Headphone + amp upgrade advice please

[dalethorn]

6 hours ago, Ralf11 said:

So, who likes the Beats headphones?

 

I had a listen to the newer Beats Studio Wireless.  Somewhat boomy, with a recessed lower treble.

[dalethorn]

1 hour ago, Summit said:

 

I have not said that planar cannot play high frequency sound, I have stated the very opposite.

 

@Dalethorn are on the right track in regard to that it’s hard to make a planar without roll of high treble. But I object to his statement that planar can’t be made without roll of treble or that planars are poor quality attempts at doing what ES do.

 

Not exactly what I said.  It's not about rolloff, it's the upper harmonic resolution that's poor compared to ES or Senn HD800 headphones.

 

Here is the best-ever test for resolution - Girl From Guatemala, at 3:00 is a burst of treble instruments that will sound fair to awful on most headphones, but spectacular on the HD800 and a good electrostatic.

http://www.hdtracks.com/area-1237

[hdo]

9 hours ago, Summit said:

I have not said that planar cannot play high frequency sound, I have stated the very opposite.

 

@Dalethorn are on the right track in regard to that it’s hard to make a planar without roll of high treble. But I object to his statement that planar can’t be made without roll of treble or that planars are poor quality attempts at doing what ES do.

I know you didn't say that. I just quoted from your comment! I can hear sparkling sound from planar headphones using Audacity tone generator. If source contains sparkling sound, planars will produce sparkling sound. High pitch tone that can be heard from dynamic headphone is mylar plastic noise. Not from source contents.

[dalethorn]

52 minutes ago, hdo said:

I know you didn't say that. I just quoted from your comment! I can hear sparkling sound from planar headphones using Audacity tone generator. If source contains sparkling sound, planars will produce sparkling sound. High pitch tone that can be heard from dynamic headphone is mylar plastic noise. Not from source contents.

 

Do try the Chesky "Girl From Guatemala" - it's an ear-opener.

[dalethorn]

On 12/23/2017 at 1:10 AM, Ralf11 said:

So, who likes the Beats headphones?

 

I replied to this once, a couple days before I bought the new Beats Studio3 Wireless.  Like other new Bluetooth headphones, there is no purely passive wired mode, so the DSP is always active.  The good news is you get the same sound more-or-less with or without  cable, unlike the Bose QC35 first edition.

 

The other news is the sound - a strong emphasis in the upper bass to low mids, a significant recess in the lower treble, and a strong peak in the upper treble.  The combination of the first two makes the sound somewhat muffled.  This is not a one-off - the sound is the same as the demo unit.

 

What worries me about this upper treble peak is what may be happening to Beats and other such headphone users' hearing, and if this peak is an attempt to make the Studio3 Wireless sound a little more alive to those users.

 

 

[buonassi]

On 12/10/2017 at 4:05 AM, StuartsYoga said:

 

 

Last night I tried something and switched in my in ear Soundmagic EC10. That's the tonality I like. I'm wondering if in the ear is the way to go upscale for more revealing 'audiophile' qualities?

 

 

 

check this link below.  At the same time realize that upchain components will affect quality gains differently based on what you listen with.  The HD650 or HD6XX will reflect the quality of the chain moreso than the E10s (which are happy being driven off an iphone).  A decent DAC is a must however for all cans/iems.  But if you do go with higher impedance cans like the senns, they are best paired with a good amp.  When you do get an amp, do it once and do it right, a lesson I learned the hard way.  I too would avoid the Schiit magni.  Get something that can drive anything you hook to it properly - from sensitive IEMs to big cans.  Look for an output impedance of under 1ohm (very important for IEMs) and something with a decent voltage swing and slew rate (very important for highly damped cans - ie high impedance cans).  LakePeople G109 is a tried and true amp that satisfies all of this.    

 

1 hour ago, buonassi said:

The issue with IEMs is ear canal resonances creating peaks in treble energy.  As others have suggested, the foams are miles ahead of silicone as they prevent reflections that exacerbate the resonances.  Also, once you have foams, experiment with insertion depth.  The closer to the ear canal, the higher up in khz the resonance will occur, which may sound better/worse based on your preferences.  What's worse is that these resonances tend to happen right at the sibilance region and create fatigue.  

 

I have the best results with the large comply foam (authentic).  I've tried many others, and there's just something special about the comply surface that maintains a great seal while limiting reflections.  

 

Having said all of that.  I have yet to find an over ear that avoids the resonances as well as a TOTL IEM fitted with foams.  Over-ears create resonances too, even the open ones.  Even an over ear like the HD600, known for smooth treble, has to be worked on in an eq program before I can get it as smooth and linear sounding in the treble as my JH Angies.  When going to IEMs you give up on width, but boy can you get an amazing FR if you keep at it.  

 

for 45USD you can try the zero audio carbo tenore + 15 more bucks for the foams and you'll know just how good IEMs can sound.

[Ben2300]

have you guys try the new Sony Wireless yet. I tried and purchased one it sounds a lot better than beats.

[dalethorn]

42 minutes ago, Ben2300 said:

have you guys try the new Sony Wireless yet. I tried and purchased one it sounds a lot better than beats.

 

Some of the Sony's are getting great reviews.  Sony has a long history of excellent sound, while Beats has essentially no history of excellent sound.  In my particular case, Sony is a no-no due to their repair policies, but hopefully you'll not have any issues with yours.

[lgoler]

@dalethorn  You seem to have very strong opinions about why planar magnetic headphones suck at this point in time.  It also seems that you have a serious amp headphone in the Oppo HA2 DAC, but yet you list only mediocre rated phones as your listening vehicles. What gives?

 

[buonassi]

3 hours ago, lgoler said:

@dalethorn  You seem to have very strong opinions about why planar magnetic headphones suck at this point in time.  It also seems that you have a serious amp headphone in the Oppo HA2 DAC, but yet you list only mediocre rated phones as your listening vehicles. What gives?

 

you'd be surprised what a good amp/dac will do for your sound transducer of choice, my friend.

[hdo]

On ‎1‎/‎03‎/‎2018 at 5:06 PM, buonassi said:

you'd be surprised what a good amp/dac will do for your sound transducer of choice, my friend.

Good dac/amp matters when you also have good headphones!

[GarryAlexander]

thank you for this advice, I tried it and I really liked it
 

[exdmd]

While all components in your system matter in order of importance: speakers/phones > amp > pre-amp > DAC

[doctear]

I agree. Schitt and Woo are pretty good choices.