Best solid state headphone amp under $1000

LLANO S-200 , very dynamic , loads of power , 2 Ohm stable , Tube like mid and highs. very simple two stage gain topology.

Blue Circle, hands down, the best solid state amp I have heard below $1000 and I have heard many of them. It is slightly warm and euphonic sounding but has great bass and wonderful left/right imaging. I would definitely go for the version with the high/low impedance switch.

I would avoid Rudistor...was not impressed at a meet by the sound given the price and have read a number of complaints about poor build quality.

Headamp makes great amps, but they subscribe to the straight wire with gain design approach. Not my cup of tea.

Mcondoon: Which others have you compared the BC amp to? Based on what I've read so far, I've been leaning towards either Blue Circle or Headamp

I have compared it to a Woo WA22 and a Singlepower PPX. As a headphone amp, it is the closest you can get to a tube-like sound but with terrific bass and phenomenal left/right imaging. I think it sounds almost as good as the Woo, which was a lot more expensive.

I listened to the Rudistor and the Headamp at a meet. The Rudistor did not impress at all. The Headamp sounded good but a little dry for my tastes. I don't think you would be unhappy with Headamp. I have not heard the Violectric, etc. If you are thinking of spending $1000 on a headphone amp, I would go with tubes, no questions asked.

I think the Blue Circle sonically is a great amp for the money. It makes music. Some solid state amps I have heard don't. But the Blue Circle is a strange looking amp. The money was put into the circuit design, not a glossy chassis. But I remember the days when visibly beautiful Singlepower amps were all the rage and have learned from my experience with Singlepower that beauty is sometimes only skin deep.

Leaning towards either the headamp, BC thingee, or musical fidelity right now. Has anyone compared these to the Channel island VHP-2, would any of these be a significant step up from it?

Also has anyone ever tried the M^3 or Beta 22 amps? I'm hearing a lot about them over at head-fi, and was wondering if anyone here has any experience with them.