[BoilermakerFan]

 
Quote:

The WEE is $500, and it gets some good comments here - though, the resulting sound really depends on the source and amp (in this case the Jolida), which can be purchased for about $600, just as some other good amps in that price range.  The Jolida and some others get some remarkably good reviews. 
 
According to Jack, the WEE should be virtually transparent, so the phones should reflect the sound quality of the other components.
 
So... theoretically, you might be able to achieve a better sound quality than the Stax amps, and, perhaps, the GES, depending on that of the speaker amp, and source.

Unless Woo has sourced new transformers, the Wee will still roll off the low end a little.  Not as bad as the Stax energizers, but I heard the roll off at CJ on the prototype.  The Wee also slows down the speed of the 'stats.  They don't have the bandwidth of the dedicated amps so I wouldn't call it transparent.  Still a nice way into 'stats if you have Pro bias 'phones and an amp with a sound sig you love...
 

 

[epocs]

Not to be too off-topic from the current discussion, but I wanted to get peoples' opinions about the O2s.
 
For me, the huge gap in price from some of the top stax amps (007t,717,727,) and something like the Woo GES to the Blue Hawaii and WES is a sad reality that makes me want to shy away from the O2s. I mean we're talking 4-5 thousand dollar differences. It seems like the O2s potential isn't being realized until we hit these behemoth amps.
 
My question is- is the O2 still better than all the top tier dynamics and orthos even when not driven to its potential? Is an O2 on the 717 or GES going to still beat out the HD800, LCD-2, HE6 driven by powerful amps such as the WA6SE, WA2, GS-1, Phoenix, etc. which many people consider headphone amps that do bring out much of the top dynamics' potential?
 
Alot of times, people exaggerate the effect of headphone amps and their influence on a headphone. Just from personal experience, it seems like people quote extreme changes when (to my ears) the changes are undoubtedly there, but subtle. I'm wondering if the effect of a Blue Hawaii coming from something like a GES would really yield a performance boost that makes it leaps above other headphones out there, whereas it might have not been that way on the lower amps.
 
Any insight would be super helpful!
 
 
 
 

 

[goodvibes]

Quote:

I have the amps now for my speaker setup.  While a waste in a uncool way it is soley a matter of convience. 
 

Don't let these guys rag on you. If the first few watts are clean, it will work as well as any. The current is a non issue. You need a clean voltage amp so big watts is overkill but quality and quantity are not mutually exclusive.
 
Try for yourself as we're all a bit different. I added a very small amount of damping to my Novas for a less ethereal and more solid presentation and I'm sure that's also considered sacrilegious.
 

 

[WilCox]

 
Quote:

Not to be too off-topic from the current discussion, but I wanted to get peoples' opinions about the O2s.
 
For me, the huge gap in price from some of the top stax amps (007t,717,727,) and something like the Woo GES to the Blue Hawaii and WES is a sad reality that makes me want to shy away from the O2s. I mean we're talking 4-5 thousand dollar differences. It seems like the O2s potential isn't being realized until we hit these behemoth amps.
 
My question is- is the O2 still better than all the top tier dynamics and orthos even when not driven to its potential? Is an O2 on the 717 or GES going to still beat out the HD800, LCD-2, HE6 driven by powerful amps such as the WA6SE, WA2, GS-1, Phoenix, etc. which many people consider headphone amps that do bring out much of the top dynamics' potential?
 
Alot of times, people exaggerate the effect of headphone amps and their influence on a headphone. Just from personal experience, it seems like people quote extreme changes when (to my ears) the changes are undoubtedly there, but subtle. I'm wondering if the effect of a Blue Hawaii coming from something like a GES would really yield a performance boost that makes it leaps above other headphones out there, whereas it might have not been that way on the lower amps.
 
Any insight would be super helpful!
 
 
 
 

 
I think the O2 sounds great even out of an SRM-252.  Several here have used that combo for an over-the-top transportable electrostatic system.  The O2 scales well with better amps, but I think you would enjoy it with something like an SRM-323 until you can move up.  Try to find a Head-Fi member close to you and check out some of the different amp combos.
 
And yes, an O2 with a 717 beats out the HD 800 in my humble opinion.
 
 

 

[paaj]

I'm waiting on my WEE (has shipped), it will be used with an Audiolab 8000Q pre and Hypex UcD400 power, and compared to SRM-T1W. I really hope it'll show the quality of the components... can't wait

 

[Double F]

Quote:

Don't let these guys rag on you. If the first few watts are clean, it will work as well as any. The current is a non issue. You need a clean voltage amp so big watts is overkill but quality and quantity are not mutually exclusive.
 
Try for yourself as we're all a bit different. I added a very small amount of damping to my Novas for a less ethereal and more solid presentation and I'm sure that's also considered sacrilegious.
 

Thanks, I think I will try a Woo Wee.   The Monoblocks in question are McIntosh MC501s.  They use autoformers which provide 500 watts at 2, 4, and 8 ohm,  I will have to check what they output at  64 ohms.  The damping factor is 100 @ 8 ohm.

 

[Gradofan2]

Quote:

I'm waiting on my WEE (has shipped), it will be used with an Audiolab 8000Q pre and Hypex UcD400 power, and compared to SRM-T1W. I really hope it'll show the quality of the components... can't wait

Several of us are going to be very interested in your impressions. 
 
If the WEE can allow you to access the sound quality of good speaker amps and sources, then it should be better than dedicated headphone amps (Stax, or others)... and... allow you to tune the sound to your preferences (e.g. tube, SS, hybrid, etc.).  And free you from the "necessity" to buy a KGSS, WES, or BHSE. 
 
That would be great.  But... I suppose that's a big... IF.   I would be surprised if Woo Audio would offer such a device, that could compete with the WES, and GES.  But... we shall see.

 

[wind016]

Quote:

Several of us are going to be very interested in your impressions. 
 
If the WEE can allow you to access the sound quality of good speaker amps and sources, then it should be better than dedicated headphone amps (Stax, or others)... and... allow you to tune the sound to your preferences (e.g. tube, SS, hybrid, etc.).  And free you from the "necessity" to buy a KGSS, WES, or BHSE. 
 
That would be great.  But... I suppose that's a big... IF.   I would be surprised if Woo Audio would offer such a device, that could compete with the WES, and GES.  But... we shall see.

I think it was said on the other thread that a dedicated amplifier will be better than anything using the WEE or similar transformer.
 
 

 

[monsieurguzel]

Unfortunately transformers are a really tricky thing to get right and the very good ones are extremely expensive to make both in terms of winding them correctly and using the right materials.  Transformers though, no matter how good, will always take a little away from the sounds and add some veil / coloration / slowness of sorts.    Obviously better transformers do that to a lesser degree.

 

[Gradofan2]

Quote:

Unfortunately transformers are a really tricky thing to get right and the very good ones are extremely expensive to make both in terms of winding them correctly and using the right materials.  Transformers though, no matter how good, will always take a little away from the sounds and add some veil / coloration / slowness of sorts.    Obviously better transformers do that to a lesser degree.

So... then... the WEE is not one of the "better tranformers," and can not reasonably be modified to be one, except at much greater cost?
 

 

[epocs]

 
Quote:

 
 
I think the O2 sounds great even out of an SRM-252.  Several here have used that combo for an over-the-top transportable electrostatic system.  The O2 scales well with better amps, but I think you would enjoy it with something like an SRM-323 until you can move up.  Try to find a Head-Fi member close to you and check out some of the different amp combos.
 
And yes, an O2 with a 717 beats out the HD 800 in my humble opinion.
 
 

Thanks for that comment. I see that you own both the O2 and the HD800, so that's great to see you know from first hand experience.
 
I guess I'm just being cautious because people mention these extremely expensive amps bringing the O2 from a zone where they are on par with the rest of the flagship headphones to all of a sudden destroying all competition when paired with a BHSE or WES.
 
I'm just wondering if many people still prefer the O2 over the lcd-2,hd800,t1,he6,etc with what is considered a "mediocre" amp in the 717 or GES.  I've just found that for me, I've preferred the HD800 over pretty much all headphones even when changing amps for the most part, except the O2. So I was hoping that the O2 would be the same because I only heard them out of a BHSE and was incredibly impressed, but don't want to receive them with a GES and suddenly feel they are inferior to the hd800 or he-6.
 
I hope I'm not confusing everyone with this statement.
 

 

[AudioCats]

Quote:

Several of us are going to be very interested in your impressions. 
 
If the WEE can allow you to access the sound quality of good speaker amps and sources, then it should be better than dedicated headphone amps (Stax, or others)... and... allow you to tune the sound to your preferences (e.g. tube, SS, hybrid, etc.).  And free you from the "necessity" to buy a KGSS, WES, or BHSE. 
 
That would be great.  But... I suppose that's a big... IF.   I would be surprised if Woo Audio would offer such a device, that could compete with the WES, and GES.  But... we shall see.

for smaller phones such as the Lambda's, I would expect the T1 to win. Might be a different story for bigger stuff like the O2's.

 

[RockCity]

Quote:

 

Thanks for that comment. I see that you own both the O2 and the HD800, so that's great to see you know from first hand experience.
 
I guess I'm just being cautious because people mention these extremely expensive amps bringing the O2 from a zone where they are on par with the rest of the flagship headphones to all of a sudden destroying all competition when paired with a BHSE or WES.
 
I'm just wondering if many people still prefer the O2 over the lcd-2,hd800,t1,he6,etc with what is considered a "mediocre" amp in the 717 or GES.  I've just found that for me, I've preferred the HD800 over pretty much all headphones even when changing amps for the most part, except the O2. So I was hoping that the O2 would be the same because I only heard them out of a BHSE and was incredibly impressed, but don't want to receive them with a GES and suddenly feel they are inferior to the hd800 or he-6.
 
I hope I'm not confusing everyone with this statement.
 

I think the wrong approach to this question is to compare the headphones on a linear scale. At this price level, you are not comparing identical competitors as much as listening to different styles of presentations. If a high budget phones has the presentation you're looking for, you will spend as much money as needed to optimize that presentation. Conversely, if you spend the same amount of money on a different competitor, you will never make it sound like another signature. What this means for serious investors is pick a base platform that you like and upgrade around that core. The decision can only be made through trial and error and by preference. Personally, I have the HD800 and the Zana Deux that I rarely use. There is a large following that prefer this style but I do not. Similarly, the Stax aficionados swear by their rigs. I have the SR-007 with 007t, 717, and the KGSS. I find it unique but if I were to nitpick I feel there are certain things it can't do. Same goes for the HP1000 and the K1000. It is a tough decision and there is no bang for the buck at this level. But if you heard something you like, chances are you won't be looking at other camps so often.

 

[Michgelsen]

I'm very satisfied with my 717 & O2 combo. It doesn't sound mediocre in any way! I agree that the effect of amplifiers is often exaggerated. For example, I have tried driving O2 with a SRM-T1 when I still had one. While the 717 was better, especiallly in the bass department, the difference was not huge nor did the 717 make the T1 'sound broken' or anything like that.
The O2 is already awesome out of a 717. I've never heard it out of a top-class amp such as a Blue Hawaii (SE), but at we're at this level already where an amp that is twice as expensive will not sound twice as good.
Let me put is this way: I'm so satisfied with what I have now, that I do not feel I need to upgrade any further.
 
Quote:

Not to be too off-topic from the current discussion, but I wanted to get peoples' opinions about the O2s.
 
For me, the huge gap in price from some of the top stax amps (007t,717,727,) and something like the Woo GES to the Blue Hawaii and WES is a sad reality that makes me want to shy away from the O2s. I mean we're talking 4-5 thousand dollar differences. It seems like the O2s potential isn't being realized until we hit these behemoth amps.
 
My question is- is the O2 still better than all the top tier dynamics and orthos even when not driven to its potential? Is an O2 on the 717 or GES going to still beat out the HD800, LCD-2, HE6 driven by powerful amps such as the WA6SE, WA2, GS-1, Phoenix, etc. which many people consider headphone amps that do bring out much of the top dynamics' potential?
 
Alot of times, people exaggerate the effect of headphone amps and their influence on a headphone. Just from personal experience, it seems like people quote extreme changes when (to my ears) the changes are undoubtedly there, but subtle. I'm wondering if the effect of a Blue Hawaii coming from something like a GES would really yield a performance boost that makes it leaps above other headphones out there, whereas it might have not been that way on the lower amps.
 
Any insight would be super helpful!
 
 
 
 

 

 

[mobbaddict]

Quote:

I think the O2 sounds great even out of an SRM-252.  Several here have used that combo for an over-the-top transportable electrostatic system.  The O2 scales well with better amps, but I think you would enjoy it with something like an SRM-323 until you can move up.  Try to find a Head-Fi member close to you and check out some of the different amp combos.
 

x2... FWIW I liked the O2 out of my 212 better than the HD800 out of a WA2. Like RockCity said it also has to do with personal tastes. But the O2 didn't sound bad at all in comparison, it was every bit as good and more laid-back/forgiving.