[SoupRKnowva]

Quote:

If it's a power issue, I could venture a guess: strident top end, loose bass, unrefined imaging for starters.

All things i heard when i listened to them off the Dark Star...

 

[nigeljames]

Just wondering what is the power output in watts of the Dark Star @50ohms? I don't seem to recall seeing it anywhere.
 
I do know that there is absolutely no strident top end, loose bass, unrefined imaging,lack of dynamics etc etc with my Master-6.
 
I have always assumed that the DS is even more powerful than the Master-6.

 

[kevin gilmore]

the darkstar has a current limit of 2 amperes peak to peak.
into 50 ohms, this is about 25 watts rms.

 

[nigeljames]

Quote:

the darkstar has a current limit of 2 amperes peak to peak.
into 50 ohms, this is about 25 watts rms.

 
Thanks

 

[preproman]

Quote:

I really enjoy my HE-6. I had them running off an old yamaha av receiver speaker post with banana plugs and they sounded good. I head they sounded good off the Gungnir/Mjolnir combo and so I ordered. Got them in today and they don't sound as good. Decided to sell my G/M and keep using my AV receiver for now.  Man I was looking forward to using them, but I love the headphones and they do need to be pushed. 

 
 
 
 

 

[zibra]

Quote:

115dB - 1413mW or 8.41Vrms
 
I can tell you after testing the he6 with the new gsx that this number is
very close to correct, measured with a recently calibrated bruel&kjaer
level meter. This level is louder than i wish to listen at.

 


Yes, i cant imagine its different. Besides if something isnt clear what for is producent then? Ask him at which power he measured efficience. i strongly believe its 1mW as its standard.
Second truth is that 115dB is VERY LOUD and most of you cant even imagine that level of loudness. Somewhere there was a website where you could easily count at which level you are listening to approx. I doubt if anyone listen higher than 110dB.

 

[musicman59]

Quote:

All things i heard when i listened to them off the Dark Star...

I don't know where you listened to them or what source was behind them BUT that is not how mine sound out of the DS. They actually sound totally opposite of what you are describing. I also have a Threshold T50 50 watts/ch at 8 ohms Class A that I also use with the HE-6. The sound outof the T50 and DS is so close that is very difficult to pick one.

 

[SoupRKnowva]

Quote:

I don't know where you listened to them or what source was behind them BUT that is not how mine sound out of the DS. They actually sound totally opposite of what you are describing. I also have a Threshold T50 50 watts/ch at 8 ohms Class A that I also use with the HE-6. The sound outof the T50 and DS is so close that is very difficult to pick one.

 
I really have a hard time with the disconnect between my own personal impressions of the Dark Star and most the other people who have heard it. I heard it on Rays own setup, using his boulder 1021 cd player as the source, into his own pair of HE-6s. But i have never since then heard a pair of HE-6s sound like those ones did off the Dark Star. At first i thought it might have been because he has the SMC connector on his still, whereas the other pairs i heard at that meet didnt, they were hard wire modded. But i have since heard plenty of other pairs that still had the SMC connector, off of different amps, that didnt sound as bad as i thought the Dark Star did. Everything from Happy Campers Rotel's, to Preproman's Emotiva monoblocks, to the Beta 24 i was borrowing for a while, all sounded fantastic. Even Preproman's B22 while you could tell it wasnt powerful enough, since it started to compress at high volumes, didnt have the problems that i felt the Dark Star did.
 
I guess that it could have been that specific pair of HE-6s or maybe even that specific Dark Star that Ray had at the the meet. Im still curious what caused it, because im not one to jump to conclusions and just blame the Dark Star, but i cant really think of anything else that would have done it.

 

[musicman59]

Quote:

 
I really have a hard time with the disconnect between my own personal impressions of the Dark Star and most the other people who have heard it. I heard it on Rays own setup, using his boulder 1021 cd player as the source, into his own pair of HE-6s. But i have never since then heard a pair of HE-6s sound like those ones did off the Dark Star. At first i thought it might have been because he has the SMC connector on his still, whereas the other pairs i heard at that meet didnt, they were hard wire modded. But i have since heard plenty of other pairs that still had the SMC connector, off of different amps, that didnt sound as bad as i thought the Dark Star did. Everything from Happy Campers Rotel's, to Preproman's Emotiva monoblocks, to the Beta 24 i was borrowing for a while, all sounded fantastic. Even Preproman's B22 while you could tell it wasnt powerful enough, since it started to compress at high volumes, didnt have the problems that i felt the Dark Star did.
 
I guess that it could have been that specific pair of HE-6s or maybe even that specific Dark Star that Ray had at the the meet. Im still curious what caused it, because im not one to jump to conclusions and just blame the Dark Star, but i cant really think of anything else that would have done it.

I don't know what to tell you. The first DS I heard was Ray's prototype in the same system you described and loved it. I ordred one and I am very happy with it. I have made comparison together with other memebers between my DS and my Aleph 3 (when I had it) and my current T50 and everybody says it is very difficult to distinguish one form the other and both sounding really good.
 
My DS is serial number 4.

 

[Happy Camper]

I don't think he's asking for a reply. He expressed his experience. YMMV

 

[Skylab]

I was also very impressed with the Dark Star / HE-6 combo. I auditioned it (for review) with my own sources, using my own pair of HE-6's. It's quite clear from KG's post above that the DS's power delivery of 25 W into 50 ohms means that there is no issue there. Anyone who dislikes the sound of the DS/HE-6 pairing isn't dealing with an issue of under powering.

There has been some sonic variability with HE-6 samples, though, it would seem. Ray's pair may be brighter than mine, possibly.

None of the above is intended to try to invalidate my friend Soup's experience. He heard what he heard. And for my money, the Dark Star is too expensive unless you REALLY like the casework, but I did think it sounded great with the HE-6.

 

[musicman59]

Quote:

I was also very impressed with the Dark Star / HE-6 combo. I auditioned it (for review) with my own sources, using my own pair of HE-6's. It's quite clear from KG's post above that the DS's power delivery of 25 W into 50 ohms means that there is no issue there. Anyone who dislikes the sound of the DS/HE-6 pairing isn't dealing with an issue of under powering.
There has been some sonic variability with HE-6 samples, though, it would seem. Ray's pair may be brighter than mine, possibly.
None of the above is intended to try to invalidate my friend Soup's experience. He heard what he heard. And for my money, the Dark Star is too expensive unless you REALLY like the casework, but I did think it sounded great with the HE-6.

 
I agree with the variability on the HE-6. I had two on hand mine and Robert's (Aphroditecu29.com). Both hardwired and his seemed more efficient. I maesure the resistance of the drivers and mine read 49 ohms but his read 37 ohms.

 

[preproman]

I know for a fact out of the three pair of HE-6s I tried.  Two of my own and Happy Campers pair.  Two sounded alike while Happy Campers pair sound a little bass light.  I think his is from the first or second run.

 

[IEMCrazy]

Quote:

Another interesting quote, this time by Nelson Pass:
 
--
 
@ wetfit9
 
I think about 12.8w.

 
Interesting statement from Pass, and spot-on I think.
Also, glad to see you weathered the storm! 

 
Quote:

I really enjoy my HE-6. I had them running off an old yamaha av receiver speaker post with banana plugs and they sounded good. I head they sounded good off the Gungnir/Mjolnir combo and so I ordered. Got them in today and they don't sound as good. Decided to sell my G/M and keep using my AV receiver for now.  Man I was looking forward to using them, but I love the headphones and they do need to be pushed. 

 
Are you talking a real performance difference, or do you think it may just be that you prefer the Yamaha sound?  The MJ puts I believe 5W into 50ohms and should be relatively low gain, so from a performance standpoint, that's surprising.  But no question the Yammy sound is unique!
 
Quote:

 
I agree with the variability on the HE-6. I had two on hand mine and Robert's (Aphroditecu29.com). Both hardwired and his seemed more efficient. I maesure the resistance of the drivers and mine read 49 ohms but his read 37 ohms.

 
Here's an interesting question.  We all know that the HE-6 is capable of heating up (there was a report in the HFM support thread where the foam quarter pad behind the acoustic cloth had melted, and HFM confirmed that if doing excessive burn-in it may heat up enough to do that.)  Have you found that the efficiency changes as it gains heat?  Typically increased heat tends to mean higher resistance when talking about an entirely resistive load in AC terms, but I almost have a suspicion that for various reasons these become more efficient as they warm up.  This is based on throughly subjective means and could be entirely wrong, namely they seem to get louder after the first 15 minutes of running or so.  While it could be ear fatigue, I've also noticed that if I go back to listen later after leaving them powered, the phenomenon does not recur.   It seems pretty repeatable, but I figured it was my imagination or it could be the amp warming up as well.  But since you mentioned variable resistance between samples, and knowing the driver do thermally increase with use, it makes me wonder if there's a resistance difference from cold to hot and thus efficiency?

 

[sphinxvc]

Quote:

 
Interesting statement from Pass, and spot-on I think.
Also, glad to see you weathered the storm! 

 
Yes, my area's not so bad, it's high up I think, hope you didn't get hit too hard?  Some of my colleagues in New Jersey have absolutely flooded basements, up the ceiling, others I know in Long Island have to have floors redone, 6" of flooding up to the ground floor.  
 
I just picked up the last item in my retooling-audio-equipment-to-focus-on-speakers venture, an Odyssey Audio Stratos Plus power amp.  Same output as the Dark Star into an HE-6 load.  Hmmm.  =]