[lin0003]

Just got a NAD M51 and man, these 2 are a match made in heaven. The bass is awesome, not lacking at all with my stock HD800. 

 

[wink]

Is the starving student an end-game amp for the HD800?       

 

[Frank I]

  Is the starving student an end-game amp for the HD800?       

Wink one of your designs my man.

 

[skeptic]

.....
I'm happy with the Meier Daccord/Classic setup, but ignorance might be bliss, with the HD800 I just know every time I've bumped the quality of the setup up the HD800 has scaled right along with it.
I'm planning to re-cable as well.
Mahler recommended pairing the Manley Labs Neo Classic 300B and or TTVJ/Millett 307A with the HD800.   
I'm not knocking other DAC/amps or other setups, I just don't know how much I could be missing.

 
Attending a good size meet and evaluating for yourself is really the only way to know rumay.  The 307A is a very impressive, super clean sounding tube amp, and I enjoyed listening to it at CanJam LA several years ago.  But despite its $7k price tag (at the time I believe), it was not my absolute favorite in the building with hd800's.  [size=13.3333339691162px]A plane ticket or a road trip is a very worthy investment before going too far down the audio rabbit hole, even in the headphone arena.  [/size]
 
I might agree to an even trade of my mainline for a 307A, but that would only be so I could sell the 307A and buy 6 mainlines

  

 

[RUMAY408]

   
Attending a good size meet and evaluating for yourself is really the only way to know rumay.  The 307A is a very impressive, super clean sounding tube amp, and I enjoyed listening to it at CanJam LA several years ago.  But despite its $7k price tag (at the time I believe), it was not my absolute favorite in the building with hd800's.  [size=13.3333339691162px]A plane ticket or a road trip is a very worthy investment before going too far down the audio rabbit hole, even in the headphone arena.  [/size]
 
I might agree to an even trade of my mainline for a 307A, but that would only be so I could sell the 307A and buy 6 mainlines

  

Audio rabbit hole is a perfect description.  The quality vs cost curve on the HD800 is more exponential than logarithmic, just a tougher call. Agree the meets are the way to go.
 
How tough was the mainline to assemble?

 

[No_One411]

Hey guys, finally joined the HD-800 club. I've always been interested in these headphones, but never actually pulled the trigger until now. 
 
Currently running from a Vali, which is okay for the moment. At some point though, you start to wonder about possible improvements. I'll probably be seeing a Bottlehead Crack or Schiit Valhalla 2 sometime in my future...
 
Comfort is amazing, easily the best I've ever had with headphones, alongside the Paradox Slants. Perfect companion headphone imo. 
 
Do note that my pair has the Anax 2.0 mod, which actually seems to suit my tastes better. Imaging seems to be more accurate, and the treble is at a more acceptable level for me. 
 
Some people may rather stick knives in their ears then pair the HD-800 with a Sabre DAC, like the Anedio D2 I'm using, but it's surprisingly not terrible. Of course, the Anax mod may help, but I'm not having any major treble harshness or sibilance issues. 
 
Definitely glad to have joined the HD-800 club. It's one of those things I feel that you can't just audition at meets. I really had to spend some time on my own with these. 

 

[Sorrodje]

Congrats @No_One411

 

[lin0003]

  Hey guys, finally joined the HD-800 club. I've always been interested in these headphones, but never actually pulled the trigger until now. 
 
Currently running from a Vali, which is okay for the moment. At some point though, you start to wonder about possible improvements. I'll probably be seeing a Bottlehead Crack or Schiit Valhalla 2 sometime in my future...
 
Comfort is amazing, easily the best I've ever had with headphones, alongside the Paradox Slants. Perfect companion headphone imo. 
 
Do note that my pair has the Anax 2.0 mod, which actually seems to suit my tastes better. Imaging seems to be more accurate, and the treble is at a more acceptable level for me. 
 
Some people may rather stick knives in their ears then pair the HD-800 with a Sabre DAC, like the Anedio D2 I'm using, but it's surprisingly not terrible. Of course, the Anax mod may help, but I'm not having any major treble harshness or sibilance issues. 
 
Definitely glad to have joined the HD-800 club. It's one of those things I feel that you can't just audition at meets. I really had to spend some time on my own with these. 

From what I've heard the D2 has quite a nice amp. It might be better than the Vali? 
 
I used mine with an M-DAC for a while and it was honestly not too bad, but it was quite sterile sounding and a bit lifeless. It was incredibly detailed though. I like the NAD M51 much more for the HD800, they are perfect together IMO. A warmish amp like the V200 helps a little too. 
 
On the Crack, personally I'm not a fan of the HD800 pairing but they are superb with the HD6X0s. I would also look into a Matrix M-Stage with OPA627 as an alternative, I quite like mine with the stock op amps, but the OPA627 are a huge improvement. 

 

[koiloco]

  Hey guys, finally joined the HD-800 club. I've always been interested in these headphones, but never actually pulled the trigger until now. 
 
Currently running from a Vali, which is okay for the moment. At some point though, you start to wonder about possible improvements. I'll probably be seeing a Bottlehead Crack or Schiit Valhalla 2 sometime in my future...
 
Comfort is amazing, easily the best I've ever had with headphones, alongside the Paradox Slants. Perfect companion headphone imo. 
 
Do note that my pair has the Anax 2.0 mod, which actually seems to suit my tastes better. Imaging seems to be more accurate, and the treble is at a more acceptable level for me. 
 
Some people may rather stick knives in their ears then pair the HD-800 with a Sabre DAC, like the Anedio D2 I'm using, but it's surprisingly not terrible. Of course, the Anax mod may help, but I'm not having any major treble harshness or sibilance issues. 
 
Definitely glad to have joined the HD-800 club. It's one of those things I feel that you can't just audition at meets. I really had to spend some time on my own with these. 

Hey hey, gratzzzz.  Welcome to the crazy club!  
 
Btw, I am in San Jose.  Bring your HD800 over to my place sometimes.  It will be great to hear the Anax mod HD800.  I have always wanted to try the mod but not sure how it will sound.
PM me if you are up for getting together.  

 

[Somphon]

Hey guys, finally joined the HD-800 club. I've always been interested in these headphones, but never actually pulled the trigger until now. 

Currently running from a Vali, which is okay for the moment. At some point though, you start to wonder about possible improvements. I'll probably be seeing a Bottlehead Crack or Schiit Valhalla 2 sometime in my future...

Comfort is amazing, easily the best I've ever had with headphones, alongside the Paradox Slants. Perfect companion headphone imo. 

Do note that my pair has the Anax 2.0 mod, which actually seems to suit my tastes better. Imaging seems to be more accurate, and the treble is at a more acceptable level for me. 

Some people may rather stick knives in their ears then pair the HD-800 with a Sabre DAC, like the Anedio D2 I'm using, but it's surprisingly not terrible. Of course, the Anax mod may help, but I'm not having any major treble harshness or sibilance issues. 

Definitely glad to have joined the HD-800 club. It's one of those things I feel that you can't just audition at meets. I really had to spend some time on my own with these. 

Yesterday I also pulled the trigger on the HD800 to accompany my LCD-3f, listening through Chord Hugo at the moment. So far I don't find it overly bright and loving it with classical music or giving a different feel to some gool vocals. Its a great headphone so far.

 

[zilch0md]

How much in % is the HD800 with the Vali?

 

  The Pinnacle is definitely the best with the HD800. In fact, it's kind of the only one I like it a lot with, and it is great with it, even with the stock cable.

 
Looking only at the numbers...
 
Vali = $129
 
Pinnacle = $10,000
 
129 * 100 / 10000 = 1.29%
 
Thus, if the Pinnacle is "the best" at $10,000, a Vali costing less than 2% of that translates to:  Get one!   
   

 

[Rossliew]

   
Looking only at the numbers...
 
Vali = $129
 
Pinnacle = $10,000
 
129 * 100 / 10000 = 1.29%
 
Thus, if the Pinnacle is "the best" at $10,000, a Vali costing less than 2% of that translates to:  Get one!   
   

Totally agree on that one!

 

[Zoom25]

   
Looking only at the numbers...
 
Vali = $129
 
Pinnacle = $10,000
 
129 * 100 / 10000 = 1.29%
 
Thus, if the Pinnacle is "the best" at $10,000, a Vali costing less than 2% of that translates to:  Get one!   
   

 
When you put it like that, it really puts it into perspective how other non audio folks might think we are complete batshiit crazy.

 

[No_One411]

  From what I've heard the D2 has quite a nice amp. It might be better than the Vali? 
 
I used mine with an M-DAC for a while and it was honestly not too bad, but it was quite sterile sounding and a bit lifeless. It was incredibly detailed though. I like the NAD M51 much more for the HD800, they are perfect together IMO. A warmish amp like the V200 helps a little too. 
 
On the Crack, personally I'm not a fan of the HD800 pairing but they are superb with the HD6X0s. I would also look into a Matrix M-Stage with OPA627 as an alternative, I quite like mine with the stock op amps, but the OPA627 are a huge improvement. 

The D2 does have a nice internal amplifier. However, it seems ... "weaker" (?) than the Vali? In any case, I'm always much higher on the volume pot with the D2. It sounds best past 81, where it becomes a digital attenuator, but since I generally listen at lower volumes, having to go that high scares me. 
 
I'm probably going to end up with a Valhalla 2. The pairing just makes sense for my current situation. I could definitely consider upgrading to something better in the future. 
 

  Congrats @No_One411

Thanks! It was always only a matter of time...
 

  Hey hey, gratzzzz.  Welcome to the crazy club!  
 
Btw, I am in San Jose.  Bring your HD800 over to my place sometimes.  It will be great to hear the Anax mod HD800.  I have always wanted to try the mod but not sure how it will sound.
PM me if you are up for getting together.  

Thanks for the warm welcome. 
 
Sounds good to me. I'd love to let you try the Anax 2.0 mod. I'll send a pm later today and look at possible dates. 

 

[No_One411]

Yesterday I also pulled the trigger on the HD800 to accompany my LCD-3f, listening through Chord Hugo at the moment. So far I don't find it overly bright and loving it with classical music or giving a different feel to some gool vocals. Its a great headphone so far.

I generally listen to classical music, with some electronic music and mostly female vocals. 
 
On comfort alone, I prefer the HD-800 to any of the Audeze headphones. While none of them sound bad to me, the fit and form factor definitely start to annoy me after a while. 
 
Stock HD-800 without the Anax mod is also acceptable. I definitely wouldn't mind just having the stock headphone. I simply prefer having the mods there. To each his/her own. Biggest thing is that you should just experiment. 
 
In my case, the seller I bought from had previously performed and applied the mods himself. It was pretty easy for me to compare.