Best Amps for Sennheiser HD800

That or solid state vs tubes.
I'm used to HD 800 w/ Yggdrasil & Ragnarok. Never really thought of it as bright, just dry and unengaging.

 

i'd wager that the mjolnir2 might be the winner here (but don't have them side by side). the vali 2 is pretty warm and laid back, which i think can give a nice character to the hd800 and offset some of it's traits. but i also think the vali 2 will not resolve or extend as much as the mjo2. i bet with some nice tubes (others can chime in) it would be a very nice amp with the 800. it's certainly a bit more warm than the rag, and possibly more engaging with proper tubes.

i'd be interested to hear a mjo2 and t3 tube-off on the hd800...

EDIT: if you wanted a solid state amp that didn't break the bank, i still think the BW is the best ss amp for the 800.

 

Looking to get a cheap amp for my hd800's looking at the magni 2 uber or asgard or is there anything better in that price range.

 

I'm cringing a bit at those choices. Modded 800's? Can you save a tiny bit more or find a used valhalla2? Vali2 should also be in the mix. Don't be aftraid of tube amps, they aren't that a big deal. At least with these you can find tubes to either tame the hd800 or roll and find so it suits your preference. I am sure there is a garage1217 project something out there that would work as well, but I never figured out which amps were meant for which headphone.

 

@Coldplayer don't you already have a speedball'd Crack?

 

It's not easy to find an already built T3, kinda gives u a hint. I want a up to 1000$ 230V tube amp for my modded 800 but boy it has been a while...
I wish i was more confident with my soldering skills and whatnot otherwise i would've at least modded my sbcrack.

Edit- within the EU which has been a nightmare but i will get there, fortunately some good suggestions here already prevent me for making a couple of mistakes .

 

Beezar.com has built t3's for sale. Not sure about voltage.

 

They sell both @Ray but after customs have their way with it i would end up paying 1200 for it.

 

Yeah have a speedballed crack but looking to get something new since i'm not a fan of the noise when silent (massively ocd) and also my room gets to about 43 degrees celcius in summer which is coming around (Australia) and the crack runs hot as hell. Looking at the jotunheim at the moment or vali 2 if there is no noise and it doesn't run as hot as the bottlehead.

 

I think it was @Marvey that said the jot had a very bad synergy with the 800's

 

Has anyone tried to pair HD800 with Marantz HD-DAC1? I might have it used for 350-400€. Not sure about value proposition against Vali2 which would be my other budget oriented choice. The synergy with Schiit is known to be decent but on the other hand Marantz is packed with features and even remote. I've got no chance to audit both combo :'<

I'm gonna install SDR mod to the Greatheisers when my letter arrives from France.

 

Hmmm not me so i cant help in any way. One thing i will say though, i always loved the looks of that Marantz since i first saw it some months ago ^^ not useful info but...

 

The 800, as opposed to the 800S, are a bit of a dental drill through the Jot. That treble spike is troubling, even if you're not normally treble-sensitive. I didn't mind the 800S through the Jot, when I spent an hour or two listening to the combo a few days ago- but some people might have found it too bright.

I suspect that the stock 800 and the Jot is right out for almost everyone. The 800S and the Jot might be more down to personal preferences. You probably need to find some people whose listening preferences are close to yours, who have heard this combo, to get an idea.

 

I recently purchased a pair of HD800S, and this thread is by far the best resource I've found in my research for a good amp to pair with it. Glad I found this forum!

I love how the HD800 sound through my vinyl rig (Clearaudio Concept MC, Yamaha A-S1000), and would like to find an amp for my digital files that provides a similar tone. My source currently is a Fiio X7, though I think I'll be upgrading to a Gungnir Multibit.

At this point, I'm considering the EC BW, EC ZDS and the TIII. Given my goal to find something that balances the accurate and analytical strengths of the HD800S with the fluid, organic sound of analog, I'd appreciate others thoughts on how these three amps compare.

 

I placed an order for a HD800S and currently i own a Lyr 2 with LISST tubes. Does my current amp setup will play fine with the HP or should i sell these to go back to Valhalla 2.

Any amp recommendation for an amp less than 500$.

 

I really like the HD800 SD mod (so similar to HD800S) with the LISST and what they do to the treble, it's not rolled to crap but its smooth and to me makes the treble even less fatiguing. Grain of salt as I'm talking about LISST with Mjolnir 2, but may be worth a try before selling. I'll have a Val2 in a couple weeks but idk right now

 

To my ears the Lyr with sane tube selection (EH, Brimar) sounds good with the HD800. With excotic NOS valves (Siemens CCa, Telefunken, ...) it is brilliant. But I never understood the logic behind the LISST ... interesting and clever as the concept is, a tube amp minus tubes equals solid state amp. And a solid state amp with similar performance but without the added LISST complexity would probably cost a good bit less. Having said that I haven't heard the Lyr with LISST, so maybe I'm missing the point.

 

I guess i have to keep looking, even though im not treb sensitive it seems that would be too much for me. Maybe at best ill buy one for my hd600.

 

I just picked up an HD800 with the intention of capping my need for any new audio gear for the next 5-10 years (or longer). With that idea in mind, is the EC ZDS the way to go?

 

If you got the $2500 to drop, the only other amp even mentioned in the same league at that price point is the DNA Stratus, but they have different sound signatures.