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The Official Headphone Thread 2.5: We're Making WAVs and Catching FLAC

O

Oveja Negra

Member
HiResDes said:
Seems redundant with such a great DAC
Click to expand...

I fail to see the redundancy, honestly. As far as I know, none of the Schiit DAC does what Wyrd does.

Chittagong said:
I guess having a device to clean up USB power is where I draw the line :D
Click to expand...

Fair enough :)

Anyways, I didn't buy it to get a better sound, but to eliminate the random clicks & pops that I was having at the time (Wyrd's main purpose).

I changed cables, updated drivers and nothing helped, it was pretty annoying, to the point I began to think my Bifrost was defective. At the end I decided to get the Wyrd, and the little guy did the trick.
 
A

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
Couldn't that be solved by using any powered usb hub?

I am having the same problems though so I might look into a solution for that soon.
 
O

Oveja Negra

Member
Antiwhippy said:
Couldn't that be solved by using any powered usb hub?

I am having the same problems though so I might look into a solution for that soon.
Click to expand...

Interesting question. Wyrd regenerates the USB signal from the source too. I'm not sure a generic powered USB Hub does the same, but considering how cheap they are, it would be nice to realize it can solve your problems.

If you go that route, please post your results :)
 
Chittagong

Chittagong

Gold Member
Oveja Negra said:
Fair enough :)

Anyways, I didn't buy it to get a better sound, but to eliminate the random clicks & pops that I was having at the time (Wyrd's main purpose).

I changed cables, updated drivers and nothing helped, it was pretty annoying, to the point I began to think my Bifrost was defective. At the end I decided to get the Wyrd, and the little guy did the trick.
Click to expand...

That is a damn good explanation, I might use it one day for Mrs Chittagong :D
 
RedAssedApe

RedAssedApe

Banned
didn't want to bump one of the dead gaming headset threads so i figured i'd post here.

anyone try the lucid sound ls-30 yet? sounds like they were kind of going for a jack of all trades stereo headphone that can act both as a wired and wireless solution and be decent for music and games? (of course that's all lip service that everyone says about their products lol)

http://www.cnet.com/products/lucidsound-ls30/

i do like the implementation of the chat/game audio rings on each cup. right now i'm switching between skully candy plyr1 and fidelio x2+dss+inline-mic plugged into ds4. both are a pain in the ass when it comes to tweaking chat vs. game volume. not sure if its a ps4 thing but i never had this issue in the past where game volume always seems to overwhelm chat volume unless i turn it super quiet.
 
H

Hypron

Member
Thank you guys for all your answers yesterday!

I've got a couple more weeks to decide what I want to do, but after thinking about this overnight and taking my finances into account, I think it'd be more reasonable to settle for a pair of monitor worth about $1k. The Focal Alpha 50 looks pretty good and reviews seem unanimously positive - they are recommended over the larger models for small rooms/small listening distances (which fits my use). They are pretty big but I've got a fair bit of free space on my desk. They cost $950 a pair, which means I could get a full setup (including damped table stands, Schiit Sys for volume control, and some extra cables) for ~$1,250.

But I'll still think about it before buying.
 
H

HiResDes

Member
Look up the chane arx series super underrated and affordable, as you could even afford a pair of their floor standing speakers. And it will you a little wiggle to beef up your source should you need to
 
F

FoxSpirit

Junior Member
HiResDes said:
If anyone is using large loudspeakers what kinda set up are you using to drive them, receiver, integrated amp, integrated amp and DAC?
Click to expand...
PC (running EqualizerAPO for my FIR EQ stuff)->Xonar DX (sounds exactly like the ODAC but never a pop when changing songs)->Bang&Olufsen IcePower 125ASX2->speakers
Best source for the power-amp: https://www.minidsp.com/products/plate-amplifiers/pwr-ice125wd
Now down to $175. I promise true HighEnd sound with this, stable down to 2Ohm. If you are not afraid to solder a few connectors and shove it into a box (ground it properly) this is by far the best offer the HiFi market has to offer south of 1.5k.

edit: Those Chane A5RX sure look nice. But yeah, I can see the tripple longthrow woofers sounding a bit phat, especially if the midrange matches the tweeter in clarity and speed. Cut off steeply at 90-100HZ and use a quality sub?

In honesty though, HiFi hobby is such a drag on my purse. I know, cars are much worse but man, 1k here and 1k there and damn, where is my money? When I started this journey I simply wanted a nice sounding system but without internet sources the price/performance rate was so much much worse 10 years ago.
 
Xander51

Xander51

Member
henhowc said:
didn't want to bump one of the dead gaming headset threads so i figured i'd post here.

anyone try the lucid sound ls-30 yet? sounds like they were kind of going for a jack of all trades stereo headphone that can act both as a wired and wireless solution and be decent for music and games? (of course that's all lip service that everyone says about their products lol)

http://www.cnet.com/products/lucidsound-ls30/

i do like the implementation of the chat/game audio rings on each cup. right now i'm switching between skully candy plyr1 and fidelio x2+dss+inline-mic plugged into ds4. both are a pain in the ass when it comes to tweaking chat vs. game volume. not sure if its a ps4 thing but i never had this issue in the past where game volume always seems to overwhelm chat volume unless i turn it super quiet.
Click to expand...

The earcups on this look kinda small, and the holes are round instead of ear-shaped. I think comfort might be a big issue.

Any time I have to chat with people on the PS4, I use the Sony Gold headset. It's got a great chat/game volume balance adjustment. It's not nearly as good-sounding as my other "proper" headphones, but then I guess I mostly play single player games so maybe I'm the worst person to even be replying to you, haha.
 
H

HiResDes

Member
FoxSpirit said:
PC (running EqualizerAPO for my FIR EQ stuff)->Xonar DX (sounds exactly like the ODAC but never a pop when changing songs)->Bang&Olufsen IcePower 125ASX2->speakers
Best source for the power-amp: https://www.minidsp.com/products/plate-amplifiers/pwr-ice125wd
Now down to $175. I promise true HighEnd sound with this, stable down to 2Ohm. If you are not afraid to solder a few connectors and shove it into a box (ground it properly) this is by far the best offer the HiFi market has to offer south of 1.5k.

edit: Those Chane A5RX sure look nice. But yeah, I can see the tripple longthrow woofers sounding a bit phat, especially if the midrange matches the tweeter in clarity and speed. Cut off steeply at 90-100HZ and use a quality sub?

In honesty though, HiFi hobby is such a drag on my purse. I know, cars are much worse but man, 1k here and 1k there and damn, where is my money? When I started this journey I simply wanted a nice sounding system but without internet sources the price/performance rate was so much much worse 10 years ago.
Click to expand...
Man is there a way to pay extra and just get that same thing pre-built? I'd probably go for this one though which includes the DSP actually - https://www.minidsp.com/products/plate-amplifiers/pwr-ice125
 
P

| Praxis |

Banned
Anybody here have the HA-SZ2000's?

They look fun as hell, but £150 plus £35 import tax is a lot to spend on what I assume are gimmicks. Brain shattering gimmicks but I doubt they sound good with anything but bass.
 
H

HiResDes

Member
| Praxis | said:
Anybody here have the HA-SZ2000's?

They look fun as hell, but £150 plus £35 import tax is a lot to spend on what I assume are gimmicks. Brain shattering gimmicks but I doubt they sound good with anything but bass.
Click to expand...

If you go the last page, or hell it might even be on the last page someone was just talking about their brother phone HA-SZ1000
 
mr stroke

mr stroke

Member
| Praxis | said:
Anybody here have the HA-SZ2000's?

They look fun as hell, but £150 plus £35 import tax is a lot to spend on what I assume are gimmicks. Brain shattering gimmicks but I doubt they sound good with anything but bass.
Click to expand...

Yes I own a pair. I don't use them much cause they are really heavy. But they are not "gimmick" cans as they sound incredible with EDM/Hip Hop. Amped properly they literately sound like two JL W7's on your ears. If you are into this sound signature-

FXOyz7I.jpg


nothing can come close.


If the JVC's weren't so heavy they would be my daily drivers.
 
A

aznpxdd

Member
Note 4 > Mojo > VorzAmp Pure II+

Yeah, I'm pretty much done with "portable" audio. A/B'd with my friends AK380 + AK380 amp in balanced mode, and the AK doesn't come close to this combo. Chord and Vorzuge are magicians. This set-up also easily drives my LCD2 with authority and plenty of room to spare.

The IEM's I've compared for the two set up are - JH Angie, JH Layla, JH Layla V.2 (Titanium), K10U, IE800, SE846, Shure KSE1500, Campfire Jupitor. So yeah, pretty much all the TOTL...

068a3332_SAM_1029.jpeg


0d4c59d2_SAM_1032.jpeg


28539ee4_DSC03469.jpeg
Click to expand...

PS. no I don't carry this around on me. Got the Sony ZX2, AK Junior and DX80 for that duty. Though my Nexus 6P + Mojo is not too bad to carry around.

801497a1_DSC04303.jpeg
Click to expand...

Chord Mojo...the DAC that turns your $3000 USD player into a transport...
 
A

aznpxdd

Member
Antiwhippy said:
People really shouldn't buy an AK if you're going to use it as a transport.

Or an AK player in general really.
Click to expand...

Obviously. But when you buy the AK first then Mojo and discovers Mojo sounds better, well, haha. (the AK240SS is not mine, just saying)

HiResDes said:
That shit does not look portable at all.
Click to expand...

With the Pure II+, its not. But I guess a phone that you'll be carrying around anyways + Mojo, its pretty small. Good enough for IEM's. With the Pure II+, its portable in terms you can bring it around to places and trips no problem, heh.
 
A

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
Yeah I use my mojo with my phone outside all the time.

Granted outside mostly means sitting on a bus with a bit of walking in between.

Also is the amp needed? From what I know the way the mojo is engineered means that you can't separate the dac and amp section.
 
A

aznpxdd

Member
Antiwhippy said:
Yeah I use my mojo with my phone outside all the time.

Granted outside mostly means sitting on a bus with a bit of walking in between.

Also is the amp needed? From what I know the way the mojo is engineered means that you can't separate the dac and amp section.
Click to expand...

I don't use the Pure II+ outside for IEM's, but I do at home. I mean why not when you have arguably the best portable amp on the planet.

Mojo does kinda support line out. Press the 2 volume buttons when turning it on will have the Mojo start in line out mode, sending out a constant voltage to the amp.
 
Jzero

Jzero

Member
Going to CanJam SoCal this week to see how the Ossic X sound, hopefully not shitty like you guys think.

I hope the Hifiman Shangri-la and Sennheiser HD 800 S show up there.
 
A

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
Just depends on what you need really. Maybe for vr where spatial cues are more important it'll be a good one for that purpose, but most music is recorded in stereo and all the multi driver surround headphones just never sounded amazing with music. None of us have impressions of it though, and nothing really beats first hand experiences.

Even then binaural recordings always make me think that going over 2.1 is pretty pointless.
 
S

SpecX

Member
Going to be traveling next week for work and my luck the beats solo I got for free died on me today. Looking for a recommendation for causual listening and something that will be easy to travel with. I don't care much for earbuds and do like the collapsible design the solo's offered. I'm trying to stay under $100, but can be flexible if the quality is that much better for a little more $. Thanks in advance.
 
C

CrashPrime

Member
mr stroke said:
Yes I own a pair. I don't use them much cause they are really heavy. But they are not "gimmick" cans as they sound incredible with EDM/Hip Hop. Amped properly they literately sound like two JL W7's on your ears. If you are into this sound signature-

FXOyz7I.jpg


nothing can come close.


If the JVC's weren't so heavy they would be my daily drivers.
Click to expand...

As someone who owns these too I am curious (I love them too, but agree on weight factors) what do you use as a daily driver?
 
B

Blitzhex

Member
Got some alpha pads on the th-x00. They're like giant leather pillows.
Made the headphones go from head torture to godlike comfy tier, comfier than my k7xx. I feel like I can wear these for weeks and the ears stay cool inside the pads. It seems like the pads lessened some of the mid bass bloat the stock pads had.
img_20160315_030520fdjqs.jpg

img_20160315_030637dhkn0.jpg

Flash pics in the middle of the night.
Click to expand...

You wouldn't want to be seen wearing these though. Ear cup to ear cup, the headphones stretch as wide as my shoulders when put on, lol.
Leathery, woody goodness.
 
A

Amagon

Member
What's a good place to get braided/woven 3.5 cables?

Blitzhex said:
Got some alpha pads on the th-x00. They're like giant leather pillows.
Made the headphones go from head torture to godlike comfy tier, comfier than my k7xx. I feel like I can wear these for weeks and the ears stay cool inside the pads. It seems like the pads lessened some of the mid bass bloat the stock pads had.


You wouldn't want to be seen wearing these though. Ear cup to ear cup, the headphones stretch as wide as my shoulders when put on, lol.
Leathery, woody goodness.
Click to expand...

They look sooo comfortable, I have the Sony MDR-XB700 and would love to upgrade to something similar to what you have.
 
F

Feel_The_Pain

Member
Need some opinions/advice on some open headphones for mainly movies and some gaming.
Looking at Fischer audio fa-011,Audio-Technica ATH-AD700X , sennheiser hd598.
 
H

HiResDes

Member
Feel_The_Pain said:
Need some opinions/advice on some open headphones for mainly movies and some gaming.
Looking at Fischer audio fa-011,Audio-Technica ATH-AD700X , sennheiser hd598.
Click to expand...

They're not really similar at all

AD700 - Widest soundstage, possibly the most perceived detail and greatest amount of treble, no bass whatsoever

598 - The middle man, a little more bass, pretty wide soundstage though not quite as wide as the AD700, good midrange...Fairly good treble extension, inoffensive

FA-011 - Little detail, okay soundstage, not mindblowing for an open headphone by any means...By far the most amount of bass, one of the bassiest open headphones you can buy. The midrange is fairly recessed but not bad when amped right and the treble is peaky. Fun headphone despite all of its flaws and lack of detail.
 
LQX

LQX

Member
Newegg via Ebay has the Philips SHP9500 Over-Ear Headphones for $59.99.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Philips-SHP...854860?hash=item58bd59188c:g:EkcAAOSwrklU22cy

I guess Phillips decided to still make them after they got popular. Believe the hype, these headphone are amazing for this price. I blind bought them before they got popular and was amazed. They stack up well to the HD598 and they almost as comfortable. One warning though, the pads super absorbent so if you sweat a lot these things will soak up the sweat to the point you can squeeze them out like oranges.
 
Chittagong

Chittagong

Gold Member
So how are we going to cope with the removal of headset jacks from future Apple products? It's iPhone 7 first, iPads next. Will we see a bluetooth DAC/AMP, or use lightning jack ones like HA-2?
 
L

leng jai

Member
LQX said:
Newegg via Ebay has the Philips SHP9500 Over-Ear Headphones for $59.99.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Philips-SHP...854860?hash=item58bd59188c:g:EkcAAOSwrklU22cy

I guess Phillips decided to still make them after they got popular. Believe the hype, these headphone are amazing for this price. I blind bought them before they got popular and was amazed. They stack up well to the HD598 and they almost as comfortable. One warning though, the pads super absorbent so if you sweat a lot these things will soak up the sweat to the point you can squeeze them out like oranges.
Click to expand...

That sounds disgusting.
 
LQX

LQX

Member
Chittagong said:
So how are we going to cope with the removal of headset jacks from future Apple products? It's iPhone 7 first, iPads next. Will we see a bluetooth DAC/AMP, or use lightning jack ones like HA-2?
Click to expand...

Apple will be glad to sell you a dongle of sorts.
 
O

OdysseusVA

Banned
LQX said:
Newegg via Ebay has the Philips SHP9500 Over-Ear Headphones for $59.99.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Philips-SHP9...cAAOSwrklU22cy

I guess Phillips decided to still make them after they got popular. Believe the hype, these headphone are amazing for this price. I blind bought them before they got popular and was amazed. They stack up well to the HD598 and they almost as comfortable. One warning though, the pads super absorbent so if you sweat a lot these things will soak up the sweat to the point you can squeeze them out like oranges.
Click to expand...

I've read the highs can be a bit harsh, whats your take on it?
 
S

SolarMystic

Member
Feel_The_Pain said:
Need some opinions/advice on some open headphones for mainly movies and some gaming.
Looking at Fischer audio fa-011,Audio-Technica ATH-AD700X , sennheiser hd598.
Click to expand...

I can say from experience that the hd598 are great for that. The 700x also gets a lot of praise for gaming, just be aware that they have very little bass.
 
TBiddy

TBiddy

Member
Now that I'm moving in with the missus, I'm considering investing in a headset, so I can play and listen to music, without bothering her more than necessary.

So I have a few questions. My amplifier connected to my PC has a "Line-Out", but no headset-port. From what I've read, you need a dedicated headset-amplifier, if you wish to connect it to a line-out - is that true?

Next - is it possible to get "cheap" (25-30$, perhaps?) decent headsets, which are comfortable? I don't like in-ear, so I've been looking around for an on-ear (?), but it's a jungle, I think.
 
T

Tommy DJ

Member
Chittagong said:
So how are we going to cope with the removal of headset jacks from future Apple products? It's iPhone 7 first, iPads next. Will we see a bluetooth DAC/AMP, or use lightning jack ones like HA-2?
Click to expand...

If headphone manufacturers have any sense, the amp will go inside the headphone and finally do what the very best speakers have been able to achieve for a while. In fact, the new Sennheiser Orpheus 2 does just that...the marble monstrosity is just a pre-amp/DAC unit apparently.
 
A

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
I mean there is a difference between something sitting on the floor and something sitting on your head.

They could do it like the audeze sine and integrate the amp into the cable.
 
Chittagong

Chittagong

Gold Member
Tommy DJ said:
If headphone manufacturers have any sense, the amp will go inside the headphone and finally do what the very best speakers have been able to achieve for a while. In fact, the new Sennheiser Orpheus 2 does just that...the marble monstrosity is just a pre-amp/DAC unit apparently.
Click to expand...

Really? It's got a whole battery of tubes on top of it, or is that the old one?
 
H

HiResDes

Member
Feel_The_Pain said:
Those for me represent the lowest price (ad700x) mid priced (fa-011) and higher priced (598) cans here in Oz.
Your reply was nicely detailed thank-you.
Now I'm looking at the beyerdynamic dt770 pro...
Click to expand...

Tuned fairly similarly to the Fischer, it's just closed and it sports more midbass than subbass in comparison to the Fischer which has both in loads. The midrange of the DT770 is just as recessed, while the treble extension is even greater but still has some peakiness. It's a V-Shaped headphone just like the Fischer. The DT770 has a pretty impressive soundstage for a closed headphone and pretty much draws with the Fischer in this regard.

Now the 600OHM version of the DT770 does have as much boominess that sort of conceals its midrange and is a bit more balanced sounding.
 
K

Karish

Member
LQX said:
Newegg via Ebay has the Philips SHP9500 Over-Ear Headphones for $59.99.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Philips-SHP...854860?hash=item58bd59188c:g:EkcAAOSwrklU22cy

I guess Phillips decided to still make them after they got popular. Believe the hype, these headphone are amazing for this price. I blind bought them before they got popular and was amazed. They stack up well to the HD598 and they almost as comfortable. One warning though, the pads super absorbent so if you sweat a lot these things will soak up the sweat to the point you can squeeze them out like oranges.
Click to expand...

Great deal, bought!
 
J

jesalr

Member
Sending back my Jaybird X2 set. They're nice, but they disconnect from my laptop a lot, and also don't stay on my neck that well. Also, 8 hours just doesn't work for me over the course of an average day.

So, looking for IEMs, I'll get £120 back, so in the £100-150 range. Any recommendations? What's the current hotness?
 
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