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thegiantpickle
4
Sep 18, 2017
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So I'm really new to the audiophile community and I've been thinking about getting a dac/amp combo for awhile and was thinking about getting the CTH + SDAC combo but then they announced this. Considering it is half the price of the CTH + SDAC, I was wondering what the advantages of the O2 are against the CTH and vice versa.
jgp1212
291
Sep 18, 2017
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thegiantpickleThe CTH, being a tube hybrid, will alter the sound properties from the original source of music.
This can be great for very neutral sounding headphones, as you may want some additional sort of "character" to your music. Additionally you may be able to change the sound properties by switching out the vacuum tube.
The O2 was created to be very neutral sounding, i.e. what you hear will be close to what was originally heard in a recording studio. This allows for your headphones to be the only factor for altering any sort of sound properties.
I can't speak for the sound quality of the CTH, But I can only assume that it will sound very "tubey", while also being very high quality coming from Cavalli. The O2 I own is quite fantastic, for the price point it is at. There is no hiss / background noise whatsoever.
Hope this helps.
The O2 was created to be very neutral sounding, i.e. what you hear will be close to what was originally heard in a recording studio. This allows for your headphones to be the only factor for altering any sort of sound properties.
I can't speak for the sound quality of the CTH, But I can only assume that it will sound very "tubey", while also being very high quality coming from Cavalli. The O2 I own is quite fantastic, for the price point it is at. There is no hiss / background noise whatsoever.
Hope this helps.
jxliu
1267
Engineer
Sep 19, 2017
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thegiantpickleWhat headphones are you using and what do you like / don't like about how they sound?
thegiantpickle
4
Sep 19, 2017
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jxliuRight now I have the HE-350s and the main thing I dont like about them is that the highs are kind of peaky. Other than that, I like how neutral they are (at least I think they are) throughout the rest of the range. I really like the clarity and the sound stage being nice and open, but that can be attributed to the fact that the other headphones I use are a pair of Audio Technica noise cancelling headphones and the apple ear pods to use on the go.
How would you describe how a tube amp sounds though? I've read that people say that it sounds more organic or natural but I'm not exactly sure what they mean by that, besides maybe bringing in natural harmonic frequencies?
How would you describe how a tube amp sounds though? I've read that people say that it sounds more organic or natural but I'm not exactly sure what they mean by that, besides maybe bringing in natural harmonic frequencies?
jxliu
1267
Engineer
Sep 19, 2017
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thegiantpickle(this is going to sound weird if you haven't heard of this before)
Have you tried putting a layer of 2-ply toilet paper in each of the cups? http://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/massdrop-x-hifiman-he-350-measurements.1974/#post-49661
Re: tube amp vs. solid state. From my personal experience, you need to hear them side by side to understand. I never understood the difference from reading reviews until I got to spend time switching between a solid state amp (Asgard 2) and a tube amp (Vali 1).
Have you tried putting a layer of 2-ply toilet paper in each of the cups? http://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/massdrop-x-hifiman-he-350-measurements.1974/#post-49661
Re: tube amp vs. solid state. From my personal experience, you need to hear them side by side to understand. I never understood the difference from reading reviews until I got to spend time switching between a solid state amp (Asgard 2) and a tube amp (Vali 1).
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