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grack posted:For MondayHotDog and Dirty Job, is there any reason you wouldn't consider IEMs? You'll probably get better isolation than with circum- or supra-aurals in your respective budgets. Retarded Pimp posted:That, or IEM's since most often they'll isolate better than closed phones. The Vsonic GR02 seems to have the characteristics you're looking for. I haven't heard them, but this guy likes them. I forgot to mention, I can't use IEMs. I have funny shaped ears I guess. I've tried a few different sets with all the different sized attachments and none of them will stay in my ear canal for more than 30 seconds. I'll look into the F38s and 8323s. Edit: Read some reviews on both and ordered the 8323s. Seems like you can't beat that price. Monday_ fucked around with this message at 14:19 on Oct 28, 2013 |
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Oct 28, 2013 13:51
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rapeface posted:So while I'm here waiting for the a-JAYS Five, amazon lets me know about the JLab JBuds J4 are 66% to $30ish dollars. Is this worth picking up? Are JLabs even the same company as JAY? Those look like cheap IEMs I'd find in a bargain bin. I wouldn't recommend those. Also, no, not the same company.
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Oct 28, 2013 16:04
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Midorka posted:Edit: Everyone praises the Mr. Speakers Mad Dogs? Buy the Ad2000 used and get a better experience or buy the Brainwavz HM5 and get 95% of the experience. Not a fan so far. Interesting that you don't like the Mad Dogs. I really need closed cans, and those were high on my list to consider. The AD2k sound great, but are totally open...
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Oct 28, 2013 16:55
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Ultimate Mango posted:Interesting that you don't like the Mad Dogs. I really need closed cans, and those were high on my list to consider. The AD2k sound great, but are totally open... I've listened to the Mad Dogs for ~4 hours, while accidentally leaving them on all night while sleeping. They sound good, don't get me wrong, but they aren't lively and they feel kind of slow, especially in comparison to the Ad2000, which is odd given the nature of the drivers. I don't know, maybe I just don't like it through the Asgard 2. The Asgard 2 seems warm and weighty.
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Oct 28, 2013 16:58
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Midorka posted:Ah man, it's a whole new world, for better and worse. The Ad2000 are magical headphones, as are the Ad900. If you can read this and not want to buy the Ad2000 then don't buy them. If you feel that there isn't much that entices you then don't. I find the Ad2000 better in every aspect to many other high-end headphones. Man, yeah, they are really piquing my interest. I started with the AD700's for three years with my Xonar STX before giving the 700's to my girlfriend and now have been using the AD900's with W5000 pads for 2ish years through the Icon HDP. I'm like, on the fence between keeping the Icon HDP for my girlfriend and getting the 2000's with a great paired amp or saving until next Christmas for a Mjolnir + Gungnir + LCD-3 combination or something equally as crazy (or both, really). Knot My President! fucked around with this message at 18:06 on Oct 28, 2013 |
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Oct 28, 2013 18:03
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Xovaan posted:Man, yeah, they are really piquing my interest. I started with the AD700's for three years with my Xonar STX before giving the 700's to my girlfriend and now have been using the AD900's with W5000 pads for 2ish years through the Icon HDP. I'm like, on the fence between keeping the Icon HDP for my girlfriend and getting the 2000's with a great paired amp or saving until next Christmas for a Mjolnir + Gungnir + LCD-3 combination or something equally as crazy (or both, really). Dude, you are me, except without the worry about fancy amps. I think that you could definitely buy a used Ad2000. At worst you spend $400-$450 and don't like them, then re-sell at the loss of shipping costs. At best you realize they are your end-game headphone like many who own them do. I regret selling mine, but I had no choice. I will be buying a pair in the future.
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Oct 28, 2013 18:09
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rapeface posted:So while I'm here waiting for the a-JAYS Five, amazon lets me know about the JLab JBuds J4 are 66% to $30ish dollars. Is this worth picking up? Are JLabs even the same company as JAY? No. Jlabs headphones have ridiculous MSRPs so they can always be sold at "massive discounts". They're pretty crappy headphones.
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Oct 28, 2013 18:20
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Midorka's headphone buying guide recommends an amp with the 8323s. Would a cheap portable one like the FiiO E6 help with sound quality at all? Or something else in that price range? CNet's review says even a cheap one helps.
Monday_ fucked around with this message at 18:28 on Oct 28, 2013 |
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Oct 28, 2013 18:25
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Midorka posted:Dude, you are me, except without the worry about fancy amps. I think that you could definitely buy a used Ad2000. At worst you spend $400-$450 and don't like them, then re-sell at the loss of shipping costs. At best you realize they are your end-game headphone like many who own them do. Excellent! I think I'll do this for this Christmas then.  I wanted an endgame setup but truthfully I'm so happy with the way the ATH-AD's are designed that outside of a set of Stax I don't think I'd be fully satisfied.
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Oct 28, 2013 19:24
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Has anyone compared the ATH-AD900x and AKG Q701? I've been able to try out the AD900x and I like them a whole lot (I was getting ready to buy a pair next week) but the Q701s have a few features that would potentially make them a better choice (detachable cords, an included 20-ft cord, possibly more comfortable?, they look better) and some features that could make them worse (possibly less bass?, harder to drive- which shouldn't be a problem as these are probably never gonna get connected directly to a portable device). Unfortunately, I can't seem to find a place where I can A/B them in person, or even try out the Q701 for that matter. AFAIK, they should be more or less the same soundwise, but I'm stupid enough to get really into figuring out which is truly "best" before pulling the trigger. The internet has been pretty useless in terms of figuring this out, which sucks because I'd really like to order something soon. The prices are also nearly identical on Amazon.
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Oct 28, 2013 20:50
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Midorka posted:Those look like cheap IEMs I'd find in a bargain bin. I wouldn't recommend those. Also, no, not the same company. grack posted:No. Jlabs headphones have ridiculous MSRPs so they can always be sold at "massive discounts". They're pretty crappy headphones. Thanks guys. Glad I checked before plonking down cash.
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Oct 29, 2013 03:30
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I've been using my old headphones for about 7 years and they're starting to fall apart - they're some over-engineered bose noise cancelling headphones that I got for free. I'm looking for a good bang-for-buck headset that I might pay in the range of $50-$150 for. I don't need noise isolation, and I'm fine with a big clunky set (the ones that go around my ears I find most comfortable). Ideally they'd be fairly versatile in what they sound good for including gaming, classical music, Bowie, etc. This'll be plugged into my computer and I currently don't have an amp (or sound card, although I can get one if it's important). What's a good headphone set in my price range?
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Oct 29, 2013 21:59
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Easy-to-drive, great for classical music, great for gaming, and comfortable are the four reasons ATH-AD700's are highly regarded headphones. The ATH-AD700X's are the latest ones I believe. You could probably get some used on Head-Fi and have change left over for a Xonar DG or equivalent sound card ($25-$30), which would be perfect for driving them. I used mine for three years before retiring to my girlfriend for my 900's and without a doubt they're phenomenal headphones.
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Oct 30, 2013 21:52
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Finally bought a decent power supply for my laptop. The old one was adding EMI. This is nice!
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Oct 31, 2013 02:43
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I walked into a Best Buy to purchase a new mouse to replace my dying Logitech and walked out with not only a new mouse but also a set of B&W P7 headphones from Best Buy's Magnolia substore. I usually use my Shure 420 IEMs to monitor audio and a set of B&W C5 IEMs for day to day commuting use. I really like the Shures. On the other hand, while I really like B&W's high end speakers, the B&W C5 IEM were decent but not great. I really felt like the C5s were sold on the name far more than the sound quality. The C5s ended up with a loose connection in the wire at the microphone and so I replaced them with a cheap UE 350vi which have pretty middling sound quality. I still wanted something for listening to music so when I walked into Best Buy for the mouse I figured I'd listen to a few headphones while I was there. The Magnolia substore had a selection of headphones including AKG, PSB, Sennheiser, B&W. Unfortunately they didn't have the KEF M500 or AKG on the demonstration rack. Also, because of my cauliflower ears, I found all the on ear headphones uncomfortable. My favorites for both sound quality and comfort were the Sennheiser Momentum and B&W P7. I thought the P7 was significantly better than the P3 and P5 headphones in sound quality and also liked it better than the Sennheiser Momentum which were also very good. While I feel that most of the B&W mobile products carry a somewhat undeserved price premium because of the name, the fancy design and the reputation of the high end speakers, I felt that the P7 actually are very good with respect to sound quality, build quality and comfort. In addition, you can drive them adequately straight from a phone/mobile device without the need for an amp. I'm quite happy with them so far. I think they're worth a look for anyone looking for non-IEM headphones in the Sennheiser Momentum, KEF M500, PSB M4U range ($250-$400). EDIT: I know this thread states that you don't really need a separate DAC/Amp but I get too much interference noise from my Xonar DX front panel connectors and the headphone out on my B&W MM-1 is allegedly not very neutral. Any thoughts on the NAD D 1050 especially as it compares to the O2+ODAC, the Fiio E17, or the Schiit Magni/Modi or Bifrost? (Note that the impedance of the P7 is 22 ohms) Yuns fucked around with this message at 04:34 on Nov 1, 2013 |
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Nov 1, 2013 03:23
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Quick question regarding output impedance: Does the output impedance of my original source matter to my headphones if I have a suitable headphone amp with correct impedance? I'm assuming that the signal is pre-amped somewhat since it'd be coming out of my soundcard. Will I need to isolate the source by outputting a digital signal into a DAC as proxy? Context: I'm asking because I have a Creative soundcard plugged into my computer. I don't think it even has an analog line-out. Creative seems really lovely at disclosing stuff like output impedance, but general internet consensus seems to be that it's pretty high -- suitable for 250 ohm headphones, but bad for sub-40. A lot of headphones that I'm looking at are sub-40 ohm impedance so I'd like to drop the output impedance to something that would fit better. If an amp alone (such as the O2) can't deliver on that, I'd probably be forced to get an optical DAC as well.
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Nov 1, 2013 06:59
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I recently got a pair of Sennheiser RS 170's under the impression that they were capable of being wired for some reason. They are pretty fantastic other than the fact that I have to be home to use them, so I have been looking into transmitters. This has been pretty much all I can find that transmits using the Kleer technology, but that is awfully expensive for something that can only be used for Apple devices. Am I just out of luck if I want some kind of semi-universal transmitter? edit: After looking around a bit more I found cheaper but questionable headphones with a Kleer transmitter. I don't expect to use all the features like bass boost or anything, but would that transmitter at least work with the basics of the rs 170's? sleppy fucked around with this message at 02:00 on Nov 2, 2013 |
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Nov 2, 2013 00:30
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Wanna thank you guys for the Monoprice 8323 recommendation. I'm hearing things I've never heard before in songs I've listened to hundreds of times. With 23 dollar headphones. That's insane.
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Nov 2, 2013 00:47
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MondayHotDog posted:Wanna thank you guys for the Monoprice 8323 recommendation. I'm hearing things I've never heard before in songs I've listened to hundreds of times. With 23 dollar headphones. That's insane. How's the isolation?
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Nov 2, 2013 01:11
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Retarded Pimp posted:How's the isolation? Haven't taken them on the train for the real test yet, but they do a decent job blocking the noise from my jet engine of a computer. Can't hear it at all when I'm playing a game.
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Nov 2, 2013 03:42
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Yuns posted:EDIT: I know this thread states that you don't really need a separate DAC/Amp but I get too much interference noise from my Xonar DX front panel connectors and the headphone out on my B&W MM-1 is allegedly not very neutral. Any thoughts on the NAD D 1050 especially as it compares to the O2+ODAC, the Fiio E17, or the Schiit Magni/Modi or Bifrost? (Note that the impedance of the P7 is 22 ohms) If you're getting EMI you might want to consider a new power supply instead. That was my problem on my laptop. Gimbal lock posted:Quick question regarding output impedance: Does the output impedance of my original source matter to my headphones if I have a suitable headphone amp with correct impedance? I'm assuming that the signal is pre-amped somewhat since it'd be coming out of my soundcard. Will I need to isolate the source by outputting a digital signal into a DAC as proxy? Yeah it matters. You want your headphones to have an impedance 8 times greater than your sources output. Anything less can change the frequency response of the headphones.
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Nov 2, 2013 05:06
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Both my source (my soundcard) and my amp have an output impedance. The last thing in the chain before the headphones is the amp -- does that mean that I must match this "8 times greater" rule between the amp and the headphones, or does it also apply to the source (the soundcard) in a way that I'm not quite catching? My guess is only the output impedance of the amp matters, but I'd love to get confirmation on that from anybody that knows more about this stuff than I do... Which is pretty much anybody in here!
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Nov 2, 2013 05:48
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Gimbal lock posted:Both my source (my soundcard) and my amp have an output impedance. The last thing in the chain before the headphones is the amp -- does that mean that I must match this "8 times greater" rule between the amp and the headphones, or does it also apply to the source (the soundcard) in a way that I'm not quite catching? I don't know how it works if you're double amping, but if you're using a line-out (bypassing the sound cards amp) then it'll just be the output impedance of the amp.
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Nov 2, 2013 06:08
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Gimbal lock posted:Both my source (my soundcard) and my amp have an output impedance. The last thing in the chain before the headphones is the amp -- does that mean that I must match this "8 times greater" rule between the amp and the headphones, or does it also apply to the source (the soundcard) in a way that I'm not quite catching? The sound card is only driving the amp, not the headphones. Headphone amps will have huge input impedance, generally in the tens of thousands of ohms, so your sound card will have no trouble. You want to look at the output impedance of the amp compared to the headphones.
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Nov 2, 2013 06:19
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The impedance talk is interesting. I get to spend dozens of hours on planes this coming week, and I may use my portable amp to buffer the airplane audio. Good times. Anyone here have a portable amp they like with >40 hours of battery life?
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Nov 2, 2013 06:30
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Gotcha. Thanks a million, guys. 
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Nov 2, 2013 06:33
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After years of using cheap ear buds I am looking for a decent pair of headphones. Doing some research has only left me more confused so I hope you guys can help. A friend has a pair of unused Sennheiser Momentum On-Ear that he is willing to sell for £120. These seem to get decent reviews but honestly I have no idea if these fit my needs. Any recommendations on what else I should be considering? Budget - £200 but this seems like more than I would need to spend Source - Mainly laptop, sometimes an iPod classic Isolation Requirements - Somewhat, I regularly fly long distance but tend to just watch films/tv on planes and the engine noise doesn't really bother me. I never wear headphones when walking around, sitting in cafes or on public transport. Preferred Type of Headphone - On ear. In ear is always uncomfortable for me and over ear seem too large/expensive Preferred Tonal Balance - Balanced I guess? Past Headphones - Recently I have been using the ear buds that came with my HTC phone and really have nothing to compare them to Preferred Music - Rock, classical, some hip hop and used for watching films on laptop A little extra detail on the above. I travel a lot for work so I need something fairly compact (ideally with a case) but also comfortable to wear for two/three hours at a time. Thanks for any help.
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Nov 2, 2013 23:41
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I bought the Superlux HD 681s for a cheap pair of gaming headphones and I've been more than happy with their performance for the price. The only problem I have is apparently my head is too fat and after about an hour or two of use the clamp force is a little overwhelming. Without the risk of breaking them is there a recommended solution to loosening them up a bit or am I better off just going after another pair?
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Nov 3, 2013 03:25
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vanbags posted:I bought the Superlux HD 681s for a cheap pair of gaming headphones and I've been more than happy with their performance for the price. Stretch them over a stack of books over night.
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Nov 3, 2013 06:25
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Stupid Decisions posted:Thanks for any help. I don't know about the on-ear version, but the standard Momentums (over-ear) are very, very highly regarded and they're designed to be used with portable devices and low-power headphone jacks. If you don't like IEMs and you've got the spending money, they're probably one of the best long-distance commute/general purpose headphones on the market, especially when you consider how good they look.
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Nov 3, 2013 14:10
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While searching for test tones for my headphones, I came across audiocheck. I looked through the thread and did not find any reference to this site. They have test for headphones http://www.audiocheck.net/soundtests_headphones.php As well as blind tests for checking the thresholds of your hearing http://www.audiocheck.net/blindtests_index.php I found it pretty useful. I was surprised at my blind test results. I can detect a 0.5 change in db consistently. I can detect a 10 hz difference in pitch but cannot identify a 5 Hz change in pitch. I don't have sensitivity to polarity changes in headphones. My high frequency hearing has deteriorated significantly and I have lost 18k+ frequencies. Yuns fucked around with this message at 15:11 on Nov 3, 2013 |
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Nov 3, 2013 15:05
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Yuns posted:I was surprised at my blind test results. Congratulations on your good results! I'll have to try myself when I'm home alone. But surely the pitch test is using cents, not Hz? A cent is 100th of a half-tone interval, the size of which (in Hz) varies depending on the note. At A=440, a cent down would be 0,247 Hz, if I understood it correctly. 10Hz would be very easy to detect compared to 10c. Hippie Hedgehog fucked around with this message at 15:59 on Nov 3, 2013 |
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Nov 3, 2013 15:52
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vanbags posted:I bought the Superlux HD 681s for a cheap pair of gaming headphones and I've been more than happy with their performance for the price. Looking at the design of those, they are an exact clone of the AKG 240 that I use. I've had them for a decade and they kind of always put too much pressure on the top edges of my ears after an hour or two, so I usually wear them offset: half on my ears and half on my temples. That's comfortable enough to wear indefinitely. Also be careful not to overstretch them, it's complicated to explain, but those two wires that provide the clamping force are actually two thick coathanger-type pieces of metal that carry the signal to the right side ear. If you fatigue them too much or they develop too much wiggly side-play, the signal will become hosed. Edit: Oh yeah, no one responded the last time I asked... Astro A40's, are those price-competitive as nice sounding headphones with a mic (at their eBay price of $150-ish), or is there a premium on those and I can get comparable alternatives for less? Seems like I'd be paying extra for their marketing/street-cred. Zero VGS fucked around with this message at 17:36 on Nov 3, 2013 |
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Nov 3, 2013 17:23
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Hippie Hedgehog posted:Congratulations on your good results! I'll have to try myself when I'm home alone. But surely the pitch test is using cents, not Hz? A cent is 100th of a half-tone interval, the size of which (in Hz) varies depending on the note. At A=440, a cent down would be 0,247 Hz, if I understood it correctly. 10Hz would be very easy to detect compared to 10c.
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Nov 3, 2013 18:01
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Yuns posted:you are right. It is 10c and 5c not hz. I feel a bit better about my results but the loss of 18k+ scares me You're not using calibrated headphones like an audiologist would test with. Who knows how much sound yours are actually producing above 18k.
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Nov 3, 2013 18:18
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eddiewalker posted:You're not using calibrated headphones like an audiologist would test with. Who knows how much sound yours are actually producing above 18k. This. If you did the test with iPhone earbuds or something similar then I'd be tempted to take the results with many, many grains of salt. Also, losing the top frequencies often has less to do with mechanical hearing loss and more to do with aging and your ears naturally changing as you get older- particularly if you're over 25. Remember those "under-18 only" ringtones that got infamous a couple of years ago? That isn't to say that you haven't experienced some appreciable degree of hearing loss thanks to your music listening habits. I know I have, and it's why I await our future of stem cell-based regenerative medicine with open arms/wallet  .
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Nov 3, 2013 21:00
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Right, I cannot think of another place to ask this, so here seems the best bet. I have some AKG K240s, which I am entirely happy with, however, what I am not happy with is that I can only have one source feeding into them at the same time. Basically, I want a way to wear my headphones, and through them play games (on my TV) and listen to podcasts at the same time. Is it at all possible to have my headphones playing something from both my TV and my laptop at the same time, and if so what would I be looking for to make that happen on a low tech level? I mean like a reverse splitter cable, which, instead of sharing one source of sound between two speaker systems or sets of headphones actually shares one pair of headphones or set of speakers between two sources. Is that the sort of thing I would need a mixing deck for, or is there a simple way to do it? I am no audio tech wizard, hence why I am asking here at a panel of individuals who are more likely to be working with a better technical knowledge when it comes to audio. And then, the final question - is this an expensive thing to do?
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Nov 4, 2013 22:37
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You're talking about a mixer. The cheapest and easiest way will be to get analog audio from your game system into an input on your laptop and use a software mixer.
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Nov 4, 2013 22:46
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Aw drat, I was hoping there would be an easier way of doing it with just some cable or some poo poo. Ah well, I guess I can live with some jury rigged situation.
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Nov 4, 2013 22:48
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Starting my first real DIY projects: gonna build a b22 amp, o22 power supply, and y1 & y2 DAC for winter. If you see me on Maury or the 6 o'clock news, you know why
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Nov 4, 2013 23:59
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