What are some good "Universal" amps?

[yellafella321]

I have hd650's and im looking for a nice home amp ~400$. I may get some grado's in the future, maybe some AKG, i was wondering what amps would be good with all of these, or is that kind of not possible?

I know that the gilmore light has wonderful synergy with the hd650's, but how is it with grados?

I know the aria is supposed to work well with hd650's, k701's, and beyers, but what about grados?

is the rockhopper millet hybrid a good choice here?

I really like the warm sound of the hd650's and would like to try to keep it that way, maybe reveal a little more treble, but I have a blue dragon cable also which helps.

Thanks in advance

 

[sbulack]

My PPA works really well with both Grados and Senns (I own the SR225 and the HD580). I've also been quite happy with how it drives the AKG K240S and K501. I'd put it in the category of a solid contender for a general application (universal) amp. When I looked a few days ago, there was a Larocco PPA (with the Diamond Buffer module) on sale is the FS forum for just under your target price. I have no association with or knowledge of that particular seller. I'm just mentioning that offering in case you might find it helpful as something to look at.

 

[apostate]

Quote:

Originally Posted by yellafella321 I know the aria is supposed to work well with hd650's, k701's, and beyers, but what about grados?

I'm very happy with the Aria and my 225s. Clean, full sound with nice tight bass and good impact. For the first time I actually like the 225s with both bowls and flats in a system.

Everything but my AKGs sound great with it. The K26Ps are just too bass heavy when amplified (by anything I've heard) for my taste.

Also jjcha posted some impressions here with 225s: http://www4.head-fi.org/forums/showp...1&postcount=76

Ant

 

[arnesto]

Because Grados and Sennheisers have such a big difference in Ohms.

I would recommend an amplifier with a gain switch. For example, if you are using your Senns. and you set the volume level at 8 o'clock.

Your Grados will be too loud for a gain setting set for your Senns at 8 o'clock.

 

[Borat]

The Rockhopper M^3 would be another option to consider. It has a high/low gain switch, which would allow you to use it with a wide variety of headphones. In addition, you can swap the op-amps to tailor the sound to your preference (warmth). Ask Stephen which configuration would suit your headphones, budget, and sound preference.

 

[fewtch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sbulack My PPA works really well with both Grados and Senns (I own the SR225 and the HD580). I've also been quite happy with how it drives the AKG K240S and K501. I'd put it in the category of a solid contender for a general application (universal) amp.

Ditto... if you want to save a bit of scratch, Pimeta is also in the running IMO. These DIY amps were designed as general-purpose, not tuned/tweaked for specific headphones like many commercial designs are. Opamp rolling is a nice feature that most of them offer.

 

[aerius]

Find an amp where you can swap tubes or op-amps, otherwise IMO, you're left with an amp that's a jack of all trades; it does a decent job with whichever headphone you plug into it but not an excellent or outstanding job with any of them. With the option to swap tubes & op-amps, it's possible to optimize the sound for each headphone.

 

[PinkFloyd]

X-CAN V3 is a good allrounder IMO plus it is extremely tweakable via different valves / caps etc. An amplifier I would never overlook, it's very capable and superbly built.

Mike.