[wisnon]

  I have the Dave along with the LCD-4 and the Utopia....the Dave drives the Utopia with ease...I use the Dave direct with the LCD-4 on occasions and on other occasions I use my Moon Neo 430.....people seem to be divided as to the Dave and hard to drive HP's...some think it sounds better direct and others think the amp gives it more body and a wider soundstage.....I have never heard the Abyss so I cannot comment on them...I think it all comes down to user preference because the Dave is capable of driving most anything

I won't drive these WONDERFUL  3.5ohm HPs either...The ERGO AMT.
http://precide.ch/eng/eergo/ergo.htm
 
Testing out a pair now with the Ergo 2 as well. Man ...these AMTs are GREAT!

 

[a1uc]

I drive the Abyss direct and with the WA5 depends what I am listening to , sometimes
I wish I would of kept my 430
 

 

[Nik]

Ok, but do you mean that is only a matter of tastes or the Dave is not perfect for driving the Abyss?

 

[a1uc]

matter of taste for me

 

[romaz]

  @romaz just wondering do you use the DAVE driving the Omega's in the louge/listening room setup or are they purely a small room / study / home office setup? You use the standmounts or floorstanders? 

I use my Omegas in my home office and on top of my large desk in a near field configuration and so regardless of room size, the impact of the room has less bearing.  Unlike my large Sonus Faber Cremonas (which are mid field) and are heavy and spiked to the floor, these speakers are easy to toe in or toe out which provides me easy flexibility in terms of varying my soundstage to my preference.  Properly toed in, I can opt for more pinpoint imaging but with some minor adjusting, I can easily increase my soundstage (both depth and width) by bringing more of the room into play.  This is something that is not possible with headphones nor is it practical with larger speakers.  
 
The Omegas sit on IsoAcoustic Aperta stands to minimize reflections from my desk.  I use a Symposium Acoustic Svelte Plus platform in between the Aperta stands and my Omegas and I have found these to very effectively dampen unwanted resonances from my speaker enclosures while providing further decoupling from my desk.  I have found them to be more effective than Stillpoints.  This combination of platforms perfectly elevates the Alnico drivers to ear level.  While I enjoy my Sonus Fabers, I enjoy these much more.
 
For mid field or far field configurations, especially in larger rooms, my compact Omegas will work although I would suggest the larger Omega Super Alnico towers.  They maintain the same high efficiency as my smaller monitors but their larger cabinets can obviously move more air.  For large rooms, I have yet to hear anything as alluring to my personal sensibilities as the Voxativ 9.87s.  They utilize wood cones that are of even higher efficiency.  They can be fitted with ferrite or Alnico magnets.  Field coil configuration is also an option depending on the sound signature you're after.  I have found it much to my preference to tune mostly at the speaker level and have my amp and my sources remains as neutral and transparent as possible.  This is much easier to do with speakers given the greater number of options although it's nice to see high-end headphone options increasing.  I am eager to hear how Voxativ's upcoming headphones will sound.  
 
The nice thing about working with small companies like Omega or Voxativ is that these speakers can be custom configured much more easily.  Not easy to do with large companies like Sony, B&W, Focal, etc.  With my Omegas, for example, Louis Chochos (the owner) was willing to alter the dimensions of my monitors to my preference so that they fit perfectly in my space.  His only requirement was that I maintain a certain volume.  He further accommodated my preference for a certain pair of low mass Furutech binding posts as well as internal speaker wire (OCC silver/gold alloy).  Because he builds to order and sells direct, I'm sure I would have paid almost double if I had to buy through a dealer and so these speakers cost less than most of my headphones.

 

[Jawed]

people seem to be divided as to the Dave and hard to drive HP's...some think it sounds better direct and others think the amp gives it more body and a wider soundstage

Is a wider soundstage indicative of less distortion in amplification, or is it an artefact of less transparency? Or?...

DAVE has a wider soundstage than Hugo TT, which implies increased transparency in DAVE. But an amp "can't be more transparent than DAVE". Unless, that is, DAVE is losing transparency due to the power it is having to deliver into the headphones. DAVE, in this scenario with an amplifier, gains transparency because DAVE's output is no longer being stressed by a difficult to drive headphone.

For what it's worth, Chord uses LCD-4 at shows running directly off DAVE.

 

[romaz]

  I drive the Abyss direct and with the WA5 depends what I am listening to , sometimes
I wish I would of kept my 430
 

I can appreciate what you're saying.  To my ears, with the Abyss, DAVE direct offers this wonderful transparency and imaging but not quite enough low end grunt.  The Woo with 300Bs offer a bit more power and a more romantic flavor.  The 430HA offers quite a bit more power yielding powerful bass while nicely taming some of the brightness of the Abyss and providing a more diffuse soundstage.
 
When Chord's digital amp for the DAVE comes out next year, you will have one more option.  The initial 20 watt version should provide the power for headphones similar to the 430HA without compromise in transparency.  Further tuning could be provided through digital equilization or DSP.

 

[a1uc]

Hey , Roy

You said that just perfect

With the Abyss, DAVE direct offers this wonderful transparency and imaging but not quite enough low end grunt. The Woo with 300Bs offer a bit more power and a more romantic flavor. The 430HA offers quite a bit more power yielding powerful bass while nicely taming some of the brightness of the Abyss and providing a more diffuse soundstage.

 

[phonyx]

  I use my Omegas in my home office and on top of my large desk in a near field configuration and so regardless of room size, the impact of the room has less bearing.  Unlike my large Sonus Faber Cremonas (which are mid field) and are heavy and spiked to the floor, these speakers are easy to toe in or toe out which provides me easy flexibility in terms of varying my soundstage to my preference.  Properly toed in, I can opt for more pinpoint imaging but with some minor adjusting, I can easily increase my soundstage (both depth and width) by bringing more of the room into play.  This is something that is not possible with headphones nor is it practical with larger speakers.  
 
The Omegas sit on IsoAcoustic Aperta stands to minimize reflections from my desk.  I use a Symposium Acoustic Svelte Plus platform in between the Aperta stands and my Omegas and I have found these to very effectively dampen unwanted resonances from my speaker enclosures while providing further decoupling from my desk.  I have found them to be more effective than Stillpoints.  This combination of platforms perfectly elevates the Alnico drivers to ear level.  While I enjoy my Sonus Fabers, I enjoy these much more.
 
For mid field or far field configurations, especially in larger rooms, my compact Omegas will work although I would suggest the larger Omega Super Alnico towers.  They maintain the same high efficiency as my smaller monitors but their larger cabinets can obviously move more air.  For large rooms, I have yet to hear anything as alluring to my personal sensibilities as the Voxativ 9.87s.  They utilize wood cones that are of even higher efficiency.  They can be fitted with ferrite or Alnico magnets.  Field coil configuration is also an option depending on the sound signature you're after.  I have found it much to my preference to tune mostly at the speaker level and have my amp and my sources remains as neutral and transparent as possible.  This is much easier to do with speakers given the greater number of options although it's nice to see high-end headphone options increasing.  I am eager to hear how Voxativ's upcoming headphones will sound.  
 
The nice thing about working with small companies like Omega or Voxativ is that these speakers can be custom configured much more easily.  Not easy to do with large companies like Sony, B&W, Focal, etc.  With my Omegas, for example, Louis Chochos (the owner) was willing to alter the dimensions of my monitors to my preference so that they fit perfectly in my space.  His only requirement was that I maintain a certain volume.  He further accommodated my preference for a certain pair of low mass Furutech binding posts as well as internal speaker wire (OCC silver/gold alloy).  Because he builds to order and sells direct, I'm sure I would have paid almost double if I had to buy through a dealer and so these speakers cost less than most of my headphones.

 
I appreciate you taking the time to reply, Romaz, thanks. With a young baby now I'm not able to listen to my loungeroom hifi much, and am spending much more time in my home office but do tire of headphones listening - it was never really my thing and I much prefer speakers. As you'd know, speaker listening with family around or late at night is challenging, as with the low volumes required dynamics are often lost, and it swiftly becomes pointless to continue. What I was trying to build is a nearfield setup similar to yours, but I do not have a DAVE (only a TT) so was planning to use a small Pass Labs XA30.5 (30 Watts Class A) to run from the TT and drive an appropriate speaker. I was thinking the Omega SAM monitor was a good candidate and stumbled on your posts here doing a search on them. 
 
I don't have a hugely deep desk. I can pull it out from the wall and standmount speakers behind it, though, which may work. I used to do this with monitors when I was mixing music at home years ago. Or I could get a deeper desk, not sure which way would yield better results. What cabinet dimensions did you settle on? 
 
So I was thinking of Hugo TT > Pass Labs XA30.5 > Omega SAM's on inert stands.
 
That should be a very enjoyable near field system, and I can resort to headphones if I must at certain times. I am yet to hear some Utopia's but I would like to, if they have similar qualities to my HE1K's but with the dynamic driver qualities the planars lack.
 
It's funny you mention the Voxative 9.87's. Paired with high quality SET amps (like their 845's) they are stunningly good speakers. Among the best I've heard, as long as you don't need high SPL bass slam and low end extension (they're rolling off below ~40Hz). They now have an additional supplementary dipole bass 'system' to fix that, however.
 
Robb Watt's hasn't divulged specifics other than to say what he uses for speakers are an 'old german' pair. But anyone who's gone to Munich high-end or similar, knows what the German's can and have done with 1-way's and horns before, which render mids and treble better than basically everything I've heard elsewhere. Voxative and Cessaro come to mind.

 

[jlbrach]

Is a wider soundstage indicative of less distortion in amplification, or is it an artefact of less transparency? Or?...

DAVE has a wider soundstage than Hugo TT, which implies increased transparency in DAVE. But an amp "can't be more transparent than DAVE". Unless, that is, DAVE is losing transparency due to the power it is having to deliver into the headphones. DAVE, in this scenario with an amplifier, gains transparency because DAVE's output is no longer being stressed by a difficult to drive headphone.

For what it's worth, Chord uses LCD-4 at shows running directly off DAVE.

I did not realize hord shows the Dave with the LCD-4 because it really is a beast to drive properly but damn it is a fantastic HP...I am listening to it right now as I type this after listening to my Utopia in both cases straight from the Dave...when i listen to the LCD-4 I have to push the volume about 20 clicks so the LCD-4 really needs tons of power....I try to go straight out of the Dave with the LCD-4 but there are recordings that need my 430....the 430 is a great am and does give it more bass grunt and just a general feeling of control....that said,it is more transparent straight from the Dave

 

[thunder 99]

I am still discovering the amazing abilities of the DAVE - One thing that constantly strikes me is its ability to render concerts (with classical indian instruments) as if they were occurring a few metres in front of me. Playing around with the DAVE and connecting it to a PC I had two different circuits and both produced different results. I have read that the DAVE is source neutral so I am struggling to explain the differences and what I can do further.
 
The two circuits are: 
1) DAVE connected to a laptop running Windows 7 with a lightspeed 10G USB cable.
2) DAVE connected to a PC running Windows 7 with a 5m USB cable sourced locally here (http://www.krispykables.com.au/products/ADL-Formula-2%252dB-USB-2.0-cable.html) connected to an Audeophileo 2 into a BNC input on the DAVE
 
In 2), I immediately notice a reduction in microdynamics with the recordings sounding more flatter. Its probably minute but enough for me to notice it and hence not enjoy the live concert type music.
 
In terms of the differences between the two circuits, I am not sure whether it is because of the USB cable or using an Audeophileo which has resulted in the reduction in the SQ. The USB ports on both laptop/PC are equally non Hifi, I cannot really change the USB cable as that's the only 5m one I could find (which is not very costly to just be used as guesswork) and I am not sure whether an additional reclocker such as Wyred4sound or Uptone Regen will fix the problem.
 
Any thoughts what I need to do next to be able to make Youtube sound like an actual live performance?
 
Cheers
thunder

 

[theveterans]

  I am still discovering the amazing abilities of the DAVE - One thing that constantly strikes me is its ability to render concerts (with classical indian instruments) as if they were occurring a few metres in front of me. Playing around with the DAVE and connecting it to a PC I had two different circuits and both produced different results. I have read that the DAVE is source neutral so I am struggling to explain the differences and what I can do further.
 
The two circuits are: 
1) DAVE connected to a laptop running Windows 7 with a lightspeed 10G USB cable.
2) DAVE connected to a PC running Windows 7 with a 5m USB cable sourced locally here (http://www.krispykables.com.au/products/ADL-Formula-2%252dB-USB-2.0-cable.html) connected to an Audeophileo 2 into a BNC input on the DAVE
 
In 2), I immediately notice a reduction in microdynamics with the recordings sounding more flatter. Its probably minute but enough for me to notice it and hence not enjoy the live concert type music.
 
In terms of the differences between the two circuits, I am not sure whether it is because of the USB cable or using an Audeophileo which has resulted in the reduction in the SQ. The USB ports on both laptop/PC are equally non Hifi, I cannot really change the USB cable as that's the only 5m one I could find (which is not very costly to just be used as guesswork) and I am not sure whether an additional reclocker such as Wyred4sound or Uptone Regen will fix the problem.
 
Any thoughts what I need to do next to be able to make Youtube sound like an actual live performance?
 
Cheers
thunder

 
I remember that Rob has stated that USB is the best input for his DACs. On other DACs, it's usually I2S or AES/EBU that's the best since their USB implementation is just for convenience, not their priority.

 

[thunder 99]

Thanks theveterans,
 
Does that mean I have to swap USBs everytime? I wish DAVE had more than one USB input in that case or is there a workaround that by anychance - eg plugging two usb cables into an adaptor of some sort.
Does that also mean that changing the USB cable/adding in reclockers wont make too much of a difference?
Thanks

 

[thunder 99]

Thanks theveterans,
 
Does that mean I have to swap USBs everytime? I wish DAVE had more than one USB input in that case or is there a workaround that by anychance - eg plugging two usb cables into an adaptor of some sort.
Does that also mean that changing the USB cable/adding in reclockers wont make too much of a difference?
Thanks

 

[theveterans]

  Thanks theveterans,
 
Does that mean I have to swap USBs everytime? I wish DAVE had more than one USB input in that case or is there a workaround that by anychance - eg plugging two usb cables into an adaptor of some sort.
Does that also mean that changing the USB cable/adding in reclockers wont make too much of a difference?
Thanks

 
 
USB reclockers IMO makes a subtle change. However, depending on your taste, they may make the sound better or worse for you. As for 2 inputs, can't think of a way other than switching USB cables, or get a better solution than Audiophilleo.