[Zoom25]

Quote:

Zoom25,

I'm very impressed with your ability to describe what you hear. Truly. I cannot even form such concise opinions in my thinking, much less putting it down in writing. "Blackground" was a new word for me - but I got it instantly.

My Emotiva is boxed up ready to sell because after several months of trying to like it, i just find it too bright and harsh, by a smidgen with LCD-2, and intolerable with everything else I tried, especially the Beyerdynamic T1. The Decware ZSTAGE tube buffer was an imperfect fix for the Mini-X, but much preferable to listening without it. Also, my DACmini CX may have been too neutral for the Emotiva.

Lastly, my tastes and hearing are no more valid than yours, of course.

Thanks!

Mike

 
Thanks, Mike. Yeah at times I also found the HE-500 to be too bright with Emotiva. I also find the LCD-3 to be bright at times with Emotiva even though it's treble isn't as extended and present as the HE-500. When that happens LCD-3 really pisses me off because for say trance music, it doesn't have that proper energy for uplifting stuff like HE-500, yet it can get fatiguing. It's a lose-lose situation in those scenarios. However over time, I am getting more accustomed to it. LCD-2 out of the bunch had the least problem with this.
 
You going to get the PM8004?

 

[Zoom25]

Quote:

Zoom, would you say the soundstage of all three planars are just average in size?

 
This is amp dependent for sure. However, each headphone has it's own tendencies that's noticeable regardless of amp. For example, HE-500 is supposed to wide, some depth, very little height. With different amps you can push each sides further or closer, however that overall proportion remains fairly same. Also, with better imaging, you can get a lot more out of it.
 
The Audeze's are both more spherical and offers more depth and height than HE-500. I recently started to mod my headband on LCD-3. The comfort improved but also the soundstage. LCD-3 is a bit wider than LCD-2. Roughly same height. Depth is also around the same, although you can still tell it's better than the LCD-2 after a few days. The Audeze's width extends a bit more out from your ears.
 
With Audeze's, the soundstage can be amp dependent near the boundaries all around. Regardless of which amp you make, you won't be getting HE-500's width, in fact it will roughly be the same. I noticed however with different amps, like the O2 and Fiio E10, the soundstage was roughly the same size but there was this artificial feeling of a wall or a plasma membrane bubble around it which felt as if the music was a bit trapped and unable to breathe. With Emotiva this is definitely better and on the BHA-1, this is pretty much non existent. With LCD-3's, you do get a decent open feel where nothing reflects or is trapped on the edges. It's intimate, yet open at the same time.
 
Also this feel changes with different applications. Like for music, HE-500's first and then LCD-3 and LCD-2. However for watching movies and TV shows, I would pick the Denon's over HE-500 and LCD-2. Haven't done much with LCD-3 besides music, so can't say.

 

[fluidz]

Anybody recommend any tracks that excel through the He-500? I've versatile taste. 

 

[DairyProduce]

Thanks for your detailed response!

 

[Zoom25]

Quote:

Anybody recommend any tracks that excel through the He-500? I've versatile taste. 

 
Late Night Alumni - Empty Streets https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1e3XtQ7D5Q
 
Epic moment at 3:36. I would say start 20 seconds before that and you will get your mind blown away. I had to play that back multiple times on the HE-500. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hwl81f4dMaU

 

[bhazard]

I'm going to blow some minds right now.
 
Those $20 Class T Lepai amps from Parts Express... they're driving the HE-500 pretty well. I'm not kidding. I'm running a HifimeDIY dac off my android into this, and its working as loud as my Audio-GD NFB 11.32, easily. Sounds great. There's a lot of gain it seems, but I believe it is internally switchable. I have a 5A power supply driving it instead of the usual 2A it comes with.
 
It has two modes, Direct and Tone. Tone mode has some hiss, but you can add some nice bass into your music with it. Direct is unmodified.
 
Someone else with the Emotiva really needs to try this to see if it sounds anything alike. If it does, well.... $20. This is awesome.
 
I have the $120 amp on backorder to try out too.

 

[Hutnicks]

Quote:

I'm going to blow some minds right now.
 
Those $20 Class T Lepai amps from Parts Express... they're driving the HE-500 pretty well. I'm not kidding. I'm running a HifimeDIY dac off my android into this, and its working as loud as my Audio-GD NFB 11.32, easily. Sounds great. There's a lot of gain it seems, but I believe it is internally switchable. I have a 5A power supply driving it instead of the usual 2A it comes with.
 
It has two modes, Direct and Tone. Tone mode has some hiss, but you can add some nice bass into your music with it. Direct is unmodified.
 
Someone else with the Emotiva really needs to try this to see if it sounds anything alike. If it does, well.... $20. This is awesome.
 
I have the $120 amp on backorder to try out too.

Those Tripaths are wicked (I have 4). Over on DIYaudio there are a few threads with some decent mods .

 

[koiloco]

Quote:

I'm going to blow some minds right now.
 
Those $20 Class T Lepai amps from Parts Express... they're driving the HE-500 pretty well. I'm not kidding. I'm running a HifimeDIY dac off my android into this, and its working as loud as my Audio-GD NFB 11.32, easily. Sounds great. There's a lot of gain it seems, but I believe it is internally switchable. I have a 5A power supply driving it instead of the usual 2A it comes with.
 
It has two modes, Direct and Tone. Tone mode has some hiss, but you can add some nice bass into your music with it. Direct is unmodified.
 
Someone else with the Emotiva really needs to try this to see if it sounds anything alike. If it does, well.... $20. This is awesome.
 
I have the $120 amp on backorder to try out too.

Great to hear the outcome. 

 

[zilch0md]

Quote:

 

You going to get the PM8004?

 
I was very close to going ahead with the Marantz PM8004, when "Gary in MD" started chronicling his exploration of several amps for use with his LCD-3, on the Speaker amps for headphones thread.  He ended up preferring the Odyssey Cyclops (110Wpc into 8-Ohms), with the TBI Millennia MG3 taking 2nd place for his tastes, over the Burson Soloist and the Emotiva Mini-X a-100.  
 
On Gary's experience and that of a guy named Stew (SMG52) who preceded him, and some very compelling reviews by PF's Steve Hoffman, I decided to order the MG3, at half the cost of a PM8004.  I don't know what I'm missing, but it can't be much.  

 
Mike

 

[Zoom25]

Quote:

 
I was very close to going ahead with the Marantz PM8004, when "Gary in MD" started chronicling his exploration of several amps for use with his LCD-3, on the Speaker amps for headphones thread.  He ended up preferring the Odyssey Cyclops (110Wpc into 8-Ohms), with the TBI Millennia MG3 taking 2nd place for his tastes, over the Burson Soloist and the Emotiva Mini-X a-100.  
 
On Gary's experience and that of a guy named Stew (SMG52) who preceded him, and some very compelling reviews by PF's Steve Hoffman, I decided to order the MG3, at half the cost of a PM8004.  I don't know what I'm missing, but it can't be much.  

 
Mike

 
Cool. Let me know how you find it.

 

[TwoPlusone]

I find the HE-400 slightly dark actually, but that's just my ears maybe. It's not a bright headphone so it doesn't sound emphasized to me (treble wise). The mids and mid-bass however are more forward sounding in volume compared to treble & sub-bass. The overall listen is a very smooth listen to me though, not quite as dull and boring as the HD650

but not as bright as the HE500 (or several headphones much brighter like Beyers, Ultrasones & Denons).

 

[davidsh]

Then you probably have the rev 1 or your ears are blown.

 

[fluidz]

Regarding brightness, what I've found with this chain Titanium Hd > Emotiva Mini > He-500's, if I push out full throttle volume from the soundcard so that most of the output peaks at around 0db, the He-500's can become overly bright but reveal more detail in the upper spectrum, however  If I reduce the Output of the soundcard to around -10db to -6db using the application itself, ie Jriver, Web Browser, and use the Emotiva to compensate the volume loss, the overall brightness is dimmed slightly which takes away some of the fatigue in long listening sessions.    

 

[daerron]

You can also try different audio interconnects. I had issues with brightness in my system too with the Emotiva and NuWave DAC till I swapped out the Tributaries interconnects for a Madrigal one I bought for a good price second hand. The Madrigal interconnect seems to be tuned to tame a bit of solid state brightness which I guess really good speakers can easily expose. The other Van Den Hul "The Name" interconnects I have also definitely tames brightness and they are better value for money.

 

[ohhgourami]

Is there still no solution to eliminating hiss?