[Makiah S]

After reading all the comments, I can come to the conclusion that SP200 is indicated for headphones that are not bright, dry or thin, on the contrary it seems to combine well with headphones preferably with warm sound signature, another solution could be to combine it With an DAC AKM (with a warmer sound), it seems that it will not get along with the DAC ESS (cooler or flat sound), I will take advantage of the SP200 when the topping D90 is presented (with AK 4499), I hope it is a good combo!

Imo

Sp200 is clean and transparent so you're bright headphone it still going to sound bright, or something that has withdrawn mid-range an a slightly forward bass or recessed bass and slightly forward top end are going to sound exactly that way

I owned the dt880 and I have an HD 800 both share a similar signature and I don't like my HD 800 on sp200 there's nothing wrong with sp200 it's just that I prefer HD 800 when I have a tube amp to help fix some of its tonal imbalances

 

[BubbaJay]

It's been a week now and I still can't get over just how clean my headphones sound now. I love they way my LCD-2C sound, they have never sounded this good and they were already one of my favorite headphones. There's not a headphone I've used that doesn't sound significantly better now.

 

[Makiah S]

It's been a week now and I still can't get over just how clean my headphones sound now. I love they way my LCD-2C sound, they have never sounded this good and they were already one of my favorite headphones. There's not a headphone I've used that doesn't sound significantly better now.

Ooooh yea I bet 2C is nice! I'll have to go and give the set I have a listen on sp200

 

[19844]

It's been a week now and I still can't get over just how clean my headphones sound now. I love they way my LCD-2C sound, they have never sounded this good and they were already one of my favorite headphones. There's not a headphone I've used that doesn't sound significantly better now.

Did you try sp200 with Focal elear if so is it good combination?

Thank you

 

[BubbaJay]

Is it worth going fully balanced with this amp?

I'm thinking of getting the Topping D70 balanced dac to replace my EL dac but I don't know if it's really worth it. Even if it's not the D70 is still a really good dac so I might get it anyway or maybe the EL Dac II that JDS has now since I really like my original.

 

[Makiah S]

Is it worth going fully balanced with this amp?

I'm thinking of getting the Topping D70 balanced dac to replace my EL dac but I don't know if it's really worth it. Even if it's not the D70 is still a really good dac so I might get it anyway or maybe the EL Dac II that JDS has now since I really like my original.

Actually the opposite is true it's better to use the RCA inputs as the XLR have an extra stage of Hardware that brings the performance down like 2DB versus rca in

So a better single-ended DAC is going to serve you well assuming the single-ended output of the DAC is equivalent to the balance output of the balance dac, as sp200 cannot run fully balanced and actually does not perform better with balanced

Additionally you want to use the 4-pin XLR out as it has better cross talk, so RCA in 4 pin out is the optimal way to run sp200

 

[tim0chan]

Actually the opposite is true it's better to use the RCA inputs as the XLR have an extra stage of Hardware that brings the performance down like 2DB versus rca in

So a better single-ended DAC is going to serve you well assuming the single-ended output of the DAC is equivalent to the balance output of the balance dac, as sp200 cannot run fully balanced and actually does not perform better with balanced

Additionally you want to use the 4-pin XLR out as it has better cross talk, so RCA in 4 pin out is the optimal way to run sp200

I'm planning on using the XLR in inputs with my balanced dap

 

[BubbaJay]

Actually the opposite is true it's better to use the RCA inputs as the XLR have an extra stage of Hardware that brings the performance down like 2DB versus rca in

So a better single-ended DAC is going to serve you well assuming the single-ended output of the DAC is equivalent to the balance output of the balance dac, as sp200 cannot run fully balanced and actually does not perform better with balanced

Additionally you want to use the 4-pin XLR out as it has better cross talk, so RCA in 4 pin out is the optimal way to run sp200

Thanks, I heard it won't run true balanced but I wasn't sure. I don't know if I'm going to get the D70 because I know what to expect from the JDS Labs dac so I think I might just upgrade to the EL Dac II.

 

[BrainFood]

I'm planning on using the XLR in inputs with my balanced dap

That's absolutely fine....will sound great.

Additionally you want to use the 4-pin XLR out as it has better cross talk

What's the best way of doing that with my 6.3mm jack of my DT1990 pro cable...use some kind of 6.3mm to XLR adapter?

 

[ronfifer]

Specs say output power is 6w @32ohm but they dont specify balanced or SE?

 

[Shane D]

Actually the opposite is true it's better to use the RCA inputs as the XLR have an extra stage of Hardware that brings the performance down like 2DB versus rca in

So a better single-ended DAC is going to serve you well assuming the single-ended output of the DAC is equivalent to the balance output of the balance dac, as sp200 cannot run fully balanced and actually does not perform better with balanced

Additionally you want to use the 4-pin XLR out as it has better cross talk, so RCA in 4 pin out is the optimal way to run sp200

I am actually doing this right now. I have finally plugged in my Beyer T5p.2's. They still had the XLR cable in from their time with the LCX.

Sounds better than I thought it would as a combo. Have to try several kinds of music today.
What a difference going from the Shure 1540's to these. Both are closed back, but what a Large step up in sound quality. Usually with closed backs I get a feeling of being stifled or that I am not getting all the sound. The T5p.2's come the closest to sounding open in my collection.

On a side note, when I first got my LCX I Really didn't like the sounds it was making. Sounded very harsh. After dozens of hours it started to sound better and has since become a favourite with certain 'phones.

With this amp, right out of the box, it did not sound great to me. It sounded strident or sharp. I used the word bright to try to describe it. Now that I have 20 to 25 hours on it I feel differently. Physical burn-in or brain burn-in? I always vote brain burn-in. I will have to go back to the Grado's by the weekend and try a take two.

A truly neutral amp takes some getting used to.

Shane D

 

[Makiah S]

That's absolutely fine....will sound great.



What's the best way of doing that with my 6.5mm [1/4"] jack of my DT1990 pro cable...use some kind of 6.3mm to XLR adapter?

Absolutely not!

If you'd like you can have your DT 1990 re-terminated for 4pin XLR use. You can go from 4pin XLR to 6.5mm SE no problem but NEVER go from 6.5mm SE to 4pin XLR

Thanks, I heard it won't run true balanced but I wasn't sure. I don't know if I'm going to get the D70 because I know what to expect from the JDS Labs dac so I think I might just upgrade to the EL Dac II.

The amp runs in like a dual mono config, so there's benefits to using the 4pin OUT. But there's no benefit to XLR in aside from convenience,

An either way the differences are like -2b off of -120 dB so nothing that's audible by any means. It's a good amp if you have XLR input use them, if you don't have 4pin Terminated headphones then use 6.5mm. I wouldn't fret about getting a balanced anything to use with the amp. What ever money you might spend getting Balanced Headphone Cables or a new Balanced DAC could likely go towards a better headphone if you feel the performance of what you have isn't good enough on SP 200 or even a different DAC that is more suited to your tastes.

The Schiit Multibit stuff is nice and will give those of you who have Beyerdynamic Headphones and Grado's a slightly fuller presentation. Also any dac with a Slow Roll Off Filter will also pair nicely with those REALLY bright headphones,

At this price point SP 200 is pretty much it, it's possible the Monoprice 887 or THX 789 may perform similarly but most of the stand TRUE out solid state amps in my mind have been Benchmarks HPA4 and the Bricasti M3 Dac/Amp combo both are fully differential designs. Most of the full differential [not the "converts to"] but end to end differential balanced amps I see are over like 1,000, I hear SPL Phonitor X is also good

That's not to say there aren't some really excellent dual mono Single Ended amps above $200, heck, maybe even some better than SP 200. My point is spending money on balanced gear to run XLR into SP 200 is a waste, and re-terminating your headphones for use with only ONE amp is also a waste, rather than "optimize" switch to a better headphone or DAC that suites your tastes

 

[Makiah S]

I am actually doing this right now. I have finally plugged in my Beyer T5p.2's. They still had the XLR cable in from their time with the LCX.

Sounds better than I thought it would as a combo. Have to try several kinds of music today.
What a difference going from the Shure 1540's to these. Both are closed back, but what a Large step up in sound quality. Usually with closed backs I get a feeling of being stifled or that I am not getting all the sound. The T5p.2's come the closest to sounding open in my collection.

On a side note, when I first got my LCX I Really didn't like the sounds it was making. Sounded very harsh. After dozens of hours it started to sound better and has since become a favourite with certain 'phones.

With this amp, right out of the box, it did not sound great to me. It sounded strident or sharp. I used the word bright to try to describe it. Now that I have 20 to 25 hours on it I feel differently. Physical burn-in or brain burn-in? I always vote brain burn-in. I will have to go back to the Grado's by the weekend and try a take two.

A truly neutral amp takes some getting used to.

Shane D

Yea it can, if your used to having coloration in your system it's easy to forget the base response of the headphone itself. Like I tend to forget that HD 800 is a bit withdrawn in the midrange, but moving to SP 200 it's kinda obvious! An when I look at frequency response for HD 800 what I'm hearing is matched or supported by the objective measurements.

An frankly if you like having that coloration or slight added distortion that's fine There are many headphones that have a richer harmonic presentation that really benefit from a clean neutral amp like SP200. An like wise there's other products that benefit from a slight touch of "color" like HD 800 often does

 

[ronfifer]

Is this amp considered a truly balanced amp? If I rewire a Fostex T50RP MK3 headphone to become balanced (Argon MK3 mod), will this be the right amp to make full use of the modded headphone? or is XLR output = SE output without any separation of channels? -Thanks

 

[BrainFood]

Is this amp considered a truly balanced amp?

No and, imo, shouldn't be described as one.