I think you are still better off spending the extra money on the WA3 as it uses much higher quality parts plus it's made in the USA.

The crack amp you mentioned is also very very good with high impedance headphones and is also a good alternative.

The only thing made in the usa means is that it's going to cost a lot more. Sure there are some crappy products coming out of China, but not all. Ming da is a highly respectable company and makes amps that cost thousands. And plus buying it from pacfic valve means that you won't have to wait weeks to get it from China.  And also they warranty and service everything they sell. And they also have a 30 day return policy. Woo makes some great products, but the wa3 is not the same as their higher end amps. The mingda competes with amps in a higher price bracket than the wa3. Check Skylab's tube amp rankings. It's a very good guide for first time tube amp buyers. In that ranking, you will also see that the mind da is ranked much higher than the wa3. Now it's not perfect. It mates better with inefficeint cans or high impedance cans. There is a little hum with low impedance high sensitivity cans. But everything else is dead quiet. But there is nothing wrong with the wa3. It's a solid amp, and sounds pretty good. But the ming da is cheaper, sounds better(much better imo), and looks beautiful as well. If you check pacific valve website, you would see ming da's costing mega bucks. It's a very solid company.

True, but the one thing the WA3 has going for it is that it's ONLY a headphone amp. Other combo amps have other stuff added in that makes a longer signal path and can potentially degrade the sound. I think having a headphone amp rather than a combo would be best as iI believe it would be more powerful.

The bijou is a great design, and it's a very quiet amp. I used to own a balanced bijou and loved it. But it is diy, so no warranty with that. But if you are willing to do diy, there are many great choices with the bijou being one of them. You will get more value per dollar with a diy amp. It's an otl design, but it does pretty well with low impedance cans, but excell with high impedance cans. If you can find a builder, it may put you out of your price range(unless you are doing it your self). If you go that route, I would wait around to see if one comes up on the forsale forum. Many times they go for just a little more and occassionaly less than the parts cost.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zombie_X 

True, but the one thing the WA3 has going for it is that it's ONLY a headphone amp. Other combo amps have other stuff added in that makes a longer signal path and can potentially degrade the sound. I think having a headphone amp rather than a combo would be best as iI believe it would be more powerful.

That is true with some integrateds. Some have a separate headphone amp circuit. But this one don't. The headphone out comes directly off the output transformer. There's nothing added. Which is probably why is sounds better than the wa3. Two other things going for it is, it's point to point(as well as the wa3). It's also a transformer coupled amp(wa3 is otl). Which is why I said the wa6 would be better competition. I owned the ming da and have listened to the wa6 on a few occasions, and I would put the ming da right there with it. I like the bijou better than both(depending on the build and parts used). Depending on the parts used, the bijou can sound anywhere from syrupy to very neutral. The one I had was neutral with just a hint of warmness which I love.

I too have read that a tube amp would bring out the best in my DT880 600 ohmers so I was excited to be able to listen to them when hooked up to one this past weekend. I'm not sure of the model but to my ears the Woo I connected to didn't do anything different and certainly not better than the Matrix M-Stage I currently use. Neither did any of the hybrid amps. If you have the opportunity, I'd highly recommend trying out a tube amp before you drop the cash on something that may not be any better. 

The more I read the more I realize how subjective opinions are spoken as objective and people are highly influenced by them.

Nobody in this thread has stated their opinion as objective(fact). An opinion is just that. An opinion. The op asked for suggestions in his price range, and that's what has been given. It's not right for you to then come along an railroad this thread. If tube amps are not for you, that's fine. But don't railroad someone else's thread trying to persuade them otherwise.

Pretty much everything short of the pcb boards. Resistors, caps, transformers, pots, etc. So the sound quality of the bijou really depends on the parts used and build quality. But even with the basic bom(build of materials), it's a very good sounding amp. One of the other tube amps mentioned would be a safer bet because of warranty.

You could look at Schiit. Im listening to the Lyr with DT880 600 and I think the combo is very nice. Its a hybrid though. Maybe the Vallhala would be a nice amp for the byers. It is said to be very warm sounding. I cant be much help though, the Lyr is burning in and my only other amp is the WA2 and not in your range. Oh, and Im not making any comments about the other mentioned amps, for all I know they kick the crap out of Schiit.