[Nik]

Nothing can touch

yes !!!

I never had a lot of cans and amps like this time… I always had just one headphones but this time I used many cans and amps to do a relaxed and long comparison… I spent a lot of time for this.
I think that after all the setups I had in my life, the K1000/Air Tight is the very best in any way and aspects. Now I can confirm this after many comparative tests with cans, amps and speakers.

These are the headphones I’m using: K701, W5000, DX 1000, GS 1000, these are the amps Yamamoto and PS Audio, BAT and Air Tight (open and closed cans, tube, hybrid and SS amps). The speakers are a pair of excellent monitor ProAc Response one SC. Cables are TOP class of Shunyata and Acrolink.

I find a very good setup the GS1000/Yamamoto, the K701/PS Audio, the W5000/Yamamoto in order of preference… the DX 1000 is something so different respect to any traditional cans that I can’t tell you so much… I do not like them a lot, this is sure.

I have used my reference setup to help me to find the “second one”, a less expensive setup at a near level of quality… I’d think to the GS1000/Yamamoto setup. I recommend this, very musical, detailed and rich of soundstage and openness.

The K1000 is the king of all the setups experimented… very impressive!!! I never done many direct comparison as this time, no any cans or speaker I adopted can touch to the level of this setup. I wrote that even the BAT integrate is excellent for the K1000, but with the Air Tight and some new tubes adopted, the setup is the very best. Incredible to see as the bass of the K1000 is also better of all the closed cans (W5000 that do not has a excellent bass…, better than the DX 1000 bass, this cans is a bass monster…). The bass of the K1000 is even better than the GS1000 bass, I was very surprised of this…

K1000/Air Tight is a perfect synergy, I can tell this for sure, the Anacondas power cords are also perfect matched with the K1000 signature sound, WE 300B the third synergy for the K1000… Thinking to all the setups I had (and they are A LOT !!!), I can’t remember another sound like this.

I wrote this just as an help for those want to have a excellent setup (not expensive as the K1000/Air Tight), but with very, very good result… GS 1000/Yamamoto could be the first, K701 PS Audio another and W5000/Yamamoto another one.

Just my two cents…
Nik

(Sorry if I'll do not replay to many questions...)

 

[robm321]

Thanks for the info Nik!

Would be nice to compare your air tight to the Zanden.

 

[Piotr Ryka]

Hi Nik

You are in haven, isn’t it? Nice to hear about it. Maybe some day I try this wonderful AKG K-1000, but yours posts hoists their price, unfortunately. In revenge I damage your good humor and tell you, that this also sounds like angels choir

http://www.highfidelity.pl/!ev/start.html

300B system, of course...

 

[Edwood]

Air flows quite freely through the open mesh of the K1000's. Is this some kind of condom mod for the K1000's?

-Ed

 

[GlorytheWiz825]

*laughs* Couldn't help but laugh your comment.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Edwood /img/forum/go_quote.gif Air flows quite freely through the open mesh of the K1000's. Is this some kind of condom mod for the K1000's? -Ed

 

[J-Pak]

Nik can you list all the tubes you have in your Air Tight? It would be much appreciated, thanks

 

[003]

What is the Air Tight? Something tells me it is very expensive... a K1000 that bests the DX1000 bass... now you're getting me interested in the K1000 again

 

[d-cee]

air tight are a fairly exclusive brand of tube amplifiers

 

[Voltron]

Nik has one of these beauties:

His Air Tight ATM-300 has Western Electric new production (I believe) 300B tubes, but the others I am not sure about. Like J-Pak, I would like to know his current tube complement because for awhile there Nik was pretty sure that the BAT was superior. I personally knew that the 300Bs would return to supremacy, because I am convinced that is the best match with K1000s. I am guessing that the Air Tight and Zanden will achieve similar levels of enjoyment, but it would be nice to have a show-down one of these days. Meanwhile, I will "make do" with my Moth 300B with WEs.

 

[J-Pak]

I know Nik likes the WE300B, but with 12BH7 driver tubes I'm told the driver tube will impart a lot of their signature, so I was curious what the rest of his tube compliment was. This is of course second hand information but I trust it.

Voltron another one that looks interesting is the Wavelength Audio Cardinals which has received favorable press though I doubt anyone has heard them with the K1000.

I'm pretty certain my next K1000 amp will use 300B's

 

[robm321]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Voltron /img/forum/go_quote.gif Meanwhile, I will "make do" with my Moth 300B with WEs.

You poor soul

 

[Icarium]

Foo_me has auditioned the Airtight 300B and he said they were pretty much at the same level.

It is funny since you said the BAT bettered it! The Airtight retails for a bit above 6k I think? Nik was selling it for 3.5k or so before! What a deal ;p

 

[foo_me]

I think I can relate to how Nik feels!

I demoed the Air Tight and it was an immediate improvement over the singlepower extreme at that time...Think they are at a similar level of performance, but given it was only a brief demo, can't say which amp is better...

Still, since they're both SET 300b amps, it tells you how great 300b tubes amps are with the k1000s and definitely worth it for anyone who thinks the k1000s are their sound.

Nik...you're rig can still be improved!
You really need to get it hardwired (if you haven't) and get the cage modded for added bliss!

 

[wower]

Air tight amps are one of the few Japanese amps I've seen upclose. The build quality is staggeringly good. I'm not surprised to hear they sound great too.

 

[Blackmore]

Very interesting found Nik, thanks. I mean match between GS1K and Yamamoto HA-02.
Begin of June I was sending an e-mail to Mr. Yamamoto and have asked him about possible GS1K match, but unfortunately he wasn't able to say anything, cos he never tried GS1K himself.

But if this true than we have another amp for sensitive baby GS1K

Did you tried HA-02 with K1000 as well?



Quote:

Originally Posted by Nik /img/forum/go_quote.gif I wrote this just as an help for those want to have a excellent setup (not expensive as the K1000/Air Tight), but with very, very good result… GS 1000/Yamamoto could be the first, K701 PS Audio another and W5000/Yamamoto another one. Just my two cents… Nik (Sorry if I'll do not replay to many questions...)