Nice amp, congrats! I haven't messed with Burson since the old days, back when they were all the rage from the 6moons rave reviews. Interesting that they switched their approach from "all discrete, always linear power supplies" to "opamps and switching PSUs", but they seem to have their own approach to both of those things so maybe it really is for the better.
Burson Soloist Stellar
I have read often in this forum (especially from @ghdprentice) the importance of a dedicated headphone amp that is technically compatible with the requirements of, and synergistic with both the sound of the brand of headphones and personal taste. Once achieved, I have read headphones can produce musical bliss equivalent to or surpassing a speaker based system. For 50 years, I have not listened to the expert opinions published here, driving my headphones from either my integrated amp or DAC output. This was a now admitted error, especially since my headphones are the notoriously hard to drive HiFiMan HE6SE V2 (requires a minimum of 5W to 8W output at 50ohms) which are also notorious for their poor cosmetics, ergonomics and build quality. However, they have one of the most balanced frequency responses and musicality from all other performance perspectives that draw me into the performance. So I set my goal on a dedicated headphone amp. The HE6 power requirements ruled out many good headphone amps. Alas the much recommended Woo Audio models meeting the power requirements were too rich for my blood, so after much research I settled on the new Burson Soloist Stellar Deluxe. I now understand my mistake of being a nonbeliever all of these years. The Burson has taken a grip of my HE6 that has allowed the music to flow with density and liquidity, timbre and tonality, with dynamic ebbs and tides and detail retrieval equivalent to my main system, and I am currently using a 1990 technology interconnect with the Burson not burned in yet. Sound quality will only improve when these items are addressed. The new Stellar is a gorgeous industrial design in dark silver with gold controls, and is solid and heavy. I want to thank all members who have stated the benefits of a well designed and matched headphone amp.
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- 2 posts total
- 2 posts total

