[murphythecat]

hi everyone
 
I have a amazing source, which is the ec design sd player sd 1 and I have the beautiful sounding sennheiser hd-650, but my amp, I feel is the weakest link, I use the CK2III amp.
 
I need to upgrade my amp badly me think, but the thing is, I have no clue where is the law of diminushing return shows up...
Is a 1k amp much better then a 500$ one?
 
Wahts the best 500$ offerings and how do they compare with the best 1k offerings.
 
thanks

 

[NA Blur]

Be sure to look around at the JDS Labs O2 Amp which is designed with good sound and good measurements in mind.  It sounds as good as my $1500 Grace Design m903 at all volumes accept extremely low.
 
JDS Labs O2 Amp Price: $300 or less

 

[picopa]

Hi,
If you want to stay in the "DIY" world , I would strongly advise you the M^3.
Some years ago, I built and used a CK2III with my HD580 for a long time, and after building a M^3, I'm now very pleased with the natural, transparent, detailed and non-fatiguing sound that it produces with both my HD580 and my HD800.
I also tried the Beta22 (much more expensive) and didn't find an obvious improvement in sound quality justifying the cost for me, and went back to the M^3 as my favorite amp. And I'm still using it...
I have not tried it with a HD650 (I prefer the sound signatures of the HD580 and HD800), but I suspect it would pair very well...

 

[conheo]

I have ck2iii, and from the impression of my friend (has 650) and me, we think ck2iii drive HD650 to more than acceptable level of performance. Becareful that you may get the commercial 500 bucks amp that not drive it well likes ck2iii (i always think an well-built with selected component ck2iii can compare well with higher price-range amp), as i find i dont like combo HD650 and violectric v200. If u can do diy or take a look as sale/trade sub-forum, you may find the complete bottle head crack for reasonable price, HD650 is really shine with Crack.
 
Both amp have only one down-side...you need to warm it up a bit before listening 

 

[clowkoy]

For the HD650, you get the Crack.

 

[formula1]

Get a used HA-160, its a pretty good performer with the Sennhs. After doing a quick search, found this.