517 replies to this topic

[DHC]

Unfunny. Can you link me to some dynavox reviews or some interesting forums discussing budget amps?

he wasnt joking. the "Starving Student" is a real amp, and a fantastic one for your price range. assuming you have a soldering iron, it is not a bad option at all

you can build one for 40 euros, and given your budget, you can have somebody in a DIY community build one for you for less than your 80 euro limit. DIYAudio and Head-Fi's DIY forum are good places to ask

http://img407.images.../lumbergzr8.jpg

Yeah uh, how about nooooo

Looking to spend, say, €250 shipped. Currently Senns HD 650 fir that profile, but so do AKG 701's and Beyer-Dynamic DT 880 and 770, though those are closed I think.

those are all very different (the Beyers are semi-open btw). what kind of sound signature were you looking for?

I personally never liked the K701's, too analytical for my tastes - the only time I was amazed by them was when I heard them balanced, driven by a B52 amp

[Weiman]

To be quite frank, I'm not sure. I really liked the HD 650's even hooked up to my mp3 player, amazing soundstage, and I agree the 701's were a bit dry, but I can't clearly recall the Beyers's...

However, I'm not sure if any one of these will be significantly better to me then my A500's, so I'll be, when I have the time, taking my amp, A500's and a some CD's to a hifi store.. maybe dress up fancy, bring my dad along.. you know the deal

[Cypher.bleu]

This thread is about the most moral crushing thread I have ever been too. The sheer amount I don't understand is starting to get really embarassing.

Anyways, I may consult this thread and you guys sometime in the future. I want to get good-quality headphones for use in university next year.
Probably will buy it in Canada, should be cheaper there...

[PwntToast]

To be quite frank, I'm not sure. I really liked the HD 650's even hooked up to my mp3 player, amazing soundstage, and I agree the 701's were a bit dry, but I can't clearly recall the Beyers's...

However, I'm not sure if any one of these will be significantly better to me then my A500's, so I'll be, when I have the time, taking my amp, A500's and a some CD's to a hifi store.. maybe dress up fancy, bring my dad along.. you know the deal

I don't get it

[Weiman]

http://www.head-fi.o...lossary-220770/

[Weiman]

K so here's the deal. Some guy I'm helping has decided he wants a serious sound upgrade for his PC. Speakers, a soundcard. He's happy with his fatality headset so I'm not touching that yet.. He mainly listens to FLAC, ogg and 320Kbit mp3's. He also has a record player he intends to use from time to time.

No real budget.. just keeping it decent. Here's what I came up with:

Zero DAC
KRK RP5's
Optionally a M-Patch 2, but spending 150 bucks on just not having to swap cables around seems a bit overkill. So I guess he'll have to do that manually.

The cabling seems like a bitch tbh, are video coaxial or digital coaxial cables usable as well? He'll probably need seperate ones or XLR-RCA converters..ugh.

[DHC]

RP5's have rca inputs as well, so you wont need to bother with XLR, IF YOU DONT GO BALANCED. in fact, since the Zero DAC's output is stereo RCA, you can connect them directly to the RP5's with standard red/white cables.

if his onboard audio has digital-out, then the Zero DAC is a fantastic idea. yes, you will want to get a proper digital audio cable - any other rca, be it video or analog audio, will not cut it, since the impedance requirements are different. but seriously, a digital audio cable can be had for $5.

the best part though, that youre absolutely going to love... is that the Zero DAC will switch between its "preamp" outputs in the back, to the headphone output in the front, via a simple switch! a button, actually you can plug both the headphones and the speakers into the unit, and not have to bother with an m-patch at all!!!

[Weiman]

Today I paid a visit to a Hifi store, I brought some music, and my ATH-A500's for comparison. I didn't really try out every single headphone, and the ones I did try I was done with quickly, the HD 650 kicked all their asses!
After reading up on Head-fi I was curious as to see what the AKG 701 was like.. same for BeyerDynamic's lineup. I was actually really, REALLY turned off by their respective bass signatures... or their lack thereof in the case of the AKG's Like.. what. It's comparative to the 650 if you listen to classicl sortof.. but that's it. Not my cup of tea.
My sort of conclusion was that that A500's are actually TOO sharp. Harsh 's' sounds were noticeable on them, but sounded just great on the HD 650.
As for the Bass, it's mighty, that's how'd I describe it. A lot more bass at the same volume and it sounds great

Source was my own music on a CD with a H/K CD player and Receiver. All the headphones were hooked up to a 45-port Jack splitter or whatever you call those.. interesting.

The biggest questions is wether or not it's worth the money

[DHC]

The biggest questions is wether or not it's worth the money

that truly is the $64 question, isn't it?

if you like them all that much, and you will actually be using them frequently enough, I say take the plunge. 200 isn't all that much for a new pair



I found the K701's to be even more silibant than AD700's, and a pain to listen to. I didn't realize you were a basshead, and tbh it's surprising you werent more interested in DT880's

[Weiman]

Neither did I really, but it really seemed to be the biggest difference between all of these headphones, picking up the more subtle differences required more thorough listening, and it's the first impression that tends to do it DT880's were almost automatically out cause they're not open, and I didnt like the mids.. not as sharp. The HD650 seems to perform really well in everything, wihle my A500 excels in gaming with the extremely (a bit over-)clear highs and tight bass. The HD650 seemed to be a bit more 'thumpy' but with a lot more impact. Nothing my amp can't fix I'd say

[BlG_BALLS]

In regards to the WA6 amp,is it worth the extra cash to add the PDPS upgrade? Will be using HD650's with said amp.

[BlG_BALLS]

Just received an email response from Jack,and it's cheaper to upgrade during the initial build,verses shipping it back for later upgrades.

"Rich,

You may upgrade the amp after production but there will be additional
labor cost plus shipping. It would be easier for us to do this when we
build your amp from scratch. Current build time is about 4 weeks.

Please let me know if you have any other questions.

Thanks,
Jack"

[DHC]

In regards to the WA6 amp,is it worth the extra cash to add the PDPS upgrade? Will be using HD650's with said amp.

that's a serious amp indeed - what kind of source do you have for this amp? honestly, a power supply upgrade is insignificant if youre running from integrated sound or a poor sound card, where the investment would make a much larger difference

[BlG_BALLS]

I have a decent sound card I believe......here are the specs of it "Creative SOUND BLASTER X-Fi Fatal1ty FPS 7.1 Channels 24-bit 96KHz PCI Interface Sound Card" I also have various inputs and outputs on the front of my computer,that are hooked up to the sound card. I'll take a pic,if that will help.


When you say source,is that like a CD player,turntable etc etc?

Here's a link to what I have.... http://us.creative.c...s...16559&nav=1

[grael]

what headphones does jarett use? particularly in duty calls?
i kinda get pissed off at my headset since the pads (although cushionny) rest on my ears, and after a good session, my ears hurt.
The ones in that episode (and others) seems cool since they fit around the earlobe.
And they look sexy.
Are they any good?
Or are they the really expensive astro ones from the interactive behind the scenes thing.

[DHC]

I have a decent sound card I believe......here are the specs of it "Creative SOUND BLASTER X-Fi Fatal1ty FPS 7.1 Channels 24-bit 96KHz PCI Interface Sound Card" I also have various inputs and outputs on the front of my computer,that are hooked up to the sound card. I'll take a pic,if that will help.


When you say source,is that like a CD player,turntable etc etc?

If it were me, then, id skip getting the power supply upgrade for the Woo. id focus on getting a better DAC than what you have right now. the difference in the amp with the PDPS is subtle, whereas a better initial analog signal will be an extreme upgrade. id check out something along the lines of the Zero Dac - youll be pleasantly surprised by the increase in detail


Source, btw, is just that - the source of your sound. it can be a CDP, TT, or computer sound card, amongst dozens of other things.

what headphones does jarett use? particularly in duty calls?
i kinda get pissed off at my headset since the pads (although cushionny) rest on my ears, and after a good session, my ears hurt.
The ones in that episode (and others) seems cool since they fit around the earlobe.
And they look sexy.
Are they any good?
Or are they the really expensive astro ones from the interactive behind the scenes thing.

Jeremy is using Sennheiser HD555's in that episode. Doug is using Sony MDR-7506's.

the HD555's are indeed cirumaural, meaning they go around the ear. your current headphones sound like they are supra-aural, meaning the pads are the same size as the ear, and rest directly on them.

yes, the HD555's are pretty good for the price range. all headphones have a different character, and though in my opinion there are many better options in that price bracket (AD700's, D1001's), they are by no means bad headphones. youd definitely enjoy them, provided youre ok with open headphones. they cost about $100

[TheBlackOut]

I love my Denon D1001s

[PwntToast]

Jeremy is using Sennheiser HD555's in that episode. Doug is using Sony MDR-7506's.

Other way around

[DHC]

Other way around

youre thinking of "Just the Guys pt.2"

in "Duty Calls," which the OP referred to, Jeremy is the one with the Senns

[Kazzerax]

Other way around

Nope..