[notderrick]

Hello all,

I currently am listening to some Sennheiser 580s and Grado 325is. My sources range from a panasonic CP72 DVD-A player to a Rio Karma. The only dedicated headphone amp that I have is a Shellbrook labs super mini moy (Although I use the headphone jack on a Harman-Kardon receiver occasionally). I am looking to upgrade my amplifier and have heard nothing but good things about both the PPA and the Gilmore lite. The general consensus seems to be that the gilmore is a good all-around performer, but I am less familiar with the strengths and weaknesses of the PPA. Has anyone had any experience dealing with these amps using both senns and grados? Also, what recommendations can you give as to how to configure a ppa to most adequately meet my needs? Thanks for all your help,

Derrick

 

[gimmieshelter31]

I was in a very similar situation recently as I have HD 580 and SR 225. My previous experience with amplification was with a Porta Corda MKll.

I also have a relatively lower end source .

My new Gilmore Lite sounds incredible to me out of my old Fisher pcdp, my Yamaha CDC 585 and my Toshiba 3980 (as yet unmodded) and should scale well with any future source upgrades.

Haven't heard a PPA but when I posed the exact same question of which to get, the answer was always Gilmore Lite. Good luck on your choice.

Oz

 

[liupublic]

Got a PPA with Diamond buffer and OPA627 build by Rockhopper. Currently still burning it in. Headphone is Senn HD555. Very good tonal balance from top to bottom. Might consider getting a headphone upgrade later.

Listen to mostly 60's Jazz/Jazz vocal/Classic rock/Classical.

The burn-in source is iTune -> Chaintech -> PPA. Will test out with a Cal Alpha DAC later.

From what I read of Gilmore lite, I am pretty sure it's not for me. Have never been a fan of solid state amp that has an emphasis on high freq.

Eric

 

[liupublic]

Forgot to mention that I have owned a Headroom Supreme and Airhead. PPA with diamond buffer + OPA627 easily eclipes them even with only a few hrs of burn in.

 

[jpr703]

If you need portability then a PPA is probably your ticket. If you don't, I'd definitely go for the Lite. It sounds great and you don't need to buy a lot of expensive add-ons.

 

[notderrick]

Hi everyone,

Thanks for the great comments. I am currently looking at the ppa that is for sale in the other forum. You can see that it is priced competitively with the gilmore lite (a great price I might add $245), and I've been informed that it has socketed opamps so I could try a few different ones out. One thing that I am really concerned with is the fact that my 325is are already bright, and I don't want to pair them with a overly bright amp. How do you think that this amp would do with the grados. I assume it would work well with the senns. Thanks for you help once again,

Derrick

Oh, one more thing...What about a Corda HA-1? I like the concepts behind crossfeed and have used the plugin with Foobar2k with good results. Does anyone have any experience with the synergy between senn/grado and Dr. Meier's products?

 

[crazyfrenchman27]

A little off topic...but does anyone know which OPA the Gilmore Lite uses?

Maybe you could simulate that sound in a PPA?

 

[sacd lover]

Quote:

Originally Posted by crazyfrenchman27 A little off topic...but does anyone know which OPA the Gilmore Lite uses? Maybe you could simulate that sound in a PPA?

The gilmore lite doesnt use op amps in the output stage... its a discrete transistor design.

 

[shimage]

I have a Corda HA-1 and SR80s, but since I haven't heard grados with any other amps (well, an airhead and a go-vibe) I can't really speak for any synergy. I think the grados are a bit bright, so I usually use DT880s at home. I've read that Corda amps are on the warm side of neutral, so maybe it's just me/my source.

Have you considered the M3 amp, instead of the PPA? Most comparisons seem to favor the M3, and it's cheaper too (~$250, I think). There's a very brief comparison of the two somewhere in this forum. Oh wait... you're looking at used stuff ... nevermind.

 

[n_maher]

Quote:

Originally Posted by notderrick I am currently looking at the ppa that is for sale in the other forum. You can see that it is priced competitively with the gilmore lite (a great price I might add $245), and I've been informed that it has socketed opamps so I could try a few different ones out. One thing that I am really concerned with is the fact that my 325is are already bright, and I don't want to pair them with a overly bright amp. How do you think that this amp would do with the grados. I assume it would work well with the senns. Thanks for you help once again, Derrick

Derrick,

I've used my M3 (with AD8610s) with both my Grados (225s) and Senn's (600s) and Etys (4p/s). To my ears it sounds very good with all of these. Just figured I'd throw it out there since even a new M3 from Rockhopper would be well within your budget. Also, you can subtly alter the sound of this amp by swapping opamps, which as others have said is not an option with the Gilmore. This is also an option with the PPA.

My 0.02. Not saying anything bad about any of the amps mentioned, just offering positive reinforement of one the I have working knowledge of

.

Nate

 

[grandenigma1]

My vote is for the PPA or M3. the op-amps in the PPA you mentioned (AD8610s) will be a very nice fit for your headphones and it is a great deal. The PPA will give you the options to upgrade (dimond buffers, opamps, STEPS, and so on) where as the Gilmore would not (well aside from powersupply) If you are worried about brightness and such I would go with the PPA as you could swap op-amps until you find the sound you are looking for.

My current setup is a nearly maxed PPA w/ 3 x OPA627s >> HD600s, MS2s and I love the sound. Also got some OPA637s on hand and some AD843s in the mail to see how they sound.

All that aside the Gilmore is also a very nice amp. I have only heard it with a pair of HD600s so I cant comment on the sound with Grados but It was a very nice little amp paired up with them. before my PPA it was between that and well the PPA which I now own...

My vote is for the PPA you mentioned as I feel it would be an excellent all round fit for what you are looking for.

 

[crazyfrenchman27]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sacd lover The gilmore lite doesnt use op amps in the output stage... its a discrete transistor design.

I thought that might be the case, but I wasn't sure...thanks.

Getting back to the original question, I'd look into the M3 amp design as well. According to its reviewers, it's leagues above the traditional PPA in sound quality.

 

[grandenigma1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by crazyfrenchman27 I thought that might be the case, but I wasn't sure...thanks. Getting back to the original question, I'd look into the M3 amp design as well. According to its reviewers, it's leagues above the traditional PPA in sound quality.

...must not look at M3...must not go to headfi meet in few weeks and hear different amps and headphones....must be content with what I have...

 

[kyrie]

Mm, I have yet to read a single review that placed the M3 "leagues above" the PPA in terms of sound quality, though many commented that the M3 was indeed better. And I don't think any of the comparisons used a PPA with diamond buffers.
But well, I can't judge until I hear them both, side by side.

 

[phobus]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kyrie Mm, I have yet to read a single review that placed the M3 "leagues above" the PPA in terms of sound quality, though many commented that the M3 was indeed better. And I don't think any of the comparisons used a PPA with diamond buffers. But well, I can't judge until I hear them both, side by side.

I wouldn't say the M3 is leagues about PPAv2, they sound similar, but IMHO the M3 is a bit better. I will say that both the M3 and PPAv2 are significantly better than a budget Gilmore Dynalo. I'm not sure what extra parts are used for the commercial Gilmore Lite, but I tried to build mine using similar components (Panasonic pot, Elpac psu, etc). It sounds great and was very economical to build, but is not quite at the level that the M3 and PPAv2 are at.

A maxxed out Gilmore Dynalo could be a whole different story (and probably is), but we are talking about something on the same level as a Lite.