[number1sixerfan]

Hmm...makes me want a GS-1 even more. lol

Great review!

 

[Anders]

You placed the balanced Square Wave XL quite a bit up in your StereoMojo review compared to the Square Wave (non-XL) here. Is the XL so much better or is the difference between amplifiers fairly small?

 

[musicmind]

Fantastic review asr, thanks for your efforts.

 

[Jon L]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Asr /img/forum/go_quote.gif A Six-Way Solid-State Epic Throwdown! Digital source: - Arcam FMJ CD33 (CD player)

What the *HELL* did you do with your Accuphase CDP??

 

[jinp6301]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pearljam5000 /img/forum/go_quote.gif what version of the Gilmore lite is currently being sold on the headamp website? is it better or worse than the version reviewed here?

headamp is selling the same version that Asr reviewed. The v1s been out of production for a while

 

[d-cee]

great 5000th post, thanks for the huge review!

 

[Redo]

Nice writeup!

I'm a bit perplexed at the EC/SS though. I've been trying to hear hiss from it and no matter how high I crank I get absolutely no hiss. Also the top end has seemingly endless sparkle. Going through a few different sources previously confirmed this with the EC/SS.


Edit:

On further listening, the EC/SS has hiss between 2 and 10 o'clock on the knob, then vanishes when it's 100%. My own fault for testing out for hiss w/ Grado's when there's people talking around me.

 

[Asr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by boomana /img/forum/go_quote.gif Also, I have a Heed Canamp, though slightly tweaked with blackgates in the power supply. I use it, and love it with my K340s and like it also with K701s, but would eliminate recommendations for use with the Senn 600s and 650s, expecially the 650s. As you noted, it is not a fast amp, and it emphasizes and makes the already laid-back Senns seem dead-slow, and the bass overpowering and slow in the 650s. Not a great combo.

Touché about the HD650, I hadn't realized that and have taken it out. Think I'd prefer to leave in the HD600 though as between the two it has a flatter response instead of the low-mids/mid-bass oriented signature of the HD650.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anders /img/forum/go_quote.gif You placed the balanced Square Wave XL quite a bit up in your StereoMojo review compared to the Square Wave (non-XL) here. Is the XL so much better or is the difference between amplifiers fairly small?

I reviewed the non-XL model on StereoMojo. Also FWIW I didn't place an award on it, the publisher did. And while my submitted reviews largely go through intact they're also subject to editing (and that review did get a few edits). :\

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jon L /img/forum/go_quote.gif What the *HELL* did you do with your Accuphase CDP??

Lol it's still around, I just didn't use it in my listening of these amps, for this review.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shopper /img/forum/go_quote.gif WOW. The "analytical review" brought to paroxysm. No wonder you couldn't bring it to a conclusion.

Geez man, did you really need to quote my entire post?! Put a scrolling alert next time or something.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Redo /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm a bit perplexed at the EC/SS though. I've been trying to hear hiss from it and no matter how high I crank I get absolutely no hiss. Also the top end has seemingly endless sparkle. Going through a few different sources previously confirmed this with the EC/SS.

Well the CDP I was using has treble sparkle and I was using silver ICs. If there was treble sparkle, I think I would've noticed it, but I didn't. Note that I do consider "sparkle" something of an unnatural thing though as noted. The EC/SS has a natural sound throughout the spectrum.

 

[Acoustic Chef]

Doesn’t black background have more to do with detail presentation then noise floor?

 

[Asr]

Oh a good point, I'd forgotten that's what it usually refers to. I've re-worded the title there to avoid confusion. Thanks for pointing that out.

 

[ataraxia]

Thanks for doing a review including the Gilmore Lite and the CanAmp!

 

[twc5964]

Yes ASR,
Thank you for the X-Mas present...a fantastic informative read.You are one of the few stout defenders of the Gilmore Lite so thank you for including it in your review.

 

[tbonner1]

Another brilliant ASR review. His reviews put the professionals (Stereophile, Absolute Sound) to shame, and not by a small margin. Real out of the box thinking with useful information unique for headphone reviews I have not read anywhere else.

I really enjoyed the useful headphone/amp synergy ideas. My impression is that many people mismatch highly rated amps with highly rated headphones and wonder what is wrong when the sound is less than they had hoped for. At this (high) level it is about synergy and assembling the right systems.

I like your reference to straight wire with gain. This should be a goal for any high-end designer and I believe something Kevin Gilmore values.

I have heard most of the listed amps with the exception of the Square Wave and agree with your findings.

That said, I am surprised to see you list the AKG 701 as synergistic with the two HeadAmps. I find the 701 (stock and recabled) to lack bass fullness (but not deep bass) and can sound a bit sterile. Lack of bass fullness and sounding a bit sterile were two characteristics I found with the GS-1 and Glite making this combination less than synergistic for me. Are you sure about this combination?

Can you comment on the Denon D5000?


PS I really liked your choice of reference music. Great choices offering detail and a wide range of instruments.

 

[elnero]

This makes me miss my GS-1 even more.

 

[MaZa]

Fantastic job Asr!

I cant stop but wonder where my Corda HA-2 MkII SE belongs in that list. I really like that amp, but it feels little kickless and depthless in bass, noticeable on DT880. Good amp for RS1 to balance it out, but Ld MkIII trounces it with DT880 in synergy. Perhaps I should have gotten Gilmore instead...