A home for my cans


Hi Goners,

Have spent last year researching headphones,whether they should be balanced or single ended,proper power cables and interconnects and lastly tubes vs. ss!

Phew...Can you guys and gals save me some time and point me towards a good preamp/headphone amp combo from the same source?
My headphones include Senns, Grados, Model 8's etc. and this is to be a bedroom system.
Have heard of Todd the vinyl junkie, Woo and Ray Samuels but would appreciate some guidance...

Thanks to all,

Jake
128x128azjake
I'm loving my Woo WA6SE (maxed out). It's got plenty of drive and should easily handle the cans you have, but if you need a preamp out you'd need to go to one of his other amps (I think the WA2 is a pre as well, while the WA5 doubles as an amp to high-efficiency speakers). I think the Zana Deux from Eddie Current has pre-outs and is highly respected as well. There's a few reviews online. Designed by Craig Uthus of Moth fame. Along with Ray Samuels, the GS-1 and GS-X from Headamp seems to also have garnered some respect. Cary also has several possibilities in both preamp and integrated amp offerings with respected headphone outputs. I only have direct experience with the Woo I mentioned, but if I were looking, these would be the prime suspects for me. You said bedside. I can tell you that the Woo I use is large enough that it takes up a typical bedside table, as would most of the suggestions here with few exceptions (perhaps headamp offerings would be the most compact). If you are looking for one that doubles as a preamp does that mean you're building a full system around it in your bedroom?
Thanks jax2, you've given me a place to start...
This will be part of a system that includes a fully restored and updated Marantz 2325 and a heavily modded Rega Saturn cd player.

Any thoughts on tube vs ss?
Thanks for the help!

jake
Any thoughts on tube vs ss?

Sure. I used to have a more myopic viewpoint on that topic, but the more I hear great implementation of both topologies, the more I believe both have tremendous potential. There's no right answer there. I'd stress that your three different cans are going to mesh differently with any choice you make. I don't know that you're going to find one single amp that makes all three sound their best, but it will certainly offer some choices when listening to various types of music. Tubes are definitely more high-maintenance (also more tweakable), whereas SS is set-it-forget-it friendly. Tubes are more friendly when pressed to clipping. Of the favored HP amps I mentioned there are representatives of both topologies. I'd suggest, if possible, try to listen to a few options and see where your preference lies. You can go over to Headfi.org and see if there may be meets in your area. I know it's more difficult to find a dealer that carries many options. There's one in Portland, OR called 320 Ohm that is all about headphone products. With the speaker right at your ear, you definitely do not want an amp that is going to distort or run out of headroom (clip) or you will find yourself investing heavily in Advil. If I were going to put together a little system like you are, I might shift my focus from headphonecentric choices to more conventional choices, like a Cary SLI80 integrated (tubes) or a Portal Panache (SS), both of which have respected headphone sections. I have a Portal in my office and can tell you the headphone output is excellent, though not quite up to the dedicated Woo, it certainly is about 80% there. My bedroom is headphone only, so that's why I went that direction there.
If your looking for a good headphone/preamp combo the Manley 300B preamp might do the trick.
I've had a Blue Circle HPT in my system for about a month now, I absolutely love it. It is solid state, can accept 2 sources, and has pre out. The power supply is also user upgradable. The headphone output sounds great and really drives my Grados and AKG very well. A definite level or two above my previous amp, Channel Islands VHP1. I'm in the process of finding a power amp to go with it so I can't vouch for the quality of the pre-outs yet but I have owned several blue circle pieces over the years and would be very surprised if it weren't also excellent. Gilbert at Blue Circle is very approachable and often frequents the Blue Circle Forums to answer any questions.