[Saberpunch]

Cool tube amp @GaryP ! What kind of tube amp is that?

 

[GaryP]

Cool tube amp @GaryP ! What kind of tube amp is that?

http://en.dubieltubeamps.pl/42/stereophonic-headamp-hv-1/

A polish one. A great one!
Hidden gem

 

[Saberpunch]

A hidden gem indeed. Hope it brings you joy with your Onkyo A800!

 

[Saberpunch]

1 thing I noticed is that Onkyo A800 owners got unique taste and I love it. Either the EXH-313 or the headamp HV-1 or even the Onkyo A800 owner that owns a Sony MDR-R10. Onkyo A800 owners have great and unique taste in their collection, yet it makes me smile you guys still uses the Onkyo A800. I still uses my Onkyo A800 pretty much weekly just to listen to its awesomeness it brings to my music even after owning and experiencing a lot cans no matter the price range!

 

[Saberpunch]

Someone in this thread mentioned that the Auteur pads was too bassy for them. I ordered the Auteur pads last year for my ATH-W10VTG cause I like that pad with my bassy headphone. Fast forward to now, I change a lot of pads in my rotation. My favorite headphones ATH-L3000 and Onkyo A800 are using Vesper pads (really good quality pad imo). Now I got a bunch of ZMF pads lying around so I thought I would try them out on my secondary Onkyo A800 (basically for portable use and wanted that to be more tuned on the bass side) and my ATH-W10VTG.

My secondary Onkyo A800 was using the Caldera Thin Pads before, now I switch to the Auteur Pads for it. So the below description is me coming from the Caldera Thin Pads to the Auteur Pads.

The Auteur Pads adds crazy amount of bass in the Onkyo A800! When I mean crazy, I mean that you got to be a mad lad to use the Auteur Pads with the Onkyo A800. The amount of bass is insane, but the trade off is that the soundstage felt more closed in. The Onkyo A800 actually sounds like a closed back headphones with these pads where the soundstage is cramp, but there is a lot of bass. Bass extensions might be affected in a negative way, but it’s barely any different. Vocals is not forward, so it where it should be. Treble and midrange don’t seem to have any drastic difference besides the midrange is less forward.

I don’t recommend the Auteur Pads for everyday use on the Onkyo A800 since the bass quantity is amplify with these pads to the point where it can be distracting to the music, but these pads are really fun to use occasionally. I say go for them if you want your Onkyo A800 just a pure mid bass monster with these and go for the Vesper pads for everyday use since that helps the Onkyo A800 with clarity/soundstage and all that good stuff.

Left is my Secondary Onkyo A800 (Auteur Pads) and Right is my Primary Onkyo A800 (Vesper Pads 25 mm thick natural latex). Primary Onkyo A800 is with my DAP right now because I wanted to try my new DHC cable with it on my portable setup.

Below is what the Auteur pad looks like attach to the Onkyo A800. It is a angle pad.

 

[Saberpunch]

2023 Update!

Intro:
Honestly, I did not think my setup or collection would change so much in only 1 year. But I guess I was like F it, and just did a whole upgrade on basically everything in 2023. I am probably not going to do a in-depth ranking like I did in 2022. I also cannot rank which of my top 5 headphones I like the most because it really just varies on the mood and what specific part of the song I want to listen to. It's really hard to choose just one headphone that I can confidently say this is my favorite headphone.

I guess let's start with what I am looking for mostly in a headphone: How good/natural vocals can sound > Instrumental Timbre > Neutral Tonality (can be a little warm for some richness or can be a little bright) > Have a little meat in the music and not too thin sounding > Sub-bass > Clarity > Soundstage. I rank Sub-bass > Clarity > Soundstage near the bottom, but they are pretty important as well. Just not as important as the things above it. Everything on that list is really important, it's just what I look for first in a headphone.

I have been expanding my music genre, been listening to Jazz trio/quartet (songs like like Mercin Wasilewski Trio and Oded Tzur) and Modern Day Rap (Travis Scott and Tyler, The Creator). I even found new Jrock bands I never heard of before 2023 like Band-Maid (one of my favorite bands ever now) and discovered new Jmusic artist like Yorushika. I still listen to music I like to listen to in the past like Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, and Carlos Santana is my top artist I like to go back to. I am really glad I started listening to more "modern" day songs because the new TOTL headphones I got really show off what these producers/artists put into these tracks and they can sound amazing depending on what I am trying to showcase. For example, the Susvara imaging and soundstage on Travis Scott newest album "Utopia" sounds pretty amazing and stadium-like I never really get in my other headphone collection.

Expanding my music genre really shows me that it really is just preference at the end of the day no matter what the price range is. Music will always sound good (in very rare cases if a piece of audio equipment just straight out sucks), but the equipment is just there to help improve that music that you always like. It's debatable to say a song will only sound good on a specific headphone, but I know some people who get off-brand items under $20 and listen to dubstep with them. But I do agree if I didn't like that song in the first place, higher-quality headphones help that song sound much better to me especially if synthesized bass is involved.

Long intro... lets go to the next segment

***Headphones I owned currently in 2023***

AKG K240 Sextett EP
AKG K340 (Red Driver Version)
Audio Technica L3000
Audio Technica W10VTG
Audio Technica W1000
Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro 250 Ω
Hifiman Susvara
Koss KSC75
Mezes 99 Classics Walnut Gold
Mysphere 3.2
Onkyo A800 Yes, I own 2 Onkyo A800
Raal SR1a
Sennheiser HD580 Jubilee
Sennheiser HD250 Linear 1 (Early Production, Black Drivers) 600 ohm
Sony MDR-MA900
Yamaha YH-1

***My Ex-Headphones I sold in 2023***
Audio Technica AD2000
Audio Technica W5000
Final D8000 Pro LE
Sony MDR-CD3000 (Hella regret selling this one lol)
ZMF Caldera Kingwood LTD

Raal SR1a/Speaker Setup: ROON Rock - Intel NUC 7i7 > EMM Labs NS1 > [AES] Mojo Audio Mystique EVO B4B 21 > Custom 45/6SN7 Tube Only Supratek Cabernet DHT > Schiit Vidar 2 > Polk Reserve R200 / Raal Sr1a

Headphone Setup: ROON Rock - Intel NUC 7i7 > EMM Labs NS1 > [AES] Mojo Audio Mystique EVO B4B 21 > [AES] Custom 45/6SN7 Tube Only Supratek Cabernet DHT > [RCA] Allnic HPA-5000XL > Headphones

Ok, so I mentioned earlier that I can't choose because it's really specific to the mood.

Here is my ranking:

1. Susvara: Headphone that does no wrong and only right. I expected this headphone to be bass-light from a lot of people’s (other forum) impressions, but man the bass is really well done on this headphone. It’s not too exaggerated where it bleeds to it’s beautiful mids, but it’s enough there and quality is there. The subbass is mighty impressive. It's probably the lowest reaching bass I ever heard from a headphone and you can really feel the bass the further you put your ears away from the Susvara. The Mids is just downright beautiful, smooth, and delicate. This is what I would call high-class mids. It’s just so addicting and easy to get lost in the Susvara mids, I can see why people are ready to drop $10K plus on a amp for the Susvara. I had a moment of weakness for a bit, but I remember listening to the Viva amp, then remembering when I listened to the Schiit Folkvangr, while listening to the Allnic Amp the entire time. The Allnic HPA-5000XL is a very solid higher middle ground in the spectrum of amp prices ($100 - $16K), especially since I got it used. The Allnic Amp also helps with its unique presentation on the soundstage and my entire setup was originally to buff the Onkyo A800 bass which also helped the Susvara to get a bass sound that I will appreciate as well. There is something in the Susvara treble that makes it so airy and will make me go “wow” on certain songs (mostly synth-pop songs and dance music). On top of all that, it pulls details from the recording like it’s nothing and not in an offensive way. The soundstage is grand with amazing reverbs on vocals. The Susvara really make it sound like a huge concert depending on the track. Its also the second-highest midrange clarity headphone in the rotation besides the Raal Sr1a being 1st and Mysphere 3.2 tied with the Susvara for 2nd, but it’s not a huge gap in clarity. For overall clarity accounting for low range and high range as well of the midrange of the frequency, I say Susvara might be best clarity I have in the collection just because the Raal SR1a just feels like it's missing subbass and I think the Susvara treble has more wow's vs the Mysphere 3.2. Well, if everything is so amazing, why don’t I just use the Susvara? Well, one of my biggest reasons is because the other headphones may not be as technical as the Susvara, but they bring really unique traits to the music that the Susvara just can't replicate. 1 thing is excitement about music. The Susvara can bring excitement to the music, but at the same time, I can double that excitement just by switching to another headphone in my main rotation but in exchange sacrificing a lot of its technicalities. I think the level of excitement it brings to me is worth the tradeoff (depending on the mood of course). Overall, this is a masterful class headphone that does almost perfectly in pretty much everything.

1. ATH-L3000: This headphone is my first love. It made me downsize and get rid of all my original mid-fi collection. This headphone to me, is almost unbeatable when it comes to fun, energetic, yet still somehow pretty musical. Like the Susvara and my previously owned D8000 Pro LE, I think it’s a very balanced headphone where it’s pretty dang satisfying across the spectrum. I say it’s biggest strength is the mid-bass and lower mid-range which to me is what makes the headphone sound very special. Mids get sweet (not too sweet) and are more forward. Bass is really amazing with the ATH-L3000. It can get “bassy” in terms of quantity when you turn up the volume, but your ears are going to get damaged at that volume. The Subbass can get pretty amazing especially with some modern-day rap songs like Daylight - Drake. So everything in the bass range and low midrange of the ATH-L3000 is just pure awesomeness. It made me think it probably earned it’s nickname “Bass-King” because it’s a bass headphone done right because a lot of bass headphones I tried compared to the ATH-L3000 are either missing that midrange which I like very much, or the bass just becomes too distracting in the song. The ATH-L3000 is just very well done and that headphone was created in 2004 when they did this... Treble probably gets overshadow because of the ATH-L3000 fantastic bass and midrange. The better your treble, the sharper your instrument will sound and the guitar will sound more energetic (exciting). It’s not overly done where it could get offensive, but juuuuust right to me. That is also another reason why a lot of people like this headphone for rock songs because it’s perfect balance of bass, midrange, and treble for that genre while also still retaining a good amount of resolution. Another good strength is the imaging on the ATH-L3000. What it lacks in soundstage, it makes up for it in imaging. I think having a small-median soundstage with good imaging gives a more natural feel of where the instruments would be in my head. The Allnic amp does exaggerate it, but in a more fun way so I don’t mind. 1 weakness I will say is that on some tracks, vocals can come across as "unnatural" especially comparing it to my other 4 headphones: Susvara; Raal SR1a; Mysphere 3.2; and Onkyo A800. But honestly, that's just an Audio Technica midrange trait. All Audio Technica headphones I tried can sound unnatural in the midrange depending on the quality of the track, but they get this uniqueness on them that can be addicting. On high-quality tracks, vocals can sound natural on the ATH-L3000 where the it really showcases the ATH-L3000 high midrange clarity. Overall, the ATH-L3000 is a really good headphone for awesomeness. So I recommend people giving this a listen especially as time goes on, because this headphone is from like 2004, so who knows how many is left now.

1. Raal SR1a: Honestly, everything almost a lot of things I like about the Susvara (except midrange since both headphones perform midrange pretty different) I like about the Raal SR1a, but in a more aggressive and exaggerated fashion. One of the best bass textures I ever heard, hands down. The quantity isn’t quite there, no “oomph” in the bass. But the quality, cleanest sounding bass, easy. It’s clean, with no distortion, and no extra notes ringing, it’s a really good-sounding bass, just without the “oomph”. The bass punch is actually quite good, but I heard it really comes down to pairing. So my power amp just so happens to give me some good mid-bass punch on the Raal SR1a. Mids is a different flavor for sure compared to the 1st two mentioned headphones where it's more a clean-sounding mid without the richness. The highest midrange clarity headphones I own in the collection. The music sounds real, but something felt very off and I couldn’t really put my finger on it. Then, I tried another headphone and I finally understood what it was. The Raal SR1a is a little too fast in the bass. The bass disappears so quickly, the music sounds a little faster on the Raal SR1a and it’s throwing me off-beat. I have to adjust my brain to use it every time, especially with bass-heavy music, but it is rewarding because the clarity is amazing and the amount of details is fantastic. The treble is nice, bright, and exciting, but it never got too bright for me which I like. The soundstage is nice and huge and can honestly play outside my range (like sometimes a foot in front of me stage left depending on the track). I actually really like playing video games using the Raal SR1a and using it for non-music enjoyment more because of its high clarity mids and impressive soundstage. Another thing that stands out for me is that vocals seem to shine a little more on the Raal SR1a as well when comparing it to the rest of my collection except maybe the Mysphere 3.2. I really like the Raal SR1a headphone more as a tool rather than something to use for music enjoyment. But it's still really good for music enjoyment as long as you are not trying to listen to a track that relies on sub-bass.

1. Mysphere 3.2: This was probably one of the first headphone that I created a dedicated playlist to. The Mysphere is pretty picky on what it can sound amazing on. Its some tracks, it can be good, but on some tracks it sounds like the best thing ever. It’s picky on what it wants to sound amazing for and also playing with the frames on my head takes some time. Usually, I don’t want a headphone that is a hassle, that is why I instantly sold my ATH-W5000. But, gotta admit…the Mysphere 3.2 is the best-sounding audio equipment I ever heard of in my life. If you can find your right song, with the frames placed perfectly, it is an absolutely magical experience. I had a more emotional connection with the Mysphere 3.2 like she is my long-lost lover or something. I think this is the only headphone where I ever really felt, this is real. One thing I really like about the Mysphere 3.2 vs a lot of headphones I tried in the past (including my ownership of the Caldera and D8000 Pro LE which is in the similar Retail Price Range of $4-5K as the Mysphere 3.2) is that the Mysphere on my particular setup, have this magical way to remove equipments from the music. What I mean by this is that you can kind of tell the quality of a person’s mic with a good headphone and that usually gives you a reminder that you are listening to a recording. With the Mysphere, there is no equipment, it is just you and the artist. In a good recording, it really sounds to me like there is no barrier between me and the artist. That gives me the best immersion on a recording that no other headphones really do for me. The sound is very clean and clear. I want to say because of its open frames, it gives an amazing black background. That tends to make music sound more “clearer” compared to the regular headphones that wrap your ears in a seal pad. The Mysphere 3.2 captures timbre perfectly for me, but only four acoustic instruments and vocals. When it comes to synth music, the Susvara and Raal SR1a do a better job recreating those sounds. Because the Mysphere 3.2 sounds very next level only on acoustic music to me, it became just a specialist headphones rather than an all-rounder. It can still sound pretty good with genres like modern rap thanks to its nice midbass punch and classic rock, but it wouldn't be my first choice in my collection. Similar to the Raal SR1a, the Mysphere 3.12 subbass isn't too great, so I would avoid music that relies on bass. Comfort is another issue depending on your head. I let a lot of people use the Mysphere and noticed it doesn't completely fit their head like how the Mysphere fit my hear. You can't really adjust the headband, you can only adjust the positioning. You can adjust the frames sliding up and down on your head though. Even with all these requirements for the Mysphere to sound magical, the Mysphere is also the only headphone that convinced me that we can get closer to real live music. No other headphone even in my current collection give me this magical feeling of the performer having no microphone and I don’t have my equipment. Just a raw performance, a very intimate and emotional experience. The closest headphone to give me that experience is probably the Raal Sr1a, but the recording got to be really high quality.

1. Onkyo A800: I wrote like 4 Onkyo A800 impressions on 2 different forums, kinda tired of rewriting them lol. Compared to what I have now, I still think the Onkyo A800 can still offer me something even in my current collection and my time of listening and trying out other high-level gear. There is something magical about the Onkyo A800 entire tuning that makes its presentation very unique. At first, I thought it was just its bass, but another Onkyo A800 owner recommended a pad to entirely remove the bass. The pad worked and the mids were amazing. I also know there is something extra special in the treble that makes the guitar extra exciting compared to a lot of the headphones I listen to, even the ATH-L3000. Having good bass on top of that is a huge upgrade to its overall musical presentation of great mids and good treble. I also used to thought the Onkyo A800 was probably more on the consumer side of bass since my ATH-L3000 was considered more of an “audiophile” bass. Then I remembered the Mezes 99 classics and did not like the bass presentation on those. The Onkyo A800 bass is more tasteful with some bloom and probably my one of my favorite-sounding bass. I say The Onkyo A800 biggest strength to me is probably the midbass and high mids which is why I think its probably my favorite headphone in the collection for electric guitars. I really like vocals on the Onkyo A800. I will admit that male vocals sound better (probably because of the lower end of the frequency) but female vocals also sound great on the Onkyo A800. And when I say the vocals sound good, I don’t mean it sound sweet like the ATH-L3000. I think the vocals sound tonally correct to me with the Onkyo A800. The Mysphere 3.2, Sr1a, and Onkyo A800 are my go-to vocals and the Susvara/ATH-L3000 is there where I want something more richness in the vocals. Clarity isn’t really an issue with me, mainly because I just really like how everything sounds together when the music starts playing. Clarity isn’t bad like the Sennheiser HD600 famous veil or like the Mezes 99 classics, I think it's good enough personally, especially for its price range. The Onkyo A800 became my favorite headphone since last year 2022 and I still reach out for the headphone a lot of times even with my current collection. I even have times where I thought I just sell everything and just live with the Onkyo A800 lol. But I will admit that just like how the Onkyo A800 presentation and sound is very unique to me, so is the Susvara, ATH-L3000, Raal Sr1a, and Mysphere 3.2.

That is pretty much it lol. I told you I can't really choose between the 5 because it depends what I want to listen to that day. But the reason I would reach out to these headphones are:

- Susvara (Reference headphone and headphone I reach out for when listening to a new song for the first time because its the best all-rounder in the collection. Favorite genres are probably pop/busy tracks with a lot of synth music.)
- ATH-L3000 (Classic rock music and modern-day rap music because the midrange and bass are really awesome)
- Raal SR1a (Mostly non-music enjoyment purposes and more of a tool I use. When I reach out for it for music enjoyment, mostly when I am craving the highest resolution for vocals)
- Mysphere 3.2 (basically any song that has good synergy with the headphone lol. This is my perfect world situation headphone. Songs I found the best synergy is non complex acoustic music. So more small group violinists like Arabella Stenbacher songs rather than a classical orchestra)
- Onkyo A800 (Songs I want to really bring the mid-bass or just want to really have fun with the song. Mostly Jmusic, especially from producers like Giga-P where the bass is what makes the song really pop, but its not really subbass, but more mid-bass.)

If I had to rank the rest of my headphone collection in terms of enjoyment it's:

2. Audio Technica W10VTG
3. Sennheiser HD580 Jubilee
4. Sony MDR-MA900
5. Sennheiser HD250 Linear 1 (Early Production, Black Drivers) 600 ohm
6. Yamaha YH-1
7. Audio Technica W1000
8. Koss KSC75
9. Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro 250 Ω
10. Mezes 99 Classics Walnut Gold
11. AKG K340 (Red Driver Version)
12. AKG K240 Sextett EP

Outro:
Of course, my opinion could change again next year like my opinion change from 2022 - 2023 kinda (it really didn't change honestly because the ATH-L3000 and Onkyo A800 are still my top favorite headphones, the top favorite headphone list just got longer lol. There are a lot of cool headphones to try out next year like the Final X8000, ZMF Caldera Closed, and even the Yamaha YH5000 whenever they release the cheaper package for those headphones. Only want to try those headphones, not buy them. Kinda spent because I spent way too much money this year than I ever thought I would for a hobby. Of course I am currently really happy with the results I gotten, but the price was steep... I think I really want to just chill with the things I have and just take at least a 1 year cooldown and focus my funds on my other hobbies.

Thanks for reading and I hope you guys had a good 2023 and looking forward to 2024

Because my equipment got me really addicted to audio lately, I have been doubling my listening sessions from averaging like 50-70 hours to 100+ hours since July.

^ Recently made a post ranking my favorite headphones and couldn’t choose my top 5 as it really varies what mood I am in.

But man… when the mood crave for the Onkyo A800, this headphone really hits all the right spots! I know I keep making the same repeats over and over again but the bass on this headphone is unbelievably satisfying for me, more so than the ATH-L3000 to me. For the past month or so, I have been getting back into modern rap which I stop listening in 2014 for some reason. I’ve been craving some serious bass in my music especially since I have been using my speakers with subwoofers a lot more recently. The Onkyo A800 mid-bass hits the hardest and the most satisfying in my collection for sure. The Onkyo A800 subbass probably don’t reach as low as the Susvara, but the Onkyo A800 subbass have a nice rumble and you can really hear the subbass on that headphone. With the Susvara, the subbass have a nice rumble too and you can really hear/feel the subbass especially if you put the drivers away from your head. I just think the Onkyo A800 subbass sounds more audible. The bass is truly my favorite aspect of the Onkyo A800 and probably my favorite headphone for bass in my collection and everything I tried in the past in meets and shows.

I have been expanding my genres a little more and getting back to music I used to listen to in the past like modern rap. I just wanted to make this post that the Onkyo A800 does really well in modern rap music.

Modern Rap I listened to today with the Onkyo A800:

Jmusic with good bass that I been listening to since I have been craving good bass in my tracks recently:

Bonus Comment:

I love reading people impression for Onkyo A800 and found this really cool review in Reddit. I like the way he describe the Onkyo A800 which to that person, the Onkyo A800 is a neutral headphone with a boasted weighty bass that doesn’t change the overall tonality of the headphone. It’s a good read if you want some more Onkyo A800 impressions:

Reddit review that’s pretty good: https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones...a800_headphones_review_hd_600_with/?rdt=41444

Alright, time to get back to Thanksgiving . I hope everyone eat good today!

 

[mjstealey]

Thanks to @Saberpunch for putting the Onkyo A800 on my radar!!
We were table-mates at the Western NC Schiit-meet in April and he was generously sharing the goodness that is the Onkyo A800 with all who were interested.

Flash forward a number of months and I finally managed to find an A800 in phenomenal shape

Took a chance on some ZMF Ori Lamb Perforated pads and am really pleased with the outcome!
I was initially concerned about these pads flattening out the bass a bit, but it's still full, round, and plentiful without being overpowering.
Mids are robust, and highs have an exquisite airiness to them.
Driving them from a Feliks Euforia with some crossfeed at the moment.

 

[Saberpunch]

Nice!!! Really clean looking Onkyo A800. It looks practically brand new!

I’m glad you enjoy the Onkyo A800. It makes it worth going to local meets to see people enjoy similar hobbies and gears as me.

Enjoy your Onkyo A800 journey. It’s my personal favorite along with the Mysphere 3.2 even after all this time!