[Veniogenesis]

Anyone got a suggestion on an inexpensive amp for the SA5000?

Bleh, I need a tube sometime in the future, but it's not likely now.

Portaphiles? Total Airheads? SM3 Lites? Z-Audio Lambdas? Porta Corda MkIIIs?

Hopefully it's portable. (Dreams of G-Lite dies.)


I've got a SR71, but it's going away to my brother... and maybe along with
my DT880 if I think the SA5000 is better once I get it.

Music style:
Industrial - Rammstein
Trance - Trance. All trance. Mwahaha.
Pop/Rock - Japanese/Korean Pop & Rock
Instrumental Rock - Apocalyptica
Classical - Requiems, Stabat Mater, etc.
Soundtracks - Gladiator, Lord of the Rings



Cheers and thanks!
Venio

 

[Covenant]

The Hornet comes to mind, if you can call that "inexpensive". If you like tube amps, then likely you'll want a warmer rather than colder SS, and Hornet fits that bill.

An m3 could also potentially be built for around the $300 mark.

 

[Veniogenesis]

The hornet would be out of my price range, right?

 

[Covenant]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Veniogenesis The hornet would be out of my price range, right?

Its currently being offered at an 'introductory' price of $350, by Ray. I don't know what your price range is, but that is a fairly good bargain for the quality of sound it exhibits, despite being the size of a credit card.

I'm willing to wager a halfway decent m3 could compete with one, but at the expense of portability. That and the fact that you'd have to get someone to build you one, though there are several competent builders in our DIY forum.

If you want to go cheaper than that, and remain portable, there aren't too many other options. SA5K needs a fair amount of voltage and current to sound its best, and most battery-powered amps have trouble delivering.

 

[Veniogenesis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Covenant I don't know what your price range is

I had it in my post...

Battery powered amps are fine. At least it's not like a DT880. The whole point is inexpensive but good synergy.

 

[Azure]

The SA5000 are fast and cold, right? What is the M^3? Not sure if you are supposed to get a cold amp with cold headphones or a warm amp with cold headphones. I hear the Gilmore Lite is cold but neutral and I'm getting that, which leads me to believe cold for cold is good, but I some people have been saying the opposite.

 

[fogia.4]

Synergy isnt a black and white thing, its not about whats good or bad, its about what sounds good to your ears. Synergy for you may not be synergy for someone else, I think thats one thing thats been proved many times over in these forums. If you think your SA5ks need a touch of warmth, get a warm amp, if you like them the way they are and want to better that sound, get a cold amp.

 

[virometal]

Boom, the fog drifts in and consolidates my thoughts exactly.

The SA5s are not hard to drive. Buy them first, check out the sound, then get an amp.

Quote:

Originally Posted by fogia.4 Synergy isnt a black and white thing, its not about whats good or bad, its about what sounds good to your ears

 

[Veniogenesis]

Well, the thing is, I know that for one thing, PPAs make the SA5000 uber harsh.

So, I don't want to make the mistake of getting one.

How about this, which amps are warm and which are cold?

 

[Disiskurt]

As a disclaimer, I've never heard either of these yet...but wouldn't the SA5000s (one of the most sterile phones around) and a Perreaux SHX-1 (one of the warmest and most musical amps around) be an interesting combination?

 

[Azure]

Quote:

Originally Posted by virometal Boom, the fog drifts in and consolidates my thoughts exactly. The SA5s are not hard to drive. Buy them first, check out the sound, then get an amp.

My problem is that in a few months I'm going to have enough money for the amp; I've been meaning to get an amp for a while now and it'd be to be able to use my headphones with my PS2 without worrying about a lack of a headphone jack. Plus, everybody also is telling me that I should just get the amp first and get that done with before considering everything else. If I get the headphones first, not only would I have to wait an extra few months on top of the time I already have to wait to get the amp, but I would gain bad impressions of the headphones. After spending $400 on something, I would like it to sound good right away, not for it to sound like crap for like 6 months until my wallet can recover and get a suitable amp.

That said, now I'm unsure about the Gilmore Lite with the SA5000s (Now I'm getting the impressions that it won't perform as well and won't match the SA5000s' characteristics). I guess it's just the commercial quality of the Lite that had/has me attracted to it. If warm sound is what I think it is (Less focused on Treble and more laid back, a la Senns), then I wouldn't be interested in it at all and would want something cold. What opamps with the M^3 would you recommend for a fast, cold, and detailed sound for the SA5000s?

 

[ephemere]

There are two kinds of audiophiles. The first kind tries to balance a coloration in one component by selecting an opposite coloration in another component. The second kind chooses each component for maximum transparency under the maxim that two wrongs don't make a right.

If you're the second kind then you should just buy the most transparent amp you can find that's powerful enough to drive any phones that might ever interest you.

If you're the first kind then get the headphones first before thinking about an amp. Headphones are several orders of magnitude more colored than amps, so the right approach is to understand the headphone's colorations first before attempting to balance it with an amp.

 

[Azure]

Well, there is also another reason I'm not too sure about the Lite:

Many Senn owners seem to be using it. The Senn's are supposed to the the complete opposite of the SA5000s and I also don't like the idea of "laid-back" sound, so seeing this amp being used with Senn's is VERY unsettling.

 

[virometal]

But, why do so many use it with Grados as well? Interesting....

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azure so seeing this amp being used with Senn's is VERY unsettling.

 

[Jazper]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azure What opamps with the M^3 would you recommend for a fast, cold, and detailed sound for the SA5000s?

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