Ichinichi
1000+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Feb 11, 2007
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- 11
Originally Posted by Nomad /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm going to defend the poor HEV70. For the size it is a pretty convenient amp that after a few hours works quite Ok. To have one handy is great in some office/bedroom setups when space is an issue. Besides, although this will sound frivolous, it looks pretty good. I'm still using it occasionally. Bass in HE60 is punchier than HE90 and some people might prefer that. Still, the HE90 is better in many other things. I heard the HE60 from HEV90 and I can assure you that it is not 90% of an HE90. Or perhaps it's that 10% the one that makes all the difference. Still, I like it. Don't get me wrong. For that price (and without an amp no matter how bad it is for some people it is quite convenient to have it, and then again is not that horrible after several hours on) I'd rather get a O2 which I think it is a better and more refined phone. However, I have to admit that it has a brighter sound signature that some people might prefer and besides, it is not that exigent amp-wise. |
Originally Posted by spritzer /img/forum/go_quote.gif It's cool of you to stick up for the little guy but in a direct comparison the small Stax amps are much better and that includes the old SRM-Xh. More control over the entire spectrum to let the phones do their own thing. There is also the monstrous failure rate of the earlier HEV70's but Sennheiser seems to have fixed it later in the production run. Comparing the two He's on the HEV90 is not a good idea as the amp requirements are very different. The HE90 needs a more romantic amp with a medium level of power but the HE60 needs a very fast, transparent and powerful amp. They really wake up on the Blue Hawaii and show that they can stand up the HE90 in many regards while having a different presentation. Still there is very little that can be done about the mild midrange colorations and the upper midrange harshness. I think that the Koss ESP/950 can beat them hands down after a few mods to the housing as they are about par stock. |
Originally Posted by Nomad /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks for the comment. I didn't try the small amps from Stax and I wouldn't want to mislead people with the HEV70. I still find it quite convenient and it's not only about being small, it's that the form factor (rectangle instead of squarish shape) always seems to fit nicely a small space left available on my desk in the office or in the bedside table. It works great over the Apogee Minidac too. And I like that Tantalum finish it has. Perhaps it is just a nostalgic thing. I know it's pretty much just a transistor doing the whole amplification and that it is not perfect but it gave me very good moments while I was discovering electrostatic phones. It might be that... I think I tried both HE60 and HE90 from KGSS too and I did prefer the HE90. I see your point of having a fast amp backing up the HE60 but after trying different amps I would say that (for me) it is best to have tubes in order to tame a bit the HE60, although it took me a while to realize that. Anyway, having a BH, you have the best of both worlds! Cheers. |
Originally Posted by spritzer /img/forum/go_quote.gif The Blue Hawaii doesn't do much to tame the HE60 but it feeds it plenty of power and that matters. Still I didn't like it enough to keep either of the Sennheisers and so I sold them and kept the SR-Ω. The SR-Ω gives me a similar overblown soundstage and they are better over all then either of the HE's if I'm not in the mood for SR-007. |