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purk

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Posts posted by purk

  2. Me and my Zana Deux (+ pics)...

    in Headphone Amplification

    Posted

    Hey guys,

    I'm back in action, I think :P

    In my online absence, I've gone back and forth on the SDS vs Zana Deux thing. One the one hand, the Zana Deux sounds more neutral and tonally accurate, over the SDS. I really respect that, and for a while that really did it for me. On the other hand, the SDS is a more dynamic sound at the expense of a bit of coloration - BUT a very euphonic (warm, wet, lush, liquid) coloration at that, one which I don't want to get away from, in the long run. You know, I think I'm coming to a similar conclusion in power amps - going for a slightly "dirty" euphonic sound on my Tannoys with vintage amps (Heathkit W4A, McIntosh MC2100) over the state-of-the-art neutral sound (Parasound JC1, VAC Auricle Monoblocks).

    I do feel the Zana Deux is more powerful in that it can go LOUDER on the hard-to-drive cans before noticeable distortion sets in. Though I don't have the HP2 or R10 anymore, those were what I'd consider the hardest to drive high-end headphones, and my un-upgraded SDS ran out of gas at loud (but well before ear-splitting) volumes. Heavy bass passages, especially orchestral, would distort noticeably. On the other hand, the distortion was very pleasing and not at all objectionable until extreme breakup. The 5687 output tubes in the SDS largely mitigates this issue vs the crappy 6sn7's, but it's not completely gone. The higher voltage option (which mine doesn't have) cures its completely, without losing the euphonic "magic" so to speak. So, I've just recently been thinking of selling the Zana Deux to pick up a voltage-upgraded Supra :D

    I'll miss the preamp functionality of the Zana, for which it's probably better suited than the SDS/Supra, being tonally neutral and all. Still thinking about keeping it...but about 80% decided at this point.

    I've been splitting listening time between the L3000 and HD650 - the 650 just comes into a league of its own, for certain records, on my vinyl rig (which I'm proud to say has remained unchanged since I got it in May).

    So, how've you all been? :D

    We have been wondering where our L3000's No. 1 fanboy goes!

  3. Speakers & power amp recommendations for $1600-$2K?

    in Speakers

    Posted

    I've been becoming more and more of a Tannoy fanboy. Haven't heard a Dual-Concentric model I didn't like. There's something innately musical and coherent about the DC designs, IMO. Tannoy doesn't spend much effort marketing or distributing in the US (probably with good reason; the hifi market is insane), so they're highly underrated here.

    For $2K budget I'd jump on these:

    http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrfull&1207012471

    Eyris DC3 for $1500, but they've been on the 'gon for quite a while now (since Tannoy is largely ignored here) so you could probably bargain down some more. If not, they're still well worth the $1500. They're an easy load, and in my experience with the Dimension TD10, the Tannoys love vintage amps. $500-$700 is actually a pretty decent budget for a good vintage amp if you're patient. I've had great success with a pair of Heathkit W4A (quintessential tube midrange) monos and the McIntosh MC2100 (killer bass). In fact I'm currently trying to sell my expensive VAC amps; expensive amps not needed on a Tannnoy.

    Welcome back Mike!

  4. Who likes the R10's?

    in Headphones

    Posted

    I hope nobody buys them, and then have a driver fail. 6500 is taking the piss. :police:

    That's why I have a spare set of driver for my R10. :) Regarding the audiogon R10, the price is way too high for the one in this condition. If I'm not mistaken, Fing bought a NOS R10 from Alex for less than that.

  11. How has your rig changed in 2007? And do you have any future plans?

    in Miscellaneous

    Posted

    Mine is a heavily maxed ES1,My Es1 was also the testbed for future Es1s,The first es1 prototype had Jacks for regular headhones but no internal boards!.

    The concerto was at one of the meets,don't remember if it was one of the NY meets.

    Tom,

    I believe Fing's Concerto XLR Accent-T will be better than the stock due to the followings:

    1) Near if not equal to SDS-XLR w/ Tube Rect. PSU for dynamic amp instead of the Meastro SE in the Concerto SE.

    2) Upgraded ES-1 with tube rectified PSU instead of stock ES-1.

    3) Better and more regulated tube rectified PSU

    I hope Fing can give us more insight in his amp. I was able to talk to Mikhail briefly the other days, and that what he told me about his amp.

  14. closed cans!

    in Headphones

    Posted

    You might have to hunt down the ATH-W11JPN. I found the 11JPN to be quite nice. They share similar traits to the L3000 and very comfortable. They definitely sound better than the A950LTD to my ears. If the W5000 fits you well, they are also a good choice.

  21. Budget HE90 Amp?

    in Headphone Amplification

    Posted

    I recently bought the 7' Black Dragon HE90 extension cable for my HE90 for around $330. Drew told me that the cost of the Fischer connectors are over $200 alone ($100 + each for male & female). It took almost 2 months for Fischer to ship the connectors to Drew. Congrats Fing.

  23. Budget HE90 Amp?

    in Headphone Amplification

    Posted

    Used DIY KGSS if you can find one is probably about as cheap as stat amps go. Although I freely admit that I stopped researching early in the process. No stats for me, NO STATS!!

    I used to say that to myself but didn't work. Now I want to try the SR007 both current and previous gens with my ES-1.

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