[beyermann]

I asked and some guy told me Lake People is not that good and not that neutral, and that I must spend $500+ if I want a neutral amp:

nope not for proper neutral, the rest is basically neutral'ish with a warm tilt or warm. It cost money to get neutral especially if you want it to be detailed/revealing, since then you start to get into the pro gear realm. You must also take into consideration that a lot of people tend to enjoy a sound that is a bit warm. Though I don't fully understand why this is so important for you, since your headphones are already very colored in their sound and a neutral amp won't change this.



Lake people isn't that good anymore, their amps tend to focus more on bass reproduction than mids and highs, so the bass stands out more. The reason why I don't have any lake people gear on my list is because their value isn't that amazing anymore, unless you need multiple headphone outputs and the performance value has dropped quite a bit over the last 5'ish years. A lot of their gear also seems focused on this middle ground between entry level and high end, which in audio is a pretty bad spot to be in, since the smart thing to do with audio gear is to run entry level until you can make the jump to high end, that is at least the way to go to spend less money. The jump from your typical mid range unit to a high end unit is often fairly big, while the jump from a good entry level unit to mid range unit is often not as big.



I wouldn't buy the G103-P new, but you can always look used and then the value should be decent/good. Nothing wrong with buying used and it is from 2012, so there must be some up on the used market somewhere.

So what should I do? I need a neutral sound for mixing, I don't want warm or too much trebble approach.

 

[kvik]

Are you aware that Corda Classic is even more expensive than G109-P and double the price of G103-P, and it doesn't have balanced inputs?

 

[beyermann]

Are you aware that Corda Classic is even more expensive than G109-P and double the price of G103-P, and it doesn't have balanced inputs?

Yes, im asking if its really more neutral than the Lake People g103p, to see if its worth it goin nuts and buying one, or compared to g103-p you enter into the ridiculous diminish returns territory.

 

[beyermann]

Also what about the O2? how does it compare to the bigger guys? price is temtping.

 

[Xyrium]

I'm confident that any of those amps would be neutral, though I've only owned the Medium gain O2. What headphones are you using? Your alias somewhat indicates an interest in Beyers, and for mixing, I can't think of one better than the 880/600. The output impedance of all three manufacturers being considered is going to be fairly ideal. So, any headphone impedance should work with them, except for perhaps some of the more demanding electrostatics that may require a lot more voltage.

 

[Anaz]

Sorry, I can't help you directly with the amps you mentioned, but as a data point, my Violectric V200 (which I've read is similar to the G109) sounds a little warmer and smoother than my Corda Jazz-ff.

 

[beyermann]

I'm confident that any of those amps would be neutral, though I've only owned the Medium gain O2. What headphones are you using? Your alias somewhat indicates an interest in Beyers, and for mixing, I can't think of one better than the 880/600. The output impedance of all three manufacturers being considered is going to be fairly ideal. So, any headphone impedance should work with them, except for perhaps some of the more demanding electrostatics that may require a lot more voltage.

I have the DT770 and I cannot mix with anything but isolating headphones, background noise is too distracting.

 

[beyermann]

Also, I will finally go for the magni 3 and save myself the money and decide in the future if I want to spend more or not.

 

[Xyrium]

I have the DT770 and I cannot mix with anything but isolating headphones, background noise is too distracting.

I've had the 770s, and if you're willing to seek something more neutral, in a similar price range, I highly suggest the Senn 569s. While they still aren't as lean as the 880s, I believe they are better balanced than both. Don't be afraid to go cheap either, I find the Audio Technica m40x to be quite good for a sealed can in it's price range.

I realize you were looking for an amp, but it's always a slippery slope when shopping. Besides, I'd suggest that the headphones will influence your sound more than a properly designed amp, but it's all in the impedance, phase angle, and sensitivity matching.