[smodtactical]

Any thoughts on the problems with the messy interior?

Also how come this amp is talked about more? Is it just because its so pricey? Also for those of you who have heard it, any comparison to other TOTL amps or amps of lesser $ that get close?

 

[The Piper]

Any thoughts on the problems with the messy interior?

Also how come this amp is talked about more? Is it just because its so pricey? Also for those of you who have heard it, any comparison to other TOTL amps or amps of lesser $ that get close?

That picture is of a very early version of the Headtrip. Current units have evolved significantly. The Headtrip is popular for one reason, it’s sonic performance. We can’t afford megabuck marketing campaigns that befuddle people with convoluted scientific sounding b.s. Our success is due to honest, unbiased reports by customer’s personal listening experiences and professional reviews. BTW, the new Headtrip II should be in production within the next two weeks.

 

[smodtactical]

That picture is of a very early version of the Headtrip. Current units have evolved significantly. The Headtrip is popular for one reason, it’s sonic performance. We can’t afford megabuck marketing campaigns that befuddle people with convoluted scientific sounding b.s. Our success is due to honest, unbiased reports by customer’s personal listening experiences and professional reviews. BTW, the new Headtrip II should be in production within the next two weeks.

The HT2 is sonically the same as HT 1 right?

Whats your opinion on the step up in sound quality from HT to HT Ref?

The reviews of the HT I've seen have been positive so not sure why more people aren't talking about it? I guess its just the price? But then again the Chord DAVE costs $15k and people discuss it all the time. I wanted to read comparisons of the HT vs other amps.

Thanks for your reply!

 

[ufospls2]

As I posted in this thread, I loved my Headtrip while I owned it. I had to move on as I wanted to downsize in terms of cost at the time, but it remains the best amp I've owned for the headphones I like to listen to, especially the Abyss AB-1266 Phi. Is it the best period? No, of course not, as everyone is different and enjoys different sonic signatures. I never got to try it with the Susvara while I owned it (again sold due to cost reasons/life circumstances sadly) but I can only imagine that it would be a good pairing. In terms of other amps that perform similarly, I'm genuinely not too sure. Its a pretty unique amp, both due to its sonic signature, and power/gain output. For something like the Focal Utopia, it might not be the best pairing as they are so easy to drive, but for hard to drive planars? Unless you start getting into hardcore speaker amp territory, again, the Headtrip is pretty unique in headphone land. I remember seeing a prototype photo of the Headtrip2 on Facebook (I think) and it looks like a much more solid, and neater looking chassis. I'm not sure what the internals look like nowadays, but I do remember seeing a photo that looked quite a bit tidier than that old photo you posted.

I tried the Audio GD Master 9 as my next amp after the Headtrip, as it is also a big powerful amp. Completely different sonically, more of a side step than an upgrade or downgrade due to it being so different.

If I could afford to have a Headtrip in my collection still, I'm pretty sure I would. I really enjoyed owning it, and do miss it! I know some people who don't like the Headtrips sound signature, but for me and my ears, it just...worked. If you can, and are interested in buying one, try to give it a listen, it might be just right for you

I'm tempted to buy a Milo (which I also owned briefly, before upgrading to the Headtrip) but only time will tell if I can make that happen some day

 

[smodtactical]

As I posted in this thread, I loved my Headtrip while I owned it. I had to move on as I wanted to downsize in terms of cost at the time, but it remains the best amp I've owned for the headphones I like to listen to, especially the Abyss AB-1266 Phi. Is it the best period? No, of course not, as everyone is different and enjoys different sonic signatures. I never got to try it with the Susvara while I owned it (again sold due to cost reasons/life circumstances sadly) but I can only imagine that it would be a good pairing. In terms of other amps that perform similarly, I'm genuinely not too sure. Its a pretty unique amp, both due to its sonic signature, and power/gain output. For something like the Focal Utopia, it might not be the best pairing as they are so easy to drive, but for hard to drive planars? Unless you start getting into hardcore speaker amp territory, again, the Headtrip is pretty unique in headphone land. I remember seeing a prototype photo of the Headtrip2 on Facebook (I think) and it looks like a much more solid, and neater looking chassis. I'm not sure what the internals look like nowadays, but I do remember seeing a photo that looked quite a bit tidier than that old photo you posted.

I tried the Audio GD Master 9 as my next amp after the Headtrip, as it is also a big powerful amp. Completely different sonically, more of a side step than an upgrade or downgrade due to it being so different.

If I could afford to have a Headtrip in my collection still, I'm pretty sure I would. I really enjoyed owning it, and do miss it! I know some people who don't like the Headtrips sound signature, but for me and my ears, it just...worked. If you can, and are interested in buying one, try to give it a listen, it might be just right for you

I'm tempted to buy a Milo (which I also owned briefly, before upgrading to the Headtrip) but only time will tell if I can make that happen some day

Wow its surprising that you would say the master9 is a side grade and not that it is outclassed by the HT in every possible way!

How did you like the Milo vs HT?

 

[smodtactical]

Here is an updated picture of the HT internals that Jeff sent over. Just to give people an idea.

 

[The Piper]

The HT2 is sonically the same as HT 1 right?

Whats your opinion on the step up in sound quality from HT to HT Ref?

The reviews of the HT I've seen have been positive so not sure why more people aren't talking about it? I guess its just the price? But then again the Chord DAVE costs $15k and people discuss it all the time. I wanted to read comparisons of the HT vs other amps.

Thanks for your reply!

The HT2 is sonically the same as HT 1 right?

Whats your opinion on the step up in sound quality from HT to HT Ref?

The reviews of the HT I've seen have been positive so not sure why more people aren't talking about it? I guess its just the price? But then again the Chord DAVE costs $15k and people discuss it all the time. I wanted to read comparisons of the HT vs other amps.

Thanks for your reply!

Smdtactical-Thanks so much for your interest in Wells Audio products. Interest on forums such as this one are so important to introducing and exposing new and exciting products like ours to the public.The Headtrip II will be sonically the same as the Headtrip I. I am just redesigning the cosmetics to match most of the rest of the products in the lineup. It will be a version of the "house" look. The difference in sound between the HT II and the new HT II Level II (same as the old Reference) is quite significant. Unlike most other brands my more expensive models come with a quite noticeable difference is sound quality. This is true for all of our products. The probable reason that the Wells Audio products aren't as well known as many other high end products is not the price but marketing. Companies like Chord or Moon or MacIntosh, etc. have been around much longer with deeper market penetration. They are often times very large corporations with huge marketing budgets and many people in suits working on ways to build their brand. The big companies can literally have consumers believing that their products are the best performing products just by repeating it often enough. I have only been in business about 6 years and my choices on how to employ limited assets come down often to buy parts to make sure I can continue to build these fine products and maybe occasionally to design a new product to add to our lineup. Marketing and advertising are very expensive and for now have taken a back seat to capitalizing production and coming up with the new products to diversify what we can offer for sale. Our hope is that the word continues to spread and more people have the opportunity to find and try our products. Don't be fooled by the hype. Use your ears to make the decision.

 

[The Piper]

Smdtactical-Thanks so much for your interest in Wells Audio products. Interest on forums such as this one are so important to introducing and exposing new and exciting products like ours to the public.The Headtrip II will be sonically the same as the Headtrip I. I am just redesigning the cosmetics to match most of the rest of the products in the lineup. It will be a version of the "house" look. The difference in sound between the HT II and the new HT II Level II (same as the old Reference) is quite significant. Unlike most other brands my more expensive models come with a quite noticeable difference is sound quality. This is true for all of our products. The probable reason that the Wells Audio products aren't as well known as many other high end products is not the price but marketing. Companies like Chord or Moon or MacIntosh, etc. have been around much longer with deeper market penetration. They are often times very large corporations with huge marketing budgets and many people in suits working on ways to build their brand. The big companies can literally have consumers believing that their products are the best performing products just by repeating it often enough. I have only been in business about 6 years and my choices on how to employ limited assets come down often to buy parts to make sure I can continue to build these fine products and maybe occasionally to design a new product to add to our lineup. Marketing and advertising are very expensive and for now have taken a back seat to capitalizing production and coming up with the new products to diversify what we can offer for sale. Our hope is that the word continues to spread and more people have the opportunity to find and try our products. Don't be fooled by the hype. Use your ears to make the decision.

 

[Chansensturm]

Greetings,

Wanted to introduce myself to the head-fi community. This is literally my first post to these forums. While I may be new to head-fi, I am no stranger to high-end audio and have been involved directly in the music software industry for many years. I am an engineer and a musician.

First off, I want to thank this dynamic community. The knowledge accumulated here is amazing. I've been very quietly benefiting from this group for a long time. It has served a great reference for me during those "difficult to reason through" purchase decisions. Not all of us have the time/means to travel around the world to audition the latest and greatest. But above all, I appreciate the honest and respectful community here. Thank you.

So it is time for me to give back just a tiny bit, and would like to relate my personal experience purchasing/owning a HeadTrip.

First off, I don't think writing up a review is particularly helpful (but I would be happy do so if there is a request). There is so much subjectivity here: differences in perception, differences in memory, differences in expectations, differences in the ability to even describe what we are hearing, and finally differences understanding/interpreting what someone else has written. That said, I am grateful to the reviewers of this particular amp, otherwise I would not have owned one.

Let me concentrate, instead, on what is not subjective.

I went through a 6 month evaluation process talking to different boutique manufacturers (EC, Wells, JPS Labs in particular). I did the due diligence by abusing the graciousness of my local audio-shop in SF (AudioVisionSF, a big shout out of thanks btw), and scheduled multiple, controlled, listening sessions where the only variable was A/B of amp to amp (modulo cabling at the store which was unavoidable). Nothing was "double blind" of course, but I tried to remove as much expectation-bias from the experience as I could (probably not possible). I focused on trying to find amp and headphone combinations that allowed me to "suspend belief" and just "drift into the music" (meaning: nothing in the presentation would jolt me out of the illusion). I quickly decided that the Abyss Phi CC was the right headphone for me (that is another story). However, I started at a place where I simply assumed that tubes were where I would end up. I moved up the great Woo lineup (WA22->WA5->WA33). By the time I reached the WA5 and WA33 I was convinced I was near my end-game. On a lark, I moved over to the Simaudio Neo340i. This was important for me, because the smoothness of the presentation from this SS amp completely randomized me - it meant tube amps were not essential to achieve that allusive musical warmth and general musicality. That said, for my tastes, the 340i was just a bit too smooth. I could have easily lived with it, but now, since my expectations were randomized, I figured I had more research to do.

At that point it was time to contact EC and Wells. EC has wonderful equipment, but they were not local to me, so I set up an audition with Jeff Wells. Just as before, I quickly moved up his line up (Milo Reference->Headtrip->Headtrip Reference(prototype)). While the DACs were different (Chord TT+Hugo2 previously, and now Denefrips Terminator), I was able still able to use the Abyss Phi. Finally, I was able to listen to my carefully ripped redbook content (as I did in SF as well).

Just as in the Woo lineup, there was a noticeable bump in sound quality/presentation. In relation to the Headtrip, the Milo was marginally less revealing, but was definately "warmer/darker" in a pleasant way. I could have lived with either unit. When I tried the Headtrip Reference prototype (the one with the clear front panel you've seen in all the show reports), there was another bump in resolution. Both the Headtrips had this silky (but not sibilant) high end that I find pleasing. Combine that with the extra power output and the Abyss's unique LF capability, I was stunned by the slam on the aggressive music I tend to listen to. Perhaps things were just a tad too dynamic and edgy for string passages ? Maybe, but I assumed I could correct that with a DAC and cables later on. When I moved over to trying Jeff's Lampizator it was obvious that I could.

So I was sold; however, I really did not want to pay for that truly beautiful case work used in the Headtrip Reference. Jeff had a solution, he said he could do a one-off build where he would drop in the Headtrip Reference electronics into a regular Headtrip case since I had one of the older cases in his workshop. I also asked him to make one custom modification: add an attenuator bypass switch so I had the option of using the attenuator from my preamp without going another set of resistors. Jeff was accomodating, I spoke with his tech just before the build and we sorted out how that should work. Finally, we negotiated a price for a unit which was significantly less than the reference, but a very fair bump above the regular Headtrip base.

Weeks later, to cut to the chase. I am truly happy with this amplifier & headphone combination. I obviously have not heard everything out there (and never will). In particular, I've never heard great stats yet (with their own amplifiers), so I cannot comment. My personal bias is toward a more micro-dynamic, forward sound such as you would get from a great pair of ATC speakers. This pairing gets me as close to that as I think is possible with current technology. The collaboration between JPS Labs and Wells Audio works.

Finally, I wish to address something that I've seen in some other wider reviews. For what ever reason, there is a certain background animosity that I've seen developed towards Wells Audio. I think this is unfair. I have no idea why that is, but I have seen former owners of the Headtrip, be literally "talked down" from owning it. Perhaps there really are better combinations out there, but I would say, trust your ears. Also, when doing research, you'll see quite a few people who've sold off their units (many on this thread). You might be tempted to interpret this as something is wrong here. It made me hesitant for sure. If I hadn't had the opportunity to actually listen, I probably would not gone down this path. This is unfortunate.

So this is why I am writing this. Jeff Wells produces an amp which is exquisately calibrated/tuned for use with the Abyss Phi. He is a pleasure to work with. He is accomodating about making modifications. His internal electronics layout is *exactly* as he posted in the previous message in this thread (e.g., clean). Yes, he maybe using controversial technology (bybee), but I do not care. If you buy this amp, you are really paying his ears in effect. His sense of aesthetic. This aesthetic just happens to match mine very well. Your ears are obviously different

Finally, I realize I'm a complete newbee in this community. If you are reading, why would you listen ? Well, I'm hoping I've touched on enough of the objective parts of my experience over the last few months to lend just a bit of credibility. I'm also not hiding behind an alias My experience with the Abyss+Headtrip has been that positive to risk the spam and the hate (lets hope not). I have absolutely no connection to Wells Audio other than I spent 8 hours auditioning his equipment locally.

All the best. Please PM me if you have any questions.
Craig

 

[rgs9200m]

Nice post. Thanks. Some questions if you don't mind. (PM responses are fine if you prefer.)
How many steps in the attenuator? I see Khozmo has a 48 and a 64 stepper. (It's a Khozmo I think)

Is a continuous potentiometer an option (unofficially)?

And does the stepper have a gain level low enough to deal with sensitive headphones (where getting the right volume level can be tricky with the combination of steps and high gain)?

How warm/hot does the Headtrip get? Does it generate so much heat that if it is near you on a desk that it's annoying? (I had this issue with a Headamp GSX-2.)
I see that it generates 50 watts RMS per channel, so this is why I am wondering about the heat generated.

I don't think you mentioned if you were listening to balanced or SE headphones, or if your source was balanced or SE. Thanks for any info here.

Thanks for the fine post. It was a great read.

PS, any chance you could try your amp with any other headphones and report impressions?

 

[Chansensturm]

Nice post. Thanks. Some questions if you don't mind. (PM responses are fine if you prefer.)
How many steps in the attenuator? I see Khozmo has a 48 and a 64 stepper. (It's a Khozmo I think)

Is a continuous potentiometer an option (unofficially)?

And does the stepper have a gain level low enough to deal with sensitive headphones (where getting the right volume level can be tricky with the combination of steps and high gain)?

How warm/hot does the Headtrip get? Does it generate so much heat that if it is near you on a desk that it's annoying? (I had this issue with a Headamp GSX-2.)
I see that it generates 50 watts RMS per channel, so this is why I am wondering about the heat generated.

I don't think you mentioned if you were listening to balanced or SE headphones, or if your source was balanced or SE. Thanks for any info here.

Thanks for the fine post. It was a great read.

PS, any chance you could try your amp with any other headphones and report impressions?

Yes, this is a Khozmo attenuator with Vishay resistors. Mine is 48 step, but the Prototype Reference Headtrip I heard has 64. That was part of the bargain/deal I struck. I believe all standard Headtrips come with 48. Since only a handful of Reference ones have been made, I frankly just do not know what the standard is (you probably can specify what you want; however). Since I knew I was going to rely on my preamp's attenuator, I pushed to get a bypass switch added as mentioned above instead.

Unfortunately, I don't have a collection of other reference headphones to check the sensitivity issue for you. I do have an IEM I can try; however. I've seen other posts where I recall that at some point, the design was changed, so that the attenuation stepping range was adjusted to provide more resolution at lower db values. If I were to be absolutely honest, I've seen better attenuator implementations. Don't get me wrong, the Khozmo with the Vishay's sounds fantastic; however, 48 isn't enough resolution for my use. There is also an unusual artifact I'm hearing as you step up/down. It's not a click/pop or a transient noise, it is just a slight "warble" added to the signal during playback (e.g., you don't hear this with no signal present. Hard to describe. Not a deal breaker when listening, but it might become so if I were constantly "riding" the gain. This is not like the buttery attenuator I experienced in the Neo 430i. This is probably more about the Khozmo than the amp, but it is noticeable in my unit at least. I'm not a EE, but I would guess there are ways to supress discontinuities like this. Not a big deal. But it is a "polish" kind of thing.

Since this amp is an absolute long time keeper for me, I am thinking of buying an upgraded attenuator (still researching this), and requesting that Jeff substitute it. The great thing is he's a small shop and provides this kind of support (for a small fee). Currently, with the (custom) attenuator bypass switches engaged, I rely on using the motorized attenuator in my Spectral DMC-30SC preamp. I constantly ride the gain from song to song, and need that remote. The Spectral attenuator is very good.

The Headtrip does not run hot. I would say if it were on a desk next to you would not notice. It has large and efficient cooling fins. I have mine in a enclosed wooden cabinet, I do keep the front door open, and I don't leave more than an inch above for ventilation (probably should leave more). In this situation, with only one side exposed to the room (the front), it gets fairly warm, but not hot. Those 50 watts are there for you, mostly, in reserve.

Finally, the Headtrip has XLR ins and outs, but it is a dual-mono single-ended design. I have tried both balanced and SE sources. No differences to my ears (which makes sense since I believe the extra balanced line is simply dropped once it gets into the Headtrip). My cable, currently the stock one that comes with the Abyss Phi CC, is a dual-wire 3pin/balanced. cheers.

 

[The Piper]

Nice post. Thanks. Some questions if you don't mind. (PM responses are fine if you prefer.)
How many steps in the attenuator? I see Khozmo has a 48 and a 64 stepper. (It's a Khozmo I think)

Is a continuous potentiometer an option (unofficially)?

And does the stepper have a gain level low enough to deal with sensitive headphones (where getting the right volume level can be tricky with the combination of steps and high gain)?

How warm/hot does the Headtrip get? Does it generate so much heat that if it is near you on a desk that it's annoying? (I had this issue with a Headamp GSX-2.)
I see that it generates 50 watts RMS per channel, so this is why I am wondering about the heat generated.

I don't think you mentioned if you were listening to balanced or SE headphones, or if your source was balanced or SE. Thanks for any info here.

Thanks for the fine post. It was a great read.

PS, any chance you could try your amp with any other headphones and report impressions?

We have a substitute 48 step attenuator that was developed by Khozmo specially for us for use with especially sensitive headphones. it allows for lower output at lower gain levels to offset the sensitivity of very sensitive headphones. If needed all you have to do is request it in your build. There is no additional cost for this service. Khozmo also offers a "continuous" type attenuator but in my opinion it is not as good. A great stepped attenuator is probably the best attenuator sonically on the market . At any one time there are only 2 resistors in the signal path and one of the 2 is the Vishay Naked Z Foil resistor. The discontinuity while employing the attenuator is the momentary broken circuit between steps. When going from one attenuation step to the next there is a break when the next resistor is being connected. This will create a discontinuity. This is normal for this type of attenuator. If a customer prefers a continuous type attenuator we could accommodate the request. It must just be understood that ultimately it may not be quite as good as the stepped type. The Headtrip is a very efficient type A/B design which runs barely warm. Any component must attain at least a certain temperature above ambient temperature for the devices contained within to reach their highest sonic performance. These devices are designed to sound their best at a certain temperature and that temperature is always above ambient. This is what is known as "warm up". The fact that the Headtrip has 50 watts available actually works allow the unit to run consistently at a lower temperature. If an amplifier has less power then it will have to work harder to achieve max performance under stress. If it is working harder it will run hotter.

 

[rgs9200m]

Thanks for all that info (*incredibly comprehensive*). I appreciate it. That all sounds fine.

 

[Hifi59]

So yea, I went ahead and took the plunge. I upgraded my Headtrip to the Reference!
My Wells Audio journey started several years ago with the Milo. Loved it enough to get it upgraded with the Khozmo attenuator. Over time,I took this thing to several meets and I always preferred it’s sound to all else out there (Audio GD, ECP, Burson,Schiit,etc). At one meet that I hosted, I had an opportunity to audition the EC Studio. My jaw dropped to the floor. It was fantastic. Not worlds ahead of the Milo by any means, but better for sure just for its sheer authority. It better have been at $7k! This prompted me to start another search for a world class amp. I was almost set to save my pennies up for a Studio amp but there was something about the Milo that connected with me. So the Headtrip was it. I sold the Milo and forged ahead and bought the HT. It had the same sort of authority that I recalled the Studio had. I later had another chance to hear the Studio with a Dave dac. My impression was that the HT had a superior midrange (unexpected) and more top end extension. Midrange almost sounded sucked out in comparison to the HT. The Studio had slightly more bass authority but it was less textured than the HT. I was very happy with my decision on getting the HT. Fast forward 15 months and I got the itch to go for the reference upgrade even though I was completely happy with my standard HT. And so, I made arrangements with Jeff to make it happen and in about 3 weeks or so, I had my upgraded Reference in hand.

So to cut to the chase, here is my assessment after putting about 100 hours on it.
(Jeff recommends 500 hours on it for full burn in).

Dac/Streamer is the Cambridge 851N (Fantastic btw) Streaming Tidal Hifi.
Headphones used are Audeze Lcd-2F, 3F and LCD-4. HiFiman HE-6 and HE-1K v2. ZMF Auteur Blackwoods Limited. Oppo PM-1. Grado PS-1000e and GS1000e

*** Note that my Reference is in the original HT chassis but internally indentical to the newly designed chassis. Jeff currently sells the HT reference in a different styled chassis labeled the HT 2 Level 2. Internal components are exactly the same though between the two.

Also note the the volume knob is my own. It’s a gold plated solid brass knob that feels great in the hand. Purchased on eBay for about $30.***

On to the sound and differences.

1. Music rises from a very dark place for seemingly greater dynamic range. I can also turn up the volume to max loudness and with no music playing, I cannot hear any hiss even through the efficient Grados. This is a noticeable improvement over the HT.

2. Transparency and effortlessness while reproducing music is noticeably improved. Very Nice!

3. Tonality and musicality are both through the roof and a notch above the standard HT.
The HT was awfully good though.

4. Bass authority and texture, along with upper end extension and midrange sweetness remain at least as good as the HT. I only expect it to get better with further burn in as I am already hearing improvements about every 30 hours of listening.

5. As with the standard Headtrip, but slightly more noticeable , massed instruments are reproduced with enormous clarity. Most amps in my experience tend to sound congested in this area. I think one review of the HT stated that each instrument has its own zip code. I agree.

6. Overall impact remains solid even at low listening levels. No real difference here.

7. Every headphone I throw at it all sound great. Low Z , Hi-Z and everything in between all sound great. I’m convinced that the HT reference is letting them be all they can be with special mention to HiFiman headphones and Grado (they actually do have bass to them!) for scaling the most with all of Jeff’s amps, imo. All brands are improved though thru the HT and reference.

8. Audible distortion and grain are non existent on this thing . A small but noticeable improvement over the HT. Only non fatiguing music comes through. Listening for hours on end is a pleasure. This is rare in my experience. You will also quickly observe that the Grado and HE-6 headphones are not harsh or bright at all when played through superior electronics.

My estimation is that the HT reference is about 10-15% better than the standard HT in most of the areas mentioned above and I expect maybe another 5% or so once it’s fully burned in. I was actually quite happy with the improvement within hours of listening to the Reference!

Btw,The standard Headtrip had been the best amp that I heard previous to the HT reference. I say this with having been an audio hobbiest since the late 70’s!

Most of the reviews on all of Wells Audio amps hit the nail on the head with their descriptions of what they are hearing. I’ve yet to find a less than stellar review on any of his amps.

As much as I’ve thought about it, I really have nothing negative to say about this amp or even the standard HT for that matter. Ok, sure, I would’ve liked the pretty Voltmeter on the front panel somewhere, but that’s ok. There’s something to be said about keeping it clean and simple looking.

Finally, I believe the greatness of Wells Audio amps is most notable with prolonged listening and while comparing them to others. After listening to some other amps, I often say to myself, “instruments are missing or there’s a hole in the music.” Yet those other amps may sound rather good on there own. These things are realized more and more as you get more acquainted with the amp’s sound signature over time. 5 minutes listening time at a meet wont do it although you will likely get the gist of it.

And that’s it folks. Im sure you may now be asking, “so is it worth the cost of admission to do the upgrade?” To these ears, the answer is , oh yea!
I listen to my headphones almost every night and to me it’s well worth it to play all of them through what I consider to be the best HP amp currently on the market at any price.

 

[johnzz4]

It's great hearing some other impressions of the Headtrip. I'm only on day four with my new Headtrip 2, but I'm no stranger to Jeff's headphone amps. To offer some context, my experience with headphone amps spans a few well known brands including Burson, Audio-gd, and Simaudio - always targeting their flagship products. In addition, I've participated in a handful of meets where I've gotten to experience a variety of amps and headphones.

A couple of years back, the buzz about the Milo caught my attention - tons of power to manhandle planars, natural treble, and a price tag that wouldn't break the bank.

My only hesitation at that time was the fact that it was not balanced which spurred a bunch of reading and research. I came to the conclusion that balanced and single-ended each have pros and cons and that implementation played a significant role in the outcome. I read an article where Jeff was interviewed and he explained that by going single-ended, he was able to allocate his budget to fewer, higher quality parts. Also, when I later spoke to Jeff, he explained that balanced amps strip away some some of pleasing harmonics as well. I was satisfied with his approach. I decided to take the leap.

The Milo was impressive and competed quite directly with the Audio-gd Master 11 (essentially a Master 9 and 7 combined) - different flavors. I found the Milo to be slightly more resolving with a bit larger soundstage. The Master 11 was comfortably relegated to bedroom duty. My chain feeding the Milo continued to evolve and eventually included the Yggdrasil and the Auralic Aries Femto streamer. I also upgraded from the LCD-X to the LCD-4. That setup maintained me for quite a while until... Jeff announced the Milo Reference. I wasn't prepared to spend the money for the Reference, but still inquired with Jeff to get his take on the subjective differences. It was then that I learned he would upgrade my existing Milo for the difference in price. SOLD. A few weeks went by as Jeff completed the upgrade. The difference in sound was substantial. He mentioned to me that with the Milo Reference, you start to get into a holographic soundstage. Turns out his description wasn't exaggerated, and the LCD-4s started to comfortably pull away from the LCD-X on the Milo Reference.

Despite how happy I was with my system, like many of us, I kept a pulse on what else is out there. That's when I came across two other forums that were beating up the Wells amps - essentially shaming a Headtrip owner. Were they right?? That was around the time that Tyll had claimed the Simaudio Moon 430HA as his personal favorite of his amp shootout. I've never seen any poor reviews of the 430HA - perhaps it's in another league altogether. AND for more than $1500 less. My curiosity got the better of me, and I ordered up the 430HA from Listenup with their impressive 'they cover the return shipping' return policy. I'll save you most of the adjectives, but the highlights after several hundred hours of burn in were that I found the 430HA boring and lacking detail. Back it went, and I could now comfortably dismiss the Wells naysayers. I later discovered that one of the Wells critics on the other forums is conveniently a competing amp manufacturer.

As some funds freed up, I continued upgrading my system trying to squeeze the last bits of 'digititus' out of it. The Aries Femto got upgraded to the Aries G2 and the Yggdrasil got a bump up to the Denafrips terminator. I never realized how digital the Yggy sounded until hearing the Terminator - but that's a different post. Next up was Shunyata power cables and their Sigma AES cable with Wireworld platinums for interconnects and the headphone cable. I was blown away with what I was hearing. I couldn't help but think that the Milo Reference may actually be the weakest link in the chain. After another call to Jeff, we discussed the benefits of moving to the Headtrip. He mentioned a lower noise floor so you could see deeper into the music, and dead nuts neutral where the Milo Reference has some bloom. I had always been intrigued with the Headtrip, so I decided to take the plunge. Once again, Jeff is spot on in his assessment, but I'll add one more quality I've noticed - this is the smoothest sounding headphone amp I've ever heard - we're talking zero fatigue. It's noticeably smoother than the Milo Reference as well. It checks off all the boxes - realism, accurate timbre, effortless control of the drivers, pitch black background, highly resolving, all while remaining very natural sounding. All this, and I still have plenty of burn-in time ahead of me. I'm having a hard time taking my headphones off.

Also, a side note on Jeff. You couldn't ask for a nicer, more down to earth guy. He's very honest about his products, and his customer service is excellent. Couldn't be happier with my Wells Audio experiences over the years.