Board/headphone newbie with questions
Dec 27, 2001 at 1:50 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 5

Shane

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Hello everyone. I found this forum by emailing a question to someone I saw on audioreview.com.

I have been into home stereo/theater for sometime, and even though my taste are hi-fi my budget is pretty mid-fi. I have managd to piece together a very good home system - but now I am interested in building a headphone system for the bedroom. Through my research, I have pre-selected the following equipment and I would appreciate any feedback on these items - including good (read: cheap and reliable) vendors. Your feedback is important to me because the only item I have been able to audition have been the cans.

SOURCE: AMC CD8B (at $200 it seems like a killer deal)

AMP: Creek OBH-11 (Now here I have a delima: should I save the extra cash and spring for the SE version or is the original a better for dollar value. I understand the power supply on the OBH-11 is upgradable. Should I got his route or opt for the SE?)

HEADPHONES: Sennheiser HD600 (The best prices I have found are through vendors on ebay. I am especially interested in hearing anyones insight regarding a German dealer known as Hans De Baer. Anyone dealt with these guys? Opinions?)

CABLE: MIT Terminators (I have found a good used set, I think they are the Terminator 5's to be exact. I hear the Creek is picky about cabling).

HEADPHONE CABLE: On down the road I may opt to replace the factory wires with Red Jaspis headphone cables. I have read about the problems with the OEM Sennheiser cables. Is this a great idea or simply a good idea?

LINE CONDITIONER: Would I benefit from an AC line conditioner? I live in an apartment. I am thinking this may help, but I really wouldn't want to spend too much on this component - I'm thinking one of the sub-$100 Monster Cable units? Maybe a Panamax?

I am looking for a modular, semi-budget concious approach to building a truly kick-***** and enjoyable system. I thought I'd have the funds to buy all this outright but bills have hit and I must now carefully build over a short (I hope) period of time. Any detailed advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks -
Shane
 
Dec 27, 2001 at 5:04 PM Post #2 of 5
I haven't heard of that CDP before, but I can say a few things about your other stuff.

you're on a budget obviously, so lets try to get some high-end bang-for buck stuff, okay? you're budget could buy a dreamsystem if spent right.

lets start at the top:

HD600? if you can get it for a good price, okay, go for it. but the HD580 is so terribly close for such a nicer price, I'd pick that one. maybe upgrade later, but the difference is very small and some people even prefer the HD580 to the 600. the HD600 has a terribly high cool-factor tho
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no need to worry about the cables. the newer versions have gold connectors which stops the corrosion which was a problem with the older ones. a cable upgrade might be a good thing, but I'd put it after the amp. haven't heard it tho, maybe it's not as subtle as I think. I'd save it for later times when you want to tweak around a bit.

now you've saved some money on subtleties, it's time to get serious about the amp. count your cash and get the best you camn. tubes are great, but depending on your preferences, solid state like the Corda (or OBH11SE) might be better. the regular OBH11 is very entry-level and tho it might be good for your tastes, it seem to be the weak link in what you're planning. X-Can V2 is better, the Corda should be better and has crossfeed (and Jan Meier will give a better price f you order the HD580/600 as well as the Corda from him at www.meier-audio.com). a beatifull tube-amp would be the MG-Head DT.

the line-conditioner belongs to the realm of tweaks IMO. I have no experience with their effects. get em if your system seems to need one.

example system: Corda + HD580 + source + a pair of interconnects -> $325 + $170 + $200 + $50 = $750

you could upgrade a lot of things before the headphones or the amp will become weak links. I'm no expert tho, but if I had that kind of money, I'd know what I'd buy
smily_headphones1.gif
 
Dec 27, 2001 at 10:29 PM Post #3 of 5
Shane, if you want the HD600 but you're on a strict budget, Jan Meier sells them for around $220 shipped (if I recall correctly) from Germany. Many people here on Head-Fi have purchased from him (he's an authorized Sennheiser dealer).

As for the amp, the SE is supposedly significantly better. You could also go with the Corda from Jan Meier.
 
Dec 28, 2001 at 2:58 AM Post #5 of 5
Braver has some good suggestions.
For a source, I picked up a Denon 370 not too long ago for $115 at Ubid.
Go with tubes for the Senns. Mg Head or X-Can.
 

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