[PsychoZX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Veniogenesis From what I've been told, it would be a good decision on my part. haha

Yes it would be. MisterX is a great diy'er to buy from.

 

[Ymer]

Okay, so the M^3 is not beyond my budget. hmmm

So, in the end, the consensus is, ignore the portable ones since I don't need portability?

That makes this an M^3 vs. Gilmore Lite vs. Aria vs. X-Can V3 thread.

I'm counting on you all to keep on helping me, I'm still undecided!

Remember... this is primarily a Sennheiser system... sources are my beautiful Dual turntable, a standalone CD player and my Terratec EWX 24/96 audio out.

And I'm really fond of rock, metal and classical music. And no, I don't only listen to classical casually.

Thanks again

 

[Teerawit]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Veniogenesis Teerawit, did you get your M^3 from MisterX or did you DIY? I'm thinking about getting him to build me one sometime. From what I've been told, it would be a good decision on my part. haha Regards, Venio

I DIYed mine.

I wholeheartedly recommend MisterX. He's a cool guy, funny, nice, and very communicable. He has all of the superior tools for building a top-notch amp and enclosure. I'll let his build quality speak for itself.

 

[Tom L]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ymer That makes this an M^3 vs. Gilmore Lite vs. Aria vs. X-Can V3 thread.

This has been an interesting thread to read, since I've been thinking about getting an amp for my new AKG K701s, and I've been considering those same four amps.

Just to add to your confusion, the October issue of Stereophile had a review by Wes Phillips of the Channel Islands Audio VHP-1 headphone amp, with and without the companion VAC-1 power supply. He used Sennheiser HD-600s. Mr. Philips compared the VHP-1 very favorably to the Ray Samuels SR-71 and the Musical Fidelity X-Can V3. I'm not one who believes that what's written in Stereophile is infallible wisdom written by the gods of audio, but I think that the Channel Islands amp is another contender in this price range. (The amp costs $349 with a wall-wart power supply. The VAC-1 is an additional $159.) With the VAC-1, it's out of your price range, but you could get the amp now and upgrade later by adding the VAC-1.

The review is on-line here:

http://stereophile.com/headphones/1005channel/

The VHP-1/VAC-1 combination was also favorably reviewed at 6moons.com:

http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/cia/vhp1_3.html

 

[kramer5150]

Curious... why are there no RA-1 recommendations?

OK...OK... I already know it's basically $30 in parts, $5 PCB and $25 in Mahogany. Ignore all that and focus on sonic attributes... Can it hang with the other amps mentioned in this thread?

?????

Garrett

 

[Veniogenesis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kramer5150 Curious... why are there no RA-1 recommendations? OK...OK... I already know it's basically $30 in parts, $5 PCB and $25 in Mahogany. Ignore all that and focus on sonic attributes... Can it hang with the other amps mentioned in this thread? ????? Garrett

Isn't the RA-1 tuned for low-imped headphones? I think there is also the RA1-HG (high gain) which is good for high-imped headphones, but... still. Not popular. Either way, you obviously can't say the price of the parts is an issue as the RA-1 does sound good with Grados. (And there is one other very popular amplifier whose parts cost at most $50 but goes for $300+..... and sounds great)

 

[Ymer]

Hmmm, it's getting harder and harder. The VHP-1 seems like a nice choice too.

So now we have:

* VHP-1
* M^3
* Gilmore Lite
* Xcan V-3
* Aria

Haha, getting a little complex.

 

[Atropos]

does anybody know when we will get the aria? its already end of november

 

[Ymer]

I wonder, is the M^3 supposed to be better than the Aria, GLite and VHP-1?

 

[Clutz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ymer I wonder, is the M^3 supposed to be better than the Aria, GLite and VHP-1?

A few observations about people. Different people prefer different things on different days. You've received a lot of valuable input and suggestions from people here, but you have to consider the limitations that inheriently exist. I've only listened to three different headphone amplifiers for any period of time - and I'veonly used them with two different pairs of headphones. That limits my ability to provide a recommendation of one particular headphone amplifier over another. It's basically an issue of statistics.

But for a second, let's imagine that I am very fortunate to have acquired a very large number of headphone amplifiers (including all of the ones on your list), and I have a perfect memory of my experiences with each on of those headphone amplifiers and each one of my pairs of headphones. Now let's imagine that someone else, maybe someone named Joey Jo Jo Shabado, has the exact same set of headphone and headphone amplifiers, and also has an perfect memory of her experiences with each of those headphone amplifiers with each pair of headphones. That doesn't mean that we're both going to make the same recommendations on any given day... and it's also highly likely that over time our recommendations will change.


When I was 8 my favourite colour was red... now it's either midnight blue, or pearlescent white.

I think that most people would agree that a Gilmore Lite, PPA, M3, etc, are going to sound a lot better than say a Cmoy- but beyond that it becomes very difficult to say which is better / worse. A lot it comes down to personal preference.

So I think you have a few options - either try to go to a head-fi meet and audition some of the various equipment (maybe bring along some treats to share with people who've generously brought along their equipment) and decide what you like.. Or buy something from the list of recommendations and see what you think. if you don't like it- then try to sell / trade it on the sale forums.

p.s. I vote for a PPAv2 or a Millet. I love the PPA for some things - but I think that rock guitars sound pretty damn cool on the Millet.

 

[Ymer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Clutz A few observations about people. Different people prefer different things on different days. You've received a lot of valuable input and suggestions from people here, but you have to consider the limitations that inheriently exist. I've only listened to three different headphone amplifiers for any period of time - and I'veonly used them with two different pairs of headphones. That limits my ability to provide a recommendation of one particular headphone amplifier over another. It's basically an issue of statistics. But for a second, let's imagine that I am very fortunate to have acquired a very large number of headphone amplifiers (including all of the ones on your list), and I have a perfect memory of my experiences with each on of those headphone amplifiers and each one of my pairs of headphones. Now let's imagine that someone else, maybe someone named Joey Jo Jo Shabado, has the exact same set of headphone and headphone amplifiers, and also has an perfect memory of her experiences with each of those headphone amplifiers with each pair of headphones. That doesn't mean that we're both going to make the same recommendations on any given day... and it's also highly likely that over time our recommendations will change. When I was 8 my favourite colour was red... now it's either midnight blue, or pearlescent white. I think that most people would agree that a Gilmore Lite, PPA, M3, etc, are going to sound a lot better than say a Cmoy- but beyond that it becomes very difficult to say which is better / worse. A lot it comes down to personal preference. So I think you have a few options - either try to go to a head-fi meet and audition some of the various equipment (maybe bring along some treats to share with people who've generously brought along their equipment) and decide what you like.. Or buy something from the list of recommendations and see what you think. if you don't like it- then try to sell / trade it on the sale forums. p.s. I vote for a PPAv2 or a Millet. I love the PPA for some things - but I think that rock guitars sound pretty damn cool on the Millet.

Yeah, I figure as much but people who have at least two of these amps at the same time can always help, even if it's their taste. Better to trust someone else's ears than just buying blindly. I can't go to a meeting, I live in Brazil, haven't heard of meetings in my city!

Anyway, what is a Millet and where can I buy it?

Thanks for you input, too!

 

[Clutz]

Yeah, I figure as much but people who have at least two of these amps at the same time can always help, even if it's their taste. Better to trust someone else's ears than just buying blindly. I can't go to a meeting, I live in Brazil, haven't heard of meetings in my city!

/QUOTE]

Ahh, good point.. I hadn't considered that.

Time to visit the US or Canada?

They can provide input - but my point was that they can only provide so much input, even if they had perfect knowledge.. the fewer amps they have, the less perfect knowledge they can have about differences between different amps. So I wasn't saying they can't provide input - just that the value peoples input is limited by their experience. I think that you'll probably find any of the amps that have been suggested are going to sound very good.

Quote:

Anyway, what is a Millet and where can I buy it? Thanks for you input, too!

It's a DIY tube amp. Headphone.com sells a higher end version for about $600. I'm not suggesting that the DIY version is comparable.. You could probably find a DIYer to put one together. I think it cost me about $140CDN to put mine together - including the enclosure, the cost of parts and their shipping, and switches.

 

[ATAT]

Quote:

Originally Posted by en480c4 I'd strongly suggest a PPA. My PPA v2 is nothing short of amazing with my 650's, and while you probably won't get a new one built for < $400, keep an eye out for one in the FS forum. It's an amazingly detailed piece that really brings the Senns to life. The M^3 is another great peice, but I use mine for more of a relaxed listen, and the PPA v2 is reserved for critical listening. And this is with OPA637/627 in the PPA and AD8610's in the M^3.

Third / Fourth vote for PPA v2. Finished mine and sounds absolutely fantastic with the HD650s