[kimvictor]

Quote:

119db sensitivity IEMs are far from the norm and can be a pain to match with an amp.

I know. I wouldn't worry too much about hissing, but I just want donaldduck to know that it is possible that Modi/Magni to cause some hissing.

 

[donaldduck2004]

Quote:

I have had the Essence One for about 2 weeks now....apart from the channel imbalance problem on the low impedance headphones at low volumes, I am loving it! The sound of the Essence One to me is very clean and smooth. There is also the ability to roll different op amps to change the sound characteristics of the Essence One. I have heard many people said that it sounds the best with the MUSES01 op amps, so I went ahead and ordered 6 of them and can't wait to try them out

I have also

I have not tried the other amp that you've mentioned, but from my experience with my Essence One so far, I would definitely recommend them.

ps. I have also ordered an Aune T1 which also has pretty good reviews here on headfi so I can try my low impedance headphones on the,

Can you post a mini review for everybody?It would be very helpful to understand how the sound changes.

 

[DMax99]

Can you post a mini review for everybody?It would be very helpful to understand how the sound changes.

No problems

 

[wafflezz]

I have the magni/modi. They perform very similarly to the O2+ODAC which is more expensive but supposedly, completely transparent.

Some even prefer the magni/modi. So that speaks droves of its capabilities. Overall, it's a minor difference no matter what you choose.
the schiit stack is less expensive, so I would go for that solely because of that reason. DACs don't get much(or any) better after a certain point. And the amp should be good enough to power anything but electrostats

 

[donaldduck2004]

Quote:

I have the magni/modi. They perform very similarly to the O2+ODAC which is more expensive but supposedly, completely transparent.

Some even prefer the magni/modi. So that speaks droves of its capabilities. Overall, it's a minor difference no matter what you choose.
the schiit stack is less expensive, so I would go for that solely because of that reason. DACs don't get much(or any) better after a certain point. And the amp should be good enough to power anything but electrostats

another point for magni+modi!

 

[Mach3]

I've got the O2 and the XE1 (Xonar Essence One) I like the XE1 amp section more. Better clarity and wider sound stage experience through my HD800. Also, the ODAC & Modi can't complete with XE1 dac section IMO. They are on totally different level on specs alone. Bit perfect mode / asio (audio stream input output) async USB and 8x upsample. I know there a cut off bug with up sample, but that can be fixed with software.
Also channel imbalance issue is fixed with all the new unit. They've replace all the volume pots from the original B10K to A10K. Even on the standard unit.

 

[Mach3]

Need more convincing?
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/668406/sennheiser-hdvd-800
 
I was about to purchase the HDVD800 until I saw this. Now I am content. XE1 > Beta 22 4channel > HD800.