[DemonFox]

I was thinking of the Burson, but I didn't think that I would be able do find one under $700. I'll go have a look at the one for sale anyway, thanks for the tip.

I've got one for sale now and it's a wonderful pairing with my d5000. HA-160ds is a solid amp so let me know if you're interested


Thanks,


D

 

[Zorahk]

I have a D7000 with a Fiio e17. Should I put the gain on 0 or 6db?

 

[haejuk]

Whichever one gets loud enough for you.  I have found that Denons should be fine on the lower gain setting of most amps though.  My LA2k get way louder than I would ever need off of my O2 with 1x gain and iPod touch LOD as source.

 

[Dillweed]

Please let me know if this isn't the right place to ask about my situation. I have a pair of Fostex TH600s coming to me, and I have a "Lovely Cube Premium" amp that I bought near Christmas of 2011, which I've been using with DT880s. From what information I can find, the output impedance of the Lovely Cube (~6 ohms?) is too much for use with the TH600.
 
Is there a (relatively inexpensive?) replacement I could get that would work well with the TH600? I saw a couple of people mention the Schiit Magni or Asgard, possibly the Objective2, but I don't know how well those actually pair and I haven't seen too much else that isn't ~$1000 (that I don't have after splurging for the TH600).
 
I've seen a couple of people mention using a Black Cube Linear or modified Lovely Cube with low impedance phones, but don't know if they'll actually be okay or not.
 
edit: This is on my PC using a Titanium HD, if it matters.

 

[haejuk]

The Lovely Cube and TH600 don't have any technical mismatches.  The minimum impedance of TH-600 is about 25 ohm and the max impedance is about 28 ohms.  This is a really small difference between Z(min) and Z(max), which means that you can probably get away with an amp with a little higher output impedance than most people will claim.  You could actually get away with a lot higher ouput impedance and still have less than 1 dB distortion.  The formula for distortion due to output impedance is 20 * log[(Zmin+Zamp)*Zmax/(Zmax+Zamp)*Zmin], where Zmin is minimum impedance of headphone, Zmax is maximum impedance of headphone, and Zamp is the output impedance of the amp.
 
As long as it sounds good, I would keep it.

 

[Dillweed]

Okay. Thanks for assuaging my fears a little, haejuk. I'll give it some time and see how they sound together, then. I unfortunately don't have the technical background needed to really determine what makes a good pairing electronically, I only know the little that I recall from guidelines I've read and what sounds good to my ears. I just didn't know if there was some aspect of the Lovely Cube that would be pushing too much voltage, not enough volume, not enough current, etc. that could possibly cause some catastrophic failure somewhere in the chain.

 

[haejuk]

Don't worry, its not actually too complicated to choose a technically good amp for low impedance phones.  Most solid state amps with low output impedance will deliver enough current to work well with TH-600.  You don't really need lots of power to drive them to their full potential.   In fact, the specs say that the maximum power they can handle is 1.8W, so be careful if you get a monster amp!
 
All that being said, only your ears can tell you if it sounds good.  An amp can still be a good technical pairing with your headphones and sound bad.  That's what makes this hobby so infuriating sometimes.

 

[Dillweed]

Ha... hahaha... Ugghhhh, I hate being obsessive about this stuff. I think I need to get a different amp. The best pairing I can get with this one and the TH600s seems to sound a bit "congested" (can't think of a much better term for it). I tried the various compatible op-amps I have for the Lovely Cube and at best it still seems slightly muddied. I think I was actually getting some of the same effect with my DT 880 but it seems more pronounced or noticeable on the TH600.
 
Besides going for something in the $1000+ range like the WA7 or WA6SE that I've seen a few people gush over in the TH600 thread, does anyone know of an inexpensive amp that would pair well with the TH600? What about something like the Magni or Asgard 2? Or, should I ask about this in the dedicated TH600 thread instead?

 

[haejuk]

You would probably be better off asking in TH-600 thread.  I doubt many people looking here have heard any of the combinations you are curious about.  There aren't any technical problems with the amps you mentioned, but I think it would be best to hear from someone who has actually heard the combinations.

 

[ThaVman]

Ok guys! i have done some homework and am narrowing down on the stuff i wanna buy. I don't have a very big budget but let me start by saying i own the d7000 since about two weeks. I have been reading around and i was thinking of getting a bifrost as a dac. After that i went looking for an amp to go with that. Now ive narrowed it down to wanting either the Asgard1/2 or the Burson Soloist or HA-160. Does anyone have any advice regarding these combinations and would you guys have any recommendations about combining and or choosing any of these devices. 
 
Currently i listen to my music through my Asus Phoebus soundcard. It has a built in headphone amp and its doing an ok job. Now i figured out that i NEED a dac with an optical in so i can keep using the headphones for when i play games aswell. That way i can output my audio through my soundcard directly into the dac.

 

[goaliedad39]

I currently have a Burson Soloist paired with my D7000's and also HE-500.  I am very pleased with the combination.  Others may disagree but my impressions are that the Soloist is a pretty transparent amp that I think will pair pretty well with most HP's.  I can't speak as to the combination of the Soloist paired with the Bifrost, I'm currently using a PS Audio DLiii DAC. 
 
I was so pleased with the Soloist that I purchased the Soloist SL to replace the amp I had next to the bed and using the Peachtree DACit.  I am using that mostly with the D7000's, (wanted to use the closed HP's so as not to bother the wife).
 
For what it's worth, I hope that helps. 

 

[haejuk]

I've only heard the HA-160D (same amp section as HA-160) and I think it works very well with Denon DX000.  The only drawback is that if you get a planar magnetic headphone in the future you won't have as much power as Asgard or Soloist.  Honeestly, I also have LCD-2 and listen to it on my HA-160D and find it to be amazing.  However, not having tried the other amps, I can't really draw any conclusion except that I am satisfied with HA-160D.

 

[Dr4Bob]

I was lucky enough to find a (9/10) Talisman T-3H on Audiogon last year for a bargain price and it is an outstanding combination with my D5000s. Dead silence even with the volume control at max, excellent bass control (something very lacking using a tube amp with the Dennons), outstanding sound stage, imaging and channel separation and smooth, accurate timbre.
 
I am using it with a Burson DA-160 source.

 

[Bear-ji]

HI,I have a D7000 and so happy to see this thread. I'm looking for a AMP and i am considering about wa7. Just because it's so beautiful. Has someone tried this with D7K? campared to wa6se?

 

[y0mi]

Thinking about buying the yulong d100 mkII (newest version), Matrix M-stage or Burson Audio HA-160 to pair with my Denon AH-D5000. I've been looking for something more out of these cans but since I don't have an endless budget I really haven't had anyway to compare what sounds best to me; but I have been very happy with these.
 
I've heard problems with the USB connection on the first version of the yulong, anyone have experience with the newest? + How does this compare to the other amps listed?
I've been using the onboard audio for a year now (shame on me). :X What would be the best way to describe the change from onboard to an amp for the Denons.
 
What is the recommended/preferred way to connect this to your PC as I only have 3.5mm plugs, what else is needed?
 
Random off topic from amps: My ear cuffs are worn and was seriously considering buying new pads from Lawton audio anyone have experience with those?
 
Cheers,
Audiophile Noob