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Bithead vs. Total Bithead version--Worth upgrade?

post #1 of 8
6/23/05 at 1:26am
Thread Starter 
I received a pair of HD600s and a Bithead as a gift a few weeks ago. I love the setup, but I'm the kind of person who always wonders, "could it be better?" Obviously, in the grand scheme of things it could be much better, but as I am quite a newbie to all of this and currently between school and work, the one option floating around is upgrading to the Total version of the Bithead. Headroom offered to let me pay the $70 ($80-something after shipping) to upgrade, but I have to make up my mind very soon. Is this worth doing if I'm pretty strapped for cash?

Thanks!

--Other thought: would something like a cardas cable upgrade for the headphones be a better use of the money (which is conveniently something I can put off a little while)?
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post #2 of 8
6/23/05 at 1:38am
The best way of figuring this out is to audition the TBH and compare it to the BH to see if the difference is worth the $70.

However, the best way is often not possible. So if you have to make a decision without pre-auditioning, there are two initial considerations:

1. Are your ears up to it?

Do you have "golden ears" that can pick up the slightest audio nuances? If this is the first set of truly audiophile cans and equips you own, then chances are you'll probably not notice much of a difference between the TBH and BH.

2. Are your source up to the task?

What source are you using the BH with? Getting th upgrade might be overkill if your source isn't up to the task. Admittedly the amps have internal DACs that should negate the source's DAC limitations. But still, if we're talking about 132bps MP3s, the "turbo-charge" TBH might not really be worth the extra dough.


There might be other considerations... but that's all I could think of at the spur of the moment.
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post #3 of 8
6/23/05 at 2:04am
Thread Starter 
Thanks so much for responding. I really have no way to know whether I have "golden ears". I'm not sure whether the term refers entirely to raw auditory perception threshold or whether it also incorporates the mental ability and inclination to analyze elements of the sound that most people would not enjoy thinking about. I suppose I would call the latter a "connoisseur mentality", and as I know that this certainly does characterize me (I tend to think way too hard about the things I enjoy), I can only hope that my ears are up to the challenge. Of all the constants in an audio setup however, I'm sure that ears rank paramount, so I'm not going to worry too much about that.

When using good headphones, my source is usually CDs (generally DDD) and lossless audio files played through iTunes. I plug the amp into the USB port on my Powerbook, which has been working well, and it's never clipped.

Hope that helps you advise me, because I'm pretty torn about what to do. Why aren't good things cheap?
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post #4 of 8
6/23/05 at 4:49am
My gut feeling is that you probably wouldn't find the extra $70 a worthwhile investment.

Don't be offended. I'm not saying that you lack the "refinement" to appreciate the difference. But the truth is, this whole audiophile thing is one big game of diminishing returns. And most improvements beyond a certain point is really, really subtle.

Personally, I think the headphones (or speakers) is the biggest contributor to sonic differences. Here the sonic improvements and differences are not subtle at all.

Next comes sources (must be same type, i.e., comparing CDP to CDP) and amps. The sonic difference and improvements for these equipments are usually subtle provided that the price difference is not too great. (i.e., the difference between a $200 CDP and a $2000 one is going to be much more noticeable. But the difference between a $200 CDP and a $500 CDP is going to be more subtle).

Finally, comes cables and all the accessories. Truth be told, I could hardly hear the difference between a $30 cable to a $200 one. Maybe if I close my eyes and focus my brains off, I'll hear something.


However, if you are like many other audiophiles, $70 is not too great a price for some pyschological satisfaction and peace of mind. No more "what if..." questions popping into your brains... until the next upgrade season.
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post #5 of 8
6/23/05 at 12:00pm
I've listened to the TBH and the standard BH and I didn't hear any diff, but that was only with about an hour of listening with the TBH. If you want to upgrade the Micro would be my choice.
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post #6 of 8
6/23/05 at 12:46pm
I agree. Part of the problem with this hobby is separating the snake-oil versus genuine improvements that makes a noticeable difference. I'd go with a different amp instead of a tweaked version. The Airhead is a good design but there are better designs out there too. You can tweak the Airhead with 0.0001% tolerance components, but maybe a different circuit design would sound noticeably better, have a lower noise floor and drive more power hungry headphones. I'd start dreaming of the Headroom Micro once I get into the $200+ range.

The differences between the total and the regular is just a guarantee of consistent performance due to tighter tolerances and better quality components. That may not manifest itself into anything audible.

Cable upgrades are another debatable topic....I personally haven't heard the huge difference other people have heard, so YMMV.
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post #7 of 8
6/23/05 at 6:38pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks everyone for your responses.

I think my conclusion is that I'm best off keeping what I have and investing in a Micro when I have the available cash. Thanks again!
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post #8 of 8
6/23/05 at 8:18pm
I have the TAH and now the MicroAmp (desktop module) from Headroom. I can tell you that there is a great deal of difference between these two. With the MicroAmp winning big time. So If you are considering the BitHead do think about the MicroAmp.
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