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The Hardest hitting Headphones are.. ( "The EXTREME BASS Club")
Oct 7, 2015 at 2:28 AM Post #4,816 of 12,992
dreamking said:
   
Been listening for a while now...Buttkicker Gamer2 100% recommended for bassheads worldwide that use an office/pc chair. 
 
Chilling, drinking cold beers and playing one of this thread's favorites On My Level - Wiz right now.... Jesus Christ, unbelievably strong, strong body vibrations...The missing link for a complete bass experience with headphones whether you're listening to music, gaming, watching a movie. Look at the video review I linked earlier for a demonstration of the bass kicks/vibrations to get what I'm saying. For some reason I can't explain, it reacts even more strongly when I turn on Dolby Headphone + 7.1 Virtual Shifter (Luis U's positional layout) in Xonar Switch settings, even with just a stereo source. Basically, DH is a subwoofer and/or bass booster too or perhaps more likely, the repositioning of the subwoofer affects this change, it took getting the BK to realize this -- I used to think it just boosts treble when just listening from headphones. 
 
Easy as hell to set up too if you have an external dac and amp for your headphones so the soundcard can output its analog signal to the Buttkicker's amp (outputting to 2 or more analog outputs from the soundcard requires other software installations). Low and/or High frequency cutoff settings on the amp via knob are incredible too so you can customize it based on what you're listening to (movie, music, gaming). This is explained more in the quick start guide. There's also clipping (****ing awesome) and signal status led lights. 
 
Got it for CA$189.99 so US$150 on Ebay for faster shipping as it was out of stock from buttkickergear.com (manufacturer) anyway, turns out it was cheaper by US$30 than getting it from the manufacturer. And the item was sent directly from Ontario, Canada. Probably good Ebay deals out there for Americans too. 
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You still rockin' the Buttkicker? What software did you need to feed the Buttkicker? I'd have to output to the BK from my onboard audio and everything else to my external DAC+Amp.
 
Oct 7, 2015 at 10:56 AM Post #4,818 of 12,992
luckbad said:
   
You still rockin' the Buttkicker? What software did you need to feed the Buttkicker? I'd have to output to the BK from my onboard audio and everything else to my external DAC+Amp.
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I don't feed it anything special, besides the fact that it naturally responds to my headphone's Peace APO EQ lol. But I was reading that some people needed virtual RCA connections from software, because their 3.5mm connection on their soundcard was being used by their headphones.
 
I simply run 3.5mm from the soundcard to the buttkicker, and then optical from my soundcard to my dac.
 
Oct 7, 2015 at 3:16 PM Post #4,819 of 12,992
Okay so trying for the 2nd time.  (IE crashed and lost my entire post and review just now...)
 
There are 4 things that I suspected that have definitely been borne-out in my opinion:
 
 
  • T​he kingdom of BASS has not gotten a new king.  The JVC SZ2000s continue to reign supreme if you are willing to EQ and AMP.
  • The JC ESNSYs are quite the headphones for the money, (~$56.00 USD) and they are a bargain at even twice the price. 
  • You can get your "slam on" straight from even an iPhone EQ's with "BASS BOOSTER", DEEP, or HIP HOP, but the ESNSYs need amplification to really shine just like the SZ2000s.
  • The SZ2000s far-outstrip the ESNSYs in terms of build quality and comfort.  The first is clear to anyone I'd say, and the comfort is obviously a purely subject evaluation.
 
 
So here we go:
 
Point ESNSYs -
Soundstage is wider.  SZ2000s are almost "claustrophobic feeling" in comparison
Price.  The ESNSYs are a real steal at their current sub-$60 USD price point.
UNAMPED, I enjoy the ESNSYs much more.  They are just "fun" to listen to straight out of your phone or MP3 player.  On many songs there was noticeably more bass than I heard from the SZ2000s.
Mids aren't quite as recessed as they are on the SZ2000s
Weight.  These are MUCH lighter to have on your head
 
Point SZ2000s -
Build quality.  These things are TANKS.  If you dropped these on a ceramic tile floor, I'd say goodbye to your tiles before I'd expect to see these show any damage.
Comfort.  I can see wearing the SZ2000s for hours on end (And I have) without any concerns about comfort.  The ESNSYs just clamp too much for me to ever "forget they are there" like I can sometimes do with the SZ2000s.
Beyond maybe 70% bass overdrive capacity, the SZ2000s just keep eating the power and offering-up more slam.  The ESNSYs start to break up and get progressively worse while the SZ2000s just keep going.
 
BASS QUALITY COMPARISON:
Different enough that I didn't want to reduce this to simple advantage "X headphone" over "Y headphone".
There are two modes I compare them in.  "Bass-centric", and "Beast-mode"
 
Bass-centric - The ESNSYs arguably win in this segment.  If you are a casual listener who dabbles in bass when the mood strikes you, then these are arguably the better choice, all other considerations aside.  The bass is deep and pervasive while the mids are not as recessed as the SZ2000s.  In fact, the mids are surprisingly up-front.  Almost to the point of being "in your face", but not quite.  The Highs are just "there", not shouty, and not recessed.  Everything from Madness (One Step Beyond) to Journey's (Faithfully) just sounds great for casual listening.  Not overly analytical or too buttery.  Just enjoyable.
The SZ2000s are just fair, quite honestly.  These isn't really anything remarkable about the bass which is almost balanced with the highs rather than pronounced.  There is definite recession of the mids, and the soundstage being so small just draws more attention to the mids lacking.  The music detail overall is lower than I would like for even casual listening.  In short, I wouldn't buy these headphones if you just want to listen to typical "vanilla" music everyday, and they wouldn't be my first choice for rap, hip hop, dance, etc.. either.
 
BEAST-MODE - Simply put, the SZ2000s destroy the ESNSYs in this segment.  It's not that the ESNSYs don't perform well, because they do.  It's just that the SZ2000s can go SO much further than anything else that it's almost impractical to compare them.  If you go beast-mode, you typically want to push the envelope.  The ESNSYs can get you maybe 70% there before they start to break up and rattle.  More a limitation of materials used and the driver limitations than a bad/poor design in my opinion.  Up to that 70% mark, you have two AMAZING headphones that thump enjoyably.  Completely different "feel" to the bass, while the quantities are quite comparable.  The SZ2000s have a deep, "rattle your bones" that you feel inside.  The ESNSYs have a sharper, crisper "Hit" that you feel more on the surface.  It's really a matter of preference at this point I think.
 
Video:  Proof in the pudding of BASS at same levels between the SZ2000 and ESNSY.  I made separate videos so that you can see the evidence side-by-side if you wish, but honestly the difference is pretty clear.
 


 
SETTINGS FOR BOTH:
 
iBASSO DX90
VOLUME:  255 - Full digital so no signal loss going into amp.
EQ:  Custom - 33=10, 63=10, 100=5, 330=-4, 630=-5, 1k=1, 3.3k=-9, 6.3k=-6, 10k=-9, 16k=-5
 
iFi iDSD
VOLUME: 1 'oclock
XBASS=On
3D=On
ieMatch=Off
Filter=Standard (Not Bit-Perfect)
Polarity= Negative
Power Mode=TURBO
 
CONNECTION
"Coaxial out" DX90 to "SPDIF In" on iDSD
 
 
Ken's short answer:  BUY BOTH!  They are COMPLETELY different headphones for completely different purposes offering completely different sound experiences!  :)
 
Your wallets now hate me....  Mission accomplished! 
evil_smiley.gif

 
Enjoy, and all power to the BASS BROTHERHOOD!
 
Oct 7, 2015 at 6:45 PM Post #4,820 of 12,992
What's a reference sub-bass song to use for the tests?
 
I just might video tape the the paper test between my Fostex TH900, Sennheiser HD800 & Audeze LCD2 rev.1
 
I want to see visually exactly how much less bass they are putting out.
 
Oct 7, 2015 at 6:55 PM Post #4,822 of 12,992
thejammonster said:
   
You probably missed it since I didn't quote you, but what's the need for the iCAN if the iDSD is a DAC/amp already?
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The amp on the iDSD is supposedly half as good as the stand alone iCAN (which is still pretty damn good). Plus the iCAN has two levels for Xbass & 3D, while the iDSD only has one level for.
 
You buy the iDSD mainly for the excellent all in one portable DAC.
 
Oct 7, 2015 at 7:16 PM Post #4,823 of 12,992
thenewguy007 said:
 
The amp on the iDSD is supposedly half as good as the stand alone iCAN (which is still pretty damn good). Plus the iCAN has two levels for Xbass & 3D, while the iDSD only has one level for.
 
You buy the iDSD mainly for the excellent all in one portable DAC.
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You talking about the micro or nano?  cuz the micro has a pretty badass amp on there.
 
Oct 7, 2015 at 10:09 PM Post #4,827 of 12,992
chillaxing said:
   
 
If your thinking that your iCan can power the lcd2 up to rumbling status, you are in for a disappointment.  I have a lyr2 going to mine and its barely tickling me at 3/4 volume with eq.  I don't think 400mw is enough for the th900.   You know the e12 and c5 has at least 800mw.
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 The ifi nano series is not for power hungry planars. the 4,000mW micro however can destroy most portable equipment.
 
The nano iDSD/ iCAN stack can blow bass out the SZ better than anything I got (video coming)...and it does it clean. However planar ...those are run of speaker taps for gods sake. ifi micro

 
 
4,000 watts....sexy as a ************
 
Oct 7, 2015 at 11:07 PM Post #4,828 of 12,992
I did the Techmaster P.E.B. - Bass Computer  test with the HD800 & LCD-2.
 
Couldn't get the video to look right with the LCD2 no matter what I tried.
They won't stand upright & they clamp the paper tight, giving no air to vibrate outside the seal.
 
 
Both of them do have decent sub bass. Kinda surprised that they were more or less equal.
Both gave some slight tickling to the ears. HD800 slightly more so, maybe because I am using the microsuede earpads for the LCD-2 & not the leather ones. That might make a big difference.
 
Oct 7, 2015 at 11:13 PM Post #4,829 of 12,992
Pads don't make a difference on Audeze cans. It's one of their proudest achievements, I'm told... and everyone seems to be amazed. Just FYI :).
 
Oct 8, 2015 at 12:25 AM Post #4,830 of 12,992
chillaxing said:
   
 
Edit: yes sir, ifi makes some good ****.  thinking about going with the micro.  ******* MONSTER for a portable!!
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 Have been getting PM from  owners of the Micro who gush about it which begs the question why it's not standard basshead fare? I know it's like $499 but you got pay the cost to be the boss. @knorris908    and a herd of folks say it kicks the piss out of gear 2 3 times the cost. Might have to make it THE official amp of this thread.
 
 
 
 
 
 
I appeal to you....brothers.....
 
 

 
 
 
http://ifi-audio.com/portfolio-view/micro-idsd/

 

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 The new Official amp rec of the Head-Fi Extreme Bass Club​

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