[SpeakerBox]

I am running a pair of Australian made electrostats off two Sherwood amps in a monoblock config. Stats and vintage iron is a fantastic combo.

 
What are the Sherwood amps you use?

 

[Silent One]

Jus 4 fun, vintage lovely benched 265 wpc.
Jus 4 clarity, the sound presented is wonderful, considering we ain't using very much of those wpc's. 
 
Be runnin' Class A on both SS & Tube amps.

 

[gikigill]

   
What are the Sherwood amps you use?

A variety of them. 2210, 2620, S7100,S8910,260B.

 

[claybum]

  Yes, it is!! So many great vintage rigs here on headfi. And yes, I'm using the speaker taps of my 114lb mac separates to power a pair of he-6(but also pulling double duty as a speaker amp for so tricked out electrostatics). The beauty of this setup is how quiet the background is using the speaker taps which tested over 240wpc. I've gotten hiss out of using a 75wpc amp before with the he6. But they are completely back with the gains turned up all of the way. My w3000 are equally quiet out of the the headphone jack.
 
But it does seem this thread is being ignored on headfi with nearly a 1000 pages of posts. But that's fine with me. At least we don't have to worry about a few bad apples coming over here with their nonsense and locking this thread like sooo many other successful threads here in the past. This is by far my favorite thread here on headfi, and I hope we continue to be ignored. I know there have been a few to call us crazy, but with sooo many vintage lovers here, we can't all be crazy can't we?.....well don't answer that.

 

 
Yes, Yes, This is the best thread by far on head fi. This is the place that got me to go vintage and it's been a great journey. Huge thanks to moodyrn and Skylab and others. I spent plenty time and $$$ chasing the flavor of the month in headphones and dedicated amps. Not anymore. No interest at all with what goes on elsewhere on head fi. My first piece, a unrestored Marantz 2285b, sounded better than any dedicated headphone amp I had heard. And it just got better from there. I've totally settled in with my fully restored SX1250 and HE6. But what's really been a blast is going beyond headphones and learning about speakers and turntables. I love my 1250 and HPM 1500 speakers. I source my rig with a pioneer pl-55dx turntable or digitally with an Antelope Zodiac. I could spend $$$ on the latest totl headphone gear, but spending that dough on a new turntable or some vinyl would bring me so much more!!!
 
So wonderful to see all the great vintage rigs you folks have put together

 

[buson160man]

   
The bolded section had me spit out my coffee when I read it.................so true tho. 
 
I agree tho - the thing is I read about all the headphone amps being talked about and the prices of them and it almost feels like we have this great secret that no one will acknowledge!  These are amazing!  In a way, we shouldn't care if they dismiss our vintage amps but the altruistic side kicks in and I want to help. 

Thank you for the support it is appreciated.

 

[captouch]

I'm new to the world of vintage gear, tho I've always highly regarded it. 
I was wondering what are some good amps/receivers for headphones?  
To be more specific what I mean by that is, ones that are great for headphones but not so sought after for speakers for one reason or an other - Thus might be more accessible than the most popular models.  
-HD650  
-PC  
-DAC (don't have one just yet.)

ps. 
I have some modern marantz stuff already, I wouldn't mind staying in the family, but open to all suggestions. Thx.

Really depends upon your budget, but you can start with less expensive units and see how it goes from there.

Within the Marantz line, you can try a 2010 or 2015 - lower wattage, so many using speakers may want the higher powered units, but these should be fine for your HD650's. If you don't want or need radio, you can also consider an integrated like a 1060. All should be attainable for $100-200 if you shop around, and the 1060 is pretty easy to recap/restore.

Outside of Marantz, you can check out some of the Sherwood's (7100, 7200) or Sony's (I've had a 6055, getting a 6060) - they sound pretty sweet and are generally fairly under the radar. These should all be in the same price range as above.

Others can suggest other models, but I'd start relatively slow to start and not spend a ton of $ until you get a sense of what you like and whether you are up for doing tuning/maintenance, and possibly restoration on your own. If you buy an original piece, it may work fine for awhile but generally will require some work in time to keep it going.

 

[Edwii]

Really depends upon your budget, but you can start with less expensive units and see how it goes from there.

Within the Marantz line, you can try a 2010 or 2015 - lower wattage, so many using speakers may want the higher powered units, but these should be fine for your HD650's. If you don't want or need radio, you can also consider an integrated like a 1060. All should be attainable for $100-200 if you shop around, and the 1060 is pretty easy to recap/restore.

Outside of Marantz, you can check out some of the Sherwood's (7100, 7200) or Sony's (I've had a 6055, getting a 6060) - they sound pretty sweet and are generally fairly under the radar. These should all be in the same price range as above.

Others can suggest other models, but I'd start relatively slow to start and not spend a ton of $ until you get a sense of what you like and whether you are up for doing tuning/maintenance, and possibly restoration on your own. If you buy an original piece, it may work fine for awhile but generally will require some work in time to keep it going.

TY for the reply. 
I'm good with a soldering iron, replacing stuff is easy, but I dont know how to tell what needs replacing lol. 
 
 I don't see myself getting majorly invested into this. I only got this old Toshiba because it was cheap and handy at a time I needed headphone power. I would rather invest money in a Bottlehead Crack than go overboard into the vintage stuff, not that it's not cool in it's own reguards. 
 
But this gives me something to keep my eyes open at antique stores, local listings, and ebay once and a while. 
 
Thanks again

 

[SpeakerBox]

   
I love my 1250 and HPM 1500 speakers. I source my rig with a pioneer pl-55dx turntable or digitally with an Antelope Zodiac. I could spend $$$ on the latest totl headphone gear, but spending that dough on a new turntable or some vinyl would bring me so much more!!!
 
So wonderful to see all the great vintage rigs you folks have put together

 
The 1250 is awesome.  I listen to mine almost every day.

 

[levlhed]

Finally...Pioneer SA-9800 is in my clutches.
Seller took over a week to ship it out, but at least it was packed well.  Ran it home @ lunch break to hook it up quick and verify there was nothing silly going on....seems to be cool after hasty test on both speakers and Alpha Prime's.
 
Crummy cell phone pic to prove it:
 

 

[Oregonian]

  Finally...Pioneer SA-9800 is in my clutches.
Seller took over a week to ship it out, but at least it was packed well.  Ran it home @ lunch break to hook it up quick and verify there was nothing silly going on....seems to be cool after hasty test on both speakers and Alpha Prime's.
 
Crummy cell phone pic to prove it:
 

 
Congrats....................looks just like my 8800 that I have in my office at work.  Love the fluoroscan meters.................you're gonna love it! 

 

[Nova40]

I just got two NHT SuperZeros for my desk and need to drive them. For my headphones I have the Cambridge Audio DacMagic 100 and Spotify premium as my source, so I'm looking at integrated amplifiers. My dad has an old Yamaha ca 800 in the basement that he doesn't used and just needs a little repair on the left channel. I'm wondering what the performance will be like if I get it repair, or if I'm better off just buying the Cambridge Audio Azur 651a or 351a (though I'd nice to not spend the extra money)? I want good performance, but I do already have a pretty nice headphone setup, so they're not my only drivers.

 

[levlhed]

Better shot.  After this pic I hooked up the VinylFlat Can Opener and was surprised to find it sounded better than the headphone jack.
Still wrapping my head around the sound of this amp.  Do I like it?  Better than my re-capped/upgraded Marantz 1060?  Hard to say...it is such a different sound.
 

 

[captouch]

 
TY for the reply. 
I'm good with a soldering iron, replacing stuff is easy, but I dont know how to tell what needs replacing lol. 
 
 I don't see myself getting majorly invested into this. I only got this old Toshiba because it was cheap and handy at a time I needed headphone power. I would rather invest money in a Bottlehead Crack than go overboard into the vintage stuff, not that it's not cool in it's own reguards. 
 
But this gives me something to keep my eyes open at antique stores, local listings, and ebay once and a while. 
 
Thanks again

 
You never know.  I never thought I'd be majorly invested in vintage stuff either, but it can be a little addictive when you get a nice vintage piece that oozes quality and tactile goodness.  But it is smart to start slow and see how it appeals to you.  It's very good that you're good with a soldering iron though - that and a little troubleshooting ability can really save you a lot of money.
 
I have a Bottlehead Crack w/Speedball as well, by the way.  It does go great with the HD650's.
 
The single digit Sansui's (Six, Seven, Eight, Eight Deluxe) are also very nice.  I didn't mention those the first time because they (esp the Eight and Eight Deluxe) can be a little more pricey.  But I've played with a Six as well, and it's a very well built receiver, so keep your eyes out for those as well.  Heck, even the 2000's, 4000's, 5000's are really nice too.  Basically, if it's 70's vintage, heavy, nice looking, and works, you should consider picking it up if the price is reasonable.
 
Of course, that's how you can accumulate a ton of stuff pretty quickly as well. . .
 
And then of course there's tube gear (Fisher, Scott, etc) - even easier to work on if you're handy with an iron.

 

[pedalhead]

Hi guys.  I've spent the past couple of days looking through (some of!) this thread.  Not sure whether I should be regretting it or not 

 !  Of course, it's impossible NOT to be fascinated in trying out a vintage amp/receiver after reading your enthusiastic posts & seeing the pictures of wonderfully built classic gear.
 
So, the inevitable advice-seeking question!  It looks like most of the highly praised models mentioned on here are pretty expensive now on ebay/Gumtree, and being vintage-curious I don't want to spend a bunch to start, maybe a couple of hundred GBP.  I'm after something specifically for my headphones...HE-560 mainly...for now I won't be running speakers. Ideally, I'd like a slightly warmer than neutral sound, and really I'm only interested if I can get better sound quality than throwing a couple of hundred quid at a dedicated, modern, headphone amp.  A few examples of the kinds of things I'm seeing within my budget:
 
Luxman R-800S
TEAC AS-M50
Fisher 801 (poor condition)
Marantz 2015
ROTEL RX-303
MARANTZ MR-215L
Pioneer SX-550 (and various similar models)
Kenwood KR-5010
ONKYO A-3000
Technics SU-3500 / SU-7700
Sony TA-F6B

I wonder if any of these jump out as being suitable for me needs?  Any advice greatly appreciated!  Cheers.

 

[levlhed]

Just got the modded MHDT Havana Lab NOS DAC online and added the Vinyl Flat Can Opener to power Alpha Prime headphones off the Pioneer SA-9800 B speaker taps.
I am no longer concerned I made a bad decision by selling the Leben CS300XS integrated tube amp.  Not saying I don't miss it at all though.