The All Purpose Advice Thread

Discussion in 'Advice Threads' started by purr1n, Sep 26, 2015.

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  1. Baard

    Baard New

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    Yes, I meant the DS DAC card, which is balanced and the new version is generally regarded better than the MB card for the Jot. I haven't got the chance to listen to the Clears yet. I'm not in a hurry with building my setup. I did find a store where they demo the Clears, as well as other high-end headphones. I will pay them a visit sometime in the near future. Maybe Schiit will release another module for the Jot in the meantime.

    What do you dislike about the Clear?
     
  2. LetMeBeFrank

    LetMeBeFrank Won't tell anyone my name is actually Francis

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    The module I want for the jotunheim is a line-level input card to give the Jotunheim a second, switchable, single ended input. @Scott Kramer made a custom one and I might do the same but I would prefer something official for like $50.
     
  3. Elnrik

    Elnrik Super Friendly

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    Price, stage width/depth, tone, the pads, the French. Pick one.
     
  4. Dzerh

    Dzerh Friend

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    Jot may be convenient if you also have nearfields in your setup. But I'd use HD600 instead of "Clears".

    but about "reference setup" - IMHO, it depends on what kind of reference you are looking for and market you are targeting with your music. Yes, it can be well known headphone with neutral amp/dac, but it can also be desktop speakers straight from PC motherboard. Or popular model of a smartphone with cheap buds. Or 50K system in a treated room...
     
  5. Mdkaler

    Mdkaler Friend

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    You might want to have a listen to the Clears first. That said, there is nothing wrong to buy Clears as first pair of headphones, if you know your preference AND what the Clears can deliver.

    Jotunheim and Clears have similar strengths and weaknesses. This pairing will likely give you good treble energy, bass impact, overall dynamic range, micro-dynamics, and relatively lacking in the mids, fine details, and headstage depth.
    For this reason I would not recommend this pairing as a good neutral or reference point.

    A better synergy would be Jotunheim and HD650, but you will need a balanced cable to take full advantage.
     
  6. StageOne

    StageOne Friend

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    As an owner of Clears and a Jot, I don't recommend the pairing with either mentioned DAC. While the bass is engaging, I find the treble a bit harsh with this combo on many recordings. I much prefer to listen to the Clears on my other amps, the Gilmore Lite Mk2 or MD CTH. Both of those are much easier and more enjoyable to listen to for longer periods of time. If you want a solid state amp the GL Mk2 does provide similar sonic characteristics without the treble issues.

    I also have a MB card in the Jot and as others have said, I'd go with a Modi or other standalone DAC unless you really want the convenience of a all-in-one.

    If you want a Jot, the 600/650 do have better synergy as I have both and prefer those with it over the Clears.
     
  7. Baard

    Baard New

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    The Gilmore Lite Mk2 seems interesting, but I'm afraid it's not available in the Netherlands/Europe. Getting stuff from Massdrop is also difficult here.
     
  8. Baard

    Baard New

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    Maybe I should give you some more context and clarify a bit more what I'm trying to achieve.

    All the way back in 2008 I purchased the Logitech Z906 5.1 system, which opened a whole new world for me, coming from crappy 2.0 computer speakers. When I swapped out my desktop PC for a laptop in 2013, I noticed the sound from my Z906 was different; less detailed and the bass was muddy. I did some research and found out that an external DAC would improve the sound quality. Apparently the internal DAC in my desktop was better than the one in my laptop. Furthermore, my desktop sound card had all the required outputs for the 6-channel cable that came with the Z906, which enabled surround sound. From my laptop, I had to use the aux out, which provided stereo only. So, to improve the audio from my Z906, I decided to get the Asus Xonar U7 DAC. After that, I couldn't stop learning more about audio equipment and sound quality.

    I listen to a variety of genres, but I mostly like Techno. Throughout 2016 I learned mixing music with my Numark Mixtrack and Traktor. In 2017 I wanted to get better speakers for music and I looked into studio monitors and also into (portable) PA systems, since I wanted to be able to throw parties and perform as a dj. Eventually I decided upon the LD Systems Dave 12 G3. I chose this system because it sounds good at lower volumes (for casual listening and mixing) as well as higher volumes (for parties and testing how my mixes would sound in a club/music venue).

    In early 2018 I got a new laptop and I installed Ableton Live 10 on it. I'm currently learning to produce Techno music with Ableton as a hobby, so I'm still a beginner. My brother is doing some production work with FL Studio as a hobby and he got the JBL LSR305 monitors. This year I also bought the Ausdom M05 cheap Bluetooth headphones and the Apple Airpods. So those are all the setups I have to listen to and test my productions.

    In my current home, I often can't listen to my speaker systems (Z906 and Dave 12) at the volume I like. And since I lack a true studio reference setup, I came to the conclusion that good reference headphones would be a great addition to my collection.

    I'm planning to move within a few years, and in my new home I might also get a studio monitor setup and tweak the room to get the best sound out of it.
     
  9. Baard

    Baard New

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    Do you mean the Jot with the Balanced DAC module or an external DAC? Do the HD650 cancel out the lacking in the mids of the Jot? And what about the HD660S?
     
  10. Baard

    Baard New

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    Does the 600 treble not get too harsh with the Jot? From what I've heard, you can listen longer to the 650 than the 600 before they become fatiguing. And how does the bass compare between 600+Jot and 650+Jot? I've heard they both roll off from 100hz but that the 650 bass is better.
     
  11. GoodEnoughGear

    GoodEnoughGear Evil Dr. Shultz‎

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    @Baard, I suggest you start reading more and posting less.
     
  12. Senorx12562

    Senorx12562 Case of the mondays

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    Neither Senn has much subbass. The 650s have more in the way of bass quantity and extend a little lower, but I find the the bass delivery of the 600s to be tighter and more controlled, so "better" is more a matter of taste rather than an absolute. Fwiw, I don't listen to much bass-heavy music. I personally find the treble delivery of the 600s to be clearer and less recessed than that of the 650s. I enjoy the combination of the Jot with both the 600s and 650s, and don't find either to be fatiguing, though some disagree, especially about the 600s. For reference, most of my listening is with Gungnir Multibit and all of it is with 57 year-old ears.
     
  13. Dzerh

    Dzerh Friend

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    Sorry, looks like I misunderstood you, I thought you need some kind a reference system for production purpose. But it seems you want just to start to listen to music with headphones :) So welcome to the forum. You can find a lot of useful information about different flavors of gear here.

    If you have an itch to buy something immediately I'd recommend going with something around Modi/Magni and massdrop HD58X/HD6XX/HE4XX
     
  14. imackler

    imackler Key Lime Pie Infected Aberdeen Wings Spy

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    Before I start, I've got a good reason.

    So I'm curious whether I can hear the difference between 320 and Flac. I think I used to be able to. I'm curious whether my hearing is not as good as it used to be, whether its my gear... or whether I'm out of practice.

    Right now, I've got a Modi 3 to Leckerton UHA 6S MKii to UE4, Massdrop Plus or Mad Dog 3.2.

    I was thinking that the Cirrus dac was the weak spot in the chain. But after getting a Modi 3, I'm still not hearing the differences. The time I most remember being able to distinguish was when i had a HD600, which I don't currently have.

    What's the most likely reason for the change, assuming I ever actually could hear the difference: Do you think the problem is that my headphones aren't up to the task (maybe not resolving enough), my amp isn't up to the task (which I'm skeptical of based on the reputation on SBAF of the Leck as an amp)... or something else?

    I guess I'm curious how many of you think that you wouldn't be able to hear the differences on that gear either!

    I'm trying to figure out if A) I should reinvest in better gear to hear what I used to and B) Use more of my allocated laptop budget to a bigger SSD on my new laptop. If the problem is me, I'll transfer files to 320 and buy the smaller SSD.

    What's your gut impulse? Thanks!
     
    Last edited: Oct 20, 2018
  15. scapeinator1

    scapeinator1 Once You Go Black You'll Never Go Back

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    http://abx.digitalfeed.net/

    Try it out it's a blinded test. I honestly can't hear the difference between a good 320 transcode and FLAC.
     
  16. imackler

    imackler Key Lime Pie Infected Aberdeen Wings Spy

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    Thanks for the link, but I'm more curious if the guys think my gear is good enough to hear a difference: "Do you think the problem is that my headphones aren't up to the task (maybe not resolving enough), my amp isn't up to the task (which I'm skeptical of based on the reputation on SBAF of the Leck as an amp)... or something else?"
     
  17. kixx

    kixx Acquaintance

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    I'll pitch in a little ... i made some blind test wen i had the ipurifier (this is not related to that thing's performance), and on a busy track i, for one, can't make a difference between 320 and flac. However ... on an light instrumental track (paino's cello's violin's), i feel that the 24bit/96khz flac/lossless has better bass and separation. The cello's and big drums seem to benefit from this.

    Modern music is most of the times compressed and doesn't have much dynamic range, and thus i find no use for lossless. But on instrumental/classical, that's a different story. Once you discover the extra 3% difference, you'll always vote for lossless.

    I also checked dsd, but 500mb for a 3 minutes track is stupid ... Maybe when i'll have 100TB storage in my house.
     
  18. SSL

    SSL Friend

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    Are the 320 files newly encoded? If so, perhaps the codec has improved in the meantime. For me, the sound of 320 vs FLAC is less about specific differences and more about getting that extra 1% in quality. However, there are cases of killer samples where the difference becomes stark. I've heard enough such tracks (of real music, mind you) that I think lossless is always worth the trouble.
     
  19. kixx

    kixx Acquaintance

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    I think you must also have an acquired taste for music. I have friends whom listen to 5$ earbuds and think that's all they'll ever need. As long as they hear music, it's fine. That is really bad, because i've listened to those crap-cans, and they sound stupid ...

    [​IMG]
     
  20. Dzerh

    Dzerh Friend

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    It is always easier and more pleasant to buy new gear :)
    But you can try to do some research. Unfortunately no one here or anywhere can tell you what you can or can't hear (ok, may in a lab with neuroscanner someone can). So you have to do it yourself.
    I'd start from reading about MP3 weaknesses. Then prepare small library of hires music files. Couple of files that are supposed to expose weaknesses and couple that represent music I usually listen. Than became really familiar with the library in hires. Then encode it in 128MP3 and teach brain to recognize MP3 signature. Then gradually proceed with higher rates.

    I believe foobar has ABX plug-in, but I haven't used it.
     
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