[DaveNote]

Hi Dave,

So far I have checked out these:

http://www.wooaudio.com/products/wa22.html

http://www.headphone.com/headphone-amps/headroom-balanced-ultra-desktop-amp-buda.php

http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/Headphoneamp/Phoenix/PH1.jpg

http://aphroditecu29.com/Violectric/V181.aspx

http://www.raysamuelsaudio.com/products/b-52

http://www.raysamuelsaudio.com/products/apache

http://www.ttvjaudio.com/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=31

james

Thanks, James. It's encouraging to see what you have looked at. There's no way to try all of them. They seem to breed like rabbits.

Dave       

[mikemalter]

Hi Dave,

So far I have checked out these:

http://www.wooaudio.com/products/wa22.html

http://www.headphone.com/headphone-amps/headroom-balanced-ultra-desktop-amp-buda.php

http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/Headphoneamp/Phoenix/PH1.jpg

http://aphroditecu29.com/Violectric/V181.aspx

http://www.raysamuelsaudio.com/products/b-52

http://www.raysamuelsaudio.com/products/apache

http://www.ttvjaudio.com/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=31

james

James, I am running the WA22 with GEC 6AS7G power tubes, Tung Sol 6SN7 BGRP drivers and an EML 5U4G rectifier.  My headphones are the Sennheiser HD800 and I also have a pair of LCD-2 (r2).  My woo is fed by your BDP-1 and a Clearaudio Solution turntable.

I am REALLY glad you are getting into the headphone space as the same equipment will have a different sound signature if you are playing them through speakers or headphones.  BTW, they BDP-1 shines in the headphone world because its audio output is so clean.  One is much closer to the music and hears so much more through headphones, that all the subtlies of gear + music come through.

So, if you are in the headphone space, I think that will also effect how you look at the BDP-1.

[James Tanner]

James, I am running the WA22 with GEC 6AS7G power tubes, Tung Sol 6SN7 BGRP drivers and an EML 5U4G rectifier.  My headphones are the Sennheiser HD800 and I also have a pair of LCD-2 (r2).  My woo is fed by your BDP-1 and a Clearaudio Solution turntable.

I am REALLY glad you are getting into the headphone space as the same equipment will have a different sound signature if you are playing them through speakers or headphones.  BTW, they BDP-1 shines in the headphone world because its audio output is so clean.  One is much closer to the music and hears so much more through headphones, that all the subtlies of gear + music come through.

So, if you are in the headphone space, I think that will also effect how you look at the BDP-1.

Thanks - it has been a real learning experience for me and I am having a great time trying all these headphones. Someone told me that unlike speakers there are no real industry recognized standard tests for headphones and therefore they all sound different by design?

james

[DaveNote]

Thanks - it has been a real learning experience for me and I am having a great time trying all these headphones. Someone told me that unlike speakers there are no real industry recognized standard tests for headphones and therefore they all sound different by design?

james

James, what will be of interest to headphone users, like mikemalter, I would guess, is what the sound signature of the BHA-1 is. The headphones all sound different and the same headphone sounds different on different amps, I'm told. My Grace Designs, sound exactly like the Bryston Preamp headphone jack, and both are good, but very cold and clinical when using HD800s, IMO. Does the BHA-1 warm up the HD800s?

Dave

[srb]

James, it can get a bit confusing when you edit someone else's post and insert your reply instead of just replying with your own post.  I know you have admin rights, but ....
 
Steve

[James Tanner]

James, what will be of interest to headphone users, like mikemalter, I would guess, is what the sound signature of the BHA-1 is. The headphones all sound different and the same headphone sounds different on different amps, I'm told. My Grace Designs, sound exactly like the Bryston Preamp headphone jack, and both are good, but very cold and clinical when using HD800s, IMO. Does the BHA-1 warm up the HD800s?

Dave

No I would not say they warm them up but they sound much more dynamic.

James

[mikemalter]

Thanks - it has been a real learning experience for me and I am having a great time trying all these headphones. Someone told me that unlike speakers there are no real industry recognized standard tests for headphones and therefore they all sound different by design?

james

James, my very limited understanding is that, yes, there are no industry recognized standard tests for headphones.  In addition, manufacturers publish metrics of their choice, and even the metric with the same name can mean different things to different manufacturers.

I think one of the bigger issues you'll face in some corners of the audiophile community is in setting market expectations for what headphones your amp will drive.  There are people who understand the details of this issue much more than me, and the people who are really knowledgable about it are over at Head-fi.org.  I'm not sure how to even frame the question, but it is my limited understanding that different types of headphones need more output (voltage?)  and then there is impedance matching (which I also do not understand).  There is this whole other world over there of measurements that I am not inclined to be interested in, but I do know that it really matters to some people and speaks to credibility.

Then there is the issue of balanced outputs and single ended outputs, and I am sure you have a handle on this.  Some people swear by balanced and others don't really care.  I'm in the still learning camp, and because I have a balanced WA22, I am tending to favor balanced.  For example, I bought a portable headphone amp for a trip, and I got the Ray Samuels SR-71B and got a special cable for my LCD-2's so it could take the balanced output.  I have listened to the amp single ended, and with balanced the headphone "soundstage" sounded wider.  Also, apperently with using the balanced outputs, I have doubled my output voltage which drives the LCD-2 better (why more voltage makes them sound better and I do not know why).

Dave, I find the HD800 to be my reference baseline headphone.  I know there are people who feel they are a little bass shy, or maybe are too harsh up top.  For me, the HD800's have a certain delicateness and subletly that is very revealing and open.  To my ears, they are a very sensitive headphone, not impedance wise, but sonically and one has to be careful with system components because they will play whatever is there.

That was why I tried the BDP-1 in the first place.  The HD800 is so revealing, I spent three months working my way through various streaming devices and different DAC's with streamers built in and all of them were basically unlistenable because I was hearing all of the digital smearing and hash that was there.  With the BDP-1, immediately I could hear the possibilities; the hash and digital smearing was gone.  So, in my mind, it's not a question that the BDP-1 warms up the HD800's, possibly it's that the BDP-1 is so very clean that there is very little competing with the microdetail of the audio cut.  However, maybe we are saying the same thing, but expressing the details a little differently.  Thoughts?

[DaveNote]

First, to James, many thanks for giving me a helpful answer to my question about how the HD800s sound on the BHA-1. Note Mikemalter, that I wasn't asking how the HD800s sound with the BDP-1, which I own. I can attest that the BDP-1 does wonders for audio reproduction. Period. Headphones or otherwise. So, you and I probably do not differ about what the BDP-1 does for the HD800s, and, in fact, that we see them as reference headphones - they play with great accuracy. But you have very different headhone amps than the amp I use, which probably means you are getting more out of your HD800s than I feel I am.

The LCD-2 are a different kettle (or should I say can) of fish, as you know. The measurements on them are very good, even in comparison to HD800s, but their sound signature is altogether different - warmer, in my non-technical terms, more intimate, and, again, IMHO opinion, more musical.

I've said it before, and I'm not alone in this, if I were a sound or recording engineer, HD800s would be my go-to cans. But I'm neither of these. I listen for enjoyment, not analysis. So my HD800s, which are every bit as good, and perhaps even better, than the LCD-2s in a number of ways, now sit in a box, while I smile with delight using the LCD-2s.

Which takes me to how the HD800s and LCD-2s sound on the BHA-1. I will want to try both on the BHA-1. If there is a way, I'd like to try it with my phones with balanced cables, which might be tough to do on a demo basis given that it would make no sense in my situation (I have only RCA connectors on my cans) to buy very expensive balanced leashes before just to demo a BHA-1. This presents a potential quandary (again with the demo being dead) of wondering, based on Mikemalter's comments about balanced connections, if the main advantage of the BHA-1, compared to what I have, might be its balanced connections.

Dave 

[mikemalter]

First, to James, many thanks for giving me a helpful answer to my question about how the HD800s sound on the BHA-1. Note Mikemalter, that I wasn't asking how the HD800s sound with the BDP-1, which I own. I can attest that the BDP-1 does wonders for audio reproduction. Period. Headphones or otherwise. So, you and I probably do not differ about what the BDP-1 does for the HD800s, and, in fact, that we see them as reference headphones - they play with great accuracy. But you have very different headhone amps than the amp I use, which probably means you are getting more out of your HD800s than I feel I am.

The LCD-2 are a different kettle (or should I say can) of fish, as you know. The measurements on them are very good, even in comparison to HD800s, but their sound signature is altogether different - warmer, in my non-technical terms, more intimate, and, again, IMHO opinion, more musical.

I've said it before, and I'm not alone in this, if I were a sound or recording engineer, HD800s would be my go-to cans. But I'm neither of these. I listen for enjoyment, not analysis. So my HD800s, which are every bit as good, and perhaps even better, than the LCD-2s in a number of ways, now sit in a box, while I smile with delight using the LCD-2s.

Which takes me back to my question to James about the BHA-1. I will want to try both my HD800s and LCD-2s on the BHA-1. If there is a way, I'd like to try it with my phones with balanced cables, which might be tough to do on a demo basis given that it would make no sense in my situation (I have only RCA connectors on my cans) to buy very expensive balanced leashes before buying a BHA-1. This presents a potential quandary (again with the demo being dead) of wondering, based on Mikemalter's comments about balanced connections, if the main advantage of the BHA-1, compared to what I have, might be its balanced connections.

Dave

Dave, glad to hear you love the LCD-2's; I'm trying to love them too, but they just don't do it for me.  I'm like you I listen for enjoyment, not analysis.  Are your LCD-2's they r1 or r2?  How many hours do you have on them?  I've heard you need at least 350 hours before they open up.  What do you think?  Are you using an upgraded cable?  What headphone amp & DAC combo are you using?  Also, with your BDP-1, what size hard drive are you using?

[DaveNote]

Hi Mikemalter: I have the r2 version of the LCD-2s. I've had them for a couple of weeks and have been using them for hours on end, but not 350 hours. There is a running controversy about whether or not headphones need breaking in. Some say it is essential, others that it is a myth. I don't know which is right, but my old ears tell me my LCD-2s are improving with use, especially with a better high end, where they are reputed to be less than stellar.

My amp is a Grace Designs m903, which is as much a pro piece of gear as anything. It is very accurate and clinical, but does not take balanced headphone plugs. I am holding back on upgrading cables because if and when I buy an amp with balanced connections, that would be the time to upgrade.

Beyond that, I have to consider how much headphone use I'll be doing in the future. Right now, I'm using headphones in the absence of a piece of my regular system which is temporarily absent. I have a great regular system, with speakers and electronic that are as good as I can afford. With only so many hours in which to listen to music, I am in the pleasant quandary of how much time to spend listening to my regular system, the LCD-2s, or the HD800s if I find an amp that makes the most of them.

I use a Bryston BDA-1 DAC. I use a 1.5TB hard drive connected to my BDP-1. Most of my 16,000 files are FLAC, which I now regret, because I've found I like AIFF files better.

As to you're not loving the LCD-2s, yet. You may never love them. If audio - from what kind of music you like to what kind of gear turns your crank - is not largely subjective, then it is a con game. If you end up loving Sony $20 cans better than the LCD-2s, then the Sony's are what you should embrace. If the HD800s suit your tastes, then the LCD-2s may not, even with "breaking in," be your cup of tea.

Dave

[ellsworth]

Uhh, not to be a killjoy here, but I think you guys have hi-jacked this thread with the headphone discussion. Good discussion, but please start another thread. Thanks.

[mikemalter]

Hi Mikemalter: I have the r2 version of the LCD-2s. I've had them for a couple of weeks and have been using them for hours on end, but not 350 hours. There is a running controversy about whether or not headphones need breaking in. Some say it is essential, others that it is a myth. I don't know which is right, but my old ears tell me my LCD-2s are improving with use, especially with a better high end, where they are reputed to be less than stellar.

My amp is a Grace Designs m903, which is as much a pro piece of gear as anything. It is very accurate and clinical, but does not take balanced headphone plugs. I am holding back on upgrading cables because if and when I buy an amp with balanced connections, that would be the time to upgrade.

Beyond that, I have to consider how much headphone use I'll be doing in the future. Right now, I'm using headphones in the absence of a piece of my regular system which is temporarily absent. I have a great regular system, with speakers and electronic that are as good as I can afford. With only so many hours in which to listen to music, I am in the pleasant quandary of how much time to spend listening to my regular system, the LCD-2s, or the HD800s if I find an amp that makes the most of them.

I use a Bryston BDA-1 DAC. I use a 1.5TB hard drive connected to my BDP-1. Most of my 16,000 files are FLAC, which I now regret, because I've found I like AIFF files better.

As to you're not loving the LCD-2s, yet. You may never love them. If audio - from what kind of music you like to what kind of gear turns your crank - is not largely subjective, then it is a con game. If you end up loving Sony $20 cans better than the LCD-2s, then the Sony's are what you should embrace. If the HD800s suit your tastes, then the LCD-2s may not, even with "breaking in," be your cup of tea.

Dave

I'm with you on the enjoyment factor.  Right now I'm using my LCD-2's (r2) with a balanced connector paired with a Ray Samuels SR-71B.  The LCD's sound nice with it.  Headphone cables are so expensive that it's hard to be able to switch around from single ended to balanced.  ALO makes a universal cable and then you buy whatever attachments you want with it.  I have that one for the LCD-2.  However I really like Cardas and over the years as I have moved from one Sennheiser headphone to another, I usually get the Cardas upgraded cable which is really nice.  My quandry now is do I get the universal cable for my HD800 or not and then just use it everywhere.

[mikemalter]

Uhh, not to be a killjoy here, but I think you guys have hi-jacked this thread with the headphone discussion. Good discussion, but please start another thread. Thanks.

You are right, very sorry.

[DaveNote]

Uhh, not to be a killjoy here, but I think you guys have hi-jacked this thread with the headphone discussion. Good discussion, but please start another thread. Thanks.

Ellsworth, thanks for bringing us to order. Guess we were having too much fun to remember what thread we were using.

Dave

[James Tanner]

From: Mladen Pernicki
Sent: August-26-11 10:51 AM
To: 'James Tanner'
Subject: RE: BDP-1 -

James

Hooked up the BDP-1 Digital player and the sound is incredible.

I can compare Popcorn (in the modified section, power, master clock and SPDIF output) with the BDP-1. The BDP-1 has a lot of authority in sound quality in any segment in relation to the PopCorn.

All written and praised the BDP-1 on Net is true.

Regards,
Mladen

[James Tanner]

From: Sebastian Ionescu
Sent: August-28-11 12:40 AM
To: James Tanner
Subject: bdp-1

Hello James,

My name is Sorin and I wrote to you about sending me the BDP-1 update. Well, it's been 4 weeks of using the BDP and playing around with it and I gotta tell you, I love it. Load times are fast considering I squeezed almost 400 gigs onto a 2 terabyte drive and I add music daily. High res and standard res files load without a glitch and not one skip on any song ever. I like the radio stations too, it's nice to get a break once in awhile and hear something completely different than what I put on the BDP-1.

You will not be too popular with the folks that make cd transports and players, that's for sure, nevermind the music industry that doesn't want us to own anything anymore. We all know their wonderful music model idea, pay everytime you so much as listen to any song.

It's gotta be tough on the CD transport market now that the BDP-1 can not only top their players in performance, but also in features(album art, various file formats/bit rates, remote control options, file storage, ease of use). Naturally, expect some "expert" reviewers to come up with "nuances" in other players that are mysteriously missing from everything else like the BDP-1 or that it's too computery and "harsh, edgy...." etc... in other words, complete lies. Not many will, but a few diehards might be resistant to the idea that not being able to touch their media(ie cds, lps) means it's not as good sounding.
Props to stereophile for their review of the BDP-1 and saying it is a keeper with stunning dynamic range(true) and 3-d imaging(true again).

James, I can not thank you and Bryston enough for the BDP-1. It is truly a GEM of a product which makes my audio system not only sound incredible, but also gives me the ease of use that I had been dreaming about for over 20 years, yes, over 20 years, I used to run old school computers hooked up to my audio system both digitally and in analog, but they never came close to the quality of the BDP-1. To have all my collection perfectly preserved and playable any time of the day or night without the wear and tear/hassle of vinyl or the constant disc changing of CDs is one of the most impressive accomplishments in the Audio industry in decades. The BDP-1 should win a groundbreaking audio component award and I hope more and more people find out about this amazing player. For anyone who not only enjoys music, but has music as an integral part of their life, the BDP-1 is practically a necessity.

Anyway, thank you for the firmware updates with the funny names and great features. I am going to take some more time off to learn some of the other things you can do on start up.

By the way, Lacie makes a 2 terabyte porche drive(aluminum) with the standard usb 3.0 connection (not mini) so you can use the fancy audioquest cables and load up a bazzillion songs. It's a fast and super duper quiet drive

Thank you.

Sebastian Ionescu

[mikemalter]

James, has there been a new firmware release?

[James Tanner]

James, has there been a new firmware release?

Not since July 15th.

James

[James Tanner]

From: Ken Golden
Sent: August-30-11 4:52 PM
To: James Tanner
Subject: My BDP-1 assessment

James: after a week of use here is what I think about the BDP-1 Player:

Sonics are superb. Beyond reproach. I shake my head in amazement when I play back some of the hi-rez stuff. Check out the Lorna Hunt disc from Classic Records - Astounding

I tried the Netgear Powerline adapters and they work flawlessly. I suggest you recommend them. No set up - just plug them in and I'm on the 'net. Took longer to take them out of the box.

James you have a fantastic product here. I admire and appreciate your evangelism. I see your posts on various forums. I have no idea how you have the time to answer everyone - and so promptly.

Ken

P.S. - I'm getting something like 20 Internet stations. I thought there were supposed to be 10?

[Marius]

another great review in Germany, Austria, was it already spotted in this forum?
:
http://networkedblogs.com/mmGTt

Marius