Review: Shanling PH3000

[Asr]

Intro

Some here may know I quit reviewing audio gear some time ago, which still holds - there were several reasons I gave that up but there are still a few components here and there that have piqued my curiosity. So when an opportunity to spend some time with the Shanling PH3000 came up recently, I jumped on it, and rather than keep my findings to myself, I thought I'd also write up an informal review since this amp isn't well-known.

I want to add here that my listening with the Shanling was accelerated given the short span of time I had with it - only 4 days. Past reviews I've written were done over weeks (in some cases, even months) so this review should be considered more of a "mini-review," but lest that give the wrong idea, I did listen to the amp very critically in the short time I had it. And in mini-review tradition, I've made this review as brief and to-the-point as possible.

My only comparison amp was the HeadAmp Gilmore Lite. Not a valid comparison given its very solid-statey sound, but the only way I used it was as a reference to hear how the Shanling differed, as I expected a contrast since the Shanling uses tubes.

Associated Equipment

Power cord: Black Sand Silver Reference MKV

Digital source: Plinius CD-101

RCA interconnects: Analysis Plus Silver Oval

Comparison amplifier: HeadAmp Gilmore Lite

Headphones: AKG K701 (re-cabled w/ SAA Equinox), Audio-Technica W5000 and AD2000 (both re-cabled w/ APureSound V3)

Evaluation CD Tracks

A Fine Frenzy - One Cell In The Sea - "The Minnow & The Trout"

Alison Krauss & Union Station - New Favorite - "Let Me Touch You For Awhile", "The Lucky One"

Alison Krauss & Union Station - So Long So Wrong - "Little Liza Jones"

Porcupine Tree - In Absentia - "Blackest Eyes", "Trains"

Priscilla Ahn - A Good Day - "Dream"

Rachel Portman - Chocolat [OST] - "Main Titles"

The Crystal Method - Community Service - "Dude In The Moon [Luna Mix]"

The Crystal Method - Tweekend - "Murder" (aka "You Know It's Hard")

The Prodigy - The Fat of the Land - "Smack My Bitch Up"

Vienna Teng - Dreaming Through The Noise - "1BR/1BA"

Features, Operation, etc.

The Shanling has a nice compact form factor and isn't too heavy either, which makes it quite transportable. Decent number of features, with two single-ended headphone jacks (on Neutrik TRS combo jacks), dual analog inputs, and pre-amp output. With no gain switch, I was expecting a low gain value - but that was clearly the wrong expectation because this amp has a high gain. It went from zero-point volume to certifiably loud with the AKG K701 at position 3 (note: my source has 2V analog output). Given the inefficiency of the K701, anything above position 3 is clearly for very inefficient headphones - as in, greater than 300 Ohms.

The Shanling's tubes were extremely noisy - forget the Audio-Technica headphones that I own, I heard hiss even with the K701. Not only was the noise at a distracting level, it also modulated from a bit soft to outright loud. This amp is absolutely not for use with low-impedance headphones - they pick up the tube noise way too easily which takes away from the music (it is audible when music is playing).

Sound - with K701

Priscilla Ahn's "Dream" from A Good Day consists of prominent female vocals with backing guitar strumming including other instruments. The Shanling gave a very smooth, drawn-out sound compared to the GL, which was clear, quick, and agile. Very fluid, lulling quality to Priscilla's vocals, with good proper z-axis depth. Relatively gentle emphasis on the mid-bass - not really deep, but firm and solid. The soundstage was quite expansive and open, with a very noticeable contour of the instrument positions - very solidly sweeping from left to right, including a discrete center point (that the Gilmore Lite tends to miss). However, there were serious detractions with the Shanling on this CD track compared to the Gilmore Lite, including a lack of pop and twang to the guitar strings, a lack of speed & agility, and a loss in overall clarity. Decays off notes were also slow and blurry (blurred into the next note).

Porcupine Tree's "Blackest Eyes" from In Absentia is a moderately-driving prog rock track primarily based on overdriven guitars and male vocals. The Shanling was way too laid-back on this track, with a severe lack of dynamics and aggression, and no bite or snarl on the guitar thrashes. Its presentation was not immediate or direct, and it did not swell to meet volume surges. In its favor though, it did give a bigger spatial image, with a greater sense of air around the band plus more virtual horizontal space between the listener and band positions.

A Fine Frenzy's "The Minnow & The Trout" from One Cell In The Sea consists of indie-style melodic female vocals over a heavy piano harmony - almost like a second voice to the track. The Shanling was sloppy on the piano key decays, blurring them into a mess - allowing them to run into the next key, and even each other (similar to what naturally happens when the piano's sustain pedal is intentionally held down to allow multiple note decays to converge). It did soften the upper treble though, making the piano notes sound less hard and harsh, and instead smoother and softer - but this also took away some of the dynamic range and intensity of the push action on the piano keys. Soundstage was nicely open and wide, putting both the piano and Alison Sudol's voice backwards.

Alison Krauss & Union Station's "Let Me Touch You For Awhile" and "The Lucky One" both from New Favorite did not go well for the Shanling overall. It was too soft-sounding in terms of both volume and frequency balance (not enough treble tilt). It offered no intensity on volume spikes and was too slow - quick taps and plucks were only partially rendered, and edges of notes were neither precise nor clean. These two tracks also showed an inability to separate individual instruments and voices within the mix, there was a big loss in distinction between them. It also did not give a sense of breathing air in, around, or between instruments and voices. The main advantage of the Shanling on these tracks seemed to be its cohesive, intact imaging (even though not well-defined internally) with a good sense of z-axis displacement. There was no pop or twang to the banjo with the Shanling.

Sound - with W5000

It was back to Priscilla Ahn's "Dream" with this headphone, and the most noticeable quality with this pairing was a large-scale smoothness and fluidity, way more than necessary. Mid-bass was not very clear either, and there was a loss in distinction of air moving behind the acoustic bass.

On Porcupine Tree's "Trains", the most easily noticeable qualities were again detractions - too laid-back sounding, a loss in overall focus (not "sharp" enough), treble roll-off, indistinct layer delineation, and slow overall speed. There was a lack of insistence that contributed to feeling less energetic.

Rachel Portman's "Main Titles" from the Chocolat [OST] film soundtrack revealed a very specific deficiency to the Shanling. It blended/blurred separate instruments at the same frequency, with a noticeable inability to cleanly identify their distinct positions and blurring their sound together. On the other hand, the Shanling's soundstage proved to be very complementary with the W5000 - it was wide and deep, with the orchestra not feeling too close. The various mid-range instruments were also quite sonorous and came out of the mix boldly, as the amp seemed to give them good compensation in the lower part of the mid-range. This track, coupled with Vienna Teng's "1BR/1BA" from Dreaming Through The Noise, consistently displayed the Shanling's shortcomings in attack (in treble and bass areas) and separation. "1BR/1BA" was an excellent example of where the Shanling did not complement the W5000 though, primarily due to rolling off the treble, being too slow, and taking away from the W5000's intrinsic ability to separate harmonic overtones from the rest of the spectrum.

Sound - with AD2000

As the Audio-Technica AD2000 is primarily my bass and speed headphone, it made sense to use it to gauge those aspects. The Prodigy's "Smack My Bitch Up" from The Fat of the Land, though, instantly revealed grainy treble on the opening percussion notes. At least there was deep, powerful, supple bass though. Lots of power right at 40-60 Hz. No extra mid-bass punch and impact really, but more lower ooze and depth - just not quite that fast, as the Gilmore Lite was. Dastrix's "Dude In The Moon [Luna Mix]" from The Crystal Method's Community Service mix CD was another great stress-test, as this track carries both a heavy bass and treble presence simultaneously at various parts. These parts were not a problem for the Gilmore Lite, but the Shanling dullened the bass impacts and treble attack, taking away the speed and agility that should be there.

The Shanling did do fairly well with The Crystal Method's "Murder" and "Over The Line" from Tweekend though. It added to the area of bass rumble with more quantity than the Gilmore Lite, and more heavy oppression on bass phases and rolls (even though it did drag out notes a bit and lost distinction and definition). It also laid into the bass pulse on "Over The Line" with more pressure, almost fat and heavy even. However, as nice as the bass power was, it just wasn't clean enough on the Shanling to allow hearing the rumble below the driving pulse, because the two elements are separate and should be heard separately, not converged.

Conclusion

The Shanling isn't bad - at no point did it really sound out-right terrible, but on the other hand nothing about it was really impressive. It mostly came across as a sonic underachiever in critical areas - but for $400, and considering its features, it may be a relatively reasonable amp solution. At the same price point though, the HeadAmp Gilmore Lite absolutely crushed it on sonic merit alone, even though the two amps are different types. That said, I suspect there are other low-cost tube amps that easily outperform it sonically, so I'd have to recommend skipping it.

Also, if it wasn't clear already, I did not find the Shanling ultimately complementary with any of my three dynamic headphones.

Pics

(click for larger)

[Hopstretch]

So when an opportunity to spend some time with the Shanling PH3000 came up recently, I jumped on it.

Maybe it would have sounded better if you'd conducted the durability test after the listening sessions?

Just kidding, I enjoy reading your reviews. Thanks for taking the time.

[strid3r]

Thanks for the review...seen this amp around and was wondering how good it was.

[HeadphoneAddict]

Thanks for the review.

[Asr]

A note I neglected to point out previously: the Shanling ran surprisingly cool for a tube amp. I suspect that it does not run in Class A.

[spritzer]

The heat output of a tube amp has often very little to do with what ever class it is in since the filaments soak up so much power. A small tube consumes a few watts just for the filament and most of that power is converted to heat.

[riceboy]

Thanks ASR for the review. I really appreciate your time and effort

[Icarium]

Ahhh been awhile since I've read one of these

[zippy2001]

nice review, i do like your choices of music.

[earmuff]

My PH3000 arrived today. Using my 701's I can turn it all the way up and I hear no hiss or tube rush. I'll share more in the next few days.

bb

[morphsci]

Well I spent a good bit of time listening to the Shanling PH3000 at work because I believe this review needs to be given an asterisk. I was surprised at the mention of a lot of tube noise. I brought in my recabled K701's since that is the only one of the phones used in the review that I have. Result: Absolutely no noise and no hiss detectable, even with the volume turned up to max (with no music playing obviously). This was also the result with my recabled Denon D2000 and Alessandro MSPro's. My guess is that the tubes may need to be reseated or there is a bad tube. It could also be that the Shanling has a crappy PSU. Since this is at work in a biology building with lots of compressors and motors on the circuit, I have everything plug into my BPT custom balanced power unit. I subsequently plugged everything into a cheap power strip which went directly into the wall. With that there was some detectable noise when I maxed the volume control. I could not detect any significant noise increase at my normal listening levels so I don't think the Shanlings PSU is likely contributing significantly to the hiss. I would suggest that a tube swap may be in order, perhaps by whoever has the Shanling now.

Associated equipment was a Pop/Pulse USB/Spdif converter connected via AES/EBU to an Apogee Mini/DAC connected via XLR/RCA to the Shanling. All being fed FLAC files from my workstation.

[Asr]

Point duly taken morphsci. The unit reviewed was a loaner that Luminette received from Moon Audio, and very well could have had a bad tube or other tube issue. I didn't open the amp to check for anything. I did verify the noise I heard was from the tubes btw, as I heard it with the amp disconnected from the ICs, and the noise was static-like, not a hum or buzz. Luminette also reported hearing this tube noise btw.

[earmuff]

I havent popped the top but my impression is that the tubes in this unit are soldered in.

Anybody know for sure?

Bob B

[earmuff]

A follow up to ASR's review of the Shanling PH3000.

I bought a Shanling PH3000 From Echo Audio (Echo Audio - Your source for the finest Home Audio and Hi-Fi Audio Equipment) and received it via DHL on 11/22/2008; just short of three weeks ago.

Straight out of the box I cranked it up to full volume fully intending to return the amp if it had the hum problems mentioned in ASR's review. I have a box stock pair of AKG K701's and heard no hiss or hum at max volume. I heard absoulutely nothing approaching the "noise at a distracting level" mentioned by ASR, not even through my Grado SR60's as might be expected due to them being so much more efficient. The amp is very high gain, and using the AKG's I seldom use more than the first 3 steps of the volume pot. Speaking of which, it's sure a nice volume pot (Alps 27). To recap, the amp, even with its high gain is as quiet as most of the quality amps I've heard.

The first week I used the amp 5 or 6 hours a night and things were a bit bleak. Bass was tight and the highs, even with the tube buffer, were a bit strident. I was starting to worry a bit that this wasn't the amp for me. The second weekend I had the amp was a pretty dreary Northwest weekend and I used the amp for maybe 8 hours on Saturday and close to twelve hours on Sunday. Things were starting to look up! The bass started to come around. One of my favorite bass tracks is on the Bobo Stenson Trio's War Orphans CD on ECM. The track "Natt" starts out with a minute and a half or two minute bass solo by Anders Jormin on an acoustic double-bass. Give it a listen! Anyway the bass had been missing the overtones and some of the purr that make this cut sound so real. Happy Days, the amp was changing for the better. Some call it burning in. I'm not sure what to call it, but this amp was coming around and that's all I care about. Later that day I started to notice the mids and the treble sweetening up. The mid range got pretty and cymbals started to actually sound like cymbals. Brushes started to sound like brushes instead of hissing spitting tweeters. It's been another two weeks now and the Shanling continues to impress me. I haven't noticed much change in the last week or so, so figure on a two week burn in time if you play the amp for 6 plus hours a day. I'd say a continuous 100 hours at 80 to 90 db will just about complete the process.

As for the overall sound I hear;

A very balanced overall portrayal. Good dynamics with no particular part of the spectrum over or under done. Transient snap is average as are dynamics. Voices, especially those of the female variety are enchanting. Trombones have the blat that you hear when listening in a small club. Very realistic. Congo drums have that loose skin chicken skin sound I like so well while toms are a bit blunted and not quite so lifelike. Guitars sound like guitars. Electrics sound accurate while acoustic guitars sound like they are in the room.

Almost all of my listening has been through the AKG K701's. ASR is correct in saying this amp is "clearly for very inefficient headphones". The Grado's are not a match made in heaven with the Shanling. The only other pair of cans I have that will work with this amp are a vintage pair of Pioneer SE-305's. I've never heard this pair of headphones sound better than through the Shanling.

I'm fairly new to the headphone addiction although I've almost 40 years invested in being an audiophile. I'd like to think I know good sound when I hear it and the Shanling through the AKG's sound pretty good to me. For comparison I bought a SS Grado knockoff amp at about the same time I purchased the Shanling. The knockoff is battery powered and built in much the same manner as the Grado RA-1 although I'm told the parts mix is of much better quality. The Shanling has the stereotypical tube sound compared to the knockoff. The Shanling is a hybrid and the tube buffers make the bass just a bit flabbier than the solid state competition. The Shanling also has just a bit of that tube midrange magic. Not as much as a true tube amp but enough to make me smile from ear to ear.

To conclude:

I paid $325 US Dollars for the Shanling PH3000. At this price I can heartily recommend that everyone give this amp a listen. While the sound may not be to your preference, it's a quality piece of equipment for the price. If the sound is to your preference it's a bargain that you will enjoy for hours and hours of musical bliss! Next up is to try it in my main rig as a pre amp and see how it sounds pushing a signal through the big Magneplanars. Should be interesting...

[zeiter]

Anybody who used the PH3000 see a voltage selector switch ? I 'm interested in purchasing one from China through ebay, some sellers say either a 120 v or 240 v version available, and some say there's internal voltage switch to change voltage ? Thanks.

[mambosenior]

Hi Folks,

Although I am a relative new-comer to 'phones, I've been interested in audio for nearly 30 years. My audio room and speaker set-up in my house is pretty good and I listen to mostly classical, jazz and any well-recorded acoustic music tracks recommended by friends.

Due to my living between a home in one state and apartment in another, I decided to get into headphones for the sake of peace and privacy in the apartment. I researched headphones and decided to buy--after reading a great deal here and on "Head-Fi"--the Sennheiser HD-650 and the AKG-702. I purchased this Shanling because of its combination of tubes (my home system is built around tubes--Music Reference, BAT, tube-like Audiomeca digital gear, and VPI TNT V with ZYX Airy-1000) and solid state elements (the latter consideration mostly for the AKG), and also for the convenience of two inputs and two headphone jacks. (Before any tubeophile reading this begins to guffaw at my mention of "tubes," please be assured that I do realize that Shanling's 6n19Bs are not the haute couture of "tubicity" (patent pending on word:)).

I believe in burn-in, so I let the PH-3000 and the 'phones run for 2 weeks. The 650 was quite nice even after just a few hours (I did buy a great sounding aftermarket cable for the Sennheiser from Doublehelix cables which were infinitely more resolving than the stock), but the 702 took its sweet time in morphing from a squealing pig to a satin sheet. Since much has been written about these 'phones--I don't necessarily agree with some written opinions (later on these)--I'll deal here only with the Shanling which, it seems to me, from my readings of posts and my experience with it, is being seriously underestimated. My unit was bought new and is in--to the best of my knowledge--in perfect working order. No tube rush, hums, clicks, clangs, etc..

This amp runs both 'phones extremely well. As mentioned, dead-quite and, with the right front end, provides a coherent and pleasing tonal portrait of everything from solo piano, vocal, jazz combo, and many symphonic recordings. At present, I have it mated to a MHDT Paradisea 3 DAC using Ridge Street Poiema!. A Trends 10.1 USB converter connects to the Paradisea via a pricy Virtual Dynamics coax and to a Macbook Pro with a Locus Design "Axis" cable. Power cables from VD (oh my!) and line conditioning by Richard Gray. All music on the Mac derives from AIFF files (high and normal resolution--no MP3) and also FLACs. The second input to the PH-3000 is from an Exemplar-modified Denon 2900. Haven't connected the output RCAs of the Shanling.

Being weak of spirit and a life-long breaker of the "coveting thy neighbor's amp" commandment, I confess that one of the big Darkvoice amps (3322 or 337), the Woo 6SE, or the Decware Zen CSP2 will probably be my future in this tawdry little hobby (well, better 4 amps and 1 wife than the alternative, I guess). However, I have managed to deny this urge because this substantially well built Shanling has provided much pleasure for so long. Along with the sonic attributes I mentioned above, I would be remiss not to note my perceived limitations of this amp. These would be that in parts of music requiring gargantuan forces--such as the ending of the Mahler 2nd Symphony (Eschenbach/Philadelphia) and the more-cacophonous sections of Stravinsky's "Rite of Spring" (Salonen/LA)--I can detect a bit of congestion over both 'phones. Also, string timbre (mostly over the AKG), in the wrong recordings (anything from the 60s-70s CBS and DGG catalogs), can sound somewhat strident. Please know that many of these musical and sonic challenges were also not satisfactorily met by some very expensive gear that I've auditioned in my home system. Since I am still a babe in this head strapped environment, I can't say whether these same ills befall a majority or minority of 'phone amplifiers at this level.

On the other hand, a recent listen to a FLAC file of Oregon's "Beyond Words" (please audition this album!) was an absolute joy through the Shanling and both 'phones. If the AKG took top honors in the "absolute clarity" and "ambiance" department (it does those really well) the HD-650 distinguished itself with a tad more roundness to the sound without the dreaded tubbiness that has been attributed to it. Oh, by the way, forget the mantra that AKG-702 have no bass. Please! Unless one is in the habit of lying under a Rel "Stadium" to "really experience" low frequencies, the AKG will give you plenty of refined bass--granted that you are listening to well-recorded music and have some decent gear to reproduce it. At the loudest points (read: eardrum shattering level) the volume pot on the Shanling rose no further than 4.5 for both phones. I am very happy that I lucked out with this buy for a first headphone amp and recommend it to those who may share some of my listening interests.

Thank you for allowing me to offer this opinion, and for the many posts from members which have enlightened me to the joys of headphone listening. Particulars on the amp are below. I've seen it selling new from $350-400.

(My son is responsible for my "moniker." Lovely lad, he.)

Specifications

Rated Power Output:

2400mW / 16ohms

1200mW / 32ohms

600mW / 64ohms

130mW / 300ohms

65mW / 600ohms

Frequency Response: 20Hz - 100KHz (+-1dB)

Input Sensitivity: 350mV / 47Kohms

Line Output Level: 900mV / 47Kohms

S/N Ratio: Greater Than 90dB

Power Consumption: 25W

AC Power: AC100V-120V/60Hz

Working Temperature: 0-40

[HeadphoneAddict]

Hi Folks,

Nice first post!

[morphsci]

Very nice review. I also agree that the Shanling is a very good, well-built and under-appreciated amp.

[manaox2]

Thanks for the review! I have had a listen to some of the other shanling amps like the STP-10 and STP-80 and they both perform very well too

Stop dragging up old threads.