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Recommend amp and headphones to use with Topping D10
- Thread starter SiW
- Start date
I second the recommendation for the Arcam rHead, at the price you can find it for you won't do any better as a UK based customer.
For headphones it is difficult to make a recommendation as they are such a personal preference. No matter how good sound quality is it means nothing if you can't stand wearing them. And only you can decide what you find comfortable. However I will offer a few to try and consider. The Sennheiser HD 6xx family (600, 650, 660) are very highly regarded and there are bargains to be had. The Sennheiser outlet store has some terrific B stock offers. Polar Audio (UK distributor of Beyerdynamic) often do cracking B stock offers too. I got my T5p's from them for £399, and they were brand new with a 5 year warranty and nothing B-stockish about them. If they are still available at that price them they are a fine product. The Dt1990 model is also worth trying. A truly lovely model is the Oppo PM-2,maybe slightly above your budget but a few weeks ago I picked up a brand new pair (still factory sealed) for £430 and they are staggeringly good IMO. The Akg 712 remains a nice pair of headphones and can be picked up cheaply. A wild card is the Sony MDR Z7, they have just been replaced so you may get a good deal on old stock. I have a pair, they are probably not for everyone as bass is quite pronounced but they are beautifully built and hugely enjoyable I find. An under rated model well worth trying is the Audio Technica MSR 7, very good model that. This is not exhaustive, the best thing is to try as many models as possible and decide which one you like best.
For headphones it is difficult to make a recommendation as they are such a personal preference. No matter how good sound quality is it means nothing if you can't stand wearing them. And only you can decide what you find comfortable. However I will offer a few to try and consider. The Sennheiser HD 6xx family (600, 650, 660) are very highly regarded and there are bargains to be had. The Sennheiser outlet store has some terrific B stock offers. Polar Audio (UK distributor of Beyerdynamic) often do cracking B stock offers too. I got my T5p's from them for £399, and they were brand new with a 5 year warranty and nothing B-stockish about them. If they are still available at that price them they are a fine product. The Dt1990 model is also worth trying. A truly lovely model is the Oppo PM-2,maybe slightly above your budget but a few weeks ago I picked up a brand new pair (still factory sealed) for £430 and they are staggeringly good IMO. The Akg 712 remains a nice pair of headphones and can be picked up cheaply. A wild card is the Sony MDR Z7, they have just been replaced so you may get a good deal on old stock. I have a pair, they are probably not for everyone as bass is quite pronounced but they are beautifully built and hugely enjoyable I find. An under rated model well worth trying is the Audio Technica MSR 7, very good model that. This is not exhaustive, the best thing is to try as many models as possible and decide which one you like best.
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Definitely this.
Not only are there differences in comfort levels between different heads/headphones, there are also differences in how well the headphones seal, which can dramatically affect the amount of bass. Finally, there are significant differences in how the drivers and cups interact with each individual's ear shape, which affects the mid- and particularly high-frequency response.
Having said that, it's very difficult to find anyone who isn't happy with the Sennheiser HD6-- series, as long as sub bass is not a priority.
AnalogSteph
Major Contributor
Yeah, the OP is kind of saying that he's built a nice garage, and now he's looking for a car to go with that.
Transducers are the Important Stuff(R). They should be assigned the larger part of the budget if possible. Do the headphones have to be closed or is open acceptable? What sort of sound are you after?
The nHead looks good on paper. I just wonder why SNR is not any larger than 109 dB(A) @ 2V out... maybe the input circuit is inverting. Should be just fine for moderate sensitivity hi-fi cans in any case.
Transducers are the Important Stuff(R). They should be assigned the larger part of the budget if possible. Do the headphones have to be closed or is open acceptable? What sort of sound are you after?
Indeed. The trusty HD600, for example, is hard to go wrong with, assuming your environment is sufficiently quiet. They've gotten a bit expensive over the years, and prices for spares are approaching robbery, not to mention that I've never been the greatest fan of the marble finish, but they still remain good all-round cans even after 22 years on the market, with a fairly balanced response and low distortion.
The nHead looks good on paper. I just wonder why SNR is not any larger than 109 dB(A) @ 2V out... maybe the input circuit is inverting. Should be just fine for moderate sensitivity hi-fi cans in any case.
I own an rHead. It drives my Massdrop HD 6XX and HE 4XX nicely. So, I recommend the amp and those headphones. You may come in under budget.
- Thread Starter
- #7
Thanks guys 
I’m used to ear buds as I only listened to music on my commute but can justify some nice cans now as it will be for pure pleasure. Plus the kids are older now so I can relax in the evening and it’s an easier justify good cans than a whole speaker setup.
Always like the ATC active speakers so if I can get near to those I will be happy.
Will check out those recommends and see what eBay / Amazon have with Black Friday coming up.
Wish we had Massdrop in the UK!!
Simon
I’m used to ear buds as I only listened to music on my commute but can justify some nice cans now as it will be for pure pleasure. Plus the kids are older now so I can relax in the evening and it’s an easier justify good cans than a whole speaker setup.
Always like the ATC active speakers so if I can get near to those I will be happy.
Will check out those recommends and see what eBay / Amazon have with Black Friday coming up.
Wish we had Massdrop in the UK!!
Simon
On it's website it says 98 dB(A) @ 2V out (32 Ohm)
https://www.arcam.co.uk/products,rSeries,Accessories,rHead.htm#techspecs
In Amir's measurements it achieves 105 dB (unweighted) @ 5.8V output level. It seems to have very low distortion but a bit of (probably inaudible) mains hum. So it makes sense that the SNR is worse at lower levels because of the hum. However the A-weighting should hide some of this.
mikehoopes
Member
+1 for Sennheiser HD products. I've had my HD 545 for over 20 years, and you can still get replacement parts from the manufacturer.Thanks guys
I’m used to ear buds as I only listened to music on my commute but can justify some nice cans now as it will be for pure pleasure. Plus the kids are older now so I can relax in the evening and it’s an easier justify good cans than a whole speaker setup.
Always like the ATC active speakers so if I can get near to those I will be happy.
Will check out those recommends and see what eBay / Amazon have with Black Friday coming up.
Wish we had Massdrop in the UK!!
Simon
I bought my Massdrop HD 6XX on eBay. The UK eBay shows some "new other" units have sold recently in the ~£165.00 range. Even "pre-owned" ones should be recent enough that the pads would be in excellent shape. Either Schiit Magni or Topping A30 would be a credible starter amp for this application; take a look at the reviews on this site.
[edit]: Just saw JJB70's post about the Senn outlet. I didn't realize they sold B-stock. Here's the link:
http://outlet.se-shop.de/shops/detail.php?product_id=717
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I'd recommend that if you are able too then try a pair of Oppo PM-2's. These are no longer manufactured but shops still have some stock. They're open back planar magnetic headphones, beautifully made, very easy to drive and with a really sweet sound which is a touch warm. They really do feel rather special and although not cheap they do have a luxury feel. Of the headphones I have I'd put the Oppo's on top at the moment.
Including, it turns out, Oppo's own store: https://oppodigital.com/proddetail.asp?prod=ZPM2
(Note: they're refurbs, but I'd be inclined to trust Oppo's own refurbished headphones over a lot of folks' new stock. Plus, discount.)
I also love my PM-2's. The only problem is the pleather pads are already peeling, need to find a way to make a quality leather version. They are very efficient a very good sounding for a closed-back. Tyll was also a big fan.
The PM-2 is open-back, the PM-3 is closed back. Just FYI.
- Thread Starter
- #18
Yes, it is the noise cancelling version. The noise cancelling isn't as good as rivals from Bose or Sony but the sound is pretty much the same as the regular version and better than the alternative noise cancelling models. The MSR 7 is well worth a listen, it's one of those models that seems to fly below most radars yet is very good and isn't unduly expensive.
- Thread Starter
- #20
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