How Good Is The Little Dot MK IV SE ? - Page 3

Steve,

That $281 is including shipping to Norway. But 35% taxes is steep
I total it would be $ 380 = Euro 285.

Buying direct from Beyer it would be Euro 330 excluding shipping. Look at Beyer Manufaktor without adding any extra's.

I could not find them in the Uk either, that's the reason i got them from the US.

Sorry to bust the party but as one that actually owned the SE AND compared it to other amps I can say it's too tubey and polite sounding for DT880. It surely seems nice on paper though. SS amps like Opera, Naim Headline and ALO Amphora wiped the floor with the SE. Better bass extension, sounsdtage, mids and highs and what not.

I'm not a tube lover but have heard quite a few amps to know which is overrated and which live up to the hype. LD amps are OVERRATED.
For that 500$ I'll look for an M3 build.

Everyone has different ears of course, but a friend has the MK IV SE and I was surprised at how close it was in performance to the Singlepower Extreme (which was more than double the price) I owned at that time. Being OTL I think they are geared more toward high impedance headphones and I would not be surprised if they underachieved with lower impedance ones. Also since one can control the amount of negative feedback through the switches, it's not as quite as simple as plug, play, and listen if one wants to get the best results.

I didn't "wimp out" as you put it. I just tire of constantly finding you commenting on all these threads about how things are not worth it. If you can't stand people wanting better things, or suggesting things that may be more expensive, don't come to a forum where peoples budgets vary from 50$ to being able to buy just about anything.

I have no such budget, but it does not mean I will delude myself or others in sayings things don't get better.

People who are " genuinely interested in music fidelity" will want to know what the best is, overall, and what the best is for their budget because they are after fidelity. People who are not, can be content with anything.

Sure after a certain point it becomes hard to quantify, or even justify, but that is all relative to your budget, not other peoples budgets. If I had the cash, I would have every reference headphone in existance and quite a few IEMs with all the best amps. Simply because you are essentially trying to buy peice of mind there is nothing better, and for people with "upgraditis" that means a lot.

I commend you for being satisfied with gear that is not "top of the line". And warning people that returns quickly diminish is fine, but stating that its only for those who collect goes back to your refusal to believe there is a better headphone than the K70X... it's just stubbornness that doesn't help anyone.

As I said, I am sure a LD MK3/4 presents great value, but there are better amps. The fact it is a tube amp is reason enough to "know" there are better amps as the noise floor and dynamic range are lower than SS amps. Sonic taste is subjective, stats are not.

To the OP: Consider anything suggested that is within your budget, even if it is not your max.

^right...

Another member already mentioned this as well, but DT990/600 was being sold by B&H at something like $230. If you don't mind the extra bass, and a little tad recessed mids, you could really consider that, thought I'm not 100% sure they still have that deal going. I'm only suggesting it because maybe it could free up more of your funds for the amp.

I was about to order the DT990/600 from B&H myself (shipped to Hong Kong), since it was almost $100 US cheaper than buying it at a retailer here, but then I went out and compared the two and felt the DT880/600 was just more balanced, with my Audio-Gd Fun, I could listen for hours without getting too fatigued. I do wonder if I'd like the DT990/600 myself since I DO like bass.

Not speaking from experience, but purely on secondary info, I think the Woo's going to better than the LD MKIII, but the price difference is not tiny either.

As a MKIVse owner I just wanted to chime in and say that for roughly 15 months I've been happily living with my amp and haven't even considered any other home amp purchases. (not seriously anyway)


The build quality, sound and aesthetics are top-notch and I have never dealt with a company that was nearly as pleasant to deal with as Little Tube.

I owned a Mk IV se / beyer dt-990 (600ohm) combo.

 

I say, if you get the Mk IV or Mk IV se, get a 600ohm. you can really hear the difference is terms of sound quality. However, the Mk IV does not have any problem driving the 600ohm phone.

 

DT-990 is great for your kind of music. I am not a basshead, but I enjoy good deep bass where it should be.

 

Regards

 

 

The Little Dot IV is an OTL amp and it works well with high OHM headphones like 600 OHM DT 880/990.