Is the original 727 flawed and it is better to buy a second hand 717, or the 717 has the same issue ?
I figure this question is still applicable today, since I stressed over the same thing before I got a SRM-727A a year ago. It all goes back to that one goddamn Tyll review. He says he didn't like the amp, and so all of a sudden the consensus opinion is that it sucks, or it's flawed, or whatever. It's a hell of a stretch to call the 727 "flawed."
After listening to it for a year with a pair of Lambda Pros, I have to say it's the best headphone system I've ever heard. Listening to a quality recording on it still blows me away. I'm sure some people are going to like it more or less than others, but that's hardly unique for audio kit.
I feel it needs a preamp to sound its best (it is a
power amp, not an integrated amp, after all), though IME it's not that important for some sources, and absolutely essential for others. I'm still learning about circuits, but if I understand right, feeding it with a powerful preamp changes it's behavior to more closely match what the Spritzer mod does anyway.
FTR I'm using a Schiit Magni 3 for my preamp and it sounds fantastic, though I didn't like the results of flipping the switch inside the 727 to "Direct" and using the preamp to control volume. The Stax volume pot is audibly quieter than the one on the Magni, and I get the best results with my Schiit at 100% volume/low gain, using the 727 pot for volume.
I'm thinking about performing the Spritzer mod anyway, or the feedback half at least. Messing with the gain seemed like asking for more trouble than I'm prepared to handle, even before I heard about it getting squirrelly. I'm just curious to hear what everyone else raves about after the mod. Perhaps I'll like it better too, but I have a sneaking suspicion that I won't. The bass is pretty tight already, and I worry about losing bass quantity, even if I get a little better quality in exchange. But you can never know until you try it
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What do you mean by "different sound"? Different from what?
The comments by audiod don't match my experience at all. He says that "The 727 sounds lifeless on the
O2's and never really opens up". Huh? There's nothing "lifeless" about it...
I have a KGSS and a 727 which I compared using my SR-007 mk1. When both are warmed up, they sounds very similar. I find that the KGSS is slightly better, but the improvement in sound is very marginal.
Like I said, the 007ta is noticeably less good, although not horrible by any means, but the 727 is pretty equivalent to the KGSS in my experience.
Yes, I agree with everything
@visualguy says here.
I know that solid state gear typically needs to be left on for 24 hrs. or so to warm up completely (and IME the 727 sounds as bad as Tyll thought it did before it's warmed up for 30 or 45 mins at least). I know that it only costs an extra dollar or two per year to leave it on constantly, but it just feels wrong leaving a class A amp on 24/7 forever
