[Music Alchemist]

To me the HE 6 has a bit better image, a little better depth, blacker background and cleaner less blurry sound. HE 6, even the modded one, obviously has a bit more energy up in the high treble as well as a little more treble sweetness. In other words the HE 6 is more effortless and refined. Its weakness (all cans have some) is the bass. I wouldn’t have mind a bit fuller bass, just a touch more mid richness and also a bit faster transients like the Abyss.

 
Do you like the Abyss more than the HE6? When I heard them both, I couldn't really pick a favorite. (But I like electrostats more overall at this point.)

 

[Articnoise]

   
Do you like the Abyss more than the HE6? When I heard them both, I couldn't really pick a favorite. (But I like electrostats more overall at this point.)

 

I have not had the Abyss at home for audition yet and have only heard the Abyss two times compared to the LCD 3F on a Moon 430 HAD. To me the Abyss do all the technicalities very very good and is for example much faster, clearer, more 3D then the LCD 3F and I would say also compered to the HE6, even if I haven’t done a direct compare.  With the Moon 430 HAD at least I didn’t like the tone on the Abyss so much. I’m more for a bit of colorful tonality which both the HE6 and the LCD 3F have IMO.

 

To me, in that setup, the tonality was too neutral and dry and I want a more naturel sound with a touch of mid richness and sweet treble. I have been told that I might like the Abyss more with another amps like the VTL IT 85. I will definitely try the Abyss on some other gear, because what it does well, the technicalities, it does so very well that it can be worth to see if I also can get the tonality closer to my preference. I’m pretty sure that the Abyss will sound better to me in my rig than in the 430, but probably not all the way and I would need to get some other Amp than Master 9. A new amp and Abyss will probably be too expensive for me right now.

 

To sum it up I think it will depend on what sound sig you prefer and what aspects you hold as most important; fast, deep, clear, more resolving and very controlled bass, open and 3D sound - Abyss.

 

Sweet trebles, richer mids and more forgiving sound, probably – HE 6.

 

[drez]

I think I should give abyss another shot, when I did audition i took them off almost immediately because the upper mid and treble tonality just sounded off. I was listening with classical though. The measurements show amazing driver acceleration but not so amazing other areas. Maybe takes time to adjust to the sound signature?

 

[knowhatimean]

I think the the more accurate way to look at how headphones project different sonic perspectives of the
same music is to simply say it's nothing more than simply using "Different Horses for Different Courses"

"Natural, neutral, rich,sweet, open or closed sounding, etc.." are honestly all just subjective terms that many of us don't necessarily view as separate characteristics & if we do notice the separate elements in relief of the entire musical picture it may suggest a coloration in either the recording or the equipment.

For the music I listen to I found out that it was a mistake to try to diagnose & try to bring more emphasis to
specific parts of the frequency spectrum to alter the sonic perspective I was hearing with certain music.. At some point I decided that striving fo capture a closer "scale" of the recorded event as an inclusive picture of
all the music playing as ithe space at the recording allowed , worked more ideally for what I prefer to hear.

I usually install modifications (or outright parts removal) to my headphones to bring them as closer to what I think to have less emphasis in areas the designer may have voiced a coloration into. I already know how my source material & what to expect from my signal path starting from my line conditioning all the way through to what is being output from my Amplifier.

Yeah, it's never a matter of my Horse not being up to the task. & about Thursday I should be able to see what kind of "ride"'my HE-6 can give me, as USPS says to expect my cable to arrive "Yee Hah"

 

[FredrikT92]

Alright, I got contacted by a guy with a DIY F5V2 Turbo, so a first watt F5 turbo DIY. 
50W class A, 100W class A/B, its also mono blocks, so not all in same chassis. 
Price? More then half the price then the F6 I can buy...

What you guys think? 

 

[ohhgourami]

Alright, I got contacted by a guy with a DIY F5V2 Turbo, so a first watt F5 turbo DIY. 
50W class A, 100W class A/B, its also mono blocks, so not all in same chassis. 
Price? More then half the price then the F6 I can buy...


What you guys think? 

That is tempting. I guess if he uses quality parts, it should sound fantastic. Also consider resale value as you can sell an F6 for essentially what you paid. I can drop money on gear as long as I can break even reselling.

 

[FredrikT92]

Yeah its tempting for sure. Its only 1000 bucks, so I guess he might not use so quality parts?  

 

[preproman]

LCD-3F vs. HE-6 vs. Abyss IMO..
 
I agree the LCD-3F has the most creamy mids of the three. Soo my vote for best mids will go to the LCD-3F.  This is why many times I miss that head phone.
 
However, I feel the LCD-3 is in last place when it comes to how well they resolve.  Playing music a low levels shows me the Abyss takes the lead in that area with the HE-6 coming in 2nd
 
The bass on the LCD-3F is fuller.  Some people like their bass on the fuller side with lots of rumble.  I like a nice tight, sort of fast decay type of bass.  The HE-6 and Abyss have less rumble but more attack compared to the LCD-3F, so I like the Abyss and the HE-6 better in the bass area. The Abyss bass is more full compared to the HE-6 thou.
 
The highs / treble I vote for the HE-6 (minus the fuzzor mod) (plus the grill mod) on the right amp, the highs on the HE-6 are some of the best.  It's too etched for some people that's where the fuzzor mod comes into play.  The Abyss is kind of weird up there but I still like the highs better than the LCD-3F highs.  They did do a better job with the LCD-3F compared to the LCD-3C in that area.
 
So for me it goes like this:
 
Mids = LCD-3F --> (HE-6 = Abyss)
Bass = Abyss --> HE-6 --> LCD-3F / 3C
Attack = Abyss --> HE-6 --> LCD-3F
Highs / Treble = HE-6 --> Abyss --> LCD-3F
Low level detail retrieval = Abyss --> HE-6 --> LCD-3F
Soundstage = Abyss --> HE-6 --> LCD-3F
Air = Abyss --> HE-6 --> LCD-3F
Imaging = Abyss --> HE-6 -- LCD-3F
Clean / Transparent = HE-6 --> Abyss --> LCD-3F

 

[ohhgourami]

Yeah its tempting for sure. Its only 1000 bucks, so I guess he might not use so quality parts?  

Play it safe and go with the F6. Better resale value.

 

[FredrikT92]

Play it safe and go with the F6. Better resale value.

Yeah I guess. Hope I can get it for 2,6k
And then I'd just have to decide which passive preamp

 

[ohhgourami]

Yeah I guess. Hope I can get it for 2,6k
And then I'd just have to decide which passive preamp

I was looking at the Glasshouse TVC before buying a custom balanced Tribute TVC. I've waited a really long time for mine and still hasn't shipped. Transformer volume control (TVC) seems like the way to go

 

[FredrikT92]

Difficult to find a TVC it seems like. Glasshouse is only DIY kit?
Theres a Goldpoint SA2 used for sale tho

 

[Music Alchemist]

  I have not had the Abyss at home for audition yet and have only heard the Abyss two times compared to the LCD 3F on a Moon 430 HAD. To me the Abyss do all the technicalities very very good and is for example much faster, clearer, more 3D then the LCD 3F and I would say also compered to the HE6, even if I haven’t done a direct compare.  With the Moon 430 HAD at least I didn’t like the tone on the Abyss so much. I’m more for a bit of colorful tonality which both the HE6 and the LCD 3F have IMO.

 

To me, in that setup, the tonality was too neutral and dry and I want a more naturel sound with a touch of mid richness and sweet treble. I have been told that I might like the Abyss more with another amps like the VTL IT 85. I will definitely try the Abyss on some other gear, because what it does well, the technicalities, it does so very well that it can be worth to see if I also can get the tonality closer to my preference. I’m pretty sure that the Abyss will sound better to me in my rig than in the 430, but probably not all the way and I would need to get some other Amp than Master 9. A new amp and Abyss will probably be too expensive for me right now.

 

To sum it up I think it will depend on what sound sig you prefer and what aspects you hold as most important; fast, deep, clear, more resolving and very controlled bass, open and 3D sound - Abyss.

 

Sweet trebles, richer mids and more forgiving sound, probably – HE 6.

 
I agree about the AB-1266's tonality, though personally, that's what intrigued me about it. I've mentioned elsewhere that the Abyss is the only headphone I've heard that did not present any noticeable problems in the frequency response, though that could have just been due to the tricky fit and not being able to hear it for extended periods...because I'm normally very critical with any headphone. As far as tonality goes, you can greatly alter it with a free parametric equalizer, so I'm not worried about that. (But note that I'm not implying it's not worth it to use different electronics to reach your desired sound as well, since EQ can only do so much.) My main reason for being interested in high-end planar magnetics is to get a more exciting, physical, visceral sound. To my ears, none of them compete with electrostats in terms of transparency. (Though I'm sure they could get closer and even beat some 'stats in that area on certain systems.) Problem is, I think the MOON Neo 430HA is just too smooth and boring to get that exciting sound I seek. I somehow doubt that these planar magnetic headphones are supposed to sound so smooth when driven to their potential. Fortunately, I plan on using the same high-end speaker amp with everything, so hopefully they won't sound so boring next time I hear 'em!
 

I think the the more accurate way to look at how headphones project different sonic perspectives of the
same music is to simply say it's nothing more than simply using "Different Horses for Different Courses"

"Natural, neutral, rich,sweet, open or closed sounding, etc.." are honestly all just subjective terms that many of us don't necessarily view as separate characteristics & if we do notice the separate elements in relief of the entire musical picture it may suggest a coloration in either the recording or the equipment.

For the music I listen to I found out that it was a mistake to try to diagnose & try to bring more emphasis to
specific parts of the frequency spectrum to alter the sonic perspective I was hearing with certain music.. At some point I decided that striving fo capture a closer "scale" of the recorded event as an inclusive picture of
all the music playing as ithe space at the recording allowed , worked more ideally for what I prefer to hear.

I usually install modifications (or outright parts removal) to my headphones to bring them as closer to what I think to have less emphasis in areas the designer may have voiced a coloration into. I already know how my source material & what to expect from my signal path starting from my line conditioning all the way through to what is being output from my Amplifier.

Yeah, it's never a matter of my Horse not being up to the task. & about Thursday I should be able to see what kind of "ride"'my HE-6 can give me, as USPS says to expect my cable to arrive "Yee Hah"

 
Hmm...I'd be interested to...know what you mean (

) when you talk about scale.
 

  LCD-3F vs. HE-6 vs. Abyss IMO..
 
I agree the LCD-3F has the most creamy mids of the three. Soo my vote for best mids will go to the LCD-3F.  This is why many times I miss that head phone.
 
However, I feel the LCD-3 is in last place when it comes to how well they resolve.  Playing music a low levels shows me the Abyss takes the lead in that area with the HE-6 coming in 2nd
 
The bass on the LCD-3F is fuller.  Some people like their bass on the fuller side with lots of rumble.  I like a nice tight, sort of fast decay type of bass.  The HE-6 and Abyss have less rumble but more attack compared to the LCD-3F, so I like the Abyss and the HE-6 better in the bass area. The Abyss bass is more full compared to the HE-6 thou.
 
The highs / treble I vote for the HE-6 (minus the fuzzor mod) (plus the grill mod) on the right amp, the highs on the HE-6 are some of the best.  It's too etched for some people that's where the fuzzor mod comes into play.  The Abyss is kind of weird up there but I still like the highs better than the LCD-3F highs.  They did do a better job with the LCD-3F compared to the LCD-3C in that area.
 
So for me it goes like this:
 
Mids = LCD-3F --> (HE-6 = Abyss)
Bass = Abyss --> HE-6 --> LCD-3F / 3C
Attack = Abyss --> HE-6 --> LCD-3F
Highs / Treble = HE-6 --> Abyss --> LCD-3F
Low level detail retrieval = Abyss --> HE-6 --> LCD-3F
Soundstage = Abyss --> HE-6 --> LCD-3F
Air = Abyss --> HE-6 --> LCD-3F
Imaging = Abyss --> HE-6 -- LCD-3F
Clean / Transparent = HE-6 --> Abyss --> LCD-3F

 
Super-awesome comparison! Thanks for sharing. Since the HE6 is so much more affordable, I wouldn't mind keeping it once I add the Abyss.

 

[Clemmaster]

  Alright, I got contacted by a guy with a DIY F5V2 Turbo, so a first watt F5 turbo DIY. 
50W class A, 100W class A/B, its also mono blocks, so not all in same chassis. 
Price? More then half the price then the F6 I can buy...

What you guys think? 

Make sure this guy is not Brunk. He ripped off few people of >$1,000 for a F5 build...

 

[ohhgourami]

  Super-awesome comparison! Thanks for sharing. Since the HE6 is so much more affordable, I wouldn't mind keeping it once I add the Abyss.

 
So where's your pair?