HeadphoneAddict

Great feedback Augsburger, thanks!

I agree with your findings driving HD600 directly from the XLR. I also agree with your findings of the Apogee headphone out sounding better than the headfive (I have all of the above here, been there done that). The XLR > RCA > nice amp will sound better than headphone out if you get a good enough amp for the job. Here is where I will get jumped on, and I almost wasn't going to post this part, but I want to help. I'm just gonna pull some "percent better" numbers out of the air here, because I have no way to measure them. Out of the amps I have tried, the lowest price upgrade is the Grahm Slee NOVO but it is only maybe 5% better, maybe 10% with the Sigma 11 PSU added (smoother and more powerful and brighter, soundstage no improvement). Next up would be my Head-direct EF1 which is about 10-15% better with stock tube and opamp, being warmer richer and fuller sounding with more power and smoother sounding, but the EF1 soundstage is just about the same or slightly narrower than headphone out of the Apogee. The Dark Voice 336 was not an upgrade, nor is my Headfive, although they are decent sounding. Then there is the Woo WA6 which is a nice step up - a stock WA6 at Luminette's last November was more spacious and refined and maybe 20% better than Apogee headphone out. At the same meet my WA6 maxed with PDPS and Sophia rectifier was about 30% better than Apogee headphone out and was more refined with clearer treble and more micro-detail, and slightly more expansive soundstage than the stock WA6. On about the same level as maxed WA6 with PDPS and Sophia rectifier is plaidplatypus's loaner Gilmore Reference Headphone Amp which is better than WA6 with Denon and Edition 9 but not as good with HD600 and RS-1. Then there is my 2008 Single Power Square Wave XL with Blackgates in balanced mode, but I am not going to discuss that one here (moratorium). There are times when I like the WA6 better, especially for it's warmth and richness and punch with Grados. PS: I think the SS is pretty close to the same as Apogee headphone out, except with HD600 it is better.

So, in exchange, I hope they are installing O2 Mk2 pads and a O2 cable for you instead... As for my JADE:

He was Chinese, not Japanese.

I said "slightly" less bass control, while they sounded almost identical I thought the GES bass was slightly tighter once the EQ was applied. . I can't seem to multi-quote on this iPhone, so to the other issue - maxed vs not. I only said I hear more transparency and detail, not a change in sound signature or more power. Also, remember the prototype was not up to the level of a standard base-line current production GES according to Woo and another user who compared them together. I'm not claiming anything magical.

The GES prototype floating around for demos and Sherwood's SRM-T1 sound very similar in detail and sound signature, with the T1 having a couple more dB of bass output but slightly less bass control to go with the extra bass. The maxed GES adds more transparency and detail to the sound which is very welcome. This was with ESP950, HE60, and Lambdas just before the O2 mk2 arrived.

Why did you return the JADE after your love affair with them in your top 5? My JADE shipped to me today and I don't want to be disappointed. As for O2 - with my GES and vintage Telefunken 12AX7 they are certainly not dark, same goes with GE "Wurlitzer" or new-issue cryo treated Mullards. The 12BZ7 it came with made the O2 dark but not my other stats.

No snow.

It was everyone else crashing, not her. Traffic jams reigned.

The snow was a PITA this AM. Ice and crashes made my daughter 1hr late for high school.

The app is gone now

body temp is about 37C (36.6 to be exact)

I think I'd be the one to ask for it in "all black" if I could afford one...

Or, how much does a balanced M^3 cost?

I agree, so now donunus needs a good balanced amp, and SP is out (as much as I love the Square Wave XL) until Mikhail gets his act together. His budget is tight, so that leaves the Little Dot Mk VI and the noisy fan, or a Headroom Balanced Desktop. I've heard the Headroom at the July meet and it was very nice but 2x his budget. However, the WA6 maxed with pseudo dual power supply and sophia princess 274b rectifier is VERY good with the HD600, and extremely close to balanced. You get all the tubey goodness, sparkle and spaciousness and separation with good bass and power, with a nice night-light to keep the under bed monsters away. Problem, out of budget again.

I thinks it's great you are making sacrifices for your parents.

Maybe we CO peeps could team up and all go pay a visit to Mikhail and take inventory of what amps he is working on and help him prioritize his goals and timeline? Then followup to see if he is sticking to it. It would be like an intervention. Someone would have to distract his wife though. I nominate Sherwood.

That's too bad, I always liked the Avatar.

I've always wondered what benefit comes from complaining to the BBB. Can they make Mikhail act to fulfill the customer's wishes, or is it just a repository of complaints that most people never see? What are the chances the business would simply get irritated enough to invoke retribution by further delaying delivery of the customer's order or service? That would always be my fear. I definitely agree that no work should be done to a customer's amp without prior approval and firm estimate of the work.

I am about to start spending more time with plaidplatypus's Gilmore Reference that I am borrowing, and will be hooking it up to my mini-DAC tomorrow to give it a try. It got here right before we left for Maui for Xmas, and I've only tested it to make sure it was working, hooked up to a Samsung DVD in the other room. I'll let you know what I think about it - hoping I don't like it enough to make an offer to buy it (although it's not for sale).

I've been saying this for a while now that I think the fit, ear canal shape and tip choice makes all the difference between good and bad sound - explaining how one could hear something completely different than another person. Several other people have reversed their opinions of the W3 on "the forum that must not be named" once they found the right tips and positioning. I am glad you two have found a way to get the improved sound, but am sad about the continued comfort problems to achieve the sound I have heard from the start. I guess I am lucky to have the right ear size/shape to make several tips and ear positions work for me, including my custom UM-56.

Nice. How did you get Tommy Chong to pose for you?

Yes, that did put me on the defensive. I thought it was rather offensive and mean coming from someone who doesn't really know me.

I didn't mean to insult with that remark, I am sorry.

I would love to meet up sometime and compare O2 Mk1 vs my O2 Mk2, and maybe SR-X vs my SR-5NB - I'm just afraid to hear how much better the KGBHSE will sound above my Woo GES maxed. Sherwood's SRM-T1 that you are using was really nice when he brought it over a couple of months ago, and sounded almost identical to the GES prototype but it bested the GES in the bass with at least 2 db more low bass. Later I could hear the improved bass and transparency in my maxed GES vs the prototype, but the total power is still about the same. So, I'm sure it wont come close to the Blue Hawaii for the O2. Plaidplatypus liked the maxed GES with the SR-Lambda more than any other stat amp he's had, including his old KGSS, but didn't like the O2Mk2/GES as much as his old KGSS and O2 Mk1. So, I'm trying to decide between a O2 Mk1 or HE Audio Jade now.