junk88
100+ Head-Fier
Would buying a h16 and x16 sound different than my dx7pro for my hd800s?
Hd800s stack
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gimmeheadroom
Headphoneus Supremus
The best thing for a pair of 300 ohm Sennheisers is a tube amp, usually OTL.
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Having a Gustard H16 connected to your DX7 Pro will let your amplify your music with more loudness on the H16’s balanced amp section. However, unless you need the MQA decoding, you will most likely not see a difference between the Gustard X16 and your DX7 Pro.
Also, if you don’t mind used:
https://www.head-fi.org/classifieds/gustard-h16.33920/
Also, if you don’t mind used:
https://www.head-fi.org/classifieds/gustard-h16.33920/
This. I get that you’re not interested, but if you want a big, positive difference, do this.
Differences between solid state gear at this level are very difficult to hear imho. I know it’s not the answer you want, but there is a reason everyone recs the senns with OTL tube gear.
tomb
Member of the Trade: Beezar.com
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V = SQRT(P*R)
I'd say that 250mW is a reasonable power delivery average for most headphones. However, we are always wanting peaks and the ability to deliver fast peaks and high-hats, for instance. So, peak power demands might be conservatively (very!) estimated at 500mW or maybe even 1W. Why? Every 3dB of volume increase will need a doubling of power. Everyone looks at averages when they think of dB, but averages are only important for adjusting volume level. The thing is, if the voltage is not there in the amplifier, it is physically impossible to meet the power required for peak, transient hits.
If we look at 300 ohms impedance and assume that 500mW (conservatively) is needed for the most transient dynamic peaks, then the voltage needed at 300 ohms is 12 Volts. If you were looking at 32 ohm headphones, it'd only be 4 Volts. To produce that peak voltage, you need to have a plus/minus swing, meaning you need that voltage on both sides of a zero reference line. The only way to produce that voltage swing on a high-fidelity level (no buck-boost converters), is to have 2X the desired voltage, providing the same +Voltage and -Voltage. IOW, if you want a swing of +or- 12 Volts, you need a 24VDC power supply.
What does all this mean? A solid-state amplifier is inherently disadvantaged with high-impedance headphones. It is not too difficult to obtain a solid-state amp with power supplies delivering 24VDC to the amp circuit, but it's effectively impossible to find one to do that with batteries. Further, if you want more than that voltage swing, say up to 30V for a +or- 15V swing, it starts to become very difficult.
On the other hand, voltage swings like that with tubes is a non-issue. Most of the audio signal amplification tubes used in our culture begin with 150-200V on the plates. Anything below that - within reason - is available for voltage swing.
Finally, the clipping characteristics of tubes are gradual instead of like hitting a brick wall with solid-state and the distortion is heavily weighted toward even harmonics, not odd ones. Both of these qualities tend to cancel out the hardness of the HD800 treble detail. All of this adds up to why, all other things being equal, tubes are a better inherent choice for amplifying the Sennheiser HD800.
I'd say that 250mW is a reasonable power delivery average for most headphones. However, we are always wanting peaks and the ability to deliver fast peaks and high-hats, for instance. So, peak power demands might be conservatively (very!) estimated at 500mW or maybe even 1W. Why? Every 3dB of volume increase will need a doubling of power. Everyone looks at averages when they think of dB, but averages are only important for adjusting volume level. The thing is, if the voltage is not there in the amplifier, it is physically impossible to meet the power required for peak, transient hits.
If we look at 300 ohms impedance and assume that 500mW (conservatively) is needed for the most transient dynamic peaks, then the voltage needed at 300 ohms is 12 Volts. If you were looking at 32 ohm headphones, it'd only be 4 Volts. To produce that peak voltage, you need to have a plus/minus swing, meaning you need that voltage on both sides of a zero reference line. The only way to produce that voltage swing on a high-fidelity level (no buck-boost converters), is to have 2X the desired voltage, providing the same +Voltage and -Voltage. IOW, if you want a swing of +or- 12 Volts, you need a 24VDC power supply.
What does all this mean? A solid-state amplifier is inherently disadvantaged with high-impedance headphones. It is not too difficult to obtain a solid-state amp with power supplies delivering 24VDC to the amp circuit, but it's effectively impossible to find one to do that with batteries. Further, if you want more than that voltage swing, say up to 30V for a +or- 15V swing, it starts to become very difficult.
On the other hand, voltage swings like that with tubes is a non-issue. Most of the audio signal amplification tubes used in our culture begin with 150-200V on the plates. Anything below that - within reason - is available for voltage swing.
Finally, the clipping characteristics of tubes are gradual instead of like hitting a brick wall with solid-state and the distortion is heavily weighted toward even harmonics, not odd ones. Both of these qualities tend to cancel out the hardness of the HD800 treble detail. All of this adds up to why, all other things being equal, tubes are a better inherent choice for amplifying the Sennheiser HD800.
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