EPTCan't believe it took me this long to get them :D
Headphone enthusiast thread! - Page 126
| Forum Index > General Forum |
|
Djzapz
Canada10681 Posts
Can't believe it took me this long to get them :D | ||
|
attwell
United States220 Posts
And yeah making the switch from mp3 to raw quality was definitely a necessity after I upgraded. | ||
|
Juddas
768 Posts
Thanks for the rec! I might put up a few pics and a quick review in a little while. | ||
|
Myrmidon
United States9452 Posts
On December 27 2011 03:45 Djzapz wrote: Well I just started using my HD650's and I can say I'm sold... Now MP3's don't cut it and I need everything in FLAC. Can't believe it took me this long to get them :D I don't know...modern lossy encoding is pretty good, even for mp3. At high bitrates there's often no discernible difference, and if there is one that can be detected if you're concentrating really hard to pick it up, it's more like "different" rather than "worse." But it varies from person to person. I recommend you take some CDs (or FLACs) and transcode to mp3 with LAME 3.98 or newer encoder at variable bitrate -V0 quality (~240 kbps depending on the music) and listen for yourself. Foobar ABX plugin is useful for managing blind comparisons between two files. You'd just select the original lossless version and the mp3 version, right click, and set it up. | ||
|
Djzapz
Canada10681 Posts
On December 27 2011 04:11 Myrmidon wrote: I don't know...modern lossy encoding is pretty good, even for mp3. At high bitrates there's often no discernible difference, and if there is one that can be detected if you're concentrating really hard to pick it up, it's more like "different" rather than "worse." But it varies from person to person. I recommend you take some CDs (or FLACs) and transcode to mp3 with LAME 3.98 or newer encoder at variable bitrate -V0 quality (~240 kbps depending on the music) and listen for yourself. Foobar ABX plugin is useful for managing blind comparisons between two files. You'd just select the original lossless version and the mp3 version, right click, and set it up. Well most of my MP3's are at a solid 128 to 192kbps and I can hear the difference between those and 320kbps files or FLAC's. I'll just be looking for higher quality stuff.. Hell I even have some 64kbps stuff in there. | ||
|
Myrmidon
United States9452 Posts
I would say modern ~192 kbps is generally pretty good...except when it's not. At least with older versions of Foobar, you put the .dll in the components subdirectory under Foobar. That's somewhat non-intuitive, so I think there's a better mechanism than that these days that can be used, to "install" it. | ||
|
Djzapz
Canada10681 Posts
 Anyway I got that plugin thing working (I didn't have the main software!) That's cool, I thought it would analyze it but it's actually a test to see if I can hear the difference. Looks like I pretty much get it every time at 128kbps and below and 192kbps is close enough to the FLAC that I have a harder time. | ||
|
isparavanje
62 Posts
| ||
|
Myrmidon
United States9452 Posts
Likewise around V2/V1/V0 vbr is about where I start to have big trouble telling them apart. It really depends on the music though. I mean, there's a certain point where you can tell it apart, but I don't think that that difference would bother you in everyday listening. Surely nobody's going to suffer terribly if all their FLAC turn into V0 quality? Maybe other people are different though; certainly I don't have the best hearing around. | ||
|
isparavanje
62 Posts
| ||
|
Apolo
Portugal1259 Posts
| ||
|
Djzapz
Canada10681 Posts
| ||
Milkis
5003 Posts
So I think my ATH-M50 is dying or something. which is a shame since I've only had it for a year and a half now? Dunno -- it's just weird that when I listen to it things sound different (or I just have a cold or something). Either way, I think I def need to get a second pair now. As before I've been debating between LCD-2 and some other high but not quite that high end. Anyway something I'm worried about now: I remember trying Alessandro MS-1 before getting ATH-M50 and I remember the highs from the MS-1 really getting to the level where it sounded like screeches to me. I'm wondering if this is something I should expect from higher end headphones because people either told me 1) i have sensitive ears, 2) "it's part of the grados sound" and they get used to it. I'm curious if anything with "detailed highs" like that would sound like screech to me. Also is there any place in NYC/Boston where I can go to try out high end headphones? D: | ||
|
FirstProbe
1206 Posts
On December 27 2011 12:29 Milkis wrote: As before I've been debating between LCD-2 and some other high but not quite that high end. Please try out the LCD-3 and let us know how it sounds! | ||
|
RusHXceL
United States1004 Posts
| ||
|
TeaGreen
Canada147 Posts
On December 27 2011 12:29 Milkis wrote: Blegh. So I think my ATH-M50 is dying or something. which is a shame since I've only had it for a year and a half now? Dunno -- it's just weird that when I listen to it things sound different (or I just have a cold or something). Either way, I think I def need to get a second pair now. As before I've been debating between LCD-2 and some other high but not quite that high end. Anyway something I'm worried about now: I remember trying Alessandro MS-1 before getting ATH-M50 and I remember the highs from the MS-1 really getting to the level where it sounded like screeches to me. I'm wondering if this is something I should expect from higher end headphones because people either told me 1) i have sensitive ears, 2) "it's part of the grados sound" and they get used to it. I'm curious if anything with "detailed highs" like that would sound like screech to me. Also is there any place in NYC/Boston where I can go to try out high end headphones? D: My first headphones were MS1s. I liked them at first but when after getting some more equipment (IEMs) and going back to the MS1s, they were really really screechy/shrill to me. I fixed it a bit with some DIY mods but they're still screechy. LCD-2s are great bass wise and they don't sound screechy/shrill to me at all. I don't own a pair but when the LCD-3's were announced some used LCD-2s were going for around $700ish dollars and a friend picked up a pair. I just borrowed them for a bit, amped with with a Schiit Asguard. Not ideal but it does a reasonably good job. I didn't have a good source back then either but it was the same source. Going from M50s to LCD-2 is quite a jump. LCD-2s are not portable in any way IMO they're way too bulky and heavy. At my school there's a guy rocking M50s. Looks not so bad since they swivel. LCD-2s really should be amped. I'm getting more and more interested in to this hi-fi stuff and just browsing sites and reading reviews purely out of enjoyment, I personally think that something mid range like a DT-880 @ 600 ohms with a amp like a Lyr is the best way to go in terms of bang for you buck. | ||
|
Milkis
5003 Posts
On December 27 2011 12:32 FirstProbe wrote: Please try out the LCD-3 and let us know how it sounds! i dont think i would ever bother affording something like that :| On December 27 2011 12:42 TeaGreen wrote: My first headphones were MS1s. I liked them at first but when after getting some more equipment (IEMs) and going back to the MS1s, they were really really screechy/shrill to me. I fixed it a bit with some DIY mods but they're still screechy. LCD-2s are great bass wise and they don't sound screechy/shrill to me at all. I don't own a pair but when the LCD-3's were announced some used LCD-2s were going for around $700ish dollars and a friend picked up a pair. I just borrowed them for a bit, amped with with a Schiit Asguard. Not ideal but it does a reasonably good job. I didn't have a good source back then either but it was the same source. Going from M50s to LCD-2 is quite a jump. LCD-2s are not portable in any way IMO they're way too bulky and heavy. At my school there's a guy rocking M50s. Looks not so bad since they swivel. LCD-2s really should be amped. I'm getting more and more interested in to this hi-fi stuff and just browsing sites and reading reviews purely out of enjoyment, I personally think that something mid range like a DT-880 @ 600 ohms with a amp like a Lyr is the best way to go in terms of bang for you buck. yeah, i'm not looking for something too portable, something i can use at home while working/studying and such. of course i'd be buying an amp with it. i really wish i could listen to a midrange headphone and a 900+ dollar headphone with good sources etc before deciding which to buy though  | ||
|
seiferoth10
3362 Posts
Past that, it's just buy something, if you don't like it, flip it on Headfi for something else. | ||
|
SiN]
United States540 Posts
| ||
|
ticklishmusic
United States15977 Posts
My only question is, are the 10 feet of cord really necessary? I mean, they could give some to OCX 880's the guy above me mentioned, haha. I might be saying something really dumb, but a good place to try on headphones is actually Brookstones, or a comparable shop. You can use the music they have, or bring your own and ask to try it. The people at the stores I went to were more than happy to let me try out their Bose and stuff with my own iPod. | ||
| ||
