Justin S

My impressions of Danny’s xover designs is he does tend a bit toward brighter, although some of that may tame with burn in. Also Wharfedales tend to lean darker on the top end, so you may be hearing a fair difference between the old and the new. A small change in value used in the tweeter circuit could bring the treble back down a bit if you find it stays too bright. Danny can prob advise on that.

Thanks, @rlow . Yes. The original was dark and soft around the edges - dull almost. I had gotten used to it, so it's probably partly this difference I am responding to. I'm going to let them, and my brain, burn in for a while. Just posting to the DIY thread on the build. It's not as simple as I had thought as Danny's xover is about 3X the size of the original. I don't particularly want to pull it all apart again.

A week in. They're not registering as bright any longer. I am now listening to these $150 CAD speakers as "proper speakers". They're not LS3/5s or P3ESRs but they're past the "they are what they are" barrier.

The P3ESR XDs never cease to amaze.

I think I’m going to need a noise nuke myself. I have a Class D amp with 24V input and I can hear noise when no music is playing

I heard a noticeable difference with a NoiseNuke and my Pi2AES as well. More clarity mostly. Definitely worth it.

The 5V mod that bypasses the switcher with a good 5V supply also works very well.

I have them cranked up on Thom York's Modern Boxes stuff and they're solid - detailed, spacious, clean clean, normal sounding for a near-field-mini-monitors-guy. Just listening to the music. I feel the the AB Noise Nuke got me here. Nervosa or fact?

I keep thinking about the Lyr+, though, and am buying up the occasional 6sn7 based on my experience with the Freya a while ago.I'll probably try a Lyr+ in the new year even though the BHA-1/Hilo/HD800S are exhibiting great synergy. I should know better, but I don't.

Bouncing between the 600s w ZMF F-Suede, 650Mkisses w ZMF F-Lamb, and the 800S stock on the BHA-1 full balanced. 600s have the edge on the mid presence, 6XXMkiss have the edge on warm fuzzies and bass (um...what veil...but a bit crowded). While the 800S can be a bit challenging occasionally, they're super effing big and engaging.

Congratz!!

Back to back with the 600s the 800Ss slay. They're proper moar.

IMO, nothing does layering like the HD800(S). Big E.S.T. fan here. Lots of neat studio detail to pick out. Leucocyte is my fave.

I saw est years ago along with the bad plus. Great show!

I feel like they've taken months to sort out. I was going to sell them to go the other way with a pair of Aeolus. I think I am going to hold on to them for a while.

Been there! Bought, sold, rebought. Luckily buying and selling used, didn't lose my shirt.

@yotacowboy , I feel like I have been doing this a lot lately - I am glad I caught them on the way out :-) I'll slow the Aeolus plans down.

They weirdly indicate towards the space of a recording really well. They're not immersive, they're like a good sketch. Perfect while I get myself back into running after 3 years of inactivity.

I've been really digging the BHA-1 and thought to get a Lyr+ in the future for a different flavour. Also - my main headphones are now the LCD-X which I imagine won't play well with the EAR+....but tubes! I did love this amp with the HD600/650s and Grados. Sold it to be responsible while I explored other things.

Never got to hear one of those...do you really miss it or want to try something new? I usually know when I really miss tube amps and have bought 3 of them again. :)

@CEE TEE , this is indeed the question. As much as it pains me, I think I am better off moving forward. Something like the Piety will likely play better with both my LCD-X and Sennheisers :-)

The term "self inflicted RMA" sounds... expensive. Thankfully it came back as good as ever it seems.

@Qildail , I bent the s/pdif jack by pushing the Yggdrasil back into a cabinet. They fixed it up perfectly and sent it back to me with a very thorough QC report. Great customer service.

It's such a great DAC. I've been running a BF2/64 in that system for 4 weeks while the LIM was in my office and while it went on its RMA field-trip. The BF is a good good DAC, but the LIM puts everything together with flow and in a way makes everything sound like it's in the right place. It even makes TV watching more engaging - when score or music become a dominant element, the Yggdrasil makes you lean in.

Ahahahah, Cee Tee: Bifrost 2, Soekris 2541, Jotenheim 2. All purchased twice, all sold again :-) it's been a couple years of lust and heartbreak.

Yer not a newb!

Well a noob in how I review stuff. I'm pretty excitable.

@crenca There'sa Focal version? Don't see it here
https://www.zmfheadphones.com/zmfpads

gixxer, see: https://shop.zmfheadphones.com/collections/pads

On top of all the increased resolution and clarity, the slight angle to the pads puts things pleasantly out front. The 650s are back in rotation. I would be super curious to hear how the Focal pads work.

They really refresh the sound of the 6XXMs for me. They present a pronounced improvement to clarity and weirdly to the resolution. They don't mess with the mids, other than to bring them a bit more forward, which I like.

Yep, that is also the combination I settled on - perf suede on 600 and perf lamb on 6XX seemed to work best and as you said, big improvement to clarity with no significant downside

Like I am having a speaker-like listening tonight. Hilo->BHA-1->LCD-X, All balanced. Remarkable.

Hilo headphone amp is very good, but no match for the BHA-1.