No-Seaweed-4456 OP t1_iwy9ia2 wrote on November 19, 2022 at 7:19 AM

Reply to comment by Ezees in Natural Soundstage on Hifiman? by No-Seaweed-4456

The Arya would be my dream (if not an 800s), but not everybody got over $1000 😔

I was hoping to get a taste of upper-end sound without breaking the bank.

Ezees t1_ix207v9 wrote on November 20, 2022 at 3:14 AM

I've been there exactly. In the end though: If I wanted high-end SQ, I had to spend high-end $$$$. After trying to "save money" with "good" midrange HPs, I was never ultimately satisfied in their SQ - after a while their faults began to shine through like a flashlight, LOL - then I'd wind up buying another slightly "better" set that still would only satisfy me for a time. I wound up with a closet full of HPs that still didn't satisfy my itch for realism. When I added it all up, I'd spent just as much on mid-range gear - that still didn't satisfy me - as what it would have cost me for a high-end HP. Now I have a closet full of HPs that I don't even listen to anymore (I really need to sell off some of them, LOL).

Once I bought the Arya the search was over - it is all that I was looking for. That is, until I set along trying to maximize their SQ potential. Enter: A discrete Class A balanced amp - the Gustard H20 (I bought it used for $475, ~$1,000 new) and I have this setup today over a year and a half later.

My chain: SMSL SU-9 DAC > Gustard H20 > HFM Arya Stealth = I'm still smiling and not wanting or needing buying any more gear for the forseeable future.

In the end: Buy once, cry once (but I had to spend some money though)......

No-Seaweed-4456 OP t1_ix2vaxu wrote on November 20, 2022 at 9:06 AM

>after a while their faults began to shine through like a flashlight, then I’d wind up buying a slightly better set that would only satisfy me for a time

You may just have that typical audiophile FOMO lol

Ezees t1_ix5pjpz wrote on November 20, 2022 at 11:09 PM

Naahh, that was mainly with mid-fi, other less capable, or budget/stopgap HPs. The Arya has been as near as completely satisfying as I've ever heard from a SQ standpoint - even after well over a year. This goes for both the V2s and the Stealths - especially after taking care of synergy via system matching (ie: using discrete Class A or Class AB amps instead of any of the IC/THX/NFCA amps). Happy listening.....