[paaj]

At the moment I'm using the HEV70 and I'm thinking about buying a better amp for the HE60. The WES/BHSE/A10 really are out of reach so I have to 'limit' myself to GES/KGSS.

I'm looking for better (more / deeper) bass, less noise (not so hard

) and maybe a bit smoother music.

The GES (maybe with upgrade options) has the looks and single knob that I like, but I'm new to tubes and don't really like the thought of having another variable to keep track of (tube sound/life). I've not heard a tube amp before so I'm not sure what to expect from the sound. I'd like some extra bass but I love the clarity of the HE60's now and am afraid to lose that.
The KGSS is solid state, so mostly fire and forget ease of mind. I don't like the dual stepped thing. I would like a single 'normal' attenuator (maybe HEV70 style) but I'm sure it's possible to have it customized. FWIR I'm afraid about bass quantity. It seems more powerful and better suited for the O2 (that will probably be a later step I'll have to take)

I'm in the Netherlands, so shipping is a lot and audition/return very difficult if not impossible.

Any experience / feedback will be greatly appreciated.

 

[paaj]

anyone?

 

[padam]

I would buy this one in a heartbeat.

 

[paaj]

Thanks

, looks great too and though I'm willing to save up for the $3000 of the other options it's much better in price and has a great reputation. I doubt it is available next week when I may have enough money if I win the paycheck/rent battle

The other choices would be possible sometime before the end of the year.

What I'm really looking for though is someone that can help me with some kind of comparison between the GES and KGSS and how they compare to the HEV70.

 

[cantsleep]

kgss + he60 = very clean and accurate sounding. somewhat less fun.
woo + he60 = still cleaning sounding but you get that mellow tubey feel. i suppose it would be better with better tubes.(i only had stock tubes)

i think woo and he60 make better synergy than woo/kgss.
kgss sounds really awesome with O2 tho..

hev70 sounds like a portable amp compared to the two above..

 

[vcoheda]

i didn't notice huge gains for the HE60 when going from the HEV70 to the KGSS. there was improvement, but not as much as i had thought there would be. the HE60 improved much more when paired with the HEV90, so maybe tubes brings out the best in the HE60 or the HE60/HEV90 are just a better match.

 

[GuyDebord]

I am in Rotterdam and I have the GES, you are very welcome to come with your HE60's to listen to it

 

[paaj]

I like the thought of 'clean and accurate', that's precisely the thing my current setup is hinting at that I love right now. If it is a better quality clean and accurate it is very interesting.

I'm a bit afraid of the 'mellow' description for the GES and of course the idea of tubes I have (never heard myself).

GuyDebord, I'd love to come by some time to listen and see how that 'mellow' turns out in real life and what kind of improvement a better amp can give over the HEV70. How is the upcoming mini-meet progressing?

 

[wavoman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by vcoheda /img/forum/go_quote.gif i didn't notice huge gains for the HE60 when going from the HEV70 to the KGSS. there was improvement, but not as much as i had thought there would be. the HE60 improved much more when paired with the HEV90, so maybe tubes brings out the best in the HE60 or the HE60/HEV90 are just a better match.

Do you have a resistor in the cable to compensate for the voltage difference?

I am going to try these combos (not the HEV70, can't get that one) with the HE60 -- (1) standard KGSS, (2) 717 (as another poster suggested), and (3) HE90.

I'm going to use the adaptor you sold me Dave, plus some resistor+cable asssemblies that I just got from Drew at moon-audio a few days ago that lower the Stax voltage to the HE60 requirement. Of course with the HEV90 you start with too low a voltage, and can't do anything about that!

I specifically asked the good people at Senn USA for a way to listen to the HE60 on the HEV90 and they said "nope -- nada".

Of course we can do it with the adapters, but it gives you something to think about that Senn would not provide this, especially since there are two females on the HEV90 and having one HE90 and one HE60 is certainly a possible scenario!

Since you did not love the KGSS with the HE60, and since the voltage is too low on the HEV90, I am going to guess that the 717 wins the battle.

I'm primed to do it this weekend. I don't suppose you want to drive to NJ again??

 

[johnmatrix]

What about DIY? You can build the KGSS for ~$1000 and the BH for twice that.

 

[paaj]

I'm afraid I don't have too much time for the DIY thing and don't even know if I have the skills

. Still have a B22 package that I need to aim some of my attention to...

 

[vcoheda]

been listening to the HE60 the last few days. i forgot how good these things sound. at low-med volume levels, i do not hear much difference between the HEV70 and KGSS. at louder volumes, the HE60 tends to struggle a bit on the HEV70 but on the KGSS actually opens up some and has great clarity. however, overall i would not say that the KGSS is a huge improvement over the HEV70 when using the HE60. at louder volumes though it does show its strength. that much is true. i think that if you are buying a KGSS, it is b/c you own or are looking to acquire an O2. using it with an HE60 is just an added benefit.

 

[vcoheda]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wavoman /img/forum/go_quote.gif I am going to try these combos (not the HEV70, can't get that one) with the HE60 -- (1) standard KGSS, (2) 717 (as another poster suggested), and (3) HE90.

sounds interesting.

mini-meet in the fall maybe? of course, we then have the NY fall meet. at some point though.

 

[wavoman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by vcoheda /img/forum/go_quote.gif sounds interesting. mini-meet in the fall maybe? of course, we then have the NY fall meet. at some point though.

I think we've selected XMAS break for the mini-meet, when John (MD1032) is back from college. It would be great if you came down from NY for this, and join the Jersey Hard Core. Maybe we can coax Matt (MALLDIAN) to come -- Matt who skipped the NJ meet ... Matt, how could you! ... and the rest of the gang ... dates TBA.

Like 6 + me at my house, working on the WAF now (well not right now, she's sleeping, but you know what I mean).

I just moved the HE60's to the Stax SRM-1/Mk-2 where (believe it or not) they sound great ... this frees the 717 for the Lambda Sig. I agree I heard no diff with the HE60s between the KGSS and the 717. Don't know yet if that's true with the SRM-1. Besides my hearing is shot at age 60 so who cares what I think, eh?

 

[jherbert]

There was one hybrid amp availale from a member of hififorum in Germany that provides the proper output voltages for stax, Jade and he60. You may want to check their for sale section and get in touch with the owner for details.