[shayson1357]

"But If I had to pick only one setup - it would be the HE-6 / Master 10."
cheaper option too, with no need for re-tubing 

 .

 

[preproman]

Yeah - IMO it's going to always come down to the transducer.  The Amps and DACs can't make a headphone something it's not.  However, good / great Amps and Dacs will get the best out of said headphone.

 

[shayson1357]

you never know how much performance was missing from a headphone until you hear it from better gear 

 

[wuwhere]

Or you don't know how good an amp is until you hear it from an HE-6, hehehe.

 

[shayson1357]

 

[Happy Camper]

you never know how much performance was missing from a headphone until you hear it from better gear 

This is a problem.

 

[TonyNewman]

This is a problem.

 
I am fortunate to have 2 'reference level' amp setups - HE6/HD800 driven from a WA5, and an LCD-X driven from an Auralic Taurus Mk2. Both fed from a Vega DAC. Comparing these headphones and amps puts the (modded) HE6/WA5 combination noticeably ahead of any other combination I have.
 
I have no idea if the HE6 can deliver significantly more from an amp with more juice than the WA5 - sometimes I wonder how much more this amazing headphone has to offer beyond what it can do with the WA5.

 

[Angelbelow]

Thanks everyone, great input so far. Definitely leaning towards the WA5 as I've only read positive reviews with the HE6 pairing.
 
Initially, I'll just be using the amp with the HE500s and LCD2s. After I get the HE6s, I'll be exploring speaker amps as well.

 

[wuwhere]

I'm satisfied and happy with my two speaker tube amps. For an ss speaker amp, I would like to try a vintage Linn Klout. You will never read any bad impression on Klout on-line.

 

[TonyNewman]

  Definitely leaning towards the WA5 as I've only read positive reviews with the HE6 pairing.

 
This is definitely my favorite HeadFi setup - I prefer it to anything else I have heard (including the LCD-3F driven from a Taurus).
 
Two words of caution/advice -
1) you need to mod the HE6 to get the most out of it - all 3 work together (fuzzor/grill/pads).
2) the WA5 needs good tubes to shine (like any other tube amp). The various threads have some great ideas on rectifier/driver/power tubes.
 
Good luck - I hope you enjoy the WA5 + modded HE6 combination as much as I do

 

[Silent One]

While I've not heard the HE-6 with some of the fine offerings I read in this space, I don't think I'm doing too bad either. I have been getting by

with the HE-6 leashed up to a pair of Shindo Laboratory F2a Sinhonia monaural amps, featuring the Seimens F2a bottles. And on the "SS" side, the Sansui G-22000 featuring dual mono construction and straight DC design safe-guarding the signal from Input to Output. 

 

[Angelbelow]

   
This is definitely my favorite HeadFi setup - I prefer it to anything else I have heard (including the LCD-3F driven from a Taurus).
 
Two words of caution/advice -
1) you need to mod the HE6 to get the most out of it - all 3 work together (fuzzor/grill/pads).
2) the WA5 needs good tubes to shine (like any other tube amp). The various threads have some great ideas on rectifier/driver/power tubes.
 
Good luck - I hope you enjoy the WA5 + modded HE6 combination as much as I do

 
Thanks, been doing quite a bit of reading on tubes. Looking for a bright, but non-fatiguing and full body sound signature.

 

[lojay]

The HD800 / 445 combo still falls behind my HE-6 / Audio-GD Master 10 no question.  The HE-6 / Master 10 combo just has that "body" and "soul" - the HD800 will never have at the expense of sacrificing detail and stage.  
The HD800 / 445 is the best I've ever heard the HD800 sound, really they sound that good.  But If I had to pick only one setup - it would be the HE-6 / Master 10.

 
Depends on your preferences as you'd agree. No matter what you use to drive it, the HD800 still sounds like the HD800 but the 4-45 fleshes out its best qualities and the mods take away the bad qualities. I really enjoy it for classical music and live acoustic. Even when I only had the WA5, I felt that the HD800 is a step ahead for hi-fi / audiophile fare in terms of absolute realism. The HE-6 is still better for most music with modern mixing and post production because of its "body and soul".
 
Has anyone compared the Master 10 and the WA5?
 

This is definitely my favorite HeadFi setup - I prefer it to anything else I have heard (including the LCD-3F driven from a Taurus).
Two words of caution/advice -
1) you need to mod the HE6 to get the most out of it - all 3 work together (fuzzor/grill/pads).
2) the WA5 needs good tubes to shine (like any other tube amp). The various threads have some great ideas on rectifier/driver/power tubes.
Good luck - I hope you enjoy the WA5 + modded HE6 combination as much as I do

 
I do not think one absolutely needs the Fuzzor mod. Otherwise I agree. My WA5 tube combination was sublime: AVVT AV32BSL, GEC U52 and Sylvania 6SN7W / Tungsol BGRP

 

[TonyNewman]

   
... Even when I only had the WA5, I felt that the HD800 is a step ahead for hi-fi / audiophile fare in terms of absolute realism. The HE-6 is still better for most music with modern mixing and post production because of its "body and soul"...

 
I haven't modded my HD800 yet - it's on my to-do list. Looking forward to how that sounds on the WA5.

 

[lojay]

The statement you quoted was a bit of a generalisation, but I did find that the HD800 makes the 5% of best recordings in my collection sound better than the HE-6 while the HE-6 sounded very good with 95% of the rest of my collection. HD800 sounded pretty bad as a match with the WA5 with that 95% until I modded it. I posted my views on this in my 4-45 / WA5 comparison thread. The modded HD800 and 4-45 takes it a further step ahead on the 5% of audiophile music I have, and also makes a lot more of the 95% of my collection sound good. 
 
I think it is necessary to remove the dust cover on the HD800 and add the rug liner material that covers the thin metal dome, with thicker foam covering the trapezoid parts. 
 
Let me try the HE-6 with the 4-45 today and see if it sounds any better with my new MSB Analog DAC btw..