Monolith Liquid Spark Headphone Amplifier - by Alex Cavalli With RCA Input, Single 1/4 Output 1.3Watt@50R, 108dB

I' have a few headphone amps, and every time I use the Liquid Spark I smile! I've had mine for approx. 4 years. Beautiful sounding, it has an openess and clarity that is the equal of much more expensive amps. If you're looking for an inexpensive headphone amp, this is the one to buy! My only complaint is the silk-screened print on the front of the unit wears off very easily! A little annoying, but at this price, with this sound quality, who cares? :)

Just excellent. I'm using it with a pair of HiFiMan planar headphones that need extra power to open up. The Liquid Spark headphone amplifier makes it happen. Just a great amp!

was looking for a small inexpensive headphone amp to bide me over till i got a much more expensive unit. then something happened i wasn't expecting. plugging into my cobalt dac and using my ananda stealths, i discovered that this was a combination that sounded so good, that i wasn't thinking about replacing it with the much more expensive one. this is a sound quality i wll live with for the present, and don't feel compelled to upgrade anytime soon. of course, you know i'll get the more expensive one in the future, but i'm not sure the difference will be worth the extra money spent.

Great build quality and a perfect addition to my Elac Discovery

A little powerhouse preamp that sounds GREAT straight out of the box. Plenty of gain to drive any headphone. Solid low end, clean and dynamic. However...if you want to kick it up to a whole new level here is a simple mod. (Warning: you are voiding any warranty if you do this mod) If you are familiar with circuit board layout and have the correct tools and solder, it will take an hour of your time. Otherwise, take it to a technician which shouldn't cost more than $50 or so. You'll need two 1000 uF 50 volt electrolytic audio grade capacitors ($2.00 each) solder each across the + and - 18 volt test points on the little marked strip on the board. WOW, what a difference! Bass is tighter and more powerful, mid-range is smoother, top end is sweeter, and there is more depth and sense of space. I compared it, before and after the mod, to three very expensive preamps and the result is so stunning that it comes very, very close to preamps costing 20 times the price! WHAT A BARGAIN! Kudos to the great designer Alex Cavalli. Remember though, it's a beauty right out of the box even without the mod.

The right side is distorted out of the box. I thought it was my headphones at first but confirmed that they were working on another amp. Checked all cables and they are working just fine with another amp. It's my copy for sure. Not happy with this amp at the moment.

Very pleased with the additional quality that I get while using this headphone amplifier without spending a ton of money.

My first dedicated headphone amp, sounds great with Sennheiser HD700 for all frequency range.

It really does sound great however there is one thing I can't seem to get working, the Preamp (P) output. RCA outputs on the rear of the device does not send to my analog board inputs. I've tested other outputs there and they work but I cannot, after using standard trouble-shooting techniques of different cords, different devices get this device's preamp out to function. I am assuming I got a new one. The headphone output is superb though.

Bought this to drive my Monolith AMT headphones, notoriously power hungry, when listening to a variety of audio devices. It sounds amazing, has just enough power to light up the AMTs.

This thing drives my planar HE400se phones beautifully and quite loud. The only issue I have is it clicks into standby mode when certain songs are played. It doesn't matter if it's loud or not, whether the gain is on high or low, whether the song has a lot of bass or not. I try a different version of the same song and it works just fine. This happened with 7 songs. I just got different versions and it's fine now. I wouldn't let this deter you if you're considering this amp, as it has great sound and a lot of power.

I paired the Liquid Spark with an iPhone and My D990 250 Ohm headphones. I am very impressed with the sound quality. It is balanced sound; Crisp highs, Clear midrange; and rich bass. It is a very resolving amp; comparable to my Infinity book shelf speakers on my stereo receiver at several times the cost. Be sure to follow the recommended operating instructions. It is definitely a good value for the money.

I'm happy with it so far. I haven't reached the magic "hundred hour" point yet, but it sounds good as is. If it does "open up," I'll be happier still.

I bought it to upgrade my pc sound system. I take a digital input from pc.... run it through my $100 Schitt dac, then into is unit. I have a nice pair og Sennheisers and it drives them well at low output setting. I use Amazon HD so the source is lossless. I then run the preamp or to a small cheap Bluetooth amp that runs an old but decent pair of Polk Audio speakers. Couple this with my 32" samsung tv for a monitor and I'm styling.

Don't let it's size fool you nor the price, this is an awesome startup amp that you can use at a hotel or traveling light and you need oomph. I'm using this for extra loudness using the passthrough to my Singxer SA-1 and it is Super Loud because the Singxer by itself is not unless you use High Gain. I have the Onkyo DAC-HA200 to the Liquid Spark then to the Singxer-SA 1 running 2 headphones from XLR and the 1/4" ports running the Focal Elex & Elegia, Beyerdynamic DT990 premium and my HiFiMan Sundara's and they all sound Awesome. It gets a little warm to the touch and when not playing anything and you turn the volume all the way up it is dead silent all the way through to the Singxer.

First off I would like to say this amp works really well to power my 80 ohm DT 770 pros I also use the pass through to go to my monoprice desktop speakers. I wish it was a non boosted preout though. I do have to say this amp really does get warm with use. Make sure to turn it off when you are done.

For the price (especially when on sale), it is hard to beat this unit. Compact, solid built construction, and an attractive case make this a great amp.

It drives my iems and headphones perfectly, especially my 250ohm beyerdynamics, but just as great sounding on my hifiman sundaras. Overall very satisfied and can recommend to anyone wanting audiophile listening at a budget price.

My MSI B450 Tomohawk max motherboard put out quality sound, but I was not satisfied with the max volume level. I wanted more, and this does the trick perfectly. Great product.

First thing I want to mention is that I believe headphone amplifiers are 99% snake oil. I own an hd600 and dt1990 both of which many people believe require/benefit from amplification which is false, they sound the same out of any average source as they do fancy amps. So why did I buy the liquid spark? Surprisingly the options for a good-looking audio knob are slim and word on the street is that this amp both looks and feels pretty good for the price. I think $109 is steep for a metal box with volume knob, but the aesthetics, chassis, and knob feel all beat everything else this cheap. The schiit magni, fiio k5 pro, and o2 all lose in these categories imo. The k5 chassis is very good, but the others just get trashed by the LS. The k5 has a larger knob but it has a bit of a stuck-in-jello feel while the liquid spark knob is very smooth and feels especially good to operate with a fingertip. The other budget amp knobs are all garbage in comparison. These glorified volume knobs should at least do that well, and the LS does. Things no one mentions: 1. Yes, the LS is usable with sensitive gear. You can be very accurate with the knob 2. The finish on the front and back is lighter than the rest. It’s not an angle thing. 3. The knob will be slightly noticeably warm but it’s pleasant if anything. 4. Don’t be alarmed when you pick it up out of the box and it feels too light and cheap. All budget amps feel like that and are much better when they are on a desk. The LS is heavy enough to stay put with some cable movement. 5. The LED is super dim. Love it. 6. The texture has a great soft feel. It’s between a glossy and matte finish and barely shows fingerprints. The buttons and knob have the same nice textured finish.