Advice for a newbie Please? - Page 2 - HiFi Headphones Forum - online headphone & earphone community forums

RobinHiFi · 02-06-2012, 10:57 AM

Steve - I really like the T70 and they would be a great combo with the Icon HP8 MKii. The headphones have a light and airy feel for a cvlosed back with good soundstage and fantastic detail and stereo imaging. The Icon amp has a smooth and powerful feel which never seems to undermine the strengths of a good set of cans. I like combining a very accurate headphone with superb separation with the HP8 as it's natural warmth never feels that it has any negative effect on detail or the sense of space within a recording. I cannot imagine this combination would disappoint!

Beyerdynamic T70 Premium Closed Back Headphones 250Ω (T 70)
£438.95

Icon Audio HP8 MKII Pure Valve High End Headphone Amplifier
£499.96

UndefinedMemory · 02-08-2012, 12:04 PM

Hi Steve,

I've had a couple of days to play with the Icon Audio HP8 MKII now. I'm sure it will get better as time passes but I thought I'd give you my initial impressions.

My first reaction was a bit disappointing - there was a lot of noise/hiss. I ddin't have this before so thought it was odd, so I checked the connections/cables, and realised it has nothing to do with the amp. The cables I'm using to connect the FiiO E7 DAC input are poor and not well shielded, so are picking up a lot of noise that was not apparent before. So will definitely be getting a new DAC as soon as possible!

The Beyer DT1350 are quite small on-ear 'phones and the soundstage is relative to that, but from my portable amp (Just Audio uHA-120)they're driven really well. Clear, very detailed, good separation of instruments and a nice bass boost as well. I was expecting them to scale really well with the Icon Audio amp. But when I connected them I was quite surprised. The sound was very comparable to them connected to the portable amp. I actually prefer the sound out of the portable amp.

Then I started listening with my Sennheiser HD580. The Beyer's are actually a pricier set of cans, and hooked up to the uHA-120 sound decidedly better than the HD580 (though those are open backed and have a better soundstage - much easier to listen to for long periods of time). But the Beyer's are also 80ohm, portable, small and closed back. The Senns are 300ohm... and I honestly had no idea that they could sound as good as they do through the Icon Audio amp. I never knew how good these headphones really are. The bass is immediately so much more powerful, and everything is more detailed and pronounced - I always thought it was strange that people found these 'phones to be sibilant and didn't know it was a characteristic of them being properly driven. Hopefully this will tone down when the valves have been fully burned in, but it's only in specific songs at high volumes that I really notice it.

And then there's the soundstage. It is so much more three dimensional. The placement of the instruments, movement back and forth across the channels and especially the lifelike character of the vocals is seriously impressive. And the integration of the whole soundstage is seamless. Listening to songs with multiple singers is a completely new experience. And this is using an old pair of headphones that likely won't match up with the T70. Even if the soundstage is bigger due to these being open, the other aspects I expect to be extremely good with the T70.

I was really expecting the DT1350 to be the ones that impressed me, but clearly I've hit their max with the portable amp I have. I am not likely to get much better out of them. So while they are also using the Tesla drivers, a higher impedance, higher performance set of headphones like the T70 are really what amps like the Icon Audio are designed for. I still love my Beyer's for portable use but I can't imagine ever going back to them at home now. Even little things - like digital modulation on a character speaking in a video game - now has a three dimensionality that makes me pause.

I'm extremely impressed. It really is an excellent recommendation from Robin. I am already in touch with Icon Audio to look at upgrading the tubes (something I'll probably do in the next month or so when I can pick up a new DAC). I would definitely take his word if he feels that the T70 is a good pairing with this amp!

Chase

02-06-2012, 10:57 AM	#11 (permalink)
RobinHiFi Super Moderator Join Date: Apr 2010 Posts: 821 Thanks: 6 Thanked 168 Times in 160 Posts	Steve - I really like the T70 and they would be a great combo with the Icon HP8 MKii. The headphones have a light and airy feel for a cvlosed back with good soundstage and fantastic detail and stereo imaging. The Icon amp has a smooth and powerful feel which never seems to undermine the strengths of a good set of cans. I like combining a very accurate headphone with superb separation with the HP8 as it's natural warmth never feels that it has any negative effect on detail or the sense of space within a recording. I cannot imagine this combination would disappoint! Beyerdynamic T70 Premium Closed Back Headphones 250Ω (T 70) £438.95 Icon Audio HP8 MKII Pure Valve High End Headphone Amplifier £499.96 __________________ Robin @ HiFi Headphones HiFi Headphones - the UK Headphone & Earphone Store That's Serious About Headphones Ultimate Ears, Grado, Phonak Audéo, Klipsch, Shure, Audio-Technica, Sennheiser and many other high quality brands - visit our store. Join us on FaceBook

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02-08-2012, 12:04 PM	#12 (permalink)
UndefinedMemory Headphone Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Posts: 33 Thanks: 12 Thanked 11 Times in 9 Posts	Hi Steve, I've had a couple of days to play with the Icon Audio HP8 MKII now. I'm sure it will get better as time passes but I thought I'd give you my initial impressions. My first reaction was a bit disappointing - there was a lot of noise/hiss. I ddin't have this before so thought it was odd, so I checked the connections/cables, and realised it has nothing to do with the amp. The cables I'm using to connect the FiiO E7 DAC input are poor and not well shielded, so are picking up a lot of noise that was not apparent before. So will definitely be getting a new DAC as soon as possible! The Beyer DT1350 are quite small on-ear 'phones and the soundstage is relative to that, but from my portable amp (Just Audio uHA-120)they're driven really well. Clear, very detailed, good separation of instruments and a nice bass boost as well. I was expecting them to scale really well with the Icon Audio amp. But when I connected them I was quite surprised. The sound was very comparable to them connected to the portable amp. I actually prefer the sound out of the portable amp. Then I started listening with my Sennheiser HD580. The Beyer's are actually a pricier set of cans, and hooked up to the uHA-120 sound decidedly better than the HD580 (though those are open backed and have a better soundstage - much easier to listen to for long periods of time). But the Beyer's are also 80ohm, portable, small and closed back. The Senns are 300ohm... and I honestly had no idea that they could sound as good as they do through the Icon Audio amp. I never knew how good these headphones really are. The bass is immediately so much more powerful, and everything is more detailed and pronounced - I always thought it was strange that people found these 'phones to be sibilant and didn't know it was a characteristic of them being properly driven. Hopefully this will tone down when the valves have been fully burned in, but it's only in specific songs at high volumes that I really notice it. And then there's the soundstage. It is so much more three dimensional. The placement of the instruments, movement back and forth across the channels and especially the lifelike character of the vocals is seriously impressive. And the integration of the whole soundstage is seamless. Listening to songs with multiple singers is a completely new experience. And this is using an old pair of headphones that likely won't match up with the T70. Even if the soundstage is bigger due to these being open, the other aspects I expect to be extremely good with the T70. I was really expecting the DT1350 to be the ones that impressed me, but clearly I've hit their max with the portable amp I have. I am not likely to get much better out of them. So while they are also using the Tesla drivers, a higher impedance, higher performance set of headphones like the T70 are really what amps like the Icon Audio are designed for. I still love my Beyer's for portable use but I can't imagine ever going back to them at home now. Even little things - like digital modulation on a character speaking in a video game - now has a three dimensionality that makes me pause. I'm extremely impressed. It really is an excellent recommendation from Robin. I am already in touch with Icon Audio to look at upgrading the tubes (something I'll probably do in the next month or so when I can pick up a new DAC). I would definitely take his word if he feels that the T70 is a good pairing with this amp! Chase