Hi all. Looking for advice on getting cans for Schiit Valhalla2, still pretty happy with my Sennheiser hd600. What's the next step up? An OTL amplifier of course, so doesn't work that well with my Arya Stealth Magnets. Sounds really good with my Sennheiser hd600, pretty much as good as my Arya Stealths, but is there any way to up the game? Looking to this year be at 'end game' or finished for my lifetime of buying hi-end audio gear. Reached that now with Schiit stack and Arya stealth. But think there is a way to go on tube amps. So signal chain is still a Schiit Modi to Valhalla 2, then cans. Split the signal. Still can't hear the difference between Modi/Magni stack and Valhalla2. But maybe with the right cans? Any ideas? Any thoughts welcome.
Need help. Good cans for Valhalla 2, high-impedance. Have Senny HD600.
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I should mention budget, which is around 1k to 1500 usd. Above that hard to justify.
I'd first get the Topping A70Pro before headphones, since the Arya sounds so good on them. I have two, and it's the best sounding amp I've ever heard.
You've got good headphones, and youkamoo balanced cables for both are really affordable.
You've got good headphones, and youkamoo balanced cables for both are really affordable.
High impedance Beyerdynamic headphones match very well with OTL tube amps. I have the 250 ohm DT990 PRO and love it. Your budget can afford higher priced Beyers like the 600 ohm DT880 or the 250 ohm Amiron Home.
wantan
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The dt770 sounds great with Valhalla 2 for my taste and the dt990 is fantastic with V2. Reducing the treble a bit via EQ helps both.
Just listening with V2 and dt880 (EQ in bass and treble) and the sound truly stunning.
You need to love some sparkle in the treble though.
Just listening with V2 and dt880 (EQ in bass and treble) and the sound truly stunning.
You need to love some sparkle in the treble though.
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Have dt770 80 ohms, could upgrade to dt990 I guess. Just picked up Hifiman Sundara closed back for 250 bucks including shipping and VAT (
45 usd in FedEX), but of course not a good match. The next step up in hifiman range were 1000usd, out of my budget. Maybe later. Those are at least higher ohm, but looking for open backed high impedance cans. Looking to sell dt770 pro and akgk271mkii now that I have Sundaras. Problem is in Norway 'low-end' cans are almost impossible to sell. People only interested in high-end from 1-3k USD.
45 usd in FedEX), but of course not a good match. The next step up in hifiman range were 1000usd, out of my budget. Maybe later. Those are at least higher ohm, but looking for open backed high impedance cans. Looking to sell dt770 pro and akgk271mkii now that I have Sundaras. Problem is in Norway 'low-end' cans are almost impossible to sell. People only interested in high-end from 1-3k USD.
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The Beyerdynamic don't seem like an upgrade from Sennheiser hd600 though, are half the price. Was looking to upgrade from h600, not downgrade.
Think with the modi/magni stack and Valhalla2 am done with amps, although the topping does look nice. But no space on my desk for more amps anyway. Think amps is a matter of diminishing returns.
Well, upgrade is not always achieved through upping €€€.
See that, looking to sell if possible dt-770 pro and akg k271mkii anyway. But apparently dt880 pro is the best high impedance Beyerdynamic has to offer? Then cheap. Relatively speaking. Cost 2550 nok here or around 250 euro. Compared with 800 usd for Arya stealth. Or 400 euro for Sennheiser hd600.
The proof of the pudding is in the eating. Listen and compare. Audition a 600 ohm DT880 or 250 ohm DT990 preferrably through an OTL tube amp and see if it sounds better or worse to you than your HD600. If there is no way to find a brick and mortar store nearby, then order one online and you can still return it for a refund with no explanation at all.
But there is the 250 ohm Beyer DT1990 PRO and the 250 ohm Amiron Home, both sold for more than a Senn 600, so you have more choices than the DT880 or 990. Their flagship T1 used to be high impedance as well but the current version on the market (Gen.3) is low impedance unfortunately.
But there is the 250 ohm Beyer DT1990 PRO and the 250 ohm Amiron Home, both sold for more than a Senn 600, so you have more choices than the DT880 or 990. Their flagship T1 used to be high impedance as well but the current version on the market (Gen.3) is low impedance unfortunately.
The Arya is planar magnetic. I wouldn't buy it to use with the Valhalla.
Well the DT880 600 ohm look promising. But not available in Norway. At 2500nok the same cost as my newly purchased closed-back Hifiman Sundara. Half the price of my Sennheiser hd600. Tempted to pull the plug, but already at 10 cans here, at risk of being a real hoarder. And difficult to sell cans, people only want high-end cans of 1000 bucks and up.
Thanks warp, may be a new purchase. Could be hard to find 600 ohm version in Norway. Looking to get end-game hi-fi sorted in the next couple of years. There already with Schiit stack and Arya Stealth for low-impedance cans, now just want the same for Valhalla2. But very pleased so far with hd600. Not quite end-game though. Ideally, I would sit just with three cans..one for Schiit stack (arya stealth) one for Valhalla2 (hd600 or something better), and one pair of closed-back cans. So far Sundara is my best pair of closed-back cans, but think I can do better. Also better than hd600 on Valhalla2. But that's as far as I go amp-wise. Happy listening!
Well ordered in Beyer dt880 600 ohm for 237 usd. Hope that does the trick. Then have both that and hd600 for Valhalla2. Now at 11 headphones, becoming a real hoarder! Going downstairs now to see how dt770 pro does on Valhalla 2. Maybe I missed something. But seems a bit entry-level. So far Sundara closed-back seems better than dt770 or akg k271mkii. Obviously those planar cans do better on a solid-state stack than vallhalla2 or otl amp.
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