[slypher]

I have just recently converted my sennheiser HD 650 headphones to balanced operation for use with my newly aquired balanced CKKIII amp. Now I see why people are impressed by the sound of the HD 650s when used with a balanced amp it sounds amazing.

I am now looking for other headphones to try balanced and when I have the cash I think I will try my AKG 701 headphones next. Can anyone else comment on headphones they have tried that improve when balanced?

 

[grawk]

It's all on the amp, really. But my woodied grado HF1s are better balanced than single ended out of the right amp. I haven't modded my esw9s to try them.

 

[Suntory_Times]

Very similiar (and same), but I have used the HD600 and HD650 balanced. Both where hugely improved from running balanced. Though I am strongly considering upgrading my balanced amp sonner rather then later (I want to try out tubes as well which is also driving my desire for a possible amp change).

 

[kool bubba ice]

It's just odd..Some say the difference is minimal. Others claim a massive improvement. Then you have the Benchmark engineer, who thinks it's all in your head, and states that using headphones with the DAC1 isn balanced mode is a bad idea..Will sound bad with distortion. He is full of it. My 650/SA5000 were flawless, LESS noise, DARKER BLACKGROUND. Some people are just too stuborn.

 

[Suntory_Times]

^ In my opinion, I couldn't care less what is 'technically' best. I care about what I percieve to be best. Woho for me.

 

[slypher]

I hear a drastic sound difference with the HD650s and I want to see if other headphones display this increase in quality when balanced.

 

[vcoheda]

600, 650, 701, RS1 all see good improvements when balanced. from what people have told me, ATH headphones less so.

 

[Acix]

Yes, please let us know about the balanced 650 vs the balanced 701.
That may change a few opinions around here.

 

[slypher]

I hope I hear the same drastic jump in sound quality with the AKG 701s. Thanks vcoheda for the reassurence about havind my AKGs recabled and a quick question are your 701s balanced?

 

[cantsleep]

grados arent the best for your amp.
gs1k might be different tho.

anyways, i would recommend something like beyer, ultrasone, akg for your amp.

good thing about your amp is that it drives SE headphones also. you can pretty much compared the two, balanced and unbalanced, and go with whichever sounds better to you

 

[slypher]

Thanks cantsleep I have been enjoying the amp very much both balanced with the hd 650s and single ended with my AKG 701s. I think I might give the Beyer a try for my next set of headphones.

 

[nc8000]

Balancing an ER4 brought it to a whole new level I never though possible. The L3000 didn't show a massive improvement from balancing but still tightened up some. I also had a balanced GS-1000 but never tried it single ended to compare.

 

[XXII]

Quote:

Originally Posted by vcoheda /img/forum/go_quote.gif 600, 650, 701, RS1 all see good improvements when balanced. from what people have told me, ATH headphones less so.

I have to disagree with this: The W5000 improves considerably when used balanced.

 

[java]

Quote:

Originally Posted by grawk /img/forum/go_quote.gif It's all on the amp, really. But my woodied grado HF1s are better balanced than single ended out of the right amp. I haven't modded my esw9s to try them.

So, which amps to use, and which to avoid?

 

[grawk]

Obviously, try good ones and avoid bad ones.

Seriously tho, being balanced or not is just a design choice. I've heard outstanding single ended, transformer balanced, and internally balanced amps. Eddie Current, Pete Millett, HeadRoom, HeadAmp, and various DIYers have all made balanced output amps that were outstanding in my experience. None of them were what I'd call budget amps. Similar statements can be made about single ended amps.