[dubliners]

Guys!! I need u guys to help me~
I am currently deciding between wa5 le, cavalli liquid gold and gsx mk2!
What should I go for???

 

[Khragon]

I used to own wa5, for it to sound good you have to replace the rectifiers and the 300b tubes, not cheap! Be sure to add another $2000 for them. Haven't heard gsxmkii or liquid gold, but if wa5 price is prohibited, from reading I think liquid gold pair better with HEK. I think it's safe to assume any amp that pair well with HD800 will pair well with HEK also, HEK is like HD800 with better overall tonality, still will benefit from smoother sounding amp, IMO.

 

[goldendarko]

They'll probably all be great. But of those three I'd say the Cavalli would pair best from what I've read. No wrong answers though they're all excellent amps

 

[dubliners]

I used to own wa5, for it to sound good you have to replace the rectifiers and the 300b tubes, not cheap! Be sure to add another $2000 for them. Haven't heard gsxmkii or liquid gold, but if wa5 price is prohibited, from reading I think liquid gold pair better with HEK. I think it's safe to assume any amp that pair well with HD800 will pair well with HEK also, HEK is like HD800 with better overall tonality, still will benefit from smoother sounding amp, IMO.

If I get wa5 le, I was planning to upgrade probably everything(inside parts and tubes) Is there a sound improvement by upgrading inner parts tho? R they heavy?

 

[Khragon]

If I get wa5 le, I was planning to upgrade probably everything(inside parts and tubes) Is there a sound improvement by upgrading inner parts tho? R they heavy?

I read that upgrading the inner parts add clarity but take away some of the tube lushness.  If you have the fund, I recommend part upgrade, if not you'll always be curious and want to upgrade.  For 300B Takasuki is the tube to get, holy grail would be WE300B, but very subjective as with all tube amp.  I used to have WE422A and Elrog 300B, together with c3g drivers (glenn adapter) when I have my WA5, that was a very good sounding combo, very detail yet smooth, paired really well with HD800, I would think they pair well with HEK, too bad I didn't own both at the same time.
 
Quick note, Elrog 300B may not play well with WA5 (dead Elrog within 2-3 months) because the amp doesn't have voltage regulating circuit for the heater.

 

[reeltime]

Guys!! I need u guys to help me~
I am currently deciding between wa5 le, cavalli liquid gold and gsx mk2!
What should I go for???

 

I used to own wa5, for it to sound good you have to replace the rectifiers and the 300b tubes, not cheap! Be sure to add another $2000 for them. 

 
I have the WA5LE (which is the WA5 as a headphone only amp) paired with the HE1000.  There's just something about a massive amp loaded up with glass...  It's terrific with the HE1000.
 
I haven't auditioned the HE1000 with many other amps.  I have auditioned the HD800 with an extensive variety of amps and the GSX Mk2 was the best amp I've ever heard with the HD800.  Even with the best tubes, It's hard to compete with solid state when it comes to bass.  But tubes bring a warmth and openness.  
 
Any of the three amps you mentioned would be remarkable with the HE1000.  At that level it comes down to taste and preference.  Two other amps I would love to hear with the HE1000 is Ray Samuels' Dark Star and ALO Audio's Studio Six.  Just to confuse you a bit further. 
 
EDIT
 
The V-Caps upgrades don't really affect the sound in the short term from what I've read in the Woo forums.  They do affect the durability over time and hold their tolerances longer than stock components.  I was just told that Woo is not upgrading amps any longer, but I have an email into Woo Audio asking about upgrades.  I'll post what they tell me on Monday.  

 

[Khragon]

Haha... I guess if adding confusion is what we're doing here, for the price of a fully upgraded Woo WA5LE + TAK 300B + TAK 274B (> $8.5K), I would buy either Schiit Ragnarok, or liquid gold, pocket the diff and contact Glenn for his 300B amp, which is what I'm doing, his waiting list now exceeds 1 year, maybe close to 2 now.

 

[dubliners]

I have the WA5LE (which is the WA5 as a headphone only amp) paired with the HE1000.  There's just something about a massive amp loaded up with glass...  It's terrific with the HE1000.

I haven't auditioned the HE1000 with many other amps.  I have auditioned the HD800 with an extensive variety of amps and the GSX Mk2 was the best amp I've ever heard with the HD800.  Even with the best tubes, It's hard to compete with solid state when it comes to bass.  But tubes bring a warmth and openness.  

Any of the three amps you mentioned would be remarkable with the HE1000.  At that level it comes down to taste and preference.  Two other amps I would love to hear with the HE1000 is Ray Samuels' Dark Star and ALO Audio's Studio Six.  Just to confuse you a bit further. 

EDIT

The V-Caps upgrades don't really affect the sound in the short term from what I've read in the Woo forums.  They do affect the durability over time and hold their tolerances longer than stock components.  I was just told that Woo is not upgrading amps any longer, but I have an email into Woo Audio asking about upgrades.  I'll post what they tell me on Monday.  

Thx so much!!!

 

[sensui123]

Guys!! I need u guys to help me~
I am currently deciding between wa5 le, cavalli liquid gold and gsx mk2!
What should I go for???

 
I'd pick the LAu for the HE1000....though the GSX-Mk2 would be a damn close 2nd.  You can't lose like people mentioned with these amps in general.

 

[rgs9200m]

I have found that over a few months of break in, the HE1000 has nicely transformed into a warm-signature phone, Audeze pre-fazor-like, even more so in the crucial upper midrange, which is very nicely reserved w/o glare.
And the images have gotten bigger and plumper but without any annoying fowardness or pushiness. In short, a very refined presentation.
The break-in period had a large affect. (System: Chord Hugo --> Rudistor RP010B w/Moon Silver Dragon balanced cable --> HEK.)

 

[Brucemck2]

The Decware Taboo Mk3 pairs very, very, nicely with the 1000s (and the 800s) ... great tube dimensionality with plenty of bass slam and speed.

 

[mowglycdb]

Does the hifiman he-1000 have a wire for shield and does the 2.5mm conector carry a contact for ground/shield wire?

 

[ArthurPower]

I was just working on a cable for the HE1000 last night and trying to figure out exactly how the connector is implemented. It is simply a mono connection, ground and tip. The sleeve is not used at all. So you have (ground/shield) - and +. That's all.

Gold plated mono 2.5mm connectors are really hard to find. Apparently Hifiman just went with 3 conductor stereo connectors since they are more readily available.

 

[Mr Rick]

I was just working on a cable for the HE1000 last night and trying to figure out exactly how the connetor is implemented. It is simply a mono connection, ground and tip. The sleeve is not used at all. So you have ground/shield - and +. That's all.

Gold plated mono 2.5mm connectors are really hard to find. Apparently Hifiman just went with 3 conductor stereo connectors since they are more readily available.

I understand the cables built for the HD700 will work. I have a couple coming today that I plan to modify to balanced for my HE 400I and HE 400S.  I cut the end off my 400S cable yesterday, and added a balanced connector. The only wires in the 400S cable are L and R signal and ground. Two wires were black and two were clear. I used an ohmmeter to determine which was which. The resulting cable works great, although it's a bit short.

 

[mowglycdb]

I was just working on a cable for the HE1000 last night and trying to figure out exactly how the connector is implemented. It is simply a mono connection, ground and tip. The sleeve is not used at all. So you have (ground/shield) - and +. That's all.

Gold plated mono 2.5mm connectors are really hard to find. Apparently Hifiman just went with 3 conductor stereo connectors since they are more readily available.

 
 
I thought it would be hot and cold signal, they're balanced headphones right?    Unless they aren't :O!
 
Does the cold signal even reach the drivers?