I've read in the past the mad ear hd+ isn't necessarily the best amp when paired with the hd650s is this true? I currently own both and was wondering if getting a speed ball would be worth it?
maybe reach out the mad people (they have a forum too)...grados i know are a popular pairing with the ear+ hd
everyone finds synergy differently i guess...i've not alot of exposure to many amps, so i can't say
i came on here as an Ear+HD and Senn 650 owner, asking initially for a suggestion for a pair of cans that would compliment the 650s...
(iwanted more bass kick but also to still be musical and balanced)...some thought to instead strengthen my chain and that an OTL amp would work best.
**now also looking at fostek massdrop thx00 or the new meze 99 classic** to compliment senns
out of curiosity i emailed mad owner dr lloyd peppard on this suggestion (move to an otl amp)
and he replied otherwise (see 2-3 pages ago)
http://www.head-fi.org/t/197776/sennheiser-hd650-impressions-thread/34320
...some feel however that the ear+ and senns do work well ie
macedonian hero,
who i reached out to per his thread of having reviewed over 31 pairs of cans and ranking
them replied back ''
With the HD650, your MAD-Ear+HD will be brilliant! Owned both and loved it''
so who's to say: is trial and error I guess...and since i don't have alot of exposure with many amps I wouldn't know what to look
for and if one sounded 'better' than the other...luckily i'm no ultra critic.
dead ears gave me alot of useful info, too, on how the senns can scale really well the $$$ amp you get (as did
others in their initial helpful replies to me)
he did suggest, too, a good OTL amp is worth it.
excerpt from his reply (and i hope he doesn't mind) on pairing the senns with a better matched amp.
...''The Senn HD-650's scale really well, which means that with a great amp they will sound significantly better than they do with a good amp. The best I've heard them sound was at a NY meet where they were run with balanced cables through an old balanced Headroom amp, no longer in production. The MAD amp does not make them give all they have to give, so if you want to build a system around them, you should look at something like the Violectric V281 or an Aurelic Taurus or one of the Decware amps. For instance HD-650's sound really really good unbalanced with the $1100 MicroZOTL (check the thread for several enthusiastic owners with Senn's.)''
if
deadears comes on here and sees it and kindly ok's the rest i'll print it in its entirety...would generate good discussion, too.
lots of helpful people on here.