The All Purpose Advice Thread

Thanks, are there any specific recommendations? I would probably prefer something with more bass. I also had a Verum1 that I enjoyed but it has some issues one of the connectors that I never go to fix, so one of the cups doesn't work correctly.

 

Very random question, but my living room system is a dust magnet (top of the NAD M33, turntable dust cover, Forte iv cabinets). I don't want to scratch anything (especially dust over and speaker cabinets), and the top of the NAD M33 does not have a lot of clearance so is hard to fully dust. Klipsch veneer is not super smooth so seems to snag microfiber cloth. Has anyone tried the swifter dusters for dusting their gear? Are they safe? I would assume so if everything is turned off and you use the non scented. Seems it would be perfect to reach tot he back of my amp and just hit everything all at once.

 

I use them, and also just the Swiffer sweeping pads. They haven't scratched any of my stuff -- including polished, plated, and painted metal surfaces, as well as various plastics from Bakelite to ABS. If you have wooden surfaces that are rough enough for microfiber cloths to catch on, the sweeping pads will almost certainly also catch on them (but maybe the dusters won't).

 

Awesome just the verification I needed. And yeah, with the rougher venner, I figured I could go over light enough with the duster for minimal snags. Will give it a whirl! More sunny days is exposing just how much dust is all over my stuff, haha

 

The Swiffer dusters will snag on rough edges and can leave threads behind. But otherwise they work well for dusting. I've used them on my stuff.

 

The Klipsch walnut veneer is kind of bizarre because it feels smooth to my hands, but microfiber snags on it. Will see how the swiffer dusters go over it.

 

Could be little microserrations in the veneer that you can't feel by hand, but the microfibres are small enough to snag. An unconventional thing to try could be to apply a wax polish to your speakers. Make them nice and shiny, and smooth them out even more.

Secondly, attack the problem at its source and reduce the amount of dust in the house. Put in a better filter at your furnace (if you have forced air in the household), or try a room air filter. Better air quality is never a bad thing.

 

For deep bass, closed headphones are the way to go. it makes sense to have an open set for home use, and a closed pair that can also be used when travelling. I have DT-1350s which you can still find for sale and that are every bit as awesome as the reviews suggest (if you get a good pair -- there are concerns about variability).

 

As always, it depends.

My EarMen Sparrow dongle is phenomenally good with my Ananda. A quite substantial step up from my Jotunheim 2 with ESS module: More detail, less congested bass, and especially a far better soundstage (both DAC/amps in balanced mode).

However, with my HD650, the tables are turned. While it “works” on the Sparrow, it’s a completely different world on the Jot 2: Much more detail, less roll-off in the bass, all in all much more enjoyable.

So, for easy to drive headphones, at least some dongles can be very, very good. But for more power hungry cans, I don’t think there’s a way around a real amp if decent sound quality is desired.

 

Interesting.. The Ananda is super low impedance for a headphone at 25 Ohms.. so maybe 5volts of power supply from the USB port is enough. HD650 is 300 Ohm, so it's a lot more demanding on voltage.

 

Interestingly, Apple is making claims about the audio capabilities of recent MBP's - support for high impedance and higher bit rates without the need for an external amp or DAC respectively.

 

I'm wierd and dust my stuff every sunday. Instead of using swifters and cloths, I have a air blower that I gently blast off all the microdust on my components (really easy to get between the cracks with this. You can get one from Amazon, I had the same one for 15 years. Then I just do usually vacuuming up around the desk and floor.

 

My Ananda has 3.5 mm “stereo” female jacks for the cable, while other headphones have 3.5 mm “mono” jacks.

What is the extra contact used for in Hifiman headphones, or is it used at all?

Could I use my “stereo” jack cables, say, on Focal headphones without problems? And vice versa?

 

Use a multimeter to check how it's wired. If the "ring" of the TRS is either shorted to ground ("sleeve") or open, your Ananda "stereo" connectors are effectively wired "mono". HFM just cbf'd to use mono 3.5mm TS connectors.

Here is a discussion about it on crap-fi.

 

Alight, can't help myself and want to try some hardware EQ on my SW51+. Since I'm in NZ, stuff cost a bit more. A Schiit Loki Mini+ with RCA cables is $271.96 and a JDS Subjective3 with RCA cables is $151.21. Is there any big reason to pay almost double for the Schiit tone control? I've looked at the boards of both, but a bit unfamiliar with tone controls.

 

Because 4 > 3 ?

Not sure how you're working your pricing. Loki+ looks to be US$60 more.

 

The postage cost from the US has increased significantly recently.
Also the NZ distributor is an (NZ local) expansion of the Australian company Addicted to Audio.
Their prices are inclusive of mark-ups, including local sales taxes.

 

Does anyone know how/where to get earpad memory foam?
Currently the standard mattress memory foam is a little too firm

 

I use OXO Good Grips Microfiber Duster on my Forte's, amps and TT. Doesn't leave any bits behind. Just through it in the washing machine when done.

 

Update for those following my dusting saga. I grabbed the Swiffer dusters, and it was perfect for dusting all my gear and Fortes. Didn't snag on the forte veneer, didn't scratch the turntable dustcover, got in all the crevices of my amp. Perfect solution.