Author Topic: Latest headphone exploration  (Read 37998 times)

Offline rollo

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #15 on: January 05, 2015, 07:00:34 AM »
  Check out Audeze and JPS headphones. Shane should be able to hook you up with the JPS. Amazing but not for the frugal.


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Offline tmazz

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #16 on: January 05, 2015, 07:53:42 AM »
 Check out Audeze and JPS headphones. Shane should be able to hook you up with the JPS. Amazing but not for the frugal.


charles

Never mind not for the frugal, at $5.5k the JPS headphones are not for the faint of heart either!  :shock:

http://www.cnet.com/news/abyss-ab-1266-headphones-run-5495-but-theyre-worth-it/

Given what JPS gets for cable I guess the price shouldn't have surprised be, but it still did. As usual there is a big price to be paid for living on the leading edge. That said, if I ever hit the Powerball, I would be all over these.  :drool:
« Last Edit: January 05, 2015, 08:00:51 AM by tmazz »
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Offline Carlman

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #17 on: January 05, 2015, 10:39:26 AM »
Thanks to Shane, I listened to a ~$3,k pair of Audeze headphones.. They were truly great in every way (but 1)... and that is weight.  Just too heavy for me.

Plus, they're open-backed.  Audeze is supposed to introduce a portable this week at CES.  I'm waiting to hear what the pricing will be and when I can get some ear-time to see if they'll be 'the one'.

I've already committed to a Lambert headphone amp.  It's powerful enough for any headphone on the market... and it allows me to roll 12AU7's, which I have.  :)  So, that's a done deal. 
I really enjoy listening to music.

Offline mdconnelly

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #18 on: January 05, 2015, 11:49:52 AM »
Carl,

You mentioned in an earlier post that you own and like the Sennheiser Momentums.   I now understand that they have both an on-ear and over-year version.  Which have you been using and did you try the other as well?   Just curious.  I'm looking for a light-weight more-portable headphone that is NOT isolating to use at work (where interrupts are high and I don't like people sneaking up and poking me to get my attention ;-)

Offline Carlman

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #19 on: January 05, 2015, 12:35:31 PM »
Hey Mike, yes.  I love 'em.  I have the on-ears and I've used the over-the-ears a good bit at Shane's to hear different dac/amp setups.  

Short answer: Either one will do what you want... The over-ears are a little more comfortable and have less bass than the on-ears.  They let you hear outside noises but are great at not bleeding out into others' areas.

Long answer:
The on-ears are very comfortable at first... kind of a nice isolation, not too much... and kind of a 'creates its own environment' kind of feel to it.  The phones cut about 20% of environmental stuff on their own... not much... but with music playing, they cut 50-60% off at a light/moderate volume.  

However, like when I listen at home, I tend to keep increasing volume in tiny increments... and my head/ears get hot after 40-50 minutes of listening.  So, I have to take a break from them...

For longer listening sessions, I was looking for something a little more comfortable with at least as good or better SQ.  

The on-ears definitely have more bass than the over-the-ears... neither is bad, just a preference.  I like the more-bass version.  Both seem about the same in the mids and highs.... which isn't highly detailed or extraordinary.. but I like them with a good source in front of them.  (E.g. Onkyo HF playing .flac)  With a dedicated amp like the Fostex tube portable, they are even nicer, rounder, more 'musical'.  mmm.

I wanted a home system... I thought for sure I'd end up with the HD700's and the Fostex tube amp.. but the HD700's wouldn't work.

With the news of Audeze putting out a portable, I thought it would be wise to wait and hear those before getting my other setup.  

This just in.... Shane has just texted me that the new Audeze are announced, ordered, and will be at his door in a month.  Made of aluminum, and designed by BMW designers.   All sounds promising. :)  There will be a closed and open back option.. not sure much else.. The OT/first post here has all the info.  The other 7+ pages has ridiculous speculating.

They will likely be a bit pricey compared to the Momentum.. but I think it says a lot for the Momentum... which I think is the ultimate do-all headphone... btw, it has a super nice mic.

-C
« Last Edit: January 05, 2015, 07:37:32 PM by Carlman »
I really enjoy listening to music.

Offline Carlman

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #20 on: January 05, 2015, 01:54:38 PM »
From a comfort perspective, I have found the Senn HD650's, HD700's, and Urbanites to be extremely comfy.  I am not a fan of the Urbanites' sound... not as resolving, fun, or dynamic as the Momentum's.
I tried some Bose Quiet Comfort and wow, those were SUPER comfy.  They had kind of cheap feeling materials.. but very light... Excellent functional design as always... but definitely built to a profit-maximizing price point.  SQ was 'just ok' and non-offensive as are most Bose products... Definitely couldn't listen 'into' the music... you just listen to it... Great for long listening to talk radio! :)
I really enjoy listening to music.

Offline mdconnelly

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #21 on: January 05, 2015, 02:10:08 PM »
Ouch, while the new Audeze is probably a great buy, it's definitely beyond what I'm looking at for work.  I do have the Senn HD600s which I love for home escape but would not work in my office.  But they do sound great and I find them quite comfortable.

Now after having listening to some of Shane's headphones, I can easily imagine replacing the HD600s at some point, but for work, the On-Ear Momentums are in the price sweet-spot.
« Last Edit: January 05, 2015, 02:14:48 PM by mdconnelly »

Offline hometheaterdoc

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #22 on: January 06, 2015, 09:24:08 AM »
Mike,

Just let me know if you want to borrow the momentums to try at the office... 

the audeze EL8 has me VERY excited...  I freakin' LOVE the LCD-XC closed back version... but it's definitely on the heavy side.. you notice it on your head after a while... it's also not really portable... and the price of entry is a barrier to many...

the new closed back EL8 is going to get used a LOT by me :)  it's almost 50% lighter than the LCD-XC... so not super tiny like the momentums... but definitely much lighter than current audeze models... 

based on reputation and the conversation I had with my rep about details, I ordered a crap load of them and one other thing they are introducing today at CES...  I'm beyond excited...

I'm supposedly first in line and put in my pre-order first.  Who knows if that is reality or my rep was just trying to make me feel special and important ;)  they had hoped to ship mid to late february... but emails this morning is leaning more towards first part of march now...  all drivers are manufactured here in the USA... but a couple assembly parts are built for them in order to hit the price point... given delays in customs, that must be the slight delay... 

looking forward to it... I'm putting up the pre-order pages now on my new website :)
Shane Sangster
Used to be Night & Day Audio.......

Offline richidoo

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #23 on: January 06, 2015, 11:45:35 AM »
Is this EL8 over the ear or on the ear? High sensitivity?

The LCD-XC was also one of my favorites at your meet. The LCD3 was superior openness and more audiophile distraction details, but the closed back had such fantastic S/N and only slightly less transient response. As much as I would be tempted by the audiophile fireworks of the open LCD3, I would probably buy the XC for myself. It isolates like sound proof ear muffs.

Offline hometheaterdoc

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #24 on: January 06, 2015, 12:19:30 PM »
Jude put up a video of them on head-fi here:

http://www.head-fi.org/t/749214/audeze-el-8-the-el-8-is-a-must-hear-at-ces-2015

here is the direct link to youtube:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VbKHYQj8BU

they are about 3/4 the size of the regular LCD series based on visual evidence...  and the cups are more oval than full round circles... that will likely work better for a lot of folks.  I know it will for me... so I get something that goes over my dumbo ears easier and still is large enough for me...

weight is expected to be ~400 grams... so heavier than what they were hinting at the last few times I talked with them...  this is what they sent me for details this morning:

1) New magnetic design – Fluxor magnets (patent pending) – allows us use
single sided magnets to save weight while almost achieving the magnetic
flux density of the LCD series.

2) Has Fazors like LCD series.

3) Uniforce diaphragm (patent pending) virtually eliminates all the breakup
modes common in other manufacturer’s drivers.

4) Industrial design by BMW DesignWorks.

5) Available in both open and closed back versions at same price.

6) First production run production includes standard headphone cable with
1/8” (3.5mm) stereo plug and 1/8” to ¼” stereo plug adapter. The following
production runs will have Apple control cable and 3.5mm to ¼” adapter
plug. (Night & Day Audio will of course upgrade all first production run customers with the Apple control cable free of cost if they wish to switch to it)

7) Apple cable will be available at additional cost. Price TBD.

8) Sound quality superior to anything in this price category

9) Impedance: 30 ohms, Freq response: 10Hz – 50kHz
Shane Sangster
Used to be Night & Day Audio.......

Offline Carlman

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #25 on: January 07, 2015, 05:38:42 AM »
I think the output impedance of iPhone's are around 5 ohms.
30 on the 'phones is a good match, right?
I'm no resistance expert.
-C
I really enjoy listening to music.

Offline hometheaterdoc

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #26 on: January 07, 2015, 06:21:12 AM »
You should be able to get ~116dB sustained SPL with the Iphone by itself.... these are seriously efficient cans... 

they should be a very good match to just using a phone as the source...

they will have an apple cable with inline mic... not on the first production run though...  I'll order more when they are available on the second run and swap out any customer that wants the apple cable.... they just couldn't get the apple cable produced in time for the first run...

the connector is a new proprietary one (grrrrrrrr!)... but it's pretty cool if they had to do it... it's based on the apple connections for macbooks... so it has magnets to hold it in place...  and they will offer the connectors to aftermarket cable makers and to the public so they can roll their own cables to their specs... it's not in the first production run, of course.... a few months down the road...
Shane Sangster
Used to be Night & Day Audio.......

Offline Carlman

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #27 on: January 07, 2015, 06:32:39 AM »
Cool.  116 should do me. ;)  So the tube amp I'm getting should add a touch of warmth and/or desirable harmonics moreso than be necessary to push these.

I'll worry about cabling later.. need to hear them first, make sure comfortable, etc... I'm excited but realistic.  460g is a good bit more than the 190g Momentum's... just need to be sure I can deal with that kind of weight.  I'm not kidding myself that these will be 'portable' by my definition... but 'comfortable for home use' and more portable than a home stereo of equal resolution... ;)
« Last Edit: January 07, 2015, 07:25:36 AM by Carlman »
I really enjoy listening to music.

Offline richidoo

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #28 on: January 07, 2015, 07:51:05 AM »
460g is one pound.

My open back AKGs are half that weight, 235g, very comfortable.

The lower impedance of the headphones makes them higher sensitivity as long as the amp has enough current to drive them. Any dedicated headphone amp amp will have enough current. Most cellphones use special headphone driving opamps with high current. Apple owns Beats headphone company now, so their phone can drive those at 16 ohms. Yet those are only 105dB and will get you robbed.
« Last Edit: January 07, 2015, 07:58:18 AM by richidoo »

Offline machinehead

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Re: Latest headphone exploration
« Reply #29 on: January 07, 2015, 08:09:17 AM »
Its cool ndude.