Using the items below I was able to get my HP's running off a Jolida 1501 I use in the bedroom system. It works, but the Jolida suffers from a slight hum. While this is not noticeable with speakers it is quite annoying with HP's.
It would probably be great with HE-6, but don't you think it's too powerful for other orthos. I was actually thinking about getting a PM6004 I've seen on a local forum. Specs say 45W/8ohm.
Too powerful for the HE500 & LCD2 honestly. For the HE-6 sure. If you want to use that with the HE500/LCD2 with some actual control on volume, you'll want to use a pre-amp to limit the line out or even use resistor adapters on your cabling.
Well I just pulled out an old Threshold CAS 1 75 wpc Stasis amp I had forgotten I had and Oh My Lord another step up the never ending quest with these He 6's--
Some serious Bass and overall sweetness & fullness across the whole frequency range--Totally amazing--
And this is the original amp no work done to it!!!
So the Quest goes on.......
Though I can't imagine the He 6 getting any better---BUT...........
hey guys, i've been running the mini-X vs. my NFB6 for the last week or so on my HE500 and LCD2 rev2...
so far, for the HE500 the a100 is definitely a step down vs the nfb6 for every music mastered with lower volume.
why? i feel that my nfb6 (one of the first - not sure if new ones show this as well) only powers the HE500 beyond the 32 volume level. the amp seems to have very audible gain steps in certain volumes - and only beyond the vol 32, it seems to output enough power (in balanced output).
(IMO - the issue of the NFB is that the gain below the 32 is simply not enough to fully power the HE500 - regardless of volume)
this way, for every music that I can listen to above the 32 level, the nfb6 is significantly better - more neutral, laid back and with larger soundstage.
however, with more recent masterings (with higher volumes) that don't let me reach the 32 volume level, the mini-X is marginally better, as it outputs enough power at any volume level.
So I picked up an Objective 2 to see how it faired since it's popular and people are using it even with orthos.
The O2 itself with the HE500 sounds great. I was using it with my TubeMagic D2 and both with and without my LDMK3 acting as a pre-amp for various tests with EQ settings as well to see how much I could flex it all around for an optimal sound (for me). The O2 surprisingly is able to really provide enough power to do almost everything needed. I did however find where the O2 wasn't quite doing what I was needing, and that was with the low frequencies. I noticed it was a little less impactful, less volumous and I felt like I had lost some separation and black space (oddly). Everything else sounded fantastic with the O2. However, I did feel the Emotiva provided the lower frequency range better. It was actually more apparent when I started toying with my EQ settings where I emphasize sub-bass and drop the overall output by a good -10 to -15 db. With the Emotiva, I was able to flex her up and she was able to keep up with such a change. The O2, while doing very well, with this kind of setup was not able to really provide what I needed at the low end and was basically the limiting factor (which is expected). What I learned from it really was that the O2 really is quite a powerful little beast, sounds great, very neutral, very reference sounding. I had to warm her up with some tube goodness, as I don't like dry reference like sound for music enjoyment. But as a device, it really is quite an amazing little amp for it's cost. Speaking of that, I picked it up for only $50 on the forums... gotta love Head-Fi.
So far my favorite setup is the TubeMagic D2 (tube pre-amp out) to the Little Dot MK III (tube pre-amp out) to the Emotiva. Warm, tubey goodness with tons of current from the solid state. Amazing control with all the soupy juicy tubed ortho natural sound. Absolutely musical. Stupid amounts of power. The control with EQ, pre-amp and amp volume control gives me really good micro control at three steps. Very fun. And looking at the Emotiva with some tubes crowing it just looks like a beast of an amp setup, and it is.
The O2 itself with the HE500 sounds great. I was using it with my TubeMagic D2 and both with and without my LDMK3 acting as a pre-amp for various tests with EQ settings as well to see how much I could flex it all around for an optimal sound (for me). The O2 surprisingly is able to really provide enough power to do almost everything needed. I did however find where the O2 wasn't quite doing what I was needing, and that was with the low frequencies. I noticed it was a little less impactful, less volumous and I felt
I agree with your opinion. The only thing about O2 I would say is that it's sub frequencies depends on the album/track. Pop in Bassnectar or Liquid Stranger and it will give you insane amounts of sub bass, at times even more than the Emotiva (with SPL matched). I'm sure you'll notice it after a while.
You need to pick up a LCD-2 next. It'll go nicely with the HE-500, especially for electronic music.
So far my favorite setup is the TubeMagic D2 (tube pre-amp out) to the Little Dot MK III (tube pre-amp out) to the Emotiva. Warm, tubey goodness with tons of current from the solid state. Amazing control with all the soupy juicy tubed ortho natural sound. Absolutely musical. Stupid amounts of power. The control with EQ, pre-amp and amp volume control gives me really good micro control at three steps. Very fun. And looking at the Emotiva with some tubes crowing it just looks like a beast of an amp setup, and it is.
Tubes on tubes? That's some serious tubage you've got. Definitely agree with your results. It seems with the HE-500 and HE-6 that increased power means more impactful and controlled bass. With the He-400 it seemed the bass lessened and got tighter in general. Good write up. Seems like you've got quite the little set-up over there.
$50 for an O2? For that much, I'd snag one just to have an extended time to listen to it.
Tubes on tubes? That's some serious tubage you've got. Definitely agree with your results. It seems with the HE-500 and HE-6 that increased power means more impactful and controlled bass. With the He-400 it seemed the bass lessened and got tighter in general. Good write up. Seems like you've got quite the little set-up over there.
$50 for an O2? For that much, I'd snag one just to have an extended time to listen to it.
I'm silly like that. I had to know... what happens you go tube to tube to solid state, does it really warm things up, does it do anything at all. And it definitely added warmth. Very warm. I definitely still notice when I change amplifiers that the orthos are less controlled and less defined and forceful in the low frequencies. Kind of makes sense since they are more difficult to generate and require the most power of the spectrum to produce at the same volume. It's probably overkill. No, it is overkill. But that's what it's all about anyways. I think it's most apparent when listening at low volume, where there's still gobs of output and the bass is still so present and wonderfully rich and controlled that you can enjoy low frequencies even at low listening volume. Quite satisfying.
As for the O2 and LDMK3, I just watch the for sale forums. Got the O2 for $50 which was an absolute steal (with several cases and face plates, etc). Got the LDMK3 for $150 shipped which was also an absolute steal. I had a LDMK3 in the past and got rid of it literally when I first got my HE500 when it was released first. The LDMK3 cannot handle the HE500 at all. It clips wildly, it just doesn't have the output at low impedance. But the LDMK3 as a pre-amp is a whole new life for it and it works wonderfully there. I use it with speakers as a pre-amp too though. Lovely little glow and adds that tubey warmth that just gives things a little more musicality that I prefer.
I'm also actually using the O2, I was wondering if you share the same feelings as me.
I don't have any other amp for me to compare but when you're using the O2 do you feel the mid-bass are lacking and overall it sounded thin as compared to your emotiva with tube and without ?
I'm also actually using the O2, I was wondering if you share the same feelings as me.
I don't have any other amp for me to compare but when you're using the O2 do you feel the mid-bass are lacking and overall it sounded thin as compared to your emotiva with tube and without ?
I don't feel the mid-bass is lacking. The HE500 overall is quite a neutral headphone. It's a little on the warm side, but not thin. The O2 itself is quite neutral as well. It doesn't really add warmth, it just delivers what it's told. It sounds less warm than my tube/emotiva setup, but I would not call the O2 thin. That would imply it was producing less bass than was intended. That's not the case.
You can easily warm up the HE500 on the O2 with a simple, free, equalization.
I happen to equalize and tube->tube->amp my HE500's because I like gobs of sub-bass and warmth along with the syrupy mids of the ortho.
Hi Mal,
I was wondering if using the D2 tube DAC actually does something to the sound? Is there a noticeable difference compared to the NFB 12 for instance?
Like Mini-X---D2 X Mini-X---NFB-16?
Additionally, how much more difference would a SS/tube preamp make?
Hi Mal,
I was wondering if using the D2 tube DAC actually does something to the sound? Is there a noticeable difference compared to the NFB 12 for instance?
Like Mini-X---D2 X Mini-X---NFB-16?
Additionally, how much more difference would a SS/tube preamp make?
Does any DAC truly do anything different after a certain point? I use the TubeMagic D2 because it has a tube pre-amplifier stage instead of a solid state pre-amplifier stage before going to my integrated amplifier. There's no way to listen to a "dac." But you can listen to how a DAC and it's pre-amplifier sound together. It's why I went with the TubeMagic D2, I wanted a tube added to my speaker amplifier circuit. I find it it subtly different. A little warmer, a little more gentle, it has that hint of tube going on. It's not profound. It definitely got more noticeable when I added my LDMK3 OTL pre-amp to the mix. But that's because I'm tubing at each stage at that point.
Tubes versus solid state is not an argument or comparison for "better" than another. It's simply a preference for sound. It's about finding what sounds good to you, what sounds right to you.
Does any DAC truly do anything different after a certain point? I use the TubeMagic D2 because it has a tube pre-amplifier stage instead of a solid state pre-amplifier stage before going to my integrated amplifier. There's no way to listen to a "dac." But you can listen to how a DAC and it's pre-amplifier sound together. It's why I went with the TubeMagic D2, I wanted a tube added to my speaker amplifier circuit. I find it it subtly different. A little warmer, a little more gentle, it has that hint of tube going on. It's not profound. It definitely got more noticeable when I added my LDMK3 OTL pre-amp to the mix. But that's because I'm tubing at each stage at that point.
Tubes versus solid state is not an argument or comparison for "better" than another. It's simply a preference for sound. It's about finding what sounds good to you, what sounds right to you.
I've come close to ordering the Decware ZStage, but I keep holding out in hopes that I can find a used one. I suspect this would be a great way to tweak the signature of any system that is solid state, otherwise.
[size=larger]
The Secret to the ZSTAGE's ability to make such a giant difference in the sound quality of your source... is it's gain.
By turning it up to 4 or 5 volts and then turning your preamp or amplifier down to compensate, you will add great weight, punch and overall power to the presentation... the kind that's just not possible with a standard 2 volt source.
If that wasn't enough, it also has a switch on the front that gives you two distinct signatures - one is a more laid back setting, the other a moreaggressive setting... it's like having two different sounding stereos at the flip of a switch.
And the final icing on the cake is the tube itself. Since no two brands of 12AU7 sound the same, you can do a little tube rolling and find something that personalizes the sound of your rig even more.[/size] [size=larger] [/size]
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