[Silent One]

I haven't enjoyed my '6' since summer! 

Had to temporarily place the entire rig in storage. 
My last two rentals lacked proper space...

 

[Justin_Time]

  Would a better suited amp make it less bright? 
 
Right now I'm also eagerly waiting for a LCD-2 balanced cable on the way from Audeze. If the Mjolnir (over the Lyr) gives can give it a bit more punch/bite I might be satisfied with that. That's my main issue with the LCD-2 atm. I like the overall tone, but heavy distorted guitar sounds a bit too "politened".

Yes, the LCD2 will not be polite with the Mjolnir.  It may actually even be too brash for your taste.
 
Please check the section on pairing the LCD2/3 with the right amp in my old review (warning: very long): 
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/729976/matching-headphones-cables-amplifiers-harder-than-it-should-be-very-long-post

 

[NZtechfreak]

Yes, the LCD2 will not be polite with the Mjolnir.  It may actually even be too brash for your taste.

Please check the section on pairing the LCD2/3 with the right amp in my old review (warning: very long): 

http://www.head-fi.org/t/729976/matching-headphones-cables-amplifiers-harder-than-it-should-be-very-long-post

It will still be 'polite' in the way he is referring to here actually, since the reference is quite specifically to the sound of distorted guitars - no amp will change that with the LCD 2. It was me who recommended him the Mjolnir, as it will help with metal in other respects (good bass control, dynamics).

 

[svo360]

i just ordered some 6's will i be wasting my time trying to run these with my conductor? or just sell them got the feeling i jumped the gun!

 

[Dopaminer]

  i just ordered some 6's will i be wasting my time trying to run these with my conductor? or just sell them got the feeling i jumped the gun!

No no : they`ll sound fine out of the Conductor.  You`ll enjoy them, for sure.  But sooner or later you`ll hear them out of something more powerful, something that makes them do what they can do.  At that moment, a trap door will open and a personal butler will appear, followed by dancing girls, a masseuse, a chef, your own flight attendant and a nice little old lady with steaming hot towels.  You`ll finally understand why we all seem like we`re obsessed.  

 

[svo360]

 
No no : they`ll sound fine out of the Conductor.  You`ll enjoy them, for sure.  But sooner or later you`ll hear them out of something more powerful, something that makes them do what they can do.  At that moment, a trap door will open and a personal butler will appear, followed by dancing girls, a masseuse, a chef, your own flight attendant and a nice little old lady with steaming hot towels.  You`ll finally understand why we all seem like we`re obsessed.  

lol are they really that good!! i was getting depressed that i had sell my amp and start again and spend more money on a more powerful amp! my frown just turned upside  down!!! but should i sell the conductor now rather than later while its still worth something now?

 

[NoxNoctum]

So I've got some things I'm looking into with my LCD2.2s and LCD-Xs (I'll be returning at least one of them)- someone from the Lyr tube rolling thread is hooking me up with some tubes that are supposed to add some of the chunk/bite I'm looking for. But in case that falls through sound-wise I would like to give the HE-6 another shot with a better suited amp if it's possible to tone down the brightness and maybe even get a lush sound. From my experience with the Mjolnir I'm guessing that tube amps are a better option for me just because I preferred the Lyr so much more. Really didn't dig the Mjolnir sound even with the Audezes. 
 
I'm so close with the Audezes that I probably have a better shot getting that sound to where I want but I figure I don't lose anything by experimenting with both.
 
Earlier in the thread a few of you were recommending the Ragnarok but I exchanged a few emails with Schiit and it seems those take 2 weeks to ship from date of order currently. I've got about 2 1/2 weeks left to return the HE-6s if I so choose so I'd like to try amps that I can get and try in that window if possible. Maybe completely unrealistic? (I've been 1-2 day shipping everything over last couple weeks) Budget is $2-3K with a bit of wiggle room if I find something I absolutely love.
 
If it's something that I can get relatively cheaply used I'd be willing to try something that way as well and just re-sell if unsatisfied.

 

[rlawli]

... I'm guessing that tube amps are a better option for me 

 
Take your some of your favorite music and your HE-6s to a few audio show rooms and plug them into the speaker taps of various tube amps in stock. (SET amps require the resistor box.) If there is a McIntosh dealer around, try any version of the 275; use the 16 ohm taps, no resistor box needed. You may also want to consider vintage Conrad Johnson tube amps within your budget.

 

[shayson1357]

"SET amps require the resistor box" you CAN use a 50ohm output trans. instead of 8/16r if you're custom building your amp for the he-6 

 

[NoxNoctum]

   
Take your some of your favorite music and your HE-6s to a few audio show rooms and plug them into the speaker taps of various tube amps in stock. (SET amps require the resistor box.) If there is a McIntosh dealer around, try any version of the 275; use the 16 ohm taps, no resistor box needed. You may also want to consider vintage Conrad Johnson tube amps within your budget.

How would I go about locating an audio show room? Googling gives me results for a bunch of car dealers (Audi -- ) 
 
Nearest Mcintosh is 2 hours away. Not sure I want to take gear that I may be returning that far in a car. Any other companies I can look up?
 
Can you clarify what a "SET amp" and resistor box are? Total newbie here.
 
Thanks.

 

[rlawli]

That would be ideal; but, unless you have a friend with one, it's hard to audition how it sounds before you build it. Perhaps he should first see what amps his friends have on which to try out his HE-6s. In this case, I wouldn't stick to only tube amps. Since the Lyr is simply not powerful enough, he should try SS amps as well. 

 

[rlawli]

  How would I go about locating an audio show room? Googling gives me results for a bunch of car dealers (Audi -- ) 
 
Nearest Mcintosh is 2 hours away. Not sure I want to take gear that I may be returning that far in a car. Any other companies I can look up?
 
Can you clarify what a "SET amp" and resistor box are? Total newbie here.
 
Thanks.

 
Isn't it past your bedtime Nox (2:00 PM here)?
 
No idea where you live but even where I live in midcoast Maine you can find at least one audio shop. Search on audio repair if hifi and audio don't give any results. But better still is if you have friends with decent speaker amps, whether solid state or tube. You first need to hear the HE-6s through an amp with sufficient power and the least expensive way to do that is with a speaker amp. 
 
SET stands for single-ended triode amp, a type of class A tube amp that has an output transformer between the tube and the speaker taps on the amp. Here's a link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single-ended_triode. The key issue is that most speaker amps are designed for speakers with 4, 6, 8 or 16 ohm impedances. If the amp output impedance and the speaker impedance are sufficiently mismatched; i.e. unequal, you can blow the output transformers and end up with an expensive repair bill. Solid state amps and some tube amps do not have this issue. The design impedance of the HE-6s is 48 ohms. How do we correct the mismatch if you have an SET match? One way is to design an amp that has 48 ohm output transformers. The "resistor box" which HiFiMan sells solves this problem fro $100 and also gives provides a simple way to connect the HE-6s to speakers: just add speaker wire. You can solve this problem yourself for $10-15 (or more) by using an appropriate resistor across the output terminals of each amp channel the HE-6s are connected to. (There are a number discussions of this issue in this thread.) A simple explanation of the theory can be found at http://www.prestonelectronics.com/audio/Impedance.htm

 

[TonyNewman]

   
Take your some of your favorite music and your HE-6s to a few audio show rooms and plug them into the speaker taps of various tube amps in stock. (SET amps require the resistor box.) If there is a McIntosh dealer around, try any version of the 275; use the 16 ohm taps, no resistor box needed. You may also want to consider vintage Conrad Johnson tube amps within your budget.

 
I have tried the HE6 with 2 tube amps with the resistor box - it is not a happy pairing. The SQ losses considerable dynamics and 'body' via the resistor box compared with direct input via the WA5 K1K port. My tube amps are the WA5 and a 20W 845 SET amp from Triode Corp. The WA5 K1K port is superb, connecting from speaker taps via the adapter box is not.
 
The adapter box works wonderfully well for the HD800 from either tube amp, particularly the 845 SET. Highly recommend this for HD800 users, but not HE6 users.
 
I rigged up the adapter box to my Accuphase P-4200 power amp and this also was not a success.
 
Best I have heard my HE6 is from the WA5 K1K port and via the Simaudio 430HA. For me the later has the better SQ. YMMV.

 

[rlawli]

I would add that in addition to the McIntosh 275, I connect my HE-6s directly to my Conrad Johnson MV-50 tube amp without the resistor box and suffered no adverse effects. I have also never had a problem with any of the numerous solid state amps I have connected directly. 

 

[TonyNewman]

  I would add that in addition to the McIntosh 275, I connect my HE-6s directly to my Conrad Johnson MV-50 tube amp without the resistor box and suffered no adverse effects. ...

 
I am tempted to try this - but the K1K port and 430HA do such a great job on the HE6 I don't think I need to take any risks with the tube amps.
 
Did you notice a big improvement in SQ without the speaker box on the tube amp?
 
I have a HE6 speaker tap rig on the way and will connect it direct to the Accuphase power amp when it arrives. That should be fun