Novo+HD800 -> Solo?

After a moment of weakness I find myself with the Sennheiser HD800. OK, it's not an impulse buy as such, as I diverted money I'd been saving for new speakers to the Senns instead; with an inquisitive, heavy-handed two-year-old I figured new speakers would be a bad idea. I digress...

I've been using my Novo + Dacmagic + AKG K702 for a while now. I really like the K702 - especially after they opened up once run in - but there is sometimes a "strained" (for want of a better word) sound. A little harsh sometimes, despite the fact that bass had become quite full... not always, and not with all recordings, but whenever I heard it I was left wondering whether there's a good reason the K702(1) is classed as a studio monitor, rather than a "HiFi" headphone. 

So, the HD800 eradicates this totally. It's a similar type of sound to the K702 but much more full and refined. No, I won't hold back - they sound sublime, even with so few hours on them.

The point of the post is this: they sound superb with my (DAK) Novo but good though the Novo clearly is, the Solo amps are obviously better. I've read around here and it seems that both Solo amps are good for the HD800 and that the Solo UL is the better of the two, but my concern is that the Solo UL may be overly warm with the HD800 (although it could improve the sound from the K702). I'm used to the solid state sound of the Novo which seems to be a much better match with the HD800 than with the K702. The Novo with either pair of cans is hugely revealing and I wouldn't want to lose any of that for the sake of extra warmth (which I'd say the K702 may need but the HD800 may not). Is the step up from Novo to Solo a large one, or is the step from Solo to Solo UL larger? 

 

I wonder whether a home trial would help you to assess the benefits of a Solo UL in your setup?

 

If the budget stretches to it, I'd go for the U/L.

 

Let us know what you decide and provide an update if you go for the U/L and how it matches with the HD800s.

 

Cheers,

Marsh