[Capt369]

Does anybody also have the fad hope vi and make a comparison?

 

[bavinck]

I have an HA-2. I can't say one way or the other if you think it will be good enough of an amp for the Primes, but they drive my Primes fine. Listening pretty loud out of an ipod touch 6gen with the HA-2 dial at 4. 

I've never been a participant in Amp discussions because I don't typically hold the same opinion as most here. For me, if I can't max out the Amp due to volume being too loud, then the Amp drives the headphones fine. The HA-2 does that....to my ears. Take that with a grain of salt.

I also have an old Headamp Desktop Amp/Dac, and those drive the Primes fine also. When I read comments regarding 500 dollar amps not being enough to drive headphones it boggles my mind. As long as you aren't maxxing the amp out, or it feels like it is stressed, and there is power to spare behind the phones...I say they do the job.

Varying sound signatures and good pairings are a whole 'nother topic, but as far as capability goes....yea.

I agree with you. Headfi is completely nuts right now with people claiming the need for expensive and overpowered gear. Technically, for the alpha prime you might run into clipping at the very loudest music will play, if you are playing at super loud levels. However, once you get into those levels (115+ db) you are in real danger of hearing damage, even for peaks! For me, I want a nice neutral amp with a good soundstage that prevents clipping when listening normally between 75-85 dB. The oppo should be fine to do that. My cayin c5 does it on 4/9 on low gain, which is nowhere near what this powerful amp can produce. In fact, I originally had it in high gain but could not go higher than 2 and it did not allow fine tuning of the volume, so I swapped to low gain. All on this Jard to drive headphone!

 

[joeq70]

It needs to be pointed out that sufficient volume =/= sufficient power.

My Aune T1 drives my Omnis to sufficient volume, but it does not provide enough power. This difference is rather obvious when a/b'ing against my Mjolnir. It's also obvious when comparing power hungry planars like the Alpha Prime and LCD line on diffent amps of varying power output--these headphones need more power to sound their best.

Those of you who claim that the Alpha Prime sounds fine on weaker amps--have you ever heard it on an amp putting out 3 watts or more? Your advice is less helpful if you have never had an opportunity to hear the difference.

If you have heard the difference and think it is negligible then that is fine. Some specific comparisons would be helpful though if you are going to dismiss what I think is clearly the best advice (that is, to get an amp that provides quite a bit of power).

 

[Capt369]

Has anyone used an asgard 2 with the primes?

 

[bavinck]

It needs to be pointed out that sufficient volume =/= sufficient power.

My Aune T1 drives my Omnis to sufficient volume, but it does not provide enough power. This difference is rather obvious when a/b'ing against my Mjonir. It's also obvious when comparing power hungry planars like the Alpha Prime and LCD line on diffent amps of varying power output--these headphones need more power to sound their best.

Those of you who claim that the Alpha Prime sounds fine on weaker amps--have you ever heard it on an amp putting out 3 watts or more? Your advice is less helpful if you have never had an opportunity to hear the difference.

If you have heard the difference and think it is negligible then that is fine. Some specific comparisons would be helpful though if you are going to dismiss what I think is clearly the best advice (that is, to get an amp that provides quite a bit of power).

I am not saying more power will not help. Yes, I agree the driver is better controlled (especially in the bass) with more power. I am saying ime the benefits are very subtle compared to what is suggested on headfi. To say that the Alpha Prime should have 3W of power to sound its best is just ridiculous considering the amount of return that is found for the average user. To my ears the Cayin C5 (700mW I think) sound nearly as good as much more powerful amps that I have heard.
 
I am speaking to/for people that would never consider this wonderful headphone as they feel (by comments like yours) that they would need a expensive amp to enjoy it. I am absolutely sure that someone that owns an HA-2 and buys the Prime before it is sold out will highly enjoy it to their full extent. If you wish to spend more money for a much greater perceived difference please don't discourage people from thinking they can fully appreciate it with less power.

 

[joeq70]

I am not saying more power will not help. Yes, I agree the driver is better controlled (especially in the bass) with more power. I am saying ime the benefits are very subtle compared to what is suggested on headfi. To say that the Alpha Prime should have 3W of power to sound its best is just ridiculous considering the amount of return that is found for the average user. To my ears the Cayin C5 (700mW I think) sound nearly as good as much more powerful amps that I have heard.

I am speaking to/for people that would never consider this wonderful headphone as they feel (by comments like yours) that they would need a expensive amp to enjoy it. I am absolutely sure that someone that owns an HA-2 and buys the Prime before it is sold out will highly enjoy it to their full extent. If you wish to spend more money for a much greater perceived difference please don't discourage people from thinking they can fully appreciate it with less power.

Well, to clarify my earlier point, I would still encourage people on a tight budget to get the Alpha Prime while they can and to invest in whatever decent dac/amp they can afford and just put "more powerful amp" on their to-buy list for another time.

My main point is that a powerful amp is not excessive by any stretch.

 

[shuto77]

  I am not saying more power will not help. Yes, I agree the driver is better controlled (especially in the bass) with more power. I am saying ime the benefits are very subtle compared to what is suggested on headfi. To say that the Alpha Prime should have 3W of power to sound its best is just ridiculous considering the amount of return that is found for the average user. To my ears the Cayin C5 (700mW I think) sound nearly as good as much more powerful amps that I have heard.
 
I am speaking to/for people that would never consider this wonderful headphone as they feel (by comments like yours) that they would need a expensive amp to enjoy it. I am absolutely sure that someone that owns an HA-2 and buys the Prime before it is sold out will highly enjoy it to their full extent. If you wish to spend more money for a much greater perceived difference please don't discourage people from thinking they can fully appreciate it with less power.

 

Well, to clarify my earlier point, I would still encourage people on a tight budget to get the Alpha Prime while they can and to invest in whatever decent dac/amp they can afford and just put "more powerful amp" on their to-buy list for another time.

My main point is that a powerful amp is not excessive by any stretch.

 
Yes, I'm one of those Oppo HA-2 users, and yes I'm still leaning toward this approach. I also have a Soundblaster X7, which has the juice and has good EQ settings, though I prefer Oppo's sound. 
 
The truth is that getting a closed headphone as good as the Prime is nigh-impossible. I'd venture there are fewer than 5 closed headphones that one can argue is better. Better and cheaper amps are coming out all the time now...
 
So I know what I need to do. 
 
Thanks to everyone for hashing out the diliemma that many of us in mid-fi territory are grappling with before making the move to hi-fi. 
 
I'm really sensitive to my perceived assessment of dimishing returns, so the Primes are really up there for me in terms of how much I"m willing to spend. 
 
I still need to cull through this thread for some of my more specific questions. 
 
Thanks!

 

[bavinck]

Honestly, I would like to get a dac/amp like the mojo but more powerful. The centrance m8 has the power, but it is a bit bulky and I have read it can be a bit grainy on top and loose on the bottom. The GO V2+ look ideal, but many people are frustrated with their qc and customer service (not to mention who knows when I might be able to buy one). So, I wait until exactly what I want comes along. I know I DON'T want to be tethered to my laptop anymore....

 

[joeq70]

  Has anyone used an asgard 2 with the primes?

Click the "Search this thread" button and search "Asgard". You will find numerous responses about how well it handles the Alpha Prime. The consensus appears to be that the AP does indeed sound great with the Asgard 2.

 

[zachawry]

The $600 Liquid Carbon drives the Primes so well. Too bad it's all sold out. 
 
I was surprised at how good the Primes sounded straight out of my AK120II. There's not a lot of power there. 
 
But, driven by the LC, they're a level above. 
 
So, yes, you don't need a powerful amp to get good sound with the Primes. Very good, even.
 
But you do need it to get great sound, IMO. 

 

[Capt369]

  Click the "Search this thread" button and search "Asgard". You will find numerous responses about how well it handles the Alpha Prime. The consensus appears to be that the AP does indeed sound great with the Asgard 2.

Thanks.

 

[deividi]

  Has anyone used an asgard 2 with the primes?

I enjoy Mojo -> Asgard 2 -> APs alot!, even more than just using the Mojo to drive the APs. 

 

 

[bavinck]

I enjoy Mojo -> Asgard 2 -> APs alot!, even more than just using the Mojo to drive the APs.   

Honestly, the Magni 1 drives the primes very well too.

 

[Law87]

Just try on an Audio technica M40x....make me appreciate this headphone a lot more. 

 

[bavinck]

Well, to clarify my earlier point, I would still encourage people on a tight budget to get the Alpha Prime while they can and to invest in whatever decent dac/amp they can afford and just put "more powerful amp" on their to-buy list for another time.

My main point is that a powerful amp is not excessive by any stretch.

Going to eat my words. I have been messing around with amps that produce much higher power output (like more than 1.5W). Yes, the alpha prime does indeed respond fairly obviously to increased power. I have never heard a headphone this responsive to MOAR power and am actually very shocked.
 
Sorry for my ignorance, you have made me a believer. It still sounds damn good out of my cayin c5dac, but over 1W power and the primes bottom end just gets phenomenal.