[Clemmaster]

No worries, I'll keep the Krell and NFB-7 till next meet 

 

[ohhgourami]

  No worries, I'll keep the Krell and NFB-7 till next meet 

They're useless without a Master-1!

 

[Kimakaze]

Cable..........

Okay.  I am listening.  Is there a consensus on a particular wire or material?
 
I don't think I could handle the grief if I ever blew a driver with a custom Hardwire though.  If I weren't playing with a speaker amp, I would give it a go.
 
I have only had wires made to accommodate different connectors or really disliked the stiffness of the cable (like the Grados).  BTG Audio has done most of my wire work like my recent 10 foot speaker tap cable made of 8 strand cable.

 

[TonyNewman]

Question for the folks with modded HE6's - how does this headphone compare with the Abyss and/or a Stax SR-009 driven by a BHSE?
 
The more time I spend listening to my modded HE6 the more I can see it outperforming my LCD-X and HD800.
 
The neutrality of the HE6 highlights the colouration of the LCD-X (which can sometimes be a good thing, but my preference is to get closer to the music as recorded for most of my listening).
 
I am also convinced that there is something inherently superior in planar technology when it comes to the top and bottom ends. The mids of the HD800 are as good as anything I have heard from my HE6 or LCD-X, but it just can't match either of them at the top or bottom ends IMHO.
 
Any thoughts from those that have taken the plunge and modded their HE6?

 

[Audio Jester]

I don't usually mod stuff so don't bite my head off, but I was thinking the other day why don't those of you with the grill mod use something like superfine stocking material applied to the grill to help keep dust out? I would assume that over time it could get a bit gunked up in there?

 

[lojay]

  Question for the folks with modded HE6's - how does this headphone compare with the Abyss and/or a Stax SR-009 driven by a BHSE?
 
The more time I spend listening to my modded HE6 the more I can see it outperforming my LCD-X and HD800.
 
The neutrality of the HE6 highlights the colouration of the LCD-X (which can sometimes be a good thing, but my preference is to get closer to the music as recorded for most of my listening).
 
I am also convinced that there is something inherently superior in planar technology when it comes to the top and bottom ends. The mids of the HD800 are as good as anything I have heard from my HE6 or LCD-X, but it just can't match either of them at the top or bottom ends IMHO.
 
Any thoughts from those that have taken the plunge and modded their HE6?

 
Not in the best position to answer because I do not drive my modded HE-6s out of a top end speaker amp or my SR-009s out of the BHSE, but I think I can give you some fairly general descriptions about the sound of the two headphones - both of which I've lived with for months. I note that my HE-6s have the open-grill mod and the vegan pads. I have yet to do the Fuzzor mod. My SR-009s are driven by the Woo WEE out of the WA-5. 
 
I will just say that the SR-009 sounds far more natural and effortless than the HE-6, but the HE-6 is much more meaty, dynamic and visceral. Both outperform my HD800 in most areas apart from soundstaging, where HD800 is simply king. I also think that the HE-6 has a better transient response i.e. is quicker. Both have really good bass.
 
The HE-6 tends to have somewhat of an upper midrange glare (not annoying on its own but that is simply absent in the SR-009) which I think may be remedied by a copper cable (I am using the Toxic Cables Silver Poison) or the Fuzzor mod.
 
I'll try not to compare clarity, bass, tonality, soundstage and imaging, since those are very likely to draw comments about the HE-6 or SR-009 being underamped etc. 

 

[SilverEars]

I like the cleanliness and stage of 800.  Don't like the tonality and the treble harshness which limits the genre of music to be enjoyed. Well recorded classical and jazz, it performs very well, but at the price of making other genre unenjoyable.  Also 800 seems to need a clean source for it to do well, but at the same time, a clean source seem to make it sound harsher with the wrong recordings.  I personally don't think HE-6 is picky on amps as the 800.  It's a resistive load, a planar, and it really doesn't care what the source impedance is.  With enough wattage, it should perform well.

 

[TonyNewman]

   
...My SR-009s are driven by the Woo WEE out of the WA-5. ...

 
Thank you for your reply

 
I am very interested in the Woo WEE as a low cost entry into electrostatics - have you had a chance to compare how the WA5 + WEE sound compares to a SR-009 driven directly out of a high end electrostatic amp?
 
I can highly recommend the fuzzor mod. My HE6 was much, much improved by applying all 3 mods (grill + fuzzor + vegan pads). Mine didn't sound right to me with just the grill + vegan pad mods.

 

[TonyNewman]

  I like the cleanliness and stage of 800.  Don't like the tonality and the treble harshness which limits the genre of music to be enjoyed. ...

 
Have you tried the Anaxilus Mod for the HD800?
 
Link
 
I am thinking about doing it for my HD800, but I want to wait until I have my WA5 and can see if it is still necessary with that amp pairing.

 

[SilverEars]

   
Have you tried the Anaxilus Mod for the HD800?
 
Link
 
I am thinking about doing it for my HD800, but I want to wait until I have my WA5 and can see if it is still necessary with that amp pairing.

Not yet, but it's worth a try.

 

[kothganesh]

 
HARDWIRE

 
 
Anyway, I got the fat man downstairs to put into my car for tomorrows meet! The feeling of my back popping back into place when stretching felt pretty amazing.

Please do not forget the KRELL mod....

 

[lojay]

   
Thank you for your reply

 
I am very interested in the Woo WEE as a low cost entry into electrostatics - have you had a chance to compare how the WA5 + WEE sound compares to a SR-009 driven directly out of a high end electrostatic amp?
 
I can highly recommend the fuzzor mod. My HE6 was much, much improved by applying all 3 mods (grill + fuzzor + vegan pads). Mine didn't sound right to me with just the grill + vegan pad mods.

 
No I haven't. I'm about to buy a second-hand Headamp KGSS but am holding it off now that my BHSE might just come earlier (less than a year from now?) than originally expected.
 
I can say that the WA-5 is a real feisty mistress. You really need the right tubes (very expensive ones) to make it shine. It is imperative to buy a pair of top end rectifiers and driver tubes. That being said, it works well with so many cans and is extremely versatile. I suppose the WA-5 + SR-009 system will still be very relevant even after I get my BHSE. It is quite a "warm" and laid back combination that is more closed-in than a heavily modded HE-6. Very pleasant but it is clearly not playing the strong cards of the SR-009, i.e. details, extended treble, etc.
 
I hope I can find time to do the fuzzor mod, I don't have hours to spend on the mod!

 

[purplegoat]

TonyNewman did you use soft felt or stiff felt?

 

[TonyNewman]

   
No I haven't. I'm about to buy a second-hand Headamp KGSS but am holding it off now that my BHSE might just come earlier (less than a year from now?) than originally expected.
 
I can say that the WA-5 is a real feisty mistress. You really need the right tubes (very expensive ones) to make it shine. It is imperative to buy a pair of top end rectifiers and driver tubes. That being said, it works well with so many cans and is extremely versatile. I suppose the WA-5 + SR-009 system will still be very relevant even after I get my BHSE. It is quite a "warm" and laid back combination that is more closed-in than a heavily modded HE-6. Very pleasant but it is clearly not playing the strong cards of the SR-009, i.e. details, extended treble, etc.
 
I hope I can find time to do the fuzzor mod, I don't have hours to spend on the mod!

 
I have some nice tubes on the way for the WA5: EML 274B / SP 274B / SP 300B. Might go the Sophia Royal Princess eventually. Not sure about driver tubes yet.
 
It took me about 30 minutes to do the 'Fuzzor Lite' mod - it's easy and quick.

 

[TonyNewman]

TonyNewman did you use soft felt or stiff felt?

Stiff sticky backed felt from Amazon. Cheap and easy to work with.