[zhenya]

Not to confuse you more than already, but a couple of things to add.
 
Your Macbook is a perfect source, but what are the source files that you are going to use?  Other than the headphones, they will be the biggest factor in the sound quality you get.
 
Consider buying used.  There is a great classified section here, audiophiles are in generally extremely anal about keeping their gear in good condition, and you can typically buy stuff at 30-50% off new prices, meaning if you don't like it or get tired of it, you can resell it for little loss.
 
Finally, resist the calls that say you must spend a fortune on an amp and DAC to match these headphones.  Beyond a few hundred dollars or so each, the returns greatly diminish and you are largely paying for casework and high-dollar parts, not sound improvements.

 

[isberg]

I'm in the same boat as you. I live in a not-quite rural area. Only electronics store is Best-Buy about 30 minutes from here. So I just did a lot of reading (especially here on head-fi) and I ended up going with the Beyer T1's because the general consensus is that while just slightly less technically proficient in the treble area, overall, it was a more "fun" and "lively" headphone than the HD800. Plus it's nice to save that extra $200 and spend it on an amp. I missed the boat on the LCD-2's as well, they did not show up on my radar for some reason until after I got the T1's. But I'm not disappointed in my purchase, the T1's are an excellent phone and absolutely blow away anything I had before (best being the HD595).
 
One choice is to plan a trip to a major city near you and audition high-end phones there. Minneapolis is about 90 minutes from me, but it's hard to get out there with a busy family life.
 
And if you want a tube amp, seriously look at the Schiit Lyr. Mine is in shipping transit right now, so I can't comment from personal experience, but again the general consensus seems to be that it is in the cream of the crop for under $1k dedicated amps. I ended pairing it with the Schiit Bifrost DAC as well, again highly rated. And only $900 for both (or $800 if you don't get USB support on the Bifrost).
 
Quote:

One other thing.
 
The HA-160D is not a tube amp.
 
I keep reading that the 800 sounds better with a tube amp.

So if the 160D was made with a 800 in mind wouldnt it make more sense for it to be a tube amp?
 
Dont know.
 
 

 

 

[choptalk]

Quote:

Not to confuse you more than already, but a couple of things to add.
 
Your Macbook is a perfect source, but what are the source files that you are going to use?  Other than the headphones, they will be the biggest factor in the sound quality you get.
 
Consider buying used.  There is a great classified section here, audiophiles are in generally extremely anal about keeping their gear in good condition, and you can typically buy stuff at 30-50% off new prices, meaning if you don't like it or get tired of it, you can resell it for little loss.
 
Finally, resist the calls that say you must spend a fortune on an amp and DAC to match these headphones.  Beyond a few hundred dollars or so each, the returns greatly diminish and you are largely paying for casework and high-dollar parts, not sound improvements.

 
Everything I have is burned off original CD's in lossless format.
I deleted everything off my computer that was not in this format about a month ago.
 

 
 

 

[choptalk]

after more research i thing im going with the LCD2 and the HD160LS
 
Is this a good move?
 
Im also giving thought to the shlite tube amp, but I understand I will still need a DAC.
 
Does the HD160 have enough power to fully max out the LCD?
 
Im less then 3 days away from pulling the trigger on something.

 

[Eric_C]

Link to the HD160LS please.
If you're playing off the Mac I need to know what inputs this HD160LS takes, and how you're planning to connect the Mac to it.

 

[choptalk]

Quote:

Link to the HD160LS please.
If you're playing off the Mac I need to know what inputs this HD160LS takes, and how you're planning to connect the Mac to it.

Correction. DS not LS. My mind has been spinning reading hundreds of different models over the past weeks.
USB I assume.
Read some other post from posters saying they did it that way.

 

[Eric_C]

Ok...I'm not sure I got the right device. Is it this Zalman Home Theater enclosure?
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article603-page1.html
 
If you're connecting your Mac to this device by USB, then it's almost certainly got a DAC in it. Which would mean you won't need an additional DAC.

 

[El_Doug]

what is an HD160DS? 
 
nice choice on the LCD-2, btw
 
Quote:

Correction. DS not LS. My mind has been spinning reading hundreds of different models over the past weeks.
USB I assume.
Read some other post from posters saying they did it that way.

 

 

[choptalk]

Sorry everyone I meant
 
Burson Audio HA-160D
 

 

[Eric_C]

OH.
 
Yeah that's a DAC + Amp combi product. You can definitely hook it up to your MacBook Pro via USB, and maybe by optical (not sure, don't quote me on this).
In any case, that means you don't need an additional DAC--something you'd have to consider if you went with the shlite (did you mean Schiit?) tube amp.
 
Sorry, that's the limit that I can advise you on this setup. No experience with or research on the LCD-2.

 

[isberg]

If you are getting the LCD-2, I would not get the Burson DAC/AMP. The LCD is rather inefficient and therefore needs power to drive it. I would get the Lyr (which provides gobs and gobs of power: 6 watts @ 32ohms!) and the Bifrost. That combo will be cheaper than the Burson as well.
 
I have my Lyr + Bifrost combo running now, driving the Beyer T1. The T1 is pretty efficient, but places a higher load on the amp because it's 600ohms, so it needs a high-power amp just like the orthodynamic phones. Anyway, a very comfortable listening level for me is about 20% of full, so that should give an idea of the power the Lyr has - it's amazing. And with the stock NOS tubes everything is rich, clear and warm. I switched in the 6N1P tubes from Schiit's website and they are just good, but with more present mids (which I prefer), and just a tad more clarity. I'm really satisfied in the purchase. I only wish I could afford to drop another $1k for the LCD-2's to give them a listen, but that's not going to happen.
 
Beware that the Bifrost is on backorder from Schiit direct until late next week, so you may want to check out Amazon options.

 

[Eric_C]

Quote:

If you are getting the LCD-2, I would not get the Burson DAC/AMP. The LCD is rather inefficient and therefore needs power to drive it. I would get the Lyr (which provides gobs and gobs of power: 6 watts @ 32ohms!) and the Bifrost. That combo will be cheaper than the Burson as well.
 

 
Do you mean its SPL? I can see from Audeze's page that the LCD-2 rated at 91 dB/mW, but its nominal impedance is 60 ohms. 
What's the SPL of the Beyer T1?
 
There actually do seem to be quite a few people who enjoy the Burson+LCD-2 pairing:
http://www.headfonia.com/burson-ha-160d-review/
http://www.head-fi.org/t/575118/dac-amp-combo-for-lcd-2-burson-ha160d-vs-audiogd-nfb-10/15
 

 

[isberg]

T1 is 102 db @ 1mw. HD800 is 103 db (IIRC). All current ortho phones are less efficient and from what I've seen on the forums they require lots of power even though the load is not as high as their dynamic brethren. I actually thought the LCDs were in the 80's, but maybe that's the HE-6. 10db is big power difference.

 

[isberg]

Here's some pics of the Schiit combo:
 

 

 

 

[Eric_C]

Agreed, 10dB is a big difference, given that most ear/headphones have SPLs between 90-120 dB/mW. 
Anyway, I don't know how loud the LCD-2 can get with a Burson; perhaps it gets plenty loud. The other aspect of amplification is whether the headphone is being "driven properly", but since you neither of us has heard the LCD-2, maybe we'd better not make recommendations for or against its pairing with the Burson...