[gordec]

Chord has the most polarizing audiences. I have heard the Dave at my dealer and owned Hugo and Qutest at one point. The experience has been somewhat underwhelming. I do feel Susvara scales much more with good amp than with a good dac.

 

[QueueCumber]

Pity, I think you are missing the high end. Get a demo on the DAVE, then come back.

“Think” being the key word there. I’ve compared dCS stacks with “lower-end” universal players. There’s no difference in sound quality to me when blinded during comparisons. But if you believe you hear a difference, all the power to you. I’m happy spending the money on areas of my system where I hear differences (speakers/headphones, turntables and cartridges, tube amps). As it stands right now, I don’t need any better than I already have in my headphone setups. My speaker setups could use some work, but that would entail moving to a home with better acoustics in the listening room...

 

[lunarhjs]

I was able to be very persuasive. I can assure you guys, we no longer need to worry.

 

[forestitalia]

Susvara has something to do with that offer?

 

[lunarhjs]

Susvara has something to do with that offer?

No, it just proves that if a Susvara V2 is released, Hifiman will cater to an upgrade from the Susvara.

 

[Slim1970]

No, it just proves that if a Susvara V2 is released, Hifiman will cater to an upgrade from the Susvara.

That seems like a winner to me!

 

[Matez]

I would add remember the DAC. I found a BIG difference moving to better DACs along the way. Headphones at this level really require a top source.

I can only add that quality DAC with headphones like Susvaras is mandatory and can introduce very big changes. A DAC won't change what these headphones are at their core, but will shift them towards its own sound signature to a degree.

 

[forestitalia]

That seems like a winner to me!

I feel a winner when someone gives money to me...

 

[jlbrach]

Been there and done that with high end speaker setups. I’ve never heard differences between well designed low priced source and amplifier equipment and extreme high priced equipment. It’s just a waste of money to me. Likewise with cables as well. I A/Bed a lot of gear 8-10 years ago and realized I wasn’t hearing differences other people were claiming to hear if I didn’t know what piece of equipment I was listening to at the time. It’s a good thing really. It makes it easy to put a system together as long as the gear is designed well enough to handle the speakers. I hear tremendous differences between speakers and headphones, so the saved money goes there instead.

I could not disagree more strongly...I think it is not worth owning high end speakers or HP's if the source is poor...in fact i would rather have a middle of the road speaker or HP and high end source.....the truth is the speaker or HP can only reproduce what it is fed, I would sooner listen to a respectable 500 dollar HP and a chord dave rather than a susvara and an iphone....

 

[QueueCumber]

I could not disagree more strongly...I think it is not worth owning high end speakers or HP's if the source is poor...in fact i would rather have a middle of the road speaker or HP and high end source.....the truth is the speaker or HP can only reproduce what it is fed, I would sooner listen to a respectable 500 dollar HP and a chord dave rather than a susvara and an iphone....

It’s your money. If you think you notice a difference, all the power to you. I’ve A/B’d enough high-end gear against low-end gear to know where I hear differences when blinded and I put the money where I hear actual differences. The rest I put into gear that is sufficient to safely drive the setup at my maximum listening volume that I find pretty to look at...

 

[koven]

It’s your money. If you think you notice a difference, all the power to you. I’ve A/B’d enough high-end gear against low-end gear to know where I hear differences when blinded and I put the money where I hear actual differences. The rest I put into gear that is sufficient to safely drive the setup at my maximum listening volume that I find pretty to look at...

After a decade, I've come to realize and operate with the same principles now.. i.e. majority of funds into speaker/headphone. The diminishing return on peripherals are insane. Chord for example, I don't think the DAVE sounds much better than Hugo 2. Nothing against people who do though.

 

[jlbrach]

The Dave is much better than the hugo2 I am fortunate to have both that said I spoke of Dave vs an iPhone. The hugo2 is an outstanding source

 

[AnakChan]

[OT to Susvara]
IMHO there are too many variables at play here. To name the few but not limited to :-

- Different folks have different levels of hearing. Some folks may be able to hear a difference and some folks may not. In fact for the same listener, over time that change too. Years back, one may have been able to hear a difference in gear, but over time that same individual may not (aging). Or it could happen vice versa too (learning).
- Being able to hear a difference: the amount of difference. To some it could be quantified as "a big" difference, whilst to others, "it's a small difference" - again, each with their own subjective measurement
- Return on value: very much related to being able to measure and quantify that difference heard is also very subjective. One's diminishing curve could very well be different from another's
- and lots more....

Until there's a way standard way of measuring that everyone agrees, the debate here is always going to be apples to oranges.
[/OT]
And for the reasons above, I'm inclined to ask folks to move on from this topic and back to the Susvara. You're more than welcome to carry on this conversation in other appropriate forums - I'm tempted to redirect to the Sound Science area.

 

[musicbuff]

I keep hearing the Susvara described as warm sounding. To me that means the HP is not neutral. I instantly fell in love with the sound of the Hifiman HE-6. Then over time (about a year later) I realized its timbre was slightly off. I couldn't put my ear on what it was exactly until I read a post in this thread...its sound is slightly warm. I guess a touch of warmth is part of the Hifiman sound signature. Is there a difference between the terms "dark" and "warm" or do they describe the same thing? Treble instruments (especially cymbals and bells) are slightly colored with that "warmth." My Sennheiser HD 800's (modified with the Anaxilus mod) exhibit an accurate timbre in the mid and high registers and it is very detailed, but doesn't reproduce the lower frequencies at a satisfying volume (either too soft or totally absent). Now I own the HE-6se. When I first put the HP's on it's bliss, but after listening maybe 30 minutes or so my ears become sensitive to that slight "warmth" bleeding into the mid and higher registers. If I switch HP's I realize how much sparkle I'm missing in the highs with the HE-6se. Will I find the same thing with the Susvara? How does the Susvara compare with the Sennheiser HD 800 since I'm reading the Susvara's detail retrieval is superior to the HE-6se's? Right now to make up for my Sennheiser HD 800's lack of bass presence, I disconnect my speakers and sit right next to my (powered up) subwoofer and together they do a pretty darn good job of sounding balanced all around. But if the Susvara's can equal the HD-800's detail retrieval AND supply me with satisfying bass, I might just purchase a pair.

 

[JeffMann]

I keep hearing the Susvara described as warm sounding. To me that means the HP is not neutral. I instantly fell in love with the sound of the Hifiman HE-6. Then over time (about a year later) I realized its timbre was slightly off. I couldn't put my ear on what it was exactly until I read a post in this thread...its sound is slightly warm. I guess a touch of warmth is part of the Hifiman sound signature. Is there a difference between the terms "dark" and "warm" or do they describe the same thing? Treble instruments (especially cymbals and bells) are slightly colored with that "warmth." My Sennheiser HD 800's (modified with the Anaxilus mod) exhibit an accurate timbre in the mid and high registers and it is very detailed, but doesn't reproduce the lower frequencies at a satisfying volume (either too soft or totally absent). Now I own the HE-6se. When I first put the HP's on it's bliss, but after listening maybe 30 minutes or so my ears become sensitive to that slight "warmth" bleeding into the mid and higher registers. If I switch HP's I realize how much sparkle I'm missing in the highs with the HE-6se. Will I find the same thing with the Susvara? How does the Susvara compare with the Sennheiser HD 800 since I'm reading the Susvara's detail retrieval is superior to the HE-6se's? Right now to make up for my Sennheiser HD 800's lack of bass presence, I disconnect my speakers and sit right next to my (powered up) subwoofer and together they do a pretty darn good job of sounding balanced all around. But if the Susvara's can equal the HD-800's detail retrieval AND supply me with satisfying bass, I might just purchase a pair.

I still own a HD800 which I owned for 5 years before I purchased my Susvara. I cannot give you advice because we perceive "reality" very differently. You label the Anax-modded HD800 as having accurate timbre in the mid and high registers, while I find my Anax-modded HD800 much too bright and metallic sounding. I think that that my Susvara is much more "musically accurate" than my HD800, which I have loaned out to a friend because I can no longer tolerate its overly bright treble sound. By the way, my HD800 can produce bass very well and it is equivalent to my Susvara in terms of bass.

You can optionally read the following review to learn more about my personal biases - https://www.head-fi.org/threads/wyr...mited-edition-dac-appreciation-thread.874370/

Jeff.