[V-DiV]

 
I’m planning to step up to one of the new flagship headphones, probably HD 800, or perhaps the T1.  I listen mostly to classical, jazz, and other acoustic music.  My K701 is good for for that (but not good when I want to listen to guitar-centric rock).  I love the spaciousness and detail of the 701s, but would like headphones with a better tonal balance (and more space and detail is good too).

 

How much of an upgrade will the HD 800 (or T1) be if driven by my CI Audio VDA-2 (DAC) and VHP-2 (amp)?  If I spend $1400 on headphones now, I’ll have to wait another year to upgrade to a hi-end amp, then another year for a super DAC.  Will I feel like I wasted my money until I upgrade my whole system or will my Channel Islands gear play nice with the HD 800 (or T1)?  If so, would I be better off upgrading the components before the headphones (thereby getting more enjoyment out of the 701s for a while)?

 

I also read that most prefer tubes for these headphones.  If I wanted to stay solid state, are there any particularly good, but not crazy expensive, solid state amps that will sound great with classical/jazz/acoustic, with the occasional rock session thrown in?

 

Finally, the pads on the HD 800 seem quite large (anyone have a measurement?).  I don’t have a large size head.  Anyone have an issue with the size of the HD 800?

 

Thanks