My modded D2000s and an afternoon at Canuck57's house!

Aug 23, 2009 at 12:57 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 17

punkaroo

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Hey everyone,

This is a recap of my awesome afternoon hanging out with Canuck57 at his place. I got to try out his awesome assortment of headphones, amps, speakers...you name it, he's probably got it! Check out his profile to see his hi-fi goods!

I recently bought a pair of modded D2000s from Steve_72 on these forums. Note: this is NOT a full markl mod. The pads have been stuffed with fiberloft, the cable replaced with an APS V3 cable, and the cups have been replaced with markl mahogany cups. A very substantial, and absolutely gorgeous set of cans! I wasn't pleased with the SQ coming out of my D10. The D2k's sounded extremely quiet, and laid back. I know many people believe that because these cans are 'easy to drive', that any ol' amp can drive them. That may be the case, but the question becomes: can it drive them to their full potential? I had a feeling I might be a tube kinda gal, so off to Canuck57's I went!

The first amp I tried was the DarkVoice 337; I hooked up my MacBook Pro, external hard drive, and used my D10 as my DAC. As soon as I had it all hooked up, I hit play on Morrissey's "Now My Heart is Full", a very lush and richly recorded track. I was AMAZED at how my D2k's sounded: full, rich, forward and involving! Yes! I wanted to hear what other rock tracks would sound like, so I listened to another Morrissey track, "You're Gonna Need Someone on Your Side". This is an older recording, which required a slight adjustment of volume, but the Denons and the DarkVoice just nailed it. It was like having a studio in my skull! I also tested out "About a Girl", Nirvana from Unplugged. Beautiful presence. I would say that perhaps the treble is very slightly rolled off on these cans with the DarkVoice 337. But it's very slight. I tried out some more rock tracks, including The Rolling Stones, "Gimme Shelter". That's when Canuck57 told me to try out his Millet Hybrid amp; small and unassuming, but man those green glowing tubes were enticing! Well, lemme tell ya...that little Millet Hybrid added such a stunning sparkle to the opening notes of "Gimme Shelter" that I abandoned the DarkVoice for the rest of my listening session!
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The difference was amazing; I would say the Millet Hybrid has an even bigger sense of presence of soundstage; they're almost airy and atmospheric. I absolutely love this little amp, and it paired PERFECTLY with the Denons. I hope to buy this amp from Brian
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I had the pleasure of testing out Brian's Sennheiser HD650's, recabled with a Cardas cable. I don't know what people are talking about when they say that these are laid back; I did not get that sensation at all. I was inside the music, and it was beautiful! I will go out on a limb and say the HD650's and these modded Denons are almost identical! Crazy, I know! The HD650's don't have quite the same bass extension, (but it's very close). I tested them with Madonna's "I Want You", with Massive Attack. It's a great track as it's got a killer orchestra. Now I know why these have a cult following! Also, I did not get a sense of the 'veil' that many people discuss. Perhaps it's all in the amp?

Now on to the Darth Beyers. These are bass heavy, skull pounding cans! You could press charges for assault!
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And they're BEAUTIFUL! I put on some Massive Attack, "Antistar", and Madonna's "I Want You" again. I also tried out U2's "Do You Feel Loved" and "Mofo", both very bass heavy tracks. The bass was powerful and prominent! Brian and I agreed that they're not exactly audiophile cans, but man, I LOVED 'em! These would be awesome for drum 'n bass, or hip hop.

The Ultrasone HFI-780's were so bright and shrill that I could only stand them for a few seconds. Literally. To say they were fatiguing is an understatement! Brian told me that some felt placed over the drivers would probably tame that treble, but man, was it ever overpowering!

I also had the opportunity to try out the Larocco PRII. This is a HEAVY portable amp. Beautifully designed, very solid. And it's POWERFUL! I should have tried the HD650's with it, but I have no doubt that it would power them beautifully. I also really liked that it has a bass boost knob. Too bad the battery life on it isn't the greatest: it died on us!

On top of all this fun headphone and amp testing, I got to hear numerous turntable setups and vintage Marantz receivers and speakers. I got to hear The Doors on a DUAL CS5000, and some killer speakers (that I don't recall the name of, but I'm sure Brian will correct me). It sounded like Jim and the boys were in the room playing. Man, vinyl is just tool cool. I even listened to a vintage pair of STAX headphones, and the STAX NewSR3. Very neutral, natural SQ. For what these go for, I can definitely see why they're called "ear-speakers". I also tried the Sennheiser PX100, Koss Porta-Pros, Audio-Technica ESW9, Xenos X1HA-EPC portable amp. The assortment was dizzy-ing! Brian, you could open a MUSEUM with all your gear!

I had an awesome time hanging with Brian and listening to all his fun gear. I highly recommended listening to as much gear as possible. Not only is it a blast, but you get to hear nuances that different amps/headphones provide. It is truly amazing.

Thank you, dear reader. I hope you enjoyed this review as much as I enjoyed typing it this grey, bland morning!
 
Aug 23, 2009 at 2:10 PM Post #2 of 17
Pat thanks for the great write-up!

Pat's modded D2000s are great looking cans, the wood cups are beautiful. I compared them to my stock D2000 with JMoney replacement pads (highly recommended btw). Right away I noticed a difference between the two cans, which I'm guessing is mostly attributable to the re-cable. The re-cabled 2000s sounded clearer to me with more detail and high end sparkle. I'm definitely going to re-cable my stock 2000s.

The Millet Hybrid is a great little amp, it was built by tomb and has quality components in it. I find the 2000s sound especially good with the Millet.

The 650s are one of my favourite cans, I've never heard the much talked about viel. I agree with Pats comments about their sound signature.

The HFI-780s are VERY bright. When I first got them the treble just about killed my ears. They were much better after 500 hours of burn in. I re-cabled them myself which help and put some felt under the ear pads which tamed the treble a lot. I had just put DT-250 pads on them before Pat came over and removed the felt and used the piece of material that came with the DT-250 pads. That material doesn't tame the highs, I put the felt back in after Pat left and they're MUCH better now. Still a brighter can though, but the bass is solid & deep and the mid range is nice.

The Darth Beyers are bass monsters! Pat, I think I found one of your fillings from your teeth on the floor, you better check to see if you're missing one!

The battery life on the Lacrocco PRII is poor, however I think I may need to replace the 9V batteries. It is a GREAT sounding amp & I love the bass contour knob.

Btw the spealers were Klipsch La Scala that we were listening to The Doors LA Woman on...

The STAX 2050 system is becoming one of my favourites. The SR-202 sound great. I was worried they would be bass shy, but they're not. There's just no mid bass hump. It's a different bass from dynamic cans, but it goes low & clear. I find the SRM-252II amp a bit weak, I've added a YaQin tube processor before it which gives a nice tube sound and the Mullard 8100 tubes (rolled) seem to provide a little bit of gain to help out the Stax amp.

By the way I'm planning a meet for Sept 19th at my place if anyone is interested. Here's the thread.

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f24/te...9/#post5955294

Thanks Pat for a great afternoon talking about audio & listening to gear! (not listening to gears!)
 
Aug 23, 2009 at 3:46 PM Post #3 of 17
DAMN I knew those Darth Beyers would bad for my teeth!
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I really loved 'em!

I'm not sure what the output is on the Larocco amp, but I would go so far as to say that it could be a desktop replacement. What a great little amp! I loved the build quality. And that bass knob is the icing on the cake. Too bad it's too big/heavy to be truly 'portable'.

Those Klipsch speakers were stunning. Brian, what were the speakers that your Thorens TT is set up with? The ones you used that really cool quilt fabric on? They're beautiful!

I don't remember if I tried the 650s with the Millet amp or the DarkVoice. I really want to give those another try and listen some more.
 
Aug 23, 2009 at 4:38 PM Post #5 of 17
Quote:

Originally Posted by punkaroo /img/forum/go_quote.gif
DAMN I knew those Darth Beyers would bad for my teeth!
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I really loved 'em!

I'm not sure what the output is on the Larocco amp, but I would go so far as to say that it could be a desktop replacement. What a great little amp! I loved the build quality. And that bass knob is the icing on the cake. Too bad it's too big/heavy to be truly 'portable'.

Those Klipsch speakers were stunning. Brian, what were the speakers that your Thorens TT is set up with? The ones you used that really cool quilt fabric on? They're beautiful!

I don't remember if I tried the 650s with the Millet amp or the DarkVoice. I really want to give those another try and listen some more.



Thorens TD-166 MKII >> Luxman L-450 >> The New Large Advent speakers.

Advent speakers were designed by Henry Kloss and are a great sounding speaker.

Identifying Your Advent Loudspeakers - AudioKarma.org Home Audio Stereo Discussion Forums

I agree the Larocco is a great little portable (well somewhat portable), it can drive pretty much any headphone.
 
Aug 23, 2009 at 4:41 PM Post #6 of 17
Quote:

Originally Posted by mrarroyo /img/forum/go_quote.gif
How about some pictures of the mini meet.


We didn't take any
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We should have!

If the mini-meet happens in September, then pics will most definitely be taken
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Aug 23, 2009 at 4:45 PM Post #7 of 17
I also wanted to mention that I really enjoyed the Audio Technica ESW9. At first, I couldn't put my finger on why I liked them so much. Then I realized that not only did they have very good bass response, but it wasn't overwhelming. Plus, they are sexy as hell! Now I really want to hear the ESW10 model!
 
Aug 23, 2009 at 4:46 PM Post #8 of 17
Aug 23, 2009 at 4:52 PM Post #9 of 17
I should have named this thread better. People are missing out on some serious reviewage! THERE! I made up a new word!

Those Darth Beyers are sexay!
 
Aug 23, 2009 at 8:06 PM Post #12 of 17
Quote:

Originally Posted by mrarroyo /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Nice collection Canuck57! I see Klipsch and Thorens, is there a pair of DCM Time Windows in one of the pictures?


Good eye! They're not Time Windows but DCM Time Frame 350 (DCM TF-350). The Time Frame were made after the Time Window. They're transmission line speakers and have a 6.5" woofer and .75" tweeter. The bass is sold and goes down to 39Hz due to the transmission line design. They're a very open and airy sounding speaker.

I've read that the Time Windows were great speakers as well and hard to come by.
 
Aug 24, 2009 at 12:47 AM Post #13 of 17
It is a pity that the original Time Windows are hard to find, but if you do find them they sound amazing. I have a pair of Time Windows 1A which after 23 years of service still blow me away, enough that I have not had a desire to replace them. Cheers.
 
Aug 24, 2009 at 10:33 AM Post #14 of 17
Quote:

Originally Posted by cswann1 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
From all I've read a custom cable is a must if you want to hear what the D2000 is capable of.

Gratz on getin em Punkaroo!

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Thanks
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I'm glad I got 'em too!

I could tell a difference immediately between my modded Denons and Brian's stock pair. It was nuts!
 
Aug 24, 2009 at 1:13 PM Post #15 of 17
Quote:

Originally Posted by mrarroyo /img/forum/go_quote.gif
It is a pity that the original Time Windows are hard to find, but if you do find them they sound amazing. I have a pair of Time Windows 1A which after 23 years of service still blow me away, enough that I have not had a desire to replace them. Cheers.


Wow you've got your monies worth out of them. A lot of people have never heard of DCM Time Windows or Time Frames. The company is still around, although I'm not sure how their current speaker line up sounds.

I'll definitely keep an eye out for the Time Windows.
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