[Lou Erickson]

I've picked up a set of Drop/Hifiman HE5XX planar magnetic headphones, and I'm really liking the clarity and the bass, especially now that I have an amp that will do them justice.

What's a good next step up in the planar magnetic world? I tend to be cheap, but could go up to $1k on this - headphones.com has the LCD-2 for that. Would that be a good choice or should I save up for an LCD-3?

Wht other choices are out there that I haven't found?

 

[msing539]

Sash Tres and Quad ERA-1, but they're not ideal for smaller heads.

 

[pbui44]

If you want the most value, then you can get the Sash Tres 45 ohm model with 2m XLR cable (you can get a Youkamoo xlr-to-1/4" adapter later for $25 on Amazon) to contrast with the HE-5XX 16 ohm rating and also add closed and semi-closed cups with your order:

https://www.sash-audio.com/product-page/headphones-sash-tres-45-ohms

 

[earmonger]

If you want the most value, then you can get the Sash Tres 45 ohm model with 2m XLR cable (you can get a Youkamoo xlr-to-1/4" adapter later for $25 on Amazon) to contrast with the HE-5XX 16 ohm rating and also add closed and semi-closed cups with your order:

https://www.sash-audio.com/product-page/headphones-sash-tres-45-ohms

Why not just get the 1/4" connector on the original cable, or whatever the amp uses, in the first place?

 

[Lou Erickson]

Why not just get the 1/4" connector on the original cable, or whatever the amp uses, in the first place?

Presumably so you could use the headphone balanced or single-ended. I've got balanced out now so that's a meaningful consideration.

 

[pbui44]

Why not just get the 1/4" connector on the original cable, or whatever the amp uses, in the first place?

The OP's Jot purchase that they mentioned in another thread, which is leading onto this:

Presumably so you could use the headphone balanced or single-ended. I've got balanced out now so that's a meaningful consideration.

 

[DillingerEP]

I've picked up a set of Drop/Hifiman HE5XX planar magnetic headphones, and I'm really liking the clarity and the bass, especially now that I have an amp that will do them justice.

What's a good next step up in the planar magnetic world? I tend to be cheap, but could go up to $1k on this - headphones.com has the LCD-2 for that. Would that be a good choice or should I save up for an LCD-3?

Wht other choices are out there that I haven't found?

The Audeze Lcd 2 is without a doubt a great headphone. The sound is quite warm and forgiving in my opinion. I did not try the Lcd3 yet but read that it hast the Audeze house sound that might be not your kind of liking. Compared with the Hifiman house sound.

If you like the Hifiman sound: clarity, soundstage, airiness, i would go for a Arya headphone or even a used HE1000 v2/Stealth.

 

[tomb]

The Audeze LCD 2 is probably the historic planar game changer and the one you should get, if you are interested in "official" milestone headphones for the last ~20 years. Similarly, the Sennheiser HD800 is that for dynamics, with the Focal Utopia or Focal Clear close seconds, IMHO. Be forewarned that all three really respond to amplifiers that are tailor-made to optimize those headphones.

As with almost any planar, the Audeze will benefit from an amp that can burst current to relatively low impedances easily. Contrasting that is the HD800, which benefits most from tube-transformer-coupled amps that can swing large voltages but with the sweetness and lack of harshness good output transformers provide - something like Cinemag nickel-core or even better: amorphous-core Lundahls.

The absolute finest amp for the Focals is the DSHA-3FN by ECP Audio*, sold through Nitsch - Or, anything custom by ECP Audio.

* I am, of course, partial to ECP Audio designs, having built and sold several versions myself over the years. IMO, Doug Savitsky (dsavitsk) has few peers in dynamic headphone amplifier design.