The Big Rig
Member
They are awesome, and they look absolutely ridiculous.Gila said:
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$500 cans on, this is how you dream right - Official Headphone Thread
- Thread starter HiResDes
- Start date
So, seeing as I've had each of these for... wow, about a year, I figured it was high time I contributed here.
PC headphones:
Audio-Technica ATH-AD700
You all know these: open, crazy comfy (if a little warm at times), a slight lack of bass, but phenomenal sound for your dollar.
IEMs:
Ultimate Ears triple.fi 10
Picked up during Amazon's 2010 Black Friday sale for $99ish, and I haven't looked back. Amazing sound, but I've noticed that the foam tips (my favorite) degrade over time. Unfortunately.
No amps, DACs, or other similar electronic accessories in any of my setups at this point, though that could absolutely change. Still, thoughts from anybody on these? I feel like the next tier of headphones starts dealing with rapidly diminishing returns (especially for the money that'd be involved), though I'd love to be proven wrong.
PC headphones:
Audio-Technica ATH-AD700
You all know these: open, crazy comfy (if a little warm at times), a slight lack of bass, but phenomenal sound for your dollar.
IEMs:
Ultimate Ears triple.fi 10
Picked up during Amazon's 2010 Black Friday sale for $99ish, and I haven't looked back. Amazing sound, but I've noticed that the foam tips (my favorite) degrade over time. Unfortunately.
No amps, DACs, or other similar electronic accessories in any of my setups at this point, though that could absolutely change. Still, thoughts from anybody on these? I feel like the next tier of headphones starts dealing with rapidly diminishing returns (especially for the money that'd be involved), though I'd love to be proven wrong.
adg1034 said:
You aren't wrong. You got a $300 pair of IEM's for $100, so any extra money spent there is going to be an extreme case of diminishing returns. There is still some room to improve in terms of headphones before hitting the wall though (a pair of K701's, HD650's, DT880's, etc, with an amp).
I really hope that sale happens again this year. Reshelling is only $100 or so, and I'd love a custom pair of triple armature IEM's for $200.
(Also, I think you can buy replacement foamies. They're kind of expensive, but so much more comfortable than any silicone tips)
Oh, that looks nice and is really inexpensive plus easy to drive. Perfect for what charlequin wants.Geneijin said:
People who suggest PortaPro or MEelectronic HT-21, what? 30 hours a week with on-ears which both have a small and thin, unpadded headband to boot? Seriously guys :-\
How was the DAC fed?ElyrionX said:
Just bought the Sennheiser HD650s and am looking for an appropriate USB DAC/Headphone Amp for use at work.
I would like to spend $250 or less and would prefer it to be small as it has to fit on my office desk (and I don't want to look like a pretentious dbag).
I have the nuForce headphone amp/dac that was recommended by the OP but now am looking for more of an upgrade.
I would like to spend $250 or less and would prefer it to be small as it has to fit on my office desk (and I don't want to look like a pretentious dbag).
I have the nuForce headphone amp/dac that was recommended by the OP but now am looking for more of an upgrade.
That is sound advice, unfortunately, I bought this which has no outputs other than the headphone jack.
Ken Masters
Banned
I want to get my brother 7.1 surround sound wireless headphones (for PS3 blu-ray/movie usage mainly). Any recommendation for around $200 price range?
Not really, most here only dabble in stereo.Ken Masters said:
The problem with 7.1 surround sound is that it is either achieved with a mixamp, which can be gotten seperate from the phones. Or you get "real" 7.1 phones with mini drivers which have bad sound quality.
Just saying in case you won't get any advice in the next two case, that is the reason.
The Big Rig
Member
Converting from an mp3 won't make it any better. You need the raw audio file to properly convert.Gila said:
The Big Rig said:
Right. Once music is MP3, he'd have to re-rip it to increase the quality. Honestly, as long as he didn't rip his MP3's into something ridiculous like 128kbps, he probably won't notice the difference.
If he bought the music digitally, there's nothing he can do.
Anonymous Tipster
Member
Someone suggested these ear buds in another thread and they had pretty solid reviews. Does anyone have any thoughts about them?
Bose IE2 Audio Headphones
I'm looking for some nice ear buds at a price tag lower than $100.
Bose IE2 Audio Headphones
I'm looking for some nice ear buds at a price tag lower than $100.
No, those are okay, but not worth the price...These are thoughAnonymous Tipster said:
He said they had to be super comfy because he'll be wearing them for 30 hours a week at work.
Stuff like the PortaPro or MEelectronic are nice portables but not that kind of headphone.
The Fischer Audio, same thing. Headband looks okay but not up there with the AKG, AudioTechnica or Samson. Plus it's closed and charlequin wanted a phone that does not block out the outside noise.
Stuff like the PortaPro or MEelectronic are nice portables but not that kind of headphone.
The Fischer Audio, same thing. Headband looks okay but not up there with the AKG, AudioTechnica or Samson. Plus it's closed and charlequin wanted a phone that does not block out the outside noise.
PflargBlarg
Member
Ken Masters said:
Just don't.
Surround sound headphones are a scam. You've got 4 drivers in each ear supposedly giving you positional audio. The idea of drivers giving you positional audio when they're maybe a cm away from each other is just silly. They'll also be of lower quality than real headphones. A good set of stereo headphones will sound way better and give you excellent positional audio. Especially if you turn on whatever 3d positioning options your sound card may have.
I bought the Sennheiser CX 980 and I hate them. I lost my Klipsch S4, and was at Abu Dhabi and couldn't find anything Klipsch, and didn't wanna settle with something boring, so I bought this. It's overpriced there, but I thought it would set me good. Guess not. My main gripe is that the foam doesn't stick to my ear as good as Klipsch's. (I tried Klipsch's foam with the CX, ended up losing the foam INSIDE MY EAR. While I was abroad. Alone.)
I tried searching for alternative foams but found nothing. I want the drill-like that Klipsch and Beats headphones ship with.
If there's not any, I'd highly appreciate anyone instructing me how to wear those without getting the "loose" feel every now and then. I'm really really sad.
I tried searching for alternative foams but found nothing. I want the drill-like that Klipsch and Beats headphones ship with.
If there's not any, I'd highly appreciate anyone instructing me how to wear those without getting the "loose" feel every now and then. I'm really really sad.
Witchfinder General
punched Wheelchair Mike
I posted this in the November Pick-up thread so forgive the repost.
Listening to it now and they sound great both through my Sennheiser HD800 and my speakers. Not sure how long they'll take to run in or whether they need to at all.
Witchfinder General said:My valves finally arrived for my preamp!
2 x Sophia Princess Carbon 300B valves
2 x Sophia Princess Grade "A" 6SL7 valves
Not cheap but worth every cent.
Listening to it now and they sound great both through my Sennheiser HD800 and my speakers. Not sure how long they'll take to run in or whether they need to at all.
I got my Sennheiser 598s in the mail today, and I'm.... actually not sure what I should be thinking.
They seemed utterly perfect; the large soundstage that only open cans can offer appeals to me, they're one of those "every kind of music" kind of headphones that don't really excel or fail at anything (I can go from classical to punk in half an hour, this is crucial), and the price was fairly amazing @ amazon ($173.)
I needed a new pair of phones to be able to accurately play back recordings of my voice - I'm doing recording/vocal classes as electives for a music minor - and they're perfect for that kind of thing. They're what I needed to be able to figure out where the imperfections in my recordings were, where I was too loud, etc.
However, I'm not certain I like them for everyday music.
My current pair of headphones is a year-old well loved pair of (real, not the fake $22 garbage from 3rd-party amazon sellers) Sennheiser CX-500Bs.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000VRBLMS/?tag=neogaf0e-20
They sound amazing to me, utterly immersive in games, and for music, some of my favorite tracks sound damn near orgasmic. I'm amazed at the boldness of some of the sounds that come out of those little buds, especially on a source as crappy as an iPod/iPad.
So I get my sennies, and I need to turn my iPod up almost all the way to be able to feel the same bold, clear sounds the CX-500s produce. It's kind of difficult to explain I guess, but the HD598s feel.... weak in comparison. =\
I'm definitely picking up sounds I couldn't on any pair of headphones I've ever owned in the past, as well as imperfections in recordings when I was running the HD598s through an M-Audio USB soundcard on my PC. I just.... don't really WANT to hear the imperfections, I guess. I want to listen to the music and feel the duende of the notes (I don't know an english word for duende, please tell me if there is one.)
ALSO!
I listen to a shitton of my music on spotify, and I do NOT pirate music. Spotify is a godsend to me, and I'm a paid subcriber @ $15 a month, during which I probably listen to 50 albums in their entirety. Now I feel like spotify's low (320kbps MAX which I can't always achieve over 3G) quality streamed MP3s played through an iPod are utterly terrible, I can hear minor distortion and imperfections on the highend of them a lot of the time, and they were my main source of music! I'm not going to go out and buy every CD I listen to on spotify and rip them at full quality just so I can enjoy them fully in a quality better than my CX-500s.
i duno ._. Should I return them, break them in, figure out a solution to make my spotify files sound better, or what...?
EDIT: @320kbps streaming, spotify sounds amazing. It rarely achieves this, and it's painfully obvious to anyone with a trained ear, which I'm cursed with as a musician =\
They seemed utterly perfect; the large soundstage that only open cans can offer appeals to me, they're one of those "every kind of music" kind of headphones that don't really excel or fail at anything (I can go from classical to punk in half an hour, this is crucial), and the price was fairly amazing @ amazon ($173.)
I needed a new pair of phones to be able to accurately play back recordings of my voice - I'm doing recording/vocal classes as electives for a music minor - and they're perfect for that kind of thing. They're what I needed to be able to figure out where the imperfections in my recordings were, where I was too loud, etc.
However, I'm not certain I like them for everyday music.
My current pair of headphones is a year-old well loved pair of (real, not the fake $22 garbage from 3rd-party amazon sellers) Sennheiser CX-500Bs.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000VRBLMS/?tag=neogaf0e-20
They sound amazing to me, utterly immersive in games, and for music, some of my favorite tracks sound damn near orgasmic. I'm amazed at the boldness of some of the sounds that come out of those little buds, especially on a source as crappy as an iPod/iPad.
So I get my sennies, and I need to turn my iPod up almost all the way to be able to feel the same bold, clear sounds the CX-500s produce. It's kind of difficult to explain I guess, but the HD598s feel.... weak in comparison. =\
I'm definitely picking up sounds I couldn't on any pair of headphones I've ever owned in the past, as well as imperfections in recordings when I was running the HD598s through an M-Audio USB soundcard on my PC. I just.... don't really WANT to hear the imperfections, I guess. I want to listen to the music and feel the duende of the notes (I don't know an english word for duende, please tell me if there is one.)
ALSO!
I listen to a shitton of my music on spotify, and I do NOT pirate music. Spotify is a godsend to me, and I'm a paid subcriber @ $15 a month, during which I probably listen to 50 albums in their entirety. Now I feel like spotify's low (320kbps MAX which I can't always achieve over 3G) quality streamed MP3s played through an iPod are utterly terrible, I can hear minor distortion and imperfections on the highend of them a lot of the time, and they were my main source of music! I'm not going to go out and buy every CD I listen to on spotify and rip them at full quality just so I can enjoy them fully in a quality better than my CX-500s.
i duno ._. Should I return them, break them in, figure out a solution to make my spotify files sound better, or what...?
EDIT: @320kbps streaming, spotify sounds amazing. It rarely achieves this, and it's painfully obvious to anyone with a trained ear, which I'm cursed with as a musician =\
Lucario said:
An amp would help, but you are right in thinking that an amp shouldn't be necessary. Since you tried it with a more robust source and still didn't like them, I'm guessing you just don't like the sound signature. If you don't want to reveal the imperfections in your music, this is not the hobby for you. Each step you go up in quality is generally going to be a bit more revealing than the last. My K701's are brutal on music that is low bitrate, or else recorded poorly.
What don't you like about the headphones specifically? I've always had a problem with the 555's (modded to 595's, likely very very similar to the 598's) when it comes to things like cymbals (which sound very dull and fake on the 555's). Something about the 5xx series of Senn's has always been just a little bit off to me, although they're extremely comfortable and good for a lot of things.
As far as sending them back goes...yeah, I guess, if Amazon doesn't mind you sending in a used pair of headphones. Try a better source first though.
okay I'm stupid.
There's an issue with my M-Audio that's causing distortion and other issues - wasn't "new imperfections", it was a broken sound card. Also, the FLACs I listened to line-in through my computer were from the new They Might be Giants rarities album. There's plenty of annoying, subtle distortion in even the cleaner songs on this album.
Listening to records/acoustic music sounds good, if not great. Amazing?
....no. Just strikingly accurate.
These now compare incredibly favorably to my slightly muffled-sounding earbuds. I guess I just expected more "HOLY CRAP THIS SOUNDS GOOD" for the amount I was spending, but since I'm using them for two things, I'm satisfied with a noticeable (but not night and day like, say, skullcandies to the sennheiser earbuds) improvement over my earbuds.
Also, it sounds fairly incredible line-in to my record player. I need to clean my records so there's less popping, but wow, this is about as crisp as it gets....
I'll try skyrim next.
There's an issue with my M-Audio that's causing distortion and other issues - wasn't "new imperfections", it was a broken sound card. Also, the FLACs I listened to line-in through my computer were from the new They Might be Giants rarities album. There's plenty of annoying, subtle distortion in even the cleaner songs on this album.
Listening to records/acoustic music sounds good, if not great. Amazing?
....no. Just strikingly accurate.
These now compare incredibly favorably to my slightly muffled-sounding earbuds. I guess I just expected more "HOLY CRAP THIS SOUNDS GOOD" for the amount I was spending, but since I'm using them for two things, I'm satisfied with a noticeable (but not night and day like, say, skullcandies to the sennheiser earbuds) improvement over my earbuds.
Also, it sounds fairly incredible line-in to my record player. I need to clean my records so there's less popping, but wow, this is about as crisp as it gets....
I'll try skyrim next.
My brain hurts. I've been reading some threads because I'm researching the best setup for my dad's up and coming computer audiophile system, and I came upon some posts by a "professional sound engineer" from BlueCoast Audio. In support of his claim that WAV is superior to FLAC, he claims e-mailing digital files degrades them slightly. Golden ears, I swear. My brain hurts so much.
Some audiophiles...I swear.
Some audiophiles...I swear.
close to the edge
Member
Hello headphone-GAF. My trusty Sennheiser HD 555's seem to have broken yesterday after I dropped them on the floor (one side is noticeably louder that the other), I thought that maybe just one of the cables inside got loose, but after disassembling them and checking, nothing changed.
Considering that I usually listen to music on my PC or my cellphone, would it make sense to get better headphones (than the 555's) or would you not notice the difference without an amplifier? If yes, what kind of amplifier would you need?
I definitely want open headphones again (they are so much more comfortable), and I don't think I'd want to spend more than ~200 on them.
Considering that I usually listen to music on my PC or my cellphone, would it make sense to get better headphones (than the 555's) or would you not notice the difference without an amplifier? If yes, what kind of amplifier would you need?
I definitely want open headphones again (they are so much more comfortable), and I don't think I'd want to spend more than ~200 on them.
Hahaha, some people.TheExodu5 said:
ALso, have you seen this?
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001OFYZD8/?tag=neogaf0e-20
M-Audio Studiophile DSM1 monitors end of life sales, down from $1300 the pair to $400.
I know, looks typical Studio Monitor ugly but will sound oh so good.
No, I mean which program, did you use ASIO/WASAPI?ElyrionX said:
RE: This post:
I'm still considering the PC360 to use for music, skype and gaming, but I'm very tempted to get dedicated headphones instead and stick to my existing sennheiser pc151 headset for when I'm on Skype.
What this really depends on is the PC360 performance versus, say, the HD558s. Does anyone in here own both and have some comparisons to make? I've heard mixed thoughts on how similar they are and this would definitely influence my purchasing decision.
I have now ordered a FiiO E7 for my laptop. You win headphone GAF! Now I just have to make the headphone choice...Stubo said:
I'm still considering the PC360 to use for music, skype and gaming, but I'm very tempted to get dedicated headphones instead and stick to my existing sennheiser pc151 headset for when I'm on Skype.
What this really depends on is the PC360 performance versus, say, the HD558s. Does anyone in here own both and have some comparisons to make? I've heard mixed thoughts on how similar they are and this would definitely influence my purchasing decision.
A couple of months ago i asked about recommendations for IEM's with mic (for iphone) at around $100. MEElectronics CC51P was recommended.
I never got around buying them cause i temporarily fixed my old ones but they seem to be dead now.
Are the MEElectronics CC51P still recommended? I was thinking maybe upping the price tag to $150.
Thanks!
I never got around buying them cause i temporarily fixed my old ones but they seem to be dead now.
Are the MEElectronics CC51P still recommended? I was thinking maybe upping the price tag to $150.
Thanks!
Laptop most of the time, but probably also my phone (which I use in place of an mp3 player).K.Jack said:
I've found the E10 for £59, I paid £38 for the E7. Hopefully this will turn out to be a great deal! Is the E10 a better DAC in general? You've made me doubt if I've made the right decision now, haha.
hi guys im not sure if i am going to get in trouble but i posted this in the gaming 5.1 headphone thread.....so i am going to re-post it here:
so headphone gaf im confused about whats a better purchase, going by what people are saying here this is what i have come up with
Sennheiser HD558 + mixamp pro
Audio Technica ATH-AD700 + mixamp pro
astro a40+ mixamp pro
i also have the turtlebeach DSS so if i dont need the mixamp then thats a plus, i am having a hard time really picking one out of these 3, but based off looks alone i like the black and white of the astro a40 as it will match with my pc case lol.
again thanks to all!
i feel stupid posting here with the shit thats in here lol. if only i had all the money in the world.
so headphone gaf im confused about whats a better purchase, going by what people are saying here this is what i have come up with
Sennheiser HD558 + mixamp pro
Audio Technica ATH-AD700 + mixamp pro
astro a40+ mixamp pro
i also have the turtlebeach DSS so if i dont need the mixamp then thats a plus, i am having a hard time really picking one out of these 3, but based off looks alone i like the black and white of the astro a40 as it will match with my pc case lol.
again thanks to all!
i feel stupid posting here with the shit thats in here lol. if only i had all the money in the world.
Man, my klipsch s4's bit the dust it seems. I think I'm going to buy the Meelectronics m6. I beat the shit out of my earphones, usually because they are mostly used in the gym. I figure I'll take a little dip in quality, but for 20 bucks I won't really care so much if they stop working in a year.
Basically iTunes uses Dsound as interface, which softens the whole output quite a bit. Maybe try setting up your playback with foobar, there's a WASAPI plugin for that. The windows sound slider shouldn't have any effect anymore when set up correctly.ElyrionX said:
What it does is bypassing the internal Windows mixer which is of pretty mediocre fidelity.
Alternatively, I use XBMC when I set my PC up as streamer, works well with WASAPI too. The alternative is selecting ASIO when installed for you card and supported by the programm but that's even more rare than WASAPI.
I have AKG 242HD's. They're only stereo and when I switch to 5.1 in the realtek options it actually cuts out the center, and back left and right sounds leaving only front left and right speakers. Is there a way to fix that? I know it's stereo but my old headphones worked ok with 5.1 settings, probably just "virtual" surround sounding but still. Or can I get an amp that'll allow 5.1 on those headphones?
I'm not sure what this means. Are you saying that iTunes does not output lossless too well to my DAC?
close to the edge
Member
So, after reading the OP, I realized that most of my questions were answered in the OP (and some googling for reviews other than Amazon user reviews). So, I ordered an AKG K601 and a Fiio E9. I heard a lot about the AKG's being very linear and analytical, which lends itself well to Classical music and Jazz, which is ideal for me.
PflargBlarg
Member
foobar has a plugin for ASIO support and installing ASIO4ALL will allow you to use it with any sound card. Feels good man.
MutantCyborg
Member
I'm looking for a decent pair of earphones (pref IEM) that are good for bass heavy music and also are low-profile if possible (I listen to a lot of music laying down). A friend recommended the Sennheiser CX300B MK II but I thought I would ask here before I pick anything up. I cannot justify spending more than $30 on a pair so I understand my choices are limited, but any help would be appreciated.
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