ppx3 or ha1mk2

[ssingh0]

I have a corda ha1mkII, I"m curious to know what the difference would be if I went to ppx3.

 

[sacd lover]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ssingh0 I have a corda ha1mkII, I"m curious to know what the difference would be if I went to ppx3.

Give head-fier EdipisReks a pm. He had both. He is a nice guy and I am sure he would answer your questions.

Here is a thread with some comparisons between the two amps.

http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showt...ght=edipisreks

 

[ssingh0]

cool that link has a lot, seems that the trade-off would be speed.

 

[EdipisReks]

both of you guys have PM's

 

[Rowdy_One]

I face a quite similar decision: ppx3 or prehead for my RS-1. So could you share your knowledge with all of us, plz?

thx R1

 

[Slow_aetk]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rowdy_One I face a quite similar decision: ppx3 or prehead for my RS-1. So could you share your knowledge with all of us, plz? thx R1

I own a Prehead MkII and heard a PPX3-6cg7 (Sylvania).

I personally prefer the Prehead as beeing more detailed and faster. I was impressed by the very punchy bass of the PPX3 but it is less detailed and refined. For classical I would choose the Prehead without hesitation but for rock the PPX3 is a contender.

 

[Rowdy_One]

Thank you for the statement. I probably should have mentioned my objectives: detailed, fast, and able to let me hear every nuance of an acoustic guitar - this is what I prefer to boomy bass. I always liked my Etys, if that helps.

So I got the choice to order a ppx3 or one of those preheads from Jan Meiers leftover-prehead-bonanza...

If anybody could gimme some advice, I'd be happy.

PS: I have this suspicious feeling that you guys will come up with other choices. To me that's fine. Hopefully to the original poster, too.

 

[EdipisReks]

with the right tubes the PPX3 is fast and detailed, as well as extended. it's not quite as resolved as other amps, like the MPX3, but for my cans and listening habbits its an easy match for the prehead.

 

[sacd lover]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rowdy_One Thank you for the statement. I probably should have mentioned my objectives: detailed, fast, and able to let me hear every nuance of an acoustic guitar - this is what I prefer to boomy bass. I always liked my Etys, if that helps. So I got the choice to order a ppx3 or one of those preheads from Jan Meiers leftover-prehead-bonanza... If anybody could gimme some advice, I'd be happy. PS: I have this suspicious feeling that you guys will come up with other choices. To me that's fine. Hopefully to the original poster, too.

Punchy bass is quick, hard hitting bass thats not in any way boomy. Punchy is not boomy or bloated. The ppx3 is not hyper-detailed its naturally detailed. You will hear the music first and the detail second. Very detailed solid state amps tend to offer up the detail first and x-ray the music from my perspective. I had a brief listen to the prehead, with a senn 650, at a meet, and I found it to hard and cold in the treble; atleast for my taste. The detail is definitely there.... but overly so to me. Amps like the prehead.... I tend to find fatiguing in the long run. I like the Headamp GS-1 for solid state amps. This amp has the detail but the tonality is rich and smooth with no etching or treble spotlighting. I prefer tube amps like the ppx3 myself. But the GS-1 is as detailed and non-fatiguing as any solid state amp I have ever heard.

www.headamp.com

 

[markmaxx]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hawat stupid question but how much does a ppx3 or ppx3 slam cost? I only see price for upgrades in the singlepower homepage. ppx3=$599 ppx3 SLAM = $799 __________________

I got this from the link above. I e-mailed Singlepower for prices the first of the week they have not got back to me yet this helps thanks.

What is the differance between the PPX3/PPX3 slam?

I was in Detroit for the Head-Fi meet and I loved the sound of the PPX3 I wounder if it was the PPX3 or the PPX3Slam?

 

[sacd lover]

I was in Detroit for the Head-Fi meet and I loved the sound of the PPX3 I wounder if it was the PPX3 or the PPX3Slam?

Markmaxx,

The amp at the Detroit meet was the ppx3 SLAM.

 

[Slow_aetk]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rowdy_One Thank you for the statement. I probably should have mentioned my objectives: detailed, fast, and able to let me hear every nuance of an acoustic guitar - this is what I prefer to boomy bass. I always liked my Etys, if that helps. So I got the choice to order a ppx3 or one of those preheads from Jan Meiers leftover-prehead-bonanza... If anybody could gimme some advice, I'd be happy. PS: I have this suspicious feeling that you guys will come up with other choices. To me that's fine. Hopefully to the original poster, too.

Hello Rowdy_one and welcome in the very small Swiss Head-fi community. On which side of the Roesti-graben are you located.

 

[saint.panda]

A Corda HA-2 MKII vs PPX would be the fairer comparison when taking the price into consideration. Further, meet impressions are to be taken with a grain of salt but for the good impression alone, I'd take the PPX with Solen 1 upgrades, Sylvania tubes over the HA-2 MKII (note: I spent about 1-2 hours with the PPX3). This preference, however, is just that and I don't consider the PPX superior to the Corda in general terms - both are excellent performers. Where the PPX lacked in tonal invisibility or even, in my opinion, detailing, it compensated via a richer tone, midrange bloom and a bigger soundstage. The Singlepower was also the slightly more laid-back and relaxing; more effortless at times, too. Surprisingly, the PPX did not falter in the treble as I would have expected from a mid-end tube amp. The PPX also had a pleasant bass: perhaps slightly more boomy compared to the Corda but more fun for a bass-addicted listener like me. The Corda on the other hand, offered a cleaner and more transparent sound although the PPX is not what I'd call extremely coloured - just a certain richness in the middle. Nonetheless, I think hat richness has too much of a positive connotation, almost euphemistic in the audiophile world, because not everybody prefers this "richness" and I certainly don't prefer the richness of an Earmax Pro over the tonal clarity of a Corda HA-2 MKII, at least most the time. I suppose, this richness has to be applied properly and in healthy doses according to one's tastes but I found the richness to be just right.

Both amps are great amps. The PPX offers the tuberolling capability, a tubey sound but without the prejudiced tubey-muddy sound whereas the Corda has the crossfeed feature, which I fancy quite a lot, and a solid-state sound without the often-associated solid-state graininess. For comparison's sake: In my opinion, both the Talisman T-3H (solid state) and Earmax Pro (tube) are inferior to the the PPX or Corda HA-2 MKII even though they are priced in a similar price range. Further, while being a stellar performer for its size, the SR-71 couldn't really compete against the HA-2 MKII either. Please notice the big price difference though: the SR-71 is not supposed to compete against a $800 amp. I'm only mentioning these references because often do I read over-the-top accolades without stating specifically "better than what".

Finally, I have no personal long-term experience with tube amps so I don't know how much hassle it is to maintain a tube amp. On the other hand, as a long time HA-2 MKI owner, it's always been plug-and-play without worrying about warm up, tube maintenance, dampers, heat, etc., that is issues I associate with owning a tube amp. Yet frankly, if I had to buy a $800 amp today, it'd be the PPX3 because there was something special - read: also extra, thus not necessariliy positive objectively speaking - to the sound. Certainly, this richness can be seen as a more natural sound but I think solid state amps are truer to the source. The Corda, nevertheless, had some problems, which the higher end solid states (Prehead e.g.) do not have, such as a certain strain in the sound reproduction. The PPX3 was not more resolving but it approached this technical barrier from a different direction and more or less eludes this problem by adding the tubiness. It's a matter of preference which trade-off you prefer because it's a trade-off not matter how you see it.

I don't think you'd be disappointed with a PPX3 but better audition it first because the HA-2 MKII and other amps are right up its alley. And with the danger of repeating myself, although I spent a lot of time with the PPX3, both alone and comparing it to the Corda HA-2 MKII, these are just meet impressions.