[DarKen23]

 







I believe the stand is made by "ROOMS"

You get those from Meier Audio? 

Yes sir, that is correct . Jan is awesome.

 

[MickeyVee]

Here you go all.. my first HeadFi review.. HD800 of course.. be gentle  
http://www.head-fi.org/products/sennheiser-hd-800-headphones/reviews/9826 

 

[AgentXXL]

I love the stand!

Are you referring to the $15 home brew stand I made from a mannequin head, the $105 ROOMS FS stands from Meier Audio, or the $179 Sieveking Omega stands?

I'm sure you were complementing mine....

Dale

 

[philo50]

^ good for you....I enjoyed that a lot.....talking of the review of course

 

[longbowbbs]

Mickey nice review! Thanks for taking the time!

 

[AgentXXL]

Here you go all.. my first HeadFi review.. HD800 of course.. be gentle  
http://www.head-fi.org/products/sennheiser-hd-800-headphones/reviews/9826 

An interesting review... When you say the HD800/WA7 could be your end-game combo, is that because you've tried other amps (and DACs?) and none of them have done as good of a job as your current setup? Or because you're just content to live with what you have right now (because you obviously enjoy it)?

I'm in a similar boat with my CLAS-dB DAC, RSA Intruder amp and the HD800s. It's VERY enjoyable, but based on what I've heard at meets and my lust for new toys, it won't be my end-game setup.

I really prefer the balanced environment, so I'll likely never go back to using a single-ended output, other than for comparisons where a single-ended output is my only choice.

Dale

 

[MickeyVee]

Thank you.  I did the review over three nights listening to the tracks over and over again which consuming quantities of Rusty Nails (scotch & drambuie).  For my first review, just wanted to do something different.  For me, the music is about emotion and I love gear that coveys it be it my HeadFi system or my main 2CH/AV system.  Music has been such a major part of my life for 40+ years from my first mail order record player with speaker to where I am now.
I was really leery of posting is gas it's my first review ever.  Thanks for the feedback!

 

[longbowbbs]

I appreciate your view. I have rolled a number of amps and settled on the Cary because it sounds great and does double duty with speakers. I would rather spend the time listening and enjoying. The HD800's love the Cary and I can always roll tubes if I want to.

 

[MickeyVee]

My other combo was the Schiit Lyr/Bifrost Uber and it was good.  I'd love to move up the scale but the money needs to go to other places. Yes, I enjoy what I have now and maybe someday may get there as I know that the HD800's scale up. Would love tho go balanced.  On my bucket list are the Bel Canto DAC and the Senn HDVD 600 (all balanced) and maybe going up from there.
My personal end game based on what I can afford and what is out there are different things.  I'm basing my comments on what I can afford versus what I want to try.  Give that, I'm pretty happy where I am now and yes, you can enjoy the HD800 without going TOTL I'm getting to old to believe that whoever has the best/most/most expensive toys, wins.  Enjoy the journey!
 
 
 
Quote:

An interesting review... When you say the HD800/WA7 could be your end-game combo, is that because you've tried other amps (and DACs?) and none of them have done as good of a job as your current setup? Or because you're just content to live with what you have right now (because you obviously enjoy it)?

I'm in a similar boat with my CLAS-dB DAC, RSA Intruder amp and the HD800s. It's VERY enjoyable, but based on what I've heard at meets and my lust for new toys, it won't be my end-game setup.

I really prefer the balanced environment, so I'll likely never go back to using a single-ended output, other than for comparisons where a single-ended output is my only choice.

Dale

 

[brunk]

An interesting review... When you say the HD800/WA7 could be your end-game combo, is that because you've tried other amps (and DACs?) and none of them have done as good of a job as your current setup? Or because you're just content to live with what you have right now (because you obviously enjoy it)?

I'm in a similar boat with my CLAS-dB DAC, RSA Intruder amp and the HD800s. It's VERY enjoyable, but based on what I've heard at meets and my lust for new toys, it won't be my end-game setup.

I really prefer the balanced environment, so I'll likely never go back to using a single-ended output, other than for comparisons where a single-ended output is my only choice.

Dale

Why exclude yourself from the many wonderful single-ended options? There's so much more to choose from, and frankly quite a bit of them beat the pants off a "balanced" setup too.
 

  I appreciate your view. I have rolled a number of amps and settled on the Cary because it sounds great and does double duty with speakers. I would rather spend the time listening and enjoying. The HD800's love the Cary and I can always roll tubes if I want to.

I almost pulled the trigger on that Cary in the past, it still piques my interest to this day. I might jump aboard with you someday...

 

[longbowbbs]

 

An interesting review... When you say the HD800/WA7 could be your end-game combo, is that because you've tried other amps (and DACs?) and none of them have done as good of a job as your current setup? Or because you're just content to live with what you have right now (because you obviously enjoy it)?

I'm in a similar boat with my CLAS-dB DAC, RSA Intruder amp and the HD800s. It's VERY enjoyable, but based on what I've heard at meets and my lust for new toys, it won't be my end-game setup.

I really prefer the balanced environment, so I'll likely never go back to using a single-ended output, other than for comparisons where a single-ended output is my only choice.

Dale

Why exclude yourself from the many wonderful single-ended options? There's so much more to choose from, and frankly quite a bit of them beat the pants off a "balanced" setup too.
 

  I appreciate your view. I have rolled a number of amps and settled on the Cary because it sounds great and does double duty with speakers. I would rather spend the time listening and enjoying. The HD800's love the Cary and I can always roll tubes if I want to.

I almost pulled the trigger on that Cary in the past, it still piques my interest to this day. I might jump aboard with you someday...

Audiogon has an F1 up for $2200....Nearly half price.....

 

[AgentXXL]

Why exclude yourself from the many wonderful single-ended options? There's so much more to choose from, and frankly quite a bit of them beat the pants off a "balanced" setup too.

I haven't found the same... every balanced setup I've managed to listen to has always sounded better than the single-ended setups I've tried. That's not to say I haven't heard some fantastic single-ended systems, but for some reason I always seem to prefer a balanced setup. They just appear to present a fuller soundstage to me, eg. my opinion.

I'm not sure if it's something to do with my hearing, but I also prefer solid state over tube amplifiers. Everything I've read tells me that a tube amp is likely to have the best synergy with my HD800s, yet every time I listen to one, it seems slightly off-putting to me. Strange, I know.

Maybe one day things will change. I'm actually half-tempted to purchase a used but well recommended tube setup and give it a longer listening to than the limited time I've been able to spend with systems at meets. I'm sure part of it is me still adjusting to the nuances I'm now discovering since I've owned the HD800s. I'm a believer that you aren't necessarily born an audiophile, but you start off as an enthusiast who eventually learns to listen for things that you never previously recognized.

That said, it could be that my hearing is fubar and nowhere near the norm that most Head-fiers seem to experience. I do still hear the differences between my DT770s, other mid and low end headphones and my HD800s, and I definitely hear and recognize the HD800 as superior. I'm content knowing that I hear things differently, but happy that I still get to enjoy what the HD800s have to offer.

Dale

 

[daverich4]

Congrats on the purchase! I still feel nowhere near the potential of my HD800s but I'm just amazed at how great they sound with my 'high-end' portable setup shown below. Rather than spend some serious money on the Omega stands (although they are very nice), my headphones spend a lot of time on my head and hence the stand was secondary. I built my own stand using a 4" long piece of 3/4" galvanized pipe, a 3/4" threaded flange for the base, a styrofoam dummy's head from a local costume shop and a can of styrofoam safe spray paint (tan colour). Total cost was about $15.

Although I've bought mainly portable components and show the setup connected to my iPhone 5, I use it far more often connected to my MacBook Pro. The MBP is connected to the Cypher Labs Algorythm Solo -dB with a USB 2.0 port. The balanced output of the CLAS -dB is connected to the balanced input of the Ray Samuels Audio Intruder. And lastly, my HD800 (self-reterminated) are connected to the balanced headphone output on the front of the RSA Intruder. Eventually I'll be buying a better amp and DAC for my home setup, but right now my so-called 'portable' setup does a very nice job with my predominantly FLAC based library of music. Thankfully I've discovered that I don't need to jump right to the GS-X Mark II and an equally pricey DAC to get fantastic sound. And when I do buy the high end 'desktop' amp and DAC, I'll hopefully appreciate the sound improvement that much more.


  


Dale

What a great idea for a stand. That way your phones stay in position, all stretched out and ready to go. Nice.

 

[DarKen23]

Just watched an awesome sci-fi movie titled "Europa Report". Forgot how great the movie experience can be using the HD800

 

[kamalz]

  ordering my hd800's next week - cannot wait    

 
 Congrats..

 
  My hd800 is with serial number 21XXX ..hmm i did not notice any brightness in treble.
 
  i found that it really loves benchmark dac1 with   proper powercord & powerconditioner
When i change into using DHC complement fusion cable ...hmm .. i think i am hearing a studio recorded sound ..i am serious you know