[Ekul61]

I have the asgard2. It seems a little bright with the x5
He400 setup. From what ive read. Tube amps are a little less in your face treble. What is a good tube amp that I might like better than the asgard 2. Say under $500. Thx

 

[Ekul61]

Anyone

 

[Rem0o]

Your problem ain't your amp, it's your headphones. By spending on a new amp, you're misfiring at your problem imo. You might want to change your headphones for a pair with a more "tamed" treble. The HE400 are known to have an edgy treble response. No tube amp gonna change the HE400's nature.

Hope that helps.

 

[xxxfbsxxx]

i would say the best tube amp <$500 is Bottlehead Crack imo, lovely warm and seductive sound

 

[money4me247]

  Your problem ain't your amp, it's your headphones. By spending on a new amp, you're misfiring at your problem imo. You might want to change your headphones for a pair with a more "tamed" treble. The HE400 are known to have an edgy treble response. No tube amp gonna change the HE400's nature.

Hope that helps.

I agree with this. HE-400 is known to have a treble peak which some people may not like.
 
however, a tube amp can impact this & help 'tame' your treble, esp if you find the right tube. I used the cheap Bravo V3 with my HE-400 and did not find to treble to be too troubling, but YMMV. 
 
some well-recommended sub-$500 tube amp options for planar magnetic headphones are the lyr 2 and project ember. I have read that the Bottlehead amps are not a good match for planar magnetic headphones.
 
I do think you can get more for your money if you spend that sub-$500 on different headphones. The new HE-400i does not have any treble problems.

 

[Lorspeaker]

http://www.head-fi.org/t/732875/feliks-audio-6sn7-6as7g-6080-prototype
 
wait for this...

 

[grausch]

  i would say the best tube amp <$500 is Bottlehead Crack imo, lovely warm and seductive sound

Unfortunately the Bottlehead Crack won't work with planar magnetics.
 
@Ekul61 - You could try the Bottlehead S.E.X. which is slightly above $500. Refer to http://www.head-fi.org/t/683012/bottlehead-amplifier-discussion-comparison-thread-crack-sex-mainline for a review of the Bottlehead S.E.X.
 
You could also look at the Schiit amps. Not sure how the Valhalla 2 will work since it is an OTL design (same as Crack) and those generally work with higher impedance phones. However, Schiit does suggest it could work with the HE 400s. Refer to http://schiit.com/products/valhalla-2.
 
A potential step up would be the Lyr 2. Refer to http://schiit.com/products/lyr-2.
 
With the Schiit amps, you can try them for 15 days, and return them if you don't like them. 

 

[Ekul61]

Your problem ain't your amp, it's your headphones. By spending on a new amp, you're misfiring at your problem imo. You might want to change your headphones for a pair with a more "tamed" treble. The HE400 are known to have an edgy treble response. No tube amp gonna change the HE400's nature.


Hope that helps.

but they sound perfect with a fiio e-12 diy.. nice base...