[Adu]

dan.gheorghe try the HD-595 with Meier Corda Swing/Arietta it's a good entry-level match. I had this set-up a year ago.

 

[Audio Jester]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adu /img/forum/go_quote.gif dan.gheorghe try the HD-595 with Meier Corda Swing/Arietta it's a good entry-level match. I had this set-up a year ago.

I still have this amp and I found that there was barely enough difference between straight out of my ipod and MBP>Arietta to justify the cost. If you have other cans that do need a bit of driving then go for it.

 

[dan.gheorghe]

Thx for the tip...that was one of my choices at the beginning. Now, Arrieta has been replaced by Corda Swing. I ordered the Cantate 2 (Dr. Meier said that it is an overkill for my hd 595) for a future upgrade to hd 650.

 

[dan.gheorghe]

My cantate 2 has arrived

.

It has a little over 50 h burn in. At first the difference was very small but noticeable. Now it is another story. Everything is more clear, the bass more firm. In some melodies i get goosebumps because of the details

. It is amazing. I am very happy that i bought this amp. Now i am sure i will get hd 650 too, this summer

) .

I have some questions though.
From what i heard the dac would have to surpass a computer sound card. I have creative x-fi extreme audio (which is not even a true x-fi chip, the x-fi functionalities are done done software, not hardware, it is the lowest of the creative x-fi sound cards).
The thing is that the sound is more clear, more energetic when i use the amp through the sound card than the internal dac from cantate 2.
I listened and listened again, and i reached the same conclusion.
It might be from the x-fi crystalizer (some kind of up-sampling) which truly makes a difference (i don`t listen to mp3 if that is what you are thinking

) i use only flacs now ).
Does the DAC from cantate 2 need burnin also, or does just the amp need burnin?

Quote:

There is a DAC in the Cantate so it will bypass your sound-card. So please forget all about sound-cards.

From what i experienced here the sound from the sound card surpassed that of the dac, but it might be from the burnin...

From what i heard this would be the best audio card (at that price) is Xonar Essence STX .
The components used there are very good. The dac is top of the line Texas Instrument Burr Brown 1792A DAC.

Would it be money well spent, or not? What is your opinion?

Another thing is that i don`t feel the difference when i switch the crossfeed on/of. I used 2 melodies that are known to be good for crossfesd testing(Damien Riced-Cold Water and The Postal Service-Such great heights), and i barely noticed the difference. But yes it might be a little more relaxing, over a long time of music listening.

 

[DarKu]

The DAC inside of the Cantate.2 is quite poor, it's the lowest home DAC from Ti BB. I had a Cantate for some time and it was great as an amp, as a DAC it was not what i expected. Seriously speaking HD595 do not require an amp to shine, however upper Senn models do require serious power. A xonar STX would do a better job driving HD595 alone comparing to Cantate (just because your cans do not require such power) and it's cheapper.
But since you have the Cantate allready maybe you sould try a HD650?

A better DAC is also advisable for you in your near/distant future (it's the most important thing IMO)
PS: I will have a HD650 for sale very soon if you are interested, since we are from the same city

 

[dan.gheorghe]

I know the hd 595 doesn`t need an amp per say but it does sound better with one. Cantate 2 is an overkill for it(but it does sound better

) , i know (even Meier said that before i bought it), but it is an investment for a future better pair of cans.
So you say i should get a better dac, what do you have in mind? What about what i said before :
Code:

[left]From what i heard this would be the best audio card (at that price) is Xonar Essence STX . The components used there are very good. The dac is top of the line Texas Instrument Burr Brown 1792A DAC.[/left]

Not for the integrated amp it has, but for the quality dac.

 

[plonter]

congratz on your new amp

a dedicated amp can never be a bad idea imo...every headphone benefit from a dedicated/correct amplification,some less and some more.
I pretty much agree with all what have been said in this thread.

I also started my audiophilic way with the HD595 and I think they are really wonderful starting headphones.

 

[dan.gheorghe]

hello guys,

I recently bought the Xonar Essence ST sound card.
The difference is huge... It`s 10 times better than my previous creative x-fi extreme audio sound card.
The soundstage is amazing, and the details are incredible. I am now in love with my headphone sound system (buut...i think i would go for hd 650 soon, to be completely satisfied

) ).
In movies when i select "movie" mode in essence`s control panel you actually feel there. You can hear how the guy from the end of the scene is switching pages on the paper he reads

I`m an addict now... i just can`t wait to get home and listen to some music..now.

 

[DarKu]

Congrats ! I'm know your feelings..Just sit back and enjoy your favourite tunes

All allready are sleeping at this hour, but i sit back look at the glowing tubes, drink a good wine and rocking with some fav tunes. Never can get enough of it.
Love this hobby !!

 

[TheWuss]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dan.gheorghe /img/forum/go_quote.gif I am now in love with my headphone sound system. I`m an addict now... i just can`t wait to get home and listen to some music..now.

awesome, man!

now, go recruit some more cats! spread the word!

me, personally, i'm allowing a buddy at work to audition my hd595s, and i think he's gonna take them off my hands. it's nice to be able to show somebody good sound...

 

[dan.gheorghe]

Hello guys.

I have got the HD 650 with the zu mobius cable MK2, thanks to DarKu (who soled them at a very good price). Now i have my dream system. I wanted to get here sometime in autumn, but the opportunity presented by DarKu appeared and i couldn`t refuse it.
Well guys....now i am officially broke

), but i don`t regret any EURO/Dolar spent for it. There are 2 types of broke people:
- the ones who loose their money and don`t get what they want
- the ones that spend their money and get exactly what they want.

I am in the second category

Thank you, DarKu for the excellent pair of cans and for the mobius cable.
When i bought the cans, i had the unique opportunity (i have never listened to a better amp than mine, nor a tube amp), to listen to DarKu`s sound system with hd 650, and with my first good cans hd 595 .
He has the Woo Audio 6 special edition amplifier (special edition means it has the big source), and his Havana DAC.
It is also the first time i have listen to bin-aural music (3d virtual barbershop).
I was absolutely astonished. I had the impression that when i take the cans off i will miss a part of my hair

).
The sound was absolutely incredible for me (coming from hd 595).
I am beginner in this so don`t expect to express myself in a perfect(or even good for that matter

) ) technical way.

I saw a lot of opinions about hd 595 <-> hd 650.
Some said that they liked 595 better. I know that in this "business" you cannot state facts, only opinions, so this is my opinion (remember this).
When i listened to a couple of tracks, and i switched with the hd 595, the sound appeared not to be complete, and the sound-stage was smaller.
The trebble and the bass does not compete with the 650 either, and i am not a guy who wants extreme bass (i only want natural, well defined bass).
DarKu gave me a good tip. To observe separation of the instruments with hd 650. He was right! I can distinguish the instruments very easy. I can listen to my favorite instrument from a classical piece for example.
And the rock sounded RIGHT for the first time in my life. I always had the impression that the heavy guitars were not clear. Well this time the rock sound has all that i want with hd 650.
In my opinion hd 650 is way better than 595 in every aspect (but i only listened to it with the zu mobius cable, not with the stock cable).
DarKu asked me what difference is between his system and my cantate 2 + xonar essence ST.
I could not say at the moment, because i had only listened to hd 595 with my home system, and i did not hear all my system can do. The differences with hd 595 between the 2 were too little.
I was a afraid of something when i was listening at DarKu`system.
I was afraid of the moment i get home and insert the hd 650 in my cantate. I promised myself, no more upgrades for a long while

)

Well...i got home...i inserted the cans, and i listened. The differences are quite big. The sound was much more raffined, clear, soft at DarKu`s.

Lets say the sound is water. Your ears are a lake.
At my audio system the water is pushed by pressure within a pipe uphill, and at DarKu`s the water is softly flowing like a river downhill to the lake.

After a while i adjusted to my sound, and what can i say, i just LOVE IT!!
For now i am very pleased with my system.
Again, thank you DarKu, for the cans and zu mobius cable, and also for giving me the chance to listen to an excellent headphone sound system !

 

[DarKu]

I'm very glad you like those HD650

take care of them and love them as much as I did. I'm very sure I will miss them ...
I'm happy that you achieved your audio nirvana, I wish you many many hours of listening pleasure in the evenings as I do.

 

[dan.gheorghe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarKu /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm very glad you like those HD650 take care of them and love them as much as I did. I'm very sure I will miss them ... I'm happy that you achieved your audio nirvana, I wish you many many hours of listening pleasure in the evenings as I do.

Thanks again DarKu

I also forgot to say something about the difference between your system and mine. The soundstage and the spatial placement are much better with woo audio 6 special edition.
I just hope... i won`t buy one soon

)