David58117
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Dec 31, 2009
- Posts
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I have AKG K701s, I read that Guitar Center's Live Wire Solutions HA04 was suppose to be pretty good considering it's $50 price, so I decided to give it a try as my first 'real' amp.
I expected it to sound significantly better than my battery operated Fiio E3, but much to my disappointment - nope! These two just are not mixing well for me, is there anything I could possibly be doing wrong?
Granted I didn't expect the K701s to be at their full potential with this amp, but I didn't expect a thin/severely veiled sound from it. I definitely didn't expect the lower level Fiio E3 to sound tiers above it as well, but sure enough it is. That amp sounds life like in comparison, and I was pretty happy with it except for it being a battery eater.
Anyway, is this just an example of an amp not mixing well the K701s? Does anyone have experience with this particular amp, or could recommend a comparably priced amp that would topple the E3? As I said before, I'm more than happy with that little Fiio, which is apparently working magic with these phones, but if I can get better sound quality for a little more, I'm all for it.
Otherwise, it's keep the Fiio for another year or so and save up for a significantly better amp. But I'm starting to wonder if that's even worth it...
Edit - I replaced one of the connecting cables and the sound improved dramatically. The Fiio still sounds better, especially with percussion instruments and with regard to bass and instrument presence, but there's one more part I might replace. I'm really hoping this amp will atleast matches the Fiio so I don't have to keep buying batteries for it.
I expected it to sound significantly better than my battery operated Fiio E3, but much to my disappointment - nope! These two just are not mixing well for me, is there anything I could possibly be doing wrong?
Granted I didn't expect the K701s to be at their full potential with this amp, but I didn't expect a thin/severely veiled sound from it. I definitely didn't expect the lower level Fiio E3 to sound tiers above it as well, but sure enough it is. That amp sounds life like in comparison, and I was pretty happy with it except for it being a battery eater.
Anyway, is this just an example of an amp not mixing well the K701s? Does anyone have experience with this particular amp, or could recommend a comparably priced amp that would topple the E3? As I said before, I'm more than happy with that little Fiio, which is apparently working magic with these phones, but if I can get better sound quality for a little more, I'm all for it.
Otherwise, it's keep the Fiio for another year or so and save up for a significantly better amp. But I'm starting to wonder if that's even worth it...
Edit - I replaced one of the connecting cables and the sound improved dramatically. The Fiio still sounds better, especially with percussion instruments and with regard to bass and instrument presence, but there's one more part I might replace. I'm really hoping this amp will atleast matches the Fiio so I don't have to keep buying batteries for it.
