Hello dear friends

I am in a big dilema, after years of reading and lurking around i bought my Corda Opera some time ago and i like it. However i am dying to know how a GS-1 or a WA6SE sounds, where i live i cannot demo both units, it's pretty hard cos' all the gear i bought it was without hearing them, that sucks i know.
I think soon enough i will upgrade to an HD800 or to an Beyer T1 (one of them for sure) and in an distant future a PS1000 (maybe).
I want one single ended headphone amp which will drive all phones (low and high impedance) with authority and with a black background and good separation of instrument. My Opera has this qualities, however i want for now maybe a different sound.
My source will be a MHDT Havana which i don't think i will change it, i just like how it sounds a lot more than other DAC's i tried (including benchmark and lavry).
Which of them will suit me better, GS-1 or WA6SE??
Also the last thing, i'm pretty tight on the budget now, so i think 1100 $ will be max for me, that's a GS-1 with DACT or WA6SE in stock configuration.
I will be driving RS-1, DT880 and HD800 (or T1)

Thanks for helping killing my wallet !

Why not SPL Auditor? GS1 is described as wire with gain. The same description fits SPL Auditor too and you don't have wait for it to be built + the little fact that, when you order from US you have to pay VAT and customs taxes. I saw in StageDAC thread that at first you were interested in it, has this lust gone over ?

Both of your choices have distinct signatures and are varied (particular with one changeable because of tube choices).

What's your flavor? That is the question YOU have to answer! What's your level of involvement (tube maintenance and such). You have rules with tubes and solid-state mostly is set and forget.

If the aim is to eventually drive the HD800...the WA6SE (I have one) will do better! It's a "don't know" about the T1 and it's needs (if any).

I personally have started saving up for the WA6. I didn't find a HUGE difference between GS-1 and Gilmore Lite that I already have. Just minor improvements in bass, and soundstaging.

Havana is a tube DAC, would it wise to put one distortion on top of the other if you would choose tube amp?

Yes, i was very interested in StageDAC but after hearing the Havana, i'm no longer want a new DAC and i'm no longer want to try a different DAC
distorsion? I never ever heard a hum , blackground noise or something with the Havana, it is dead silent and revealing i even will say that it have more details than a benchmark DAC1, but that's my opinion.
Sincerely i want the WA6SE more, but i'm not sure how it sounds in stock configuration, cos' i cannot afford the premium parts upgrade right now.
I'm a little woried about soundstage on the WA6SE, many say that it is somewhat intimate and not very large and has a forward sound, can it be changed by changing some tubes?

Edit: I will be very glad if someone who auditioned both could advise me in some way.

Funny, I have a GS-1 with DACT and a stock 6SE. They are both great performers, and I love them both, but if I had to choose one, it would be the Woo. It has more of the visceral impact that the GS-1 simply cannot match. It's also sweeter and smoother without sacrificing any detail or clarity. About the soundstage, I don't think the 6SE congests soundstage; and at least to my ears, soundstage has a lot more to do with the headphones than the amp.
Hope this helps!

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Distortion = describing the "tube sound" since all tubes add distortion to the signal. Distortion is also not necessarily negative, tubes generally add even-order distortion which is what causes the smooth, tuby sound. Odd-order distortion is the bad kind.

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Headphones and source are the biggies for soundstage from my experience.

Distortion doesn't really have to do with tubes. Everything adds distortion, and all distortion is bad. It's like saying benign vs malignant tumor. Obviously one is preferable to the other, but ideally, you wouldn't have cancer.

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Yes, distortion does have to do with tubes, which is why almost all tube amplifiers have a drastically higher THD+N than solid state ones do. No, not all distortion is bad. It's what causes the tube sound.

If by tubes you mean caps/trafos, then OK. Tell me one instance of a competent designer purposely putting in MORE distortion on purpose. Like I said: certain types of distortion are preferable to others, but no distortion is ideal.

BTW, do you know what causes solid state sound? Distortion. THD really has little to do with what's actually audible.

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Sarcasm? I don't know why you're being so nasty. Explain to me why tube amps have such high THD+N, especially in even-order harmonics if the tubes have nothing to do with adding distortion to the signal. Solid state amplifiers have capacitors and transformers too. Designers don't add extra distortion, the designers are making tube amps; Don't put words in my mouth.

\/ It's not worth arguing about this with you, tubes add distortion no matter the design topology used. Designers can try and reduce the distortion, and some do which leads to tube amps that people describe as more solid state sounding.

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I know what you're saying, and I don't really have any problems with most of your generalizations, except for your implication that distortion can be good. It's never good, and the reason why some designs sound better, or even less distorted, with higher THD numbers is because the designs choose to go with the more benign distortion. It's not because the "good" distortion is itself good; it's simply preferable to "bad" distortion.

Edit: Actually, I can't get with the whole even/odd thing. 2nd and 3rd order are both OK as far as distortion goes.

Edit 2: Please realize that I'm no designer; I'm gonna guess from your nontechnical tone that you're no designer either. Please read this for a more complete explanation than I can give: http://passlabs.com/pdf/articles/dis...d_feedback.pdf

Thanks guys
I think i will order an WA6SE
wondering if in the future i could mod it myself with premium parts upgrade...

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I don't think you will regret it. I love the HD800s with mine.