Sennheiser Consumer Audio HDV 820 Reference Headphone Amplifier DAC - ESS 9028PRO Sabre with USB

No other amp could feed the power thirsty Senn HD800S in the way the HDV820 can. I tried a couple in the price range, and this was so far beyond what the others could muster, it’s indescribable. While I know they were built to go alongside the Senn HD820, take my advice and wait for Sennheiser to release the HD820S (which will inevitably come down the pike) because, unfortunately, those cans just aren’t in the same orbit as the HD800S.The DAC and amplifier are amazing. But if you buy this amp and don’t use the balanced outputs, you’ll only be experiencing 60% of what you paid for. In fact, the improvement I personally experienced when I switched out my 6.3 mm unbalanced leads for a balanced XLR4 connect was so dramatic, I almost couldn’t believe it. But after a few hrs on Reditt, I found that almost all owners had the same experience.Lastly, this amplifier has power to spare. One can easily patch in two extra buddies with no audible loss in quality or grunt. It just handles everything you throw at it with a shrug. This amp is worth every dollar, and considering how expensive it is, I don’t say that lightly. Enjoy!PS I don’t work for Sennheiser 😄

Gramophone, the seller was helpful before and after the sale. Albeit on the expensive side , it drives my phones (Sennheiser 800s’) beautifully , improving the overall sound compared to my other phone amps . The high end is remarkable..

I am so angry that I tried to connect it to multiple window computers but I failed.

Hella expensive - but the best headphone amp I have owned - and this is my 4th. The sound is natural and full — just expensive sound but I cannot complain

Went with a refurb unit while evaluating Sennheiser's hd 800 s headphones. Wasn't really a good fit, music did not sound like what it sounded like in other settings, and I wasn't able to make any adjustments (unless I was listening from my computer, but was more interested in listening to discs, so not a good combo). Probably messed up my hearing trying to get things to sound right by turning it louder, but never did. With the refurb unit, ended up with one that had a noisy volume knob (heard swishy noises through the headphones when adjusting the volume).In the end it was RME DAC and Audeze headphones for the win, wish my home theater sounded as good.

Driving the notoriously power hungry HD 820 headphones with ease

Go to device manager, uninstall driver, unplug power and USB, connect USB then the power, install driver again. I was able to make it work this way. Hope it helps.

I have a Cambridge CXA81 for which the USB driver worked instantly with Windows 10 without issue, and it was only $1300. This was $1800, and even that is $600 less than the $2399 I'm still seeing advertised. I bought this for working at my computer, and why would I want to switch to analog for that? HOWEVER, all of that aside, if you've bought this unit, or are still considering buying one, you can still have a digital throughput experience. My machine doesn't come equipped with a TOSLINK 3.5mm, it is just a regular 3.5mm headphone/speaker out. If you have a machine with a TOSLINK 3.5mm, you can buy a small cable on Amazon, TOSLINK 3.5mm to OPT, and connect the Optical end to the HDV. In my case, I bought a small intermediary, the Signstek HiFi Mini USB DAC to Coaxial for $28. Windows immediately recognized the DAC and automatically installed drivers. So, USB to Mini DAC, then Coax or Opt to the Sennheiser HDV (in addition to traditional l/R analog out, the DAC also has digital coax and optical out). I am listening to it right now via this configuration. It took me a year to write this review because that's how long it took me to have the time to figure it out and order the equipment and have it sent to Costa Rica. I think this is why I found my HDV for $1800- the seller knew it couldn't connect to Windows. What you see in the photo is working great, and is digital to digital to digital.