[Slackaveli]

I have been loving my chain sans eq for awhile now. I love the highs on Yggy OG1 to Mentor to HeK. And I always eq'd since i got in this hobby in the 00's.

 

[Lindholdt]

I didn't . It's my first serious whole-chain headphone setup. And maybe that's it and this is what others call the concert hall. Coming from speakers my understanding of SS maybe needs to be recalibrated to headphones. I only tried to cross-check if I'm not eventually jumping somewhere on the neck.

I think this is the main reason. I've been into speakers for many years, but head gear is just something different. Sound stage performance will never be the same, not that it's bad, it's just a very different experience. Took me a few months to accept that change, and enjoy headphones for what they have to offer, compared to speakers.

 

[nighthink]

I think this is the main reason. I've been into speakers for many years, but head gear is just something different. Sound stage performance will never be the same, not that it's bad, it's just a very different experience. Took me a few months to accept that change, and enjoy headphones for what they have to offer, compared to speakers.

I see. Good to know. I mean this is not a complaint, there are aspects that I wasn't able to experience before. So I agree headphones offer different benefits, in my case mostly more details and emphasis on instruments sound I didn't recognize before. But yeah I'm not in a concert hall for now .

Equalizing (software-wise) is another thing to try down the road, but will wait with that a bit until I settle down with everything here first.

 

[psy472]

Forget EQing, just get a Lyr + or Lyr 3 and preamp it to the Mentor. For the last couple days I’ve been preamping with the Lyr. Mentor sounds so much better with tube preamp. Strangely the MJ3 preamp sucked compared to the Lyr 3. The sound opened up more with stronger mid.

 

[RobWilde]

Forget EQing, just get a Lyr + or Lyr 3 and preamp it to the Mentor. For the last couple days I’ve been preamping with the Lyr. Mentor sounds so much better with tube preamp. Strangely the MJ3 preamp sucked compared to the Lyr 3. The sound opened up more with stronger mid.

I'm planning on buying a Mentor when sales open to compare with my MJ3. Would you say the Lyr is an essential upgrade or just something to try if you want to tweak the already great Mentor?

 

[Ceora]

So psy472, you are obviously using single ended from the Lyr into the Mentor. I would think the Mentor wound sound better using the balanced inputs, but what do I know. I don't even have a headphone amp yet. I canceled my MJ3 order and am thinking of ways to make a Mentor fit on my desk.

 

[Slackaveli]

Forget EQing, just get a Lyr + or Lyr 3 and preamp it to the Mentor. For the last couple days I’ve been preamping with the Lyr. Mentor sounds so much better with tube preamp. Strangely the MJ3 preamp sucked compared to the Lyr 3. The sound opened up more with stronger mid.

how does it compare with the stack?

as in- Lyr3 tube pre-amp + Mentor vs no-pre Mentor Stack?

 

[Slackaveli]

So psy472, you are obviously using single ended from the Lyr into the Mentor. I would think the Mentor wound sound better using the balanced inputs, but what do I know. I don't even have a headphone amp yet. I canceled my MJ3 order and am thinking of ways to make a Mentor fit on my desk.

a single Mentor isnt balanced actually, it's a dual mono- which is part of the reason it sounds so good pre-amped , id venture.

 

[Slackaveli]

So psy472, you are obviously using single ended from the Lyr into the Mentor. I would think the Mentor wound sound better using the balanced inputs, but what do I know. I don't even have a headphone amp yet. I canceled my MJ3 order and am thinking of ways to make a Mentor fit on my desk.

Im glad i have the big L-shaped desk

 

[nighthink]

Forget EQing, just get a Lyr + or Lyr 3 and preamp it to the Mentor.

Technically possible, but is such preamping considered business as usual, especially for such good amps like mentor is? I'd rather upgrade the DAC if anything. Seems to me that should bring a bigger difference... which I actually might do at some point.
The great thing about Denafrips DACs is that they all look the same. So if one day there will be Terminator instead of Pontus, my wife will walk around without ever noticing any change. On the other hand, another box like Lyr+ would be a conversation starter .

 

[Ceora]

Haha good one

 

[psy472]

Well, I ran out of money, I can’t upgrade my DAC. My 2nd mentor was returned because it was damaged during transport across the Russian/Ukrain war zone. So the 2nd one is pending. I missed my dual Mentor. Once you get used to the dual mono, the single Mentor sounds flat to me.

I tried preamping with MJ3 to single mentor and it muddled the sound. Then I EQed with Lokius and software, but it was still weak. Then I added the Lyr I got recently and it was awesome. It may lack the ultra detailed lows but it makes up for that with full bodied mids and bass. It’s not the same as the dual but it’s different in a nice way. More organic. I turned off the Lokius because it wasn’t needed anymore. Software EQ is kept to minimal.

The Lyr is cheaper than other tube amps and it has only RCA output. So I hooked Yggy to Lyr (with psvane cv181-t mkii tube 45-60usd) via RCA to Lokius which has XLR output to my Mentor. Mentor is very open to preamp. The dead quiet background helps a lot. Tube amps often have that grainy background noise, so this is perfect for me.

 

[Slackaveli]

Well, I ran out of money, I can’t upgrade my DAC. My 2nd mentor was returned because it was damaged during transport across the Russian/Ukrain war zone. So the 2nd one is pending. I missed my dual Mentor. Once you get used to the dual mono, the single Mentor sounds flat to me.

I tried preamping with MJ3 to single mentor and it muddled the sound. Then I EQed with Lokius and software, but it was still weak. Then I added the Lyr I got recently and it was awesome. It may lack the ultra detailed lows but it makes up for that with full bodied mids and bass. It’s not the same as the dual but it’s different in a nice way. More organic. I turned off the Lokius because it wasn’t needed anymore. Software EQ is kept to minimal.

nice.

I can certainly relate to running out of spending cash lol. #MeToo

 

[nighthink]

My 2nd mentor was returned because it was damaged during transport across the Russian/Ukrain war zone. So the 2nd one is pending.

Hopefully you get it back fixed soon.

 

[quawn0418]

Technically possible, but is such preamping considered business as usual, especially for such good amps like mentor is? I'd rather upgrade the DAC if anything. Seems to me that should bring a bigger difference... which I actually might do at some point.
The great thing about Denafrips DACs is that they all look the same. So if one day there will be Terminator instead of Pontus, my wife will walk around without ever noticing any change. On the other hand, another box like Lyr+ would be a conversation starter .

what exactly are you looking for? i know you mentioned the width not being what you expected. Personally, i believe in DAC's going straight into amps. Preamps are played out and excessive to me...i go for the sound i want within the dac and amp, thats all. I may fool around with EQ here and there but i right now to my BF2/64 going straight into my MJ3 sounds about 90% for me. Which is why I plan on stepping up my dac.