matro5 said:

   
Thanks, David, for the thoughtful reply. I kind of agree with this - the HD650 feels like a right of passage sort of headphone, one that allows you to have a reference for everything else that's out there. 
 
My main headphones right now are Grado PS500, which are a lot more expensive than the HD650 ( street price, anyway), but I think the Senns would bring something the Grados don't, which is all day comfort.
 
Funny, too, that you mention the Momentum on-ear, as that's my current work phone, and it's what got me thinking again about the HD650. I used to have the 598s, too.
 
In my experience, tubes alter the sound more so than amps themselves. That's one reason I got the Lyr, so that I could play around with different tube types without breaking the bank. And, since the Senns seem to reveal the quality of upstream components, the 650 should respond well to different tubes. 
 
To bring it back around, I wonder what tubes would be the best match for them? 

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davida said:

  Looks like you are on a similar path on this headphone journey, not saying its good or bad.

Lyr2 and HD-650: best tubes IMO would be Telefunken CCa's, very detailed, great dynamics, best tubes that I have, unfortunately they are also the most expensive, and seem to be going up more.  More economical choice: Re-issue Electro Harmonix (nice bass and extended highs), 75 Reflectors (choice of many) or Vokshods
 
I also have a RS2e, I liked it a little better than the PS500e which I tried at the same time, the aluminum outer housing made them too bright for me but the bass was nicer.
 
As for the Momentum on-ears:  one of the best gifts the other year, gave 7 of them for BD/X-mas presents, girls love the pink, green and red, got all from Amazon, used-like new, $54-59, for most of them its the best headphones they ever heard.

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davida said:

  @tjl5709, stopped my chain at UD-301/MB Bifrost/Lyr2/Ember/BH Crack, heard the yggy/rag and a few other high end stuff a few months ago and noted that my hearing can barely tell the difference between the MB Bifrost and Yggy (getting old).  I'm not a serious enough listener to go up further on the ladder, also if I can use my speakers then its my first choice.  A friend gave me his old second set of SR-009/SRM-007 and any though of headphone upgrades went out the door, I was able to hear them hooked up to his Master7, Mhdt Pagoda, yggy, and hugo tt but the improvement from the MB Bifrost was very little/none to me.
I also have the regular E88CC telefunkens and 7308 amperex, the amperex are a little to warm for me with the HD-650 which I consider a warm headphone to begin with, they work quite well with DT-990 and T1.

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tjl5709 said:

 
Dang, I listened to some SR-009's in Japan a number of years ago. My push has been to get back to that sound. E-stats are cool.
 
I hear ya on the age thing. What I have really enjoyed with the multi-bit platform was the musicality of the sound (none fatiguing for me) and the detail/liveness. I am now listening at lower volumes and just sitting back listening to all the different instruments and the people actually playing them. It's been amazing.

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davida said:

  If comfort is the main concern then a HD-700 is fairly comfortable and depending on the tubes in the lyr2 will sound quite nice,
 
 
The HD-650 will sound very good on the Lyr2, its a universal headphone for most genres of music so its hard to wrong, I feel that everyone should have one in their collection or have had them at one point or another.

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matro5 said:

   
Just a quick update - with HD650 prices being sky high right now, I took a chance on the HD700 via Amazon, where it was down to $425. That's actually cheaper than the HD650 right now in most places. 
 
Because I've never heard the HD700, I'm not sure what to expect, but this feels like my best chance to audition them with my Lyr 2, my tubes, my music. During these 30 days, I'll track down some HD650s and do a comparison. If anyone else has compared the two, I'd love to hear it.
 
Should be fun! 

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davida said:

  I think you made a good choice, find some warmer tubes for the HD-700, like amperex or mullards, (i'm using vokshod's now and they are not bad) will help with the highs that bother some who are sensitive.  A few pages back there was talk that the HD-700 was for older people since we start to lose hearing in the highs first, lol.

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flyingmonkey said:

  I like the HD-700's with the Lyr 2 as well and they sound great with some ECC88 bugle boy d getters that I lucked out on, I have tried some HD-650's and they are very different from each other.
 
I really am not that keen on the HD-650 sound but that is my own taste, but the HD-700 are more detailed on my system.

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falkengard said:

  Has anybody tried Amperex Philips E88CC SQ tubes with the Lyr 2?  Wonder how that combo is using my Xonar Essence Stx, Lyr 2 and Hd 650's

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b-dawk20 said:

Any experience with the Gungnir Multibit and Lyr 2 as a pair? Needed to upgrade my DAC section and I figured I'd jump to the higher end for when I choose to get a better amp. Probably buying it next week, just curious to hear impressions

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tjl5709 said:

My story. Went from bifrost uber/lyr2 to gumby/mj2. Intended on keeping the bifrost/lyr as a secondary set. Was blown away by the sound that gumby brought. Rethought the backup system. Wanted the multibit platform in that chain. Instead of upgrading the bifrost, I bought yggy. Secondary is now Gumby/Lyr2. I love the tube sound Lyr2 and MJ2 brings to the table. They work wonderfully with the resolution and muscality that the multibit platform brings. Lyr2 works good with gumby. You will like it.

So my thoughts are; spend as much as you can afford on the DAC. Also, the benefit of gumby is you have balanced for any future upgrades you make and get ready to hear your music library in a new light. You will hear things like never before.

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