[Deathdeisel]

Hey guys, longish time head-fier returning after a hiatus.

Im in the market for new gear, but im not sure what. Im stuck in a debate as to what to spend my money on, so im kinda looking for opinions on what would add the most value to what i have currently, or give me the most bang for the buck.

I currently own;

Sennheiser HD600
Lawton Denon D5000
Grado SR80s
Vmoda Crossfade Wireless 2
Sony MDR1000xMK2
1964 Ears Quads CIEMs

Driven by;
Schiit Asgard
Schiit Modi

Im an admitted basshead, if the bass isnt good, it wont get much head time. But i still love other things, the 600s mids and acoustics are awesome, grados are rarely used but only for rock. Denons are probably the best of the bunch, amazing bass, great treble, good mids.

Things im considering or interested in:
Amps
Tube Amp! Ive heard HD600s are awesome with em, and i do love my 600s, and a tube would work with most of my headphones, change em up some.

Could look at a Darkvoice 336se, or Little Dot MK2 or 3. Ive heard they are great.

Portable Amp/Dac for mobile listening(must work with android)
Fiio E18k or equivalent

OR

Headphones
New internet Bae, Monoprice M1060, similar to LCD2s for cheaper
Ive seen the hype and etc, know their flaws, seem like an awesome headphone for the money, specifically once modded.

Phillips X2 Fidellio
Overall great reviews from what ive seen, though im worried they wont excel at anything i need them to.

Fostex T50RPmk3
I've heard nothing but good things about these fostex since the mk2s. Heard the mk3s are a large improvement even then, mods as well. Planar would be nice for something different.

I'm open to closed headphones as well, but there's not many that'll beat the above listed that I know of in my price.

Portable Headphones
Monoprice m300
Few reviews out yet, but heard they are like the new revered audeze isines but cheaper. Would wait a bit for a few more reviews come out.

I recently tried the Hifiman HE400I and returned em, they sound great, but they dont really do anything way better my other headphones dont. Denons and grados have better treble, more and better bass on Denons, and mids are better on 600s.

Whatever I get id like to have a purpose for, which is why i returned the 400is, i just had no real purpose for, so what do you guys reccomend? Thanks for the help!

 

[ostewart]

As you already have good gear, a nice tube amp for those HD600's is what I would get

 

[thecrow]

Well firsty let me say that i am planning to sell my x2 in the next few days for about $200.
The x2 are a great punchy headphone that are great value for money. Also the best ive heard for movies.

For the price the detail is very good too. Better than the 400i overall FOR MY EARS.

However a tube amp for the hd600 is a great idea.

Otherwise you might really appreciate the hd650 more than the hd600 if you are already enjoying the hd600. And you can came back to a tube amp later.

 

[cossix]

Looking at your gear, I'd say get a tube amp or a Bifrost/Multibit!

 

[Deathdeisel]

3 votes tube amp. Thecrow, as much as I love my hd600s, I got such a great deal on them and the difference between 600vs650 is so mild vs other headphones I know id never make that purchase.

X2s I've definitely heard great things of.

Cossix, I'm tempted to get a bifrost simply to make the format match my Asgard, but cost vs performance there's no way I could justify it. IMO DACs hit diminishing returns sooner than most other gear parts.

 

[thecrow]

3 votes tube amp. Thecrow, as much as I love my hd600s, I got such a great deal on them and the difference between 600vs650 is so mild vs other headphones I know id never make that purchase.

X2s I've definitely heard great things of.

Cossix, I'm tempted to get a bifrost simply to make the format match my Asgard, but cost vs performance there's no way I could justify it. IMO DACs hit diminishing returns sooner than most other gear parts.

Don’t underrate what a dac can do, at least without demoing one with your gear. (But everything needs to fit together)

A lesson i learnt when i went up a few levels in gear

 

[Deathdeisel]

Yeah don't get me wrong, I know it can make a difference, but I feel once you spend 100-200$ on a DAC, you've done most of it's job, replacing the crummy onboard for most devices.

I'm sure it would sound better than my modi, but it'd be hard to justify vs a tube amp, or new cans.

 

[BunnyNamedCraig]

3 votes tube amp. Thecrow, as much as I love my hd600s, I got such a great deal on them and the difference between 600vs650 is so mild vs other headphones I know id never make that purchase.

X2s I've definitely heard great things of.

Cossix, I'm tempted to get a bifrost simply to make the format match my Asgard, but cost vs performance there's no way I could justify it. IMO DACs hit diminishing returns sooner than most other gear parts.

+1 for tube amp for the HD600! It can be silly how good it sounds together. Just depends on what amp you get (synergy to HD600), and how far you want to go with tube rolling. There are tons of info about that pairing though (HD600 and tubes) but you probably already knew that.

Also, I would wait on spending money on a DAC unless you bump up to $300+ for one. The Mojo near a no brainer recommendation.

 

[Deathdeisel]

Thansk for all the replies so far. So since we're at +4 for tube Amps, what would you guys suggest?

It's gotta at least work for my non hard to drive headphones, and I prefer the most amount of tube sound. I don't have a perfect ear, so subtle differences aren't my forte.

I love schiit gear, but I've heard the Valhalla isnt very tubey. The darkvoice I've heard is good overall, same for little dot mk2 or mk3. I've heard both improve greatly with new tubes as well, but if I'm gunna tube roll right off the bat it's still gotta stick under 300$.

Thanks again folks

 

[PurpleAngel]

Thansk for all the replies so far. So since we're at +4 for tube Amps, what would you guys suggest?
It's gotta at least work for my non hard to drive headphones, and I prefer the most amount of tube sound. I don't have a perfect ear, so subtle differences aren't my forte.
I love schiit gear, but I've heard the Valhalla isnt very tubey. The darkvoice I've heard is good overall, same for little dot mk2 or mk3. I've heard both improve greatly with new tubes as well, but if I'm gunna tube roll right off the bat it's still gotta stick under 300$.
Thanks again folks

The solid state Asgard headphone amplifier is really more then enough for driving all your headphones, even the HD600.
The 300-Ohm HD600 is about the only headphone you have that might truly benefit from a OTL tube headphone amplifier, like the Darkvoice 336SE.
Now a hybrid (tube/solid state), might add a nice tweak to your lower Ohm headphones, over the solid state Asgard (maybe).

 

[Oscar-HiFi]

@MTMECraig sells the Elemental Watson hybrid amp which gives plenty of driving power with a hint of tube warmth (superb little amp).

But personally I would get the Little Dot MKII and some upgrade tubes