[Zombie_X]

fwiw, balanced operation made a huge difference for me out of the HDVD800.

 
I guess mileage may vary, but with my ROC there was a negligible improvement. It was no better than driving the headphone out of my V200 or Phonitor Mini.

 

[CoLdAsSauLt]

But running balanced doesn't change the sound. Sure you get double the power to the driver, but nothing else really changes much.

It's deffinitely a gimmick to me. There's no reason a balanced amp would change a headphone so profoundly. I believe you get the same results from a SE amp that has similar power output.

I very much suspect that 5W out of balanced is indeed not better than 5W out of SE amp. It's the power that does the magic in the end.

However, not having heard/tested it myself, I can see having 5W on tap rendering better results than having just 3W (or whatever the actual numbers are). This has nothing to do with balanced vs SE, but everything with power and drive, grip on the HP driver. So my logical mind therefore embraces the possibility that adding a more powerful amp (whether balanced or SE) would actually mean performance gains...

Isn't that one of the improvements of Hugo TT compared with the portable Hugo in the first place?

fwiw, balanced operation made a huge difference for me out of the HDVD800.

There balanced means lots more power (Watt) than SE... hence the better drive.

 

[Dadracer]

 

  Me too and I think it depends on your headphone amp. I compared SE cables versus balanced cables in my HD800 some time back. The cables were both the Sennheiser standard HD800 cables. I also did my best to allow for the volume difference when I switched between so the only difference should be SE versus balanced mode in terms of sound quality. After a number of hours it became clear that for me at least the sound in balanced mode was preferable to SE. I have not tried other balanced cables although I know many who swear by a number of brands but some of these are a significant percentage of the cost of the headphones and that just feels wrong. 
 
I wonder if the HD800S has been voiced to better take account of balanced operation as the HD800 was launched at a time when SE operation was all that was on offer for headphones except electrostats. Anyhow maybe it is the additional "sparkle" of the 800s but in SE mode they sound very close to the 800S to my ears and so I prefer them by a tiny margin. In balanced mode the 800S sounds better by a small margin especially at the top and bottom ends of the spectrum.

 
But running balanced doesn't change the sound. Sure you get double the power to the driver, but nothing else really changes much.
 
It's deffinitely a gimmick to me. There's no reason a balanced amp would change a headphone so profoundly. I believe you get the same results from a SE amp that has similar power output.

I explained the circumstances in which I made the comparison and at no time did I give the impression that it was a profound difference. Now if you have tried the same comparison and not heard any difference then you are most welcome to believe it to be a gimmick. I used exactly the same amp in SE and balanced with essentially the same cables and the same headphones. I corrected for volume to the best of my ability. So what else would you conclude if you heard a difference in favour of balanced mode? 
 
I believe that balanced sound in like having more of the same, in other words whatever sound palette/spectrum/picture your headphones have then balanced will highlight that a bit more.So its not changing the sound and its not profound, but its there and it is an improvement to my ears and in my opinion. 
 
You don't have to believe any of this of course and that's your right.

 

[dharma]

if You read from this post to the end, you get nicely understandable overview about some 'controversy'
http://www.head-fi.org/t/728236/ifi-idsd-micro-dsd512-pcm768-dac-and-headphone-amp-impressions-reviews-and-comments/5490#post_12401642

 

[CoLdAsSauLt]

if You read from this post to the end, you get nicely understandable overview about some 'controversy'
http://www.head-fi.org/t/728236/ifi-idsd-micro-dsd512-pcm768-dac-and-headphone-amp-impressions-reviews-and-comments/5490#post_12401642

I beg to differ: iFi only partially states some facts/possibilities. They don't even mention the law of diminishing returns. That's what I said about this topic some weeks ago:
http://www.head-fi.org/t/795365/sennheiser-hd800-s-impressions-thread-read-first-post-for-summary/120#post_12306902

 

[Yviena]

Don't really know why but after taking off the ear pads and dry cleaning them with a microfiber cloth, the sound has changed i get a bit more width/depth but kinda lost around 3-6db volume.
Though the comfort of the headphones did greatly improve after this, it's not pressing against my jaw as hard as before. Think im gonna go and buy new pads to check if the change is still there.

 

[dharma]

I beg to differ: iFi only partially states some facts/possibilities. They don't even mention the law of diminishing returns. That's what I said about this topic some weeks ago:
http://www.head-fi.org/t/795365/sennheiser-hd800-s-impressions-thread-read-first-post-for-summary/120#post_12306902

 
If someone can give better links about 'balanced-or-not' theme, with 'all aspects covered', then everybody will be happy...
Thanks in advance!!!!!

 

[zilch0md]

Originally Posted by dharma /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 

I beg to differ: iFi only partially states some facts/possibilities. They don't even mention the law of diminishing returns. That's what I said about this topic some weeks ago:
http://www.head-fi.org/t/795365/sennheiser-hd800-s-impressions-thread-read-first-post-for-summary/120#post_12306902

 
 
If someone can give better links about 'balanced-or-not' theme, with 'all aspects covered', then everybody will be happy...
Thanks in advance!!!!!

 
I really like the points that CoLdAsSauLt makes at the link he provided.
 
Here's my take (which is probably the thread to which we should take this discussion):  
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/260346/ignorance-cure-needed-balanced-vs-unbalanced#post_11558111

 

[jibzilla]

   
If someone can give better links about 'balanced-or-not' theme, with 'all aspects covered', then everybody will be happy...
Thanks in advance!!!!!

 
I think the Apex lineup of amplifiers more than covers all aspects and forget the $10k pinnacle, to which there is no equal other than a crayon amp. Just the Peak/Volcano will best most balanced amps out there. If your amp has balanced and SE options yes the balanced will more likely sound more preferable but as far as balanced overall is better than SE is just silly imo.

 

[koiloco]

   
I think the Apex lineup of amplifiers more than covers all aspects and forget the $10k pinnacle, to which there is no equal other than a crayon amp. Just the Peak/Volcano will best most balanced amps out there. If your amp has balanced and SE options yes the balanced will more likely sound more preferable but as far as balanced overall is better than SE is just silly imo.

+1

 

[Shetzu]

I have just  got the delivery of my new Hd-800. It really is the best looking HP and I am sure going to enjoy them. My next step is to look around for a good compatible Amplifier in range of $500-1000
As I have exhausted my budget for the time being I am going to use my iFi iCan Micro amp to drive the HD.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[whirlwind]

^ Congrats, I am sure you will enjoy them ^

 

[leng jai]

I remember thinking that the HD800 looked terrible when it first came out. It looks much better in person compared to photos.

 

[Shetzu]

  I remember thinking that the HD800 looked terrible when it first came out. It looks much better in person compared to photos.

yeah I agree. They look fantastic in person.

 

[Moonhead]

I can recommend Superlux HA3D, it has lots of volts and runs on only two batteries