The All Purpose Advice Thread

Also the GOV2 is getting an upgrade that includes cosmetics.

If I were choosing between the two Schiit stacks, I'd take the Bifrost/Vali 2 option.

 

Thank you very much for further explanation. I will definitely check out upgraded GOV2 when it becomes available.

 

Thank you very much for the suggestion. I am minimalistic person and I personally do not like stacked gear but single gear that performs both Dac & Amp in relatively compact size. Hence I was interested in Mojo and M9xx. Again, thank you so much for suggestion.

 

A Schiit M/M or Modi/Vali 2 stack is pretty darn small, despite being stacked. It would be like having a thick but not overly wide book on your desk. The Vali 2 in particular is a great bargain as it will handle a wide variety of headphones.

 

Guys, would you recommend the HD 800 for someone who really really really wants good soundstage, amazing comfort and low level information retrieval?

 

Seeking closed-back headphone recommendations. Must be comfy, tonally balanced, and must scale reasonably well with source changes/upgrades. Slants and Blackwoods come to mind immediately, but I don't know how well either scales? I'm also presuming the ZMF Omni might leak too much sound for a work environment, and not isolate well when ambient noise levels get high?

TIA

 

I can probably speak for the board, but you can't go wrong with the Slants. I just don't know if he is still making them anymore, which makes them harder to find.

 

Yeah, I was wondering about that. It looks like you're still able to add Slants to the cart... but will they ship in a reasonable timeframe, I'm not sure.

 

You are worried about the omni leaking sound but are considering the PMx2. What? You do know that the PMx2 is an open headphone right?

Edit: after input from Hands it seems that they are semi-open bordering on closed.

 

Problem is- I like a bit of a warmer sound signature. I was considering the HD 650 on a good rig but I don't think I will like it's bass.

I plan on doing the SBAF mod and the SDR mod, then pairing it with a Garage1217 project Polaris and a dac destroyer. If I can find a Hd800 for $700 that is.

I'm also inclining towards a cherry Omni or a cherry Blackwood but am worried that it won't be resolving/detailed enough.

I listen to a wide range of music - rock (green day, porcupine tree, Steven Wilson, linkin park, pink Floyd etc) , female vocals (bjork, diana Krall, Aurora etc), electronic music (dillon Francis, Deadmau5 etc), and more. Some are well recorded/mastered (i think) while others - not so much.

I am very confused at this point. I want an endgame headphone (potentially) that will have reliability, comfort and sound I am looking for.

 

@Vanheim - I've been watching you on this thread for a couple of days going back and forth and thought I might put in my two cents...

Hold off on the hd800 for now, the weak point in your chain will be the Dac and amp. Hd650 doesn't sound that great through the o2 you have, but most of the headphones you are looking at will be held back. HD650 bass isn't too strong, most think it's just right, or a just bit too much.

If you are looking for a more resolving setup, the $50 Dac you have mentioned is going to hamstring the whole deal. O2 won't do any favors either. Headphones can only sound as good as what you feed it.

 

Strike the PMx2...

 

The upstream you are considering is most likely not gonna do much favors to HD800 or reaching endgame. HD800 is worth it if you can afford to build a top notch system around it.
But same can be said to HD650, ime.
Planar-mags usually scale less, but the upside is that they won't make you barf at your crappy source, and amping requirements are simpler.
Most of your listed music would make me pick HD800(m) with my own rig, but HD650(m) would do almost as good to please me.
Rolling highs to shit on the HD800 with your Polaris is a sin.

 

I would still not say they'r everyone's cup of tea. I found last two octaves too shelved (not missing tho) for instance. The result to me is rather boring but still reasonably high quality sound reproduction. I can see why many love that sound and yes, these would make for nice working in the office hp-s, as they won't draw too much attention to themselves or music. They seem to like a lot of juice though, most portable devices won't cut it.

 

Yeah I was thinking it'd be borderline, like the Omni?

 

I'm looking for a basic inexpensive turntable to rip some vinyl I have from an a cappella ensemble I was a part of in the late 70s and have literally irreplaceable records I'd like to rip. I have a ADC setup, so just looking for turntable + whatever else I'd need to feed line level signal to my ADC. The recording & mastering were pretty poor so it's not like I'm going to get this amazing digital HiRez copy no matter what I do. I *may* keep the setup around to rip other vinyl from family or rare stuff I find on eBay, but it isn't going to get much use.

 

Luis is still making Slants. There are a couple in the queue at the moment (including mine). He is responsive and really helpful once you get hold of him. I can pass you contact details via PM if you are interested...