Sennheiser HD 800S with TUBES - Do they Make a Difference?

Published 2022-11-13
Ampsandsound Forge: headphones.com/products/forge-desktop-headphone-tu…

Feliks Audio Euforia: headphones.com/products/feliks-audio-euforia?_pos=…

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0:00 - Intro
1:02 - How do Tubes affect Sound?
4:12 - Effect of Output Impedance
6:29 - The Charm of Tube Amplifiers
7:00 - Final Thoughts

All Comments (21)
  • @Haasaaroni
    Nice overview! I really love the Forge. With appropriate tubes and the choice of output impedance (especially the 8/100 ohm version), it’s such a versatile option, with more space and euphoric midrange that I’ve yet to hear from any solid state amp.
  • @kyron42
    Perhaps you should mention that high output impedance amplifiers have a lower damping Factor especially on low impedance headphones.
  • Great video!! I’m sad you didn’t get to hear the Rad-0 out of the 8 ohm tap on the Forge. Every year it ends up being the single best experience I’ll have at the CanJam.
  • @toast23481
    So if you went out today to buy a dac/amp for hd800s for gaming with mic capabilities, what would you buy?
  • Does anyone had the chance to compare the Euforia vs the Euforia 20th anniversary? Is the difference minimal between the two?
  • I run my HD660S exclusively from my Woo Audio WA7 tube amp, beautiful synergy 🙂
  • I recommend you give the Pathos InPol Ear headphone amp a listen. My HD800s and LCD-4's (awesome contrast between these cans) became, in a word, breathtaking. I have never heard anything as absolutely jaw dropping as this hybrid amp. Very expensive, yes. But worth every penny......
  • @MagnumOpus007
    Question: Andrew is stating that with high-Z headphones like HD800S, we don't have to worry about a high-Z source? Does that mean it's OK to listen to these headphones on amps set to low-Z? I ask because my Woo Audio WA22 has a selector for high/low-Z output.
  • chrono can you make a video on hd 600 scaling on high end electronics and if it's worth it
  • @mrhenu
    How much of the same effect can you recreate with VSTs?
  • @BillKinsman
    I have been an electronic engineer for 50 years and spent 20 years in pro audio. The newest solid state amplifiers are so good and quiet that I can't recommend tubes for the HD800S's. The Neve RNHP is good enough for me (and Rupert Neve to put in the Centerpiece mixing console). Tubes introduce distortion and 60 cycle hum and deteriorate over time.
  • @GadZookz
    Thanks Chrono, great review. One nice thing about most of the tubes is you can look in from the outside but what about those two tubes on that one amp where they have been painted over from the inside. Who knows what is going on in there? 🤔
  • @camoturtle18
    I am looking to purchase an OTL tube amp for my hd 800 s specifically. Thinking about the xduoo ta-26. Thoughts?? Any other recommendations??
  • @HobbyTalk
    Dropping that guitar knowledge, noice…
  • @kentbergstrom3020
    Is the sound improvement on par with better cables? Most people suggest that the difference is huge, but you also hear such statements about better cables, and I hear absolutely no difference between different cables, what is the truth, if the difference is so incredibly huge, why do most people buy solid states then?
  • As an owner of Feliks Euforia, hd800s and Zmf Atriums: omg yes! Atrium (and to an extent hd800s) + otl is for the hd600 enjoyer what Susvara is for the detail aficionado.