Iain Posted September 21, 2015 Posted September 21, 2015 Just saw that the DarkVoice 336SE is going for $220 USD + $40USD shipping on MassDrop but only 19 hours left . What were your thoughts with the HD650 connected to the O2+ODAC and what genres did you try? Also, what improvements did you notice moving from the Aune T1 DAC to the ODAC?
Odyssey Posted September 21, 2015 Author Posted September 21, 2015 (edited) HD650 with DarkVoice 336se and either o2+odac or Aune T1 is a very lovely low cost combination. This is an instance where low cost actually produce sweet music to my ears. Using o2+odac in the chain produce a cleaner more neutral and detailed sound. Immediately more apparent is an increase in volume. However I'm setting the o2+odac to high gain setting and the Aune T1 to medium setting when making this observation. This is a livelier combination. Ideally suited when I play some Muse music or electronic stuff. Using Aune T1 in the chain produce a warmer, lush and more laid back sound. I find this very engaging when I listen to jazz and female vocalists. It has a fuller sound. I'm only using the stock Electro Harmonix tube in the Aune T1. I tried a good cross section of genres from rock, jazz, classical and even electronic but I listen a lot to vocalists especially female vocalists. Diana Krall, Randy Crawford, etc but I love Pink Floyd and never tire of revisiting it. I find both the o2+odac and Aune T1 present their own triads that are equally enjoyable in their own way. I'd lean towards the o2+odac in this combo because it's more neutral and detailed and that leaves you to just tune with tubes on the Darkvoice. I'd have to say though I'm quite happy with both. I'm back to using the Aune T1 again. I keep changing the DAC just to spice things up. If you have the hd650 you owe it to yourself to get a Darkvoice 336Se at that price. !!! My o2+odac is still up for sale. I'll be upgrading the DAC eventually as I have another tube amp coming. Edited September 21, 2015 by Odyssey
Iain Posted September 22, 2015 Posted September 22, 2015 My HD650s arrived about a week ago and I'm pairing them with a FiiO E10K for now but I know I'll need to go bigger to get the most out of them . How does electronic music sound on the DarkVoice compared to the O2 and what artists/sub-genres have you listened to? For electronic music I normally go with progressive and vocal trance, deep house or different artists like The Knife/Fever Ray or Bjork... don't do hard-style or lots of dubstep myself. I also like my progressive metal like Tool, Opeth (clean vocals), Dead Soul Tribe, Devin Townsend Band, Steven Wilson, etc. If you've listened to any of these artists or genres I'd love to hear your thoughts with these headphones and the O2 vs Darkvoice . As for the O2 I'm seriously considering it but need to wait for finances .
Odyssey Posted September 22, 2015 Author Posted September 22, 2015 Honestly I'm not an electronic or metal fan However as I have Tidal HiFi subscription it's easy for me to try out those genres anytime. Going from O2 to DV you immediately feel the fullness of sound. It's like more meat to the bones. I hate to make the O2 sound like lean clinical amp. The truth is O2 is pretty neutral and a lot of people will say that's how an amp should be. I was ready to defend the o2+odac anytime because it's my 1st dac/amp purchase and going from no dac/amp to one with source from iMac/iTunes and a earbud it's like a revelation. The next revelation however was when I added the DV to the mix. It's like a 3D sound. You just have to hear it for yourself. The ODAC as a DAC is pretty good. You can't go wrong with it unless you're prepared to spend more. It's has the blackest black. With no music and the volume at max I hear nothing. No hum, no crackle, just pure silence.
Iain Posted September 22, 2015 Posted September 22, 2015 I'm definitely looking at the O2+ODAC as the next step from the E10K and then replacing the O2 part with something else later while using the ODAC to feed another amp. You mentioned in a previous post that you'd tried electronic music in your testing so I figured I'd ask on the off-chance you'd come across something I've listened to and had some comparison notes .
Equaliser Posted September 22, 2015 Posted September 22, 2015 My HD650s arrived about a week ago and I'm pairing them with a FiiO E10K for now but I know I'll need to go bigger to get the most out of them . How does electronic music sound on the DarkVoice compared to the O2 and what artists/sub-genres have you listened to? For electronic music I normally go with progressive and vocal trance, deep house or different artists like The Knife/Fever Ray or Bjork... don't do hard-style or lots of dubstep myself. I also like my progressive metal like Tool, Opeth (clean vocals), Dead Soul Tribe, Devin Townsend Band, Steven Wilson, etc. If you've listened to any of these artists or genres I'd love to hear your thoughts with these headphones and the O2 vs Darkvoice . As for the O2 I'm seriously considering it but need to wait for finances . The O2 is a bright sounding amplifier, almost sterile in fact in some particular areas. To my ears it renders vocals very poorly with a lot of headphones and puts a very ear piercing SSSSSS to the end of the singers voice. I listen to Tool and Opeth as well and I cannot stand my HD600's or the HD650's with them on the ODAC + O2 configuration. For electronic music, I listen to minimalistic techno (Surgeon, Chris Liebing, Adam Beyer etc) and drum and bass with the right tubes, the HD650's on the DV hits lot harder then the O2.
Odyssey Posted September 22, 2015 Author Posted September 22, 2015 I listened to Shuga Lips: Electronica Collection Vol 2 various artists 2014. If you have Tidal or Spotify you can search for it. PM me if you're keen on the o2+odac I have the limited edition in the for sale section.
Odyssey Posted September 22, 2015 Author Posted September 22, 2015 I'm inclined to agree with Defcon 100%. Get a dac + Darkvoice 336se and just RCA 6AS7G and 6SN7GTB as a start. You'll love what you hear out of the HD650. I can't go back to strictly o2+odac now. Yes I would find it clinical and sterile now lol after a good dose of tube amp goodness.
Odyssey Posted September 22, 2015 Author Posted September 22, 2015 If you don't want to spend much there's a Cambridge Audio Dacmagic for sale in the for sale section for $180. If that fits your budget get that and the Darkvoice 336se and you're set. I ain't pushing the o2+odac unless someone's prepared to buy it.
Iain Posted September 22, 2015 Posted September 22, 2015 Thanks for the feedback guys . The O2 is a bright sounding amplifier, almost sterile in fact in some particular areas. To my ears it renders vocals very poorly with a lot of headphones and puts a very ear piercing SSSSSS to the end of the singers voice. I listen to Tool and Opeth as well and I cannot stand my HD600's or the HD650's with them on the ODAC + O2 configuration. For electronic music, I listen to minimalistic techno (Surgeon, Chris Liebing, Adam Beyer etc) and drum and bass with the right tubes, the HD650's on the DV hits lot harder then the O2. Stepping up to the HD650 and E10K now lets me spot tiny details on guitar samples (especially in Opeth - Face of Melinda or Tool - Lateralus). Do the tube amps retain these small details? I hear people complain that the HD650s are 'veiled' on smaller amps but I don't yet have something to compare with. Is the 'veil' something that you describe and how do these amps correct that? PM me if you're keen on the o2+odac I have the limited edition in the for sale section. I saw your classified listing before I came here . I was keen to see why you'd be upgrading from such a highly regarded combo and what you were moving onto . I'll get back to you on the O2+ODAC when I know what bills need sorting . Just saw your new posts. How's the Dacmagic compare to the ODAC?
Odyssey Posted September 22, 2015 Author Posted September 22, 2015 I don't know how they compare because I don't have the Dacmagic but the specs looks similar on both. With the o2+odac you're buying a combo dac/amp. The Dacmagic is strictly dac which some prefers. They are at the lower end of the scale as far as dac is concerned in terms of price but I'd say unless you're very critical you should be fine with both for dac duties. You're not going to lose out on details with tube amp. You just get more layers to the sound to put it in a very simplistic manner. You get the warm lush tube sound and I hate to use the word tube sound lol. The details are all there. I have the Aune T1. At the moment I'm just so fascinated with tubes that I've decided to keep the Aune T1 (I can roll tubes on this too lol) until I'm ready to upgrade the DAC to something substantially better. So the o2+odac literally sits in a corner hence I'm selling it.
Odyssey Posted September 22, 2015 Author Posted September 22, 2015 It's hard to decide without hearing it so I'm going to do a nice gesture here. You can come by tomorrow daytime to have a listen to the o2+odac and the Darkvoice 336se separately no obligations. Like I say it doesn't matter if I don't sell it, it will just be a spare for the holiday camp occasionally.
Iain Posted September 22, 2015 Posted September 22, 2015 Ah OK. I was wondering whether you went back to the Aune T1 for DAC duties. I'd get the O2+ODAC as a next step, experience a highly regarded solid state amp and then get a tube amp so I can experience both sides for myself . Damn, I can see that this audio drug is going to be a potentially expensive habit to fund . Really appreciate the offer to try the O2+ODAC and the Darkvoice, I'll definitely consider that soon . Also, how does the Bottlehead Crack with Speedball compare to the Darkvoice? Are they very similar when you start rolling tubes?
Odyssey Posted September 22, 2015 Author Posted September 22, 2015 (edited) LOL once you get hooked on tube amps and tubes you're in for a magical ride. I have not heard the Crack but I imagine it to be a significant upgrade to the Darkvoice 336se. Some says it's the best pairing for the HD650 / HD600. I'm however getting the Elise by Felik Audio. You can google that. Mine would be the first unit in Australia. Edited September 22, 2015 by Odyssey
Equaliser Posted September 22, 2015 Posted September 22, 2015 The HD650`s are fairly laid back sounding so by nature of the way the drivers are tuned it will not be good with micro detailing compared to a headphone that is forward sounding. Tube rolling is your best bet with any tube amp to get the sound out of it. Sent from my LG-D855 using Tapatalk
Odyssey Posted September 22, 2015 Author Posted September 22, 2015 That is absolutely true. If you're looking for micro details you wouldn't be getting the hd650 but what I'm looking for is a musical laid back headphone. With the right tube amp and tubes though the hd650 will come ALIVE. I just got hold of the Tung Sol 5998 power tubes and omg they're incredible.
Odyssey Posted September 22, 2015 Author Posted September 22, 2015 Russian Rocket 1975 6N23P driver tube with adapter and Chatham 6AS7G power tube. Really nice.
DMax Posted September 22, 2015 Posted September 22, 2015 (edited) @@Odyssey.... Mate.... You're are the Darkvoice tube rolling king! Lol @lain... What's your budget? Edited September 22, 2015 by DMax
Iain Posted September 22, 2015 Posted September 22, 2015 (edited) Haha budget fluctuates depending on the month's bill totals and what I set my sights on . I know I'm eventually up for around $550 for the BH Crack and Speedball depending on how the Aussie dollar goes. I wish I had some spare cash laying around as BH were doing a special last weekend where the speedball was on $20 instead of $120! Oh well, pretty sure something else will come up as we near October.Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk edit: fixed the estimated price of the BH Crack Edited September 22, 2015 by Iain
Equaliser Posted September 23, 2015 Posted September 23, 2015 If you're going to order a Crack kit...let me know.
Iain Posted September 23, 2015 Posted September 23, 2015 Will do, but that mightn't be for a while yet . ...unless a sale appears that compels me to grab one sooner . I think Bottlehead said they weren't doing group buys with places like Massdrop (same stance as Schiit and Mayflower) but they do discounts on multiple purchases and the postage I imagine would be better for everyone involved.
Iain Posted September 23, 2015 Posted September 23, 2015 Ideally though we'd probably want to actually listen to one first before spending money like that but I get the feeling the Bottlehead Crack with Speedball is often a rare thing.
Equaliser Posted September 23, 2015 Posted September 23, 2015 But I get the feeling the Bottlehead Crack with Speedball is often a rare thing. Nope they are virtually everywhere it's just the headphone crowd on this forum is substantially small compared to Head-fi, Anythingbuyipod and any other dedicated headphone forum. Aside from a few owners here including myself the Crack is very very popular in the States, UK and Europe. When you do you place an order I would like to order new wood panels and a new metal plate combined posted with your order (and I'll send you a beer in return for the courtesy) so I don't have to pay $80 shipping for $50 worth of parts.
Iain Posted September 23, 2015 Posted September 23, 2015 Ah, fair enough . Postage from the US is expensive. I went to order a soundtrack CD from Rockstar and their postage was $50 (!!) with no alternatives so I didn't bother. Suggested an online retail system like Bandcamp so I could still get lossless and they get the sale without the hassle of postage but they didn't seem interested.
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