HeadAmp GS-1/Sheer Audio HA-006+ comparison

[GPH]

This morning, I received the GS-1 that I bought from veloaudio and since it's a rainy/cloudy day and I had nothing very important to do this afternoon, I decided to do something that I rarely do (because frankly it's a pain in the ass), an amp comparison. I thought it was an interesting comparison to make because the two amps are different implementations of the classic Dynalo design by Kevin Gilmore, but at very different price points. On one side, HeadAmp 899$ GS-1 that's been a respected amp for a few years and on the other side, the Chinese-made HA-006+ that's a newcomer to the market at a very attractive price of 280$.

Features

The HA-006+ has an headphone out, one set of inputs and one set of preamp outs, the GS-1 has the same and adds an extra set of inputs, an extra headphone out, a loop out and a a gain switch. The HA-006+ has a gain of 11 and on the GS-1 you have the choice between 3 and 9. Technically, I'm not sure what are the differences between the two amps, someone more knowledgeable in electronics would have to answer this.

Aesthetically, the GS-1 smokes the HA-006+. The Sheer Audio amp looks like a DIY build while the GS-1 looks professional. Surprisingly, the HA-006+ weights quite a bit more than the GS-1.

Sound

I used my Adcom GDA-600 source to make the comparison. The volume levels were matched with a 0.3mV difference according to my multimeter. I had to swap the RCA cables when I switched amps, which is a less than ideal method, but I didn't have another pair of interconnects unfortunately. I used the JH13 for the test with a few tracks that I know very well, mostly progressive rock and classical.

First thing, the GS-1 is quite a bit more silent than the HA-006+. With the JH13, the background is almost pitch black, while the HA-006 has some low-level noise when there's no music playing. I plugged my KSC-35 for fun and you can't hear noise on any of these amps, but the JH13 are quite sensitive. With that said, it doesn't matter at all when there's music playing, but I like my amps quiet. Also, I thought earlier that the HA-006+ produced some kind of very low hum, but finally it had nothing to do with the amp, it was a ground loop due to who-knows-what in the way my setup was arranged.

I did a lot of back and forth listening of short sequences between the two amps and I have to say they are pretty close. I've never been very good at describing sound, but I'd say the GS-1 has a sound that's just a little more focused than the HA-006+. Same basic sound signature, but it does everything with a bit more confidence and precision. On the other hand, the GS-1 strikes me as a little more polite than the HA-006+, which sounded a tad more open and fun, sacrificing some smoothness at the same time. The two amps are very fine performers with the JH13 and it's nowhere near a black and white comparison, they are small variations on an excellent theme.

In conclusion, I think you can't go wrong with any of these amps. There's an important price difference between the two, but you have to consider the extra features in the GS-1 and the fact that it's built in the USA. The higher noise floor of the HA-006+ probably doesn't matter with regular full-size cans, but for sensitive IEMs, it can be a small annoyance. Hope this comparison will be able to help future buyers because it was damn long to write!

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Edited May 4, 2010 by GPH

[jinp6301]

Thanks for the write up!

[Shahrose]

Just the writeup I was looking for. Thanks.

Could you test the two amps with something more power-hungry, like a full-sized headphone?

Now I'm wondering how the upgraded $450 HA-006++ would compare with the GS-1.

[GPH]

I don't have anything decent except for the JH13 right now and I have no plans to buy full-size cans in the near future. From what I understand, the HA-006++ big feature is upgraded caps, you have to ask yourself if it's worth the price for you.

[Shahrose]

I don't have anything decent except for the JH13 right now and I have no plans to buy full-size cans in the near future. From what I understand, the HA-006++ big feature is upgraded caps, you have to ask yourself if it's worth the price for you.

Your KSC-75s would suffice for the comparison

[K3cT]

Thanks for the comparison, GPH. It's something that many people are curious about I suppose. I initially considered the upgraded HA-006 but decided to build myself a nice β22.

[MASantos]

I don't have anything decent except for the JH13 right now and I have no plans to buy full-size cans in the near future. From what I understand, the HA-006++ big feature is upgraded caps, you have to ask yourself if it's worth the price for you.

According the the manf. website it uses a stepped attenuator (which looks exactly like a 10$ 21 position stepped att. sold on ebay by a chinese company), better input and output connectors, upgraded transformer, pcb and better parts al around. All this together could prove a good upgrade from a technical POV.

[K3cT]

I've never tried that $10 stepper before but the ones from VALAB are quite a pain to turn. It's a good exercise for your fingers I suppose.

[MASantos]

I've never tried that $10 stepper before but the ones from VALAB are quite a pain to turn. It's a good exercise for your fingers I suppose.

That only really depends on the size of the knob! The bigger the knob, the easier it is!

[K3cT]

That only really depends on the size of the knob! The bigger the knob, the easier it is!

Whoa, I wonder how big of a knob we need then to make operation a walk in the park.

[kirkwall]

I've got one of these on the way (HA-006). Hoping it'll work as a placeholder for the HD800s until my kids get their lucrative pro athlete careers up and running. Thanks for taking the time to write this up.

k

[postjack]

thanks for the write up, very interesting read.

[LarsMarkelson]

I've never tried that $10 stepper before but the ones from VALAB are quite a pain to turn. It's a good exercise for your fingers I suppose.

Can't confirm which stepper it is on the HA-006++ but it definitely is not hard to turn at all.

[K3cT]

Nah, that's not the one. It looks different.

[hpz]

Hi there,

I've just received a GS-1 from the latest shipment. I too am using the GS-1 with my JH13s and paired with my benchmark dac1(supposed bright dac) i'm finding sound to be overly bassy and lacking mid and high end definition. This is compared to what i'm use to out of my iphone 3g. The bass almost too strong and a tad bloated and it intrudes into the mids, making them slightly veiled...

If you have an iphone could you chime on if it sounds tonally different when compared to your home setup ?

I've waited 6 months for it to finally arrive and now i'm sorely disappointed :S

While the sound of my iphone doesn't have a large soundstage or micro detail as my home setup... it definitely has a tonally more balanced sound and as of now i prefer the sound from my iphone 3g.

[episiarch]

Welcome, hpz. What you're describing doesn't sound like any GS-1 I've ever heard. Lack of mid and high end definition is absolutely, positively not something I would associate with this amp, nor is bloated bass.

Something is badly off somewhere, and I would tend to put the GS-1 really low on the list of possible suspects.

How does the JH13 sound plugged straight into the headphone-out of the DAC1?

What are you using to cable the DAC to the GS-1? You don't need a crazily expensive cable here, but you're not using something horrendously bad, are you?

[hpz]

I can't really use the DAC1 headphone out as the gain is too high and there are large channel imbalances at the start of the volume pot. I'm using a good solid silver DIY interconnect (again another item that should make it brighter).

I'm really quite at a loss as to why its sounds soo over the top with bass. I 've been trying a pair of k702s and they sound absolutely wonderful. My JH13s on the other hand are muddy is comparison The treble is recessed and mids are just veiled... my iphone does a better job at rendering the mids.

I'm letting it burn in... but i highly doubt it will change very much

[episiarch]

If your rig is driving a K702 nicely but your JH13 badly and that same JH13 sounds good out of a phone, then I am out of ideas unless something unbelievably funky has happened to your 1/4" adaptor. Hopefully somebody else will have a clue.

[episiarch]

Actually, yeah, just for the sake of completeness, see if you can scare up a different 1/4" adaptor and try it out. It was a long time ago, but I can remember at least once I've had some kind of dimension mismatch in one of those things that resulted in badly borked-up signals.

[hpz]

Tried a 2nd adapter still the same lol... i'll keep trying different things though...

[justin]

email isnt working but yes the low gain is 1. i do this on all GS-1s now since IEMs have become popular.

[Shahrose]

Sounds like you just prefer the K702 sound signature over the JH13.