[all999]

Omg I'm losing my mind listening to the new Dragonfly Red hooked up to my iPhone...........sounds better than the original Dragonfly and damn, I'd even pick it over my Mojo-straight out the box with no burn in, this thing is fantastic!

 
What cable are You using there? Sorry if You mentioned it earlier.

 

[SomeGuyDude]

Dammit don't tell me the new DF is better than the last one or I'm gonna have to buy it haha.

 

[inthere]

  What cable are You using there? Sorry if You mentioned it earlier.

 
 I think it's this one:
 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01AFVMR3Q/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
 
But I lost a better one that's cheaper:
 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01C195RR8/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
 
Be sure to search for "Sol Republic" cable because they sell the same cable for HD700 and Oppo PM-1 for 5X the price. 

 

[waynes world]

   
 I think it's this one:
 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01AFVMR3Q/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
 
But I lost a better one that's cheaper:
 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01C195RR8/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
 
Be sure to search for "Sol Republic" cable because they sell the same cable for HD700 and Oppo PM-1 for 5X the price. 

 
Better and cheaper is good! That one doesn't ship to Canada, but I found it here. Thanks!

 

[all999]

   
 I think it's this one:
 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01AFVMR3Q/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
 
But I lost a better one that's cheaper:
 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01C195RR8/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
 
Be sure to search for "Sol Republic" cable because they sell the same cable for HD700 and Oppo PM-1 for 5X the price. 

 
Thanks, I already have my replacement, balanced and shorter hybrid. AQ did excellent job with stock cable, my cable costed over 100$ but it doesn't sound better than stock one.

 

[gammarayson]

I had the Nighthawks previously, but returned them. Subsequently I decided to give them another try, and gave them (despite my scepticism) a couple of hundred hours burn-in with a test cd and pink noise. I'm sure its not placebo, but they no longer seem so dark, in fact quite neutral, and I like them a lot. I think I will keep them this time to compliment my Sennheiser HD800s. There is however an issue with hum when driving them with my Oppo HA-1. I understand that Audioquest have used the Oppo for demonstrations, so I'm puzzled about the hum problem. I listen to classical music, and the hum, though faint, is quite audible in very quiet passages. The hum is not present when driven by my Meier Audio Corda Concerto. I have tried using Oppo's own balanced cable, but the hum is still there. I can imagine it wouldn't bother people listening to other genres. This is my second pair of Nighthawks, and the hum was also present on the previous pair. Apart from the hum, they sound lovely balanced from the HA-1. 

 

[retwisted]

It looks like my nagging is starting to bother some people, so I'll try to keep it short. Why I bother with the nighthawk? Because I love everything about them, except for the sibilance, or should I call it edgyness, that I find unpleasant. By now I have found an eq setting that solves most of this problem. Why not just use my other headphones? Because the end result is better with the nighthawks. I'll peace out from this discussion.

 

[kman1211]

It looks like my nagging is starting to bother some people, so I'll try to keep it short. Why I bother with the nighthawk? Because I love everything about them, except for the sibilance, or should I call it edgyness, that I find unpleasant. By now I have found an eq setting that solves most of this problem. Why not just use my other headphones? Because the end result is better with the nighthawks. I'll peace out from this discussion.

Out of curiosity what is your system? I have found they can sound unpleasant in the highs on certain systems. I'm curious if it's the Nighthawks not liking your system, if you're sensitive to their treble, or a bit of both.

 

[e28m30a]

A passive transducer, e.g. a non-energized headphone, cannot hum. A more sensitive headphone, e.g. NightHawk, can make more audible a fixed level of hum in an amplifier. I would look elsewhere in your system rather than assuming that NightHawk has a hum issue.

 

[gammarayson]

Yes, I appreciate that, I was just hoping someone here might have tried this combination (Nighthawks +Oppo HA-1) and could therefore confirm whether they also experienced some hum, or whether it is just a compatibility issue, something to do with impedance. I'm afraid I'm not so clued up about these things.

 

[e28m30a]

  Yes, I appreciate that, I was just hoping someone here might have tried this combination (Nighthawks +Oppo HA-1) and could therefore confirm whether they also experienced some hum, or whether it is just a compatibility issue, something to do with impedance. I'm afraid I'm not so clued up about these things.

Maybe this will help.
 
The amp is producing hum that the NightHawk is reproducing.  Think of NightHawk as a monitor of what comes before it in your system.  It can only move, which equates to making sound, if there is a signal present at the output of the amplifier to make it move (make sound).  In this case, the sound is hum.  Something before the NightHawk is humming.
 
With hum, there are only two possibilities-
 
1) It goes up and down with the volume control and is therefore gone with the vc all the way down or
 
2) It is at a fixed level, irrespective of vc position and therefore is audible with the vc all the way down, equally loud as when the vc is in listening positions.
 
If it is the former, it should be equally audible on all 'phones because it removes the headphone sensitivity issue from the mix and is simply present at a rate that is proportional to the music signal level- music gets quiet, you hear it.  The headphone doesn't matter.
 
If it is the latter, then a more sensitive 'phone (e.g. perhaps NightHawk in your experience) will make the hum more noticeable because you will have less music proportionally to cover it up.  With a less sensitive headphone, you will turn the vc up to reach the same listening level as NightHawk, but the hum is fixed so it doesn't go up.  One could imagine a situation in which a headphone could be enough less sensitive than NightHawk that the hum would be (all but) inaudible.
 
In any event, something in your chain needs addressing, but it isn't the NightHawk.

 

[gammarayson]

Thanks for your explanation.

  Maybe this will help.
 
The amp is producing hum that the NightHawk is reproducing.  Think of NightHawk as a monitor of what comes before it in your system.  It can only move, which equates to making sound, if there is a signal present at the output of the amplifier to make it move (make sound).  In this case, the sound is hum.  Something before the NightHawk is humming.
 
With hum, there are only two possibilities-
 
1) It goes up and down with the volume control and is therefore gone with the vc all the way down or
 
2) It is at a fixed level, irrespective of vc position and therefore is audible with the vc all the way down, equally loud as when the vc is in listening positions.
 
If it is the former, it should be equally audible on all 'phones because it removes the headphone sensitivity issue from the mix and is simply present at a rate that is proportional to the music signal level- music gets quiet, you hear it.  The headphone doesn't matter.
 
If it is the latter, then a more sensitive 'phone (e.g. perhaps NightHawk in your experience) will make the hum more noticeable because you will have less music proportionally to cover it up.  With a less sensitive headphone, you will turn the vc up to reach the same listening level as NightHawk, but the hum is fixed so it doesn't go up.  One could imagine a situation in which a headphone could be enough less sensitive than NightHawk that the hum would be (all but) inaudible.
 
In any event, something in your chain needs addressing, but it isn't the NightHawk.

Its certainly 2) With my HD800s, Ultrasone Sig Pros, Hifiman HE560s, Beoplay H6s, Philips Fidelio X2s the amp is dead silent when no music is being fed through. With my Nad HP50s, which like the Nighthawks are very easy to drive, there is also a slight hum. Maybe, with your help I have answered my own question

 

[dmhenley]

I'm 6 months in with my Nighthawks, and I want to say that I have no desire to move on.
 
I'm currently using (wanted something to drive 'phones and speakers - and built prior to the Nighthawks purchase) a modified Bottlehead SEX amp, and it's designed to power much less sensitive 'phones - so not the ideal pairing. And, the 'Hawks did reveal a hum not apparent with less sensitive pairs. Also, my ideal listening levels are limited. That said, the SEX is a fantastic amp.
 
So....I'll buy another head amp and a separate 2 channel amp later.
 
Anyway, to the point:
While they certainly present a different sonic character than many headphones, they simply sound right to me. Acoustic instruments (well recorded) sound like I want them to. Like my memory tells me they should sound. Result - an ecstatic listening experience. 
 
Thanks AQ

 

[adpo]

I'm also a few months in with my Nighthawks, definitely see them as pretty much my endgame. I might pick up something like the Ether E(?) to compliment them down the line, but I'm pretty much set on keeping them until the day Skylar decides to do a Mk2 for whatever reason 

 
That said, I still need to step up my amp game. I heard the Nighthawks with a V281 at the Audioquest booth at this year's canjam socal and instantly fell in utter love with the pairing. I got to try my nighthawks on a lot of other setups at that event, but nothing quite stole my heart like the violectric.
 
 
On a different note, here's my 2 cents on the sibilance issue: I get sibilance on my Nighthawks if I really turn up the volume. If it's just at normal listening levels, I might pick it up if I really pay attention, but it's not really noticeable. I've played around with modding the damping on my Nighthawks and that'd really helped in evening out the treble response even further.

 

[ryan391]

Please help me understand why audioquest would produce such a high end headphone with such a low impedence? I thought the higher impedence eliminated a lot of the background noise.

I have listened to these phones i am not sure how much time they have been burned but i really liked them. I was considering buying but i know there are many awesome phones in this price point.