The Pioneer HRM-7 look pretty interesting, seems to be a replacement for the HDJ-2000
Review on headfi
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Review on headfi
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The Official Headphone Thread 2.5: We're Making WAVs and Catching FLAC
- Thread starter HiResDes
- Start date
Stax has excellent quality
. But yeah, wasn't the HE1000 supposed to launch at $2000 but then MoonAudio randomly set a pre-order price at $3000 and they just roll with that instead?
Even at $2000, it's still overpriced as it doesn't really sound that special compared to HD800 or the Audezes.
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
Stax headphones that aren't the omega looks pretty horrendous though.
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
My current favorite lookswise is the audio technica r70x.
Just shows the beauty of a purely utilitarian design.
Just shows the beauty of a purely utilitarian design.
The Stax SR-X MK3 looks great for something developed in 1975. Doesn't look old at all. The SR-5 released at the same time is a plastic mess in comparison.
As for the Lambda, it's the biggest 'how can something that looks that awful sound so good' I can think of. The reactions to it visually then when people hear them is always priceless.
As for the Lambda, it's the biggest 'how can something that looks that awful sound so good' I can think of. The reactions to it visually then when people hear them is always priceless.
Back into the headphone thing after a few years away from it all. Ordered some Phillips X2s for multipurpose Desktop listening and PC gaming use. Very excited to check them out.
When I bought my Grado 225s 5+ years ago I feel like there were between 0 and 2 options for affordable compact headphone amps. I'm trying to find the name of this thing, but I think it was hand assembled in a plastic case by a Canadian fellow for ~$100 at the time. I see so many beautifully sleek and affordable options now all over Amazon.
My understanding is that the Xonar DG in my PC is a competent amp/dac the X2s for the time being. Is that accurate?
When I bought my Grado 225s 5+ years ago I feel like there were between 0 and 2 options for affordable compact headphone amps. I'm trying to find the name of this thing, but I think it was hand assembled in a plastic case by a Canadian fellow for ~$100 at the time. I see so many beautifully sleek and affordable options now all over Amazon.
My understanding is that the Xonar DG in my PC is a competent amp/dac the X2s for the time being. Is that accurate?
Through work, I was gifted a pair of LSTN Fillmore Headphones.
I have an older pair (Sony MDR V600) that have served me well, but was considering picking up something nicer. Quality-wise, might anyone have any thoughts on comparing the two? Right now I'm considering replacing the earpads on Sony pair, and selling the LSTN, which will in part fund a new purchase.
***The LSTN was gifted to me today, so I won't even have a chance to try them out until next week at the earliest. Their primary use will be on a digital piano.
I have an older pair (Sony MDR V600) that have served me well, but was considering picking up something nicer. Quality-wise, might anyone have any thoughts on comparing the two? Right now I'm considering replacing the earpads on Sony pair, and selling the LSTN, which will in part fund a new purchase.
***The LSTN was gifted to me today, so I won't even have a chance to try them out until next week at the earliest. Their primary use will be on a digital piano.
Anyone know how these fare in relation to Sennheiser Momentum IEMs, or something in that price range? I've always been kinda suspicious of bluetooth headphone quality..
No one wants to make a blind buy, but someone has to be a Guinea pig for the benefit of others.
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
So my asg 2.5 developed channel imbalance, and it basically sounded like the bass driver died, which is a super bummer. The local dealer I bought it from, addicted to audio, was awesome and just immediately swapped with another one. Which is why I much prefer dealing with local dealers. Also the new ones immediately sounded the exact same as I remembered it so yeah, burn in eh?
Also had more time to audition more headphones. The angies do sound pretty awesome, but I dunno if I'd call it a definite upgrade over the asg 2.5. It has slightly more clarity seeing that the bass is more subdued, though it is very good quality bass, but there's a rawness to it compared to the smoothness of the asg 2.5, and it's probably because I'm more used to the sound of the asg but I do prefer its smoothness for now. Also the asg 2.5 does vocals better I feel, plus dat bass.
Also played around with the final audio design piano forte. When I tested it with Elton John's rocket man it sounds amazing. When I tested it with literally any other song it sounded absolutely terrible. So yeah, unless all you listen to are mid centric songs they're kinda eeeeeh. Looks beautiful though.
Also played around with the ak380 and I just don't see the point. Didn't really sound better than my fiio x3 when I was testing the angies with both. Super clunky too. The ui is better though, but not multiple thousands of dollars better.
Also had more time to audition more headphones. The angies do sound pretty awesome, but I dunno if I'd call it a definite upgrade over the asg 2.5. It has slightly more clarity seeing that the bass is more subdued, though it is very good quality bass, but there's a rawness to it compared to the smoothness of the asg 2.5, and it's probably because I'm more used to the sound of the asg but I do prefer its smoothness for now. Also the asg 2.5 does vocals better I feel, plus dat bass.
Also played around with the final audio design piano forte. When I tested it with Elton John's rocket man it sounds amazing. When I tested it with literally any other song it sounded absolutely terrible. So yeah, unless all you listen to are mid centric songs they're kinda eeeeeh. Looks beautiful though.
Also played around with the ak380 and I just don't see the point. Didn't really sound better than my fiio x3 when I was testing the angies with both. Super clunky too. The ui is better though, but not multiple thousands of dollars better.
The Lamonster
Member
Thoughts on pairing the Fidelio X2 with the new Aune X1S dac/amp?
specs on the Amazon listing: http://amzn.com/B014FBZCCA
specs on the Amazon listing: http://amzn.com/B014FBZCCA
The Lamonster
Member
So you still think I should be looking at something portable like the Schiit Fulla?
I just wouldn't be spending that much money unless you plan on upgrading to a high impedance headphone soon. They don't need much power at all. You might even be happy with just like a lil hifimediy.
JustHadToJoin
Member
Read through the OP, can anyone recommend any decent on ear/over the ear bluetooth gym headphones that are <$100? I really don't care for anything spectacular, maybe just the ability to skip songs, change the volume, and connect with a wire when the battery dies.
thanks!
thanks!
bodine1231
Member
What's the best eq setting for the A40 mixamp plus and HD598 for single player games?
I just picked up an A40 to use for PS4 and Xbox One. I'm switching back and forth between the A40 headset and my HD598's and while the 598's are definitely clearer sounding it doesn't have the punch of the A40's.
I just picked up an A40 to use for PS4 and Xbox One. I'm switching back and forth between the A40 headset and my HD598's and while the 598's are definitely clearer sounding it doesn't have the punch of the A40's.
bodine1231
Member
Gotcha. I've tried the DT990 and didn't like them for music. I guess I'll stick with the 598's,the bass is not a deal breaker for gaming.
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
Eh, I kinda differ in that I think EQing something to your taste is perfectly fine. Unless you're into buying tons of headphones just to find your perfect phone.
Just find guides on how to properly EQ.
Do note that all EQing is going to do for bass is increase the quantity. Impact (the ability for the driver to move air in a way to cause vibrations) can be helped a bit through it, but not as much as a phone that is designed for bass impact.
Just find guides on how to properly EQ.
Do note that all EQing is going to do for bass is increase the quantity. Impact (the ability for the driver to move air in a way to cause vibrations) can be helped a bit through it, but not as much as a phone that is designed for bass impact.
EQ depends on the quality of your hardware. Boosting bass on the HD598 isn't going to give you anything, its still going to sound gutless. If anything, it could make things worse since the high 2nd order distortion and pretty bad decay characteristics around the bass region is going to make things sound even more muddy.
If you're stuck in the mid-fi purgatory, there's no real point EQing because headphones here generally have pretty big problems. The only headphones in this region I'd consider fairly responsive to EQ are the Sennheiser HD600/HD650 and Beyerdynamic DT 880 because both have pretty clean decay and, in the case of the Beyerdynamic DT880, you're cutting the region with high distortion (i.e. the treble). There's definitely a few others (Focus headphones? Hifiman?) but they're far less common than the leagues of mediocre or complete garbage in the same price range as the Sennheiser HD6xx or Beyerdynamic DT880.
EQ shouldn't be seen as a boogeyman. Headphones just often seem to respond badly to them, compared to loudspeakers, because most headphones are actually pretty shit lol. So really if you want to mess around with EQ, the solution is to stop buying technically bad headphones that sound subjectively good but rather just buy good headphones in the first place.
If you're stuck in the mid-fi purgatory, there's no real point EQing because headphones here generally have pretty big problems. The only headphones in this region I'd consider fairly responsive to EQ are the Sennheiser HD600/HD650 and Beyerdynamic DT 880 because both have pretty clean decay and, in the case of the Beyerdynamic DT880, you're cutting the region with high distortion (i.e. the treble). There's definitely a few others (Focus headphones? Hifiman?) but they're far less common than the leagues of mediocre or complete garbage in the same price range as the Sennheiser HD6xx or Beyerdynamic DT880.
EQ shouldn't be seen as a boogeyman. Headphones just often seem to respond badly to them, compared to loudspeakers, because most headphones are actually pretty shit lol. So really if you want to mess around with EQ, the solution is to stop buying technically bad headphones that sound subjectively good but rather just buy good headphones in the first place.
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
I didn't know that the bass region of the HD598 was that bad.
Yeah the bass is pretty bad. From memory the HD598 has 2nd and 3rd order distortion of like 3% at 100hz or something.
Boosting works if the hardware isn't bad and you're not boosting an imaginary null that is actually a peak. You have to be careful with your overall gain so you don't end up clipping but that isn't too hard to solve. Most equalization software, like Easy-Q and REW, will automatically adjust your gain to eliminate any possibility of clipping.
Yes, boosting the sub-bass of something like the Sennheiser HD600 won't give you much impact but I think it still gives you a decent result without compromising the rest of the sound signature IMHO. Its still worth doing to help balance out the sound, which I think is a little too mid-centric.
At the end of the day, you shouldn't need to boost or cut a significant amount. If you need to cut and boost everything by like 10dB, you should just get something you actually like or better hardware.
Boosting works if the hardware isn't bad and you're not boosting an imaginary null that is actually a peak. You have to be careful with your overall gain so you don't end up clipping but that isn't too hard to solve. Most equalization software, like Easy-Q and REW, will automatically adjust your gain to eliminate any possibility of clipping.
Yes, boosting the sub-bass of something like the Sennheiser HD600 won't give you much impact but I think it still gives you a decent result without compromising the rest of the sound signature IMHO. Its still worth doing to help balance out the sound, which I think is a little too mid-centric.
At the end of the day, you shouldn't need to boost or cut a significant amount. If you need to cut and boost everything by like 10dB, you should just get something you actually like or better hardware.
LQX
Member
For a while I was using the HD598's on the A40 and I thought they sounded pretty decent but I soon moved to a FiiO Amp and it pushed the HD598's MUCH better. Switching back to the A40 they should sounded lifeless even at the highest volume. I pretty much had to max out the volume on the A40 amp to get anything out of them which was the case with my FiiO amp.
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
Why is it so goddamn hard to find screenless ultra portable players ala the ipod shuffle?
I can get the ipod shuffle I guess but I really DO NOT want to deal with itunes.
The only thing I can find is the shozy alien and... no. That's too crazy for me. I swore cowon had something but my cowon distributor doesn't have anything like it.
I can get the ipod shuffle I guess but I really DO NOT want to deal with itunes.
The only thing I can find is the shozy alien and... no. That's too crazy for me. I swore cowon had something but my cowon distributor doesn't have anything like it.
Bloodember
Member
Your looking for the Cowon iAudio E2.
http://www.cowonglobal.com/
Compact, stylish and no screen like the ipod shuffle.
The no screen part, the shuffle is nowhere near sytlish
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
FLAC/WAV only, EXPANSIVE, seems more than what I need really. I just want something that can hold a few songs and podcasts when I go exercising.
The e2 is what I'm looking for, but goddamn it's near impossible to find now and the e3 seems like not what I'm after.
I can go the sansa clip route I guess, but I'm a bit bullish about buying them seeing that I've had a couple in the past and they broke within a year each.
The e2 is what I'm looking for, but goddamn it's near impossible to find now and the e3 seems like not what I'm after.
I can go the sansa clip route I guess, but I'm a bit bullish about buying them seeing that I've had a couple in the past and they broke within a year each.
There are some rad Chinese alternatives without a screen, can't remember the names at all though, but headfi has a page for them.
Bloodember
Member
Yeah, seen that the e2 was scarce, found a few that might work.
Hisoundaudio AMP3-M
http://penonaudio.com/music-mp3-players/Pocket/Hisoundaudio-AMP3-M
xDuoo X1
http://penonaudio.com/music-mp3-players/Pocket/xDuoo-X1-8GB
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
That Hisoundaudio one does look promising.
I'm not exactly opposed to having screens, it's just that I'm looking to build a more parred-down, small footprint system where I don't have to worry about being rough on a system that costs $900 altogether.
Might get a trinity hyperion too as the workout phone.
I'm not exactly opposed to having screens, it's just that I'm looking to build a more parred-down, small footprint system where I don't have to worry about being rough on a system that costs $900 altogether.
Might get a trinity hyperion too as the workout phone.
erotic grandpa
Member
Alright Headphone GAF, need some advice on this.
I'm looking to get some decent headphones that I can use with the V-Moda BoomPro as a gaming headset (and occasionally just for listening). I have some Fidelio X1s, which are great, but I'm looking for some closed back options for night/not blasting family members with nonsense. Don't necessarily need to be 100% audiophile quality or anything! Just hopefully a decent soundstage (despite being closed, I know).
Anyway - Beyerdynamic Custom One Pro or the V-Moda M-100?
I've heard good things about both, but have heard the M-100s have some kinda spotty build issues with the few plastic bits on it. They're also about twice as much as the COPs, so any perspective on the two would be appreciated!
(And of course, any other headphones I'm not listing would be appreciated, too. Trying to keep it under $300)
I'm looking to get some decent headphones that I can use with the V-Moda BoomPro as a gaming headset (and occasionally just for listening). I have some Fidelio X1s, which are great, but I'm looking for some closed back options for night/not blasting family members with nonsense. Don't necessarily need to be 100% audiophile quality or anything! Just hopefully a decent soundstage (despite being closed, I know).
Anyway - Beyerdynamic Custom One Pro or the V-Moda M-100?
I've heard good things about both, but have heard the M-100s have some kinda spotty build issues with the few plastic bits on it. They're also about twice as much as the COPs, so any perspective on the two would be appreciated!
(And of course, any other headphones I'm not listing would be appreciated, too. Trying to keep it under $300)
Bloodember
Member
That Hisoundaudio one does look promising.
I'm not exactly opposed to having screens, it's just that I'm looking to build a more parred-down, small footprint system where I don't have to worry about being rough on a system that costs $900 altogether.
Might get a trinity hyperion too as the workout phone.
Those look nice, I might have to pick up a pair.
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
Hmm? The v-moda 100 is considered to be one of the most durable phones out there.
If you want soundstage in a closed design though you might want to look at the akg k550/k553. Basically the same cans, but you can find the k553 for pretty cheap whenever it appears on massdrop.
Also both of the cans you chose are pretty bass heavy so is bass one of your criteria? Because the K553 has good bass extension and quality, but the impact and quantity are going to be a lot less than those 2 phones.
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
Damn.
Do you even need the amp though? From what I've heard they don't really benefit much from more power. Sounded basically the same from a demo ak380 and my fiio x3.
Do you even need the amp though? From what I've heard they don't really benefit much from more power. Sounded basically the same from a demo ak380 and my fiio x3.
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
Fair enough. Also from what I know balanced armatures respond differently to different power outputs?
The Lamonster
Member
ok so I'm still narrowing down a dac/amp solution for my Fidelio X2 - I've decided that an optical/toslink input is required, so I'm probably looking at a $200-300 price range either way.
That said, with X2's low impedance in mind, would I be better off going with Schiit M2 stack, Schiit Vali stack, waiting for the new (very well reviewed so far) Aune X1S, or something else that I haven't even considered yet?
Dynamite Ringo Matsuri
Member
Forget all that stuff. Just pick up a Leckerton UHA-6S Mk II, select the 1-B opamp (for an additional $10 - $290 total) and set it to hi gain mode. Very small and portable all in one DAC/amp solution that will rival mid-fi desktop units. It also features USB/optical and coax input.
The Lamonster
Member
Why that specific opamp? And shouldn't it be in low gain for something like the X2? edit: I can't find any information on the different opamp types offered...
Another dac/amp that has been recommended is the Creative Sound Blaster E5. Any thoughts about that one as well?
Thanks! I've decided on getting the JVC S680s in white since she wanted a pair in white. Might get a pair of HM5 pads and replace as well.
I've seem to have misplaced my Zero Audio Tenore and are in need of a pair of IEM's again.
$50, Neutral sounding*, mainly Electronic Music.
*Although i usually go for a neutral signature i might want to switch it up a little. Maybe something completely different? I'd love to get out of my comfort zone.
Any recommendations are welcomed!
I'd check out the Ostry KC06, Bette Hybrid, Fidue A65, or Soundmagic E80.
Dynamite Ringo Matsuri
Member
It's supposed to be the best out of all of the op-amps that Leckerton offers. I've got the standard AD8610 and the 1-B. For $10 more, it's not a bad deal just for future proofing I guess.
I don't know anything about the Sound Blaster, but the Leckerton is held in extremely high regard, and has proven longevity against other FOTM amps, so if you're looking to spend that much money in the first place...
Antiwhippy
the holder of the trombone
Got an xduoo x2 coming to fill my small player needs.