I´m new around here and decided to ask for your help in this matter.
I´m a total newbie in the audiophile world and just want better sound quality (usually listening to iPhone paired to AirPods or Imac 24 internal speakers).
What do I want? I have no clue but I´m mostly into instrumental progressive metal / rock.
I just got some Grado Hemp cans and would need your help choosing a desk DAC and Amp for a good synergy with it. I already have a Cayin RU6 dongle on the way to use with the iPhone and a 7HZ Timeless IEM.
I´m in Europe so many American brands are hard to get, except for Schiit, which has an European branch, where units are expensive but without the hassle of customs. On the other hand, maybe some expensive or harder to get European brands, are easier or cheaper in my case. Please just keep this in mind if possible.
I was thinking of a Bifrost 2/64 true multibit (or a Ares II) with a RNHP - This is the most expensive and at the limit of how much I would want to spend.
Maybe a Soekris 1421 with a Lake People G111 MKII.
Or maybe something totally different like a Feliks Echo 2 paired with God knows what…
Anyway, would love your insight. Just want to refer I´m not interested in hundreds of Euros difference for very small “upgrades”. Keep in mind that I don’t have a trained ear so there are those things that will just mesmerize me (or anyone when entering into this world from nothing audiophile at all) and other subtle differences that I won’t be able to tell for years, for sure.
Welcome to the forum, and a couple of thoughts. First and most importantly, in Zen Buddhism there’s a concept called Shoshin in a basic Japanese translation it means beginner’s mind and it’s a good place to be so enjoy your journey, you’re in a good space here. You’re also right about the need to spend a lot of time learning to listen to get the most out of the hobby if it’s a hobby you’re ultimately looking for.
It’s obvious you’ve done some reading as the equipment you’re referencing is leagues ahead of soulless entry level gear and most important offers known good synergy. I’ll let other people answer as to the best fit for the Grado Hemp you’ve already bought but after thousands of dollars spent and trying a lot of different desktop setup, I reevaluated what I wanted from my audio hobby. (I’m not a headphone guy) and the RNHP and Schiit BF2 is what I settled on as a very simple and lovely pairing.
Thank you so much for your answer. Really appreciate it.
Indeed I have been reading for weeks and the more I read, the more confusing it gets.
I have a few ideas of DAC and Amp synergy, based on reading, but getting real experienced information of this synergy applied to my specific headphones, it gets much harder to find.
I also know myself and if I would go for the very basic entry level, a few weeks / months later I would be itching to upgrade, probably to the very gear we are talking here and I would just spend way more.
I´m not, at the moment, very demanding, so a set like this could last me for years unless I really get into the hobby shining part of it (let’s hope not for the sake of my wallet… and marriage! )
I´m also not much worried about which path would suit me best because at this level everything will be a huge upgrade and will satisfy me for sure. I would have to try a lot to have a clear idea of what my particular preferences could be and that is simply not possible because I don’t have friends that care about this and stores around me have nothing interesting to test, at all.
I have decided to go a more particular route, by the choices I made so far, based only on nostalgia choices of vinyl times, maybe looking for a little more musicality and fun and a little less digital. Maybe a more organic, analogical path. Obviously all this on theory. So despite these choices, I don’t want nothing too extreme on only one path. Maybe something that has balance to it but a tad warmer?
This is good since we all wind up there, I bought and experimented with a lot of shit before I even had a clue of what I was looking for and it’s easy to get caught up in the next giant killer sub $300 dollar component hype train.
What you’re doing WILL save you money but it means you’ll have to be a lot more verbal in how/what you explain to people what you’re looking for as without that initial knowledge of what sounds like what you’ll have a harder time telling others what you’re looking for signature wise.
For now, warm, bright, relaxed, forward those kinds of broad words are fine. You also want to say not just what you like but what you don’t like as they’ll both be important as you narrow gear down.
I don’t have much experience with Grado but why did you go for the Hemp? It’s well liked by a lot of people, it’s a cool piece of gear but I have zero experience in what it works well with gear wise so it’s why I’m refraining from actually recommending anything. lol
Personally, with what you’re shooting for, if this is your first setup but if you want to also immediately jump to something higher, what I’d actually suggest is dropping down on the amp a bit.
Perhaps grab an asgard 3, and use it with your ru6 for a bit and go from there. The asgard is a great match with the hemps imo and the ru6 should be fine to use as a dac for the time being. If you wanted to upgrade down the line, grab a bifrost 2 or ares ii or some other dac depending on how you feel about that current chain and what you want to go for. Then if you wanted to upgrade again, you can move up on the amp ladder. I know you mentioned you wanted to just kinda jump as high as you could right off the bat, but I don’t think that’s the best idea imo
Reason I say this is because imo it’s a good idea to figure out what you’re really after, which you only really know after you get some experience. It’s also more rewarding that way as well, since as you mentioned you don’t have a trained ear, so it’s not worth it to jump that high up right away without one. So best to train the ear first then move up to actually understand and appreciate what upgrades might bring imo.
In terms of other amps that might be easier to get for you, you could consider something like a lake people g103s, but I’d say those aren’t as good of a pairing as the asgard 3 with the hemps, another option might be an entry level lehmann or grahm slee which might be more attainable than schiit.
But honestly before any of this, I’d wait for the cayin dongle, try it with your hemps, and then use that to assess what direction you want to push the amp and eventual dac decision. Basically use that to get a guideline for what sound you might want to focus on, what you like and what you might change
Echoing M0N a bit, if you can’t get an Asgard3, and you want to go a little further upstream, the Lakepeople G111 is another good option. My gut feel is it would pair reasonably well with the Cayin RU6 (and you could take the balanced output from the RU6 into the G111). The RU6 is a nice dongle on its own, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised how good it sounds with the Hemps. The other nice thing about an amp like the G111 is it has “staying power” in your setup. You can get different headphones, DACs, even amps, and a lot of people find a place for the G111 long after they’ve upgraded to other gear.
I’m really curious to hear your thoughts on how the Hemps pair with the RU6. You might make me regret selling my Hemps earlier this year…
Thank you all for your answers. Some really great advises from some very experienced and knowledgeable people. Have read many, many threads and posts from you guys (especially MON) and have been learning a lot (theory) in the last few weeks.
Indeed, I agree with the smart and wise suggestions. It is easy to get caught on the hype and patience sometimes seems to slip from the dictionnary!
Asgard 3 is perfectly fine. I can get it directly from Schiit Europe for 319€ (amp only) or 439€ with the DAC incorporated. (Not sure which one you were recomending but probably the amp alone). The G111 costs in Europe 500€ which is around 180€ more than the Asgard. So you tell me if I should go for the Agard 3 or the G111. I believe in the US, the difference is probably bigger as Schiit is way cheaper.
I was under the idea that the RU6 could not be used as a DAC with other amps but only doubled as an amp which, from what I have read, is not ideal, but possible in this case without any major loss in sound quality. Was that what you were suggesting while I won’t choose a dedicated DAC, or were you considering the Asgard 3 in the AIO configuration?
Sorry if I misunderstood some of the information.
Anyway, thank you very much for your help. In all honesty I was not expecting this many answers in such short time. Cheers for that.
Regarding the feedback on the Hemp with the RU6, I´m surely not the best person to talk about that. I can only say if I like it or not, nothing more at this moment in time.
So I’ve not personally heard the ru6, but yes it’s not ideal. That being said, it doesn’t have to be ideal, and should get the job done for the time being. What you’d do is grab a 3.5mm to RCA cable, connect the ru6 to the asgard, and then set the ru6 volume to a level with appropriate volume and where you aren’t getting any audible distortion, then bump it down a bit from there. This is technically double amping, but for the time being will allow you to use the amp and get an idea of where you want to go. This wouldn’t be a suggestion to do this forever, just to use it initially and help decide what dac you may want to pursue in the future
Lovely Mon, that is exactly what I´m gonna do! Meanwhile I edited my last post with the Asgard 3 and G111 price diference here in Europe, so not sure if your advice still stands on the Asgard, in this particular case. Cheers!
Hmmmmm that’s tempting given the smaller price difference lol. It would be a step up, I guess if you plan to upgrade to that level at some point anyways might be a reasonable idea lol. Not sure
Let me be the devil in your ear. On hifishark you can browse for used gear which will save you a few bucks. There’s even an offer for the G111 on ebay Germany rn
(also, welcome to the forum! very happy to have you here)
I´m not a big fan of used market in products I do not know. Like in this case. But indeed a good offer! I have contacted the seller, just in casa, to know if he ships to my country since he only states shipping to Germany. Saving 150€ is not bad at all. Thank you for the tip! Cheers!
Hello and welcome,
Mon has said it all.
The only thing I would add is the following regardless of their system with the Ru6 and Asgard.
I’ve listened to a few Grados and it wasn’t my world.
There was a lot missing for me, I didn’t have the Hemp in my fingers.
But in general I found all the Grados a bit thin and quite bright in sound.
So I think the Asgard will round things off a bit, be more musical, less sharp-sounding and have a bit more impact.
About the G111 it is typically German,neutral,depending on the tuning also cold and can also be a bit more undefined.
I don’t think it will go well with the Gardo because it will sound too bright and maybe shrill.
With other headphones I would have said yes.
That’s my rough assessment of the Gardos, when I heard them it was on a Music fidality M200 or something and it just didn’t fit for me.
It would be a shame if you preferred the sound on the Cayin, but you have a headphone amplifier next to it that doesn’t harmonise but could do a lot more.
The Asgard is usually sold quite quickly in Europe if it doesn’t fit.
Just as a tip, it’s worth it.
The question with or without a Dac is a bit stupid to answer.
The technology of both Dacs is different between the Ru6 and the Asgard.
There are always better Dacs, but for starters, the Asgard with Dac would certainly suffice.
The decision is up to you.
First, welcome and congrats for taking the time to read and learn. Second, you
have some Great advice offered here by experienced, genuinely helpful folks.
Enjoy your journey!
I know Grado´s are quite “hated” and loved to death from their fans. If I understood correctly the Hemp is a little different from the siblings and actually inspired the new line with the later introduction of the X drive, if I’m not mistaken.
I apologize for not being able to reproduce what I´ve read (and that made sense at the time) but with the Hemp, the Company sort of “solved” the issues that most grado are criticized for, which is what you referred and the bass issues in the lows. Which sort of equilibrated the Hemp, keeping still the Grado signature but with its own strengths that gave it a unique sound.
Also I believe the strength are still the mids and considering that most of what I listen is instrumental with a lot of lead guitars, it seemed to play in favor of my style of music also.
I really apologize for not being able to use the right words and of course for the lack of knowledge.
In my opening post I referred to the G111, as a few others models, because based on my reading from people that actually own the grado and tried at least those amps, there seems to be a nice synergy between the Hemp and those units. Of course some more than others but I understand there wouldn’t be no wrong choices, just different tastes. Since, at this point, that cannot be a deciding factor in my choice (even if it is the most important one) I must rely on gut feeling, price differences and so on.
The only reason I insisted on the G111 is because our reality in Europe is different from the one in the US. While Schiit is way cheaper and Lake People expensier, with us it is the other way around, as I stated a few posts above. My reasoning is if it is a step up from the Asgard, for such little difference (in my opinion) shouldn’t I go for the better choice on theory? In terms of rendering, unfortunately I cannot state wich I would prefer personally.
At this point everything that I choose is, and will be, a gambling. There is no way around it. The only thing I can do is try to get the maximum information as possible and try to understand the technicalities in sound (on paper) so that I try to guess what would, on theory, suit my tastes.
Nevertheless, as wisely advised here, I will wait for the RU6, pair it with the Hemp and maybe some more light can shine on me. Only after I decide which amp to go for and only after having used that one extensively with the RU6 and Hemp, I will decide for the DAC.
The Hemp arrived to me first and I can only connect it directly to the Imac, at this moment. Still, I loved the sound from the first time I listened to it, but I believe that was expected since I don’t have, or had, nothing else to compare to it in this quality range, unless the AirPods count
I paid 400 € for it new (which was a good price here in Europe and at this time where they are sort of rare to find) and even if I was to use it just like this, I consider money well spent and would do it again without hesitation. I can only imagine what else is out there that would blow my mind, but right now I honestly don’t care
Thank you so much for your insight on this matter. I really appreciate it.
I’d say in this case, if you can squeeze a g111, it might just be worth going for. It’s an awesome amp, and it’s something that just makes sense if it’s not much more than something like an asgard. While I think hearing the step down would be valuable, in this case the better pricing outweighs that
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