Sennheiser HD800 and HDVA 600 Review

[djwhog]

Congrats Tony on the 800s.

I have a Woo WA-6SE with Sophia Princess & matched pair of 6GL7/6EM tubes, and own 700s and 800s, the 700s are even brighter, but give those 800s 100 hours at least to get into their groove. enjoy

IMOP they are in the top 5 cans in the world.

[Antonmb]

Originally Posted by djwhog

Congrats Tony on the 800s. I have a Woo WA-6SE with Sophia Princess & matched pair of 6GL7/6EM tubes, and own 700s and 800s, the 700s are even brighter, but give those 800s 100 hours at least to get into their groove. enjoy IMOP they are in the top 5 cans in the world.

Now have probably north of 50 hours on the HD800s and the highs have smoothed out and it feels like everything is locking into place. This morning I'm listening to Keith Jarrett's "Concerts: Bregenz/Munchen" (hdtracks 24/96 download): the clarity and tone of the piano are fantastic, and when Jarrett gets on a role there's plenty of impact from the loud notes and you can practically feel his foot stomping. Best headphone sound I've heard.

[djwhog]

nice Tony, yep I kinda thought they need some time, another 200 they should be near their best, again congrats and happy listening.

[jdandy]

Originally Posted by Antonmb

Now have probably north of 50 hours on the HD800s and the highs have smoothed out and it feels like everything is locking into place. This morning I'm listening to Keith Jarrett's "Concerts: Bregenz/Munchen" (hdtracks 24/96 download): the clarity and tone of the piano are fantastic, and when Jarrett gets on a role there's plenty of impact from the loud notes and you can practically feel his foot stomping. Best headphone sound I've heard.

Tony.......I am pleased to hear your HD800 is breaking in nicely. I am approaching 400 hours on my HD800 and love every second of listening to them. Last night I listened to Paul Simon - Graceland 24/96 download. Just fantastic. Happy listening.

[Toccata]

Mine arrived today and they sound great plugged straight into my Oppo 105--certainly better than my Byerdynamic DT 770s and nearly as transparent yet warmer than my previous Stax 404 system. They might sound better yet with a dedicated amp, but they will do for a while as is.

[jdandy]

Toccata.......Good to hear you joined the HD800 Club. It is an outstanding performer. Until you plug the HD800 headphone into a high quality dedicated headphone amplifier I believe you are missing its true potential.

[Antonmb]

Originally Posted by Toccata

Mine arrived today and they sound great plugged straight into my Oppo 105--certainly better than my Byerdynamic DT 770s and nearly as transparent yet warmer than my previous Stax 404 system. They might sound better yet with a dedicated amp, but they will do for a while as is.

Yes, congratulations, you'll love them.
And Dan, you should be getting a commission from Sennheiser!

Tony

[jdandy]

Tony.......If I were on commission I could be retired by now.

Hey, wait a minute. I am retired. Cool.

[Toccata]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Toccata.......Good to hear you joined the HD800 Club. It is an outstanding performer. Until you plug the HD800 headphone into a high quality dedicated headphone amplifier I believe you are missing its true potential.

What kind of improvement could I expect? The Oppo 105 is supposed to have "audiophile" analog circuitry that the Sabre 32 bit DAC feeds directly.

[jdandy]

Toccata.......I don't own the Oppo BDP-105, although I should order one, so I can't say what the difference might be. I tend to think the Sennheiser fully balanced Class A amplifier that was built by the Sennheiser engineers to aid in the design and developement of the HD800 headphone might have more to offer in low distortion and resolution than any built in headphone amplifier in a Blu-ray player, even the acclaimed BDP-105. Until such time as I can make an actual comparison I cannot offer a definitive answer. I can tell you that the combination of the Sennheiser HDVA 600 headphone amplifier and the HD800 headphone offers phenomenal performance and listening pleasure.