[Justin_Time]

Oh man, what an improvement. If Focal provides this as stock accessory, could we ask for a discount?

 

[Justin_Time]

If you are looking for perfect bass nothing bests the sr-007mk1. It needs a well built powerful energizer behind it but yeah your not going to get any better. It has other shortcomings though. A lack of air for instance.

Unfortunately, I only have Stax's own amps with my 007-Mk1. I heard the 009, which is superior in every way to the 007 except for the bass.

I really need a killer SS amp--the GS-X Mk2 does not quite do the job--and balanced silver/litz cable to tighten up the bass of the Utopia just a tad. Any recommendation?

 

[Svatopluk]

Unfortunately, I only have Stax's own amps with my 007-Mk1. I heard the 009, which is superior in every way to the 007 except for the bass.

I really need a killer SS amp--the GS-X Mk2 does not quite do the job--and balanced silver/litz cable to tighten up the bass of the Utopia just a tad. Any recommendation?

The only time I ever had any trouble with Utopia's bass being loose was when the amps impedance was too high, like with the HDVA600. IMO, Ragnarok>Yuggdrasil delivers clean tight bass when paired with Utopia.

 

[Whitigir]

Unfortunately, I only have Stax's own amps with my 007-Mk1. I heard the 009, which is superior in every way to the 007 except for the bass.

I really need a killer SS amp--the GS-X Mk2 does not quite do the job--and balanced silver/litz cable to tighten up the bass of the Utopia just a tad. Any recommendation?

Wait...I am a bit confused. Can you please elaborate with much more details than just this ?

 

[Justin_Time]

Wait...I am a bit confused. Can you please elaborate with much more details than just this ?

It is a long story. I am not sure it is worth explaining but here it is in a nutshell.

1. I was quibbling about the bass on the Utopia having just a tad too much bloom-a slow decay and was wishing for the perfect amp for it.
2. It was suggested that the Stax 007 Mk1 has a really tight bass with the right amp.
3. I responded that the only amp I have with the 007 is Stax’s own amp
4. Finally I switched the topic back to the initial question: is there a perfect amp for the Utopia bass?

Actually, after a few hours listening to my own amps. I may have found a...partial answer.

The GS-X Mk2 is a great amp for the Utopia overall, but in the bass, and in the bass alone, the Vioelectric V281 has a clear edge: tight with plenty of slam and no upper bass overhang. Unfortunately, the faster decay with the V281 makes it less ideal in other areas. Overall:

GS-X Mk2: smooth midrange, good depth and sweet, delicate treble. Bass: great impact but just a tad too much bloom
V281: tigh focus, up-close, intimate midrange and tight bass with control and great slam. Traces of edginess in the treble.

The difference was almost like that between tube and solid-state sound but to a far, far smaller degree. I am talking about two great amps with great sound and just minor shortcomings when paired with the Utopia. The GS-X in the bass and the 281 in the treble.

 

[LCMusicLover]

It is a long story. I am not sure it is worth explaining but here it is in a nutshell.

1. I was quibbling about the bass on the Utopia having just a tad too much bloom-a slow decay and was wishing for the perfect amp for it.
2. It was suggested that the Stax 007 Mk1 has a really tight bass with the right amp.
3. I responded that the only amp I have with the 007 is Stax’s own amp
4. Finally I switched the topic back to the initial question: is there a perfect amp for the Utopia bass?

Actually, after a few hours listening to my own amps. I may have found a...partial answer.

The GS-X Mk2 is a great amp for the Utopia overall, but in the bass, and in the bass alone, the Vioelectric V281 has a clear edge: tight with plenty of slam and no upper bass overhang. Unfortunately, the faster decay with the V281 makes it less ideal in other areas. Overall:

GS-X Mk2: smooth midrange, good depth and sweet, delicate treble. Bass: great impact but just a tad too much bloom
V281: tigh focus, up-close, intimate midrange and tight bass with control and great slam. Traces of edginess in the treble.

The difference was almost like that between tube and solid-state sound but to a far, far smaller degree. I am talking about two great amps with great sound and just minor shortcomings when paired with the Utopia. The GS-X in the bass and the 281 in the treble.

Do you find that any of your sources help/hurt either of the Utopia/amp pairings? I’ve found some of the same treble edginess with my V280. I hoped that the Bryson BHA-1 might be better, but I’m actually preferring the Violectric, although the difference is very small. My Pontus helps a little vs Sonica DAC.

 

[336881]

It is a long story. I am not sure it is worth explaining but here it is in a nutshell.

1. I was quibbling about the bass on the Utopia having just a tad too much bloom-a slow decay and was wishing for the perfect amp for it.
2. It was suggested that the Stax 007 Mk1 has a really tight bass with the right amp.
3. I responded that the only amp I have with the 007 is Stax’s own amp
4. Finally I switched the topic back to the initial question: is there a perfect amp for the Utopia bass?

Actually, after a few hours listening to my own amps. I may have found a...partial answer.

The GS-X Mk2 is a great amp for the Utopia overall, but in the bass, and in the bass alone, the Vioelectric V281 has a clear edge: tight with plenty of slam and no upper bass overhang. Unfortunately, the faster decay with the V281 makes it less ideal in other areas. Overall:

GS-X Mk2: smooth midrange, good depth and sweet, delicate treble. Bass: great impact but just a tad too much bloom
V281: tigh focus, up-close, intimate midrange and tight bass with control and great slam. Traces of edginess in the treble.

The difference was almost like that between tube and solid-state sound but to a far, far smaller degree. I am talking about two great amps with great sound and just minor shortcomings when paired with the Utopia. The GS-X in the bass and the 281 in the treble.

I do not know about the Utopia but there is a perfect amp for bass with the sr-007. The kgsshv. Pricey but I sold my Mjolnir kgsshv for $2400 and it was the big boy 500v model. They do not come up often but when they do they are usually a good deal and quite a bit less than msrp. New they are $3k+. There was no comparing my 727ii to the Mjolnir kgsshv. Like a whole other headphone and in the way the Teton made the hd800's sound like a $4k headphone to me so did the kgsshv with the sr-007mk1.

Ecp can probably build you something that will give you perfect bass with the Utopia. I remember Tmoney really liked his dsha-4 with the Utopia's. I just do not think there is any guarantee it will best the 007mk1. Doug is a great builder but kind of so is Stax and the sr-007mk1 well driven is a masterpiece with bass.

 

[Justin_Time]

Do you find that any of your sources help/hurt either of the Utopia/amp pairings? I’ve found some of the same treble edginess with my V280. I hoped that the Bryson BHA-1 might be better, but I’m actually preferring the Violectric, although the difference is very small. My Pontus helps a little vs Sonica DAC.

I was very careful with my sources. For this comparison I was using my analog source (SME 20/ SME V /Koetsu Rosewood with John Curl JC+3 phono stage) or the Oppo 205 with the tube modification by ModWright, both about as smooth as you can get. They were the same sources for the two amps,so the very slight edginess is more than likely from the V281. Now to be clear, I am talking about just a hint of edginess. Likewise, the bass with the GS-XMk2 has just a tiny bit of bloom (slow decay). Both amps are quite outstanding.

I had the Bryston for several months. If you want less edginess, that is not the way to go.

 

[up late]

The only time I ever had any trouble with Utopia's bass being loose was when the amps impedance was too high, like with the HDVA600. IMO, Ragnarok>Yuggdrasil delivers clean tight bass when paired with Utopia.

that's also been my experience

Unfortunately, I only have Stax's own amps with my 007-Mk1. I heard the 009, which is superior in every way to the 007 except for the bass.

I really need a killer SS amp--the GS-X Mk2 does not quite do the job--and balanced silver/litz cable to tighten up the bass of the Utopia just a tad. Any recommendation?

i didn't think that the sr-007's bass was anything special tho i liked the headphone overall. i thought that the the LCD-4 out-performed it in that department in a direct comparison. its bass presentation was better defined to my ears.

tho i haven't compared the sr-007 with the utopia, i wouldn't expect the sr-007's bass presentation to be an improvement on the utopia's based on what i heard.

 

[LCMusicLover]

...I had the Bryston for several months. If you want less edginess, that is not the way to go.

Yep, you are correct. I do like it with the Auteur. Probably won’t keep it though — not really a significant alternative to theV280.

 

[Svatopluk]

Pretty sure I'll be sticky with V280 and Ragnarok, both seem to work well with the Utopia and HD800.

 

[Whitigir]

It is a long story. I am not sure it is worth explaining but here it is in a nutshell.

1. I was quibbling about the bass on the Utopia having just a tad too much bloom-a slow decay and was wishing for the perfect amp for it.
2. It was suggested that the Stax 007 Mk1 has a really tight bass with the right amp.
3. I responded that the only amp I have with the 007 is Stax’s own amp
4. Finally I switched the topic back to the initial question: is there a perfect amp for the Utopia bass?

Actually, after a few hours listening to my own amps. I may have found a...partial answer.

The GS-X Mk2 is a great amp for the Utopia overall, but in the bass, and in the bass alone, the Vioelectric V281 has a clear edge: tight with plenty of slam and no upper bass overhang. Unfortunately, the faster decay with the V281 makes it less ideal in other areas. Overall:

GS-X Mk2: smooth midrange, good depth and sweet, delicate treble. Bass: great impact but just a tad too much bloom
V281: tigh focus, up-close, intimate midrange and tight bass with control and great slam. Traces of edginess in the treble.

The difference was almost like that between tube and solid-state sound but to a far, far smaller degree. I am talking about two great amps with great sound and just minor shortcomings when paired with the Utopia. The GS-X in the bass and the 281 in the treble.

Thanks for the much more detailed comparison

1/ not sure too much what Focal had done in references of tuning the Utopia out of, but I heard there was something about Luxman ? Could be just a marketing for Luxman 750U new product, but who knows

2/ yes, given the right amp/energizer, the 007 mkI can have pretty crazy good bass. The best Synergies I heard from it was from KGSSHV Carbon

3/ stax, 007 or 009, I tried 3 different top of the line amps for them. All I can tell you is that the amplifier for Stax is so very important. Why ? That is because Stax is working based on being energized, the better energized, the better it perform, so the better energizer you will need. At least, try BHSE for a well known to perform enerergizer. Stax totally works off your energizers, unlike Dynamic headphones where there is a Magnetic constructions inside “already”

4/ Not too sure about this, but I hear ECP audio is going to release an amplifier that is specifically tuned for Focal (edition F). You gotta search a little bit for it

GSX-MKII gives Utopia additional strength on it weakness, that is the soundstage. But on the search for the best amplifier that Synergize so well with Utopia ? I guess we still have a long way off, due to Utopia is a little too new on the market. The general consensus was in though, that the GSX MKII is great with Utopia. Then if you are asking for the best Utopia amp, I will be keeping an eyes on your journey

 

[Asteron70]

I used to own the Violectric V281 and used it to power my Utopia.
Then I got my Cypher Labs Prautes (disclaimer: currently on sale to fund 2 channel setup). It BLOWS the V281 out of the park: same transparency/clarity but much fuller/deeper bass and MUCH larger sound stage. So naturally I then sold my v281
I also recently borrowed my friend's Cavalli Liquid Gold which in my view is better for the Utopia than the V281 but still I think the Prautes offers the more compelling experience. My big gripe with the LAu is that it exacerbates the Utopia's high frequency glare. That glare is totally gone with the Prautes.
I can't comment on the gsxmk2. But in my experience the Utopia works best with a tube amp because it's too revealing to be comfortable and tube amps take the edge off and help foster much longer listening sessions with virtually no fatigue. The LAu and V281 left me feeling quite fatigued after and hour or so with the Utopia :S you don't lose much detail with a high end tube amp such as the Prautes... not sure how lower end tube amps would fare.

 

[up late]

the tube amp should be low impedance otherwise it might alter the utopia's frequency response

 

[Asteron70]

Yep Prautes has an impedance selector.
I found the 32ohm setting is great. Higher impedance settings (eg 300 ohm) are great for less efficient hp.