[bluenight]

Prefer Fostex for Hip-Hop And EDM because bass.

Just to clarify. Are you referring to your fostex hp amp with hd800s or hdv 820 with fostex headphones or fostex amp with fostex hp?

 

[-HaVoC-Tzu-]

Fostex Purpleheart Headpones with the HDV 820 (or something with similar power)

The Fostex HPA4BL doesn’t do the Fostex Purplehearts justice.

 

[bluenight]

I sold my black Yggdrasil Analog 2 with the Gen 5 USB upgrade. With the HD 820 it narrowed the soundstage and collapsed the sound. I found little use for my Eddie Black Current Widow 2 and sold it as well (look in the classifieds archive).

Maybe tube amps would be my preference more for hd800s. Do you remember if eddie black current amp had more bass/sub bass with hd 800s then hdv 820?

Someone said tube amps give more realistic sound to hd800s and i heard it also with my x-can v3 solid state with tube output amp actually, compared to my ss lake people rs 02 amp. Rs 02 is more veiled both in bass and highs imo maybe its the nature of that amp although there amps is highly regarded in inner fidelity. The problem with x-can v3 is that it got a whining sound from time to time. Somethings wrong withe the tubes maybe or the electronics.


Maybe this dosent apply to all ss amps though. But a huge tube uppgrade from x-can v3 maybe i would be very happy with. X-can v3 is from around 2007 and costed around 400 $.

Two tracks with lots of bass prodidgy-smack my bitch up/breathe/

Edit: After i changed rca cables the lake people rs 02 sounds less veiled. Not that bad with hd800s for the price actually.

 

[iDesign]

Maybe tube amps would be my preference more for hd800s. Do you remember if eddie black current amp had more bass/sub bass with hd 800s then hdv 820?

Someone said tube amps give more realistic sound to hd800s and i heard it also with my x-can v3 tube amp actually, compared to my ss lake people rs 02 amp. Rs 02 is more veiled both in bass and highs imo maybe its the nature of that amp although there amps is highly regarded in inner fidelity. The problem with x-can v3 is that it got a whining sound from time to time. Somethings wrong withe the tubes maybe or the electronics.

Maybe this dosent apply to all ss amps though. But a huge tube uppgrade from x-can v3 maybe i would be very happy with. X-can v3 is from around 2007 and costed around 400 $.

Two tracks with lots of bass prodidgy-smack my bitch up/breathe/

Purchase a headphone with more bass.

 

[bluenight]

Purchase a headphone with more bass.

Yeah the focal clear is on my want list. So maybe.

 

[kazsud]

Purchase a headphone with more bass.

The Ether Flow is the closest to an 800 S.

 

[zek4u]

I feel adding an outboard DAC to the HDV 820 will change/compromise the presentation of spatial information that Sennheiser worked so hard to achieve. I'm not sure where the notion comes from that the HDV 820's ESS 9018 DAC is not adequate. Sennheiser delayed the release of the HDV 820 for over a year and half because of their pursuit of perfection-- they quietly switched from a Burr-Brown DAC in the black HDVD 800 prototype Axel Grell first showed at the Fujiya-Avic Tokyo Headphone Festival in 2015. During that year and a half Sennheiser did further research and development and ultimately selected the ESS 9018 which required designing an all new implementation. Axel Grell even explained the extensive listening tests his team preformed as part of that process. Furthermore, Rob Watts has said that using an outboard amplifier with the Mojo, Hugo, Hugo 2 and DAVE reduces the transparency and that is another reason I do not recommend it.

The HDV 820's excellent total balance allows you to listen to the HD 800 S headphones for extended periods of time-- hence why Axel Grell uses it to listen Daft Punk's album Random Access Memories. My listening with the HDV 820 is limited to rare and out of print violin recordings.

Sorry, hate to say it but the HDV 820 is astounding when I hooked up a Resonessence Labs INVICTA Mirus. Pianos sound like pianos and I still get a huge 3D feel. Spooky. Is it unfair that I hooked up a 5k dac to a 2k headphone amp. I don't care, sounds amazing and I can't stop listening. Wonder what will happen when I get the Mirus upgraded to a Pro Signature.

 

[iPaintCode]

With my HD800s I've found that the quality of the source I'm listening to can be the most significant bottleneck. I've been using a Chord Hugo 2 as a dedicated DAC and DAC/Amp along with a Woo Audio WA7 2nd Gen (updated tubes on the amp and tp) as a dedicated Amp and DAC/Amp. Out of the setup I have, I prefer the WA7 + WA7tp both with upgraded tubes on my HD800s, yes that's with the newer ESS DAC in the WA7. With my Focal Elear and Aeon Flow C, I prefer using my Chord Hugo 2 as DAC/Amp.

 

[-HaVoC-Tzu-]

Ordered the Woo Audio WA8 yesterday. Will compare it to the HDV 820 soon.

 

[bluenight]

The hdv 820 sounded really good with hugo 2 as dac. Only had 2 hours with them together but sounded a bit better then listening with internal dac imo but price doubles. Especially felt more bass amount less digital grain and better overall was my quick impression.

Whish i had more time with both. I ordered a hugo 2 to start with maybe i will like it enough as a dac to my lake peopl rs 02 ss hp amp which sound less veiled after rca cable change. Thought the most expensive cable i had was the best but was not the case. Hugo 2 alone could be something also felt music was engaging at least.

 

[-HaVoC-Tzu-]

With Hugo2 and HDV820 does soundstage and imaging change at all?
Do pianos sound more like pianos?

 

[zek4u]

I took John Grandberg's @project86 advice and went for a used Invicta Mirus along with a Blue Truth II XLR Balanced Cable. Just swapped out my 10' Truth II for a custom $1000 35 foot version and I can't detect any degradation. Sounds fantastic with the HDV 820, my HD800S headphones and a Cardas Balanced headphone cable! I want to say pianos really sound more like pianos now. More so then with my old Chord 2Qute. It's just fantastic. I was tempted to get a used Hugo TT but on a whim, went with the Mirus. Tired of paying for a Chord, best in the world model every few years and losing my butt on resell. I also like the fact Resonessence Labs also offers an upgrade path. Finally decided to spend the money to get unbalanced for my 2-channel rig and balanced for headphones amp. Running pre-outs or tape-outs from a Pre-Amp or DAC with only one output always seemed to be a compromise on one side of the chain.

 

[bluenight]

With Hugo2 and HDV820 does soundstage and imaging change at all?
Do pianos sound more like pianos?

Hard to say for me, had to little time to compare. Just thought it sounded better with hugo 2.

One that had more time i guess. And pro reviewer.
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/1117/Sennheiser_HDV820_DAC_Headamp_Review.htm

 

[zek4u]

Hard to say for me, had to little time to compare. Just thought it sounded better with hugo 2.

One that had more time i guess. And pro reviewer.
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/1117/Sennheiser_HDV820_DAC_Headamp_Review.htm

I bought a Hugo 2 to compare to the Mirus but it was broken. Oh well.

 

[bluenight]

I bought a Hugo 2 to compare to the Mirus but it was broken. Oh well.

That sucks. Was it a second hand or new from store?