Comments on Profile Post by fraggler

Fulla 2 and PortaPro?

Maybe not that far. But the WHAMMY and Modi3 I have sound pretty good even if not on par with the ECP L2 and Gungnir.

I went up to the Gungnir Multibit and EC Black Widow pretty quickly. And stayed there. No regrets.

Which headphones would you settle on?

Don’t do it! Think of the last 2% of plankton you’ll miss out on! You will spiral into depression and develop severe self esteem issues!

I run a minimalist setup and option paralysis keeps me put. Nervosa talk reads like a cautionary tale sometimes.

@Sherm HD650Ks will always stay. Likely keeping HD800 for now. I am not leaving the hobby, just that the amp/dac side of things gets tiring. Easy to find good headphones I like.

@Hands I think you are being slightly facetious, but honestly, we really are talking about that last 5-10% or so to my ears that is causing the angst.

That does raise an interesting question on what "budget realm" means. There's "Koss budget" and then there's "budget"

Not that I had a super high end setup or anything, but I did a headphone gear purge last year and I don't regret it. The only thing I'm looking to upgrade is a DAC for my 2 channel setup.

I'm in the same boat. I'm thinking of selling all my desktop gear and just going with an Andromeda + Dragonfly Cobalt.

I found the HD800’s are a fickle mistress and drove my desire to climb higher up the gear ladder. What is your nervosa related to?

@fraggler Yeah, I was obviously being facetious and sarcastic. I’ve had to downsize dramatically myself over the last year or two due to bills for multiple surgeries and having recently introduced a baby into the family.

Having said that, that last 1-5% (and it really is less than you think) is absolutely not worth the time and money if you start feeling the nervosa. If you find genuine joy in playing around AND have the spare cash, that’s OK, but it’s no good when you’re consumed with feeling like things have to be better.

But I would also caution you that the nervosa doesn’t necessarily go away just because you downsize. So I would take time to think on if that will really solve the root cause feelings you have.

One upside is that if you downsize, the nervosa-related tweaks tend to also become cheaper. Like for me, I’ve been learning about opamps for IV stage and playing around there on some budget stuff. $2-5 for an opamp is way cheaper than dumping $50+ on NOS tubes.

Having also lived in budget land for a while now, I’ve come to appreciate how good some cheap stuff really is. Like we all hear, for example, the Magni 3 or Vali 2 and think “awesome for price” but are up on high horses with our overly expensive gear. When you have to get down and go back into peasantry, you realize the chasm you thought separated the realms is almost entirely mental.

@Gaspasser the nervosa is mostly about getting value out of my purchases. With limited hobby funds it took a lot to step up to Gungnir range. With the Bifrost 2 and Unison releasing, I feel like I made a mistake after finally taking the step. I am actually pleased with how the SDR and SBAF mods have made the HD800s sound and as long as I don't end up with bright gear, I am cool on that front.

I was actually quite happy in Vali2/WHAMMY land fed by a Modi Multibit. It was the unforseen purchase of the ECP L2 that started the train reaction of needing/wanting more.

I had a similar experience. Modi/Vali is a great place to be.

I feel you. Other than the Bifrost 2 and eventual Sol release, very little gives me that drive to have more on the audio front.

One thing I've found helpful is just taking extended breaks from all the sites that feed the nervosa. I've failed miserably at not upgrading, but I'm more content to listen and enjoy when I'm intentionally not keeping up.

Nooooo. One listen and you will yearn for more. It is just the budget/mid-fi gear gets better and better and has great value. The expensive stuff stays the expensive stuff.

I had no regrets going down to the HD600 when I had the Eikon, Clear, and LCD2C.

I think it is all about system building. You need to decide if you want to build a system around your ECP L2. You have crazy value there.

I kind of killed the crazy value by buying some Cinemag transformers for the L2, though at $850ish invested I suppose it still has good value. The plan was to build around the L2, hence the Gungnir purchase, but it didn't feel as good as I thought it would.

You mean you didn’t like the sound or the perceived value of Gungnir?

I enjoy the sound I am getting but maybe not for the $$ delta especially now that the Bifrost 2/unison has stirred things up. The timing stinks too. Just frustrated. Chased the gear instead of the music.

That is what we do though...chase gear. I wouldn’t sweat it though. Seems like your in the same boat as @Skyline having Gungnir Multibit. He was advised to hold on and cancel FS though.
Unison is coming soon enough. Hell they might release Gungnir 2 and Yggdrasil 2 and everyone will be in the same boat.

Sounds like you have a great setup, just focus on the music and let everything work itself out. Grab a beer and listen to the new Tool album. Better yet go hit up the Map Room for me!

We can start a Gungir nervosa support group :P