Splurged on myself and decided to get a schitt stack to go with my 702s. Was a little afraid I wouldn’t be able to tell a difference but i’m happy to report that not only can i tell a difference, but that the schiit stack fixed most of the issues I had with the 702s. Bass had more presence and overall the soundstage feels more full. Best way I can describe it to someone who isn’t sure if they should jump into DACs and AMPs is that now my 702s sound like an in-store demo instead of feeling a little weak.

I think my next move is trying out a Vali 2 or tubes in general since I’ve heard the 700 series takes really well to tubes. If anyone has any suggestions for tube amps under $200 please let me know!

Nice! I ran a Modi/Magni stack with K702s for a few years. It was my first dedicated headphone and stack. I hope it treats you as well as mine did!

hoping to have these for a while! what’d you upgrade too after the 702s?

Wow, really love your minimalist setup! Does it connect via Bluetooth to your cellphone?

I did the same but for some HD6XX, i just recently upgraded to a jotenhiem and modius, love Schitt.

Great listening setup!! I got the same stack but went with DT 990s. But I'm a fan of the 702s as well.

DT1990s. I had those for another year before getting the 660s. Then I have had a very fortunate last 16 months that have allowed me to increase my budget for audio. And I’ve reached an endgame with the headphones in my flair. I still have the DT1990s but I have them indefinitely loaned out to a friend.

I first listened to my favorite album of all time on the k702s so it’s always has a place in my heart. A Sailor’s Guide to the Earth by Sturgill Simpson is the album btw

Nice! I’m also a Schiit guy too. I currently use a Bifrost 2/64 and Jot2 stack. I also have a Mani 2 for my turntable

Yeah, I love my K702 … they even improved in sound and comfort with Yaxi pads and a Beyerdynamic cable (shorter).

Modi dac does not support bt.

Imo the impact of tubes is so small that most things you read on here seem very overexaggerated. I can only speak about my Xduoo TA-26 which is very subtle, but I think I've seen the same things being said about the schiit tube amps so do your research before more or less wasting money. Also NOS tube hunting is a hot mess, so much money to waste with potentially little to gain, tubes break, some are bad from the start and you can never tell beforehand what you might get, how long that tube ran in another device and so on. Get a Tung-Sol or a JJ 6SN7 (really love mine, had to find an in stock replacement after my Tung-Sol decided to whistle like a tea kettle).

But imo, try before you buy, if you can. Also, if you really want to get a good opinion on tubes, try them in a blind A and B test. There might be a chance that you won't hear any difference because some tube amps today are just that clean.

That being said, tubes look amazing, feel kinda cool and it's just something else. But don't trust anyone on here. It's always hurr durr tubes on and whatnot. Stuff like "the 6XX on tubes is godlike" and similar sentences baited me into all of this and yet there doesn't seem to be a huge difference that justifies the price you pay for a proper tube amp.

I can't say things about more expensive amps, but I am more than sure that it will be similar (btw if anyone with a totl tube amp is reading this, feel free to tell me your experience, I'm very curious about all of this).

Have fun experimenting and have a good start into 2023 :)

Edit: fixed a typo

That's some nice Schiit you have there partner. Just got a Schiit Modi Multibit 2 in today and love it.

I have a Vali 2+ and it's very nice as you would expect from Schiit but in the end I ended up liking tubes that sound more more like a normal clean Solid State amp, lol. Schiit has come out with a newer version of the Vali 2 which is the Vali 2++, has a different pinout but is otherwise virtually identical to the Vali 2+, so make sure you get the right tubes if you get this model and not the ones for the old one, at least not without an adapter.

Vali 2 is not a bad way to get a taste for tubes but the ones I like tend to be more expensive and the amount of tubes I acquired over time I probably could have purchased a better amp or headphone honestly but oh well. Hard to know what you will like until you do and it was fun rolling different tubes to get varied changes in sound.

If you want different sound, it might be a good idea to get different headphones, rather than changing amps and wondering what changed

Love to see it! Running a similar setup as well, just with an Atom instead of a Magni!

I absolutely love my K702s and I pair them with the Topping E30II and L30II combo which should be pretty similar to yours. I'm waiting for my second pair though because the right speaker on the first one died within 3.5 months of use. Shame.

Edit: just wanna add a question, am I the only one impressed by the level of detail and clarity the K702s bring? Those things sound more detailed to my ears than headphones that are much more expensive, even with that huge soundstage they have.

Can I suggest trying out some EQ if you haven't already? I'm still blown away by how good my K702s are once I add just a tiny bit of EQ. Just reducing the peak at around 2000 Hz by a few dB makes a world of difference to them. It smoothens them out so much and makes them punch way above their price bracket. I personally used Crinacles Auto-EQ on his graph comparison tool as I like the bit of extra bass it adds, but just taking 3-5dB out of the 2k Hz region does 90% of the work.

i upgraded from an g5 to an fiio k5 pro ess and an hifiman sundara. and can tell you they really shine from an better dac/amp. there are so many details i lost on before. now i feel more complete ^^

I’ve had dozens of headphones over the past 14 years but the K702 still stands out as a special vista to my music — almost exclusively classical and some acoustic jazz. Coupled with a good amp (Marantz DAC1 dac/amp) I listen for hours without fatigue. An exceptional headphone!

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testing of my user flair works sorry

Im also a basic bitch 😭😭 but im happy with it and i dont think ill ever buy another amp. It works.

This.

Basic? K702 is sensational headphone. The best for classical and piano. Only hd 800s surpass them

i’ve tried EQ’ing using some presets i found but honestly i just prefer the stock sound

i love the clarity and detail the 702s provide

i was looking into trying out the DT990 pros and the HD 6xx to get a taste of what the other brands have but i should probably practice some self control and stop myself before i fall down the rabbit hole

Yeah I’d say they’re both worth trying in the future but there’s no rush to it. Play around with EQ to get more out of the k702s.

I wholly agree with your second point. The sound signature is controversial, but the technical performance is unrivalled at that price.

What a pick pile of Schiit :))

Congrats on your shiny, OP!

Nah that ain’t basic, HD600s are basic. They’re the sh*t, but they’re basic as hell.

How so? I'm waiting on Suede Brainwavz to finally ship to try with both the K702 and DT880. But I did also see/consider those Yaxis but held off since they're like $60, their Amazon reviews aren't very useful, and the HD6-- Yaxi pads were awful.

STFU. This setup is far from basic and would be ecstatic to hear a friend has them. Schitt Audio is a classic and well deserved champion of the industry. AKG has been around forever and I have never hear anything bad about them ever. And the Colors match, which is prolly the easiest way to my heart when it comes to a setup lol. Too many men in this hobby when music is enjoyed equally by both. Always glad to see a girl here. Enjoy your awesome setup nothing basic about it.

The 702 is a great headphone. Especially with a Harman EQ.

Try some eq or different headphones instead

fancy

Agreed, they take well to an EQ. I 'upgraded' to the K712 from the ,702 and later regret it but managed to find a lovely sound with EQ.

That soundstage is brilliant also, even more so with the 702

One of the ears losing sound is very common, even with looking after them as it's happened to my 701 and 712 however very easy fix.

Look it up on YT and next time find someone with a soldering iron and resolder the wire back on. Super easy repair I promise

Lookin beautiful

Now that I'm gaming with a Schiit stack in the living room, I sometimes miss my old K712 Pro. They sounded a little artificially wide and clinical for music listening but they'd be the balls with that setup. Comfort was also pretty good, only the build lacked a little.

Glad you're enjoying your 702.

The peak at 5000 is the serious killer, it ruins vocals and pushes then into uncanny valley. Luckily they EQ very very well.

Try this EQ https://i.imgur.com/ELAEvJU.jpg and don't even bother with the bass mod, it's a bad mod. Once I found this EQ I have not been able to listen to them stock. Fixes the weird voicing issue and gets the bass to be present and fun.

My T1 can't handle EQ for shit whereas this one never clips or sounds stressed.

I'm a basic bitch too. Honestly, I reckon us basic bitches have more fun.

Im running the topping d30 with asgard 3, schiit is a great company. Never disappoints

Still on our modi/magni stack with the 660s? Or did you switch to a different combo?

I use a Bifrost 2/64 & Jot 2 stack now. Wanted balanced for my planars and for a long cable run I do from my DAC to my stereo.

Nice, I’m running mine through a ifi zen dac v2 right now with my pc as my source. Looking at other options with some money I have left over from Christmas. I was going to add the Zen Can but then researching that led me down the rabbit hole… I’m so lost

/r/HeadphoneAdvice can square you away. Schiit just recently updated the Magni. And it's still a helluva stack for $240.

Woohay k702 gang!

That subreddit and YouTube are the reasons why I’m questioning everything haha…

I'm of the opinion the Schiit Magni/Modi stack is all you'll ever need. Full transparency, I am biased towards buying American. I've never heard a JDS Labs product, but I've only ever heard great things about them- so that's an option too. You can't go wrong with either.

Aside: Amps and DACs make such a minute difference and should be purchased mostly for the features you need (balanced, preamp, bluetooth etc.). I've gone up to $3k amps and DACs and the difference is inconsequential (to me). I'm also not a golden ear and I genuinely believe there's a variance in people's ability to hear. So I hesitate to proclaim all amps/DACs sound the same.

How do you like your TA-26? I’ve been using a Schiit Vali 2 for the last 6 years with HD-6XX’s and just got a Magni Heretic to play around with too. I’ve got a slew of tubes for my Vali including the converter to use 6SN7’s and another converter to use those Western Electric style tubes. I DO find different tubes make a difference and it’s most noticeable in soundstage and high end sparkle. I don’t bother with any expensive rare NOS purchases and just seek either reasonably priced new tubes or tested balanced triodes used tubes on eBay. Being a hybrid tube amp it only uses a small percent of the tubes function. I am however eying a TA-26 for my HD-6XX’s. Have you used both SS amps and TA-26?

I have used my FiiO K5 pro ESS and the TA26 and I think they are very similar to each other. The TA26 improves the low end a bit and maybe, just maybe makes everything a little more dynamic. But the changes are so subtle that there is almost no difference if I'm honest.

Also, the TA-26 suffers from potentiometer crackling, an issue nobody talks about in their fancy reviews. I swapped it once for a better potentiometer, soldering and all that, but the issue persists.

I still love this amp, but it sure is not what the reviews say. Tube rolling makes not much difference on the TA-26. Tung-Sol, EH Gold, RCA NOS, Foton 6H8C's from the 60s, JJ 6SN7.. They all sound very similar to each other. The NOS tubes are a little bit less punchy and flatter, but still so close to the rest that any differences are highly debatable.