A Must Listen for HD600?

[rlanger]

I'm quite excited about Headfest being less than 2 weeks away. It's going to be a blast.

I'm in the market for a DAC/Amp combo to drive my HD600's (maybe I'll be lucky enough to win one that one of the generous vendors is offering up fo grabs!)

In any event, I would like to know what you think I absolutely have to audition when I'm there before I make my final decision?

My budget is about $800 and so far I'm seriously considering the PS Audio GCHA. Not sure about its DAC capabilities, but everything I've read and heard about this amp says it's a real winner.

Any other suggestions?

 

[FallenAngel]

In that price range, find yourself a Dynahi - pretty much the best DIY solid state amp.

 

[rlanger]

Thanks FA. Hopefully someone will have one there. Is that what you built for your 650's?

Also, I assume that is just the amp and not a DAC as well?

 

[TzeYang]

i'd say gogo Milette Diamond Buffers (balanced).

Kin0kin built one for his HD600 and he loves it.

On the other hand, for 800USD, i think you can afford the beta22 too.

 

[rlanger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TzeYang /img/forum/go_quote.gif i'd say gogo Milette Diamond Buffers (balanced). Kin0kin built one for his HD600 and he loves it. On the other hand, for 800USD, i think you can afford the beta22 too.

Well that budget is to cover both a dac and an amp. That's why I think a combo unit might be best. But maybe I'm wrong?

 

[edisonwu]

try a used DA10 or DAC1.

*PS:the DA10 is slightly a better solution for your case.

 

[FallenAngel]

Never got a chance to build one of these, plus it was a little out of my pricerange and experience level with the custom machined heatshinks and all.

Not sure about the Millet Hybrid with DB, it's nice, but with an $800 budget, you should be able to snag up a Dynahi or a Beta22 with a good PSU like the Sigma22

You might even have enough after either of those and maybe have enough for a decent DAC as well.

Complete build costs (including casing and all the little stuff which turns expensive quickly) for a Beta22 + Sigma22 are about $500 if you get Jeff Rossel's kit (GREAT value) and a Dynahi + Dynahi PSU would be around $600.

Depending on case, it could easily go up, but this includes a reasonable case.

I'd say there should be a few experienced DIY'ers that would build one custom for you and fit into your budget.

 

[Thelonious Monk]

if you want a separate dac/amp $800 is a pretty wimpy budget. however an integrated unit will be perfect at that price point; i'm sure the ps audio unit would be great, they make awesome power conditioning stuff. plus it has usb input (dac1 with usb costs a pretty penny) and is sexier than the da10! i'm of the opinion that the further down the chain you go the more quality you need. so headphones > amp > source. you'll be getting a higher quality amplifier section with the ps audio unit, albeit not balanced, and i bet the dac is almost as good as the da10 and dac1. save the dac1 i haven't heard any of the 3, and if the headamp in the da10 is anything like the dac1, it sounds good but imo just doesn't have enough control over a hard-to-drive headphone like the hd600. good luck.

Quote:

Originally Posted by FallenAngel /img/forum/go_quote.gif Complete build costs (including casing and all the little stuff which turns expensive quickly) for a Beta22 + Sigma22 are about $500 if you get Jeff Rossel's kit (GREAT value) and a Dynahi + Dynahi PSU would be around $600.

hi, by any chance does jeff rossel go by a different moniker on the internet? can't find any results with "jeff rossel beta22" on a google search, save one with a dude saying he just got his kit from him.

 

[TzeYang]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rlanger /img/forum/go_quote.gif Well that budget is to cover both a dac and an amp. That's why I think a combo unit might be best. But maybe I'm wrong?

how much do you plan to spend on a DAC?

The millette hybrid diamond buffers parts cost arent really that expensive frankly. The PSU can be a 24V steps, which is only around 100USD.

 

[FallenAngel]

Jeff Rossel - JRossel on HeadFi and HeadWize

http://www.geocities.com/jeffrossel/
http://www.glassjaraudio.com

He sell a few VERY nice kits, more kits listed on geocities site.

Total for 3-channel B22 and S22 PSU is only about $300 without volume control or case and I'd say that's an incredible price. I'm way too tempted to get one and build it myself but I just have too many other projects at hand and trying to finish up with everything.

 

[Thelonious Monk]

err, crap, clicked one of the links and lost my post. stupid internet.

well, those look like some great kits. i'm handy with a soldering iron and i guess i owe it to myself to actually learn how to read amplifier plans, and learn what all of the parts of an amp do. can't be that much harder than making your own computer.... guess i'll build a few cmoys before i undertake something that would... *gasp*... require me to use a dedicated enclosure. the horror... didn't know you could get a kit for those amps for that cheap, even with an enclosure. under $100 for a SOHA seems especially nuts. thanks for the links, i'll bookmark that.

 

[rlanger]

Thanks for the suggestions everyone.

My goal is to be able to try something out at the upcoming Headfest Meet before I commit to a dac/amp, so hopefully there will be some Head-Fiers who bring along the DIY amps that you've listed.

 

[augustwest]

Audition the "Opera Amp" from Meier Audio, if it is there.


- augustwest

 

[OptionTrader]

Quote:

Originally Posted by augustwest /img/forum/go_quote.gif Audition the "Opera Amp" from Meier Audio, if it is there. - augustwest

x2. You might be pleasantly surprised what you get for the money.

 

[rlanger]

Yeah, I've certainly been looking at the Opera too. But I think it's a little bit more than I want to spend.

Having said that, if it completely blows away what I could get in my budget range than I could certainly "find" the extra money.

Damn this place is evil

What about tube combos? Are there any? If not, what dacs would pair well with a tube amp, and what percentage of my budget should I spend on each component?