sennfan83261
500+ Head-Fier
A CTH owner PM'd me to compare the CTH, Piety, and SW51+, so here goes:
The chain is Musicbee (FLAC) (WASAPI) > Modi 3 (USB) > Amp > HD6XX
Notes:
- CTH uses a non-stock tube (Sylvania 6C8G) + socket saver + adapter (6922/6DJ8 to 6F8G) and I used its 4-pin XLR output
- Piety set to high gain (low gain sounds too thin, even on the HD6XX)
- I also tried the Grado Hemps on the Piety, which I didn't really like. I do not know whether I didn't like Grado Hemps on the Piety or those headphones in general.
- Stock tubes on the SW51 sound very nice. I tube rolled a little bit and the ones that I tried made the treble a tad warmer.
Key:
> = Slightly better/splitting hairs
>> = Noticeably better but still fairly close
Bass impact: Piety > CTH >> SW51
Timbre: SW51 > CTH >> Piety
Imaging: SW51 > CTH >> Piety
- There's more hard left/right panning with the Piety
Soundstage width: CTH > Piety >> SW51
Clarity: SW51 > CTH > Piety
Treble: CTH > SW51 > Piety
- Personal preference. I tend to like warmer treble as evidenced by my love for Cavalli amps in my signature.
Bang for the buck: CTH > Piety > SW51
Dynamics: Cannot really tell. Maybe the SW51 is a little bit softer than the rest but I don't know if I can distinguish the three on this property.
Verdict: Unless you hate the thought of purchasing replacement tubes for the CTH, I would say stick with it, especially if you find a tube that you like with the CTH. Out of the differences, I think the Piety sounded the most different out of the three. However, the Piety timbre sounded a little bit wonky to my ears at first, which is why I put it aside for awhile. Eventually, I think my brain adjusted but I still recall the first time that I tried the Piety with the Hemps or HD6XX.
I understand that the CTH may develop the notorious "scratchy volume pot syndrome"--I know mine did after a few months of ownership! The solution is to unscrew the rear screws of casing (you may need to unscrew the bottom screws too), take out the circuit board (push or pull, I forgot), and work in a bit of Deoxit in the volume pot shaft. It has been more than two years since I did that on mine and there hasn't been any issues with the volume pot since then.
Songs (randomly picked when scrolling through my headphone testing playlist of 486 tracks):
Mandolin Orange - From Now On
To me, a good track for testing female vocals because of Emily Frantz's closely mic'd vocals at 0:18 as well as testing vocal separation when Andrew Marlin comes in at 0:47.
Vocals sounded great on the CTH and SW51+. I cannot say the same with the Piety because Emily's vocals at 0:18 had this (how can I describe) unnatural sheen to it. It is more subtle than I'm making it out to be. To me, I enjoyed this track equally with the CTH and SW51+
Lou Barlow - Home
Piety displayed its greater percussive impact here compared to the CTH and the SW51+, especially against the SW51+. The Piety and CTH are pretty close in this regard. However, this track sounded the grandest and most expansive with the CTH. With the Piety, it sounded a little bit hollow and the SW51+ too closed in. So, the CTH takes the nod here.
Just my 2c. My opinion is in no way definitive, just what I hear on my chain.
EDIT: cleaned up some typos.
The chain is Musicbee (FLAC) (WASAPI) > Modi 3 (USB) > Amp > HD6XX
Notes:
- CTH uses a non-stock tube (Sylvania 6C8G) + socket saver + adapter (6922/6DJ8 to 6F8G) and I used its 4-pin XLR output
- Piety set to high gain (low gain sounds too thin, even on the HD6XX)
- I also tried the Grado Hemps on the Piety, which I didn't really like. I do not know whether I didn't like Grado Hemps on the Piety or those headphones in general.
- Stock tubes on the SW51 sound very nice. I tube rolled a little bit and the ones that I tried made the treble a tad warmer.
Key:
> = Slightly better/splitting hairs
>> = Noticeably better but still fairly close
Bass impact: Piety > CTH >> SW51
Timbre: SW51 > CTH >> Piety
Imaging: SW51 > CTH >> Piety
- There's more hard left/right panning with the Piety
Soundstage width: CTH > Piety >> SW51
Clarity: SW51 > CTH > Piety
Treble: CTH > SW51 > Piety
- Personal preference. I tend to like warmer treble as evidenced by my love for Cavalli amps in my signature.
Bang for the buck: CTH > Piety > SW51
Dynamics: Cannot really tell. Maybe the SW51 is a little bit softer than the rest but I don't know if I can distinguish the three on this property.
Verdict: Unless you hate the thought of purchasing replacement tubes for the CTH, I would say stick with it, especially if you find a tube that you like with the CTH. Out of the differences, I think the Piety sounded the most different out of the three. However, the Piety timbre sounded a little bit wonky to my ears at first, which is why I put it aside for awhile. Eventually, I think my brain adjusted but I still recall the first time that I tried the Piety with the Hemps or HD6XX.
I understand that the CTH may develop the notorious "scratchy volume pot syndrome"--I know mine did after a few months of ownership! The solution is to unscrew the rear screws of casing (you may need to unscrew the bottom screws too), take out the circuit board (push or pull, I forgot), and work in a bit of Deoxit in the volume pot shaft. It has been more than two years since I did that on mine and there hasn't been any issues with the volume pot since then.
Songs (randomly picked when scrolling through my headphone testing playlist of 486 tracks):
Mandolin Orange - From Now On
To me, a good track for testing female vocals because of Emily Frantz's closely mic'd vocals at 0:18 as well as testing vocal separation when Andrew Marlin comes in at 0:47.
Vocals sounded great on the CTH and SW51+. I cannot say the same with the Piety because Emily's vocals at 0:18 had this (how can I describe) unnatural sheen to it. It is more subtle than I'm making it out to be. To me, I enjoyed this track equally with the CTH and SW51+
Lou Barlow - Home
Piety displayed its greater percussive impact here compared to the CTH and the SW51+, especially against the SW51+. The Piety and CTH are pretty close in this regard. However, this track sounded the grandest and most expansive with the CTH. With the Piety, it sounded a little bit hollow and the SW51+ too closed in. So, the CTH takes the nod here.
Just my 2c. My opinion is in no way definitive, just what I hear on my chain.
EDIT: cleaned up some typos.
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