[Whazzzup]

 


Hey u2u2. Thanks for your message. I did buy the WA6-SE from him last year and was good, but as mentioned before could not notice a difference between that and directly plugging into my Marantz amp. Also purchased upgraded tubes from Woo and could be hard pressed to notice a difference. It actually disappointed me because there was an evident distortion when listening to Bob Dylan for example when his voice sings in a certain way. Something you would not hear with solid state off the bat or I guess crazy expensive tubes (Sophia and fat bottles I had).

Regardless, don't think I will venture to Woo again and want solid state for sure.  Maybe I will go to Bay Bloor and take a listen with the unit in store to judge for myself.  When I auditioned the HD800S at Charles shop, I was using the Mojo and whether it was the headphones or that unit, it just blew me away. For example, listening to AMOK from Atoms for Peace was like a complete 3D experience.  Something definitely lacking with the LCD2s I had...Maybe Charles will lend me the Mojo for a day so I can compare that with the HDVD800 and see if there is a difference which I can tell and with the musical experience. If I am hard pressed to hear it, then would be questionable. But it might stand out at me like a sore thumb and help make my decision much easier.

I do want to take advantage of my Senn balanced cable that came with the HD800Ss, so for sure I'm in the market for a balanced solid state amp.  My understanding is that using the balanced circuit of the HDVD800 is much improved over the regular 1/4" jack.  I'm also thinking if I did get the Sennheiser HDVD I should wait for the new version which will be capable to DSD and hopefully would improve the overall problems with the DAC which people are experiencing.

Unfortunately would not be available to see that show in Montreal during the weekend, but hopefully one comes to Toronto sometime soon 

The Toronto show, such as it is, is TAVES, which took place at the end of October in 2015 so next one is still a long way off. Last one was held on Highway 7 just west of the 404. I thought SSI was a better show overall but both helped me with some decisions. If you hit Bay Bloor you ought to try some other amps as well - at least to see what your headphones can do. They have a Macintosh MHA100 that might help demonstrate the real value of the balanced cable vs a SE cable. I am suspicious that the HD800S comes with the balanced cable to encourage sales of the Sennheiser amp more than anything else. When I get a set of HD800S I am not expecting the XLR cable to sound better than the SE on my amp. I haven't seen a post that points either way so far. Another spot where you can demo gear is Executive Stereo, not far from the Headfone shop, on Avenue Rd south of Wilson. Too much rambling on my part. Good luck.

Executive stereo also carries the king of dac/amps chord Dave. Granted it's 17500 before taxes no stand so that's 20 g. Needless to say I opted for TT, got a good deal on Boxing Day and no regrets,from hifi headphones, it's one sweet end game dac IMO. Dave aside.

 

[MacedonianHero]

   
Well, let me know when you are tired of your TT or GSXMK2..  hint hint...

Not likely gonna happen anytime soon. 

 

[MacedonianHero]

Executive stereo also carries the king of dac/amps chord Dave. Granted it's 17500 before taxes no stand so that's 20 g. Needless to say I opted for TT, got a good deal on Boxing Day and no regrets,from hifi headphones, it's one sweet end game dac IMO. Dave aside.

As much as I love my TT, I too opted for a Subaru Forester instead of the DAVE.

 

[madwolfa]

  As much as I love my TT, I too opted for a Subaru Forester instead of the DAVE.

 
Boy, they just keep making stuff uglier and more expensive...

 

[MacedonianHero]

   
Boy, they just keep making stuff uglier and more expensive...

 
I like the new Forester styling, I like it more than my Toyota Sienna (my wife's car). 

 

[madwolfa]

 
I like the new Forester looks. 

 

 

[MacedonianHero]

   

I'm in my mid-40s and want a nice second car to go with our Toyota Sienna. My Acura is 12 years old and a bit too small for the kids now in the back seat. The 4 wheel drive option is a bonus for living in Canada. Plus the Cdn $ is making buying gear a bit pricier than even this time last year.  

 

[madwolfa]

  I'm in my mid-40s and want a nice second car to go with our Toyota Sienna. My Acura is 12 years old and a bit too small for the kids now in the back seat. The 4 wheel drive option is a bonus for living in Canada.

 
I was talking about Chord DAVE, haha.
 
PS: I just got a 2016 Outback 3.6R and we love it!

 

[MacedonianHero]

   
I was talking about Chord DAVE, haha.
 
PS: I just got a 2016 Outback 3.6R and we love it!

 
Lol, I really like the DAVE design too! Glad you love your Outback, great car!

 

[DukeOfYork]

Try Gearslutz. If you're looking for nearfield monitors, this thread is a great place to start: https://www.gearslutz.com/board/high-end/851143-high-end-nearfield-test.html
I'm also currently shopping for monitors; looks like I'm going to invest in a pair of Genelec 8351s, but Neumann and Geithain have great offerings as well.
Good luck with your search!

 
Thanks a lot for your recommendation! I actually had a short visit to Gearslutz yesterday before asking the question here, but I was a little bit frustrated. It seems to me that the place is not a dedicated speaker forum (vs. head-fi to headphones). There are some discussions about nearfield monitors, but the forum seems more like a place for pros in the music industry to discuss instruments and gears.
 
I am also considering monitors and likely later speakers. But just couldn't find a good forum for info. Genelec might provide good sound, but its appearance is just not my cup of tea. Neumann H?120 might be good too, but its 5 inch woofer is a tad small to me. Geithain I have no idea about. Adams, JBL, etc are also under my radar. But just couldn't find a good monitor/speaker forum for reviews and discussions.
 
Good luck with your search too! Please do let me know if you find any good forum later.
 
 
============
PS: The thread that you shared is really good! I am checking it out right now.

 

[DukeOfYork]

 
Room-Fi

 
 
...in wonderland

 

[DukeOfYork]

  Hmm... is it more about hi-fi or mixing-mastering...etc (rarely discussed 'together')
Sure there are some, also pro level, monitors, what could be used as 'home' audio main speakers too (mainly not below several thousand USD, because so called home audio must have decent i.e. 'multimedia level' bass too. Typically cheaper monitors are mainly focused on the 'most-important for mixing' middle FR. Pro level 'deep-bass mixing/mastering' capable monitors are quite expensive)
 
thinking, that google search can help too, if to 'feed' it with 'right theme, terms etc'

 
Good thoughts...I think there's a market for high-end bookshelf systems. Say, audiophiles want to play music in front of their computers or they want something for their small dens. Most bookshelf systems are not good enough currently (at least I think so). So monitors can also be a good alternative. But monitors can have the problems that you mentioned earlier. So lots of research needs to be done.
 
Googled a few places, but it's not working very well. Need to find an informative forum for speakers (or monitors) similar to head-fi.

 

[paulchiu]

  Need suggestions - which forum do you go when you want to find info or discussions on speakers (including monitors)? thanks

 
Yeah, you can read about it but better to visit a local Sam Goody.  There you most likely will have a room with all the active monitors setup for easy comparison.
It was in the NYC Time Square Sam Goody I found my Genelec 8050 years ago.  Sounds awesome with decent source.  Truly epic with balanced outs.

 

[Ranstedt]

   
Thanks a lot for your recommendation! I actually had a short visit to Gearslutz yesterday before asking the question here, but I was a little bit frustrated. It seems to me that the place is not a dedicated speaker forum (vs. head-fi to headphones). There are some discussions about nearfield monitors, but the forum seems more like a place for pros in the music industry to discuss instruments and gears.
 
I am also considering monitors and likely later speakers. But just couldn't find a good forum for info. Genelec might provide good sound, but its appearance is just not my cup of tea. Neumann H?120 might be good too, but its 5 inch woofer is a tad small to me. Geithain I have no idea about. Adams, JBL, etc are also under my radar. But just couldn't find a good monitor/speaker forum for reviews and discussions.
 
Good luck with your search too! Please do let me know if you find any good forum later.
 
 
============
PS: The thread that you shared is really good! I am checking it out right now.

Your assessment of gearslutz is more or less right. However, there's quite a lot of talk regarding monitors there. However, all the talk about monitors is geared more for studio monitoring and might differ from what you're looking for in a hi-fi environment.
 
If monitors are in fact what you're looking for. Let me save you some time and recommend the Amphion One15 or One18 passive monitors. Also, look for the Amphion Beautiful thread on gearslutz. They're expensive. However, offer bang for the buck compared to other monitors of equal or greater prices,

 

[Whazzzup]

 
Hmm... is it more about hi-fi or mixing-mastering...etc (rarely discussed 'together')
Sure there are some, also pro level, monitors, what could be used as 'home' audio main speakers too (mainly not below several thousand USD, because so called home audio must have decent i.e. 'multimedia level' bass too. Typically cheaper monitors are mainly focused on the 'most-important for mixing' middle FR. Pro level 'deep-bass mixing/mastering' capable monitors are quite expensive)

thinking, that google search can help too, if to 'feed' it with 'right theme, terms etc'

Good thoughts...I think there's a market for high-end bookshelf systems. Say, audiophiles want to play music in front of their computers or they want something for their small dens. Most bookshelf systems are not good enough currently (at least I think so). So monitors can also be a good alternative. But monitors can have the problems that you mentioned earlier. So lots of research needs to be done.

Googled a few places, but it's not working very well. Need to find an informative forum for speakers (or monitors) similar to head-fi.

My choice for desktop speakers on a moderate crowded desk was kef 300A. These have built in dac amps so no need to jam another amp on your desk, but they do take up some room ( not huge but) and are heavy. They come with sub woofer dampner but I don't use them. Just two speaker system as I don't want the third sub woofer speaker. Even under my desk is crowded with power conditioners, printers, human scale foot rocker....the sound is warm, robust, but won't be a party speaker. This is good quality office stuff you can just USB into your iMac. I do have pictures in my profile under TT forum if one needs a look at set up size. Course without dedicated amp, this is not pro sound. But 24 bit 196 fr. I beleive kef sells a 300 with no internal dac amp.