[Lorspeaker]

Had the T1 for an hour or two... interesting.
Slap on the HD650...ahhhh....niceeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee...
"kiss of life " being played now...my head nodding, swinging to the beat.

 

[SunTanScanMan]

   
I guess I'm judging the AD1000X's too harshly/inaccurately, they do sound pretty good but in all honesty it could be sounding how they sound because of my decision to run them off my on-board audio 'Realtek® ALC889 8-Channel High Definition Audio'
 
I plan on getting the O2 or NFB-15, to get the NFB-15 I will need to sell my AD1000X's but my plan was to get the O2 which is something I can afford, and to also get a better soundcard like the Xonar. 

 
Nah your description sounds pretty accurate for an AD series audio technica. They usually go for an airier sound with less emphasis on the bass. A transparent amp may give better definition of the sound including bass overall, but it will not change the sound signature - nor should it, as personally I don't think that's the job of an amp.
 
Transparent and low output impedance amps like the o2 ime go well with a variety of headphones. I'm sure o2 owners here will attest. YMMV as always.

 

[retskrad]

Does the hd650 have equal vocals and midrange as the hd600, but just more mellow?

 

[hodgjy]

  Does the hd650 have equal vocals and midrange as the hd600, but just more mellow?

 
More laid back and natural. The vocals are amazing.

 

[Solrighal]

  Does the hd650 have equal vocals and midrange as the hd600, but just more mellow?

 
 

   
More laid back and natural. The vocals are amazing.

 
Vocals are what the HD650's are all about for me. They have a beautiful, natural tone with excellent clarity. If you can't follow lyrics using the Senn's then you either were never meant to or the recording engineer was an ass.

 

[donlin]

After spending the last 6-7 years with more expensive phones (HD800, Stax007, LCD-2, LCD-3), I have returned to the 650's and couldn't be happier.  An impulse buy resulting from the combination of some posts on head-fi, a great deal on a new HD650/Balanced Cable and having the HDVA600 amp on hand has resulted in the best overall sound I have ever experienced in my system.  I bought my first pair of 650's back when they first were available (2004 I think) and always liked them a lot but this time around they are unbelievably good and absolutely more enjoyable to listen to than the flagships.  I'm not sure if it's because the phones have improved over the years or just the synergy of running them balanced on the HDVA600.  There is definitely no veil, the midrange is magical and the bass is explosive.  There is no grain or sibilance even at high volumes.

 

[retskrad]

Maybe because Sennheiser and others have perfected and refined their products for decades (hd650/hd600 for sennheiser and dt880/dt990 for beyerdynamic). The HD800 and T1 are new and needs more refinement and improvement to reach a new tier. Thats why I haven't gone the planar headphones route either. They need more time to improve, they are still in their infancy.
 
Quote:

  After spending the last 6-7 years with more expensive phones (HD800, Stax007, LCD-2, LCD-3), I have returned to the 650's and couldn't be happier.  An impulse buy resulting from the combination of some posts on head-fi, a great deal on a new HD650/Balanced Cable and having the HDVA600 amp on hand has resulted in the best overall sound I have ever experienced in my system.  I bought my first pair of 650's back when they first were available (2004 I think) and always liked them a lot but this time around they are unbelievably good and absolutely more enjoyable to listen to than the flagships.  I'm not sure if it's because the phones have improved over the years or just the synergy of running them balanced on the HDVA600.  There is definitely no veil, the midrange is magical and the bass is explosive.  There is no grain or sibilance even at high volumes.

 

[i luvmusic 2]

 

I got mine at Canada Computers few months ago for $449 CAD +Tax they have them on sale occasionally but not advertised(in store price).

Hey I luvmusic 2... I'm ready to order the BH SEX, and trying to locate specs for recommended impedance of stepped attenuator upgrade, as well as beafing up capacitors. I figure, might as well complete it in one go, rather than delaying until a future date. There was another reference, as well as, on upgrading one or more transformers, but can't find thread, now. I'm looking forward to ordering the kit (and extras)

 Same value as the stock 100k ohms,I suggest build it in STOCK form before you do any modifications in this way easy to trouble shoot if there is any issue down the line and to be familiar with the stock sound(used that sound as a referenced after each upgrade).You can search the BH SEX thread in their site for any mod you can think of,there is plenty of ideas in that forum.The issue with those CAPS upgrade are the space where to mount them this is the problem i have with mine i have the SOLEN 22uf 630V but until now have not install it due to space issue.GOOD LUCK!

 

[Uncle AL]

 Same value as the stock 100k ohms,I suggest build it in STOCK form before you do any modifications in this way easy to trouble shoot if there is any issue down the line and to be familiar with the stock sound(used that sound as a referenced after each upgrade).You can search the BH SEX thread in their site for any mod you can think of,there is plenty of ideas in that forum.The issue with those CAPS upgrade are the space where to mount them this is the problem i have with mine i have the SOLEN 22uf 630V but until now have not install it due to space issue.GOOD LUCK!

Thanks. Found 100K ohm ladder-type stepped attenuator (Dale) on eBay for around $53 USD including shipping, that should be well worth the investment. Regarding your hope to upgrade caps.. one head-fier in previous thread installed vibration damping feet on bottom of BH wooden case, raising it twice the distance required for clearance of the capacitors. The other option would fabricating replacement wood enclosure that is roughly double current height, but I think this would look bit odd compared to attaching feet.

How pricey are the SOLEN caps? I assume you determined these were best option for SEX amp?

 

[i luvmusic 2]

 

 Same value as the stock 100k ohms,I suggest build it in STOCK form before you do any modifications in this way easy to trouble shoot if there is any issue down the line and to be familiar with the stock sound(used that sound as a referenced after each upgrade).You can search the BH SEX thread in their site for any mod you can think of,there is plenty of ideas in that forum.The issue with those CAPS upgrade are the space where to mount them this is the problem i have with mine i have the SOLEN 22uf 630V but until now have not install it due to space issue.GOOD LUCK!

Thanks. Found 100K ohm ladder-type stepped attenuator (Dale) on eBay for around $53 USD including shipping, that should be well worth the investment. Regarding your hope to upgrade caps.. one head-fier in previous thread installed vibration damping feet on bottom of BH wooden case, raising it twice the distance required for clearance of the capacitors. The other option would fabricating replacement wood enclosure that is roughly double current height, but I think this would look bit odd compared to attaching feet.

How pricey are the SOLEN caps? I assume you determined these were best option for SEX amp?

The price is reasonable and it's one of the stock CAPS used by Bottlehead on the SEX amp and it was recommended to me by one of the BH designer.For the Attenuator i can't comment on that i never used it on the SEX tried it on the CRACK but i don't like it so i replaced both of the POT with the ALPS BLUE VELVET Pot.

 

[Gandah]

  After spending the last 6-7 years with more expensive phones (HD800, Stax007, LCD-2, LCD-3), I have returned to the 650's and couldn't be happier.  An impulse buy resulting from the combination of some posts on head-fi, a great deal on a new HD650/Balanced Cable and having the HDVA600 amp on hand has resulted in the best overall sound I have ever experienced in my system.  I bought my first pair of 650's back when they first were available (2004 I think) and always liked them a lot but this time around they are unbelievably good and absolutely more enjoyable to listen to than the flagships.  I'm not sure if it's because the phones have improved over the years or just the synergy of running them balanced on the HDVA600.  There is definitely no veil, the midrange is magical and the bass is explosive.  There is no grain or sibilance even at high volumes.

Wow, that's a pretty good endorsement, I've had my HD650 for less then a week and I'm really thinking hard about selling my TH900, they sound so wrong compared to the HD650, which I can't believe I'm saying because I've had my beloved TH900 for 2 years now and I didn't think I was ever going to find something equal or better, But here I am a few days in with the HD650 closer to my Nirvana than ever before......
 
Could you imagine if I said this on the TH900 thread, I would get eaten alive

 

[Sonic Defender]

  Wow, that's a pretty good endorsement, I've had my HD650 for less then a week and I'm really thinking hard about selling my TH900, they sound so wrong compared to the HD650, which I can't believe I'm saying because I've had my beloved TH900 for 2 years now and I didn't think I was ever going to find something equal or better, But here I am a few days in with the HD650 closer to my Nirvana than ever before......
 
Could you imagine if I said this on the TH900 thread, I would get eaten alive

That is indeed high praise! We all have different sonic preferences. I sold my 650s in a head-to-head against my DT 880s which I kept. Each to their own as they say.

 

[donlin]

Wow, that's a pretty good endorsement, I've had my HD650 for less then a week and I'm really thinking hard about selling my TH900, they sound so wrong compared to the HD650, which I can't believe I'm saying because I've had my beloved TH900 for 2 years now and I didn't think I was ever going to find something equal or better, But here I am a few days in with the HD650 closer to my Nirvana than ever before......

Could you imagine if I said this on the TH900 thread, I would get eaten alive

It takes courage to go against the prevailing wisdom on head-fi, but at some point you have to just trust your ears. I will be selling my LCD-3's later this week. At least having lived with the so-called best, I don't have to wonder about what I'm missing.

The 650's sre so much better this time around, I have to believe it's the great system synergy with the HDVA600.

 

[Gandah]

 
That is indeed high praise! We all have different sonic preferences. I sold my 650s in a head-to-head against my DT 880s which I kept. Each to their own as they say.

True, we all hear differently and have different preferences.
 
 

It takes courage to go against the prevailing wisdom on head-fi, but at some point you have to just trust your ears. I will be selling my LCD-3's later this week. At least having lived with the so-called best, I don't have to wonder about what I'm missing.

The 650's sre so much better this time around, I have to believe it's the great system synergy with the HDVA600.

Yeah there's only so much you can read which is great because it gives you a good starting point, but the real proof is in the listening for yourself.
 
I also am using balanced cable, and haven't as yet tried the single ended cable that came with the headphones, just balanced with the GS-X mk2, I will tryout the SE cable, but for now I'm sticking with balanced.

 

[mikoss]

  Since I'm in Canada just bought it for $475 CAD (which is $419 USD) and amazon is great customer service and don't have to pay duties over border to Canada.

I'm in Canada as well. I don't think headphones are supposed to ever have duty on them. (also, fyi buysonic usually sells the HD-650s for $349.99 USD... I bought a second pair after paying $420 a couple of years ago for a used pair here!)