[Sajid Amit]

Okay so let me ask a question, well-worn, if you will all kindly oblige…

What are your recommendations for OTL / SET tube amps for the HD800S?

 

[vlach]

Okay so let me ask a question, well-worn, if you will all kindly oblige…

What are your recommendations for OTL / SET tube amps for the HD800S?

WA2

 

[Sethgun0010]

Okay so let me ask a question, well-worn, if you will all kindly oblige…

What are your recommendations for OTL / SET tube amps for the HD800S?

Gen 2 WA7/WA7tp with Mullard cv4003/EH gold pins is clean on a stock Harman/oratory1990 curve (not the one with a 10db Ls). Even cleaner fed by an ADI-2pro.

Theyre also sufficient off the ADI on its own though using all 4 channels on the front.

 

[DuncanDirkDick]

The THX 789 -> HD800S is really bright with what I would call under-emphasised bass. I'm not a huge basshead (though I do enjoy my Focal Clear Pro and Audeze LCD-X 2021) but the 789 and HD800S combo sounds bright and not neutral.

I am contemplating a Soloist 3XP amp upgrade, those have swappable opamps to something with warmer tonality with no real worry of rarity.
Or the Violectric 281, would be amazing with the HD800S.

No DAC, Amp, whatever combo will eliminate 5dB peaks. Even sounded components change FR by < 0.5dB. The HD800/S just is a bright headphone. You can of course try "fixing" it by bloating midrange and upper bass, but you don't need a HD800 then in the first place. I've been using the HD800/S for 5 yrs+ now with all the components in my signature and the only way to handle brightness is either EQ or getting used to it. The latter doesn't really work for HD800 OG, at least for me.

Okay so let me ask a question, well-worn, if you will all kindly oblige…

What are your recommendations for OTL / SET tube amps for the HD800S?

I'm assuming you'll have a harman like preference with more bass elevation? Probably get the simplest OTL design possible with huge output impedance, that will elevate bass region. Treble roll off is a nice side effect on HD800S. That can be tuned with warmer sounding tubes. I wouldn't call it a hifi experience per se, but it certainly sounds enjoyable.

 

[phthora]

No DAC, Amp, whatever combo will eliminate 5dB peaks. Even sounded components change FR by < 0.5dB. The HD800/S just is a bright headphone. You can of course try "fixing" it by bloating midrange and upper bass, but you don't need a HD800 then in the first place. I've been using the HD800/S for 5 yrs+ now with all the components in my signature and the only way to handle brightness is either EQ or getting used to it. The latter doesn't really work for HD800 OG, at least for me.

You are correct that amps and DACs will not significantly alter the frequency response much. A 5khz peak will remain there with any reasonably neutral amp or DAC. However, there is more to the perception of that peak than just the volume at exactly 5khz. Upstream gear that is more resolving and more controlled can help remove the glare from those sorts of peaks, can help balance those peaks with fuller bass by delivering more consistent low-end in busy passages, and/or can help expand the soundstage so that the peaks are not perceived as being as intense. Upstream gear with the right sorts of distortion can help soften the intensity of transients so that those peaks don't hit the ears as hard, can introduce pleasing harmonics that make the peaks not stand out so sharply, and/or can deliver a fuller sound generally by increasing bass decay. Those are just a few examples, but the point is the peaks in the headphones do not lessen from gear to gear, but how tolerable they are can improve depending on how the DAC or amp influences the wider context, i.e., the rest of the music around those peaks. EQ is certainly a more direct, simpler, and cheaper approach to addressing those peaks, but it's not the only one.

 

[Ranathum]

I didn't find a HD800 for sale, I am decided to buy it for pc gaming, a lot of FPS and some others, I found only HD800S for sale, how is the soundstage and details retrieval of HD800S compared to HD800? Should I go with HD800S or is worth the wait for a HD800 based on better soundstage for FPS games?

 

[nihalsharma]

Okay so let me ask a question, well-worn, if you will all kindly oblige…

What are your recommendations for OTL / SET tube amps for the HD800S?

Hey Sajid, how are you doing?

I recently got a HD800s. I am using Feliks Audio Esspressivo MK2 amp with it. TBH, this pair sounds amazing. Feliks is not producing Esspressivo anymore. However, there are a lot better amps than Esspressivo which Feliks makes - Elise, Euphoria etc which people say pair great with the HD800s.

However, my dac is a pretty basic one - Soncoz la-qxd1. It's not bad but the other day I tried Astell&Kern SP2000s dap in the chain and it sounded really better - smoother, more controlled bass, a lot more detailed. I am looking to get a decent dac. If you have something in mind, let me know.

Thanks

 

[Sajid Amit]

Hey Sajid, how are you doing?

I recently got a HD800s. I am using Feliks Audio Esspressivo MK2 amp with it. TBH, this pair sounds amazing. Feliks is not producing Esspressivo anymore. However, there are a lot better amps than Esspressivo which Feliks makes - Elise, Euphoria etc which people say pair great with the HD800s.

However, my dac is a pretty basic one - Soncoz la-qxd1. It's not bad but the other day I tried Astell&Kern SP2000s dap in the chain and it sounded really better - smoother, more controlled bass, a lot more detailed. I am looking to get a decent dac. If you have something in mind, let me know.

Thanks

Hey man, thanks for your response. Am quite interested in the Euforia.

For a DAC, check out the Holo DACs? The Spring is pretty good, esp L2 and above.

I wonder how much my Stellia’s bass would change due to the high impedance output of the Euforia…

 

[UntilThen]

Okay so let me ask a question, well-worn, if you will all kindly oblige…

What are your recommendations for OTL / SET tube amps for the HD800S?

Where do I begin?

My journey with tube amps.

Darkvoice 336se
Feliks Audio Elise
Feliks Audio Euforia
Primaluna Dialogue Premium HP
La Figaro 339i
Woo Audio Wa22
Schiit Mjolnir 2
Woo Audio Wa5le
Glenn OTL amp 6 x 6bx7gt with @paramesh now.
ALO Audio Studio Six
Elekit TU-8200
McChanson Destiny 300b amp
Ultrasonic Studio Oblivion

Ultrasonic Studio Odyssey - this is where I stop. I've found what I'm looking for.
http://ultrasonicstudios.org/odyssey/

 

[paramesh]

Where do I begin?

My journey with tube amps.

Darkvoice 336se
Feliks Audio Elise
Feliks Audio Euforia
Primaluna Dialogue Premium HP
La Figaro 339i
Woo Audio Wa22
Schiit Mjolnir 2
Woo Audio Wa5le
Glenn OTL amp 6 x 6bx7gt with @paramesh now.
ALO Audio Studio Six
Elekit TU-8200
McChanson Destiny 300b amp
Ultrasonic Studio Oblivion

Ultrasonic Studio Odyssey - this is where I stop. I've found what I'm looking for.
http://ultrasonicstudios.org/odyssey/

@UntilThen ~ my big man .. i HEARD you !!!..

 

[paramesh]

Hey man, thanks for your response. Am quite interested in the Euforia.

For a DAC, check out the Holo DACs? The Spring is pretty good, esp L2 and above.

I wonder how much my Stellia’s bass would change due to the high impedance output of the Euforia…

@Sajid Amit .. knowing your SQ preferences .euphoria might not be up your alley !.

 

[UntilThen]

@Sajid Amit .. knowing your SQ preferences .euphoria might not be up your alley !.

I know what will suit him. It's Odyssey with Telefunken EL11 and EL12 spez tubes with Sowter output transformers.

 

[paramesh]

I know what will suit him. It's Odyssey with Telefunken EL11 and EL12 spez tubes with Sowter output transformers.

@Sajid Amit .. there u go !!

 

[paramesh]

Where do I begin?

My journey with tube amps.

Darkvoice 336se
Feliks Audio Elise
Feliks Audio Euforia
Primaluna Dialogue Premium HP
La Figaro 339i
Woo Audio Wa22
Schiit Mjolnir 2
Woo Audio Wa5le
Glenn OTL amp 6 x 6bx7gt with @paramesh now.
ALO Audio Studio Six
Elekit TU-8200
McChanson Destiny 300b amp
Ultrasonic Studio Oblivion

Ultrasonic Studio Odyssey - this is where I stop. I've found what I'm looking for.
http://ultrasonicstudios.org/odyssey/

@UntilThen give the WA22 ... just cos i have all the best possible tubes for it !..

 

[UntilThen]

@UntilThen give the WA22 ... just cos i have all the best possible tubes for it !..

You have my GEC 6AS7G and GEC U52 !

Hmmm we can negotiate that. Wa22 for 5 gold bars is a fair trade. With that, I can see Tomas about building my next dream tube amp. I need him to build me an amp that will use 300b, 2a3 and 45 tubes using Sowter transformers. It will be an old school amp built with a sprinkling of new school.