[fhuang]

i don't see a headphone amp only amp as a bad thing(weakness), less distortion maybe? 
 
 
and the s6 is now my go to amp with hd800

 

[longbowbbs]

  i don't see a headphone amp only amp as a bad thing(weakness), less distortion maybe? 
 
 
and the s6 is now my go to amp with hd800

I agree. I know, however, that many amp only designers have struggled with that decision. Sales are lost to devices with the pre-out capabilities. OTOH, the S6 and my HD800's are my best pairing. Wonderful sound quality.

 

[grizzlybeast]

I wonder how this sucker compares to other TOTL Amps

 

[goldendarko]

I wonder how this sucker compares to other TOTL Amps

I've compared it with Moon NEO 430 HAD, Schiit Ragnarok & Cavalli Liquid Crimson and it bested all three of those.
 
The next challenger will be the Cavalli Liquid Gold which I've got coming in late August/early September. I plan on selling whichever I prefer less. Will post some impressions when it gets here though.

 

[grizzlybeast]

I live in Portland. I should bring my amp to thier store and listen to both. Then sell mine to fund the Six if its that good. Some say its the best. KB was super calm, humble, and nice at our meet and still stuck by it being the best. Ive just been intimidated by the price. I was planning on saving for an he-9 so I can have solid state and tube. Well I have some time anyway. Maybe September but I want to be done with amps for years to come. Id be pairing it with my Pavane.

I went from wanting a gsxii to a he9 to getting curious about this. Better go have a listen.

 

[goldendarko]

I live in Portland. I should bring my amp to thier store and listen to both. Then sell mine to fund the Six if its that good. Some say its the best. KB was super calm, humble, and nice at our meet and still stuck by it being the best. Ive just been intimidated by the price. I was planning on saving for an he-9 so I can have solid state and tube. Well I have some time anyway. Maybe September but I want to be done with amps for years to come. Id be pairing it with my Pavane.

I went from wanting a gsxii to a he9 to getting curious about this. Better go have a listen.

Well it's definately the best I've heard, but honestly when you get into TOTL it's always a lot more money for a pretty small gain. If you're looking for value I'd say the Ragnarok is the TOTL amp to get, plus it can power speakers too. I kind of wish the Studio Six was about half the price without the ability to run 4 headphones at a time, it's a neat ability but rarely gets used unless my wife wants to listen too. Otherwise it's just good for doing quick comparisons of headphones. Oh and balanced in or out too would be nice. Still, can't argue when the sound quality is hands down the best I've heard. 

 

[PAM005]

Have had the StudioSix also, i have to agree the 4 headphone outputs doesn't make that much sense. Also quality in sound depends much of tubes used in StudioSix. With standard tubes sound was OK, but the music really song with more costly NOS tubes. The lack of speakerconnections was for me reason to look further. If you're looking for dedicated headphone-amp, this is really the amp to go for...
 
But be prepared to have NOT best price/value ratio. As Goldendarko mentioned, other TOTL manufacturers might have better value. But StudioSix is a real STATEMENT (both in quality as looks) product, you won't need another headphone-amp in future. And when also living in Portland, also service/aftersales of ALO (in person KB) will be a no-brainer!

 

[goldendarko]

  Have had the StudioSix also, i have to agree the 4 headphone outputs doesn't make that much sense. Also quality in sound depends much of tubes used in StudioSix. With standard tubes sound was OK, but the music really song with more costly NOS tubes. The lack of speakerconnections was for me reason to loook further. If you're looking for dedicated headphone-amp, this is really the amp to go for...
 
But be prepared to have NOT best price/value ratio. As Goldendarko mentioned, other TOTL manufacturers might have better value. But StudioSix is a real STATEMENT (both in quality as looks) product, you won't need another headphone-amp in future. And when also living in Portland, also service/aftersales of ALO (in person KB) will be a no-brainer!

What NOS tubes did you use with yours? I'm still on the stock ones and I think it sounds better than all the other amps I've heard.

 

[PAM005]

Red base RCA 6SN7, Bendix 6V6, Sylvania OB2, Mullard 5AR4 are my favorites.

 

[PAM005]

And you're right about stock sound - but in our hobby it's always about getting the best...

 

[goldendarko]

Red base RCA 6SN7, Bendix 6V6, Sylvania OB2, Mullard 5AR4 are my favorites.

Thanks Ill have to check those out, looking to get into some tube rolling finally. What kind of changes do you get from using those tubes just out of curiousity?

 

[PAM005]

More vivid sound & impact. Biggest difference in my setup was Red base RCA and Sylvania OB2

 

[goldendarko]

Mine actually came with the Sylvania OB2's oddly enough. Where do you buy them from? Tubedepot.com sells all of these but they seem to be a lot cheaper on Ebay. Is Ebay reliable for tubes?

 

[PAM005]

  Mine actually came with the Sylvania OB2's oddly enough. Where do you buy them from? Tubedepot.com sells all of these but they seem to be a lot cheaper on Ebay. Is Ebay reliable for tubes?

The NOS sylvania were bought in The Netherlands (www.triplemaudioshop.nl - they have great stock, but you'll have to email them) but do take a look at TCtubes.com. It's US based and they're great persons to deal with. In Germany there's www.jacmusic.com and also Ken of ALO sometimes have good tubes, do PM him.

 

[goldendarko]

Ok cool, thanks for the links. Hopefully you didnt just open a can of worms for me!
 
Found 2 Bendix's on ebay for $125, Mullard for $150 & RCA Red Base for $100. Those prices sound about right?