Bang on description and comparison. I bought the 660S2s to pair with my Hifiman headphones, and particularly for not so well recorded metal tracks that can be otherwise sibilant. Good news (or bad for your wallet) is that the 660S2 can sound even better on a good tube amp. I found a really...

Burson Conductor 3 Reference > HD660S2 Newly released 2 Wolves!

Burson Conductor 3 Reference > Cayin HA-3A > HE1000V2 Another Friday night, another Scandinavian folk session! Just incredible production on this and amazing pairing with the highly resolving Hifimans.

Cayin HA-3A > Arya Stealth Get ready to crank that volume up and immerse yourself in this banger of an album!

I don't have the ZMF headphones but hiss will also depend on the tubes you have. I have zero hiss/noise with the stock tubes with my 660S2, which is more sensitive than your mentioned headphones (with similar impedance). I get very minor hiss on high gain unbalanced. On the RFT ECC82 tubes I get...

Burson Conductor 3 Reference > HD660S2 Very interesting mix of Stoner and Power metal. The tracks on this EP are fairly lengthy, but well worth it!

I almost thought you had some special design on your amp, a glitter in the sky effect, but then I realized it was just dust :sweat_smile: Nice tubes by the way lol

Burson Conductor 3 > Cayin HA-3A > HE1000V2 90s nostalgia night!

Burson Conductor 3 Reference > 660S2 Good old cheezy prog rock is what was missing this fine Friday evening!

Freshly released Koitos!

Burson Conductor 3 > Cayin HA-3A > Arya Stealth It's another evening listening to Vorna, but this time from the album "Sateet palata saavat", which basically means the rain will return. This song is actually the first one I encountered from the band for what feels like many years ago. Like many...

Burson Conductor 3 Reference > 660S2 If thunderous melodies and soaring vocals are your thing then look no further friend!

Burson Conductor 3 > Cayin HA-3A > HE1000V2 Really digging this cover of the original song from Måneskin!

I can vouch for the 660S2. I know it's not closed back but if you don't need the sound isolation I would recommend that headphone as it's within your budget and very easy to synergize with amp/dacs.

I hoarded a bunch from Ebay. The price was too good to pass, but your shipping might be more expensive as most sellers I've seen are from the USA. I think you can also buy directly from Cayin but it's from their German site: https://cayin.com/produkt/rca-22d4-gleichrichterroehren-ersatzroehren/...

It is tempting indeed. I didn't last more than 2 weeks before making my first order of NOS tubes! Not like the stock tubes were bad. They were actually quite good with my Hifiman headphones. Curiosity just got the best of me I guess. I avoided tube amps for years because of this very reason lol.

Burson Conductor 3 > Cayin HA-3A > Arya Stealth This song is like a musical breeze that carries you away to some distant place.....

Thankfully in your case you have access to a local dealer and can skip the shipping costs. Glad to hear it worked out in the end. Let us know if you dive deeper into tube rolling. I'll share some of my own impressions sometime in the future, but too many tubes to try right now and not enough...

Burson Conductor 3 Reference > 660S2 Not as well known as Insomnium, Wintersun or other famous Finnish metal bands, but if any of those tickle your ears you should definitely check out Vorna! These Finns just know how to beautifully balance melancholy with aggression.

Atmospheric doom - where the weight of the world meets the beauty of the cosmos, like a melancholic dance between gravity and stardust...

Do you have any way to use software EQ to apply a negative preamp? I use EqualizerAPO and it works flawlessly on my PC. No detectable degradation in sound. In fact, from my experience it improved the overall quality as I was able to dial in the optimal volume that sits right below the threshold...

Burson Conductor 3 > Cayin HA-3A > HE100V2 Reliving the recent concert with all three bands below. I made a similar post in the metal thread, but wanted to share the joy to others and perhaps convert a few fans!

Yikes! I haven't had my amp for very long but no issues so far *knock on wood*. I agree that companies such as Burson have very good after-sales service. I bought directly from them and dealt with them accordingly when I had issues. In your current situation I think the complicating factor is...

I recently attended an Insomnium concert, which was co-headlined by Omnium Gatherum and supported by the opening act Wilderun. Of course I could not miss this opportunity as they all happen to be among my favourite bands! Now that the show is over, I'm having a blast revisiting the...

80's inspired rock, here we go! Bjorn Strid' vocals are just awesome with the Night Flight Orchestra.