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jellenberger
10
Nov 8, 2013
Does anyone know how these would handle HE-500's / Orthos?
Rayvolution
117
Nov 8, 2013
jellenbergerNot a chance in hell. The power behind this is like the Schiit Valhalla
Anonymouse
216
Nov 9, 2013
jellenbergerIt's OTL/output-transformer-less so it's really best suited to high impedance phones if you want a decent damping factor. It also only musters about a tenth of a watt into a HE-500-like load so even if it was transformer-coupled I expect it'd still produce disappointing results with an ortho.
Would prolly drive the T1 being sold right now just fine, though.
PilotChup
82
Nov 9, 2013
RayvolutionWait what? I thought OTL amps were good for driving orthos? What are OTLs good for then?
Evilhippie
35
Nov 9, 2013
PilotChupOTLs are best with high impedence phones that require voltage rather than current. Orthos are generally low impedence and require current rather than voltage, so they don't work well with OTL amps that hardly produce any current.
Adama
21
Nov 9, 2013
EvilhippieThank you. This is really valuable information for me. I've been lusting after this amp for a while but have also been very curious about the HE-500's. I haven't heard them but everything I've read mashed me want to try orthos. I'm planning on buying a pair of Mad Dogs as an entry point. I'm a bit discouraged from buying this amp now. I was really set on it because I have a lot of tubes that I can roll in it. Would the Bottlehead amps be more suited to orthos?
mvrk10256
38
Nov 10, 2013
AdamaNo.
I do not understand why this is so hard to understand. an OTL amp is best suited for 100ohms to 600 ohms because it has a high Voltage peak to peak. Orthos use current as the primary medium to deliver "sound".
For instance, my HE-400s and T50RP will work with my bottle head crack, but they sound particularly crappy, and generate distortion. They sound amazing on my solid state, just like the my HD650s or DT880/600s due to the high impedance.
PilotChup
82
Nov 10, 2013
mvrk10256Im sorry, but your last sentence has some ambiguity with the pronouns. Do you mean your HD650s and DT880 600s sound better with your solid state, or your bottle head crack? From what I learned here, this should be the case, can you confirm please?
Also, one last question about amps. Do tube amps that aren't OTL (meaning they have an output transformer) the same in terms of driving and paring potential with headphones as solid states? That is, are non-OTL tube amps the same as solid state amps? Where the only difference is sound signature of tubes vs solid state?
Also, why do hybrids like the Bravo exist? Do they serve a specific purpose or is it just for a different sound?
Ok thats a lot of questions, but so hard to find answers! Thanks!!!
Evilhippie
35
Nov 10, 2013
PilotChupYup on the hybrid amps, that's why amps like the Lyr and Ember exist, to drive lower impedence headphones (planars specifically) while also giving the sound a bit of that tube flavor. The drawback usually is that these hybrids aren't suited to driving low impedence, high sensitivity dynamics... such amps still will usually exhibit noise with sensitive headphones, and just about every IEM will be near unusable due to noise and hiss.
JDWarner
349
Nov 10, 2013
AdamaMinor revision to mvrk's comment:
Bottlehead produces amps like this, which aren't well suited to orthos (the Crack is also an OTL design), BUT they also produce other amps which are perfectly orthodynamic friendly. Like the S.E.X. and the Mainline.
So while the most commonly spoken about Bottlehead amp - the Crack - is not suited to orthos, Bottlehead does make amps which are more than up to the challenge of driving orthodynamic (i.e. low impedance, low sensitivity) cans.
mvrk10256
38
Nov 11, 2013
PilotChupMy BTH Crack pairs well with DT880/600, DT990/600, HD650.
My Matrix works well w/ all above + T50RP, HE-400
Hope that clears up any ambiguity. English is not my first language. Hybrids exist for a variety of reasons. However you need to be careful. The bravo does a decent job for what it is, gives you a slight flavor of tube sound (distortion) however the amplification stage is all solid state. Products like the Aune however only use the tube if the are driven off the audio input, whereas the DAC input does not utilize the tube at all.
The thing about hybrids, is they tend to be on the cheapish side, and they are lackluster compared to a full OTL amp, and often add more distortion than is wanted from a solid state. Pick your poison, but I strongly suggest owning one of each :)
mvrk10256
38
Nov 11, 2013
JDWarnerThis is correct. Bottlehead makes a variety of products, and those that I have personally sampled are really great. They do make products more adapt at driving ortho's.
PilotChup
82
Nov 11, 2013
mvrk10256Yes that helps tremendously! Thank you. I really wish there was some beginners guide to teach me everything there is to know about this stuff. Its hard to learn by figuring it out on my own when I don't even know the jargon sometimes. I have so many other questions to ask you, but I don't feel like this is the place to ask them. However, I appreciate your help with that clarification.
Xanzent
6
Nov 15, 2013
mvrk10256"Products like the Aune however only use the tube if the are driven off the audio input, whereas the DAC input does not utilize the tube at all."
The Aune T1 is actually the opposite, the tube is used in the DAC stage, and the amplification is all solid state. To get the benefit of the tube you have to use the USB input.
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