[pooMonger]

So about 2 months ago, I traded my q-Jays for HeadphoneAddict's Travagan White. He gave me a great deal, and I promised to write a review on it, so here it is!

First off, this is my first amp of any kind. My first setup was strictly a pair of Beyerdynamic DT770-80ohm Pro's hooked up to my Creative Audigy 2 ZS. I was extremely content with this for a long while, got more into IEM's (due to nappy headphone hair

), and only recently purchased the Denon D2000s. The D2000's out of the Audigy 2 sounded great! Mids were nice and forward. Bass was booming! I was thrilled. One minor thing that left me unsatisfied was that music seemed rather "slow." However, when I hooked up the D2000 to the Travagan White, this "slowness" diminished. Also, the booming bass that I mentioned before became tight and controlled. The difference was clear. As my first amp, I realized that the amp completely changed the sound signature (Audigy -> USB/DAC). At first, I was pleased with the results due to the better controlled bass and treble. Songs that were unpleasant to the ears due to harsh sibilance could now be listened to, thanks to the White.

However, not all was dandy. The mids with the White made me a sad panda

All vocals sounded slightly veiled and recessed. Totally unlike the experience I had straight out of my soundcard. So I figured, these puppies are definitely capable of forward mids. So I did what any other headphone enthusiast would do! Recable. And so I sent off my D2000s to Alex at APS. The overall process took a little longer than expected: ~5 weeks.

With the recable done, I still feel that the mids are a little veiled. Everything else rocks. Bass is so nice, and I’ve had DT770’s before, and while the strength and impact are completely different, I’d have to say I prefer this nice tightly controlled bass. But these things have less than 50 hours on them, so I’m not too jaded. I sorta dig the fact that my listening experience will improve as I clock more time with them. I’m more of a finishing product sorta guy, if that makes sense at all. Once I hit the ~300 hour mark with these, I'll definitely come back to update my impressions.

Sidenote: When I was without the D2000s for the recable, I hooked up my Sleek SA6 to the Travagan White, and wow, I was blown away. There was a noticeable increase in the bass impact, without getting in the way of the mids or highs. It thoroughly made me consider a small portable amp like the iBasso Boa for them. But, I'm a patient guy, so I'll wait for the Westone 3's to come out before I buy a portable amp.

Extra Sidenote: Thanks again to Larry (HeadphoneAddict)!

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

Nice review! The D2000 definitely need some more burn-in and the veil does go away a fair amount (only a slight veil remains with some amps more than others). I have mine on my head right now, and am loving them more and more.

I would like to hear more about your impressions of how your setup (White smp with D2000 and SA6) handles real sounds like female vocals, male vocals, acoustic material, jazz, piano, strings, classical, and how those same phones compare with the white vs another amp (i.e. soundcard HP out, or DAP or stereo receiver), etc...

I have a few questions too. Is the veil in the mids due to the D2000? i.e. what about with the SA6?

Is the veil in the mids because you are using the White's USB DAC instead of your sound-card? If so, what about when using other sources via analog input?

Also, have you been able to try out any of the opamps I gave you to install and optimize the sound?

I look forward to your further impressions!

 

[goober-george]

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeadphoneAddict /img/forum/go_quote.gif Nice review! The D2000 definitely need some more burn-in and the veil does go away a fair amount (only a slight veil remains with some amps more than others). I have mine on my head right now, and am loving them more and more. Is the veil in the mids because you are using the White's USB DAC instead of your sound-card? If so, what about when using other sources via analog input?

Quote from PooMonger:
"However, not all was dandy. The mids with the White made me a sad panda All vocals sounded slightly veiled and recessed. Totally unlike the experience I had straight out of my soundcard."

 

[inthecup]

Quote:

Originally Posted by goober-george /img/forum/go_quote.gif Quote from PooMonger: "However, not all was dandy. The mids with the White made me a sad panda All vocals sounded slightly veiled and recessed. Totally unlike the experience I had straight out of my soundcard."

Do you think the recable on the D2000 were worth the cost?

 

[pooMonger]

As of right now, I'd say that the recable is not worth the $200 price tag. But then again, do cables need burn-in as well? Someone with more hours clocked in would probably have better input.

 

[pooMonger]

Oh, and I haven't been able to try those op-amps. I will try to (and learn how to) install those op-amps this weekend.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

The APS cables need about 100 hours on them. They can be slightly harsh and bright the first 50 hours, and it gets completely better between 50-100 hours. This is with taking 24 hour breaks between listening, so as to not acclimate to the sound. The D2000 will take 300-400 hours to burn-in, with most of the changes in the first 300 hours, so the cable will be done well before the headphones are.

Also, it seems to me that the concern with the mids is not the Travagans White but rather a Synergy issue with the opamps in the White and the D2000, because there was no issue with the SA6. I had no issues with the White and my D2000 but maybe because my APS cable is a V2 silver plated copper, and my source is different.

Let us know how it sounds after you have 300-400 hours on the D2000, and AFTER you try some other opamps that I gave you. AFTER it is burned in, I might have to send you a SOIC 2:1 OPA627AU opamp board, that was special made to be smaller than a DIP 2:1 adapter, so it should fit the White. If you like it you could buy it, if not you could send it back to me. I had two of the boards made, and one was for my iBasso D2 viper, but it is 2mm too tall to fit - I am working on a solution for that issue with the D2. I planned to use the second one for either my Travagans Green or my Headstage Lyrix, so I'm kinda hoping you wont need it

 

[enobeuh]

Quote:

The APS cables need about 100 hours on them. They can be slightly harsh and bright the first 50 hours, and it gets completely better between 50-100 hours. This is with taking 24 hour breaks between listening, so as to not acclimate to the sound. The D2000 will take 300-400 hours to burn-in, with most of the changes in the first 300 hours, so the cable will be done well before the headphones are.

Also, it seems to me that the concern with the mids is not the Travagans White but rather a Synergy issue with the opamps in the White and the D2000, because there was no issue with the SA6. I had no issues with the White and my D2000 but maybe because my APS cable is a V2 silver plated copper, and my source is different.

Let us know how it sounds after you have 300-400 hours on the D2000, and AFTER you try some other opamps that I gave you. AFTER it is burned in, I might have to send you a SOIC 2:1 OPA627AU opamp board, that was special made to be smaller than a DIP 2:1 adapter, so it should fit the White. If you like it you could buy it, if not you could send it back to me. I had two of the boards made, and one was for my iBasso D2 viper, but it is 2mm too tall to fit - I am working on a solution for that issue with the D2. I planned to use the second one for either my Travagans Green or my Headstage Lyrix, so I'm kinda hoping you wont need it

 
I'm thinking of upgrading to the Travagan White and possibly a V3 recable but your mention of the synergy issue with the opamps in the amp and the d2000 is holding me back. If I were to go forward with this, what I could do to the White to fix this issue? 

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

Quote:

I'm thinking of upgrading to the Travagan White and possibly a V3 recable but your mention of the synergy issue with the opamps in the amp and the d2000 is holding me back. If I were to go forward with this, what I could do to the White to fix this issue? 

I did a review and included opamp rolling impressions near the end - http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/321463/review-travagans-green-red-and-white-with-colors-thrown-in-for-good-measure-update-travagans-black
 
Although I let the White go to the reviewer above in a trade, I still have the Green and Red.  The Green is still stock and the Red has the OPA627 in it for my HD800.  I still use the Red with a Sigma 11 PSU and my HD800 whenever I am waiting the 30-60 minutes for my ZDT amp to warm up.  It's been a long time since I used them with D2000.

 

[enobeuh]

 
 
Quote:

I did a review and included opamp rolling impressions near the end - http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/321463/review-travagans-green-red-and-white-with-colors-thrown-in-for-good-measure-update-travagans-black

 
Thanks, I actually found this review a little after making the post. I've done quite a bit of research on what I should upgrade to from my nuforce icon udac2, but I still can't decide. I'll be running straight out of a laptop to usb/dac to my D2000s, I'm leaning towards the Travagan's White right now, but I'm hesitant to pull the trigger. For my current setup, would you say this is probably my best option for under $300?
 
Edit: Is there any reason I should go for a E7/E9 combo over the Travagan's White?

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

Quote:

Thanks, I actually found this review a little after making the post. I've done quite a bit of research on what I should upgrade to from my nuforce icon udac2, but I still can't decide. I'll be running straight out of a laptop to usb/dac to my D2000s, I'm leaning towards the Travagan's White right now, but I'm hesitant to pull the trigger. For my current setup, would you say this is probably my best option for under $300?
 
Edit: Is there any reason I should go for a E7/E9 combo over the Travagan's White?

Well, for just driving the D2000 the demands on the amp are not as great as when driving the 300 ohm HD600/650 which need the extra voltage swing of the White.  In your price range you could also do well with the lesser powered iBasso D4, which from memory I would say sounds the most similar to the White but with noticeably less power for hungry headphones (Denon should be fine).  I haven't heard the D6, or D12 which are the next Gen above the D4/D10, nor the E7/E7, so I can't offer advice there.  
 
The Nuforce Icon integrated amp also works really well with Denons, and the Nuforce has an optional higher power PSU that seems to wake it up a little more, bringing it to about the same price and performance as the White.  The HiFiMan EF2 amp has a DAC and amp on about the same performance levels as the White and Nuforce when using upgraded tubes like my Raytheon 6AK5 tubes.  
 
With more demanding phones like HD600/650/800, or HE-5 LE, or my 600 ohm AKG I'd want one of these desktop amps, not a portable.  And, all three desktop amps will improve when feeding an upgraded DAC into them.  Despite what has been posted about uDAC-2, it's RCA outputs sound as good as my D4 DAC and Pico DAC-only; and it works well as an upgraded source feeding my more powerful desktop amps.  The White's DAC is still pretty nice and performs on a similar level to the one in the Nuforce Icon integrated, EF2, Meier 3MOVE, Predator or Practical Devices XM5.  This is an upgrade over my Macbook Pro, but a little below the D4's dual Wolfson DACs.
 

 

[enobeuh]

Thanks for the help HeadphoneAddict, I was perusing the For Sale board two nights ago and saw a RSA Predator on sale for $300. I did some reading and came across several posts where you seemed to really like the Predator. It was my impression that for the D2000 your top pick would be the Pico and the Predator followed closely behind. The Pico is a little out of my price range, but I felt like $300 for a Predator was a pretty decent price, so I went in that direction. (Of course 45 minutes after sending the money via paypal someone put up a Pico for less what I paid for the Predator.) Would you say this was a good move?
 
Also, if you were trying to get the most out of a pair of D2000s, what upgrade path would you take. I put some Dynamat in the cups last night, intend to stuff the earpads tonight, will probably do the rest of the partial mod next week and I have that amp on the way.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

Thanks for the help HeadphoneAddict, I was perusing the For Sale board two nights ago and saw a RSA Predator on sale for $300. I did some reading and came across several posts where you seemed to really like the Predator. It was my impression that for the D2000 your top pick would be the Pico and the Predator followed closely behind. The Pico is a little out of my price range, but I felt like $300 for a Predator was a pretty decent price, so I went in that direction. (Of course 45 minutes after sending the money via paypal someone put up a Pico for less what I paid for the Predator.) Would you say this was a good move?
 
Also, if you were trying to get the most out of a pair of D2000s, what upgrade path would you take. I put some Dynamat in the cups last night, intend to stuff the earpads tonight, will probably do the rest of the partial mod next week and I have that amp on the way.

The Predator was my favorite portable DAC/amp for over a year, till the D10 came out which sounded like a Predator clone with a more detailed DAC. It's a good amp, and about as powerful as the D10 or P-51, i.e. very strong with Denon, ultras one and Grado.

Dampening and stuffed pads are a good first move, and maybe all I would do to a D2000. The D2000 back in my day had an inferior cable to D5000, but I read that they improved that. Still, a new cable made a nice improvement in treble quality and micro-detail, even with D5000/7000. However, if you are going to spend $400+ on a new cable I'd sell them and get a D7000. Same with wood cups, and if spending that much to upgrade then a D7000 is a better investment.

 

[enobeuh]

I'm not sure I would have been willing to spend upwards of $400+ on a recable, but on a long enough timeline I probably would have done the V3 recable and gotten new cups. That puts me at over $500 worth of upgrades. Your last comment made me reconsider just selling my D2000s and upgrading to nicer phones. I'll probably buy them used from here on head-fi.
 
The D7000s seem to go for around $600-650 when resold here, and that's about as much as I would be willing to spend on a new pair (used). I have an RSA Predator in the mail, and would like anything I upgrade to to be adequately powered by it. Though I'll resale it and get something else if I need to, but I travel 5 days a week for work so having a full-fledged desktop amp would be a bit of a hindrance right now. Are there any other headphones in the $600-650 range, used, that I should consider instead of the D7000s?
 
I really like my D2000s, but I'm currently in a position where I can afford to upgrade to a nicer pair and on the fence about whether I would sell my current pair after upgrading or keep them for a while. I mostly listen to electronic music and progressive rock. Classical on occasion.
 
Edit: off-hand, do you know where you read about the D2000 coming with an improved stock cable? If not don't waste time searching for it, but I'd be interested in reading about it.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

Quote:

I'm not sure I would have been willing to spend upwards of $400+ on a recable, but on a long enough timeline I probably would have done the V3 recable and gotten new cups. That puts me at over $500 worth of upgrades. Your last comment made me reconsider just selling my D2000s and upgrading to nicer phones. I'll probably buy them used from here on head-fi.
 
The D7000s seem to go for around $600-650 when resold here, and that's about as much as I would be willing to spend on a new pair (used). I have an RSA Predator in the mail, and would like anything I upgrade to to be adequately powered by it. Though I'll resale it and get something else if I need to, but I travel 5 days a week for work so having a full-fledged desktop amp would be a bit of a hindrance right now. Are there any other headphones in the $600-650 range, used, that I should consider instead of the D7000s?
 
I really like my D2000s, but I'm currently in a position where I can afford to upgrade to a nicer pair and on the fence about whether I would sell my current pair after upgrading or keep them for a while. I mostly listen to electronic music and progressive rock. Classical on occasion.
 
Edit: off-hand, do you know where you read about the D2000 coming with an improved stock cable? If not don't waste time searching for it, but I'd be interested in reading about it.

 
I read about the cable ages ago, there's no way I can find the posts now without searching myself.  For a headphone to pair with the Predator I still think the D7000 is a good choice if you like the D2000 (more so than an Ultrasone).  I prefer my HE-5 LE which sound like my LA7000, but the Predator isn't likely to be powerful enough to do the HE-5 LE justice, and they are open phones unlike the Denon.  The LCD-2 are on a similar level to the HE-5 LE although a different sound, but more efficient for portable amps - however, I have no idea how good the pairing of LCD-2 with predator would be in terms of timbre and tone.  When I tried all my portable amps the best one for LCD-2 was my XM5 amp.