Headphone crew

[Macc]

it doesn't have to match exactly; it needs to be able to drive cans of a certain impedance. the arietta handles the 300 ohm hd600 easily

as i think i said at the time, i checked the rme headphone out (75 ohms) against the arietta for about half an hour. the rme sounded a bit grainy, *kind* of like driving a cheap desk, like it was working hard. the arietta sounded like it was a piece of piss, and in order to match the levels the arietta needed to be turned low.

the arietta was also a tiny tiny tiny smidge warm - and possibly may have warmed up a little more as i've broken it in - but smoooooooth.

as things stand now though, i am getting very close to knowing when things sound right with the 600/arietta without references. not quite there yet, but it is simply and unavoidably a matter of time. but yeah, the score is that when things sound big, warm, fat, clear, open in the mids and very smooth and relaxed at the top, you have a good mix.

initially - after almost 10 years on 270's!! - the warmth was the biggest 'problem', then the tops - i was used to hearing way less low mids and way more tops. now (thanks nic) i am really starting to adjust, and the along with the crossfeed, the sky is the limit...

i never thought i'd say it, but i wouldn't go back to 270/280's for critical tasks now. the 600's are fucking amazing.