[Paladin79]

I find the primes hard to drive properly with a stand alone dap. They will do it and if you crank up the volume you will have an impression of them being driven, but when you do an a to b comparison with a dedicated headphone amp, You'll realize you've been kidding yourself. The primes are a great closed headphone, but need a good amp to do them justice. I have the ibasso dx80, dx90 and Cayin n6....But neither drive the primes to their true potential imho.

Stuart I understand what you are saying. Everything is relative, a portable dap is generally an integrated device and you will get different results with an AC powered amp. Personally I have several lower impedance sets of headphones that do not have the overall sound quality of the primes even when they are easily driven by a dap. If I want the convenience of listening on the go there is naturally a trade off. I rarely kid myself when it comes to sound. Within the world of Daps I am certain there are plenty out there that would make my primes sound better but everyone's situation is different. I received a Pono player at no cost and have around $500 in my upgraded Primes (factory upgraded with a two year warranty) so at that price I am quite pleased with the sound I get when outdoors.  Are there better ways to drive the Primes? Of course.

 

[chimney189]

Does anyone know if ZMF pads can fit on the primes?

 

[zach915m]

Does anyone know if ZMF pads can fit on the primes?

The oval pads would fit and I'd imagine the ori pads will fit too if stretched slightly.

 

[axtran]

Does anyone know if ZMF pads can fit on the primes?

They fit just fine. The sound is better with Lambskin than with Cowhide, however I recommend you try both because "better" is just how I like the sound.

 

[iceppak]

I'm curious about Prime owners impressions against the TH-X00. I'm sure the soundstage is wider on the Primes, but how does the sub bass compare between the two? I'm trying to narrow down to one if I had to choose.

 

[kushanukum]

I find my Massdrop EMU- teaks not only have better sub bass but a better soundstage than my Alpha Primes. I've never listened to the TH-X00, but I wouldn't think their that much different.

 

[Paladin79]

Have any of you tried the Alpha Primes with a Bottlehead Crack amp? They are more inclined to work well with higher impedance headphones but I was curious how the primes might fare with such an amp.
 
thanks
 
Tom

 

[targetrein]

Sort of on-topic, sort of off-topic:
 
I've been using a set of standard Mad Dogs for a few years from an Objective2 amp with zero issues.  I was thinking of using Mr. Speakers' 'upgrade' option to transform my Dogs into Alpha Primes around Christmas-time.  Since the O2 would essentially be powering the same set of drivers, should I still be OK with the O2 amp + Alpha Prime combo?
 
I currently have no plans on upgrading from the O2 amp - it's been phenomenal for the $$.  

 

[Byronb]

  Have any of you tried the Alpha Primes with a Bottlehead Crack amp? They are more inclined to work well with higher impedance headphones but I was curious how the primes might fare with such an amp.
 
thanks
 
Tom

From my experiences, it isn't great. Could have been the tubes as the amp was tubed for HD650's, but I did not enjoy the experience at all. The amp did sound amazing with the 650's though. 

 

[Paladin79]

  From my experiences, it isn't great. Could have been the tubes as the amp was tubed for HD650's, but I did not enjoy the experience at all. The amp did sound amazing with the 650's though. 

Thanks, nothing against the Alpha primes of course, just a matter of matching impedance with the amp and the 650's are not super expensive. Massdrop had some that were reasonable in price but I do not think the cable was near the quality of the standard 650. I might grab some of those, mod them and build a quality cable and go on from there.

 

[Byronb]

 
Thanks, nothing against the Alpha primes of course, just a matter of matching impedance with the amp and the 650's are not super expensive. Massdrop had some that were reasonable in price but I do not think the cable was near the quality of the standard 650. I might grab some of those, mod them and build a quality cable and go on from there.

You can't go wrong building a system around the 650's for sure. I do love my Primes, they compliment each other quite nicely. 

 

[Paladin79]

It is always fun for me to demo the Primes using just a Pono player set to balanced output. I put on some Chesky binaural recordings and I have yet to have had anyone unimpressed. Granted most are used to iphones with mp3's and stock iems so this is a new experience for them. I have built my own cables that are top of the line but the Primes can also sound good with some decent OFC wire.
 
Tom

 

[mbusby]

  From my experiences, it isn't great. Could have been the tubes as the amp was tubed for HD650's, but I did not enjoy the experience at all. The amp did sound amazing with the 650's though. 

 
The best pairing I have found is with the Project Polaris.

 

[pureangus62]

   
The best pairing I have found is with the Project Polaris.

I had a Lyr 2/Moby before upgrading to a Master 11 and noticed a big jump in SQ with my Primes

 

[WoodyLuvr]

I have the opportunity to buy a pair of new-in-the-box MrSpeakers Alpha Primes for USD 450... seriously contemplating grabbing these instead of waiting on the more expensive Aeons which will take sometime over here in SE Asia.
 
I am looking for a neutral, comfortable, and isolating headphone with good imaging/timbre wondering if these could fit the bill as a logical upgrade?  I have a small head and ears.  I listen to ambient (classical/electronic).
 
A fair price?  Someone talk me out of it or vice versa!