/hpg/ - Headphone General

What audiophile memes have you fallen for this week, Jow Forums?

post requests in this format if you want useful recommendations
>budget
>location
>open/closed
>past headphones
>sound preferences
>intended use

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Other urls found in this thread:

youtube.com/watch?v=RYsp6_Pd-dI
pastebin.com/zsyzGrhN
youtube.com/watch?v=seFL61UVxhs
twitter.com/NSFWRedditGif

hi

sent from my focal elex

BLUF: Choosing between Bowers & Wilkins PX, Sony WH1000XM3, Sennheiser PXC 550, Microsoft Surface Headphones.
>budget
$350
>location
USA
>open/closed
Closed
>past headphones
Bose on-ear
>sound preferences
ANC
>intended use
Gift for my brokebro. He's trying to make music but he uses his Bose workout earphones. He could do for an upgrade. He also does some travelling, so I'd like it if he could use it for that purpose, so wireless, ANC, and (a feature I'm having trouble finding out more about) an automatic pause/play when taking off headphones/putting them on (this can be mitigated by some other easy to use and intuitive pause/play feature.
Examples so far that seem to fit my purpose:
- Microsoft Surface BT ANC - Great interface but the sound quality would probably not work for music production.
- Sennheiser PXC 550 - was one of the top pick for Chase Reeves, so it's no sound slouch, and has the auto pause feature as long as you configure it. Con is it's pretty old and I'm not sure if an update is coming soon.
SonyWH1000: Seems to have great sound quality but only has a right-hand side hold for letting in ambient noise instead of auto pause.

Any suggestions that would meet this use case? Should I just gift him a dedicated studio headphone now?

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Now that Schiit is going to rule over amp and DAC markets again with the advent of Asgard 3 (insane, clean power for cheap) and Bifrost 2 (famed Gungnir/Yggy -tier performance for 1/2th of Gumby’s price), do we need to put Topping/RMEfags on suicide watch?

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SCHIIT BIFROST 2 QUICK REVIEW AND SUBJECTIVE IMPRESSIONS


OK. Here's the deal.

Why would I want a Bifrost 2? How does it sound like?:

This is for guys who liked the warmer sound of the Gungnir Multibit A1 and found the A2 to be too cool or too 'bleached" (stealing a term from @k4rstar). The Gungnir Multibit A2 needs to be in the right system, warmer sounding speakers to work well. For example, I run Yggydrasil with my JBL 4498b. Despite their big woofers and buttcheck horns, these speakers are tight and lean (but can be mean and hefty) in the bass and are gently in the highs. The Yggdrasil A2 with its thicker, almost mushier lows and sharper highs is a better fit for this system. The Gungnir A2 goes better my other speakers with the cheap OB 15" woofers which get pushed hard (less tight) and the wide-bander with horn (rough and spikes in the highs). If you do not like the general presentation of the first iteration of the Gungnir Multibit, then stay away.

Non-gimped SE outputs:

Every other person knows that the Gungnir MB and Yggdrasil sounded better from the balanced outputs and with an amp with true balanced inputs. With 8-chips, 4 per side, these DACs were inherently hardware balanced from the chips. SE required another stage that summed the balanced signals, and this caused slight performance degradation. I know a few here tried to squeeze out slightly better sonic performance with the use of XLR to RCA transformers. This is no longer required with the Bifrost 2.

Bifrost 2 has SE outputs that are not gimped. When I get the Freya Nexus back, I will listen more comprehensively between SE and BAL output differences. It's hard to keep things apples to apples. I think for most people, this will be a lot more convenient. Most people run gear with SE inputs. This is a no-brainer.

Despite having 4 fewer chips, the non-gimped SE output more than makes up for it. Huge gains in clarity, no veil, focus.

cont.
Opamps:

As far opamps, I was quite surprised. I had always felt that opamps inhibited performance, but after hearing a few DACs now (Convert 2 one of them), some of these newer diff opamps are sounding really good. (Thinking out loud: these diff opamps could be a way to make a really good cheap phonostage). It's getting to the point where huge efforts would be necessary to make a discrete stage that sounded better. Of course, I would be curious to see the Nexus or the diff-amp "buffer" on the Freya used for a discrete analog stage in the future for higher-end DACs from Schiit.

Opamps do measure better if that's important to you. I haven't taken a look at the AP measurements yet posted on the Schit, but I wouldn't be surprised if they are better than the Yggdrasil and Gungnir Multibit measurements. Still, if you play music at that requires 160dbFS peaks (that's 128db SPL over 32db SPL ambient), you might want to get an Oppo or whatever the pseudo-science people say is best as of last week's SINAD chart.

Nevermind that your typical recordings have a SINAD of no better than 85db at best, but that's just an inconvenient sciency fact that we can overlook. Extremism is fun!

Unison USB:

I think it's safe to say that the beta users can spill the beans. There are many different thoughts on this. Many mentioned improved technicalities. I eschewed from this from. Simply put, Unison sounded so different from everything else that I asked @baldr if he was pulling one on me by doing digital manipulation. He did mumble something about having control of the clocks. I didn't press. He's allowed to keep his secrets and most of you guys who have DIY'd know that designing audio gear is just as much wizardry as much as a science.

cont.

In short, the Unison USB sounded tube-like as in tube-like engagement, almost a sense of bloom, with the better technicalities such as focus, etc. becoming an afterthought. None of this is supported by the AP measurements. This purely subjective. A comparison with the Bezerkly Alpha 2 USB to SPDIF converter might prove to be interesting.

Does the Unison beat the pants off my best CD transport, the Theta Data III? (Note that all CD transports are not the same.) Nope. But it's awfully close (and different) that I won't lament the day that the Data III dies, which will be soon. Unison does tie or slightly beat my second best CD transport though, and that's huge! USB doesn't suck or isn't a level of suck anymore.

For USB users, having 4 fewer chips, the Unison more than makes up for it.

How’s the usb audio in most android phones these days?

cont.

Da bass and concluding points:

One major weakness of the Bifrost series throughout was the bass. Depending upon the model: not enough heft, maybe too much mid-bass bloat, lacking ultimately extension, mushy and muddy, etc. The bass power and quality are one of the most surprising aspects of Bifrost 2. I don't know WTH they did to finally fix this.

With all things being maxed out, the Bifrost is only a bit less capable of the Yggdrasil and Gungnir Multibit A2 units. Yes, it's that close. Including the bass slam. For most people and their typical use cases, the Bifrost 2 will be superior to the Gungnir Multibit A1 for the following reasons: non-gimped SE and Unison. Also, the tonal response is probably more agreeable to most people: slightly warm, slightly dark.

--

FYI, I spoke with Jason about these impressions and told him that I would be forthright in my observations, even though they might lead the Bifrost 2 to cannibalize the higher-end products.

Imagine spending more than 100 USD on a DAC

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imagine not being poor

imagine not having an Orpheus

Superlux HD668B vs Philips SHP9500 vs Sennheiser/Drop HD58X

All on a laptop and on a cheapo bluetooth DAC+AMP

HD668B:
Trebles are unnaturally pronounced, and it makes the mids and bass sound bright too. There is a decent amount of bass though and the mids sound good, so if you find a good EQ to tone down the treble they can sound really good. Great separation and clarity. With EQ these sound comparable to headphones that are several times more expensive.

SHP9500:
All treble. There's hardly any bass to be heard, I can't hear bass (the instrument) in most songs. Mids sound ok, but they get drowned by treble. And the treble sounds low quality and crackles very slightly and just sounds fucking "grainy". These get a hard pass from me.

HD58X:
Really balanced sound. I can actually hear a natural-sounding amount of bass on these, in contrast to the other two. Mids are maybe a bit pronounced, but not so much that it'd bother me. Highs sound just right, they're not very powerful but I can still hear all instruments well. Soundstage seems a bit smaller than the other two, but separation sounds significantly better (may be due to the more neutral signature). I appreciate the neutral but slightly warm sound since any hi-fi headphones I've tried earlier haven't had that.

Why won't you link previous threads? newshit

After a a thread where people mentioned audiopedophiles a guy made poorly formatted threads with anime boys as a joke.

>HD668B
And modded 650 is the super fastest headphones in the universe !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Imagine being first(only) for SUMMIT FI

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What are you saying? That a cheaply-priced headphone can't be competitive with higher-priced headphones? I'm not saying they're the best, and they sound pretty poor without EQ.

Oh

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>What audiophile memes have you fallen for this week, Jow Forums?
Stacking FLACs and joining RED

Imagine spending more then $100 on headphone shit when speakers exist.

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Sadly, not everyone lives alone locked in their basements.

Speakers
>sound different when you move around
>every part of your room affects the acoustics, hard to get "neutral" sound
>more expensive
>require amps
>bother your neighbors

Headphones
>less soundstage but still can sound like it's not coming from inside your head, and can be better than a bad speaker setup

Did I get something wrong?

>sound different when you move around
Don’t move around
>every part of your room affects the acoustics, hard to get "neutral" sound
Set the speakers up properly
>more expensive
You guys are all talking about buying meme thousand dollar dacs and there’s some retard spamming $3000 tube headphone amps, pretty sure you can afford a pair of speakers
>require amps
See above
>bother your neighbors
I think it’s a given you are doomed if you have neighbours that complain over playing music, I would suggest moving out ASAP.

Headphones
>can be better than a bad speaker setup
Means nothing. Please note. I did not even bother to btfo you with some of the advantages speakers have. Have a nice day living with your parents, never being able to enjoy loud music.

Anyone retarded enough to prefer headphones over speakers should be killed off.

>Don’t move around
That's unhealthy
>Set the speakers up properly
A lot of work, and I'm not qualified enough to say what "properly" is
>You guys are all talking about buying meme thousand dollar dacs and there’s some retard spamming $3000 tube headphone amps, pretty sure you can afford a pair of speakers
I'm not one of those people though - I just get what sounds good to me for the minimum price. I have other things in my life than perfect audio, but it's nice to have something that doesn't sound like shit.
>I think it’s a given you are doomed if you have neighbours that complain over playing music, I would suggest moving out ASAP.
Apartment house is the comfiest form of living if you're a low energy person

What are the other advantages of speakers though, I'm genuinely curious?

Hey user, what’s listening this morning?

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Why hasn't someone just used two different headphones, equalized them to the same frequency response, and then listened to them to see if they sound different?

< 100$ budget tierlist
I think the m40x might be a better value than the 559. Better treble and bass without high dips on the mid range? (again, this is a value chart)
I feel like the M40x is too expensive to be higher on the list coming at like 90+ USD
My opinion is up for debate.

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Some professional reviewer should do a test some time where they EQ a bunch of headphones to sound as flat as possible using a mic and then compare distortion, imaging and how flat the frequency response was able to get

Why is OP's picture dead?

>Don’t move around

Imagine not pacing around you room as you fantasise about being the first astronaut on Europa or some shit

I hope someone does it. Would be cool to see how far EQ is really able to go.

i am not an expert on this but basically:
>bluetooth
>not more that 50$
>location: germany
>and of course rather good sound quality

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Hello Jow Forums friends.

I have a 270GB music collection on my home PC that I would like to enjoy on the move. Is there any way to turn my home PC into a web server so I could enjoy the collection from my android device?

Please let me know.

Have a great rest of your day, anons.

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Not that, just that my modded 650 are the best! i mistakenly greentexted HD668B

>unironically listening to moderate mainstream shit
>that normalfag casual tier taste in music
You done poorly, son. You can still manage it.

Pic related is an example of another shit taste in idie tiers, and if you know what it is you are an actual fag

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Because (s)he deserves it

Sorry, user. I don't know who is pictured in your image. Most of the artists in my imagine I have never listened to but downloaded during freeleech to boost my ratio on what.cd.

if you're not smart enough to do it you don't need to do it

also you need more punk rock and discographies you plebian

Maybe Plex has a mobile option? I dunno, there certainly must be options for that.

Also
>Buckethead
Great taste my man

>install apache web server
>configure folder as accessible resource
>open port on router

Mind posting the rest of your folder? Looks like there could be a lot of good artists I haven't heard before.

How does this sound on your end? youtube.com/watch?v=RYsp6_Pd-dI

Weird

So it means you have a shit set up and shitphones

Thanks. Here's a list of every folder. Let me know if you'd like something - You can download it through soulseek.
pastebin.com/zsyzGrhN

Thanks mate. Saved for later listening

>YouTube
Are you sure it isn't the shit-tier source, user?

No

Does a weird song start sounding good just by pairing it with the right headphones?

heapdhones

Do you even listen to music fag?

>Budget
$400
>location
USA
>open/closed
Open
>past headphones
AKG K550
>intended use
Desktop pc headphones, some music, some games, etc

>iemg is beb
Got these, disappointing. It hisses and metal tracks sound like garbage, even with aptx hd. At least it's not skipping like the previous BT 4.1 one. Back to using a cable.Why are (((they))) pushing this ""technology"" on us, dumb phoneposters?

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Weird question, of course not

What kind of sound signature, bassy, neutral, bright?

Nevermind the bad battery capacity

Yeah, you listening to your mum's screams

Who even decided that a short cable running to your phone in a pocket is inconvenient? I mean it's as good as not being there, unless you're doing physical exercise

FR Graph for the Memeaudio Phantom what do you guys think? Let me know in the comments below.


No please let's have an actual discussion for once or something, anything, I even miss the Staxposting...wtf happened to this place?

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If I was pressed to give an answer I'd probably say bassy, but I'm typically more concerned with a large sound stage than anything to be honest.

Probably want planars then

>takes the placebo to the next realm

No because the DX7 will be the best possible bang for buck for the foreseeable future. Its just too permanent and feature rich to topple easily.

Holy shit you actually believe this shit?

Light modded HD330 will always be the best bang for buck. If you have an amp that is.

There's that one frequency somewhere around 3kHz that seems to annoy me regardless of what headphones I use. -5dB does the trick. Anybody else like this?

Headphones with this feel? youtube.com/watch?v=seFL61UVxhs

I have never seen such a retarded post.
>Dont move around
doesn't play in the speakers favor.
>Set the speakers properly
Proper room treatment is invasive and can be absurdly expensive. Most people will have to go with room EQ which can add up to 1 grand to the setup.
>You guys are all talking about buying meme thousand dollar dacs and there’s some retard spamming $3000 tube headphone amps, pretty sure you can afford a pair of speakers
People buy headphones because they dont take space require minimal setup and are way less expensive. And 3000$ doesnt buy you an high end setup. Not even close.
>I would suggest moving out ASAP.
Oh yeah because its very reasonable to move just to be able to blast speakers instead of just using headphones.
>Means nothing.
You fucking troglodyte. I wont even bother to type anything more.

>budget
see below

>location
USA

>open/closed
IEMs

>past headphones
Right now I'm using the Noble EDC Velvets and M&D MH40s.

>sound preferences
I've tried a lot of other headphones and many of them were too bright for me, except the HD569 which I liked a lot for its price. I'm treble sensitive, but other than that I just like a somewhat warmer than neutral sound signature - emphasis more on mids than bass, I don't like really in-your-face bass. The Velvets ended up being too warm and bassy which I "fixed" by using Comply tips. Now they're pretty good although the treble quality is so-so.

>intended use
I'm primarily looking for throwaway IEMs right now, less than $50 and preferably without sibilance or the V-shape sound that most cheap IEMs tend to have. Emphasis on comfort and durability.

But recommendations for an upgrade or sidegrade IEM from the EDC Velvets are also appreciated. Something more neutral yet still not harsh.

BBC dip.

I actually compared good pair of headphones with good/expensive speakers, and headphones are my way to go.

huh?

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Tin audio T3 sounds like what you need. I don't recommend for you the T2 because it emphasizes treble a bit. The T3 is not free of fuckery either and has a single significant spike at 10k. Whether or not it affects sound signature depends on your ear canal as that frequency is is very affected by your canal shape.
Bass is very nice and extended and does wonders for the sound stage. Hits when it needs to and rumble is here in small amounts. Practically no emphasis too so nice and flat. Mids are clean and flat sounds great. Treble is good for the most part save for that treble spike. The higher treble is rolled off but its done properly and doesn't fuck the timbre.
Build wise its pretty much indestructible. The build is all metal with no seams. Finish is nice. The connectors are sturdy and the cable is godly. doesn't tangle easily and doesn't kink or hold shape. Comfort wise its good but not disappear tier. Its above average for sure.
Isolation is surprisingly good too.

>recommending the meme of the week

I'm not looking for anything with any kind of emphasized treble, I specified that in the post. Chances are that I will find it bright. All the reviews describe it as being brighter or V-shaped.

I've been using an Earstudio ES100 with a regular but short cable and LDAC, and it sounds fine. It's possible your cable just has a shit DAC/amp in it.

Tube amps really do change the sound

Why do you have like a full studio mixing setup but on the floor?

>studio mixing setup
these are synthesizer modules, my clueless friend

As a casual listener, would I have reason to care too much about the difference between the ATH-M40x and the ATH-M50x? I'm hesitant to spend more than 100.

the m40 are the better headphone and yes you'd care about that difference if you'd compare them side by side

that’s not a mixer though there are two stereo panning mixer/vca modules in there, that’s a diy Serge modular synth I was rearranging to fit a couple new modules I just built

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Currently have the HD598s. They're great.
Used to have a pair of Grado sr60is (with L cushions) but gave them to my dad. Loved that Grado sound, and looking to buy a new pair. Should I splurge for the sr325e (~300 bucks) or stick with the sr80e (~100 bucks)?
I like the look of the metal housing of the sr325e and nicer leather headband but is it really worth the extra 200 bucks?

So I bought the Dekoni fenestrated sheepskin pads for the Elex.

The holes in the earpads are way smaller than the stock elex pads, so the midrange reflects off the inside a ton, and also narrows the soundstage.

I spent no joke 2 hours yesterday reaming each hole on the earpad with a Torx T6 bit to fix that midrange bloat. Now it sounds just right. The stock pads sound hollowed out by comparison. Best pads for the Elex?

Why you've changed the pads?

Because the house sound is recessed in the upper bass and midrange with a treble spike at 6Khz

I have the Sony's and they're great sound wise. They're also very comfy, I once wore them for a 6 hour flight with no issues. Sony releases new models often so if I were you I'd wait for the xm4. Maybe they'll sound better or you can save some cash with the discounted xm3.

phoneheads

does posting work yet?

>Zomboy
Based

>Tube amps really do change the sound
>warm
to make them sound more muddy

>Zomboy
Based

Topping A30 + D30 stack or Topping DX3 Pro if their around the same price and the stack comes with a nice acrylic and aluminium stand?

Will be paired with sennheiser hd58x.
Currently using 3.5mm jack on my Lenovo x220. Thinking I might need a amp/DAC combo if I ever want to upgrade.

>Tube amps really do change the sound
>warm
to make them sound more muddy

>Tube amps really do change the sound
>warm
to make them sound more muddy

you were hammering that post button like your high school prom date's clit weren't you

Dude, i thought i was sinking

>>budget
100 euros
>>location
netherlands
>>open/closed
closed
>>past headphones
denon ah d600
>>sound preferences
nothing specific
>>intended use
music, generic desktop use really

>ah d600
i meant ah d340

>budget
200E
>location
EU
>open/closed
Open
>intended use
Mainly music

>270GB
>it is all shit
wow!