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Suggestions on entry level headphone amp

post #1 of 10
8/28/10 at 10:16am
Thread Starter 

I'm finally going to purchase a dedicated headphone amp and set aside the old pioneer receiver I've been using to power my pair of AKG k701 headphones. I've got my eye set on these amps and wouldn't mind a few opinions on what I should think about before making a purchase:

 

Little Dot Amp MKIV SE
Little Country III

 

WooAudio 3
Musical Fidelity X-Can-V8
Matrix M Stage
 

I'm not looking to drop too much into my rig just yet and just want to make the best of the headphones I've got for the time being. I'm leaning toward the Little dot amp and the LCIII.


Edited by Jup-Na-Keeeeeel - 8/28/10 at 2:53pm
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post #2 of 10
8/28/10 at 11:22am

I've also been thinking about buying a amp fpr my K701 and from what I've read the M-Stage seems to be the best of the lot (money-performance).

Latest review if you missed it http://www.headfonia.com/matrix-m-stage/

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post #3 of 10
8/28/10 at 11:31am

The Nuforce ICON HDP is also a solid choice, although a bit problematic if you want to upgrade your gear separately... If you have some active speakers you can move the HDP to later, then I think it´s a very solid choice. Should be great with AKG too (check the 6Moons review).

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post #4 of 10
8/28/10 at 11:34am

I can tell you that the Woo 3 won't be a very good match for the 701/2 because the amp is an OTL, which works best with high impedance headphones.  While that amp and phone combo might work, it's not the most ideal setup.

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post #5 of 10
8/28/10 at 11:39am

I'm very happy with my Matrix M-Stage paired with some HD650. I also use a Centrance Dacport which I find makes a huge difference in sound. The M-Stage fed directly from Macbook headphone jack does not sound as rich and detailed as when fed through USB-->Dacport but this should be obvious to most readers here. My point being, make sure you have a DAC feeding whatever amp you choose.

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post #6 of 10
8/28/10 at 3:08pm
Thread Starter 

That's good to know. It looks like a quality DAC should be something to look out for as well.

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post #7 of 10
8/28/10 at 3:23pm

If you are interested in the tube flavor, but want to use your 701s, look for transformer coupled or hybrid tube amps.  The only Little Dot that fits this is the 1.  The others are OTLs, which I'm not sure will be ideal with those cans.
 

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jup-Na-Keeeeeel View Post

That's good to know. It looks like a quality DAC should be something to look out for as well.

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post #8 of 10
8/28/10 at 5:07pm
Thread Starter 

So something like the Woo Audio 6 would be a worthwhile investment?

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post #9 of 10
8/28/10 at 5:23pm

if you got the money, the WA6 is great.  but beware, you start off with the WA6 and in a month or so youll find yourself with a 1200$ amp :)

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post #10 of 10
8/28/10 at 6:01pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by debitsohn View Post

if you got the money, the WA6 is great.  but beware, you start off with the WA6 and in a month or so youll find yourself with a 1200$ amp :)

 

I'm seeing some good deals on it in the For Sale Forums. I'm a little afraid of that but I've got my golden setup as follows.....

 

Perfectwave DAC>Zana Deux>Sennheiser HD800

 

This amp and a DAC will be my only purchases until I start marking those three off my list.

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