[skeptic]

Hi! I want to upgrade my amp later this year. At the moment I have BH Crack and I love it. My budget is around 1200$. Something like WA6se, BH Mainline? Something else? Shoot! 

If you are game to build it, the mainline ticks all the boxes for being an excellent tube amp and really is one of the best options out there at any price for hd800s. To my ears, nothing on the woo lineup is even close (heard everything but their monblocks).

Don't know if you are following loquah's bh amp comparison thread, but paulie just completed a build and has promised some comparative comments relative to his stratus in the proximate future.

 

[subtle]

The hd800 is the best high end headphone of 2015!

http://www.cnet.com/topics/headphones/best-headphones/high-end/

 
How do they present an award like that when the first month of 2015 isn't even over with yet?
 
What a joke of a publication.

 

[pearljam50000]

Do you guys expect anything new from Sennheiser @ Musikmesse?

 

[Klots]

If you are game to build it, the mainline ticks all the boxes for being an excellent tube amp and really is one of the best options out there at any price for hd800s. To my ears, nothing on the woo lineup is even close (heard everything but their monblocks).

Don't know if you are following loquah's bh amp comparison thread, but paulie just completed a build and has promised some comparative comments relative to his stratus in the proximate future.

Yes I'm following the comparison thread. Looking forward to his comparative comments. Sonett 2 is also one option for me (Stratus costs too much).

Going to get my Speedball next week, so atleast some upgrade until I get my hands on something better.

 

[Mach3]

If you are game to build it, the mainline ticks all the boxes for being an excellent tube amp and really is one of the best options out there at any price for hd800s. To my ears, nothing on the woo lineup is even close (heard everything but their monblocks).

Don't know if you are following loquah's bh amp comparison thread, but paulie just completed a build and has promised some comparative comments relative to his stratus in the proximate future.

mainline better than all woo audio lineup except the mono block? Simply wow, can someone with both wa6se vs mainline chime in on impression?

 

[skeptic]

 


Yes I'm following the comparison thread. Looking forward to his comparative comments. Sonett 2 is also one option for me (Stratus costs too much).

Going to get my Speedball next week, so atleast some upgrade until I get my hands on something better.

 
The speedball will definitely be a step in the right direction.  Upgrading your output caps and pot are also pretty quick and easy improvements if your next amp is still a little ways down the road.  Also, when pairing hd800's with the crack, I think getting some felt and foam and implementing the anax mod, as described on innerfidelity, is worth a go to see if you like it.  Depending on your tubes and tastes in music, crack can present pretty energetic trebles on occasion, and I found I generally preferred the anax mod in place with mine.  It makes for a really enjoyable combo on the whole, but these amazing phones can/do sound even better once a true totl amp is within your grasp.   
 
[Edit - I would love to see a comparison to the Sonett 2 as well.  Just not enough mainlines floating around out there yet so the comparisons are sadly few and far between.]

 

[nephilim32]

Just an update with my HD 800 rig.

Burson soloist SL
ARCAM irDAC

Interconnects...
Audio quest king cobra RCA leads
ALO Audio reference 16 HD 800 cable upgrade.
Pangea SE9 AC power cord (for soloist.)

I must say. I've never heard such clear and precise sound in all my life with this setup. This is what I look forward to when I get home from work. I'm really at that point where I can't imagine a headphone rig sounding better for my sound tastes at this stage in my audio adventures. I tried throwing in a pair of SONY MDR Z7's into the Above rig I listed and I want to be clear, the HD 800's kick the living **** out of the Sony MDR 7's. in the world of audio I just got further edification that you really do get what you pay for. The MDR's are a great headphone, but I have just got the education that they are not an elite headphone like our beloved 800's.
above all, I certainly do not take these Cans for granted.

 

[freddr]

Have anyone here compared Magni 2 UBER vs Matrix M-stage HPA-2 with HD800?

 

[skimrn]

I owned HD 700 and Beyer T1, and last week I finally got the HD 800.  As soon as I put it on and played a CD, I was in another world!  What a piece of gear!  I am in heaven!
I just ordered Sennheiser HDVD 800 Amp, I hope it's a good match for it!

 

[Klots]

   
The speedball will definitely be a step in the right direction.  Upgrading your output caps and pot are also pretty quick and easy improvements if your next amp is still a little ways down the road.  Also, when pairing hd800's with the crack, I think getting some felt and foam and implementing the anax mod, as described on innerfidelity, is worth a go to see if you like it.  Depending on your tubes and tastes in music, crack can present pretty energetic trebles on occasion, and I found I generally preferred the anax mod in place with mine.  It makes for a really enjoyable combo on the whole, but these amazing phones can/do sound even better once a true totl amp is within your grasp.   
 
[Edit - I would love to see a comparison to the Sonett 2 as well.  Just not enough mainlines floating around out there yet so the comparisons are sadly few and far between.]

Output caps are already upgraded (JFX caps with russian teflon bypass caps) and so is the pot (valab23). For the tubes I use TS5998 and E80CC, but with speedball I will get my voltages correct for E80CC. I use M-dac as my dac and I see no need for anax mod. 

 

[frank2908]

I thought making a closed HD800 would be fun, but turned out taking too much time and money. This is for sure not the final version yet.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/752877/3d-printed-closed-headphones-with-hd800-driver#post_11271199

The first prototype in rosewood CNCed by Calico88.

The final version (until now), 3D printed.

THe closed headphones with HD800 driver and my old custom T50rp

 

[lin0003]

Wow, looks amazing! How does it sound? 

 

[Dopaminer]

  I thought making a closed HD800 would be fun, but turned out taking too much time and money. This is for sure not the final version yet.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/752877/3d-printed-closed-headphones-with-hd800-driver#post_11271199

The first prototype in rosewood CNCed by Calico88.

The final version (until now), 3D printed.

THe closed headphones with HD800 driver and my old custom T50rp

 
 
W
O
W
!
!

 

[frank2908]

  Wow, looks amazing! How does it sound? 

I posted the quick impression in the link to the thread. The drivers are more angled than the stock HD800 ( audeze earpads+ angled driver relative to baffe) therefore the soundstage is a bit deeper. The last time I compared to the hd800 in a shop, the treble is a bit less hot, and mid and bass are probably the same. THe sound is not much closed in compared to the hd800. After the short A/B session, I made a small adjustment to increase the bass quantity a bit, but haven't made a new comparison yet.

 

[SilentFrequency]

How do they present an award like that when the first month of 2015 isn't even over with yet?

What a joke of a publication.

Well, maybe they present the award as in the hd800 is the best hp of 2015 currently, so far, but maybe update as newer/other models of headphones get released?