[icebear]

... is 12 AWG and has litz copper and  personal silicone conductors to replace the stock AC cable ...

 That might be a first , I guess it provides a lubed sound

 

[pinoyfever]

Has anyone tried the HD800 with a DHC Complement2 Cable?

 

[bigfatpaulie]

Yes.  I run mine with a custom Compliment2.  It has the same wire as the C2 but they have metal/kevlar shielding (the stuff used their on Spore cables).

 

[SilverEars]

  I've had my HD800 for a year and a quarter now. Tried about 15 amps (mostly vintage as I collect these but also some decent hp amps from Schiit, Matrix and Audio gd) 5 dacs (including Arcam, Cambridge audio, Beresford) and I can tell you FROM EXPERIENCE (yes I did shout that bit! ) that the Senn's main characteristic is transparency.
This is once you learn their basic power requirements. And this is as simple as this (there will always be exceptions as nothing is absolute)
More power = more bass. High current/ low impedance amps will give them razor sharp speed and dymanics up top but they can sound lacking below. High impedance amps will feed them more voltage and give them more bottom end and fullness into the mids, but sometimes at the expense of sub level tightness. 
 
Now this is where the experience part comes in. Until you have tried many amps or many dacs, you really won't know that the HD800 are extremely transparent. This is because they sound like whatever they are plugged into.
 
So, when experienced members give you recommendations, or are trying to persuade you to try other equipment, it is not because they are trying to persuade you - that you are wrong about this headphone. It is because they have learned themselves what is good or bad and are trying to help you.  
 
Now if it comes down to a mistrust of others subjective liking, then you really shouldn't be on a forum that gives out headphone advice and therefore just trust your own ears and go it alone.   
 
But I would seriously stop asking all the technical questions and listen to the experienced members advice on system matching, because knowing why an impedance curve affects this and that will not - I repeat NOT help you enjoy your 80's pop music. 
There are far too many variables in any hifi component to say what will happen if you change a resistor and what change that will be or how it will affect the sound- and there can be no 'general' answer to this.   

Hey Lug, I don't doubt you have experience.  The more gear you go through the more experience you have going through the gear. And I'm sure you've run into ones that you like and those that weren't please to your ears.  In the end, this is hobby, and for some search is the part of the fun.  Finding the right synergy as we all call it here is what we are all after so that we can get the best out of the phones.  I don't doubt you have gone thought lots of gear, and found the best that is pleasing to your ear. What is best to your ears it the best to your ears.  Transparency is on the top of the list for alot of us here, and we find it in different ways, whether it be the 800, or the right amp with it, or another setups.  Anyway, thanks for your posts, and those others that tried to help through my short journey. 
 
Enjoy your 800s guys.  

 
I'm really not looking to invest a whole lot to perfect the sound, so I will just stop like others recommended.  

 

[pinoyfever]

  Yes.  I run mine with a custom Compliment2.  It has the same wire as the C2 but they have metal/kevlar shielding (the stuff used their on Spore cables).

Impressions compared to the stock cable?

 

[icebear]

Just finished listening to the first sampler and started the second one.
For anyone interested in what -in my personal book- is one of the best recording quality out there check Fidelio Records :
http://www.fideliomusique.com/fidelio-samplers.html
 

 
Transparency to the real instrument is what gets transported in these recordings.
And if anything sounds harsh or agressive, then open the window and throw your DAC out

.

 

[bigfatpaulie]

  Impressions compared to the stock cable?

 
Honestly, it's hard to compare.  The reason I say that is because my DHC is a balanced cable and the stock was single ended so it is not exactly an apples to apples comparison.  Having said that, switching to the new cable (and going balanced) did improve the sound.  What I noticed primarily was an increase in clarity and separation; but again, I don't know how much of that was from the interface change vs the cable.
 
You hear a lot of people talking about going to copper tames the highs of the HD800's, I personally did not experience that: that transition happened when I changed amps regardless of the cable or interface.  What I can tell you is that it is an extremely well made cable that looks great.  It is quite a bit stiffer and heavier than the stock cable is does get in the way.  Ergonomically it is inferior to the stock cable and the lead time is long.  
 
It sounds like I am bashing the cable, but I'm not.  These are just things I didn't know about it before I bought it and found.  I feel that for the quality and build of the cable it is well priced.  It looks great, feels great, and definitely ups the 'pride of ownership".  
 
I have personally never experienced radical changes to sonic performance with any interconnect; mostly just slight refinements on the existing sound YMMV.  I guess what I am saying is that if you have a system that you already love and want just a little more transparency and effortless out of it, a quality cable like the Comp2 is a great way to squeeze out that next 0.5%.
 
I hope this helps.  Cables can be a tough thing...  Heck, people are still arguing if they even make an audible difference

.
 
-Paul

 

[lin0003]

I just got an Audiolab M-DAC to replace my DacMagic Plus and I am shocked at how good it is after just a few songs. The bass seems fuller despite it being an ES9018 DAC and it is so much cleaner and more detailed. Has anyone compared the M-DAC to other DACs? 

 

[Maxvla]

Compared it to the Gungnir and while it was close, I liked the Gungnir better. These days I don't prefer the Gungnir/HD800 pairing, so I would have to reassess.

 

[lin0003]

Compared it to the Gungnir and while it was close, I liked the Gungnir better. These days I don't prefer the Gungnir/HD800 pairing, so I would have to reassess.

Thanks, any reason why you thought the Gungnir was better at the time? 

 

[Maxvla]

Thanks, any reason why you thought the Gungnir was better at the time? 

http://www.head-fi.org/t/625191/dallas-tx-deux-for-2012-a-not-quite-as-mini-meet-sunday-october-14th/150#post_8784168

 

[62ohm]

What about the Musical Fidelity M1 DAC? Is it any good with the HD800? I'm particularly curious about how it compares against the Cambridge DacMagic Plus.

 

[Mortalcoil]

Sorry all, after searching the thread about the gungnir dac, I feel my question was a bit redundant, but t thanks for the feedback. I feel I should save my money and see if the yggdrasil dac would be good for the HD800. Hope you all have a great day
Andrew/ Reddog.

 Looks as if the Yggdrasil has the potential to be an awesome DAC, especially considering its R-2R implementation. 
 
Just tread lightly on the Yggdrasil thread ....lol, some very strong feelings about this upcoming flagship.

 

[Sorrodje]

  What about the Musical Fidelity M1 DAC? Is it any good with the HD800? I'm particularly curious about how it compares against the Cambridge DacMagic Plus.

 
Never tried myself but a friend of mine had it and disliked it with the HD800. Another friend had this dac with an LCD2/Mjolnir combo and didn't like it either.  I really trust my two friends opinion so I stayed far away from this dac despite the fact I could purchase it at a very low price.

 
Besides Expensive R2R dacs ( MSB , Totaldac and Metrum Hex) , NOSminidac still sell the 1000€ Metrum Octave mkII ... http://www.nosminidac.nl/Octave_English.html ... definitely a good choice for the HD800

.

 

[Maxx134]

...
love to hear some of your impressions of other DACS that you feel surpass the ARCAM's performance. wink.gif

I have stopped the equipment climbing with the oppo HA-1 which is a dac/amp.

This is the best sounding I have owned to date.

To match this level sound in separates, you have to go over $1k each on amp and dac. ($2k total)

To surpass this combo you have to go over $2k each on dac & amp.($4 total)

It powers my hd800 very well and I haven't herd the hd800 sound better yet out of anything in that price range ($1200)

This combo will be a long "pit stop" for me, as anything noticeably better would be expensive "end-game" level and I don't feel a need to spend over $5k on maybe 5% improvement. .

So at this point, I can only recommend the HA-1 for any headphone not just the hd800,
And I would skip all "mid-tier" level equipment untill you have savings to by $1k & up level stuff like the HA-1.

I would stick with a schiit Vali untill then..

Just my experience and opinion. .
Yours may vary.