I got to check out the ECP 3F at a Head-Fi meet up in the Seattle area a bit ago… it is a handsome amp for sure!!!
I look forward to burning in my Verite lol… I might have to leave it running with pink noise when I’m not listening to it. It will be interesting to see what the differences are from fresh to broken in…
Just got my self an HD 600 an so far for everyday use, non critical listening with just the High Power out from the RME ADI 2 it’s not terrible!
I quite enjoy it over the vintage AKGs I had before and/or my K702
An as I move it around from system to system I’m rather impressed with it. Ehh mine’s stock except for the HD 650 cable I was recommended, won’t say how much or what difference the cable makes other than for $13 I like the all black aesthetic more than the Red/Grey
So in that sense I keep reaching for/coming back to it! Still LCD 2 and HD 800 are my go to when I want to enjoy my music and not watch TV/YouTube ect… Oh and HE 560 is still my favorite for Movies. It’s just so explosive sometimes!
I’m tight-fisted when it comes to playing with cables. I can say that I’ve been satisfied with various Amplifier Surgery silver-plated cables, including the balanced they made for my HD-6xx (and which I also sometimes use on my HD-580). I’ve also used them to make a 15 ft headphone extension cable so I can reach from my main stereo (where the turntable lives) to the easy chair. They will custom make just about anything, and seem to give good value for what you pay them.
Ain’t no way I’m buying $1k-$20k interconnects for anything, unless it’s connecting me to an accurate next day’s lottery number prognosticator.
Hi @Hellenback, nice to see you. I have to agree with your observations on the HD650. They’re just so easy to pick up and listen to. For what they cost they’re amazing. I will never let these go. I seem to appreciate them the more I use the. I would love to try them on a really good OTL like the Bottlehead Crack. The synergy is said to be great. I would also like to use them through a balanced setup too. I need to save up. Or win the lottery. 
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I’ve heard balanced 650s with LD MKVI+ and Darkvoice 337 tube amps as well as a less expensive Antique Sound Labs tube amp (forget the model #).
I really love the euphonic effect but am a bit OC when it comes to deciding on tubes.
Been eyeballing that little $100 ($129 CAD) LOXJIE P20 balanced amp for a few months but haven’t settled on whether to get it with extra tubes or start off stock.
It’s just too easy to keep spending cash once you start! And I’d be bummed if I was disappointed with it.
Been lucky to be able to have heard all my gear before buying it (other than an original Matrix Mini-i DAC which is still in use).
I’m thinking I could really use a new/better DAC, or at the very least a good USB>SPDIF converter that handles all the frequencies without SOX conversion in Foobar.
The thing is, when I’m listening, I rarely yearn for more or better SQ.
I think better “on the go sound” is what I most often wish I had, especially when I want to crank it a bit while out and about…(hence the custom IEMs).
I just get a bit wound up whenever I think of buying anything new. I’ve spent a grand in my head in five minutes (before even adding in a new DAP).
Just really need to decide what’s going to make the biggest upgrade difference for the bucks.
As mentioned already, I mostly dwell a lot lately on finding some good custom IEMs, so I can listen with better SQ while on the go (and even around the apartment).
Since moving I can’t play my surround system without bugging the neighbours, so really miss listening to some hi-res surround music…haven’t even set my speakers up since moving nearly two years ago (except for a small stereo pair of older Polk Monitor 2 book-shelfs;(
I have been eying up the very same Amp. Right I hadn’t read your post thoroughly enough and have just sent you a message regarding iems. If you’re definately after TOTL or high end iems then there are lots of them. It’s just a case of knowing what sound signature you’re after. Obviously it’s not that easy but it’s a start. I haven’t used customs myself so cannot really give you any constructive feedback regarding this. @Torq and @antdroid both have Customs. I would also get in touch with @taronlissimore from our very own headphone.com he would be able to advise you greatly what’s on offer and deals and such.
If you like the sound signature of the Andromeda’s then they are a great pair of iems. But the whole of campfires range should be looked at especially the Solaris. This has had much praise. I personally own the Andromeda’s and the U18t’s from 64 Audio. As well as these two TOTL offerings I also have quite a few more iems including the Shure SE846’s and Massdrop Plus. The Massdrop plus I don’t care for really and it’s just barely been used and is sat in its box. I didn’t mind it at first it’s just got too much sub bass for me. It needs more uptop too. For my tastes anyway. The 846’s I really like as I can just sit back and relax with these. Kinda like my HD650’s. Though I aren’t saying that these are alike in sound signature. But they’re really good iems IMHO. I don’t really know what to add besides ask around and try and get to listen to whatever you can. If that’s possible. And give @taronlissimore a message he can at least give you an idea as to what’s hot and out there at the moment. Good prices too.
. Good luck with your search and please keep me informed I would love to know how you get on.
Oh @MCM and @ufospls2 both know their iems as well so drop them a message if ya need help.
Hi. Unless you have fitment issues with universal IEMs, I would not recommend going the custom route. A lot of people have fit issues with customs, unless the molds and the shells are made perfectly. Ear shape can also change over time. For me, the most important thing is that custom IEMs are a lot more difficult to sell. You’d have to include like a $200-300 discount on top of used pricing so that the buyer can pay to get it re-shelled. So, say a $1000 IEM sells used for around $600, you’d have to sell for $300-400 in order for your listing to be competitive.
There’s a lot of good stuff throughout the price range in IEMs. If you’re looking for a headphone-like experience, the Audeze iSine10/20/LCDi4 get you there without leaking a lot of noise, the i4 is my favorite IEM. If you need isolation, all of the TOTL stuff sounds great and it’s just a matter of finding your preferred FR. My personal favorites in the sub-$1000 category are the Acoustune HS1650cu and Drop x Noble K10u. Of course, there’s no substitution for personally hearing these things. I hope you have a good store nearby.
Now that I have more headphones in house, I find myself continuously coming back to the Focal Elegia. I had some issues with the tonality originally but as I compare more stuff, the Elegia continues to be my go-to - partially because during the day I suffer the consequences of city living, which is nothing short of horrifying to the audiophile purist in me. The Elegia solves that in the best way possible. I also find that I don’t EQ it as much as I thought I needed to. I only use two points now with wider Q values. 2dB in the upper bass and 3dB at 4khz.
For relaxed listening, HD650 (which I do not own… yet— investing money in more important things atm); I can listen to the Senns for hours even when cranking the volume a bit (say, low-mid 80s as opposed to mid-high 70s peak dB). Ergonomics could use some work but the sound is lovely. Sticking to cans I do own, the HP-3 with some quick mods is excellent. Great sense of space and there-ness and technicalities that trade blows with the HD800 but with a more pleasing tonality. I swear these would be endgame enough for me (at least until I can afford an Auteur or similar) if the treble weren’t so aggressive. The rest of my system’s designed to mitigate treble nonsense though, so it works well enough for now but might bite if paired with the HD650.
Part of why I’m a fan of biodynas is that just about every one I’ve tried (not including the legendary Sony stuff) works great straight out of my mobile, so is well-suited to quick Spotify or YouTube stuff when I can’t use the desktop system.
I keep trying to fall in love with IEMs but they irritate my ears too much. Probably the result of misuse but my one ear canal grew inflamed after I wore cheapo IEMs for a couple hours— no fit issues, just sensitive ears… and I might have fallen asleep with them on. Ahem. It was bad enough that I couldn’t open my jaw fully for a few days because doing so resulted in massive side-of-head pain.
I have 2 that I keep going back to:
An old Stax SRD-34 which has been modded to use large over ear pads (HE560 size) versus the original on ear (Grado L pad size but leather). I kept these over my SR009 since they are better balanced from highs to lows for the genres that listen to and much more forgiving of poor/sub-par recordings.
A custom build Ypsilon R1 driver in mahogany cups shaped like slightly larger RS style cups. These are my HD800 replacement when I don’t have a decent amp around since they are close to the HD800 in almost everything except sound stage.
OOhHhHh! Do you have pictures? I would like to see these =) You might have shared pictures before but I can’t remember…Cheers!!
I keep reaching for the Sennheiser HD600 and the Hifiman HE560. I really like the HD600 on the MCTH and the HE560 on the THX AAA 788.
For open back phones my HD800S. I built a system around them using a Yggdrasil A2 and Kenzie tube amp. I prefer custom IEMs and am currently listening to the Perfect Seal Deca using a Vali 2 to drive. I enjoy balanced armature IEMs and often find myself wearing the Decas 8 hours a day when I am working at my computer. The nice thing about good IEMs is you don’t need kilobuck amps to get great sound.
That sounds like a nice combo for the HD800S. I’d have a hard time preferring IEMs to that, even at gunpoint. Although I looked at your Perfect Seal point, and if I ever got any, the Abalone faceplates would be a must.
The Perfect Seal Decas give me about 85% of the sound quality of the HD800S using a TOTL tube amp. Even closer if you compare the Decas and HD800S using a Vali 2. Bass extension and punch for the Decas is actually better than the HD800S. The Decas do give up some sound stage width and depth to the HD800S not surprising.
IEMs have come a long way since I first started using them in 2005. The main advantage I see is you can get great sound using modestly priced amps. The Decas are kind of a hidden gem because Perfect Seal doesn’t market much or have musician endorsements. I learned of them from @shotgunshane who has said they are everything the Ultimate Ears Reference Remastered should have been.
I agree with you about the abalone faceplates I just went with a blue/gold swirl:
I tried really hard to like Audeze, because everyone likes them and every magazine has the LCD-4 among their references. I had the LCD-2, the LCD-X and the LCD-4 plus „The King“ as amplifier, but I finally had to admit that I‘m not the „warm and mellow“ and „oh that bass!“ guy and just couldn‘t convince myself to want to listen to them, so sold everything.
Had tried the same with Beyerdynamics before, everything up to T5p and T1 plus the A2 amp, but just couldn‘t stand their sound signature, so off went all of them as well.
Every Friday I can‘t wait for my new Release Radar playlist to come up in Spotify, which I listen to over my iPad with my Grado SR325e that I take with me everywhere I go for that reason. I can‘t really „dig“ the Grado world similar to the above, but the SR325e directly over the iPad just are sooo convincing for me for Spotify with their wide soundstage, clear precision and deep immersion despite all they do wrong that I keep coming back to them for that purpose.
In my „big rig“, I‘m still struggling and searching. I currently have arrived at Sennheiser HD800S with the Malvalve Headamp Three and the Meitner MA1 VA2 DAC, sometimes alternating with Eternal Arts Twin Type Professional as tube amp and the Bakoon as HPA-21 in Current mode, and at times also Focal Utopia as lovely but a bit too narrow can.
Had intended to try out the Stax family next, but now can‘t wait to get deep into asap the new world of Raal Requisite with their SR1a and corresponding amplifiers.
Another iem fan. Love my iem’s too.
These are stunning. The cable looks great too. I love my iem collection but I still have a place in my heart for headphones. I feel blessed to be able to have access to such things.
Sometime you can just hit on a great gear pairing for want of a better word. And it sounds so good. Regardless of cost or prestige it’s a very personal thing. Hopefully it’s one that you can find early and be satisfied with. Sadly it’s a hard thing to stop going further, looking for more that extra bit of honey. Enjoy.
