What are your thoughts and impressions of the WA7 Fireflies Gen 3 DAC/Amp? What kinds of headphones do you think it would pair best with and what would you says are its biggest pros and cons?
Found this old post of yours while looking this up as well. I demoed the Wa7, but only had time to try the HD800s on it in a quiet room and AB it a bit with some other gear. It seemed to do better than my home gear with the headphone, the bass was punchier, and smooth all round. To be honest I don’t trust myself, but what I think I was really hearing was enough power for the headphone and perhaps a smoother treble, or rolled off treble. It was good enough that I am glad I left my credit cards at home, in my country the Wa7 is almost 1800$. Still can’t decide between this, or maybe the IFI neo 2 coming out soon.
I think I’ve decided that until I can hear the two headphones I am trying to decide between (he1000 stealth & Arya organic) and potentially the Amp/DAC I am thinking of getting (schiit bifrost 2/64 & soloist 3xp) I’m buying nothing. The hardest thing about this is knowing whether this amp/DAC will cut down on the brightness of either headphones enough to not be fatiguing for long listening sessions. The he1K is more resolving but said to show more deficiencies in signal chain. While the Arya organic is even brighter but sounds like it would be more fun to listen to. It’s also said to be less amp picky. It’s hard to know what’s “good enough” for the headphones I want. Even after reading and watching all the reviews I can find on them, I won’t be able to tell anything until I can try them out in person. And whose to say I’ll even be able to try that amp/DAC combo with either of those headphones at a convention when they come back in town.
Howdy!
I love the HD800S and Focal Clear OG with the WA7, especially with the right tubes (e.g., Amperex 12au7 Orange Globe).
That’s one thing I noticed about this amp: having multiple pairs of tubes will increase the chances of you finding that “hoooooly cow” type of synergy with your headphones.
Best pairing I’ve experienced thus far is hands down the Abyss Diana V2.
If you’re leaning towards the Arya, I’ve stumbled on comments on Head-Fi about the WA7 pairing nicely with it.
Do you know if this is a good choice for Fostex 909? I am tempted by a 909 and a WA7
Yea the brightness of the Arya Organic makes me pause as well. Best to try them out if possible.
@CantAffordThisHobby
I know even the Abyss people like the pairing, but then again Woo and Abyss like a lot of each other’s gear so I wonder how much it really applies. The tubes of Woo products may simply be smoothing over the issues with many headphones. I know that they smoothed out my 800s so that I didn’t even feel the need for EQ like on my actual setup at home, so there is that.