Mainline Madness!!!!

[ALL212]

I've built and listened to the Crack...x3.  The last of which was the Big A.. Crack with mega good components in it.  Love it.

I've built and listened to the S.E.X. with upgrades in it.  Love it.

I was hesitant to invest in the Mainline - I have 3 very good headphone amps - what could possibly get better?

I'm not going to try and go through all the standard lingo to describe this.  It's just better.  It's WOW! better.  It's hair standing up on the back of your neck better.  It's tears in the eye's better. 

And she isn't even broken in yet!

 

[Tom-s]

Really like your build! Attention to detail +1! Never even thought of painting switches. Outstanding work!

 

[Alonzo]

Nice job!!
What is the extra insulation used for? 

 

[ALL212]

One of our kindred did a white base and painted the switches - stole the idea!  :

I've used that sound damping on other kits - it keeps some of the boing out of the chassis when switching switches.  Probably helps keep some of that away from the tubes as well.  It's not proven - it's just me. 

 

[JamieMcC]

Hey congratulations on getting up and running looks great like those little personal touches you have added. Having done modified Crack and Sex myself I totally get where you are coming from with...

“It's WOW! better.  It's hair standing up on the back of your neck better.  It's tears in the eye's better.”

I’ve had my Mainline for just over a year now and every time I get to sit down and listen it still makes me grin from ear to ear.

 

[Tom-s]

I'm still debating with my wallet. For my peace of mind, it can't be that much better..
You guys aren't helping!  ;D

 

[Alonzo]

Thanks!
What power cord is that?

 

[johnsonad]

Nice looking build!

 

[ALL212]

Power cord is a Wireworld Stratus.

 

[ALL212]

I'm still debating with my wallet. For my peace of mind, it can't be that much better..
You guys aren't helping!  ;D

It's what we're here for!  ;D

Let's see...Once upon a time...  It was discovered that I needed glasses back in 4th grade.  I have no idea how long I had been straining to see the board but it was normal for me.  Mrs. Kane (best teacher ever!) noticed and shortly after I gave the eye dr. a small heart attack when he found out how bad my vision really was - again, it was "normal" to me.  I put on glasses and the world came into focus for the first time.

That's kinda like going from Crack to Mainline but probably not quite so drastic.  The music is in focus.  It was good before.  It's better now.

 

[ALL212]

And then I stuck Sennheiser HD800s on it.

Wow...just plain wow...  HD650's are good.  This is a entirely different level. 

The sound on the 800s's is amazingly detailed. I think the sonic spectrum is just flat - they don't sound flat - but the freq response is so balanced that everything comes through, nothing is under amped, nothing is over amped. I don't think these will "blow your skirt up" on first listen but after some time of listening to familiar material you realize what you've been missing.

The fit is strange. It's comfortable but those big deep cups are odd when compared to the other cans I have. Cable is nice, it makes no noise at all when rubbing on clothing. Other cables, those stock and those I've made, you can hear.

What a combo!!

 

[JamieMcC]

welcome to the club.

 

[powermatic]

Great looking build! And I have no doubt that the HD800s are a good match for the Mainline, but their FR is definitely not 'flat'! They have a pretty severe bump at 6k which drives a lot of people nuts. Fixes are available though, look at Super Best Audio Friends for mods. Of course, that's only if you feel that there is anything to 'fix'. ;D

Again, really nice work, have fun!

 

[ALL212]

Great looking build! And I have no doubt that the HD800s are a good match for the Mainline, but their FR is definitely not 'flat'! They have a pretty severe bump at 6k which drives a lot of people nuts. Fixes are available though, look at Super Best Audio Friends for mods. Of course, that's only if you feel that there is anything to 'fix'. ;D

Again, really nice work, have fun!

The "s" model of these has the 6k "damped".  Now whether it's gone or not I would have no idea.

 

[powermatic]

Oh, sorry! I'm used to using 'HD800s' as the plural of 'HD800', and 'HD800S' as the 'S' model. My error, carry on! (-:

 

[ALL212]

No problem...I hadn't looked at it that way at all...dumb way to market a single set of headphones...end it in an "S" but only sell one at a time...  :

Maybe I should email Sennheiser and ask them where the other one is??