[chesebert]

I actually dont really need the form factor. That's why I am seriously considering to pair the Prelude with the Wandla.

What would be your recommendation, regardless of size, in the price bracket of Prelude/Hypsos+OOR?

For around 3k, you can find Zana Deux (used), CFA3 (used), Dynahi balanced (used), GSX2 (only if you have a musical dac).

Others have had good luck with DNA amps (no personal experience), other EC amps and EAR (but only with very transparent dac and willing to trade technical for lush sound). I actually think (also no personal experience) Mjolnir 3 might not be a bad candidate for a relatively cheap price - you can try and return if it doesn’t work for you.

 

[tjkohli]

What about the Chord Qutest? It's relatively inexpensive and is better at detail than many other ESS/etc. DACs.

 

[TheMiddleSky]

Rather than Zana Deux, I would prefer Balancing Act for Utopia. Well, both of them hard to find though.

What about the Chord Qutest? It's relatively inexpensive and is better at detail than many other ESS/etc. DACs.

it's a good dac indeed.

 

[chesebert]

Rather than Zana Deux, I would prefer Balancing Act for Utopia. Well, both of them hard to find though.


it's a good dac indeed.

You may be right. I haven’t heard BA so can’t recommend (at least I said he should look into other EC amps )

 

[ClicketEKlack]

Before chasing any out-of-production amps, you can check out Nitsch -- they're doing another run of the DSHA-3FN, which is specifically tailored to Focals. I demoed a Feliks Euphoria, and it wasn't even a horse race with the DSHA. I haven't tried any DNA amps, but the Nitsch does amazing things with the Utopia.

 

[slsmaster]

For around 3k, you can find Zana Deux (used), CFA3 (used), Dynahi balanced (used), GSX2 (only if you have a musical dac).

Others have had good luck with DNA amps (no personal experience), other EC amps and EAR (but only with very transparent dac and willing to trade technical for lush sound). I actually think (also no personal experience) Mjolnir 3 might not be a bad candidate for a relatively cheap price - you can try and return if it doesn’t work for you.

I think I will try the Mjolnir 3 and go on from there. If it doesn't fit my taste, I will opt for the Prelude even if only few people have tried it yet.

Things I have already tried:

Topping A30 Pro (with D30 Pro and V850) -> Sounds lifeless. Not sterile, but just bland. Also I hated its volume wheel, as it was just way to small depth wise and had a wired resistance.
Violectric V200 -> Warm sound and engaging at the same time. But not overly so with Utopia. I think I am missing out on the technicalities compared to more modern AMP offerings. But sounds really good for its age and price.
Violectric V281 (with V850 at the time) -> Way to aggressive/engaging sounding via XLR. Sounds like the V200 on steroids, which doesn't fit the Utopia IMHO. I even preferred its 6.3mm out with Utopia for that reason, which isn't better then V200.
Questyle Twelve Master (with its internal DAC) -> Very sterile/cold sounding, to treble intense for my liking. I owned a CMA 600i in the past before the Utopia, which I remember being even colder sounding then the Twelve Master.
iBasso D320 Max TI (only briefly, will be re-listening soon as my friend now owns one) -> Not as cold as the Questyle, but definitely cooler sounding then my current V200. Technically very impressive. As I still had my V850 at the time of comparison and little listening time with the iBasso, I need to reevaluate its performance against my current stack (Wandla+V200) in combination with Utopia.

 

[Blanchot]

OOR + Hypsos is not bad if you need the form factor. But you can do better for the price if all you want to do is to max out Utopia for the price. I thought the combo sounded good but not anywhere close to maxing out Utopia.

I struggle to understand this. From the balanced out, medium gain I find the Oor/Hypsos almost too powerful with the Utopia.

 

[Currawong]

I think he means in terms of resolution, not power.

If you want to maximise the resolution of the Utopias, then you're going to be looking at driving them directly from the best Chord gear you can find. Not everyone finds the combination to have good synergy.
The Mjolnir 3 has the resolution of more expensive amplifiers for far less money. I couldn't possibly recommend even a second-hand GS-X mini, for example, after the Mjolnir 3.
Down from the Mjolnir 3 would be an Aune S17.
Trading resolution for musicality (vs. Chord gear) there are a couple of directions one can go, either with a capable tube amp (of which there are plenty to choose from, depending how crazy you want to go) or an R2R DAC, including outliers like the Audio-gd R-27HE, but in those cases, you may need to add HQPlayer and a good digital transport for best results, unless you are a big fan of NOS mode.

 

[joseph69]

Didn’t even know this was a thing. I will have to seek one out to listen. I bet the mod also helped with fullness of the notes and PRaT. Very interesting.

To my ears--definitely improved everything.

 

[Blanchot]

I think he means in terms of resolution, not power.

If you want to maximise the resolution of the Utopias, then you're going to be looking at driving them directly from the best Chord gear you can find. Not everyone finds the combination to have good synergy.
The Mjolnir 3 has the resolution of more expensive amplifiers for far less money. I couldn't possibly recommend even a second-hand GS-X mini, for example, after the Mjolnir 3.
Down from the Mjolnir 3 would be an Aune S17.
Trading resolution for musicality (vs. Chord gear) there are a couple of directions one can go, either with a capable tube amp (of which there are plenty to choose from, depending how crazy you want to go) or an R2R DAC, including outliers like the Audio-gd R-27HE, but in those cases, you may need to add HQPlayer and a good digital transport for best results, unless you are a big fan of NOS mode.

Hm, I've actually owned the TT2 but was not a fan, so I sold it. I think it sounded dry and lifeless for lack of a better description. I'm quite happy with the Ferrum stack and I think I would rather buy another high end headphone than upgrading my chain.

 

[tjkohli]

Hm, I've actually owned the TT2 but was not a fan, so I sold it. I think it sounded dry and lifeless for lack of a better description. I'm quite happy with the Ferrum stack and I think I would rather buy another high end headphone than upgrading my chain.

That’s the beauty of this hobby — we can all have contradicting opinions and coexist with different experiences. For me, the Ferrum stack sounded great with the Utopia (and was extremely powerful as mentioned previously), however it lacked the upper echelon of detail and resolution that I knew the Utopia can provide. I found myself going back to Mojo 2 over the Ferrum.

That’s why I love my TT2 (and it’s cheaper than the Ferrum stack). I feel it’s a great match for the Utopia. They both are ultra-resolving. The TT2 is also extremely powerful, and unmatched in detail, layering, and timing of notes.

For what it’s worth, the FIL3/4 filters in TT2 do make the sound slightly warmer and full.

 

[chesebert]

I struggle to understand this. From the balanced out, medium gain I find the Oor/Hypsos almost too powerful with the Utopia.

Loudness is a function of gain (Vo/Vi) and is related to power. The other side of power is current and specifically instantaneous current. There are also other parameters that affect the perception of “power” such as speed (slew rate, settling time) and 2nd and 3rd order harmonic.

Someone should do a wiki on this. I see people argue loud = power over and over on here and elsewhere.

 

[chrisgee5]

I just ordered Utopia to compare/contrast vs my Susvara on WA23 Luna, which I've been told is a better Utopia pairing than my Orr-Hypos. I haven't done anything with HP cords, as these two are my only pairs I've owned. I understand both the Sus and Utopia have suboptimal stock cables.

Thoughts on getting one cord to use with both, albeit with an adapter from what I understand? I need a longer cord due to my setup and would prefer just to get one cord.

 

[bfreedma]

I just ordered Utopia to compare/contrast vs my Susvara on WA23 Luna, which I've been told is a better Utopia pairing than my Orr-Hypos. I haven't done anything with HP cords, as these two are my only pairs I've owned. I understand both the Sus and Utopia have suboptimal stock cables.

Thoughts on getting one cord to use with both, albeit with an adapter from what I understand? I need a longer cord due to my setup and would prefer just to get one cord.

I tried the adapter route, but they ended up being long enough to bump my shoulders when I turned when connected to the headphones and long cable. If you go the adapter route, I'd recommend something with at least a foot of cable between the connectors to avoid the comfort issue.

 

[chrisgee5]

I tried the adapter route, but they ended up being long enough to bump my shoulders when I turned when connected to the headphones and long cable. If you go the adapter route, I'd recommend something with at least a foot of cable between the connectors to avoid the comfort issue.

Makes sense. What brand did you use? Did you notice any material sonic difference?