need more bass than gilmore lite
Dec 17, 2007 at 4:15 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 12

tjumper78

Headphoneus Supremus
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i am currently driving hd6650 & dt990 with gilmore lite, and it feels like i am not getting as much bass as i wish.
i would like to try a tube amp b/c i've read/heard that tube amps provided warmer/smoother sound with more bass.
i've done some readings on darkvoice and little dots but i do not know specifically which model to pick.
i need recommendations in $250-$350 range. i would also appreciate recommendations in solid state amps if they can provide more bass.
my music taste is 65% rock, 30% pop, 5% other.
thank you for your help.
 
Dec 17, 2007 at 4:23 PM Post #2 of 12
Tube amps have a thicker, denser bass. They're slower down there and, typically, will give you a syrupy, slow bass. Especially with the HD-650.

I think you should either try a different headphone or get a M^3 with the variable bass boost. Or maybe a graphic equalizer so you can turn up the low end. But changing over to a tube amp probably won't give you what you're looking for.
 
Dec 17, 2007 at 4:45 PM Post #4 of 12
I disagree that tube amps typically give slow bass but given your budget, I think that SS might be a better choice for you.
 
Dec 17, 2007 at 5:07 PM Post #5 of 12
Man, you must really like your bass.
cool.gif


To second PFKMan23, the conventional wisdom is that SS excels at bass and that tube amps are often a bit rolled off and not as tight and fast in the bass, but excel in the mid range. There are exceptions to this, but usually the tube amps that do bass better than decent SS are substantially pricier than you are looking. I suspect that while you may find a SS amp in that price range with stronger bass, it will come at a cost of something else compared to the Gilmore Lite, which I think of as having having a fairly flat (i.e., accurate) frequency response in the audible range. If that isn't enough bass, you may be used to hearing your music through systems that artificially raises the bass response relative to the mid & higher frequencies. You'd probably best use an equalizer or onboard effects in your source (if available) to color your music to taste.

The other option to consider is the Headamp dedicated power supply for the Gilmore Lite. While it will not change the frequency response, it may add some speed to the bass attack and give you what you want. I can't tell you for certain as I don't have this combo, but it is a possibility that might be worth exploring. It is in your price range, although you wouldn't be able to sell off the amp like you would if you picked up another amp in that price range.

Of course, a somewhat more powerful amp may better drive one or both of your headphones without distorting the frequency response along the way. I'll leave that for others who may have experienced this.

Happy hunting!
 
Dec 17, 2007 at 5:26 PM Post #6 of 12
i already do have the dps for gilmore lite. i am quite happy with glite right now. i just wish it gives me just a little bit more bass. i'm just going to play with the equalizer for now. =)
 
Dec 17, 2007 at 6:17 PM Post #8 of 12
you must be a bassfreak because your headphones are already bass heavy as is. i thought that the glite with a dedicated power supply had plenty of bass and impact. i take it you're looking for a fat (full/rounded) and weighty (dense) bass? in that case i think a ppa would be right up your alley and within your budget. it's a step down in fidelity from the gilmore but i'm pretty certain the signature is what you're looking for. i've no idea how you would get one, but if you get one custom built i'm sure they could build it so that you could use your glite power supply to run it.
 
Dec 17, 2007 at 7:58 PM Post #10 of 12
Doubtful it's a power issue; the GL has more than enough power to drive those headphones. If you want just a sheer greater volume of bass, you could get something with harmonic distortion down low and perhaps higher output impedance, which is probably what you'd get out of tube amps in your price range and, hence, more bass...but 'slow' bass.

I never found that amp to be bass light; in my experience, it drives headphones with some pretty serious authority...as would be expected, given its performance characteristics. I think you're probably better off either buying different headphones (maybe DT770?) or using EQ. I guess the other option is changing the source to something bassy, but I'm not sure that's the most cost-effective solution.
 

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