[jodokast]

Which amp to get? Everybody knows these cans are hard to drive. Everybody knows these are one of the best-selling cans of all time. So, which amp to get?

After perusing over a couple threads and asking various members for advice - here is my conclusion. My budget is about a couple hundred bucks.

Corda HA-1: Very musical, and solid. Handles complicated scores very well, great for classical music. Very low noise floor. Also features crossfeed (something I haven't experienced yet, but am interested). Finally also features a low impedance headphone jack. (which I most likely won't use)

XCANs or MG Head - Both are supposed to be great combos with the HD600s. Very tube-like liquid sound. Yet both have to be most likely upgraded with tubes and then PSU adding to the cost. Finally I've heard problems about high noise level on both amps and buying new tubes and power supply sounds like I"m complicating things. Finally I heard they weren't great /w classical music.

Headroom Supreme: Max Out and home are out of my budget. No real word from this except I"ve heard the first 3 amps I've listed are all really great price/performance ratio when being compared up against the Supreme.

So, right now I'm thinking about buying the Corda due to its' cross feed and low noise floor. Tube amps seem to be a lot of hassle in that I have to buy NOS tubes and then an upgraded power supply, which still equals out a higher noise floor and so-so quality for classical music. What do you guys think?

Any MG Head or xCANs owners want to help me out?

Let me know. Thanks.

 

[Audio-Me]

I think since you already have tubes in mind, just get the MG Head and run with it.

 

[jodokast]

Hehe. Somehow I knew you were gonna say that man.

But still. With the MG Head I have the end up buying a new tube as well as an upgraded power supply. From what I've read the MG Head has some problems in that it has a high noise level (even with a replaced tube, powersupply) and is so so /w classical and jazz music.

Compared to the Corda....

 

[dhwilkin]

That MG Head OTL should work quite well. Don't know about a new power supply, but you don't really have to go NOS hunting unless you want to. Just make sure you get rid of the nasty Sovteks it comes w/. Also, as long as you pick solid tubes, the noise floor shouldn't be bothersome.

 

[Audio-Me]

I have not changed the tubes on my DT unit, and upgrade power supply? You lost me there. Anyway, my experience has been wonderful, I'm perfectly happy with it, but am still open to upgrades.

Nick somehow as interested me in Raytheon to0bs. Don't let this hold you back, it can only be a good thing to experience first hand, instead of by word of mouth.

 

[dngl]

get the Corda HA-1 or the Melos SHA-1 because then you won't want to upgrade... both amps are versatile.

 

[mezzman]

I just got my MG Head OTL the other day to replace my X-Cans v2 and the difference is quite noticeable. The MG is much cleaner with a better soundstage and more air. The X-Cans and HD600 combo is very synergestic, but the MG kicks it up another notch, much smoother. I highly recommend it.
I have a pair of JJ EL84's on order and I'm looking for a nice 5751 to roll in place of the stock tubes. The amp is really well built and looks great.

 

[vn412]

i STRONGLY recommend the X-Can v2....it is extremely easy to upgrade (all u need is a x-psu) and while many say that tube-rolling is the way to go, i think (and i kno a lot of people agree with me) that the stock tubes are fine. It certainly shines with classical and jazz....there is no doubt that the x-cans specialty seems to be female vocals. Classical shines as well...Antonin Dvoraks music (which is full of violins) couldnt possibly be any sweeter IMO.

Im extremely satisfied with my purchase

 

[Nick Dangerous]

Tubes were made for classical music, mon. They will make you a happy man.

You named four amps. I have personally demoed them all. I won't tell you which is best because that is a subjective matter. However, since the subject of this post is about my opinion, I'd say the MG Head OTL is your amp. It's fairly versatile, too... considering that it has two modes and can be easily tweaked with tube rolling.

About that "other" tubed amp, skip it. You need the X-PSU to make it shine, which will cost you an extra $200, minimum. Besides, everything the X-Cans can do, the MG Head OTL can do better. Especially classical. Hang on to your orchestra box seat and suck on the Halls cough drop!

To address your questions:

High noise floor? Mine is very quiet at full volume and so were the X-Can and X-Can v2 I had. Some have experienced noise but the culprits are usually:

1) Noisy tubes
2) Dirty power in your house or nearby dimmer switch use
3) Power switch wires too close to tube

Solutions:

#1 is easily remedied. eBay! Tube shopping!
#2 will affect any amp. Try a power conditioner like the Monster HTS-2000.
#3 pop out the switch, rotate, put back in. Voila!

Tubes are a hassle? Nah. They are harmless and lots of fun. Literally plug and play. 5751's are still quite plentiful, and JJ EL84's are nice and cheap. For $40, you can get three very nice replacement tubes that will knock your socks off.

Tell ya what... you buy an MG Head OTL and I'll send you a nice 5751. Then you can post your impressions.

 

[BenG]

Mr Lau should send Nick a thank you note for his endorsements.

....About the subject of noise floor. I had a Canv2, and although I couldn't hear any hiss at a listenable level with the CDP on pause, I did hear some slight hiss at around 12O'Clock. This was a confimation to me that X-Can is not silent between the notes. Even though you may not hear hiss during quiet passages of the music, the residual affect of a higher noise floor shows up as a relative lack of blackness between the notes and instruments and a lack of a relatively black background, and this was audible to me with the X-canv2. I was using a Monster HTS-2000 conditioner, tried different circuits in my house and different tubes with varying results, but with the same conclusion.
This may not be an issue, but it's worth noting. With the Corda amp, I can't discern much in the way of a noisy background due to the amp its self. With the 600s, I can turn the amp up to the max with no hiss whatsoever and it is very quiet sounding while playing music.

The 600s are a good match with the Corda. The highs of the corda are very crisp, and this seems to counter the infamous, slight veiling of the 600's highs quite well. At the same time, the highs of this combo are quite revealing of problems in the source material -- recordings with problems in the highs can sound cold and harsh. The most noticeable strength of the Corda's sound is its spacial presentation - tall, deep, and present. Images in the front of the stage are huge for solid-state, headphone listening. And its crossfeed seems to be the favorite of the people who have compared it with the competing design. I also recommend you use a decent power cable, the cheap 18awg radioshack job was dissapointment compared to the 14awg "Absolute" I replaced it with(I didn't believe in power cables untill I made this switch).

 

[Milestones]

BenG:

I just had to give you props for your icon of Andrew Hill's "Point of Departure" RVG album cover.

Great album - great Reid Miles album cover - cool icon.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

Quote:

Originally posted by Nick Dangerous Tubes were made for classical music, mon.

Tubes were made for music period, mon. Just had to add that.

 

[Nick Dangerous]

BenG... no kidding! I almost think I should be getting a referral bonus or something.

Dusty, absolutely! The toobage is connected to the amp bone, the amp bone connected to the head phone.... anda on anda on.

Off topic: Speaking of toobage, I think I may step the monoblock amplifiers in the Oris 200 Project up a notch to the Bottlehead Paraglows. DRCope says his Bottlehead amps sound AMAZING when combined with his AKG-K1000's. Double duty fun.

 

[pigmode]

OT: What about the Moondogs? Tube rectification and heftier transformers with more tube goodness. Yum.

 

[KurtW]

OT: The Autumn 1999 issue of Listener magazine, which is big on SETs and everything that goes with them, did a comparison of a whole bunch of SET amps including the moondog and paraglows. They said the Paraglow was "wonderfully soft", ideal for harsh CDs. The Moondog, along with the Wright WPA3.5 which I ended up buying, were the most musical amps of the survey.