[PATB]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blizzard I don't need the preouts, but multiple inputs could be useful. I just don't think they would be worth 300€.

The price difference won't matter much to you after a month or two! Remember, you may be keeping this thing a long time -- upgrading here and there cost more money in the long run. I don't need the preamp output either when I bought it, but now I am thinking of getting a power amp and speakers next. LOL.

Give in to the call and order the Prehead. You know you want it.

 

[Blizzard]

Quote:

Originally Posted by PATB The price difference won't matter much to you after a month or two! Remember, you may be keeping this thing a long time -- upgrading here and there cost more money in the long run. I don't need the preamp output either when I bought it, but now I am thinking of getting a power amp and speakers next. LOL. Give in to the call and order the Prehead. You know you want it.

That is true

But you allways put your mind on one piece of equipment, then you think that only a bit more money and you get this much more. Just as you decide to buy that, you see what some more money would do. And then finally you are at the top of the line, looking at a price much larger than you had planned *LOL*

It's not wise to pay for more than you need, but it's also true that upgrading is much more expansive than buying enough in the beginning.

I actually have the opposite situation than you. I have an integrated amp and speakers, and all sources hooked up to that. I just want better sound for the phones, and move the volume control to another room, where I listen to the phones. I could hook the headamp to the tape out of my integrated amp, and use that to switch between sources, but it could be easier to do it at the listening point. Just draw a long RCA from my CD player(it has two sets of outputs) in the other room to the prehead, then connect my radio and computer to the prehead also, as they are in the same room where I listen to the phones, and then draw one RCA from the preheads preout to the processor loop input of my integrated amp, so that I can get the radio and computer sound there too if I want to.

But still, 300€ is a lot of money. It's the price of an entry-level amp

Hmm, wonder when they include speaker outputs. As I look at the specs, the Prehead would have enough power to drive speakers

 

[Chisum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blizzard I don't need the preouts, but multiple inputs could be useful. I just don't think they would be worth 300€. I actually asked Jan about those. He said the prehead has more power, but that's really not needed with the HD650, so the HA-2 would do just fine. The difference in sound is very small, if audible at all. Now I just have to decided if I'm prepared to pay 300€ for the difference. The extra power could be a useful reserve for possible future headphone upgrades. Allthough I don't no what I would upgrade to, and what phones would need more power.

I'm also thinking about amp upgrading, and these many new Corda models don't make things easier...

One could also choose the Prehead MkII over the HA-2 MkII SE. This is only 100€ more, and you get the full Prehead functionality plus a much better power supply, which brings more authority and deep bass control (at least this is what many members reported as the difference between old HA-2 and Prehead).

The stepped attenuator and the caps upgrade are nice, but it is at the expense of comfort for sound level adjustment, and I wonder if the sonic improvement is as big or small as the improvement through the better power supply?

Has anyone compared the HA-2 MKII SE versus the Prehead MKII (non-SE) in a direct comparison?

Cheers

Chisum

 

[PATB]

I returned it not because of any sonic deficiency of the amp itself, but due to personal taste and idiosyncrasies.

With the Sennheiser HD650, The Prehead unquestionably bests the other amps in my modest collection consisting of the Emmeline SR-71 and Rega Ear. The Prehead definitely has better treble and bass extension than either of the two. The Prehead also effortlessly drives the HD650, as if the two were made for each other. With my CDP off or paused, the Prehead is silent with the HD650 at any volume or gain.

Those who think the HD650 has the infamous “veil” need an extensive listening session with the new Prehead. With the Prehead, I actually prefer the HD650 stock cable over the Zu Mobius. The Zu Mobius, which makes the HD650 sound just right with my other amplifiers, makes the HD650 too bright with the Prehead. Fancy aftermarket cables need not apply. You save $215 on cables right there. And if you think you still need a touch of treble or bass, just flick the appropriate tone control switch and you will be rewarded.

Although I like the Prehead with the HD650, I cannot say the same with my sensitive canal phones, namely the Sensaphonics 2X-S and Shure E3C. With these phones and my CDP off or paused, I can hear static at the last four clicks of the step attenuator at the low gain setting. The static is always (i.e., from the 1st to last click of the step attenuator) at the high gain setting using the low-z output. Although I will never use the Sensaphonics or Shure at these listening levels, the presence of the static annoys me. My ears are very sensitive to volume levels and, consequently, I listen at relatively low volumes. With either the Sensaphonics or the Shure, I can tell that the Prehead is not dead silent between passages in some of my music. For comparison purposes, my SR-71 is pitch black at any volume level.

Because I hate returning anything, I tried very hard to like the Prehead. The fact that Jan Meier is a gentleman and an excellent vendor to deal with did not make shipping the amp back to Todd any easier. In the end, however, the Prehead is not the amp for me.

 

[Runningwater]

what I can say...
That's really pity thing!

 

[Jan Meier]

Dear Patb,

I'm truly sorry to hear that you're not completely satisfied.

I'm also a little puzzled though. All amps are tested with a high sensitive headphone (HD25-1) and using the low gain setting I can't hear any background noise at any levels.

But maybe my ears are getting old!

Be sure though that your amp will be thouroughly checked as soon as it has arrived. I'll send you a note.

Cheers,

Jan

 

[stryker]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JaZZ BTW, I think very highly of the synergy between the HD 650 and the HA-2 MkII / Prehead MkII. And the new MkII line has a sonic signature exactly to my liking: very neutral and accurate and extremely transparent.

I have to strongly agree, speaking for the HA-2 that is. There really is a synergy with the Sennheiser "veil". After hearing a few amps recently, I think the Corda amps are underrated and don't get the recognition that they deserve. The sound image of the HA-2 is better than it's rival with the similar name. On that amp, I found that the blackness between notes was amazing but the sound image was ultimately flat and uninvolving. If you have a source that is up to the task, this amp is wonderful and will really show it off. Lesser sources need not apply.

Unless the dollar doubles in value against the Euro, I'll just have to wait until a meet to really hear the new Corda versions.

 

[taoster]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JaZZ BTW, I think very highly of the synergy between the HD 650 and the HA-2 MkII / Prehead MkII. And the new MkII line has a sonic signature exactly to my liking: very neutral and accurate and extremely transparent.

don't forget the synergy with the HD580/600 too. It's no longer the reference model but it still sounds excellent!

I am still burning my HD650+zu in but as of now I much prefer my old reference, HD580+cardas. The infamous veil and the mid-bass bloat is definitely gone but so is the magic and naturalness?, very uneven sounding now.. hopefully with more burn-in!

I wonder how much it has to do with the Corda's ability to extract detail. Too much detail can be a bad thing... when you can see the detailed blueprint of a magic trick rather than just the magic.

 

[JaZZ]

Quote:

Originally Posted by taoster don't forget the synergy with the HD580/600 too. It's no longer the reference model but it still sounds excellent! I am still burning my HD650+zu in but as of now I much prefer my old reference, HD580+cardas. The infamous veil and the mid-bass bloat is definitely gone but so is the magic and naturalness?, very uneven sounding now.. hopefully with more burn-in! I wonder how much it has to do with the Corda's ability to extract detail. Too much detail can be a bad thing... when you can see the detailed blueprint of a magic trick rather than just the magic.

Tao...

...dont forget that the HD 650 will change its character massively after 150 or 200 hours. I also wasn't sure if it's really better than the HD 600 in the beginning, but now there's no doubt about my preference for the HD 650 with its smoother presentation and superior resolution. Driver break-in and headband loosening (which you can accelerate by stretching) will cause a considerable change, with a chaotic behavior during the first 150 hours. And if you like the HD 600's sonic signature, switching to the HD 650 also means giving up some of its characteristics. But (most likely) you will be more than compensated in the end.

Nevertheless, the HD 600 is still a very good headphone and benefits even more from the Prehead MkII upgrade than the HD 650.

 

[ssportclay]

I have no issues with noise with my older prehead but no AC power supply can match the power supply contained in the SR-71.Two 9 volt batteries are perfect direct current.

 

[Jan Meier]

Dear Pat,

As I didn’t feel very comfortable about your noise problem I did some calculations.

In a mail you told me:

“When using a sensitive phone, such as a Shure E3C or Sensaphonics 2X-S, with my CDP off (or paused), I hear a static after 20-24 steps of the attenuator at low gain setting and low-z output.”

Apparently you start to hear noise at step 20 of the attenuator. At this level the gain factor of the PREHEAD is around unity.

With an input signal of 2V maximum (which is the normal output level of a CD-player). the maximum output level of the PREHEAD thus also is 2 V.

The E3C and 2X-S have impedances of around 26 Ohm. The maximum input power therefore is around 80 mW (Sinus wave!).

According to specifications the sensitivy of the E3C is 115 dB/mW. Any 2V signal would thus result in a SPL of 115 + 20xlog(80) = 153 dB. (This is a theoretical value. In practice you most probably will have blown your drivers and your ears!)

Similar the sensitivy of the 2X-S is 109 dB. A 2V signal would result in a SPL of 147 dB.

The threshold of hearing a background noise is 1 dB (by definition). Thus the estimated SNR ratio of the PREHEAD in your setup is way over 145 dB! As the technicians in this forum will be able to confirm, that’s a very good value indeed! To be honest, I doubt whether you will be able to find an amp with a built-in powersupply that will do better than that.

It’s true that the SR71 will be more silence. However, be aware that this amp is battery powered and therefore by concept produces no 50/60 Hz humm.

The PREHEAD has a built-in power supply. Through capacitive coupling the high internal 110/220V voltages always do induce small signals in the circuitry. This only can be prevented by extensive shielding (= external powersupply = higher price). With normally listening levels the humm is, however, inaudible.

Cheers,

Jan

 

[edisonwu]

guys, i am a few confused.
does PreHead MkII SE drive a low impedance headphone such as my sa3000 or ad2000 suitably?
if not, what other amps will be recommended?

Thanks,
here is Edison

 

[Slow_aetk]

Quote:

Originally Posted by edisonwu guys, i am a few confused. does PreHead MkII SE drive a low impedance headphone such as my sa3000 or ad2000 suitably? if not, what other amps will be recommended? Thanks, here is Edison

No problem at all, I own a Prehead MkII and had no problems with a 50 ohms HD 595. I seem to remember that saint.panda tried a CD-3000 with it with very good results. You might want to get a look at this thread

http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showt...3&page=1&pp=20

 

[Nietzsche]

My GRADO RS1 sounds really good on the Low impedance output, but I prefer the better controlled sound on the Hi impedance output on my PreHead II SE.

Nietzsche

 

[pundm]

Dear Nietzsche,

if I've understood correctly what is said on Jan Meier's homepage, the low impedance output (z) allows for tighter control over your headphones, while the high impedance output (Z) "warms" the sound to a certain degree. Looking at the rather harsh frequency response of the RS-1 I don't wonder why so many Grado-Users prefer the high impedance output.
But soon, I'm gonna know by experience...as I'm going to order a Prehead MKII SE, too.

Greetings,
pundm