[Krutsch]

  This is good to know, thanks for the info.
I see you have a 421A also, great tube but getting harder to find reasonable priced ones.  Have you tried TS-5998?  I've been using them most of the time since they are easier to find and a bit cheaper.

I have 5 of them... they really are the king, sorry 

 
The TS-5998 is a great tube and sounds really good in the Crack, IMO. Another power tube I love and is underrated: the TS-6520 - great sound and less expensive, although also getting hard to find.
 
I also have a pair of the GEC 6AS7g "Brown Base" (they are nice, but not my very favorite and too expensive, IMO), as well as the Tung-Sol 7236 (a nice tube - fast and crisp transients, but lacking some of the tonal qualities of those mentioned above).
 
​If it was easier to "tube roll" between albums, I would put in the TS-7236 for Metal, fast Jazz and maybe some classical (loud stuff, like Mahler); the GEC Brown Base for classic rock (e.g., Cream or Led Zepp) and the WE 421a for everything else for great tone - really, with HD-650s and clean female vocal tracks, like Diana Panton or Julia Holter, there's no substitute).
 
​For the drivers, I've really settled on the Telefunken E188CC ('60s Ulm) - super clean and detailed and a nice complement to the above power tubes.
 
But it's all too much work... 1st world problems 

 

[DavidA]

  I have 5 of them... they really are the king, sorry 

 
The TS-5998 is a great tube and sounds really good in the Crack, IMO. Another power tube I love and is underrated: the TS-6520 - great sound and less expensive, although also getting hard to find.
 
I also have a pair of the GEC 6AS7g "Brown Base" (they are nice, but not my very favorite and too expensive, IMO), as well as the Tung-Sol 7236 (a nice tube - fast and crisp transients, but lacking some of the tonal qualities of those mentioned above).
 
​If it was easier to "tube roll" between albums, I would put in the TS-7236 for Metal, fast Jazz and maybe some classical (loud stuff, like Mahler); the GEC Brown Base for classic rock (e.g., Cream or Led Zepp) and the WE 421a for everything else for great tone - really, with HD-650s and clean female vocal tracks, like Diana Panton or Julia Holter, there's no substitute).
 
​For the drivers, I've really settled on the Telefunken E188CC ('60s Ulm) - super clean and detailed and a nice complement to the above power tubes.
 
But it's all too much work... 1st world problems 

Haven't tried any GEC 6AS7 or TS-7236, once I got the TS-5998 and 421A I stopped looking.
 
Agree the Telefunken E188CC is great, got 3 of them for $30, seller wasn't sure of their condition so gave me a deal, all worked and none have died yet.

 

[whirlwind]

If you guys have OTL amps that use 6AS7G tubes as power tubes.....you may want to try 6BL7 and 6BX7 tubes.....you may be very happy with the results  ....especially after seeing the price of these tubes. 

 

[Tuneslover]

Trying to see how your chain of though goes here, the HD-650 is not a neutral sounding headphone but yet you are trying to have your chain as neutral as possible?  I would think the HD-600 would be the choice it you were looking for neutral.  Just curious here, not trying to say anything bad.



You are correct the HD600 apparently is more neutral sounding unfortunately I never had the opportunity to hear a pair. The HD650's on the other hand were available to audition and initially I didn't care for that veiled Sennheiser sound and elected to not purchase them. However after hearing a pair of used HE500's they're sound signature was much more to my liking. Although they aren't ruler flat, they are reasonably neutral. I bought them and are still my favorite headphones.





I try to get the most out of headphones by having different DACs and amps to better match each headphone, colored or not is not an issue with me as I'm not looking for neutral.  When I first started on these threads I noticed that some are obsessed with trying to get a neutral sound but since we all hear differently and have different ideas to what is neutral it didn't make sense for me to follow those thoughts but rather as a few others have said to just find what sounds good to me.  One thing I did find was that I didn't care for just one sound signature, I liked how the various headphones presented the music to me differently, sort of like variety is the spice of life way of thinking.



To your point, I eventually did purchase a pair of HD650's after hearing them at Toronto's TAVES show a few years back on a Woo amp. This was a completely different sound to what I was accustomed to but I actually found the music to be quite enjoyable. A few months later I ended up buying a pair of 650's and have enjoyed that famous Sennheiser sound ever since. I even recently dabbled with tubes, getting the hybrid Schiit Vali2. The 650's and V2 are a fun combo but I still much prefer the HE500 and Lake People G109s combo.

 

[teeshirtguy5]

Looking for a small relatively portable battery powered amp / dac combo for the 650's
 
Low fatigue is super important as will be using them all day / night 
 
Have read a lot about the objective2 but cant really find any off the shelf solutions with a battery + odac
 
I wont be using them on the go, but would like the battery so i can move around the house with them easily without having to plug it in and out all the time
 
any ideas?
 
thanks

 

[delSol]

Try to find a used Fiio E17 Alpen.........it fits the bill nicely.
 
del Sol

 

[Darien]

i've basically narrowed down my desicion between the littledot mk3 and the darkvoice 336se... they seem to considered the most tubey as far as tube amps go..do any of u guys use either of them? can u recommend one over the other? i seem to get about 50/50, some people say the mk3 is more warm, and others say that the mk3 is more neutral and the dark voice is more warm :S i want the warmest warmth ever that will just put me to sleep in eternal bliss that i will never awake from. 
 
but i notice there really isnt much activity in the mk3 thread on headfi, and youtube has 2 dark voice reviews and 0 mk3 reviews....its not super assuring, but i guess dark voice is the way to go? 

 

[mikoss]

Just wondering why you want a lot of warmth? Personal preferences aside, I'd recommend the Bottlehead Crack and call it a day. It's a known great pairing from an amp that shouldn't give you any quality issues. Tube rolling can give you warmth, or a different sound if you find your tastes change.

 

[Darien]

Just wondering why you want a lot of warmth? Personal preferences aside, I'd recommend the Bottlehead Crack and call it a day. It's a known great pairing from an amp that shouldn't give you any quality issues. Tube rolling can give you warmth, or a different sound if you find your tastes change.

well i have good solid state amps, i just want a tube amp specifically for that warm vintage twangy sound. 
 
ie: here's a guy using his dark voice as a pre amp for his speakers, and you can see how it kinda has that twangyness to it? thats what i like.
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUoJX6LEgRc
 
but i think im gonna go with the mk3 cus it seems dark voice has some reliability issues and i hear the stock tubes are pretty crappy, so im gonna pull the trigger on the mk3. and tbh there is not a single real review on youtube, maybe if i get the mk3 and like it i can make a review and become a youtube super star!! 

 

[DavidA]

@Tuneslover, thanks for the reply on why the HD-650 vs HD-600, you are quite fortunate to be able to audition gear, for me hear in Hawaii its almost impossible, Best Buy is about the only game in town along with a few other department stores that mostly stock beats, bose, and some sony.

 

[DavidA]

  Looking for a small relatively portable battery powered amp / dac combo for the 650's
 
Low fatigue is super important as will be using them all day / night 
 
Have read a lot about the objective2 but cant really find any off the shelf solutions with a battery + odac
 
I wont be using them on the go, but would like the battery so i can move around the house with them easily without having to plug it in and out all the time
 
any ideas?
 
thanks

While not ideal my X3 & X3ii will drive the HD-650 to fairly loud levels but the sound is not as good as you will get from a decent table top amp like Ember or BH Crack.  Its small, and will run for about 8 hours before needing a charge.

 

[DavidA]

  well i have good solid state amps, i just want a tube amp specifically for that warm vintage twangy sound. 
 
ie: here's a guy using his dark voice as a pre amp for his speakers, and you can see how it kinda has that twangyness to it? thats what i like.
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUoJX6LEgRc
 
but i think im gonna go with the mk3 cus it seems dark voice has some reliability issues and i hear the stock tubes are pretty crappy, so im gonna pull the trigger on the mk3. and tbh there is not a single real review on youtube, maybe if i get the mk3 and like it i can make a review and become a youtube super star!! 

You might also consider the lack of review as being not a very popular amp.  I remember someone posting a youtube video of one of those two amps smoking when they were first turned on, sorry I can't remember which.  I have a Ember which with the right tube can sound quite warm but its because the highs are slightly rolled off and the bass is a little loose with that tube, an old Mullard.

 

[Darien]

  You might also consider the lack of review as being not a very popular amp.  I remember someone posting a youtube video of one of those two amps smoking when they were first turned on, sorry I can't remember which.  I have a Ember which with the right tube can sound quite warm but its because the highs are slightly rolled off and the bass is a little loose with that tube, an old Mullard.

ah right on, yeah the dark voice is known to have reliability issues. also Z reviews said it doesnt exactly pour honey on the music like i want it to, so im thinking maybe im bettter off with the mk3 as qutie a few people have recommended it to me, and im sure if its not warm enough ill throw on some mullard and electro harmonix tubes and it will be as tubey as any other tube amp xD 

 

[canali]

to senn hd 650 owners who also have other more $$$ cans...what would you recommend as a big step up on sound?
 
have just the sony 7520 (closed) cans and senn hd650....
have been using mostly the sony 7520...just started tesing the senn hd650
(right now both with dragonfly red ....not my ifi micro idsd)
they sound very similar to me so maybe they're a bit redundant.
 
i love the detail and balance of the sony cans....i'm considering 'stepping up' but it can get pricey
esp since 'cheaper' planars are all the rage nowadays, ie mr speaker ether etc.
 
but this said, what would be your suggestions for a set of cans would sound like a great step up:
 has fab bass slam
(also very clean and detailed bass however as i'm no basshead)
and is balanced and yet musical over all?
 
my music; rock, jazz, blues.
 
equipment:
laptop to either
-dragonfly red
-chord mojo (on the way)
-or iFi micro iDSD to mapletree earplus HD tube amp.
 
just might keep the sony 7520 since i got them for a good price as they're easy to drive and very portable.

 

[Youth]

  to senn hd 650 owners who also have other more $$$ cans...what would you recommend as a big step up on sound?
 
have just the sony 7520 (closed) cans and senn hd650....
have been using mostly the sony 7520...just started tesing the senn hd650
(right now both with dragonfly red ....not my ifi micro idsd)
they sound very similar to me so maybe they're a bit redundant.
 
i love the detail and balance of the sony cans....i'm considering 'stepping up' but it can get pricey
esp since 'cheaper' planars are all the rage nowadays, ie mr speaker ether etc.
 
but this said, what would be your suggestions for a set of cans would sound like a great step up:
 has fab bass slam
(also very clean and detailed bass however as i'm no basshead)
and is balanced and yet musical over all?
 
my music; rock, jazz, blues.
 
equipment:
laptop to either
-dragonfly red
-chord mojo (on the way)
-or iFi micro iDSD to mapletree earplus HD tube amp.
 
just might keep the sony 7520 since i got them for a good price as they're easy to drive and very portable.

 
I would honestly upgrade your chain if it was me.