It feels like we’re just seeing an explosion of headphone amps lately. It’s not a surprise, given there seems to be an equally wide explosion of headphone models. Some models wired, others wireless, and many models offering both.

The LSA HyperDrive 2 Headphone Amp

Buying a quality pair of headphones of the wired variety is often followed by a look around for a quality headphone amp, and today I have a look at one of the best I’ve heard.

You might properly ask, who needs a headphone amp? You’ve probably got a lot of devices around with nice headphone outputs such as receivers, pre-amps, and portable digital players.

The problem is that many of those headphone jacks are often fronting for mediocre electronics. For many pieces of equipment, headphone amps are an afterthought, something that must be ticked off on a specification checklist. And, of course, some built-in headphone amps are truly excellent, but they are the exception and not the norm.

The LSA HyperDrive 2 Headphone Amp Front View

So that brings me to the LSA HyperDrive 2 headphone amp. It’s beautiful to behold, with a retro look with some modern touches. It uses two tubes in its audio circuit, offering audiophiles some warmth that many music lovers crave in this digital world. Build quality is first-rate, and surprisingly it offers 3 stereo inputs, switch selectable from the front panel. The sound is first-rate, listening from a variety of source components, both analog and digital. The HyperDrive 2 had no trouble driving headphones from my large collection, regardless of impedance. In short, if you’re into headphones, this is a product you should seriously consider.

A bit about the company. LSA (Living Sounds Audio) is part of Underwood HiFi. Their products are designed in the USA, then made in China and sold direct to customers. Their varied products, including power amps, turntables, speakers, and phono stages have been very well reviewed and are pleasing customers for their physical and audio quality. The company is run by and was founded by Walter Lieberman, a 50-year veteran of high-end audio, who consulted in the past for companies like Infinity and Acoustic Research.

Highlights

LSA HyperDrive 2 Headphone Amplifier

  • Build quality and appearance are far beyond the product price point
  • Controls are flexible, with multiple inputs to support a variety of sources
  • Uses a standard 1/4” jack, making it easily pairable with headphones of most impedances.
  • A gain switch makes using it with a variety of impedances easy.
  • There’s a pre-amp output, so HyperDrive 2 can be used as a pre-amp at line level.
Introduction

I’m a long-time headphone listener, being first introduced to good-quality headphones when I worked at a commercial Classical FM Station while in college. They had the then-new and ‘hot’ Sennheiser HD-414 headphones which had smooth frequency response and were very lightweight. They were the first open-air headphones I had ever experienced.

I fell in love with headphone listening as the years progressed, mostly because I could listen at loud levels without disturbing others, and, I loved the detail I could hear in recordings as opposed to listening on speakers.

I’ve usually done my listening through a headphone amp for better quality, and to bring a volume control to the tip of my fingers.

LSA HyperDrive 2 Headphone Amplifier Specifications
Power Output:

2 Watts per channel into a 32-ohm load

THD:

.002% at 500mW into 32 ops

Adjustable gain via front panel switch:

0/6/12db

Weight:

9 lbs.

Power Consumption:

230W

TTubes used:

6922/6DJ8/EC88

Dimensions;

8.5” w 4.2” h x 10.5” d

Warranty:

2-year warranty on electronics, 6 months on the tubes

Retail Price:

$999.00 with an introductory sale price of $799.00

Company:

DIRECTORY

SECRETS Tags:

amplifiers, amplifier, amplifier reivews, amplifiers reviews, amplifiers reviews 2022

Design

The HyperDrive 2 is an alluring design, looking like classic Hi-Fi from decades past, yet it would look at home next to a modern group of components.

The LSA HyperDrive 2 Headphone Amp Top View

Facing the front panel you’ll see a large power switch, input selection indicators, input selection switches, a gain switch to match the amplifier to your headphones, a rather large volume control, and a locking headphone jack.

On the back panel are three stereo input jacks, 2 stereo outputs, and a 24-volt DC input for power. The stereo outputs are pre-amp outs, nice for driving perhaps some powered speakers. The level is variable output, and when used as a pre-amp those outputs are controlled by the front panel volume control.

The LSA HyperDrive 2 Headphone Back Panel

The HyperDrive 2 is capable of driving 2w into 32ohms, so it can work with the most demanding low-sensitivity headphones. The SET tube buffer provides for an SE Class A harmonic profile that is second harmonic dominant with monotonically descending higher orders with an overall THD of 0.002% at 500mW into 32ohms.

A heavy CNC machined aluminum chassis with a durable powder-coated finish that’s striking visually yet exudes a sense of elegance. You won’t want to hide this in a cabinet.

Setup

The HyperDrive 2 arrived nicely packed and surrounded by a solid foam core. The tubes were already installed. All that was needed was to carefully remove the HyperDrive 2 from its packing, plug in the AC adaptor into the jack on the back of the unit, and plug the HyperDrive 2 into AC power.

Secrets Sponsor

It’s recommended to let the tubes warm up for 30 to 60 seconds before listening, and it’s further suggested that the tubes will be at their best around 30 minutes after turning on. I did all my auditioning after letting the amp sit idle for at least 30-40 minutes.

The LSA HyperDrive 2 Headphone Amp Tubes Close Up

There isn’t much else to do, other than plug your headphones in, and find a gain setting that works best with your headphones.

In Use

Before we dive in, I have a couple of thoughts that will help you understand my review. Like all high-end audio, what finally gets to your ears is the sum of a series of steps. What you will hear depends greatly on the quality of the recording, and the source component. After that, we have the headphone amplifier, which may be built-in, or an external device such as the HyperDrive 2. Then there is your choice of headphones. Open back or over the ear. The headphones themselves may be one of the greater variables in determining what you hear. And there is a great deal of subjectivity. What personal tastes went into the design of the headphones you purchased, and the effect of the headphone amplifier on the character of the sound?

I think many headphone amplifier purchasers select tube devices for the extra layer of warmth tubes provide, while others may prefer a drier, “give me what is on the original recording” presentation.

I listened to a variety of music I know well, so I could see what the HyperDrive 2 was doing to the music, and if I thought it was positive or negative (based on my own subjective tastes). Of course, I also listened for any hint of distortion or noise.

Secrets Sponsor

My sources included my trusty FiiO M15 digital audio player, connected to the analog inputs of the HyperDrive 2. I also listened to the output of my Anthem AVM90 processor, taking a pre-amp output into the back panel of the HyperDrive 2. Sources for the Anthem included playback of Tidal tracks, and music from my Roon system, being fed by an audio server with access to thousands of CD rips in FLAC and my collection of high-resolution files at various bit rates.

To keep things analog, I tried quite a few reel-to-reel tapes played back on my vintage Teac X-1000R fed from the analog outputs on the deck directly to the analog inputs of the Hyperdrive 2. The tapes are from my collection of old but in good condition pre-recorded tapes, and some live recordings I did myself of classical concerts.

I listened on a variety of headphones, including Sennheiser HD660, HIFIMAN Sundara, and Focal Clear mg headphones. It was important to eventually standardize on one headphone for music comparisons, so I would be listening to what the HyperDrive 2 was doing to the sound. During my listening tests, I would play a track directly from my digital or analog source, then compare it to the sound of the HyperDrive 2. I also tried Apple AirPod Max headphones in non-wireless mode. I don’t think being wired is their specialty, so I dropped them out of my testing early. Most of my listening was on the Focal headphones which are very neutral and revealing.

Some general comments. Overall, the best sound through the hyperdrive 2 came direct from the FiiO M15 digital audio player. The sound from the Anthem AVM 90 was very close. Music from there was played using the straight-through analog mode, with no sound shaping or equalization. I played some SACD discs with that setup, using an Oppo BDP-203 disc player. I also enjoyed the music from my reel-to-reel tapes, pure analog into the analog HyperDrive 2, but tape hiss was a distraction.

So, here’s a sampling of what I listened to:

Leo Kottke

Leo Kottke “A Shout Toward the Moon”

Leo Kottke: A Shout Toward the Moon: The track Little Beaver sounded very ‘analog’ coming out of the M15. When Kottke stopped playing you could hear the vibrating strings slowly fade away. I think the HyperDrive 2 added a touch of warmth to the music, expected from a tube amp. When I switched the HyperDrive 2 off and listened directly from the M15 there was a slight loss of midrange warmth, but the music still sounded good. The decay of the plucked strings was a bit faster than through the HyperDrive 2.

Britten

Britten “Ceremony of Carols with the Kings College Choir”

Britten: Ceremony of Carols with the Kings College Choir: A sure test of headphones enveloping sound in a large acoustic space. This is a digital recording with happily, no hard edges. When the music runs through the HyperDrive 2 I felt that the reverb and decay times were just slightly longer, which I deem a good result.

Soundtrack

Soundtrack “How the West Was Won”

How the West Was Won: This was an original reel-to-reel tape playing through my Teac from back in 1962. When things were loud, like the main title, the fidelity was quite good. When the orchestra stopped playing there was a nice decay. But when things were soft tape hiss intruded. The HyperDrive 2 softened the high frequencies a bit, compared to listening directly from the M15, but the music portions sounded about the same.

Simon and Garfunkel

Simon and Garfunkel “Sounds of Silence”

Simon and Garfunkel- Sounds of Silence: This is a nice digital recording. I was thinking that the HyperDrive 2 might reduce channel separation a bit (it’s a purely analog device after all), but no, listening with or without the HyperDrive 2 separation was excellent. No complaints. The Bass was also deep, and natural.

Bernard Herrmann

Bernard Herrmann “The Fantasy Film World of Bernard Herrmann”

The Fantasy Film World of Bernard Herrmann: Fahrenheit 451. This track has massed strings and harp with excellent dynamic range. This music originated on a studio reel-to-reel deck and has been transferred to high-resolution digital files. The strings were smooth; the separation was very good. Nothing was lost playing this in the HyperDrive 2, and I think some slight warmth in the strings was gained. It’s just barely perceptible. Playing directly out of the M15 the strings sounded slightly harsher.

Rebecca Pidgeon

Rebecca Pidgeon “The Raven”

The Raven- Rebecca Pidgeon: This is an excellent high-res recording with a female vocal and a small ensemble. It’s very dynamic, with or without the HyperDrive. I was afraid when Ms. Pidgeon’s voice went into the higher octaves the tube amp would be overdriven, but it was well-behaved and pleasant. In short, it sounded like a real person singing.

Conclusions

The LSA HyperDrive 2 Headphone Amp Control Knob

At the introductory $799.00 price this is a very high-value product considering the build quality and care that went into the design. The sound quality was excellent on the variety of music I threw at it. Even when the price increases to $999.00, I’ll still consider this a superb product for the asking price.

Likes
  • Stunning to look at.
  • Build quality is exceptional.
  • The controls are solid in their response and the volume control is of high physical quality.
  • I like the ability to have 3 different analog inputs that are easily switchable.
  • The HyperDrive 2 should match to just about every headphone made.
  • The sound quality on a variety of digital and analog content was faultless. The strings were smooth and realistic, the midrange was silky, and the bass was deep without being boomy.
Would Like To See
  • Basically, I would not make any changes to this product. Some might want digital inputs with a DAC, but I think it would make this a different product that the market is not crying out for. It’s easy to get an analog out on any digital device, then input it to the HyperDrive 2, which is what I did for my review.

The LSA HyperDrive 2 Headphone Amplifier was a treat to listen to. The excellent engineering, solid construction, and very smooth sound add up to a very dynamic listening experience. On classical, vocal, acoustic, or rock and roll the HyperDrive 2 properly drove a wide variety of headphones and rendered music realistically and when needed, forcefully. Whether the source was digital, or pure analog, there was a lot to like.