[kerelybonto]

Hirsch was kind enough to open his home to me yesterday for a few hours of listening, so I thought I'd post a few comments. Everyone's always interested in hearing about Hirsch's goodies, right? I didn't spend enough time with any one component to offer any deep insights, but here are some general impressions.

1. AKG K1000 Headphones: I had not heard these before and was very impressed. While not the last word in tonal accuracy, these headphones produce very enjoyable, un-headphone-like sound. I know you've heard it all before, but these really are very neat. Blending the strong suits of headphone and speaker listening, the K1000 is a uniquely pleasant experience.
2. Vinyl in general: I'm about to join the needle-and-groove crowd, primarily because there's a lot of music I like that's not on CD, but while listening to Hirsch's tables I again noticed something: many people, especially those of us weaned on digital music, put a lot of importance on what's not there -- so blackness and the lack of clicks and pops mean that digital is better than analog. But when listening to vinyl, if you just listen to what's there, you'll notice that there is in fact something there that's not there in digital. Listen to the music, not the background, and you'll appreciate vinyl more. (Of course, it's entirely possible to have dead-silent vinyl, as I quickly found out.)
3. Supra Custom SET Amplifier: Hirsch was on the phone to the amp's builder when I arrived, and I can understand why he's invested so much time in this thing. I didn't analyze its sound very thoroughly, but I did listen to music on it -- and it makes music very well. I haven't been particularly impressed with many tube amps in my limited experience with them, but this one was different. It didn't have the closed in sound that some tube amps have, nor did it smooth things over as some tend to do. The Supra was great with the RS-1 and HP-1 and was pretty cush with the R10. Hirsch told me that the builder is gearing up for commercial production, so you may get to hear one soon. At the price I heard, they should be very competetive.
4. Sennheiser HD600 Headphones: I particularly disliked these the last time I heard them, but I didn't find them quite so awful this time. While their lack of high frequency extension is still disturbing, they do do the rest of the spectrum well. I suppose they're not that bad, but ... eh.

Thanks again, Hirsch.

kerely

 

[markl]

Quote:

It didn't have the closed in sound that some tube amps have, nor did it smooth things over as some tend to do.

???? You find tube amps sound "closed in"? Which tube amps have you heard? To me, tube amps tend to have a very "open" sound in the middle, with expansive soundstage. For me, it's the ss amps that sound "closed in".

I have some questions on the Supra amp:

1. Can pricing details be revealed (or at least a probable range), especially on whatever his top-of-the-line model will be?

2. On the volume control, from what I recall of what I read before, I believe it only operates within a limited range. I like to listen pretty loud, can the amp be turned up enough to satisfy someone who listens very loud?

Mark

 

[kerelybonto]

Sorry for the confusing language, markl. By "closed in" I was refering to lack of air, not a narrow soundstage. Most tube amps I've heard, including the AudioValve RKV and EAR HP4 have a decapitated frequency response. The Supra extended much better. As for soundstage -- I admittedly don't pay as much attention to it as many people, simply because to me all headphone soundstages are inherently crippled. But I did notice that the Supra and R10 had a wide soundstage, which says something because I normally don't even pay attention.

Hirsch gave me some numbers on what the builder is planning on charging, but I don't know if I'm allowed to reveal them. I'm sure Hirsch can comment on that.

Volume shouldn't be a problem. I only listened with low-impedance 'phones (R10, HP-1, CD3000), but since that's what you use, too ... the volume control is at mute at six o'clock, and I didn't even get it up to 9 o'clock when listening, and I sometimes listen fairly loudly as well.

kerely

 

[Hirsch]

I consider the price I paid confidential, particularly as it was a prototype. When there is a commercial product, I've been encouraging the builder to post an ad in Mall-Fi. He's also getting a web page up and running. I don't think public posting of speculative pricing (particularly without permission) is appropriate.

WRT loudness, if you're running AKG K-1000's, forget it. If you're running just about anything else, it will drive headphones well past safe listening volumes, but I wouldn't recommend doing so

 

[Hirsch]

Quote:

Originally posted by kerelybonto [*]Supra Custom SET Amplifier: Hirsch was on the phone to the amp's builder when I arrived, and I can understand why he's invested so much time in this thing.

Incidentally, the reason for the phone call may be of interest. I like the Supra so much that I've asked the designer to build a phono stage to use with it. He had already been working on phono stage designs, and it was a matter of tailoring the design to what I need. We were discussing how to implement impedance-loading for low-output MC cartridges... if it turns out as good as his headphone amp, I'm going to be ecstatic.