Gilmore Lite -- End it all amp?

[Azure]

I've decided that I'd like to get the Gilmore Lite as my first and final (hopefully) headphone amp so that there won't be an amp factor in future headphone purchases, but because this is going to be my "one amp for all headphones," I have to be careful in whether it'd suffice. Would it be good for use with the following cans (The ones that I'll probably get down the road):

Ax00 cans
SR-125 through SR325(i)
DT880
SA5000
HD600
K271S/K501
E5c

So, will I run into any problems with the above headphones with the G-Lite? If so, with which headphones and what problems? And lastly, do you have any other suggestions for an "end it all" amp that's $300 or less (Can't spend any more, so Hornet and AE-1 are out)? Thanks for reading.

 

[daba]

I use a Gilmore Lite with my HD650's and my ER6's... they make a significant improvement on the HD650's but an incredible improvement on the ER6's.

Also, check your other thread for some pix I added.

 

[Azure]

Are the ER6's supposed to be bright? So, no compatibility problems with that bright and dark pair? Anybody else?

 

[Jazper]

I know this is a bit superfluous.. but have you read this:
http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?t=115958

 

[Azure]

Yeah, I've read it before but what concerns me is the soundcard is that setup. I'm going to be using only my Rio Karma and probably won't ever touch a computer set up (Had a bad experience that I think might have affected my hearing a bit).

I read that AKG is going out of business or something and I don't really like the look of their headphones, so I guess that makes the Gilmore Lite okay. It seems to have great synergy with DT880s, but I'm still a little wary about Grado cans and SA5k's. The SA5k's supposedly require a very fast amp, but I'm not sure if the G-Lite would fit that bill. I'm not too sure what kind of amp the Grados would synergize the best with. Also concerned about the HD600s, which are on the opposite end of the spectrum (Gilmore Lite + HD600s = Recipie for disaster?).

 

[Teerawit]

Why don't you consider a portable amp if you are going to be using it with the Karma? The AE-1 sounds like it would be a nice match...in ways it's better than the Lite, and it should sound pretty close to the Lite.

Nevermind, forgot about your budget!

 

[Jazper]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azure I read that AKG is going out of business or something and I don't really like the look of their headphones, so I guess that makes the Gilmore Lite okay. It seems to have great synergy with DT880s, but I'm still a little wary about Grado cans and SA5k's. The SA5k's supposedly require a very fast amp, but I'm not sure if the G-Lite would fit that bill. I'm not too sure what kind of amp the Grados would synergize the best with.

having not heard most of the headphones you're talking about, all I can do is say that the MS-1s I have sound fantastic with the M³.

 

[Azure]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Teerawit Why don't you consider a portable amp if you are going to be using it with the Karma? The AE-1 sounds like it would be a nice match...in ways it's better than the Lite, and it should sound pretty close to the Lite.

3 Reasons:

1. I listen close to an outlet 95% of the time. The only reason why I'm using my Karma as my source is because I can only use mp3s and I don't like using my computer for music.

2. Aren't desktop amps supposed to be more bang for the buck than portable amps, particularly because less money is spent on getting small parts and getting the amp to be portable and more is spent on high quality parts?

3. There's that subconscious feeling that a desktop amp is going to be more powerful than a portable amp. That the desktop amp requires so much juice to run, that it's got to sound better than a portable one that'll run on a 9V battery.

 

[Teerawit]

To tell you the truth, all the amps are going to sound darn similar coming from a portable source. They all will sound good...differences are only slightly minor. For example I'm hard pressed to A/B the differences between the Portaphile v2 and the SR-71.

The AE-1 has the advantage of running on clean battery power no matter what, so in that respect you won't have to worry about power quality and conditioning. That's the mean goodie feature for me.

 

[TURBO]

The Lite is a very neutral amp. If the phones you have are bright sounding, this is not a good combination. For HD650 is good, because HD650 is dark / warm sounding.

You should get something opposite to the characteristics of your phones. My recommendation would be, to find out the sound characteristics of all your phones and make sure this amp characteristics are opposite to at least the majority of the phones you have. It's all about the balance. Of course, this is just my point of view.

 

[Azure]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TURBO The Lite is a very neutral amp. If the phones you have are bright sounding, this is not a good combination. For HD650 is good, because HD650 is dark / warm sounding. You should get something opposite to the characteristics of your phones. My recommendation would be to find out the sound characteristics of all your phones and make sure this amp characteristics are opposite to at least the majority of the phones you have. Of course, this is just my point of view.

Oh man, you just completely destroyed all the confidence I had with getting the Gilmore Lite

So, you are supposed to get an amp that has characteristics opposite of your 'phones? All the headphones I'm interested in are bright, so...

*sigh*

What dark amps are there for my budget?

 

[TURBO]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azure Oh man, you just completely destroyed all the confidence I had with getting the Gilmore Lite So, you are supposed to get an amp that has characteristics opposite of your 'phones? All the headphones I'm interested in are bright, so... *sigh* What dark amps are there for my budget?

M3! amp. You won’t be disappointed. Of course, other people can recommend other dark / warm amps.

Sorry for destroying your confidence, it's just that I don’t want you to be in pain.

 

[Jazper]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TURBO M3!

M3 is not dark!

 

[Little J040]

Don't worry man I just got a G-lite, and I own a supermacro. Even if this g-lite doesn't sound as good as the SUpermacro, which it does btw, I'd use it for its neutrality, not to mention its just one great amp. I have the supermacro for road and my G-lite for home use. Live it up the G-lite is great!

 

[Azure]

Oy, so confusing...