[Zhiliang2929]

Hi, i am looking for recommendations for an open (preferably) headphone pairings that would suit my current setup without changing anything source-wise. I am currently waiting for my balanced fully copper cable from Eletech for my Ananda and am currently using SE right now. I find the Ananda very ethereal, which i enjoyed on days but not always. Hoping to find something with better resolution and micro details without sacrificing musicality. Also, if possible an upgrade in the timbre for more realism and engagement. Would a cable change be the answer? My budget is about 2000 to 2500 either new or used.

Current Setup - AK SP2000 + Violectric V281 amp + Hifiman Ananda (stock cable)

Genre - Classical Music (70%) + Jazz (20%) + Vocals (10%)

Thank you so much in advance. Any recommendation in both headphones or cables will be welcome. Preferably if you have tried or used the sources that i am using right now.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

A V281 is an 800 pound gorilla for driving Anandas. It's a wonder you haven't blown your brains out. Turn down the volume when you try it balanced.

For classical- better resolution and micro detail, the Sennheiser 800/800S is tops in a dynamic. It will sing with your V281 but you will not like it out of your AK.

I'm not a believer in cableology. A well built cable of reasonable materials is as good as it gets. If you want to run single ended the factory 800/800S cable is plenty good enough and doubles as a vacuum cleaner cord. If you want to run balanced (which I recommend, even with big Violectrics) then there are plenty of shops that will make you a proper cable for around 100 euros. There are also some that will make you cables for 500 or 1000 euros. But I can't recommend any of those

 

[Deolum]

Sounds like a used Utopia could be the right choice.

 

[Zhiliang2929]

A V281 is an 800 pound gorilla for driving Anandas. It's a wonder you haven't blown your brains out. Turn down the volume when you try it balanced.

For classical- better resolution and micro detail, the Sennheiser 800/800S is tops in a dynamic. It will sing with your V281 but you will not like it out of your AK.

I'm not a believer in cableology. A well built cable of reasonable materials is as good as it gets. If you want to run single ended the factory 800/800S cable is plenty good enough and doubles as a vacuum cleaner cord. If you want to run balanced (which I recommend, even with big Violectrics) then there are plenty of shops that will make you a proper cable for around 100 euros. There are also some that will make you cables for 500 or 1000 euros. But I can't recommend any of those

Haha, the v281 is overkill but coming from the xCan, really can hear a big difference. I had the HD800s before but i was pairing it with Qutest and Cayin iHa-6. I sold it off because i had the HE-1000 v1 as comparison. Felt the HE-1000 gave me more realism. But maybe the pairing i used wasn't good.

Then i guess the upcoming cable is not going to make much of an impact on things.

 

[Zhiliang2929]

Sounds like a used Utopia could be the right choice.

Its definitely something i have thought about. Is the metallic sounding thing i read true or not really a problem?