Recommendations?

[BWB75]

I just bought, yesterday, an MA7900. Unlike my previous amp, it has a headphone output. Not only that, but it has a highly engineered, high output headphone amp that piggy backs on the quality power supply, chassis, input transformers and output transformers of the main system. I am very excited about this.

It can handle up to 600 ohm nominal impedance.

Also as usual (for a weekend when the wife has to work), I find myself alone and sipping whiskey and spinning records at 11 o'clock at night when the wife has gone to sleep. My lounge chair is calling to me, but I am on the sofa listening to the mains.

Oh, for some headphones! To recline in the lounger and let my wife sleep while I drift away on an ocean of music!

Which brings me to the purpose of this post. What headphones?

I am coming from an all Sonus Faber system (SF amp) that was very warm - optimized for strings. I am not looking to eq with gear any more. The Sennheiser HD800 springs to mind as a good option, but I cannot audition them. I read that Oppos are warm. I tried Grado SR325s and found them too bright.

Any recommendations for detailed, uncolored headphones?

-b

[djwhog]

Nice congrats, I own HD800, HD700, and Audeze , thanks to Ivan

I swear the Audeze are at another level, talk to Ivan, better bass, better response rise and fall time, and overall dynamics better to than the 800s. More easy to drive lower load and very close to Vs the 800s in separation and staging, best I have ever owned and I drive with a woo tube amp that is heavily modded.

Look at my sig file.

Ps your system looks lovely, and is dam nice, enjoy!

Sent from my iPad using A.Aficionado

[Chad.Wagner]

I love my Grado Heritage GH1 headphones, but they are open so they can be heard by the person beside you.

[djwhog]

My Audeze model is available as closed backs too, yes those ones you have are nice too.

Yep I go through the same thing with my wife at times and like a nice listening session in my head while not to disturb, I am fortunate my rig is in the man cave basement.

Sent from my iPad using A.Aficionado

[BWB75]

Originally Posted by djwhog

Ps your system looks lovely, and is dam nice, enjoy! Sent from my iPad using A.Aficionado

Thanks for the compliment! Getting an install that works with the room can be tough. In my case it took a little creativity because the amp is much deeper than the credenza. My system is not in a man-cave. We live in an apartment, so the system shares the living room with our sofa, lounge chair, bookcase, cats...

As for headphones, I considered everything posted here and then went and auditioned the Audeze LCD-2 a/b against the Sennheiser HD800. For me the Sennheisers were the ones. They sound different from the Audeze, for sure. The Audeze were definitely warmer to my ears, but I was looking for the openness and speed of the HD800s. Plugged into the MA7900 "high drive" phono amp they sound absolutely marvelous - and not bright or thin at all (to me). They are my ticket to audio bliss after 9:30 pm or any time I want to keep the noise level down in the apartment. I have been using them daily - and for hours and hours on weekends. Especially at night. Especially at night on weekends where whiskey is involved.

I am so glad I compared them side by side with the Audeze. At this price level I think it is important to hear both and have eyes open about what you are getting.

[jdandy]

BWB75.......Great choice. I sure love my Sennheiser HD800 headphone. I drive mine with the Sennheiser HDVA 600 headphone amplifier fed by a Wyred 4 Sound DAC2. Excellent sound.

[Eisener Bart]

Originally Posted by BWB75

Any recommendations for detailed, uncolored headphones?

If you are listening many genres of music - you will need many headphones.
I have for 3 pairs for the moment.

For serious audition you need separated head amp, forget about headamp's sections in integrated amps for speakers.

[wgb113]

Love my AKG K812 Pro. I've always preferred the AKG sound to the Sennheiser sound but that's not to imply the Sennheiser's sound bad at all. The AKGs have a very neutral presentation and are comfortable as heck. As a bonus they sound good out of an iPhone but scale well with a dedicated headphone amp.

Bill

[BWB75]

Originally Posted by wgb113

Love my AKG K812 Pro. I've always preferred the AKG sound to the Sennheiser sound but that's not to imply the Sennheiser's sound bad at all. The AKGs have a very neutral presentation and are comfortable as heck. As a bonus they sound good out of an iPhone but scale well with a dedicated headphone amp.

Bill

I was not able to audition AKG. They look interesting and I am sure they are wonderful. I would have auditioned them had they been available conveniently.

The Sennheiser's will not work well with an iPhone, for sure. That's okay because their only purpose is to serve as a listening station in the living room when it's not appropriate to make a lot of noise.

Generally that means in the evening, with a glass of something nice from Scottland or Kentucky, sitting in the lounge chair, looking out the big windows at the lights of the construction site next to my apartment, bathed in the blue glow of the McIntosh meters and the ikea LED light strip behind the credenza. Often in the company of one of my cats.

Life is good.