HP8 Signature is still working its ‘song in trade’ … this time with Grado GH2 (Limited Edition, cocobolo) : Who says that Grados cannot ‘do bass’? Get this h/p/a and have your bass kicked!
Im interested in this amp for the verite open, and also appreciate a bit more bass. how do you feel the hp8 stack up against the woo wa6 for bass and stage? Also what is your favorite amp you tried so far with the Verite?
Great collection of Gears by the way!
Im interested in this amp for the verite open, and also appreciate a bit more bass. how do you feel the hp8 stack up against the woo wa6 for bass and stage? Also what is your favorite amp you tried so far with the Verite?
Great collection of Gears by the way!
• HP8 Signature bass is the best that I have heard from a tube h/p/a - OTC or OTL. It is my favourite h/p/a with Verite Open.
• If you decide on HP8 Signature, contact Warren Lavender at Audioarcan - in Ontario, Canada. He is very responsive to all inquiries. [You can order HP8 Signature without Bluetooth. Mine was ordered via Audioarcan.]
• HP8 Signature bass is the best that I have heard from a tube h/p/a - OTC or OTL. It is my favourite h/p/a with Verite Open.
• If you decide on HP8 Signature, contact Warren Lavender at Audioarcan - in Ontario, Canada. He is very responsive to all inquiries. [You can order HP8 Signature without Bluetooth. Mine was ordered via Audioarcan.]
I 100% agree with everything @jonathan c said (although I have probably definitely not heard as many different amps as him). The HP8 and the VO are fantastic together. I also went for the Signature version without bluetooth via Warren at Audioarcan.
I 100% agree with everything @jonathan c said (although I have probably definitely not heard as many different amps as him). The HP8 and the VO are fantastic together. I also went for the Signature version without bluetooth via Warren at Audioarcan.
I never would have predicted this when first reading about the VO, but after having a loaner here, then getting my new silkwood VO several years ago, I found the VO sounds wonderful on every amp I have/had except for one: the Monoprice Liquid Gold X. That's really not a surprise. The LGX was very finicky: it sounded great on every planar, but with dynamics, it was a case by case basis.
And I agree, the VO sounds quite amazing on my HP8. As good as it sounds on the V281, Milo, and Liquid Carbon v2, the HP8 is the sonic moonshot with the VO, at least for me.
I expect it comes down to tubes to an extent ... but how is the soundstage with the HP8?
Have been considering where I want to take my system in the future - currently I've got the Violectric V226 but I'm considering upgrading it to a V550 in the future for the additional technicalities & soundstage, but if the HP8 stages fairly big already that might be enough.
I expect it comes down to tubes to an extent ... but how is the soundstage with the HP8?
Have been considering where I want to take my system in the future - currently I've got the Violectric V226 but I'm considering upgrading it to a V550 in the future for the additional technicalities & soundstage, but if the HP8 stages fairly big already that might be enough.
I rarely focus much on soundstage when listening. Mostly I listen to my silkwood VO and Caldera on the HP8. We'll set aside the Caldera for the moment because it has the ADS (Atrium Damping System) which gives it pretty amazing soundstaging, more than most planars and even many dynamics, so that's maybe not the ideal comparator here.
What I recall of the HP8 driving the VO (a headphone that soundstages very well to begin with) is that the soundstage is somewhat wider than on some other amps, also a bit deeper. The V281 is in the same ballpark for soundstage. One of the greatest assets of this SS amp is its wide open depiction of the recording space.
Here I'm really talking about soundstage size only. Tube amps also add 3D dimensionality to each notes (notes are more distinct & palpable), but I'm not focusing on that here. Even "tube-like" amps like the V226 & my V281 can't quite match tube amps in this regard...
I 100% agree with everything @jonathan c said (although I have probably definitely not heard as many different amps as him). The HP8 and the VO are fantastic together. ***I also went for the Signature version without bluetooth via Warren at Audioarcan***
Tube noob question! Have now tried a few different tube combos in my HP8 Sig., thanks to @geoffalter11, who sold me:
Nu Black Beauties 6SN7GT matched pair (1959)
Sylvania 6SN7WGTA matched pair (1955)
RCA 12AX7A (1960's)
Telefunken 12AT7 Grey Plate (1950s)
I've been randomly swapping out tubes and while there are differences, they all sound good. I can use some help in understanding the sonic changes that can be brought about by swapping the
6SN7's only
12AX7 only
vs. all three
What aspect of sound does the 6SN7 determine vs the 12AX7, etc. Thanks for any help.
Tube noob question! Have now tried a few different tube combos in my HP8 Sig., thanks to @geoffalter11, who sold me:
Nu Black Beauties 6SN7GT matched pair (1959)
Sylvania 6SN7WGTA matched pair (1955)
RCA 12AX7A (1960's)
Telefunken 12AT7 Grey Plate (1950s)
I've been randomly swapping out tubes and while there are differences, they all sound good. I can use some help in understanding the sonic changes that can be brought about by swapping the
6SN7's only
12AX7 only
vs. all three
What aspect of sound does the 6SN7 determine vs the 12AX7, etc. Thanks for any help.
That is a tough question. David Shaw says that the tubes make no difference and that the transformer, and circuit are more than 90% of the sound. The 12AT7 will give you more volume play with 40% less gain. That should lead to better dynamics. As for the 6SN7s, I'd pair the Nu Black Beauties with the RCA, and the Sylvania with the Telefunken.
The NU Black's are replicas of the VT-231 variants which tend to be very clean and musical. The Telefunken is also very clean sounding. So, I'd pair a syrupy tube with a clean and vice versa. The 12AX7A is a syrupy sweet driver tube guitar players. use for their tube amps a lot. I'd pair that tube with my cleanest sounding 6SN7s.
I have no idea if I am right. I asked David Shaw and he told me my ears were better than his as he cannot hear any differences with tube swapping on the HP8. In fact he put a tube outside of all tolerances into the amp and the circuit made up for the tubes inequities and it measured at .002% distortion. The circuit is that stable. So, it is about what you like best what flavor you get. Sound quality will not be affected, only flavor from my experience up to the tolerance of the tubes.
I think the driver tube makes the biggest difference, personally. I think the Footscray 1956 Brimar I sent you will make you very very happy with either set of those 6SN7s. Those Sylvania's are amazing. The Black Beauties quite rare and modeled after the Ken Rad VT-231. They are from 1949 if I remember. The Sylvanias are 1950s, which was a great decade for their 6SN7 production. The pair you got was brand new and had les than 25 hrs of use. Same with the Black Beauties. The Footscray got the most use, but less than 75 hrs. They should all be perfect.
I think the driver tube makes the biggest difference, personally. I think the Footscray 1956 Brimar I sent you will make you very very happy with either set of those 6SN7s. Those Sylvania's are amazing. The Black Beauties quite rare and modeled after the Ken Rad VT-231. They are from 1949 if I remember. The Sylvanias are 1950s, which was a great decade for their 6SN7 production. The pair you got was brand new and had les than 25 hrs of use. Same with the Black Beauties. The Footscray got the most use, but less than 75 hrs. They should all be perfect.
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Who says that Grados cannot ‘do bass’? Get this h/p/a and have your bass kicked!
