[Jian]

 
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My cx300x system with speaker spade driven HE6 is finally set up. The sound of HE6 this time is convincingly one of the greatest sound I've heard. Like they said, this combination is truly special.

Indeed - the HE-6 via the Leben's speakers outs is something very special!

 
Some of the pics I took with my iphone, will post some proper pics later

 

 

[Mad Dude]

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Strange that you find the midrange recessed. Mine don't have a recessed midrange or lack anything with rock or fast paced music.
However my source has a forward midrange so maybe you are hearing synergy issues with your amp that you are not getting with your T1's because of the totally different amping needs.
 

 
That's certainly possible. I've tried them with the Corda Concerto briefly and to my surprise the result wasn't as bad as I had expected - compared to the Roc SA, the midrange had more presence here (still a bit lacking for my taste, though). OTOH imaging and instrument separation were not as good as with the Roc SA, which obviously has the benefit of being balanced.
But anyway, for my taste the HE-6 are not the right cans for rock/metal/similar stuff. They excel with anything acoustic, but lack impact for the genres mentioned before and can sound a bit too airy, a bit "off" if you know what I mean. Also vocals can sound a bit restrained, again due to the slight lack of midrange presence. Just my opinion of course.
 
Happy new year to everyone by the way!

 

[moodyrn]

Sounds like you don't have the right amp pairing. I don't get any of the characteristiscs you just mentioned. In fact it's just the opposite for me. On the headphone outs I've tried, I do get a lack of impact and thin sounding midrange, and the highs can sound a bit diffused. I think a lot of people underestimate the effects of a "good" speaker amp. Eventhough the roc sa is one of the most powerful headphone amps out there, I don't think 4.5 watts per channel isn't nearly enough. Getting loudness out of them isn't the same as driving them properly. I'm not telling you to go out and buy a nice speaker amp, I'm sure you're happy with your roc sa. I'm just saying IMO you're not getting the most out of them. There were others who have only listened to them out of a high end headphone amp and thought just because it was high end, it should be enough. Some even went as far as to blast others for saying speaker amps were the only way to get the most out of them. But soon after some of these same people eventually tried them on a quality speaker amps and haven't looked back. That's the one true knock on these cans. They sound one way with a headphone amp and another way with a speaker amp. Also keep in mind that any run of the mill speaker amp isn't going to give you what you are looking for. Speaker amps are just like headphone amps. The better the amp, the better they sound. These things just needs serious power which is something the headphone amps cant deliver.

 

[Happy Camper]

I cut off the 1/8' plug of a 1/4" to 1/8" adapter and wired to an unused speaker amp. Works like a champ on all headphones. To the point I may end up getting rid of my headphone amp and investing in a quality tube amp of around 25 watts.
 
Really, try your speaker amp before cutting them loose.

 

[dukja]

So if I use a quality preamp/headphone amp such as CSP2 + a budget power amp such NAD or Rotel (>100 Wpc), will it work well for HE-6.
 
I remember reading some posts mentioning some resistor network for >100Wpc amp.  Is it a must?

 

[Happy Camper]

If there is volume control, you don't need the resistor deal. You may not have much volume control depending on the output of the amp. I'm using a 70wpc amp without it.

 

[immtbiker]

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Also keep in mind that any run of the mill speaker amp isn't going to give you what you are looking for. Speaker amps are just like headphone amps. The better the amp, the better they sound. These things just needs serious power which is something the headphone amps cant deliver.

Totally agree.
I've posted this before. My 13 w.p.c. Dared 300B mono blocks sound significantly better than my 100w.p.c. S/S Adcom. Size doesn't always matter. Quality not quantity. 
 
This is what I'm wondering about the new Schitt Lyra. They built it specifically with Orthos in mind (glad they are trying to stay ahead of the curve, plus it makes good business sense). However, is 6 watts coming out of a headphone jack going to do them justice? I'm really happy with what I am hearing out of my Luxman jack, but I'm sure it's a volt or less, and even though it sounds good, it sounds much better out of the Dareds. I am hoping that the Red Wine 30.2 30 watt integrated speaker amp I'm waiting on, will do it justice
 

 

[nikongod]

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Also keep in mind that any run of the mill speaker amp isn't going to give you what you are looking for. Speaker amps are just like headphone amps. The better the amp, the better they sound. These things just needs serious power which is something the headphone amps cant deliver.

Totally agree.
I've posted this before. My 13 w.p.c. Dared 300B mono blocks sound significantly better than my 100w.p.c. S/S Adcom. Size doesn't always matter. Quality not quantity. 
 
This is what I'm wondering about the new Schitt Lyra. They built it specifically with Orthos in mind (glad they are trying to stay ahead of the curve, plus it makes good business sense). However, is 6 watts coming out of a headphone jack going to do them justice? I'm really happy with what I am hearing out of my Luxman jack, but I'm sure it's a volt or less, and even though it sounds good, it sounds much better out of the Dareds. I am hoping that the Red Wine 30.2 30 watt integrated speaker amp I'm waiting on, will do it justice
 

The luxman P1 can put 2W into 8ohms. I tried it with the TTVJ loaner P1u I had a few months back, it drove my single-driver speakers nicely. They dont need much power though.
 
regarding power through a 1/4" jack:
I have seen pro-sound guys use 1/4" jacks to run full size speakers. Im sure that you can get enough voltage&current for even a power hungry headphone.

 

[Happy Camper]

I'd wager the RWA 30.2 will be a killer match.

 

[TheSatelliteGuy]

I got my HE6 yesterday and at first nothing in my stable of amps could drive them right. My Headroom max desktop, my triode 88se and others. I let them play overnight and they appear to have loosened up quite a bit and what I heard today was wonderful. I have not hooked them up to my speaker terminals yet.  I am confused on who to get the cable from. I have been comparing them to my stax 02 on my 727II with my HR desktop on hi gain and I find the HE6 just as sweet but not the same. The HR desktop is on hi gain and the volume stops increasing at about 60%. I didn't think it was to loud but when I took off the HE6 I think it was to loud. Which is better? I don't know or care. The more the merrier. 

 

[vrln]

Has anyone tried the HE6 with a ROC (not SA) or Phoenix? It should pump around 2 W per channel, I´m wondering if that´s enough...

 

[Happy Camper]

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Has anyone tried the HE6 with a ROC (not SA) or Phoenix? It should pump around 2 W per channel, I´m wondering if that´s enough...

Previous posts say no.

 

[hawkhead]

What do you drive your monitors with ?
 
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Has anyone tried the HE6 with a ROC (not SA) or Phoenix? It should pump around 2 W per channel, I´m wondering if that´s enough...

 

[vrln]

hawkhead: I drive the monitors with a REF7/Phoenix combo, with the Phoenix in preamp mode. The slightly laid back Audio-gd signature suits studio gear pretty well in my experience. 
 
Happy Camper: That´s what I was thinking too. The LCD-2 are a lot easier to drive. A speaker amp is needed for best results (or a Lyr!)... Too bad, the HE-6 are an interesting headphone. 
 
EDIT: Does anyone remember the balanced amplifier by CEC? It seems forgotten on these forums, the last post about it being from 2008. On paper it looks ideal for the modern planars. Check: http://www.cec-web.co.jp/pdf/HD53N_CE.pdf
 
Solid state with a tubelike sound signature pumping 4.7 W per channel (balanced) at 32 ohms. In speaker output mode it´s 13W at 8 ohms. No idea where to buy one though... I´ve briefly met someone who had one, and he was very happy with it. Oh and there´s a review on it at Headfonia (see http://www.headfonia.com/first-impression-cec-hd53n/). The reviewer to my seems to prefer it to a Beta22.

 

[Zoide]

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I am confused on who to get the cable from.

This guy is very good, I got a cable from him and so have others from the thread: Sean Jacobs <custom.hifi.cables@gmail.com>