Talk me out of buying a budget tube amp for HD6XX

[GravityEyelids]

So i recently got a HD6xx, which is probably the best sounding (and most demanding in terms of amplification) of anything that i've owned. My fiio E18 isn't cutting it. Getting them to a solid volume (especially on older/good stuff like Fleetwood mac) requires maxing out on high gain. I don't know how they're supposed to sound, but they just sound "lacking" compared to the raving i've heard about them. So obviously it seems like proper amplification is needed.

My inner hipster wants to go against the grain and get something that is lesser regarded but well regarded such as Loxjie P20, Little Dot mk II or even one of the Little Bear offerings. Now, we're pretty much in an age where someone can get a $100 solid state that probably rivals $500+ amps from a decade ago, which is just insane. It's interesting that especially on something like the Loxjie, it's polarized between people who have and think it's amazing for the price, and detractors online who seemingly can't believe that something at that price can sound solid and feel the need to badmouth it.

Am i foolish for wanting to get a $100-150 tube amp for these over a very "safe" choice of something like a JDS Atom or Monoprice Liquid Spark? I don't have much opportunity to test nicer equipment, so i can only go based on what i've read, but it seems like i might like the sound that tube offers.

 

[PointyFox]

There's very little difference between amps besides how loud they can make headphones. Tube amps generally sound a little smoother. It's usually hardly noticeable though.

 

[GravityEyelids]

There's very little difference between amps besides how loud they can make headphones. Tube amps generally sound a little smoother. It's usually hardly noticeable though.

Yeah that's honestly how i tend to think of things. It's easy to get sidetracked with so many people maintaining that you need to spend a lot of money to get the most of something like a HD650/6XX. I am interested in the tube sound but wouldn't spend $400 on it any more than i would spend $300-400 on a solid state.

I just really like the look and idea of the Loxjie P20 so i might buy that regardless of what people have said lol

 

[PointyFox]

The Loxjie P20 has some really good specs. Should work well. Make sure you can hook it up to your DAC/source.

 

[tomb]

There's very little difference between amps besides how loud they can make headphones. Tube amps generally sound a little smoother. It's usually hardly noticeable though.

Amps are the same as any other piece of audio equipment. Better ones, like headphones, have greater resolution, detail, and soundstage. Poorer ones do not. It has nothing to do with frequency response and distortion, but those quantities are often used to argue that there's no discernable difference.

When implemented correctly, tubes also have no greater distortion or noise than solid-state. Generally speaking, people around here talk about tubes being warm and perhaps bassy. The truth is that those are poor implementations. The greatest attribute for tubes vs. solid-state is a much better/wider soundstage.

It is true that tubes will be inherently superior with high-impedance headphones (as the HD6XX/650). This is because tubes operate at high-voltages. Consequently, getting plenty of voltage swing for high-impedance headphones is not difficult. When designing and building a tube amplifier, you may even have trouble finding solid-state components that can operate at voltages that are commonplace for tubes.

 

[PointyFox]

I don't know about more resolution/detail. You'd think if an amp couldn't produce enough detail it wouldn't be able to produce as high of a frequency which would be apparent as treble rolloff, since the frequency limit of human hearing is essentially the most detailed sound audible.

Soundstage would manifest as crosstalk, which is generally in nonaudible levels.

They are correct that cheaper tube amps often have more of the tube sound because that is due to distortion and clipping mostly.

 

[tomb]

I don't know about more resolution/detail. You'd think if an amp couldn't produce enough detail it wouldn't be able to produce as high of a frequency which would be apparent as treble rolloff, since the frequency limit of human hearing is essentially the most detailed sound audible.

Soundstage would manifest as crosstalk, which is generally in nonaudible levels.

They are correct that cheaper tube amps often have more of the tube sound because that is due to distortion and clipping mostly.

No. to all of that ...

 

[Law87]

There's very little difference between amps besides how loud they can make headphones. Tube amps generally sound a little smoother. It's usually hardly noticeable though.

I want to believe that however I have the IFI Micro DSD and Chord Hugo right now, there is very apparent difference between the two. One made the bass bloated and instrument not as good, the other is just the opposite.

Amp made a big difference with the Sennheiser HD800. My Beyer T1.1 sounds great with the Micro DSD though....

 

[IkSak]

Get the Schiit Vali 2. Nice tube amp that I think will pair nicely with the hd6xx, helping somehow overcome the lack of bass and enhancing the details