the above mentioned store since they have it available to ship. Anyone have experience with them? Called them up earlier today and the guy on the other end seemed decent enough, but would like hear some feedback before biting the bullet. Thanks for reading through.

Update: Yes, it seems they are! See reply #11
 
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Yup, have seen people on hifivision as well recommend them but wanted to know if anyone here had any experiences with them. Well, looks like I don't have much choice since Amazon isn't delivering the Tempotec Sonata HD Pro to my place, despite other non-essential stuff being delivered. Hifinage is out of stock, and Concept Kart (the official resellers of Tempotec for India if I'm not mistaken) don't have the ios version of the dongle. I think I'll take my chances, since I don't have much choice anyway haha. Thanks for replying!
 
I thought of ordering there as well since they are the only ones carrying Lotto Paw S1 in India, still have't made my mind yet.
 
Ahh good to know, I am confused between S1 and Luxury & Precision W2 (not available in India). Chord Mojo is also coming with their V2 version and other part of me says wait and get Shanling M8 straight away. Going deep down the rabbit hole :p

Congrats and happy listening.
 
Nalin said:
Ahh good to know, I am confused between S1 and Luxury & Precision W2 (not available in India). Chord Mojo is also coming with their V2 version and other part of me says wait and get Shanling M8 straight away. Going deep down the rabbit hole :p
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Ahaha yes it's a very slippery slop down the rabbit hole - I'd been using my IEMs for about a year happily, till the time I read about the apple dongle which piqed my curiosity about what better audio would sound like. I order it, and I'm basically blown away. Cue to a month later, I order the HE400i, and now, barely 3 days after it gets delivered, I've already ordered another audio product. But hopefully this is where it stops (for a while at least), since power is the only thing I'm missing from my setup.

Nalin said:
Congrats and happy listening.
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Haha I hope so too, but let's see if TheAudioStore.in delivers first. Only then will I enjoy in peace XD

Thanks a lot for writing!
 
Yes. They're highly recommended!
Delivered my Cat Ear Audio Mimi under 24 hrs.

Do keep in mind that they're based of Pune, so the lockdown restrictions in Maharashtra will affect your delivery schedule. Would suggest ordering after the lockdown because most products in their catalogue are OOS and any replacements (if any) might be difficult.
 
AINDRASIS_GUPTA said:
Do keep in mind that they're based of Pune, so the lockdown restrictions in Maharashtra will affect your delivery schedule. Would suggest ordering after the lockdown because most products in their catalogue are OOS and any replacements (if any) might be difficult.
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Yep, I'm aware and that's why I'd called them yesterday to see if they are still delivering. They have already handed over my package to Bluedart so feeling positive so far. Hopefully they will be here by tomorrow.
And thanks for the reassurance, much appreciated!
 
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What DAC chip provided at Lotoo PAW S1?

S1 is priced very high in India...it priced higher than BTR5.

Edit : Got it......it is AKM 4377, but still the price is very high.
 
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Update: Got the dongle a few hours ago, been playing with it the past half an hour or so. Spectacular performance so far, and with these finally my HE400i sings. Way more power than the the apple dongle, but not much perceivable difference I could hear (except bass response), apart from a bit more clarity - maybe the instrument separation is slightly better and the treble ever so slightly purer, but could be placebo as well. Bass response has definitely improved significantly though, and it doesn't sound somewhat hollow anymore.
But I had bought these with the intention to basically use it as an amp, and boy does it deliver! Haven't installed the Sonata software yet, which enables dsd 256 playback (can't do dsd 256 on the dongle without it) but frankly I don't see the need for it. Would highly recommend the dongle as well as the store. They shipped it the same day I ordered (7th May) and it got delivered in just a day. Their updates were a bit slow (got delivery confirmation from bluedart but not yet from them, the last updated status still shows in transit, but that's not an issue for me). @Nalin hope this helps!

Edit: My HE400i sound like a different set of headphones with these. What I'd written before is no longer relevant since I was using these with an eq profile. With the Apple dongle, it felt necessary since otherwise they felt hollow. With the Sonata, I prefer the stock sound of these, without any EQ or tunings. I've been going back and forth with and without eq, and damn the response is just way better! These are very worth the 4.5k, and a worthy step up from the ₹900 Apple Dongle in every way possible. Wow
 
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Yep, it's there. But the stock cables are pretty shit - the micro B to USB C cable cuts out with even the slightest movement - literally just pressing the volume buttons on it triggers a cutout. I have verified that it's the cable and not the device by using a separate micro b to usb cable, and using a type a to c convertor. But otherwise it's excellent, and I'm very happy so far.
 
If you feel like upgrading later on (if you buy other high impedance HPs), do remember to keep a lookout for E1DA 9038D. It is a, nearly perfect, portable DAC/AMP which punches well above it's price. I have it's balanced version (9038S) running my HD650s and I don't feel the need to upgrade my DAC/AMP ever.
 
rdst_1 said:
If you feel like upgrading
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Key word here XD
But thankfully, for now I'm satisfied with my setup, and hopefully for a good while of time. Thanks for the recommendation!
Nalin said:
Now you can offload that Apple Dongle to me as I want to try it with my Andromeda 2020 :p
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Haha sure, I have no use for it now so I'm open to sell the one month old dongle :p
 
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This is probably the best place to ask, I am getting a pair of Hifiman Deva monday, they need an amp:

1. What Amp/dac should I get for use with a smartphone between 2-5k?

2. Whats makes about sonata HD pro great? a lot of people suggesting it here.
 
PHOENiX117 said:
1. What Amp/dac should I get for use with a smartphone between 2-5k?
2. Whats makes about sonata HD pro great? a lot of people suggesting it here.
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1. If your phone has USB C, and you have UAPP, I would highly recommend these. These can drive my HE400i very well, though I have to trick it to high gain mode by first putting in a 3.5mm extension without anything plugged into it. But since the Deva is only 18ohm compared to HE400i's 32ohm, you may not need the high gain mode actually.
2. Tempotec is the OEM of Hidizs, and the Sonata HD Pro is literally the same product as the Hidizs S8 (twice the price of this) but in an all aluminum enclosure. Reviews have it measured very well, making the dragonfly red and cobalt almost redundant, at a much lesser price. Check out head audiosciencereview's review for the same. Even personally speaking, I find it excellent - both the DAC and amp bits are really good, and I don't think I want any more power for now.

Also congrats on the Deva, and enjoy the pair! I read they have a bit more soundstage and better bass roll off than the HE400i, so I'm sure it'll sound even more fantastic out of these! Without these, my pair used to feel hollow but now it basically sings. I kinda regret not going for the Deva for 3k more, but then again my initial budget was 8k for headphones so I was already over that haha.
If possible, make sure to eq these - the HE400i sound even better with oratory's preset to me, though personally I have kept the mids (filter 4) at only +3 instead of +6.8 since I prefer that.
Anyhow, enjoy your pair!
 
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dissel said:
May I know how low Amazon go for Deva and HE400i, missed the deal.

Also both of you buy from Amazon or HPZ ?
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Amazon had HE400i for 12k, I got it for 10.8k with ICICI cashback of 1200. The Deva was at 15k , and could have got it for 13.75k with the same ICICI/Kotak cashback. I think both of us bought from Amazon, since I've not seen these at a lower price anywhere else. But do beware of Hifiman's QC issues. @ninjenstein has shared his unfortunate experience on this thread. I purchased knowing about this an other QC issues, and touchwood it seems I got a decent pair.
Both go for sale pretty frequently, as attested by Keepa:
Deva -
1620547327186.png


HE400i -
1620547333629.png

However, I've read in online forums that the HE400i has been discontinued internationally and has been replaced by the HE400SE (already available on HPZ I think), so the HE400i stocks might not last for much longer in India as well.
 
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