I have a feeling this is not going to get a lot of responses since it is probably very difficult to find someone who has tested both of these amps. I am not sure this is a fair comparison either because of the different price point for these amps. With that said, if anyone has heard both, which is the better amp, the Wood Audio 2 or the Zana Deux? Also, it is just conjecture at this point, but I am wondering which of these amps would best drive the HD800.

I've heard that the Zana Deux has an extraordinary synergy with the Sennheisers. I've been debating with myself which amp to eventually get, whether it's the Balancing Act, Zana Deux, or WA6 SE. At this current point in time, I'm leaning towards the Zana Deux. I believe the WA6 SE and Zana Deux are on the more dynamic side of things while the WA2 has a more lush sound. The WA2 can serve as a preamp I believe, which the Zana Deux does as well. For Senns, I'd probably just save up and get the Zana.

Balancing Act:
$4000
Fairly expensive and I would have to get all my headphones rewired to take advantage of the balanced aspect. I do believe it has an SE output however. I'd also have to swing for a balanced source as well. Balanced is a step above Single End, but whether it's worth the hassle and cost of building a rig around it is another story.

Zana Deux
$2500
I can get it and the HD800s for the cost of the Balancing Act and without having to get anything rewired. An 'end game' solution for the single-ended side of things.

Woo Audio 6 SE w/ Sophia Princess Rectifier
$1200
I believe this is a lot of 'bang for the buck.' Has dual inputs so you can listen to a high impedence and a low impedence phone at the same time.

Woo Audio 2
$950
Haven't done a whole lot of research on this amp other than hearing it's differences in sound with the Woo Audio 6. I believe it ultimately depends on the type of sound you're looking for.

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f5/woo-audio-2-a-402215/

Me personally, the more I think about it, I think I'll swing for a Zana Deux. Was thinking about the Millett 307A at one point, but at $6,000, it's ridiculously expensive. The Balancing Act is a more reasonable $4,000, but I'd have to build a balanced rig around that, which is expensive.

Woo Audio 2 or 6 SE vs. Zana Deux
I think those two are more bang for the buck, but you might get that audiophile itch in you and start to 'wonder what you're missing' when people say the Sennheisers sound so awesome with the Zana. Most likely it'd be best just to save up and swing for the Zana so you won't have too many thoughts lingering in the back of your head.

Hi-end balanced is a whole different price bracket, so that is out of the equation for me for a long while.

I have not heard the Woo amps and the Balancing Act so I can not comment on them, but the Zana Deux has, and is known to have amazing synergy with Sennheiser's, (HD650 in my case).

Theoretically, if you want to build around the HD800, the Zana Deux with it's OTL, should be the better choice for high impedance cans, and the transformer coupled BA will be better with low impedance cans.

I'm glad you brought that point up. From what I've been hearing, the Zana is an excellent combination with the Senns... I'm honestly thinking about making about getting one since it's relatively affordable for hi-end sound and has a design catered towards high impedence headphones. It's pretty much considered as one of the top of the lines for single ended, so there shouldn't be too much 'upgraditis' unless you want to go balance or spend significantly more trying to use the single-ended output from the more-than-twice-as-expensive Millett 307A.

So I think the Zana will satisfy my hunger for top notch sound at a fairly reasonable price.

Zana Deux ($2,500) + HD800 ($1,400) + High End DAC ($2,000) = $5,900.

So you could actually build a whole fairly 'hi-end' rig for the price of one of those uber-expensive amps. I'm glad for this topic actually. Gave me some more direction on what I think I'll do. I think I'll build me a Zana rig and be done with it and then move on to speakers.

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Sounds like a nice plan to me. I can tell you as much as after getting my Zana, I know I am finished looking for amps. It is beautiful in all regards, and a stunning piece of work!

Of course, having the option of going balanced could be benefitial, but at a price. I chose to stay in SE land, and there would be too high of a cost and hassle to go balanced. I do not even know if it really is worth it, some say it is, some don't.

Because of it's design, I think the Zana Deux could be the perfect amp for the upcoming HD800. Time will tell.

Yeah exactly. I was considering going balanced, but that would mean I'd have to get something like the Balancing Act at $4,000 or something similar to best the Zana Deux. Also, every new headphone that I'd want to take advantage of the Balanced option, I'd have to get rewired. Sennheisers are beneficial in that they have a detachable cable, but other headphones have to be rewired via soldering. I have no doubts that there is an improvement in sound, but I don't know if they'd be significant enough for me to justify paying the extra money and dealing with the extra hassles.

The thing is that there are guys out there who own $5,000 to $15,000 amps and still don't feel like 'they're done.' I've just learned that there is no magical 'end point' for this audiophile game for everyone. It just comes to a point when one decides to be satisfied with what he has and to end it right there. I'm just going to learn to 'be satisfied' with whatever sound I can get at that pricepoint because as much as I love good sound, there's just a point where I need to accept what I have. I can just put the excess money saved into music or getting a jacuzzi or something lol.

If you don't mind me asking, what amp or amps did you own prior to the Zana and how would you describe the jump in sound? I'll start saving now and I can most likely get one in a couple of years if things go good. Laying away $100 a month for this year and next year shouldn't be TOO difficult as long as unexpected situations don't arise..

Agree with what you say KevM2.

From what I have read (about everything about the ZD from my research before buying), I think you can rest assure that you will have a world-class amp in all regards if you decide on the Zana. The sound signature is very neutral, not tubey, and not solid state. If it is for you, I guess comes down to personal preferences, and the rest of the gear.

In my limited head-fi experience, I have owned the Darkvoice 332. This is a good amp, but the ZD is another league overall. This might sound weird, but what I first noticed when listening to the ZD for the first time, was that it was almost like the music played at a slower speed. It plays with beautiful authority and calmness. The other thing I noticed, was that it took control over the somewhat loose lower register of the HD650. The bass player got tighter and more defined all of a sudden =). Much more info and structure in the lower register.

I would love to try the Balancing Act, but I do not have the budget for it, and since I love my HD650 so much (my favorite can with the Zana), for me, I am pretty certain it will be hard to find an amp which will be more synergetic with the HD800 than the Zana. Because of the differences in design, the BA and the ZD is apples and oranges anyway, regardless of the price differences.

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Zana got a more industrial awesome look also! Your guests will go, "Holy cow, check out that beast, what is it?"

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Dunno, I like the look of the WA2 much better, especially with some nice ST shape power tubes...

How about Woo 5LE and EAR HP4? (Where I am EAR HP4 is actually cheaper than importing a Zana!)

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Thanks guys for all of your comments. I especially like the part where you said that at a certain point, one just needs to be happy with the rig they have and just move on rather than upgrade forever. Besides, a jacuzzi sounds nice to me too. I quoted the above because I was thinking along the same lines, except instead of a High End DAC, I was thinking about using my iPod and the Wadia iTransport in the chain. Would this idea just be folly? In any case, I have always wanted the Zana Deux and I too think it would be an end-game solution for me. Not the I have the money for it, but I could dream and start saving my pennies.

By the way, what does the new Zana look like? Can someone post pictures? I have always wondered if I could get the top metal plate on the Zana either polished stainless steel or chrome plated.

The zana deux does not pair well with everything, or everyone (actually nothing does, but its worth saying either way) but its kind of a default recommendation in the high end. I would recommend you give the combo a good hard listen before putting down the money.

I found the zana almost bipolar with various headphones. some sounded absolutely great compared to same cans/different amps in a similar price/prestige bracket, others almost unlistenable compared to them on cheaper gear. Now, most amps have their "best match" but the fact that some cans were so wrong on this amp kind of turned me off.

since there are so few impressions of the HD-800 at this time, its worth a long wait.

If you do a search, there have been comparisons between the ZD and the extreme. The extreme won the bang 4 buck category and rolling possibility. You can go low or high gain based on tubes used. Check out skylab's sig. There is one in the FS section.

With that, I vote wa2 or sp extreme

To the OP - DO NOT skimp on your source. Remember GIGO.

Money saved on the amp shoud be put toward your dac imo