EPTHeadphone enthusiast thread! - Page 153
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HuggyBear
Australia377 Posts
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Ckalvin
Australia150 Posts
On March 22 2012 04:56 Flicky wrote: Considering how much music I listen to, I'm astounded that I don't have a good set of headphones. Anyway, I'm thinking of getting a standalone mic for my PC and a good set of headphones for music and whatever. (other people are asking in here, so I'll go with it). So I'm looking at a good quality set of headphones that enclose the ear. I mostly listen to a lot of heavily layered and fast metal music and some simple jazz and hip-hop. I want to have the bass (the instrument) hearable but have the drums low (pitch wise) and thunderous. Then have wall of sound style music be pieceable yet still strong. If possible soaring sections would sounds orgasmic. I imagine background noises like synths and that will just be more apparant with a good set of headphones so I don't really know if it's a big deal to ask for. Then for jazzy stuff I just want a clear and wholesome sound. I have no idea what sort of magic headphones can make but I thought I'd just sorta post about what I'd ideally go for. For gaming, I'd probably just swap in my current headset but honestly, I don't care if the headphones aren't great for game audio so that doesn't need to be considered. As for price, surprise me. Edit: I guess this is important, I normally listen to CDs and plan on getting a proper CD setup sometime soon. With those two conditions in mind, I can recommend the Ultrasone 550 and the Beyerdynamic DT880. http://headphones.com.au/psingle?productID=169 http://headphones.com.au/psingle?productID=25 Those two plus a DAC/Amp should absolutely blow your mind in terms of sound. | ||
Flicky
England2662 Posts
On March 22 2012 07:54 HuggyBear wrote: What's your budget Flicky? I think I might just splash out on this so honestly, I don't really know. I think like $350 would be upper limits. | ||
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seiferoth10
3362 Posts
I know someone on here has HD650s + amp setup, so hopefully they can pop in and drop some knowledge. | ||
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CorsairHero
Canada9491 Posts
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CyDe
United States1010 Posts
On March 01 2012 01:55 Myrmidon wrote: Yeah these days it just tends to be done by the OS (and really now, general-purpose CPUs these days are so fast that handling real-time audio playback and mixing takes a trivial amount of resources). E10 and many others run off of generic OS USB sound card drivers, so there's nothing special going on there. The E10 doesn't have hardware onboard to do mixing or processing itself. It's just a pretty simple DAC + headphone amp sitting behind a USB receiver chip. Give it the stereo digital sound data at a certain bit depth and sampling rate (via I2S probably, from the USB receiver), and the DAC will do its thing. If you get something like a Creative sound card, it has a hardware DSP effects processor and other things onboard, so its drivers should be written to use those assets. It depends on how loud you listen and how soft the music is, but in general, yes. You can also try running it without a dedicated external amp. Do you already own them? If music sound quality is not the highest priority, it may be okay. If you need the convenience of an attached mic that (I'm hoping) works better than a cheap clip-on, that certainly reduces your options. I don't know anything about that model though, sorry. Sorry for the incredibly late reply, I lost my post in this thread and only recently decided to find it again. But anyway, yes I do already own them. I mean music/ game sound quality is definitely part of the goal. The mic is what I really want, since if I ever do get a famous youtube (lmao) then I think it is pretty important. And yeah I prefer having an attached mic to the headset rather than a clip on. | ||
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Veles
United States3280 Posts
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Flicky
England2662 Posts
So: I can go for the Ultrasone Pro 550s and pick up a more expensive Amp now (they're about $170). The Beyerdynamic DT880 and pick up a less expensive amp. ($220) Or the Denon AH-D2000 and wait a little while for an AMP ($270). You'll need to advice me on amps and what not. I guess I need something that works with a PC and will work with a CD player. I got no clue about any of this. | ||
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Ckalvin
Australia150 Posts
On March 22 2012 22:23 Flicky wrote: Ok so I think I'll narrow it down to the headphones at the cheaper end of the spectrum. No point starting off with a set that costs twice as much if I can't appreciate it and this way I'll be able to afford some sort of amplifier sooner. So: I can go for the Ultrasone Pro 550s and pick up a more expensive Amp now (they're about $170). The Beyerdynamic DT880 and pick up a less expensive amp. ($220) Or the Denon AH-D2000 and wait a little while for an AMP ($270). You'll need to advice me on amps and what not. I guess I need something that works with a PC and will work with a CD player. I got no clue about any of this. When you say something that works with a CD player, am I right in assuming that it's a portable player? In that case, do you want headphones and/or amp that works with PC only, portable or both? | ||
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BleaK_
Norway593 Posts
On March 22 2012 22:23 Flicky wrote: Ok so I think I'll narrow it down to the headphones at the cheaper end of the spectrum. No point starting off with a set that costs twice as much if I can't appreciate it and this way I'll be able to afford some sort of amplifier sooner. So: I can go for the Ultrasone Pro 550s and pick up a more expensive Amp now (they're about $170). The Beyerdynamic DT880 and pick up a less expensive amp. ($220) Or the Denon AH-D2000 and wait a little while for an AMP ($270). You'll need to advice me on amps and what not. I guess I need something that works with a PC and will work with a CD player. I got no clue about any of this. Denon D2000 don't need a amplifier, but will play better with one. I wholeheartily recommend this headphone. | ||
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Flicky
England2662 Posts
On March 22 2012 22:29 Ckalvin wrote: When you say something that works with a CD player, am I right in assuming that it's a portable player? In that case, do you want headphones and/or amp that works with PC only, portable or both? Oh I don't mean a portable. Honestly I got no clue what exactly is needed for an amp setup I'm just sorta trying to find out from you guys. I don't want to spend money on stuff I don't need. I've always been under the impression that an Amplifier is pretty useful. | ||
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Myrmidon
United States9452 Posts
Here's a starter basic article: http://nwavguy.blogspot.com/2011/02/gain-and-headphone-ampsdacs.html As for AH-D2000, because of the relatively high sensitivity, lowish and pretty constant impedance across frequency, about anything will work so you don't need a dedicated amplifier. | ||
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Flicky
England2662 Posts
On March 23 2012 01:04 Myrmidon wrote: A dedicated external amplifier can do a better job than whatever is integrated in a computer motherboard or iPod or whatever, but the difference is usually exaggerated, at least compared to the differences between headphones. Just look for something suitable for driving the headphones you want. Here's a starter basic article: http://nwavguy.blogspot.com/2011/02/gain-and-headphone-ampsdacs.html As for AH-D2000, because of the relatively high sensitivity, lowish and pretty constant impedance across frequency, about anything will work so you don't need a dedicated amplifier. That clears things up a lot, thanks. So it's just generally a case of how much I want to spend now. The D2000 seems quite popular but would people suggest making a big leap with my first improved headphones or should I just go for the cheapest set first and see how it goes? I guess it's about confidence but you guys know more about this than I do. | ||
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Ckalvin
Australia150 Posts
The E17 can be used as a dedicated amp which will easily connect to your PC or CD player through the audio jack like so. ![[image loading]](http://www.jbmm.fr/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/FIIOE17_16.jpg) When you feel like switching and want to use the amp for pc listening, dock the E17 into the E9 and you have a DAC/amp combo that connects to your PC through a USB. Using the E17 + E9 through your PC will sound quite a bit better than just using the E17 through your computer, but if you're on a budget then the E9 can be skipped and upgraded later. ![[image loading]](http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k240/ofey_s/FiiO/E17P-10.jpg) When it comes to headphones, have a look at Head-Fi classifieds. Headphones are an expensive hobby, and a lot of people are addicted to purchasing only to sell them later. http://www.head-fi.org/t/601106/shure-srh-840-recabled looks quite decent, but lack of trader feedback is a tad worrying. Honestly, try to have a look around and wait for a deal on a good set of headphones. Keep an eye out on sales on Beyer/Ultrasone/Denon and higher tier Sennheiser models (5xx 6xx), and you'll end up saving yourself a fortune. PM if you need info on anything! edit: it's better to start off with a decent set of headphones first that don't absolutely require amping to sound great and then work your way to creating an audio setup around that first set of headphones that floor you. | ||
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CorsairHero
Canada9491 Posts
On March 23 2012 01:10 Flicky wrote: That clears things up a lot, thanks. So it's just generally a case of how much I want to spend now. The D2000 seems quite popular but would people suggest making a big leap with my first improved headphones or should I just go for the cheapest set first and see how it goes? I guess it's about confidence but you guys know more about this than I do. The D2000 is a solid "mid-fi" can. If you're worried about whether you should build up incrementally, I would suggest finding a local audio store and seeing if it fits your needs. There are things like fit/portability that are different for everyone. If your budget allows for it then why not? :D Also Fiio e17 is a solid portable dac/amp. It powers cans as well as my Audinst from the few minutes I spent with it | ||
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essencez
342 Posts
On March 23 2012 01:10 Flicky wrote: That clears things up a lot, thanks. So it's just generally a case of how much I want to spend now. The D2000 seems quite popular but would people suggest making a big leap with my first improved headphones or should I just go for the cheapest set first and see how it goes? I guess it's about confidence but you guys know more about this than I do. I'd first select which type of headphone I would want between open or closed and then the design on ear, over ear or in ears. Usually going closed path allows for better noise isolation and an percieved pronouced low end but generally for SQ you'd usually go open or at least semi-open. On March 23 2012 01:04 Myrmidon wrote: A dedicated external amplifier can do a better job than whatever is integrated in a computer motherboard or iPod or whatever, but the difference is usually exaggerated, at least compared to the differences between headphones. Just look for something suitable for driving the headphones you want. Here's a starter basic article: http://nwavguy.blogspot.com/2011/02/gain-and-headphone-ampsdacs.html As for AH-D2000, because of the relatively high sensitivity, lowish and pretty constant impedance across frequency, about anything will work so you don't need a dedicated amplifier. QFT. Can't emphasize this enough. The benefits of an deticated dac/amp are often extremely exaggerated and only for very specialized setups. The most audible difference would be headphone directly into the source even if the source is lacking. When people recommends that since your headphones cost $X, your amp must at least cost $Y and dac $X is extremely naive and ignorerant. The only time that an amp is absolutely recommended would be when you don't achieve the volume levels with say an high impedance headphone. | ||
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Myrmidon
United States9452 Posts
Most guys just like shiny new gear. IMHO there's nothing wrong with that until they start making dumb recommendations to others. Trying out headphones yourself before buying (or in the worst case, buying something from somewhere with a good return policy) is also key. What sounds right to others may not sound good to you, and the king of comfort for somebody else may not play nice with your anatomy. | ||
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essencez
342 Posts
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Myrmidon
United States9452 Posts
Of course the sound can be enjoyable from a lot of headphones, but it just seems a backwards example to bring up. The high output impedance is limiting the power that can be delivered to lower-impedance loads, which helps them not get burned up by accident, but that's at a cost of significantly changing the sound on some models. On a side note, you can always add extra impedance to a low-impedance output source, so having this inherently built in is not really an advantage. It's possible to just use an output stage that's current limited, which will have the same effect without the extra baggage, but that's not a real solution either because some headphones just need a lot more or less power than others, and you don't want to be so conservative that you actually do not have enough to drive some headphones. Better is just to offer more gain options, though a careless user could still set a gain too high for some headphones and accidentally turn the volume too high, and so on. edit: maybe the tone came off wrong here...just being befuddled from the response. I'm not trying to make an example or blanket statements about quality. I just don't think it's technically correct that a lot of higher-end gear (well, more expensive, which is what people mean, I think) are more "impedance friendly" or "support a wide range of impedances." It's not just theory; issues happen with real products. | ||
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They_
Japan62 Posts
There are bass and treble settings for the E17 amp and I'm curious to know if there is an optimal setting. I currently have it set to +6 treble and +4 bass. | ||
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