[A.Thorsen]

Howdy all.

I am still loving my AKG 701's and pairing them with the Headamp GS-X has been an unbelievable experience. (Justin rocks!)

Now that I've spent an appreciable amount of time with this setup, I think I'm finding myself looking for way to interject a little bit more warmth into the equation.

Nothing terribly drastic.

Any ideas? Is this where recabling or possibly shooting out a different pair of cans (Senns 650?) comes into the picture?

Since the GS-X has two headphone jacks, perhaps this is where I can splurge at some point and do like others: Have certain headphones for certain kinds of music.

Who knows?



I'm awfully close to where I want to be sound wise as is.

Anyways, I'll see what you all come up with.

Thanks!

 

[robm321]

Glad you are close to your sound. I thought the K701's were too analytical even with tubes, but I will say the tubes did add warmth to them. I beleive I heard them balanced with the super expensive and huge Singlepower (configuration? Who the heck knows) at the last meet. But even my modest PPX warms them up a bit.

 

[Hi-Finthen]

Not that I "KNOW" however, I wouldn't change cables or as rob seems to be implying change amps. I'm a proponent of a multi can approach with different musical choices and keeping things stock for highest return in terms of resale value. Rob may have been better positioned to suggest this option you alluded to; Try the HD-600s as a stock two can option. Seeing as how you feel you are close to your sound, I believe the 600 are close to the 701s yet different enough, maybe the answer for you to consider....

I thoroughly enjoy switching off between cans both for specific musics and something a bit different keeping the music fresh and interesting in my system...

Just a general suggestion FWIW...

Good listening~

 

[evil-zen]

Try a non-oversampling dac. It adds a significant and yet not terribly drastic warmth to the equation.

 

[wae5]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hi-Finthen /img/forum/go_quote.gif Not that I "KNOW" however, I wouldn't change cables or as rob seems to be implying change amps. I'm a proponent of a multi can approach with different musical choices and keeping things stock for highest return in terms of resale value. Rob may have been better positioned to suggest this option you alluded to; Try the HD-600s as a stock two can option. Seeing as how you feel you are close to your sound, I believe the 600 are close to the 701s yet different enough, maybe the answer for you to consider.... I thoroughly enjoy switching off between cans both for specific musics and something a bit different keeping the music fresh and interesting in my system... Just a general suggestion FWIW... Good listening~

Hi-Finthen, I love your idea. One thing that sets phones apart from speakers is it's much easier and cheaper to change sonic signatures. I emmensely enjoy playing my Sony Eggos, E888s, Senn 400s, CX300s, SR60s and all the other denizens of my phone keep. This has the additional benefit in that having many phones makes it much easier to capture and underestand sonic differences. I know this sounds silly but once I own a phone, I never let go.

 

[robm321]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hi-Finthen /img/forum/go_quote.gif Not that I "KNOW" however, I wouldn't change cables or as rob seems to be implying change amps. I'm a proponent of a multi can approach with different musical choices and keeping things stock for highest return in terms of resale value. Rob may have been better positioned to suggest this option you alluded to; Try the HD-600s as a stock two can option. Seeing as how you feel you are close to your sound, I believe the 600 are close to the 701s yet different enough, maybe the answer for you to consider.... I thoroughly enjoy switching off between cans both for specific musics and something a bit different keeping the music fresh and interesting in my system... Just a general suggestion FWIW... Good listening~

This might be a better suggestion than changing amps if you're game for it. The Senns will give you the warmth and a thicker sound while the K701's will give you more air and be more analytical. You get the best of both world.

 

[A.Thorsen]

Thanks for the tips!

 

[milkpowder]

The HD650 is pretty damned detailed already, so I don't think you'll be missing anything by sidestepping to a pair of HD650. There'll definitely be a significant change in sound signature, albeit a very pleasant one.

 

[immtbiker]

If anything, I think that the 701's are too warm. The are very detailed but quite laid back. If anything, I would want an amp to give them some aggression. Also, the AKG's are harder to drive then other cans in it's class.

I find that an agressive tube amp made a big difference over my solid states.

 

[warpdriver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by A.Thorsen /img/forum/go_quote.gif Howdy all. Nothing terribly drastic. Any ideas? Is this where recabling or possibly shooting out a different pair of cans (Senns 650?) comes into the picture?

Going to the HD650 is quite an large move in terms of sound signature. You will get your "warmth", but lose a lot of other qualities you might like about the K701 too.

 

[milkpowder]

Was just listening to the whole of MacMillan's Veni, Veni Emmanuel w/ the K701 completely unamped out of the Echo Indigo DJ and it sounded so good! Veni, Veni Emmanuel is basically a percussion concerto with a huge mixture of complex rhythms, timbres, high and low frequencies, dynamic range, etc.... This is extremely demanding for the headphone to reproduce and the unamped K701 handles it with ease. Because of the complexity of some passages, I can imagine some of the warmer headphones and those with longer decay to get slightly caught up and sound congested. That's where the relative dryness of the K701 comes in. It just makes the K701 an extremely quick headphone.

 

[Carl]

Three words: direct heated triodes. A nice DHT amp could potentially offer as much of a step up as going from your V700s to the K701 did.

 

[Uncle Erik]

How about a Millett Hybrid? You'll get a nice, warm, round sound from that. It'll give you what you're looking for at a reasonable price, too.

 

[kugino]

a warmer source also helps. the GS-X, if it's like the GS-1 and other headamp amps, lets the signatures of the source and headphones shine. while the k701 tends to be a bit cooler, a warmer source can help. my stello DA100 provides some good warmth and the k701 sounds engaging and not that cold. i imagine a different source/amp combo would give you what you want, but in the end it might be cheaper to go the alternative headphone route

 

[A.Thorsen]

Well, an unfortunate little accident finally pushed me off the fence, almost by necessity, - to send my AKG701's to Drew at MoonAudio for a Black Dragon single with split cable upgrade, so I'm eagerly looking forward to trying those out.

Since I bought them, I know I've probably put several hundred hours of use into them, especially after I got my GS-X. That just became insanity. It's really been like listening to my music again for the first time, and then some.

So this Black Dragon cable job will be a real nice cherry on top.