tjkurita

Interesting, Reks, Al. This Playback Designs stuff is intriguing. I will research. Al, I thought you had some really SOTA EMM stuff. Updated black badge SE versions... I am running an original one! With the old blue and red badge. PM me with the info re: unloading your EMM stuff. I might be interested. I am using a Toslink cable to my DCC2 from my Macbook Pro. Alternative inputs (I guess USB would be the main one) would be nice, too. The power supply in my EMM redbook transport crapped out long ago and I can't get it fixed because their support is not so great... Now it is about $1K in parts that sits in a box. Soon to become landfill. I just can't seem to let myself toss it. Sorry for hijacking this thread. This will be my last post (I hope) that does not directly pertain to the HD800. Which is what I am mainly interested in right now anyway.

Hey Tom, Jimmy, all you guys... Glad you are all into the aesthetics of the amp! I'm doing good, Tom! Digging the HD800. Still running the Emm Labs DCC2 (from way back). I wonder how much digital has progressed in the last few years.... Would you be interested in getting some Takatsuki 300Bs with me for your 300SEI? Are you still running the SEI? I might order them in the next week or so. Always interested in the gear you are running. Is your collection still as extensive as it ever was? Mine is very pared down but maybe I am looking to upgrade my DAC.

Man, that amp is sweet! Sorry to hear about the problems restoring for some but, wow, what a good-looking piece! Solid-State, too. I like that. All this tube nonsense is getting on my nerves. Anyone using it extensively for speakers? Any load restrictions? What kinds of preamps match well? Maybe put a nice tube preamp like a modwright in front of it... I'd be interested in hearing sound signatures as well (let's get a review, please....). At ~$500, it seems like a bargain.

No schematic, unfortunately. It is custom made, but I don't think there are too many crazy surprises. A very conventional circuit, if I remember correctly. In any case, it is simply a dual-mono, cap-coupled (in this case, Jensen paper-in-oil, but I would like to get some audionote silver caps) 6SN7 driving 300B into some output transformers. If I am right, I think the power supply is rather heavy-duty with lots of filtering. Basically, it is really over-built, with good power, into a pretty traditional audio circuit, using very good parts. I am pretty ignorant, but are there a lot of different kinds of circuits involving 6SN7s and 300Bs with cap and OPT? In other words, are there a bunch of different ways to implement these parts, all with different sounds? It sounds quite good to me. I asked the guy who built it if it would be a good idea to direct-couple the amp with an interstage transformer. He advised against it. He said there was no guarantee it would sound better, and, more importantly, no guarantee I would like the sound better. He basically advised me against a job that would put another $2K in his pocket. I thought that was good advice. And I think it is a truism that if you like something, it isn't necessarily advisable to go looking for something better. As it is right now, it is not the be-all-end-all in resolution. I think a cap upgrade (AudioNote silver foil in oil) and a tube upgrade (Takatsuki 300B) will push the resolution. I don't have time to have it all done right now, however, as I am moving out of NYC. The 300B upgrade will not be a problem. The Yen finally hit 100 recently, maybe now is the time. But the cap upgrade will require some doing.

These are very interesting impressions. I am still in the early stages. Usually when I get a new piece of gear that is supposed to be good (read: expensive), I listen really critically. I look for all of the flaws I can find in order to eliminate it as soon as possible and recover $. If I like the gear, it sticks around and then I stop listening critically and just enjoy it. And then I disappear from the forums for a year or two until the new thing comes out! At this point I am listening to these hard. I can hear some peakiness in the highs Not sure if it is the recording or not... Not sure if it is the infamous 6K peak. But I don't hear the hardness you speak of. I think I know what you are referring to as I owned the K1K and "hard" is a very apt description. I must say I hated those things! The HD800 seem rather smooth in comparison. I will see what happens as things progress.

Great to see all of you guys! I really like the HD800 too, Voltron. I don't think of the resolution and presentation as shortcomings. They might be the best headphones I have heard. But they are, in many ways, the most unique as well. Having owned the HD600, HP-1, HP-2, RS1, Omega 2, the HD800 seem most similar to the O2. Maybe I am crazy for saying that. They seem like the O2 with more "dynamic" qualities. Of course, I don't listen to headphones as much as many people here. I consider my amp a speaker/power amp that happens to have a headphone jack... Speaking of which, here is a photo of the amp with updated iron, 5AR4 instead of 5R4W, and the HD800:

Hey VPI! Yep. Still going strong! Upgraded to Tango iron. I haven't had the desire to upgrade (besides the OPT) or switch my amp in the six or seven years I have owned it. I am glad about that. This is the amp for me and I hope it stays that way. I hadn't posted on head-fi in quite a long time. I go back and suddenly no more familiar faces. I come here and everyone is having a party! Good stuff. Nice to see some of the old names.

I just got the HD800. I don't have many impressions yet because I am still listening. I've only put about eight hours in... But they are so much different than HD600s. They are not as "forward" as any other standard headphone. Is this because something is missing or because it is just presenting in a different way. I really like them, actually. I like the way they image. I like the air. I like the midrange. They are pretty clinical, though, that's for sure.