[schaaf]

Yeah, Im excited for it to get here.... I forgot that Monday is a holiday, so I'm sure it won't be here until tuesday. Its going to be a long weekend with that beautiful headphone just sitting there... waiting to get listened to... all alone and what not.... I might just try it plugged into the back of my Mac, but I don't want to be disappointed if it sounds like crap un-amped.

 

[Nosgis]

Looking forward to the hear your impressions on the combo HE-500 + Asgard. I have decided to get the same phones, but I'm still deciding on amp/dac.
 
(need to get some more cash in  first too, so I have time to kill by doing research)
 

 

[schaaf]

I'll try to post some impressions after I spend some time with them. I've never had headphones this good or an amp, so the impressions might be noobish, and I don't even know if I should burn them in first or even at all.

The guys at Audio Advisor were super awesome and upgraded my shipping to next day air so I'll have the amp tomorrow along with the HE500s! Super cool and nice of them to help me out like that.

Looking forward to a weekend with my brand new toys!

 

[eddiek997]

Quote:

I'll try to post some impressions after I spend some time with them. I've never had headphones this good or an amp, so the impressions might be noobish, and I don't even know if I should burn them in first or even at all.
The guys at Audio Advisor were super awesome and upgraded my shipping to next day air so I'll have the amp tomorrow along with the HE500s! Super cool and nice of them to help me out like that.
Looking forward to a weekend with my brand new toys!

Audio Advisor is an excellent business. Very well ran, excellent customer service.

 

[schaaf]

Ok,
 
Well I got the Asgard and the HE-500's today. 
 
The headphone build quality is sub-par. The ear cups are distorted, or the gimbals are screwed up or something...
So I have to figure out what I want to do there...
 
Should I let these burn in?
 
First impressions are... Interesting.  Understand that I have never had an amp, or great headphones, nor have I heard anything from either before. I think I was expecting some sort of magical revelation, or mind-blowing audiophoniceargasm.
 
I started off by just listening to a song out of the Mac with the HD555s. Ok. Got it. Now I moved on to the HD555s on the Asgard. Ok.. cool. Not really what I was expecting, but it sounded pretty good. Then I plugged the HE500s into the Mac. Wow. They sound really nice. I then moved them over to the Asgard.. Holy shnit. Wow. The bass is there. It's a firm thump. Not loose or sloppy. The mids are there, but they sound... distant? Far off, I dunno. They are clear and crisp, but they sound different than my 555's. Not really in a bad way, but different. I've had the same set up for about four or five years, so this is going to take some getting used to. 
 
The Asgard seems pretty nice. I'm at about 10-11 on the volume knob. The HD555s needed to be at about 9 otherwise it seemed way to harsh. Maybe bright? Not sure if I'm using the correct wording. 
 
So far I like it. It's detailed and crisp. The bass is very impressive. Its deep and low without being boomy. I thought the mids were going to be a little more clear or sparkly, but they might open up over time. (anyone have experience with this?) I'd like to hear some LCD-2s to compare. 
 
Ill check back and update things as we get to know each other better. 
 
S-
 
Edit - Forgot to add: These things are freakin' HEAVY! It's going to take some getting used to. They put a lot of pressure on my jaw / side of my face area. Slightly uncomfortable, but it's not too bad. (yet)

 

[orrb_05]

 "I'd like to hear some LCD-2s to compare."
 
That's exactly th road I went down - be careful, it's a slippery slope

 
I started with the HE-500s an a ALO MKII, but it just didn't do it for me.
 
So, I boought a Audio-gd amp/dac combo (6w into 50ohms), returned the HE-500s, and bought a used set of LCD-2a - NIRVANA
 
The LCD-2s were much better than the HE-500s to my ears - so much so that I bought the LCD-3s

 

[MattTCG]

@schaff
 
Be patient with the he500. You got hold of a legendary beast of a headphone there. Let them cook some. The mids will start to shine, slowly at first and then some more. Then after about 150-200 hours you'll have some of the most delicious mids in the game at any price. I gave up the he500/lyr combo and am listening to the he400 while I post this. I still miss them.
 
The he400 can't touch the mids on the he500. Let the amp and the hp's burn in. It will get there and you'll know it when it does. What are you using for dac? I might have missed that. One of the reason that I gave them up was the weight. The he400's are lighter but god man I still miss those mids. 
 
You don't wan't the lcd-2's. It has a much darker signature and world class bass for an ortho. If you are liking the bass on the he500, you'd find the lcd-2 to be a bass can. 
 
Just be patience, let your ears adjust and keep burning them in. Just a click or two louder than you'd normally listen. Post back and let me know what you think.

 

[schaaf]

Thanks-
 
I don't currently have a DAC.
I'm looking at getting the Schiit Bifrost. I hope to have it soon. Will you hear a difference?
 
As far as the sound goes, It recently came up in a different thread that I may have had the EQ on. 
 
I did.
 
So that accounted for a portion of the things I was hearing. Unfortunately the bass was one of them that was impacted.It's not as powerful as it was, but it's still pretty good. 
 
What do you have now for an amp? How did you like the Lyr? It was my other potential choice, but I was convinced to go with the Asgard for reasons of cost and high recommendations. 
 
S-

 

[Grado77]

------------------

 

[MattTCG]

Quote:

Thanks-
 
I don't currently have a DAC.
I'm looking at getting the Schiit Bifrost. I hope to have it soon. Will you hear a difference?
 
As far as the sound goes, It recently came up in a different thread that I may have had the EQ on. 
 
I did.
 
So that accounted for a portion of the things I was hearing. Unfortunately the bass was one of them that was impacted.It's not as powerful as it was, but it's still pretty good. 
 
What do you have now for an amp? How did you like the Lyr? It was my other potential choice, but I was convinced to go with the Asgard for reasons of cost and high recommendations. 
 
S-

 
Well what you said about the eq makes perfect sense. The he500 is known for the bass in the way that you describe it. It was sounding more like the bass on the he400, but since you mention the eq it makes it clear now.
 
Holy crap, you're not using using a dac? The he500 will never sound right with that setup. Not the way that it can. The dac will make a HUGE difference. Of course the bifrost is the perfect complement. And I don't feel that it's overpriced. But if you are in a budget crunch I can suggest some other dacs that will sound almost as good for half the price. Without the dac, it's like you've bought a Lamborgini and put some crappy backwoods gas in it and are disappointed because it doesn't run well. The dac will probably fix ALL the issues that you're having with the sound.
 
gL!!   Matt

 

[SanJoseCanJunkie]

How high do you typically set the pot with that combo?  My WA6SE has less than 2 watts (32ohm), and going over 9'o'clock using the low gain output with low-gain tubes and low-volume classical recordings with the HE-500 almost never happens.
 
I would worry that with a 6 watt amp I could accidentally blow out the headphones if I accidentally rubbed the potentiometer the wrong way.
 
Quote:

I'd seriously consider the Lyr over the Asgard for the HE-500's. WIth the right tubes it's an improvement in every aspect over the Asgard (with the HE-500)'s.
Analogy....BMW's are good. Base model is a very capable car but you know the M series is a much better all round performer. The Lyr is the M3 of head amps. Yes, there are Ferarri's, Lambo's, 911's and all manor of exotics but the M3 will make you smile every time you listen to it relative to the $$$ paid.

 

[SanJoseCanJunkie]

Quote:

Thanks-
 
I don't currently have a DAC.
I'm looking at getting the Schiit Bifrost. I hope to have it soon. Will you hear a difference?
 
As far as the sound goes, It recently came up in a different thread that I may have had the EQ on. 
 
I did.
 
So that accounted for a portion of the things I was hearing. Unfortunately the bass was one of them that was impacted.It's not as powerful as it was, but it's still pretty good. 
 
What do you have now for an amp? How did you like the Lyr? It was my other potential choice, but I was convinced to go with the Asgard for reasons of cost and high recommendations. 
 
S-

 
You may get a little bit more midrange detail with a DAC, but in my experience 95% of what a DAC does is eliminate noise from your source.  Depending on your source, you may not notice that you had noise until you get the DAC, but sometimes it's easily noticeable.  My old work computer would generate noise through the audio card anytime I wasn't holding down the mouse button, or (counter-intuitively) when the hard drive was not transferring data.
 
IMO, spending over $100 on a DAC is not wise unless you real first hand experience comparing them, or want a specific feature; I have a $700 DAC only because it has configurable crossfeed and a built-in pre-amp that I use for my speakers.  Otherwise, I would have only a uDac, or similar.

 

[Chris_Himself]

Quote:

 
You may get a little bit more midrange detail with a DAC, but in my experience 95% of what a DAC does is eliminate noise from your source.  Depending on your source, you may not notice that you had noise until you get the DAC, but sometimes it's easily noticeable.  My old work computer would generate noise through the audio card anytime I wasn't holding down the mouse button, or (counter-intuitively) when the hard drive was not transferring data.
 
IMO, spending over $100 on a DAC is not wise unless you real first hand experience comparing them, or want a specific feature; I have a $700 DAC only because it has configurable crossfeed and a built-in pre-amp that I use for my speakers.  Otherwise, I would have only a uDac, or similar.

 
Yo, I'm from San Jose too, we should meet up sometime. I live off Saratoga and Moorpark Ave.
 
As for the guy not using a DAC... thats like the first step to getting good audio with ANY headphone really. It's like buying a new CD player for your car to replace the AM/FM radio you've been using. That alone would be a pretty hefty difference.

 

[Anda]

Quote:

As for the guy not using a DAC... thats like the first step to getting good audio with ANY headphone really. It's like buying a new CD player for your car to replace the AM/FM radio you've been using. That alone would be a pretty hefty difference.

 
+1 *thumbs up*

 

[schaaf]

Bifrost will be here Monday!