[Zomgnoob]

Hello!
Im looking to buy my first ever amp (and maybe last ever) to power some of my gear. For now, I have a set of HD800s and a UE CIEM with a mojo dac.

As of right now, im kind of at a loss of what type of amp to get for my HD800s since i heard that solid state were the base line amps or your 'first go to amp' whereas tube amps are usually gotten as an side upgrade to the solid state amps.

I was wondering if there are any experienced audiophilers out there that can shed some light on this?

 

[cossix]

I'd 2nd the advice you found. I'd start with solid state, just make sure it's something that people recommend for the 800. Once you get into expensive gear, it's harder to say "oh, well just get a solid state and then get a tube afterwards" because that's not always within budget.

Summary: Get the best solid state you can afford, but make sure it's a good pairing with the 800 because those headphones are picky with amps (or so I've heard)

As for balanced vs single ended, that's not too big of an issue. The sound quality is essentially the same, but balanced:
1) tends to put out more power (my Jotunheim puts out 3x the power from it's XLR output than the 1/4" output at 50 ohms for my LCD2)
2) separates the channels better which, at least in my experience with 650 and LCD2, gives better imaging and makes the L and R channel sound more detailed.

Overall, don't pay an extra 600 bucks just to get a balanced amp instead of a single ended one if it comes down to two amp choices. To me, it's nowhere near a $600 difference. If you can find an amp within budget which happens to have balanced outs, then by all means go for it! Just remember people like to overpriced the crap out of cables just because they're terminated a different way. I've never spent over a hundred dollars for a balanced cable and I don't ever plan to.

Good luck in your hunt!