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I am looking to buy a headphone amp and headphones in high end area.
1) RSA RAPTOR or Headamp GS-1
2) HD800 or Ultrasone Edition9


I understand Raptor is Tube, where as GS1 is SS. HD800 is open, where as ED9 is closed.

I have owned several RSA portable amps (SR-71A, P-51 Mustang, Predator) and they all were very disappointing to me. I really thought will get better bang for the buck. Then I tried PICO, and it was over. I compared side by side, and easily noticed the significant difference and was convinced “Yes, the quest is over”. PICO did much better everywhere when compared to RSA amps.

Seems that RAPTOR is well regarded amp, but I don’t want to end up being disappointed with another RSA amp. I have tried only one Headamp amp, and it was superb. Which is why I am debating between the two. Also buying better tubes, will that really make it better?

I listen to a lot of Trance, Classical and hip-hop music. So bass would mean a lot, and soundstage is very important to me. HD800 says that it really need a amp to drive the bass, but ED9 people suggest its got a good bass, but SS amp will be a better fit. Please help me isolate so I can make a better judgement. Thank you and I sincerely appreciate your time and suggestions.

 

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Any help? Please.

 

[AmanGeorge]

I heard the HD800 paired with a Raptor a little over a month ago and it was a beautiful combination - it really sounded terrific. Your musical tastes may not be the best match for the Sennheisers, however; they will sound absolutely terrific for classical, but may let you down for trance due to the fact that they don't have particularly booming bass, and they will definitely not sound good with hip-hop, due to the relatively polite bass presence and the fact that they will not be forgiving of poor recording quality at all. Additionally, the HD800 will be very revealing of shortcomings in your system, and may not be a good match if you plan on using your iPod as source.

I don't know much about the Ed9, except that they are reputed to have huge bass and like most Ultrasones are reasonably easy to drive, and will likely be more forgiving of poor recording quality or upstream flaws than the Senns. In general I haven't enjoyed the Ultrasone sound much, but maybe you will.

The Denon D5000 and D7000 both have very good and very powerful bass (although it can come off boomy and uncontrolled to some), and in general I think sound better than the Ultrasones I've heard - I'd check them out.

 

[Stitch]

I have heard the HD800 at a meet on 2 SS amps, a Sympony and a Graham Slee Solo and on a tube amp, my LD mkIII. Both SS werent very exciting, the MkIII was better, not very good but still better. My guess is that good tube amp would be a better combo than a SS amp. Having heard the comments on the raptor it seems that it would bring some life in the HD800.
On the ED9 i cant comment.

 

[s1rrah]

At the last Houston meet, I thought the Raptor and the HD800 was an outstanding pair.

 

[wharfrat1]

Didn't see this thread before, and I'm sure the OP has already made their decision, but I 100% agree that the 800 and Raptor are fantastic together. Comparing it with my Ultra Desktop, the Raptor adds another level of musicality to the 800's without losing any detail. Every time I listen with this setup, I get completely lost in the music. I couldn't be happier with this combo!

 

[SteveM324]

I used to own the Edition 9 and I liked the sound quite a lot when I first got them. However, I found that I did not use it much because of the discomfort level. It pressed against my ears and I found it painful after 20 minutes of wear. After I bought the HD800, I did not use the ED9 again and eventually sold them. I like the HD800 much better than the ED9 for sound quality and comfort. I used to own the Raptor and it is a good match for the HD800 although I like the Zana Deux SE better but at a much higher cost.

 

[wharfrat1]

I really thought about getting a Zana for a while, but I'm so happy with my Raptor, I could justify selling it and than coming up with another 1300 or so to get the Zana. I have no doubt from what I've read that the Zana is great but sometimes you have to show a little fiscal responsibility.

I decided that when I make my next amp jump, I'm heading into the high end balanced category (see B52, 307A, etc.)