wind016
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- Jun 19, 2009
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I went to the audio store today again and brought my Ibasso amp with me to see if my mind was playing tricks on me. After the visit, I felt my mind did, in fact, make me think the amp in the store was better than it actually was. I'll make a brief impression of what I heard and what I thought. Since it was a store, I did not bring much to try out and did not spend too much time. However, I think it might still benefit someone.
Equipment I used include the following:
1)Headphones: Grado GS1000i (the store's demo) vs. Denon D7000 vs. AKG K701
2)Amplifiers: Ibasso D10 vs. Music Hall PH25.2(also known as Shanling PH3000, a hybrid tube amp)
3)Cowon S9 mp3 player
I just want to say first that I have used Grado headphones phones for two years and I have started to not care for them. I find that their highs too peaky. I personally feel like the highs in Grados take a rocket up to the sky so this impression is probably biased. I enjoy the AKG and Denon sound more and find it more natural. But I am still very open minded. I know that headphones with better highs sound differently after you listen to more bassy headphones. Headphones with more high range extension tend to sound more scratchy and painful afterwards. Something with your brain getting used to a particular kind of sound.
Also, I have NEVER tried a better amp than either my Ibasso or the Music Hall so I do not know how much better my headphones could sound. I am still experimenting and experiencing.
Anyways, the music I listened to are orchestra (Lee Byung Woo), acoustic/pop (Tanya Chua), and some other various rock songs.
D10 vs. PH25.2
AKG K701
Plugging these headphones into the D10, the sound stage was very wide. All the instruments and voices were very well separated. The bass was there but does not have much impact. Vocals also sounded slightly thin.
Into the PH25.2, the AKGs sounded wonderful. The bass came out with slightly more power and impact. The vocals also seemed closer. This amp seems to have better mids than the D10 that made the vocals seem very natural. The presentation of the music is a little different. The sound stage, however, does not seem as wide as when plugged into the D10. This is probably due to the increased response from low and mid notes. The downside tho, is that details that I heard in the D10, were not as apparent in the PH25.2. The instruments were closer and it is more difficult to find minor details. Reverb effects are not as obvious.
Denon D7000
These headphones sound great out of my D10. I actually can not find anything quite wrong with this combination but I lack experience to know. If there was something to complain, then it is the lack of bass thump from the D10s that I was able to receive from the PH25.2. The headphones sounded smoother and it was very pleasant to listen to on the PH25.2. However, on some music tracks with a lot of instruments and sounds playing all at once, the headphones start sounding very convoluted. The sounds mix in together and it could actually be kind of messy. The bass could sometimes distort the rest of the sound. So, I still find the D10 to be more detailed and the PH25.2 to be more warm.(though this conclusion is probably obvious)
Grado GS1000i
Through the PH25.2, these headphones just does not sound right to me. Listening to Lee Byung Woo's orchestra music was the most memorable moment I had while I was at the store. The orchestra music just did not sound natural at all. The AKGs sounded much more natural but also being more boring. While listening, a picture of an exponential graph was in my head. That is what I thought the highs of the Grados sounded like. The bass was also very impactful, but it made the sound seem even more unnatural. Some headphones sound V-shaped in terms of sound. These sounded more like: ~-----/ Sorry. I hope that's understandable. The strings in the orchestra simply did not sound like the instruments anymore. The bass also came in weird. It sounded like the bass instruments were very close to my ears but the rest of the orchestral tried to sit much further away.
With Tanya Chua, some of her recordings sounded very natural, but I kept having a fear of the highs suddenly becoming painful and unlistenable. With her acoustic songs, this was not a problem. However, with rock songs and other songs that could have very high notes, I do not like the Grado.
I know that Grados are supposed to be for quieter listening and I had played the Grados at a good listening level. Maybe this amp was not a good match for the GS1000i but with the AKG, it sounded phenomenal.
I personally have an assumption that Grados are behind in technology but I am ignorant in the engineering of audio, so my assumption is basically meaningless... I'm going to make another meaningless assumption that German and Japanese audio products are just simply more advanced.
Anyways, conclusion is that the Ibasso D10 seems like a tremendous deal. The Music Hall was much more musical and enjoyable to listen to. This seemed to be mostly from the Music Hall having a more mid bass thump and smoothed out mids. The Ibasso on the other hand was more detailed and had I been able to use the optical out in it's included DAC in the store, it would have had a more extended low end. The differences between the two amps are the huge differences in power, but sound-wise, the Music Hall just seems to have a little more mid bass.
Equipment I used include the following:
1)Headphones: Grado GS1000i (the store's demo) vs. Denon D7000 vs. AKG K701
2)Amplifiers: Ibasso D10 vs. Music Hall PH25.2(also known as Shanling PH3000, a hybrid tube amp)
3)Cowon S9 mp3 player
I just want to say first that I have used Grado headphones phones for two years and I have started to not care for them. I find that their highs too peaky. I personally feel like the highs in Grados take a rocket up to the sky so this impression is probably biased. I enjoy the AKG and Denon sound more and find it more natural. But I am still very open minded. I know that headphones with better highs sound differently after you listen to more bassy headphones. Headphones with more high range extension tend to sound more scratchy and painful afterwards. Something with your brain getting used to a particular kind of sound.
Also, I have NEVER tried a better amp than either my Ibasso or the Music Hall so I do not know how much better my headphones could sound. I am still experimenting and experiencing.
Anyways, the music I listened to are orchestra (Lee Byung Woo), acoustic/pop (Tanya Chua), and some other various rock songs.
D10 vs. PH25.2
AKG K701
Plugging these headphones into the D10, the sound stage was very wide. All the instruments and voices were very well separated. The bass was there but does not have much impact. Vocals also sounded slightly thin.
Into the PH25.2, the AKGs sounded wonderful. The bass came out with slightly more power and impact. The vocals also seemed closer. This amp seems to have better mids than the D10 that made the vocals seem very natural. The presentation of the music is a little different. The sound stage, however, does not seem as wide as when plugged into the D10. This is probably due to the increased response from low and mid notes. The downside tho, is that details that I heard in the D10, were not as apparent in the PH25.2. The instruments were closer and it is more difficult to find minor details. Reverb effects are not as obvious.
Denon D7000
These headphones sound great out of my D10. I actually can not find anything quite wrong with this combination but I lack experience to know. If there was something to complain, then it is the lack of bass thump from the D10s that I was able to receive from the PH25.2. The headphones sounded smoother and it was very pleasant to listen to on the PH25.2. However, on some music tracks with a lot of instruments and sounds playing all at once, the headphones start sounding very convoluted. The sounds mix in together and it could actually be kind of messy. The bass could sometimes distort the rest of the sound. So, I still find the D10 to be more detailed and the PH25.2 to be more warm.(though this conclusion is probably obvious)
Grado GS1000i
Through the PH25.2, these headphones just does not sound right to me. Listening to Lee Byung Woo's orchestra music was the most memorable moment I had while I was at the store. The orchestra music just did not sound natural at all. The AKGs sounded much more natural but also being more boring. While listening, a picture of an exponential graph was in my head. That is what I thought the highs of the Grados sounded like. The bass was also very impactful, but it made the sound seem even more unnatural. Some headphones sound V-shaped in terms of sound. These sounded more like: ~-----/ Sorry. I hope that's understandable. The strings in the orchestra simply did not sound like the instruments anymore. The bass also came in weird. It sounded like the bass instruments were very close to my ears but the rest of the orchestral tried to sit much further away.
With Tanya Chua, some of her recordings sounded very natural, but I kept having a fear of the highs suddenly becoming painful and unlistenable. With her acoustic songs, this was not a problem. However, with rock songs and other songs that could have very high notes, I do not like the Grado.
I know that Grados are supposed to be for quieter listening and I had played the Grados at a good listening level. Maybe this amp was not a good match for the GS1000i but with the AKG, it sounded phenomenal.
I personally have an assumption that Grados are behind in technology but I am ignorant in the engineering of audio, so my assumption is basically meaningless... I'm going to make another meaningless assumption that German and Japanese audio products are just simply more advanced.
Anyways, conclusion is that the Ibasso D10 seems like a tremendous deal. The Music Hall was much more musical and enjoyable to listen to. This seemed to be mostly from the Music Hall having a more mid bass thump and smoothed out mids. The Ibasso on the other hand was more detailed and had I been able to use the optical out in it's included DAC in the store, it would have had a more extended low end. The differences between the two amps are the huge differences in power, but sound-wise, the Music Hall just seems to have a little more mid bass.
