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  3. 137890-3674

Lyngdorf TDAI-3400

Well, after reading all the rave reviews of the Lyngdorf TDAI-2170 both here and other places, I decided to order a TDAI-3400 for myself.  I must admit I am still skeptical that such a diminutive piece of equipment can sound better than the Primaluna Dialogue Premium HP tube amp weighing more than 50 lbs, but I have been so intrigued by everything I have read I simply had to pull the trigger. 
I just unboxed it today, hooked everything up, and am listening to it for a while before setting up Room Perfect. 
I really want to hear the what the amp sounds like as-is for a bit to understand it better. 
First impressions:  Without Room Perfect it sounds like very nice solid state amps I've owned in the past, but to be honest, I don't find the sound to be particularly moving.  I moved to tubes after years of solid state, and I swore I would never go back.  That is where I'm coming from.  I should also add that I always try to keep an open mind.  While my initial take on it might sound like I don't like it, I hope folks just read this as me being as honest as possible about what I hear.  I know the tendency when buying new gear is to want so badly to love it in order to justify the expense that it's easy to fool oneself into believing it's an improvement over what you had before, even when it's not.  Of course I really want it to be as mind blowing as it has been built up in my mind to be, but if it's not I am OK with simply moving back to what I have liked so far.   
I have only been playing records through it so far.  Analog makes up 98% of my listening so that's where I am starting with it.  I have a nice CD transport that I will connect to it in the next day or so just to hear the DAC in the unit.  I will also experiment with playing files from USB sticks, computer audio from my MacBook Pro, and whatever else I decide.  I am not prepared to purchase a music server just yet, but it's something I have thought about for a while.  
My system:  speakers are Harbeth Monitor 40.1's.  Turntable is an SME 20/2 with SME IV.iv tonearm and Kiseki Purple Heart cartridge, fed to a Parasound JC-3+ phono preamp.  Power conditioner is Audioqest Niagara 7000.  CD transport is a Wadia 8.  
I will report back as I have more time to experiment and let the amp break in.  

128x128snackeyp
snackeyp's avatar
snackeyp OP
455 posts
 
Thanks for all the comments, folks.
I will be setting up Room Perfect soon.  I just didn't have time to set it up yesterday when I unboxed it, so I decided to give it some listening time without RP so I can understand by comparison the difference it makes once it has been implemented.  In my first post I meant to convey the message that this amp sounds very good right out of the box, even without RP turned on.  But it has a very solid state sound to it, and in my past I have always preferred tubes to SS.

I believe that with RP properly set up I will like this amp more than anything else I have owned, otherwise I would not have bought it.  

I can't wait to get the DAC in action.  This will happen soon.  Most likely I will plug in my Wadia transport using a coaxial cable to start.  I have a balanced digital cable but it's super short and won't reach.  I will probably buy a longer one at some point.  

Yes, I got the version of the amp with the high end analog inputs.  This was very important to me as I mainly listen to vinyl.  I skipped the HDMI inputs as I had no use for them. 

I will leave the amp on 24/7 per suggestion, at least for a while until it is broken in.  Thanks for this suggestion.

I will check back in a day or two.  I've been very busy sending my son off to college this week so it might take a bit longer for me to respond.

Cheers 
stereo5's avatar
stereo5
6,254 posts
 
I hope you find it to your liking, the amp does have quite a following.
snackeyp's avatar
snackeyp OP
455 posts
 
I have a problem.  I got the mic set up on the stand and proceeded to set up Room Perfect, but every time I started the process I got a mic signal error.  I checked the cables several times and everything looks good.  I don't believe I'm doing anything wrong but if anyone has experienced this please let me know what you did to remedy it.  
I might have a faulty microphone.

As an aside, the mic stand is not as good as could be.  First, there are not any assembly instructions included with it.  After a while I figured out how it goes together, but it seems ridiculous that no documentation is inside the box.

Also, the threaded pieces do not fit precisely, so they do not properly tighten to each other.  Seems like something was not done correctly in either the design or the manufacture of these parts.  

grannyring's avatar
grannyring
6,436 posts
 
Make sure you are using the correct xlr jack on the back of the unit. Is the signal loud enough to be picked up by the mic? If the mic is bad the dealer will contact Lyngdorf and they will overnight one. 


snackeyp's avatar
snackeyp OP
455 posts
 
The 3400 does not use an XLR into the back of the amp like on the 2170.  They use an adaptor to a mini RCA plug that goes into the front of the amp.  
I sent a message to Hi-Fi Heaven just now.  Hopefully it will get resolved quickly.  I honestly don't know if the mic is bad.  Is there any way to test it?  
I did try raising the volume of the test tones but still got the same error.  
Thanks
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