[RJHD3]

Why not move up in the Woo chain? I believe they will give trade in discounts toward their better amps.

Good question. They do offer trade-ins. Which is lovely of them. Feels like old school hifi shops.

Unfortunately this is a nightstand setup with a size constraint. Upping the chain at Woo more than doubles the width vs the Fireflies.

For now I think I move the Radiance or HD800s into the bedroom and bring the Abyss into the office with the Atom HE.

That gives me a good solution until I find an alternative small footprint amp that will grab the Diana’s by the scruff of the neck as it were.

I’m still disappointed though thst the companies advertise these as a great pairing when they see clearly volume constrained compared to other amps. So it goes.

 

[RJHD3]

After owning the V2 and Phi for a year each I sold them. I paired them with the recommended XI Broadway and I feel like it’s not enough power for the Diana.

Isn’t that what Abyss sent out to Stereophile? Surprised that wouldn’t have been mentioned in the review.

https://www.stereophile.com/content...a-headphones-eleven-audio-broadway-naim-uniti

 

[Pictograms]

New and very excited owner of Abyss Diana TCs. I have a question for long time owners. Likely many of you have gone through comparisons with other headphones and many amps. I’m hoping to lean into some of that collective knowledge.

Currently my primary amps are a Naim Unity Atom HE and a Woo Audio WA7 firefly Mk.3. I purchased the firefly because Woo features the Diana on its site paired with the TCs, so I figured it would be a good match.

For my existing collection of headphones I only need to adjust the volume knob between 5 - 10 degrees to get approximately the same sound level. My headphones include: some old school AKG k702s, Meze 99 classics, HiFiMan Sundara, Sennheiser 800 HD S, Focal Radiance and Audeze LCD XCs.

However on both the Atom HE and the Fireflies I need to push the volume at least 45 degrees before coming close to the same decibel level.

Sadly in the case of the Woo Fireflies it means running at 4-5 o’clock and essentially running out of volume knob. I am confident this isn’t a source issue (11-12 o’clock is max I need for all the other headphones I own.

That lead in and context given to ask a few questions:
- is that to be expected?
- Are the Diana TCs just really more challenging to drive?
- or so I possibly have an issue with my Diana’s?

The Naim and Woo are well respected hifi, if not summit fi. Woo and Abyss goes so far as to recommend the pairing of Fireflies and Diana.

But that combo just does not play at an acceptable volume level compared to a wide array of other headphones on the same amp. It’s a bummer to see what feels like a disingenuous marketing claim. The WA7 Mk.3 Fireflies sound lovely but only if you like listening at rather low volume levels.

So as much as I enjoy the sound of the amp, if this is expected behavior I will likely need to move off of either the Diana or the Woo. So last question becomes:
What recommended watt output should I look for in an amp? Any recommendations on amps with the ability to really take control of and drive the Diana’s that aren’t in Blue Hawaii cost territory?

Thanks!

Are you using the Diana balanced or single ended? The Woo website specifies that balanced is recommended for the Fireflies.
Can you adjust your DACs output even if you don’t need it with other cans it could help the Dianas if you can increase it.

 

[F1x1on]

You can get a second hand gsx mini for around $1250, more than enough juice. They pair great, and are a nice looking piece of kit.

Can confirm, I used to run my DTC on GS-X Mini and was really happy with it. I did jump up to a Broadway though mainly because Abyss really recommended the pairing.

Either way, I do have a GS-X Mini and a Broadway thats going to be put up for sale in a little bit.

 

[Kevintj604]

V2's in very worthy company. I'm thrilled with them.

 

[obzilla]

V2's in very worthy company. I'm thrilled with them.

That’s a nice lineup right there!

 

[Kevintj604]

That’s a nice lineup right there!

Yeah. After four years of searching/selling/trading I'm finally in a place that I'm not really looking at anything else.

 

[Spawn300Z]

V2's in very worthy company. I'm thrilled with them.

We almost have some of the same cans.

I have the Diana, V2, HEKSE, D8000 Pro LE and the LCD-4Z. Plus others. I maybe selling my 4Zs though. Haven’t decided yet.

 

[LowBeat91]

V2's in very worthy company. I'm thrilled with them.

Is it worth to get the LCD 4 when you have the Abyss V2

 

[Kevintj604]

We almost have some of the same cans.

I have the Diana, V2, HEKSE, D8000 Pro LE and the LCD-4Z. Plus others. I maybe selling my 4Zs though. Haven’t decided yet.

Yeah. For my tastes and preferences and between the few dynamic drivers I have I'm really set

 

[RJHD3]

Can confirm, I used to run my DTC on GS-X Mini and was really happy with it. I did jump up to a Broadway though mainly because Abyss really recommended the pairing.

Either way, I do have a GS-X Mini and a Broadway thats going to be put up for sale in a little bit.

Did you find the Broadway better than the GS-X mini? Are you further upgrading or parting with the Diana TC?

 

[Kevintj604]

Got the Dekoni Diana pads today. I really like the comfort. The seal is amazing on them. I find they warm the V2 up a tad.

 

[RJHD3]

Got the Dekoni Diana pads today. I really like the comfort. The seal is amazing on them. I find they warm the V2 up a tad.

Funny enough mine as well. Lovely fit.

 

[F1x1on]

Did you find the Broadway better than the GS-X mini? Are you further upgrading or parting with the Diana TC?

For now I pretty much only have the Diana TC as my only headphone and will probably keep it that way. I did like the characteristics of the GS-X Mini a bit more that the broadway but I liked the form factor of the broadway better. Its been quite a while since I pulled out the mini though so it may be time to revisit again and see how things have changed.

 

[RJHD3]

Interesting that you found the XI broadway to not have enough power as I find it more than enough for my Diana phi.

Abyss and reviewers often touted that the XI Audio Broadway was designed for the Diana’s. That’s probably true, but it was designed based on a Diana that has a nominal impedance of 42 ohms. The TCs have a published nominal impedance of 69 ohms.

I suspect that the delta in perceived loudness may lay in that difference. It might not seem like much but I bet that extra cuts wattage down enough to notice a difference.

I wonder if anyone with both Phi and TC and a Broadway could compare and report id that’s actually the case.

If so it would also explain why the WA7 fireflies might have been adequate for the Phi (and thus advertised as a good match) but don’t get along with the TCs as much.