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MrSpeakers Alpha PRIME: Impressions and Discussion Thread
Dec 13, 2016 at 3:14 AM Post #2,506 of 2,891
nick-s-f said:
I wouldnt call the Primes recessed in vocals, but not forward either. Just smooth.
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I think because they aren't tonally correct the highs can become a little overwhelming sometimes. Something that the Mad Dog was able to overcome by having a tonal balance that rivals even the HD600. The Alpha Prime is a different beast all together, and in the search for graphical neutrality, audible neutrality was lost.
 
Dec 16, 2016 at 1:19 PM Post #2,508 of 2,891
Has anyone experienced the Primes paired up with the Micca Origen+?
 
I just had a listen last night, and I came to wonder if, for example, when playing songs through Youtube one would ideally want the volume through Youtube as close to nil as possible while have the amp/dac power most of the sound?
 
I found myself having to put the Origen+ on high gain and its volume knob turned all the way, yet I still had to put up Youtube's volume a couple of notches in order to get what I wanted...
 
Is this a hint that I need something more powerful than the Micca Origen+?
 
Dec 16, 2016 at 5:22 PM Post #2,509 of 2,891
chimney189 said:
Has anyone experienced the Primes paired up with the Micca Origen+?

I just had a listen last night, and I came to wonder if, for example, when playing songs through Youtube one would ideally want the volume through Youtube as close to nil as possible while have the amp/dac power most of the sound?

I found myself having to put the Origen+ on high gain and its volume knob turned all the way, yet I still had to put up Youtube's volume a couple of notches in order to get what I wanted...

Is this a hint that I need something more powerful than the Micca Origen+?
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In my experience, you want the volume from YouTube up as high as it will go without distorting. I know it as "unity gain". You have to have a strong enough signal going into the amplifier, otherwise all you amplify is noise. I personally want my input signal into my amps is high as possible. For instance, my Benchmark puts out 4 V in balanced mode, which is the broadcast standard. It is a very hot, but totally clean signal.
 
Dec 21, 2016 at 9:55 AM Post #2,510 of 2,891
After a week or so I'd have to say that the Micca Origen+ does not push the Primes to their full potential.
 
At this point I'm wondering about the Nuforce Icon-HDP-Black Dac/Amp/Pre-amp .. or maybe the O2 + ODAC.
 
Any recommendations? I saw a listing for the Nuforce at $200, which makes me hungrier than usual.
 
I definitely want to have more than enough headroom when powering these overgrown puppies.
 
Dec 21, 2016 at 1:13 PM Post #2,511 of 2,891
chimney189 said:
  After a week or so I'd have to say that the Micca Origen+ does not push the Primes to their full potential.
 
At this point I'm wondering about the Nuforce Icon-HDP-Black Dac/Amp/Pre-amp .. or maybe the O2 + ODAC.
 
Any recommendations? I saw a listing for the Nuforce at $200, which makes me hungrier than usual.
 
I definitely want to have more than enough headroom when powering these overgrown puppies.
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Agreed. 

I find the bass to be slightly lacking with the origen+. Its not a bad pairing, but they really need a wall-powered amp to sound their best. I find the Magni 2/Modi 2 is a great setup to power the Primes on a budget.
 
Dec 23, 2016 at 10:03 PM Post #2,512 of 2,891
Hi all.

I just spent the past few hours comparing my Primes to the Sennheiser HD – 800S's, and I am totally amazed of my reaction. Before I go into the hype, yes the Sennheiser's are amazing headphones. The soundstage, the "airiness" is really first rate stuff. But the thing is, the Primes are amazingly close in a lot of ways. In fact, in a few key areas such as percussion, I prefer the Primes by a huge margin. And as far as the depth and quality of bass, it's really no contest.

The one thing I notice is that there can be a pronounced chestiness or heaviness to human voices with the Primes, but it was really only distracting when I switched headphones.

Again, the Sennheiser's are clearly superior, especially when it comes to detail retrieval and headstage. But the Primes are just so close, so ridiculously good at what they do, that it's easy to forget that these are closed headphones. In fact, I can't really say that one is superior to the other. I think it depends more on my mood than anything else. Sometimes I want the detailed finesse of the Sennheiser's, and other times I want the full throttle experience of the Primes. Chocolate and vanilla: I think I like both!

All in all, the Primes are looking like one of the better investments I've made in this hobby. Every now and then I think about upgrading to one of the Ethers, but after my experience tonight, it's not something that is going to happen anytime soon.

:)
 
Dec 24, 2016 at 1:29 AM Post #2,513 of 2,891
+1 thats why I am in no hurry to upgrade anytime soon. I just got a pair of the hd6xx to experience a decent open headphone without breaking the bank.  But overall really happy with my Primes
 
Dec 24, 2016 at 12:02 PM Post #2,514 of 2,891
swspiers said:
Hi all.

I just spent the past few hours comparing my Primes to the Sennheiser HD – 800S's, and I am totally amazed of my reaction. Before I go into the hype, yes the Sennheiser's are amazing headphones. The soundstage, the "airiness" is really first rate stuff. But the thing is, the Primes are amazingly close in a lot of ways. In fact, in a few key areas such as percussion, I prefer the Primes by a huge margin. And as far as the depth and quality of bass, it's really no contest.

The one thing I notice is that there can be a pronounced chestiness or heaviness to human voices with the Primes, but it was really only distracting when I switched headphones.

Again, the Sennheiser's are clearly superior, especially when it comes to detail retrieval and headstage. But the Primes are just so close, so ridiculously good at what they do, that it's easy to forget that these are closed headphones. In fact, I can't really say that one is superior to the other. I think it depends more on my mood than anything else. Sometimes I want the detailed finesse of the Sennheiser's, and other times I want the full throttle experience of the Primes. Chocolate and vanilla: I think I like both!

All in all, the Primes are looking like one of the better investments I've made in this hobby. Every now and then I think about upgrading to one of the Ethers, but after my experience tonight, it's not something that is going to happen anytime soon.

smily_headphones1.gif
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I'm glad to see you still got your Primes, and thanks again for helping me decide to upgrade from my alpha's (was months ago). I've clocked a good 30-40 hours on them since september and am really taken by how well they can image.
 
Before the Primes, I never understood what the heck 'imaging' in headphones even was. There are many songs iv'e listened to that have a clear sense of space and you can hear instruments and sounds everywhere. 
 
I recently picked up the Ifi iCan SE to complete my home setup. It has a hardware bass boost called X-Bass with 3 settings of Off/Low/High. I tried listening to some EDM; though not exactly my cup of tea, it contains lots of sub-bass.
 
the track I used:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-Atrbo6g5w
 
Fun fact: With X-Bass set to high, the Primes literally shake on my head when the low bass parts come in. They now put out a ludicrous amount of bass *but* they do not distort at all! I had to nearly max volume / max gain to make distortion happen (and by then the headphones might literally explode). 
 
Dec 29, 2016 at 10:22 PM Post #2,515 of 2,891
Good day everyone,
 
I'm starting to feel a bit of a uneasiness with the treble. It teeters on the edge of piercing. 
 
For example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFvt2cNSOaM ------> Begin listening at 18:00 and let me know what you think of the highs.
 
Anywho, does anyone know a doggie treats setup that would tone down the sharpness of the treble?
 
 
EDIT: Added configuration #27 and I'm pleasantly surprised at the subtle, yet noticeable difference. 
 
Jan 8, 2017 at 2:35 PM Post #2,518 of 2,891
shuto77 said:
What's everyone driving their Alpha Primes with (I'm also getting a ZMF Ori), so I'm curious if anyone has/had both and if anyone can recommend an amp that drives both well.
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Ifi iCan SE with the Primes. The magni 2 uber works just as well for straight powering duty.
 
No experience with the ZMF, but at 24db gain and flipping through the x-bass settings, the Primes become (sub-bass) monsters.
 
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