[halozero]

hi there. this is my first post, so go easy on me.

I’ve enjoyed quality stereo equipment most of my life (I’m 50) but only now shopping for cans+amp/dac above $200.

read and watched many reviews and narrowed down to these:

phones: either 6xx or 4xx (can’t justify $300 bump to 660s just yet)

amp+dac: either Asgard 3 + dac card or dragonfly (red or cobalt)

I listen to wide variety of music, but I suppose a good chunk is rock. my sources will be ipad and macbook

in my youth i’d lean towards high energy sound at loud-ish volumes, but in my old age I’d prefer a non-fatiguing, more laid back listening.

most important advice I seek: portability of dragonfly is compelling, but I’d only use it away from home ~5% of the time. Would the Asgard be significantly better than Dragonfly to lose out on rare portable use?

thanks in advance.

 

[441879]

hi there. this is my first post, so go easy on me.

I’ve enjoyed quality stereo equipment most of my life (I’m 50) but only now shopping for cans+amp/dac above $200.

read and watched many reviews and narrowed down to these:

phones: either 6xx or 4xx (can’t justify $300 bump to 660s just yet)

amp+dac: either Asgard 3 + dac card or dragonfly (red or cobalt)

I listen to wide variety of music, but I suppose a good chunk is rock. my sources will be ipad and macbook

in my youth i’d lean towards high energy sound at loud-ish volumes, but in my old age I’d prefer a non-fatiguing, more laid back listening.

most important advice I seek: portability of dragonfly is compelling, but I’d only use it away from home ~5% of the time. Would the Asgard be significantly better than Dragonfly to lose out on rare portable use?

thanks in advance.

I am assuming that 6XX = Massdrop / Sennheiser HD6XX and 4XX = Massdrop / Hifiman HE4XX. Please let me know if that isn’t the case.

The Dragonfly may not give you great performance with the 4XX. In general planar magnetic headphones are power hogs and I think you’re limited to pretty low power with the Dragonfly. Provided the Dragonfly can generate enough voltage, it might work great for the 6XX, but that is a headphone that seems to really benefit from top notch amplification- I’d personally choose the Asgard plus DAC for it. If you want a portable solution that can work with both, I’d look at something like a FIIO Q5 (Amp + DAC + battery about the size of a deck of cards). That said, the Asgard + DAC will sound better, especially (IMHO) with the 6XX

 

[HumdrumPenguin]

hi there. this is my first post, so go easy on me.

I’ve enjoyed quality stereo equipment most of my life (I’m 50) but only now shopping for cans+amp/dac above $200.

read and watched many reviews and narrowed down to these:

phones: either 6xx or 4xx (can’t justify $300 bump to 660s just yet)

amp+dac: either Asgard 3 + dac card or dragonfly (red or cobalt)

I listen to wide variety of music, but I suppose a good chunk is rock. my sources will be ipad and macbook

in my youth i’d lean towards high energy sound at loud-ish volumes, but in my old age I’d prefer a non-fatiguing, more laid back listening.

most important advice I seek: portability of dragonfly is compelling, but I’d only use it away from home ~5% of the time. Would the Asgard be significantly better than Dragonfly to lose out on rare portable use?

thanks in advance.

HD6XX highly benefit from a good amplification. I have both the HD6XX and Asgard 3 with AK4490 dac module, and I really enjoy it. The Asgard is a much better purchase in my opinion than the Firefly since you will be out with your cans only 5% of the time. I'd consider getting something else later on for portable usage really. I'd argue that the Firefly is even worse if you decide for the 4XX. Planars are power hungry.

I'm also like you and prefer laid back headphones, so the 660s brightness might not be your cup of tea, in case you ever decide to put those cans in perspective for now. Something tells me you'd love the Audeze LCD2 Classic. Very laid back, super smooth sound. It's pricey when compared to entry level hifi headphones though.

 

[halozero]

I am assuming that 6XX = Massdrop / Sennheiser HD6XX and 4XX = Massdrop / Hifiman HE4XX. Please let me know if that isn’t the case.

The Dragonfly may not give you great performance with the 4XX. In general planar magnetic headphones are power hogs and I think you’re limited to pretty low power with the Dragonfly. Provided the Dragonfly can generate enough voltage, it might work great for the 6XX, but that is a headphone that seems to really benefit from top notch amplification- I’d personally choose the Asgard plus DAC for it. If you want a portable solution that can work with both, I’d look at something like a FIIO Q5 (Amp + DAC + battery about the size of a deck of cards). That said, the Asgard + DAC will sound better, especially (IMHO) with the 6XX

Thanks, Will. Yes, those are the phones I’m considering. I’ve been struggling to line up all the pro and user reviews on these to make my decision. Lots of contradictory opinions, especially around bass (extension vs clarity)

The amp/dac decision is further complicated by conflicting opinions on value of multibit, which neither Dragonfly offers.

 

[halozero]

HD6XX highly benefit from a good amplification. I have both the HD6XX and Asgard 3 with AK4490 dac module, and I really enjoy it. The Asgard is a much better purchase in my opinion than the Firefly since you will be out with your cans only 5% of the time. I'd consider getting something else later on for portable usage really. I'd argue that the Firefly is even worse if you decide for the 4XX. Planars are power hungry.

I'm also like you and prefer laid back headphones, so the 660s brightness might not be your cup of tea, in case you ever decide to put those cans in perspective for now. Something tells me you'd love the Audeze LCD2 Classic. Very laid back, super smooth sound. It's pricey when compared to entry level hifi headphones though.

Thanks, Penguin.

Yes, most LCD2 reviews I’ve read/watched have been tempting, but you’re right about the $.

what made your decision to opt for 4990 vs multibit? Do you doubt 6xx would reveal multibit advantages, or was it a purely cost decision?

 

[HumdrumPenguin]

Thanks, Penguin.

Yes, most LCD2 reviews I’ve read/watched have been tempting, but you’re right about the $.

what made your decision to opt for 4990 vs multibit? Do you doubt 6xx would reveal multibit advantages, or was it a purely cost decision?

I have never heard the multibit dac, and I already knew the AK4490 was a phenomenal dac. Truth be told, I’m not sure I’d be able to hear much difference, if any, between the two of them. Amp differences are much more apparent than dacs, so getting the Asgard over the Firefly is a total no brainer. The story changes when considering between the 2 cards. I myself would only consider multibit if it were to also give me extra inputs aside of usb. You will very likely be happy with either. If the possible subtle change in the sound is perceived, it doesn’t mean that one is better than the other.

 

[441879]

Thanks, Will. Yes, those are the phones I’m considering. I’ve been struggling to line up all the pro and user reviews on these to make my decision. Lots of contradictory opinions, especially around bass (extension vs clarity)

The amp/dac decision is further complicated by conflicting opinions on value of multibit, which neither Dragonfly offers.

At the price range you’re looking at, the DAC isn’t as important as the headphone (most important) and amp (2nd most important). A good pair of headphones that are really efficient (eg Focal Elear or Elex) with an inexpensive amp (or just directly out of your phone) will sound better than a good pair of inefficient headphones out of a high quality but underpowered amp. Both the 6XX and 4XX are great headphones for the money and frankly unless you already have strong headphone preferences you’ll probably really like either one. However, they both are fairly demanding on amplification (though in different ways). Pick your headphone first, then use what you have left over for your amp next, then your DAC.

I personally feel the 6XX scales better with high quality amplification, while the 4XX doesn’t scale much as long as you give it enough power. If you pick the 6XX, buy the Asgard for best sound (DAC won’t matter much). If you pick the 4XX, buy a Modi + Magni or high power portable. The DAC doesn’t matter at all and the amp won’t matter much as long as it is reasonably powerful.

 

[KukoCL]

hi there. this is my first post, so go easy on me.

I’ve enjoyed quality stereo equipment most of my life (I’m 50) but only now shopping for cans+amp/dac above $200.

read and watched many reviews and narrowed down to these:

phones: either 6xx or 4xx (can’t justify $300 bump to 660s just yet)

amp+dac: either Asgard 3 + dac card or dragonfly (red or cobalt)

I listen to wide variety of music, but I suppose a good chunk is rock. my sources will be ipad and macbook

in my youth i’d lean towards high energy sound at loud-ish volumes, but in my old age I’d prefer a non-fatiguing, more laid back listening.

most important advice I seek: portability of dragonfly is compelling, but I’d only use it away from home ~5% of the time. Would the Asgard be significantly better than Dragonfly to lose out on rare portable use?

thanks in advance.

For such hard to drive headphones, I'd recommend the Asgard, also the 3,5 Jack in the dragonfly gives out with time a lot easier.

 

[halozero]

I have never heard the multibit dac, and I already knew the AK4490 was a phenomenal dac. Truth be told, I’m not sure I’d be able to hear much difference, if any, between the two of them. Amp differences are much more apparent than dacs, so getting the Asgard over the Firefly is a total no brainer. The story changes when considering between the 2 cards. I myself would only consider multibit if it were to also give me extra inputs aside of usb. You will very likely be happy with either. If the possible subtle change in the sound is perceived, it doesn’t mean that one is better than the other.

‘thanks for the link. read the review & some replies. I’m leaning 4490, and not much motivated by spending more on multibit now to gain potential scalability if I upgrade phones in future.

 

[halozero]

At the price range you’re looking at, the DAC isn’t as important as the headphone (most important) and amp (2nd most important). A good pair of headphones that are really efficient (eg Focal Elear or Elex) with an inexpensive amp (or just directly out of your phone) will sound better than a good pair of inefficient headphones out of a high quality but underpowered amp. Both the 6XX and 4XX are great headphones for the money and frankly unless you already have strong headphone preferences you’ll probably really like either one. However, they both are fairly demanding on amplification (though in different ways). Pick your headphone first, then use what you have left over for your amp next, then your DAC.

I personally feel the 6XX scales better with high quality amplification, while the 4XX doesn’t scale much as long as you give it enough power. If you pick the 6XX, buy the Asgard for best sound (DAC won’t matter much). If you pick the 4XX, buy a Modi + Magni or high power portable. The DAC doesn’t matter at all and the amp won’t matter much as long as it is reasonably powerful.

‘If you and other experts consistently advised something like 660s with no dac/amp over say 6xx + dac/amp, cost being similar) I’d go for the 660s. most everything I’ve seen advises dac/amp even with the relatively more efficient 660s. Right? That (~$800) becomes more $ than I’m budgeting (~$500)

 

[HumdrumPenguin]

‘If you and other experts consistently advised something like 660s with no dac/amp over say 6xx + dac/amp, cost being similar) I’d go for the 660s. most everything I’ve seen advises dac/amp even with the relatively more efficient 660s. Right? That (~$800) becomes more $ than I’m budgeting (~$500)

Many headphones without a proper amp sound dead to me. I would never, ever, eeeeever, get into this game without an amp and a somewhat decent dac. I did it in the past, and it killed the joy to the point where a few days later I didn’t even care for the cans I had just bought. The Asgard 3 and HD6XX are god damn great, not just for their price, but for astounding performance overall. The Asgard will drive anything you throw at them. No need for future upgrades, unless you wanna try something different. It’s a killer deal at this price.

 

[KukoCL]

‘If you and other experts consistently advised something like 660s with no dac/amp over say 6xx + dac/amp, cost being similar) I’d go for the 660s. most everything I’ve seen advises dac/amp even with the relatively more efficient 660s. Right? That (~$800) becomes more $ than I’m budgeting (~$500)

I think my 660S directly from my Galaxy S9 sounds better than my HD6XX I sold with my tube amp. Neither I like bright sounding headphones, Just saying :3

 

[441879]

‘If you and other experts consistently advised something like 660s with no dac/amp over say 6xx + dac/amp, cost being similar) I’d go for the 660s. most everything I’ve seen advises dac/amp even with the relatively more efficient 660s. Right? That (~$800) becomes more $ than I’m budgeting (~$500)

The 660s are 150 ohms. The 6XX are 300 ohms. The 660s requires 1V to reach 104 dB, so yes, the 660 will work way better than the 6XX from your smartphone. That said, I can’t tell you if an unamped 660s will sound better than a properly amped 6XX. Putting a decent amp in front will give you a cleaner, less noisy 1V. A fairly resolving headphone like the 660 will allow you to hear the difference if you’re listening for it but as you say, it’s more money. The 6XX plus the Asgard will give you more flexibility if you decide to upgrade in the future as well, so there is that. The fact that you are analyzing this so carefully tells me you’re going to upgrade at some point so might as well plan for either buying the 660s now and probably an amp in the future, or the amp + 6XX now and a better headphone in the future.

 

[halozero]

The 660s are 150 ohms. The 6XX are 300 ohms. The 660s requires 1V to reach 104 dB, so yes, the 660 will work way better than the 6XX from your smartphone. That said, Putting a decent amp in front will give you a cleaner, less noisy 1V. A fairly resolving headphone like the 660 will allow you to hear the difference if you’re listening for it. The 6XX plus the Asgard will give you more flexibility if you decide to upgrade in the future as well, so there is that. The fact that you are analyzing this so carefully tells me you’re going to upgrade at some point so might as well plan for it.

‘that’s consistent with my research so far.

I can stay in budget with 6xx + Asgard now, and when 660s comes down, would snatch them up at $300 and likely splurge at $400

 

[KukoCL]

‘that’s consistent with my research so far.

I can stay in budget with 6xx + Asgard now, and when 660s comes down, would snatch them up at $300 and likely splurge at $400

Sounds good. I liked my HD6XX when I had them. The only reason I sold them with my tube amp was to buy the HD660S in a 40% off deal, quick.

The Asgard will give you plenty room to upgrade to any future headphones you throw at him.