[Jason]

Hello,
I'm very new to this headphone malarky. Infact, I'm so new, I don't own any equipment yet!
I have a cyrus CDP and Amp without a headphone socket which is how I find myself here.
After a bit of browsing I have found the MF X cans which I am quite keen to buy. I was thinking of buying Grado SR60's or 80's.
Does anyone have any comments or suggestions on this amp and headphone? Anything will be appreciated as I know so little about this part of HiFi!

Cheers
J

P.S. Listen from Massive Attack to Led Zepplin

 

[insanefred]

Hi Jason,
Welcome to the wonderful world of headphones and all that it entails! Musical Fidelity X-Cans is a decent little headphone amp, is solidly built, and won't look out of place with your Cyrus setup. I've owned the original X-Cans (2 of them actually) and currently have the X-Cans V2, as well as a Creek OBH-11SE, another popular budget amp. Listening to an amp is the best way to tell whether or not you're going to like it, but with the XCans having been recently discontinued, it's not always easy to audition them.
I can't comment on Grado headphones, having never listened to them, because they hurt my ears too much, even without any music coming through! I use Sennheiser HD600's with both my amps, and find them to be really comfortable, great sounding heaphones.
Are you in the UK? If so, Richer Sounds have very cheap Sennheiser 600's and 580's (the model down from the 600's, almost as good). I'm also considering selling one of my amps, let me know if you're interested....
Andrew

 

[dngl]

X-Cans+grado=unhappy, or so I've read.

Since you're in the UK, go for the Rega Ear which is supposed to be a great deal and I tend to like Rega products.

 

[Hirsch]

Quote:

Originally posted by Jon Beilin X-Cans+grado=unhappy, or so I've read.

Shhh...Don't tell my Grado's about this. They sound gorgeous with the X-Can (both the SR-200 and the HP-1). I don't want them getting ideas.

Are you certain the X-Can has been discontinued? This has been a persistent rumor for a year, but new X-Cans keep coming. It's still appearing in current ads, at least in the US. www.acousticsounds.com was selling them for $269...great price. I don't know what they go for in the UK.

I don't know the SR-60 or SR-80. However, the X-Can has no problems with my Grados, and I wouldn't hesistate to recommend the combination. Without the X-PSU, which HAS been discontinued, the X-Can may not have the bass punch and definition of which it capable. Still a great amp at the price though. With the Sennheisers, you'll get a laid back highly detailed sound. Using Grados, the sound is more forward and dynamic. Either option is good.

 

[dngl]

thanks for clearing that up, hirsch.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

Quote:

Originally posted by insanefred ...but with the XCans having been recently discontinued...

Actually, according to Kevin Deal from Upscale Audio, everything else in the X-line have been discontinued, but the X-CANv2 (and the phono stage) has (have) not been.

 

[insanefred]

The latest I've heard on the Musical Fidelity side of things is that both the X-Cans V2 and the X-LPS have been discontinued, although there was to be a final run of X-LPS. I would imagine that dealers will have a supply of units left for a little while. I would imagine that Musical Fidelity would be bringing in something to replace these units? I don't know though.
Andrew

 

[Beagle]

Yeah, Grados are fine with the X-Cans, they tell you all about the warmth and tube flavour of this amp. They actually pair quite well together, especially with the X-Cans taming some of the screeching sibilants of the bowl pads.

 

[NoDigital]

I'm in the UK and bought an X-CanV2 recently for use on my pC and with my Cyrus CD7. I use HD580's and the result is very good. The X-Can gives a wider soundstage, richer and warmer bass and sounds much more pleasent than the headphone amp output on my Cyrus aCA7.5

Dont expect massive differences, use good interconnects and you wont be disappointed

(Copper Tech Alpha1 (25 quid) and QED Silver Spiral (75quid) from hifibitz.co.uk is what I tried, both with sucess and the Copper Tech is the best VFM as well as being a WhatHiFi award winner. Minimal difference using the QED cable)

Take a look at Richer Sounds and WhatHiFi for discounts on the Sennheiser range which seems to be the best match for the X-Can.

 

[NoDigital]

Quote:

Originally posted by insanefred The latest I've heard on the Musical Fidelity side of things is that both the X-Cans V2 and the X-LPS have been discontinued,

I rang Musical Fidelity and asked the same question about the X-Can having been told by my dealer it was nolonger produced. MF explained that the x-CanV2 is not discontinued and they have currently no plans to. They do not carry any UK stock and all shipments are sent direct to dealers. It's probably the lack of UK stock and waiting for the shipments from China that probably lead to the impression that its no longer available...

 

[daycart1]

I got the same story as nodigital from a uk distributor. Namely, the x-lps is out, though a replacement is in the works. The x-canv2 is in big demand (well, as these things go) and is backordered by most regular retailers.

 

[insanefred]

I stand corrected!

It's good to hear that these great little amps are still being made, they got me into this whole headphone stuff. They must be one of the biggest selling headphone amps around by now?
Andrew

 

[Anders]

I think that both the X-CanV2 and the the X-LPS are good value for money, especially in UK and Europe. But I am a little pissed off on Musical Fidelity. They discontinued the external power supply X-PSU which is an upgrade component to these and all other X-ponents people may have bought. I bought the X-LP2 last summer to listen to my old vinyl. In the autumn they discontinued the X-PSU, although I happened to get my hands on one of the last ones.
From a consumer point of view, this is obviously a move in the wrong direction. If you buy a product that is upgradable, the upgrade should be available for some reasonable time.

 

[Jacobh]

I think the Grado Sr-60 and XCans sound quite good together. I find an improvement over a standard headphone output. However, the difference isn't astounding, meaining that you don't need an amp for the grado's to sound good

 

[Jason]

Well that little lot gives me something to be going on with,
Cheers!