[Somphon]

   
Regarding cable.. do u really think its a good investment. I read that the senn's cable itself is good enough, and spending another 700 bucks for the cables makes no sense instead invest in the amp. True? isnt signal in binary 0's and 1's. Unlike the HDMI cables, u could spend a fortune, and get one from monoprice for 10 bucks, sound and picture quality remains the same.. isnt this the same logic with headphone cables... well they all have copper wire's in them... does this hold true?
 

 
Cable is a good investment after you settle your headphones and your amps - and if you can hear the difference. Try them all, don't worry about blind test or not, just try them. If you hear the difference, buy it. If you don't, then don't. Very simple.
Exploring the possibilities is part of educating your hearing, expanding the depth of your knowledge about equipment and this crazy hobby (if you call it that). Don't make your purchase on what's being said here, but its a good guideline. More importantly, go out and demo everything you can get your hands on. Come back and share with us your opinion.
 
Analog sounds move through cables, its impossible for all cables to deliver the same result as we all learned in high school that different material have different properties. If anyone worked in healthcare, they will know that there are certain sections in hospitals that require 'hospital grade' wiring , plug sockets etc  to delivery quality electricity to their sensitive equipments.
So analog cables makes a difference as digital cable make a difference, although in long distance just as our internet speed is affected by degrading cables inside or outside our house.
 
Of course I would not recommend diving in to cables if your equipment is not up to par, only if you feel there are more performance available in the headphones and amps - and the cables was holding it all back a bit. Then give it a go. 

 

[Currawong]

I've been playing around with damping mods, and so far I've settled on a ring of stick-on felt on the metal ring around the driver and a triangular piece of non-slip matting on the cable housing in the cup with the original driver protectors inserted. 
 
I think all of the recent opinions have some validity:
 
The slight euphoric sound of some tube amps (eg: typical OTL designs) can be a good match with the HD-800s, though some didn't have the detail retrieval of the SS amps I've owned (nor the non-euphoric Studio Six). An example would be the old Audiovalve RKV MKII.
High-end DAC and amp combinations will bring out the last bit of detail where it is desired. If detail retrieval is not a priority then finding an amp with good voltage swing is my suggestions. Poor amps result in the entire image seeming to come from more of a blob in the middle.
The objectivist with money would buy a Hugo or an SS rig of DAC and amp from Audio-gd, Headamp, Bryson or whomever makes products with a nothing-but-the-facts presentation intent.
The value option (ie: the objectivist with less money choice, noting I haven't tried the basic Schiit stack yet) would be a Centrance HiFi M8 with the balanced out either on sale or second-hand.
 
IMO all of the above.

 

[Somphon]

   
So, how would you say the Cardas Clear sounds compared to the Norost Heimdall, and what music do you hate with it- and did you mean the cable per se, or the 800s, or the combo.
 
Sorry for so many questions, but inquiring minds want to know.

Somehow I missed ur message before. Anyway, I have Cardas Clear for HD800 and Heimdall2 for LCD-3f so I can't compare as I've not tried Heimdall2 on my HD800 (different connectors, but when I have time to demo it at my dealer, I will let you know).
 
Music I can't stand on my HD800 are violin concertos and other low quality recording (not file quality). Violin sounds sweet on my LCD-3f and a bit more forgiving for lower quality recordings.

 

[LugBug1]

  Holyindian, you shouldn't drop any big $ until you've arranged a way to try out different gears. There are plenty of people that are happy with the O2/ODAC, etc. Even taking the 'general consensus' into consideration - you may not like what's popular.. You haven't yet established any real preferences. So at this point, ignorance is bliss.

This is great advice folks. We all hear differently and have our own preferences. There is no reason at all why someone shouldn't prefer an O2 or lower end schitt stack for e.g over a $1000+ amp/dac if that is a sound that pleases you. Remember, no-one else is right when it comes to your ears! And as Currawong has just pointed out, sometimes the specs of an amp can be more important (depending on what one is after) than the finest tuning or transparency.  The HD800 are very transparent and will squeeze every last ounce of detail from your dac -and all of the popular dacs these days are good. I've never had a huge want to go higher than mid price for a dac - just to get that little bit more resolution. I don't feel that I am missing any information in the music.   
 

  I've been playing around with damping mods, and so far I've settled on a ring of stick-on felt on the metal ring around the driver and a triangular piece of non-slip matting on the cable housing in the cup with the original driver protectors inserted. 
 
I think all of the recent opinions have some validity:
 
The slight euphoric sound of some tube amps (eg: typical OTL designs) can be a good match with the HD-800s, though some didn't have the detail retrieval of the SS amps I've owned (nor the non-euphoric Studio Six). An example would be the old Audiovalve RKV MKII.
High-end DAC and amp combinations will bring out the last bit of detail where it is desired. If detail retrieval is not a priority then finding an amp with good voltage swing is my suggestions. Poor amps result in the entire image seeming to come from more of a blob in the middle.
The objectivist with money would buy a Hugo or an SS rig of DAC and amp from Audio-gd, Headamp, Bryson or whomever makes products with a nothing-but-the-facts presentation intent.
The value option (ie: the objectivist with less money choice, noting I haven't tried the basic Schiit stack yet) would be a Centrance HiFi M8 with the balanced out either on sale or second-hand.
 
IMO all of the above.

Ample voltage swing for 300 ohm hp's makes a lot of sense and should be a major factor in system matching with the HD800 ime. Especially for the dynamics and bringing out the great sub level bottom end that the Senn's have. This to me is more important than having 'even more' detail retrieval. The dynamics in music is more important than the finer details IMO. I'd rather hear/feel the rumble of the cello's and timpani in a Beethoven symphony over every single violin.      

 

[punit]

  I too always prefer the HD800 with tubes. I hear some raspiness in vocals on the 800, some roughness, that annoys me with solid state. Somehow, tubes add some welcome liquidity and continuousness.

After going through Lyr, DV 336SE, Btlhd Crack, WA6, WA22, Glenn's OTL  I also thought the same...until my HD800 met Master 9.

 

[zilch0md]

After going through Lyr, DV 336SE, Btlhd Crack, WA6, WA22, Glenn's OTL  I also thought the same...until my HD800 met Master 9.

A good cure for the harsh and bright treble HD800s hear with most solid state amps, eh? I think it's the fact that it's single-ended and doesn't use negative feedback to suppress distortion.

Audio-gd has a new single-ended solid state amp called the C-2 Class A, that's a little brother to the Master 9 - with the same ACSS technology, no feedback, yielding poor measurements but great sound - about the closest you can get to a low-feedback tube amp without using tubes.

http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/Headphoneamp/C-2Class%20A/C2classAEN.htm

Their promo price us currently $450.

I haven't heard this amp yet - it just seems to have all the boxes checked to be a good amp for the HD800.

 

[punit]

A good cure for the harsh and bright treble HD800s hear with most solid state amps, eh? I think it's the fact that it's single-ended and doesn't use negative feedback to suppress distortion.
 

M9 is a  balanced pure class A .

 

[whirlwind]

  So I finally made up my mind on the new amp/dac for my HD800
I bought the  Decware CSP3 and the Mousai MSD192 and also the Norne Vanquish cable...
Hope it's a good combo

Congrats, man.
 
I almost went with this amp also.
 
Finally decided to go with Glenns OTL....have to wait until after christmas though.
 
Again, congrats....that will be a great system.

 

[preproman]

  After going through Lyr, DV 336SE, Btlhd Crack, WA6, WA22, Glenn's OTL  I also thought the same...until my HD800 met Master 9.

 
Makes sense.   My HD800 does sound good with the Master 10.  It has a more fuller sound than any other SS amp I've heard.  I have the 445 coming with a few different tubes to roll.  I'll see how the two compares.

 

[kothganesh]

   
Makes sense.   My HD800 does sound good with the Master 10.  It has a more fuller sound than any other SS amp I've heard.  I have the 445 coming with a few different tubes to roll.  I'll see how the two compares.

Enter the Ragnarok??

 

[Sorrodje]

  Holyindian, you shouldn't drop any big $ until you've arranged a way to try out different gears. There are plenty of people that are happy with the O2/ODAC, etc. Even taking the 'general consensus' into consideration - you may not like what's popular.. You haven't yet established any real preferences. So at this point, ignorance is bliss.

 
 

  This is great advice folks. We all hear differently and have our own preferences. There is no reason at all why someone shouldn't prefer an O2 or lower end schitt stack for e.g over a $1000+ amp/dac if that is a sound that pleases you. Remember, no-one else is right when it comes to your ears!

 
 
I agree so much with that

 

[Currawong]

The HD-800s were great with the Phoenix, so if the Master 9 is 5 or so years of improvements on that, then it doesn't surprise me that it is a good match.
 
Damping update: The imaging is now so insanely precise after putting felt on the inner ring that listening is almost scary.

 

[Sorrodje]

A good cure for the harsh and bright treble HD800s hear with most solid state amps, eh? I think it's the fact that it's single-ended and doesn't use negative feedback to suppress distortion.

Audio-gd has a new single-ended solid state amp called the C-2 Class A, that's a little brother to the Master 9 - with the same ACSS technology, no feedback, yielding poor measurements but great sound - about the closest you can get to a low-feedback tube amp without using tubes.

http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/Headphoneamp/C-2Class%20A/C2classAEN.htm

Their promo price us currently $450.

I haven't heard this amp yet - it just seems to have all the boxes checked to be a good amp for the HD800.

 
A friend of mine had this amp and sold it quickly. Results was not good with the HD800.

 

[punit]

   
Damping update: The imaging is now so insanely precise after putting felt on the inner ring that listening is almost scary.

Is it possible to post a picture please ?

 

[Currawong]

 

   
Damping update: The imaging is now so insanely precise after putting felt on the inner ring that listening is almost scary.

Is it possible to post a picture please ?

 
Basically the same thing arnaud ended up doing with his here:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/468461/hd800-imaging-and-treble-why-and-how-it-can-be-improved-upon