Cans! (Headphone thread inspired by Dolly Parton)

last week I pulled the trigger on the LCD XC's fellas. 

Tuzvihar wrote: I need to think of buying headphones. Now that my girlfriend is moving into my small flat it will be tough...

Anybody used the Grado SR225e?  Are they more comfortable than they look?

Guldbamsen wrote: Hah I take that as a great compliment coming from you Jim. Thanks man Generally speaking: leather/pleather pads = more bass, velour = gives more of a linear response and ‘air’ Oh and I finally sold the Q701 and the HD58X. Last minute too with regards to the AKG. I almost made the same mistake the last two times I put it up for sale. I listened to it! Had I not just bought the K7XX then I would’ve annulled the ad..again But yeah 8 cans in da house!!! Perhaps 7 by the end of the month. I told my friend about the Ollos and that I probably didn’t need 2 headphones that sound so similar to each other, even if one is closed and one is not. I basically gave him an offer he (surely! fingers crossed) couldn’t refuse. He seemed very excited about the pics I sent him though. We’ll see. What more? I am basically going in the opposite direction of where I was going earlier on with pricey daps and so forth, so I’ve actually been doing most of my listening via my old iPod nano feeding my Violectric amp and whatever can I wish to use. It’s sooo much easier (and less power consuming) not having to turn on the computer every time I want to listen to music..a computer I don’t even use whilst listening. And I can’t hear a dip in sound quality. The only thing different is that I need to turn up the volume considerably as the iPod’s output is rather low compared to most stand alone dacs. I also used to think I could spot the difference between mp3 320 and flac in certain recordings. I can’t...which basically means that my iPod or my phone from now on is my go to source. I think I’ll pop on the AKGs now for some serious old school RPI. Don’t know why but I just now developed a craving. Maxophone and Battiato it is Edit: maybe I should rearrange the living room so as my headphone amp isn’t 5 metres from the cd player and turntable?

Vioelectric make fantastic amps.
The 281 running in balanced mode is awesome.

7 headphones Dave? You should be a pro reviewer and start a YouTube channel. Lol.
Incredible dude.

Guldbamsen wrote: Cans. Yup we all love them. Some more than others.

BaldJean wrote: Guldbamsen wrote: Cans. Yup we all love them. Some more than others. I certainly love Dolly's "cans"

I just have one question. Are those CANS real?
I honestly wonder what amp you would need to drive those puppies.

Lots of things have happened since the last time I posted in this thread. I’ve owned and sold off the HD660s, both Ollos (open and closed), the hd580 (again), the Nighthawk, the D7200, the Sundara, the Aeon Flow Open, the Elex, the HF580 as well as having developed a taste for tube amps

I currently own the Sennheiser HD58X and the Meze 99 Classics - both of which are somewhat dark-tilted headphones. The latter sounds almost exactly the same as the Ollos...but fits my ears better. I am using the Sennie with a Valhalla 2 which takes the sound and sorta drizzles small drops of mescaline into it...and I absolutely adore it. Compared to the HD660s it is a darker sound with more loooow bass, but to these ears it harnesses some of the same clarity and detail that it has...which somewhat escapes the old guard. Then again I am contemplating yet another round of the HD650 just to hear it over the Valhalla. It is after all an amp that is designed for 300 ohm cans and the new Sennies are “only” 150. Again this is just me playing around with myself
The Meze I most often use with my phone, dap or iPod. Doesn’t need much juice to play loudly...but if I want some of that juicy tube goodness, then I plug it into my little Vali 2...again a Schiit amplifier, but a hybrid one that plays well with low impedance cans.
That is it if you can believe it!!! 2 headphones....

Oh yeah..ahem..I think I may have ordered the Audeze LCD-2 Classic here the other day...but it was hot and I had had too little to drink and the wind came from the east and my knee was somewhat wet and a bird whispered highly in my ears and...a lot of other excuses
Nahh truth be told, I’ve sold off all the other cans in my house so as I could afford to spent a little more on what I REALLY wanted. In the end I think I am 6-700$ in the green after all this, which is pretty good actually.
Also helps when you’ve tried on sooo many cans as I have..you tend to find out what you dig and how exactly to go about getting what you dig...in a package that doesn’t have to include the mortgage and a kidney.
Also looking at the Aeon Flow Closed as a closedback planar, but that will have to wait a bit.

What are guys and gals rocking these days? If any of you need recommendations on whatever headphone related subject you’re wondering about, I’ll be glad to help.

I’ll just round this little post off with some easy recommendations that should be inside most people’s budgets:

A cheap neutral closedback headphone for mixing and music enjoyment? The KRK KNS6400. No need for an amp.

A cheap as chips fun openback headphone for pure enjoyment? The Superlux HD681. Again no need for an amp.

A cheap audiophile openback headphone that plays well with tubes and amps yet doesn’t need either to sound great? The Sennheiser HD58X.

A little pricier but still cheap planar headphone that will sound completely unlike any of the ones I’ve mentioned...simply because it is planar: The Takstar HF580. Does however need an amp if you don’t listen at low volume levels.

A little pricier but a hell of a lot more capable and rather the giant killer in my book is the Hifiman Sundara. It’s somewhat neutral with an incredibly detailed presentation...though without the icecycles in the treble. Same thing as with the Takstar. Doesn’t need amplification if you listen at low volumes, but I would recommend you get one anyway.

Lots of other headphones out there to be recommended and heralded, but these just jumped into my head when thinking about the good old ‘bang for one’s buck’ scenario

Edited because of Danish autocorrect

Edited by Guldbamsen - August 20 2019 at 08:33

Catcher10 wrote: ^ I love your posts David!!  Schiit makes nice chit for sure. I do so much business travel I had to get me a new set of cans for planes, trains and buses. I am really becoming fussy about plane noise. Have some Monster IEM Pro Gold Turbines, which I like but don't keep the krapp noise out.  I was NOT buying Bose NC or those Beats NC headphones, although the new Bose 700 are pretty sweet from NC view. I got a pr of Sony WH1000XM3 which have a much better sound quality than any other NC cans I tried. Made my plane rides much more enjoyable, I don't have the desire to go postal on a plane anymore due to the noise and screaming kids. Those Audeze cans are super nice....once you wipe the bird urine off your knee, let me know if you ordered those! Cheers

What do ya'll think about Beyerdynamic DT-880's or ATH-M50's. I love the Beyers... so comfy and neutral. But the AT's have a kick that's sweet.

Edited by Grumpyprogfan - August 20 2019 at 16:21

I wish I could blast my speakers
..but alas it’s headphones for the time being..and I listen to music all the time..so yeah why not get the finest I can possibly get (afford)?
I’m totally with you regarding a woofer. I’m not sure most folks understand how few speakers there are that can pull off anything below 45 hertz..and if they do it’ll sound like mush half the time. In the end it’s sheer physics and letting the air flow to the lowest of bass registers. Even a cheap woofer will completely transform one’s stereo. Just sounds so much fuller and alive. If you haven’t yet noticed, I’m very jealous
Heck when you listen to A LOT of modern albums or just are watching movies, there is a load of information down low. I think many old school hi-fi enthusiasts snark at the idea of introducing a woofer into their system simply because they think it will overpower the other frequencies and give them Beats-bass that rattles their teeth. Thing is some music is supposed to rattle your teeth! The new Blade Runner soundtrack has those type of sections...or if you sit down to watch an old classic like ‘Das Boot’ you’ll be missing large portions of the soundtrack without a woofer.
Also why I tend to go for cans that reaches looooow...though never in a booming manner. Planars fx are almost always perfectly neutral in the bass..but compared to just about any other openback dynamic driver, planars stay neutral all the way down to 10 hertz ie 10 more than the human ear can pick up.
Sort of funny now that I think of it; I borrowed my Sundara to my uncle a little while back and watching his face listening to it was like looking at a man that suddenly had discovered fire! There were sooo many tracks of his that had information in the lower bass registers...that he’d never ever heard over his beloved HD600. Long story short? He now owns a Sundara

Btw the Shures I was on about are professional iems. They usually cost 99$ or in many cases a little less. Just if you need something with great sound quality on the go that a) doesn’t warm your ears and b) beats most NC cans’ NC function    

Edited by Guldbamsen - August 21 2019 at 07:22