WOO-HOOOO... WA7 "fireflies"!!! - Page 12

yeah it does too

The tiny square is missing from the Woo site photos now too.
Well, I'll be wearing my tiny square badge with pride.

Rev 1 models could be called:

"Woo Audio WA7 'fireflies', model n or o"

WOO-HOOOO!! Now MY little 'fireflies' unit is on its way -- should be arriving on my doorstep tomorrow in fact. Now I'm contemplating skipping work for its arrival, hmmm

Actually, I kinda prefer the look of the "model 🔳," it's almost like a cube-within-a-cube! Maybe it'll become a prized collector's item one day?

Though I suppose the lack of a square cutout will improve upon the structural integrity around the 'phone jacks, especially with repeated unplugging...

And thanks guys for testing out the functionality with both IEM & full-sized cans plugged in at the same time... Would've been nice to toggle between the two, but ah well...

Listened to my Klipsch X10 at school with my iPhone 4S the entire day and than proceeded to try the X10s with the WA7 listening to the exact same songs and heard a huge difference in the quality of sound especially the midrange. Probably the largest difference in sound I have heard when using an amp compared to not using an amplifier on nearly every headphone or IEM I own (always felt that a better amplifier wouldn't make that much of a difference).

Quote:

Originally Posted by WhippieDaddy 
I really like the HE-500.  When I first bought it back in November I did some comparing to the Baby Stax headphones (SR-003) I own.  At first I liked the Stax better, but then after burn in the HE-500 started to shine.  I found it to have more accurate midrange and certainly more substantial / accurate bass reproduction.  The highs are what the SR-003s do the best, though I'm not sure they're better than the HE-500's treble.  At this point I definitely prefer listening with the HE-500 than with the Stax.  Even last night I was marveling at how pleasurable it is to listen with them, particularly since my focus tends to be on the midrange.

 

I plan on keeping the HE-500 since I enjoy it so much.  I don't think my purchase of the LCD-3 is going to make me want to give up on the HE-500 - the HE-500 is just too good for it to be completely supplanted by the LCD-3.  There is therefore something that I cannot yet articulate about them relative to the LCD-3 that makes me still like them as much as I do.  And of course the reason I can't yet articulate it is because it will require further side by side comparisons. Once I can, I will certainly share it on this forum.

Thank you for your impressions. I also have the HE-500, and I'm really considering buying the WA7. How would you describe the way the WA7 drives them, compared to other amps you have tried?

Nosgis,

I'm still in the process of evaluating my WA7 and it hasn't completed its burn in period yet.  But so far I really like how it sounds with the HE-500.  Bass reproduction is very impressive and the mids and highs are very smooth and the WA7 comes across as doing the job effortlessly and without any sense of strain.  Articulation and separation of instruments are very good in my opinion and I hope to see even better results when the unit is burned in.

I've compared it a little to the Schitt Lyr.  Initial impressions are improved imaging with the WA7 (it seems to have more three dimensional character to me) and a hint of more bass, though again, the WA7 is still being burned in.  The WA7 sounds more natural (euphonic?) to me and is easily able to drive the HE-500s (just as the Lyr).  The Lyr seems drier (less liquid?) and almost restrained or distant by comparison, though I'm still evaluating things.

I've been listening to female vocals the last few days - Linda Ronstadt, Carole King, and Roberta Flack.  But that has only been with the WA7 and not with the Lyr.  Roberta Flack's pristine, delicate voice on 192/24 sounds just about perfect on the WA7 (although I have to admit that I haven't listened to her on the Woo WES, the Liquid Lightning, or the BHSE with a pair of Stax SR-009s... :-)).  I'm going to listen to the three on the Lyr this weekend and will have some relative comparisons soon.

I just purchased the Schitt Mjolnir and it should arrive tomorrow, so I'll have another amp to compare it with.  The audio bug has definitely bitten me.  :-)  I still haven't received my LCD-3s so I can't do the comparison with the HE-500 yet.

I'm really enjoying the WA7 so far, to the extent that I've been neglecting the Lyr.  But don't get me wrong, I think the Lyr is very good and I do like it.  For about one third the price of the WA7, I think it's a tremendous bang for the buck.

All the best.

Oops, I should have said that the Lyr is a little less than half the price of the WA7, not one third the price...  I've been buying lots of equipment recently and I'm getting confused on the prices.  If only my price points could be higher (e.g. Woo WES, Liquid Lightning, or BHSE)...  

Actually, to compare pricing, you have to take Lyr plus Bifrost so they're actually pretty close. Within US$100 or so if Bifrost has USB. Just got the HE500 and am considering the WA7. Liking what I've been reading so far.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WhippieDaddy 

Oops, I should have said that the Lyr is a little less than half the price of the WA7, not one third the price...  I've been buying lots of equipment recently and I'm getting confused on the prices.  If only my price points could be higher (e.g. Woo WES, Liquid Lightning, or BHSE)...