The All Purpose Advice Thread

Haha, I will definitely not be using the fostex as mobile headphones. Just looking for closed headphones for the house/office.

Thanks this is very helpful, I think I'll be happy with the fostex.

"kinda muddy" is what I'm looking to avoid, thanks for the input! All this input's very helpful, it can be hard knowing what headphones reviewers are comparing to which sometimes makes every headphone get hyped like they're the GOAT.

 

I think you've already covered the usual suspects except maybe the Nighthawk and Audezes. Modding might be the way to go. Brightness is at least easy to tone down; a simple piece of felt will do it in most cases.

 

That's basically why I bought it. Its an amp that is enough to me to focus on headphone purchases for now and not worry that they are underpowered. Works great with my HD600.

 

Thanks, any recommendations for materials to have around. I have 1/4" open cell foam from Hands Elear modding efforts, but that's really it. I've messed around with it outside the Elear, I need to experiment more, but so far it almost works too well. TP I have I guess too

 

Slants before any Audeze.

There are the new Sonys, Atticus, Eikon. These are supposedly a bit darker than your current cans.

 

Thanks, not interested in Audeze for QC/weight. Looks like I may be searching for something that doesn't exist oustide the 650 and Elear. Yeah I have an Atticus on order, and the Blackwood I just sold scratched the laid back itch. But I like to use opens whenever I can, and closed only when I have to (which will just be the Atticus at home for me)

 

I think the HE-500 may have been mentioned earlier? I don't know if it's laid back enough to fit what you're looking for, but it's certainly laid back in comparison to the headphones you mentioned (HD800, HE-6, etc.). And, it fits the bassy requirement even if the bass is a bit boomy.

 

Yeah you're totally right on with that description, especially with focus pads. The HE-500 was my first love and I credit it with getting me into all this shit as a "hobby", probably never should have sold it to go "TOTL" or whatever. I'm kinda "stuck" with my HE-6 because I've modded, hardwired, and caused some cosmetic blunders, but maybe having both around isn't quite as weird as it seems.

 

Some soft craft felt, cut up socks, cotton balls/rolls/gauze/face dabbers, micropore or transpore tape (the last few all easily found in a walmart pharmacy section).

Open celled foam is ok, but takes up too much volume.

 

I'm picking up my Focal Utopias tommorrow, I'm looking at a balanced amp either Schiit Jot or M2. Would the Jot likely be too bright for the Utopias? Or should I just go for the tube/ss versatility of the M2? Any feedback would be welcome.

 

For me the Mjo2 has better synergy with the Utopia than the Jot does. I wouldn't call the Jot bright, just a bit forward and borderline aggressive.

 

Gotcha. Thanks for the Info, man!

 

I've had the AT-HA22Tube for about 2 years until recently and it was just enough to power my modded HD650s depending on the source. But I found this pairing too laid back after comparing it to a Vali2. (And this with a little bit more aggressive tubes than stock in the HA22.)
I've used it with a Chord Mojo for a while (it outputs 3v rms on line out setting) and I usually set the volume pot around 12 o'clock. When I dialed back the Mojo volume four clicks (supposed to put out the more common 1.9v rms), I had to turn the volume put closer to maximum, and it sounded worse to my ears. From a Fiio X3 2nd line out, I used the high gain setting on the Fiio to get high enough volume and satisfying sound.
When I bought a Vali2 and compared the two, I thought the Vali2 (on high gain) was driving the HD650 better, was more forward sounding with tighter bass and a better pair for my taste.
But I think the HA22Tube can drive the HD650 well depending on your source, the dynamic range of your music and its good enough if you like laid back sound (it was especially good with vocal jazz).

 

so I managed to convince myself of the whole "no point to amps/dacs over 100" shtick because from my poverty college student point of view it was pretty appealing.... but this thanksgiving, I had the chance to plug my HE400is and DT880s into an actually nice setup, so that kinda ruined the whole notion for me.

Now I'm thinking I'm gonna sell off my DT880s, magnums, ODAC, Magni2 and various other low-fi stuff i've built up to nab a pair of HD650s, a Modi Multibit, and a Val2.

Does this seem like a good idea? Budget is a little squishy, but I'm certainly not gonna be able to pick up like a Gungnir Multibit or something at the moment.

I don't really have a ton of experience with relevant gear to give you guys (or even myself really) a good idea of what my preferences are... pretty awful at describing sound, too. All I know is that out of the ODAC and Magni2, both the DT880s and HE400i sound like the mids are kinda sucked out/pushed back, and both have fatiguing highs. the DT880s are the worse offender re: the fatigue. I greatly prefer the HE400is in most every way though, which probably isn't a surprise to most people here and might not be too helpful.

deciding between the HD600 and HD650 without having heard either one OR the majority of the phones reviewers compared them to was kind of a mental shitshow, but I hesitantly picked the 650 based on it just seeming like a safer choice. hearing it described as being "smoother" was pretty appealing given what I have ATM too. I'm sure I'll have the chance to A/B the 600s sometime in the future anyway.

So yeah, suggestions for literally any component welcome. My trusty gym re400is just kicked it too, so if anyone has any cheapo suggestions for some new gym iems that'd be awesome too. They'd just be running straight of the HP out of my Note4/6P or out of the hilarious lightning to 3.5mm post on my iphone, and it won't exactly be critical listening, so anything over $80-100 is likely supreme overkill

 

That seems like an excellent idea!

You may want to add one of these - Electro-Harmonix 6CG7.

 

If I had to start over again and was on a limited budget, I'd go for your exact setup. Some may prefer the Jotun, but I would prefer the larger soundstage of the V2 and the softer, less aggressive sound. My pick for tubes would be the Amperex Orange Globes but since you're on a budget, just stick with the stock tubes. I used the Yggdrasil, V2, and hd650s for about a year before I moved to the Sonett 2.

Btw, please introduce yourself here when you get the chance.

 

Just a sec, @kittenuwu - to clarify, by Val2 do you mean Vali 2 or Valhalla 2?

 

Good on you for selling that stuff, and getting out of the source isn't as important mentality. Try not to read too much into the 600 vs. 650 comparisons that are out there, a combination of driver refreshes and people running them out of an amalgam of shit gear makes it difficult to get any sort of sense out of it all.

Personally I prefer the 600 on slightly more laid-back setups (Vali 2 w/ stock tube, Project Polaris) and 650 on more aggressive or leaner sounding ones (Val2 w/ stock tubes, Jotunheim). If you're building a setup around one or the other I think that should be a consideration, but the 650 is generally the "safer" choice.

Take a look at these recent measurements by JK-47: http://www.superbestaudiofriends.or...ve-appreciation-thread.44/page-63#post-100093

Granted the 650s are modded but it should give you an idea of how close they are in signature and where the differences lie.

 

Awesome! Thanks guys. If i know myself, i'm definitely gonna give tube rolling a shot at some point, but I'm gonna try and get used to the stock tubes for a while first so I have a reliable point of reference when I read comparisons. Not really having one and trying to piece stuff together's been pretty rough

That's good to hear re: the V2 vs jotun. I'd just decided on the V2 because I can find them for sale about $100 cheaper, but I wasn't really sure which people thought had better synergy with the HD650. glad someone who knows what they're doing thinks it's a good combo.

Also, is there a reason a lot of people in here seem to be using 1kish sources with cheaper amps? I was under the impression that source made less of a difference, but it seems to be a common theme to have your source be the most expensive component here

 

Yeah, I read through most of that thread at some point last night actually lmao. That was was actually the post that made me realize that trying to decide without having heard either one was the epitome of mental masturbation.

plus, i like messing with stuff, and the HD600 seems to have a less "definitive" array of mods.

I've wanted an HD6X0 for like a decade though so I'm pretty hyped