Recommend a pair of headphones for me

Just as the Aurvana is a smaller scale version of the Denon D2000/Fostex TH-X00, the sound has slightly less dynamic range, rolled off treble and bass, but still some really remarkably deep sounding bass for their size and price. While NAD VISO HP50 have a remarkably wide soundstage, in some ways I still find the Aurvana/D1001 sound more warm and pleasant. Just depends on your preferences.

I don't like too much deep bass; I like low mids to be more prominent.

I'd recommend the Beyerdynamic DT-770 Pro to you then... It took a while to get used to it after having been a Sennheiser user for years, because it doesn't enhance the bass half as much, but nowadays I love the more naturalistic sound it has. IMO it's particularly good for classical music, gets all the details through.

Also check out B&O H6 for great mids and soundstage

I might be able to afford that beyerdynamic if we get bonuses this spring. I'm back to my cheap end grado phones right now after killing yet another porta pro at the crook of the plug.

it doesn't enhance the bass half as much,

Funny, because the DT-770 Pro is well known as a bass-head fave. A few years back I dubbed them the "Cans of DOOM" - http://fastnbulbous.com/cans-of-doom/

In my DT-1990 Pro review, I mentioned how byerdynamic characterized their initial pro series: ...closed back DT 770 Pro for studio and stage use, the semi-open back DT 880 Pro for reference monitoring, mastering and mixing, fully open back DT 990 Pro for critical listening. You can get the 770 Pro for as low as $120 these days, which is a teal. If yr patient you can probably get the 1990 Pro for as low as $460 by next year, just as you can now find the 1770 Pro for that much, as it's been out over a year.

http://fastnbulbous.com/beyerdynamic-dt1990pro-headphone-timeline/

Inner Fidelity just reviewed the E-Mu Walnut, a woody version of the Creative Aurvana Live:

http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/e-mu-walnut-creative-aurvana-live-woodied#wVlROLwMr5sfxpUD.97

There is another range in between the $53 CAL and the $130 Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro. I hadn't thought about these pro headphones in a while, even though I owned two pretty classic versions over the years -- the Sony MDR-V6 which lists for $99 (and the similar MDR-7506), and the Audio-Technica ATH-M50, the older model going for under $100, but the latest version (x) lists for $170 and is currently at $140. I doubt that it's better than the 770 Pro however. But another venerable headphone is the Koss Pro4S, which lists for $149, but is available for $82, probably the best value for that price range.

a budget recommendation: have been really surprised by the pair of £20 SoundMagic ES20s I bought as a cheap stopgap. Have had much more expensive in-ear phones before that don't have half the clarity.

I've been wearing my grado so much at work that I've got an irritated spot on my left earlobe which I scratched last night and it started bleeding :(

Small in-ear headphones for the rest of the week for me.

I have the Audio Technica ATH-M40s which were about $80 as I recall. I'm sure you get what you pay for with the more expensive ones but these are fine for subway listening, where there's a lot of background noise anyway.

HiFiMAN HE-350 (normally $300) is on Massdrop for $100 for another 8 days or until it's sold out.

https://www.massdrop.com/buy/massdrop-x-hifiman-he-350?referer=7JQMLK

oh wow thanks, i may order those.

have you reviewed them?

nvm reading the head fi review

Pros: Tenacity and pinache in the upper midrange and treble areas, soundstage is surprisingly immense, solid construction
Cons: Bass has quality but not much quantity, treble may sound bright to very bright, especially upon first listen

no bass no buy

- Bob Marley

The $300msrp is a little deceptive though as the HE350 was created specifically for and is only sold through Massdrop and has never sold for more than $100. It doesn't use the same driver as the HE300 which did originally retail at $300 I think.

man i woulda bought those Fostex mahogany cans if I woulda known about Massrop then.

The $300msrp is a little deceptive

Considering it's meant to be an upgrade of the HE-300, not really. Just like how the Fostex TH-X00 was an update of not only the popular but discontinued Denon AH-D5000 ($699), but also corrected some of the issues that showed up in even the $1,200 Fostex TH-900. The drop was $399, and it's definitely a great value. It's not at all misleading to give an MSRP of over $600. The point of the drops are to offer a deep discount. There were a few drops of the TH-X00, they might be done. E-Mu Teak is another version of the Fostex design that is available, along with the Fostex TH-610. Here's a recent piece that compares them:

http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/survey-foster-443742-variants-subjective-listening-tests-denon-ah-d5000-massdrop-fostex-th#uxc9d9P8cLbufWGV.97

Another woody headphone that people are raving about lately is the Meze 99 Classics which list for $309, and seem like they're well worth it. I'm tempted to sell my NAD HP-50 so I can try them.

Regarding the HE-350 review, take a single review with a grain of salt - opinions can vary widely. I haven't heard that one myself though. The Creative Aurvana Live (based on the Fostex designed Denon AH-D1000) that I mentioned before has great bass for headphones that size and price range. Otherwise I'd say for about $108 used you can get the beyerdynamic DT-770 Pro. The 250 ohm version with an amp has amazing bass, and sounds great even without an amp.

excellent, thanks!

I'm thinking i need a headphone amp but i don't know much, this looks good?
https://www.massdrop.com/buy/massdrop-o2-amplifier

I've read great things about that, but haven't heard it. Do they still sell the DAC too? I like a good DAC to bypass that craptastic output on my computers (I use Meier Audio both at home and work). Fiio makes good inexpensive amps too. A new E12 Mont Blanc came with my DT-1990 Pro headphones recently, and I'm selling it on Head-Fi. Another great brand is Schiit that offers the extremely affordable DAC/amp Fulla for $79.

Regarding headphones I meant to add, it's also interesting how popular the Fostex T50RP (which was first introduced in 1977) became for modifying. Mrspeakers and ZMF are the two big ones, who are now also making their own fully original headphones. I've been curious about the Mrspeakers Ether Flow, but they're beyond my price range ($1,800). ZMF just introduced the Atticus ($999) & Eikon ($1,299) which I may get a chance to review. Both are 300 ohm semi-open, looking like a cross between the Sony MDR-R10 and ZMF Omni. The Atticus has a thermoplastic elastomer driver (TPE, like the Sennheiser HD 800), and the Eikon has a biocellulose driver, like the Sony R10 and Fostex TH900.

yeah thats another league of headphones for me. I cap out at $300. Maybe $400 if the deal is insane (like that fostex woulda been).

Don't think that mass drop deal comes with the DAC but... I'll buy that Fiio from you!

I wish I knew someone who used a DAC so I could do an A/B comparison on my computer to stereo setup. I don't have the most discerning ears so I'm not sure if I'd find it worth the extra $$$$. The sound from my crappy laptop is crap, though.

DACs get better all the time, even the lowest cost ones, while computer audio seems to always just suck. There's always messed up interference, buzzing and distortion on even my brand new computer which makes a DAC a must for my sanity. Apple computers can be better, but friends have had problems with those too.

My chain:

PC->Dragonfly DAC->Little Dot Mach II Headphone Amp->Fidelo X1 Headphones.

The last-gen dragonfly I've got is probably going for fairly cheap now and I'd highly recommend it. I often pair it with my phone too, although it gobbles up battery.

I replaced the stock tubes in the headphone amp with some recommended Mallard ones. They were only a fiver and maybe bought out the bass a little? So hard to tell with these marginal hacks, especially since it's really hard to A/B them. Sounds great tho and the tubes glow enticingly.

V happy with the bass-heavy Fidelio's. Apparently the later models (up to the x3 now?) are iteritvly better, but these older ones sound great to me.

I've never tried a tube amp but they're pretty popular with the Head-Fi community. There's new deals on amps and DACs nearly every week. Here's another one for the NuForce uDAC-5 DAC/Amp.

E-Mu Teak (another Foster designed woody with removable cables) has <a href="https://www.massdrop.com/buy/e-mu-teak-headphones?referer=7JQMLK";>dropped on Massdrop</a>.

My bud at work has had the CAL for 2 years and one of the channels crapped out, so there are issues with longevity. Though for 53 bucks 2 years of daily use isn't that bad, heh. However she actually felt some discomfort on the top of her head after extended use.

She likes her husband's B&W P7 and finds them very comfortable, but he's going to give them to her, lol. So she's looking for something around $150, likes the iPhone mic/control feature. I'll have her try out my NAD VISO HP50 for comparison. Anyone have feedback on comfort for Sennheiser Momentum, V-Moda Crossfade, Focal Spirit One S and PSB M4U 1?

How much?

Cordless / wireless headphones : does anyone have a recommendation?? Are they still frowned upon by audiophiles? I'm getting bored with my 5 metre extension cable for my Sennheisers, and would love to go wireless.

_Clicked. Says "Currently Unavailable."
--The Wally Funk Bible (James Redd and the Blecchs)_

Fluke these are always available in som color for ~$6.

Wondering by what process one's brain adjusts to the sound of headphones etc . Can't stand phones or speakers that are too bright, but outside of that I can l live with lots of different approaches. Oh yeah, don't want the bass to be muddy and want to hear and feel the kick drum thump.

Just ordered another pair as backup but they seem to have gone up $3 in price.

Yo I just got this here HRT Microstreamer. It's a DAC. Forget which thread we were discussing DACs on before and search is broken. Anyway, I did the right thing and made "Barrytown" the first test. Holy cannoli, this thing is real as hell. Unbelievable. Listening now to Joelle Leandre which I just listened to earlier today and it's like...so much richer...wow wow wow this is a great device.

yeah i got a Dragonfly recently, really makes a difference

also got some Beyerdynamic DT 770

http://cdn.head-fi.org/7/74/300x300px-LS-74869037_B0006NL5SM-31LAQBPAziL.jpg

was quite "chuffed" as the british say when i was re-screening howard stern's private parts and, at his first paid radio gig, howard slid on to his birdlike skull these very same model of headphones :)

http://popcornmoviereview.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/howard-stern.jpg

I'd think a lot of pros like the Beyerdynamic DT 770 because they have a very unfiltered sound, they don't add a lot of bass oomph or anything the way many other hi-fi headphones (like Sennheisers) do. It took me a while to get used to it, because I'd been using those sort of bassy headphones before, but nowadays I really like the clarity and balance of sound they have. They're especially good for classical music in that regard, IMO.

They look kinda goofy while walking around the city wearing them, but the upside to that is that they're very sturdy. I don't treat my headphones super carefully, and typically some part tends to break within 2-4 years of use, but this hasn't happened with the DT 770.

yes i like them a lot, though you are right they are pretty flat and aren't always kind to sub-par recordings.

using a Audioquest Dragonfly DAC/headphone amp has helped a lot (I have the 80 ohm model), my phone can't drive them very well, they need some power

I have the 250 ohm model, and without a headphone amp they'd be useless, but I couldn't imagine living without a headphone amp anyway. So much of my music listening is done while commuting in public transport, it's so great for music to sound good there too, not just in the home stereo.

are there headphone amps which also double as power supplies? Like, the two extra bricks I can imagine running around with attached to my music player are a power brick and a headphone amp. I don't suppose anyone has combined those two things...

the Dragonfly is the size of a USB drive & gets its power from the computer

http://www.audioquest.com/dragonfly-series/

Looks like the new ones can work with iPhones too...

the hrt microstreamer is the same and imo is better than the Dragonfly. kinda blowing my damn mind tbh, this thing.

i want to get some wireless headphones. the apple earbuds look great - sounded ok and sync up perfectly w/ my iphone (and they're the right price @ $159) but i tried some of the actual headphones like the bose quietcomfort 35 and it was glorious - but i'm not spending > $350 on headphones. any thoughts? what's something in an okay price range that'll give decent sound for the money? should i just go w/ the wireless earbuds?

my coworker likes the wireless beats by dre earbuds, they're a bit less $$

idk what the sound is like

I have a pair of wired Audio-Technica over-the-ear cans that were pretty cheap and sound decent. They make wireless ones that are a bit more, but still under $150.

the over-the-ears are pretty much always better sounding than the buds right? that's been my experience at least.

In my experience, yes. Never heard earbuds that didn't sound a bit tinny.

the hrt microstreamer is the same and imo is better than the Dragonfly. kinda blowing my damn mind tbh, this thing.

― though she denies it to the press, (Joan Crawford Loves Chachi), Sunday, February 5, 2017 2:58 PM (one week ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

goddamnit don't get me started with this shit man!!!!!

is it like A LOT better than the dragonfly?

my Dragonfly was a couple years old and it's my understanding that the next build was a big improvement. my initial experience with the Dragonfly was revelatory and I loved it but fuck. the microstreamer is just a huge difference yeah. it's in the staging, it really feels like a more 3D sonic picture. on everything I've listened to. pretty mindblowing.

Do / Can you use the microstreamer with your phone?
Thing has a lot of good reviews on amazon

i went to the apple store to get airpods today and they were sold out. this of course made me want them more.