[Sound Eq]

can I ask utopia 2022 owners which impedance setting you prefer on bliss

 

[MrHaelscheir]

Thank you MrHaelscheir for your comprehensive reply. Before any EQ I guess I will rather test the recommended headphone sets which can obviously bring the biggest change in my listening. My gear is listed in my signature.

Usually I would try the free option (EQ) first, mind that the time setting up said software could be comparable to the time spent making a visit to a shop, but it otherwise could indeed be nice to try out other stock headphones if you are available to audition them first. I am someone who made the jump from a Jabra Elite 85h to the Arya Stealth (bigger brother of your Edition XS) and after that wouldn't have any smaller of a headphone in terms of space around my ears. The Meze Elite was the one to give me that space while improving comfort and other qualities, though yes, that hits at a pretty high budget, the Meze Empyrean or Empyrean 2 maybe giving you a reasonable taste. Audezes may give you the bass to midrange elevation you want, but at the cost of losing the space around your ears that HiFiMans give you. The Aune AR5000 might give a feeling of elevated upper bass and lower midrange while still presenting large earcups. Perhaps first see what EQ like the suggested low-shelf filter can do for you and decide whether you are still content with the Edition XS's presentation or whether you hear unwanted distortion.

 

[UseThe4s]

Usually I would try the free option (EQ) first, mind that the time setting up said software could be comparable to the time spent making a visit to a shop, but it otherwise could indeed be nice to try out other stock headphones if you are available to audition them first. I am someone who made the jump from a Jabra Elite 85h to the Arya Stealth (bigger brother of your Edition XS) and after that wouldn't have any smaller of a headphone in terms of space around my ears. The Meze Elite was the one to give me that space while improving comfort and other qualities, though yes, that hits at a pretty high budget, the Meze Empyrean or Empyrean 2 maybe giving you a reasonable taste. Audezes may give you the bass to midrange elevation you want, but at the cost of losing the space around your ears that HiFiMans give you. The Aune AR5000 might give a feeling of elevated upper bass and lower midrange while still presenting large earcups. Perhaps first see what EQ like the suggested low-shelf filter can do for you and decide whether you are still content with the Edition XS's presentation or whether you hear unwanted distortion.

OK, things approached an unexpected shift, a little story here... Few days ago I brought home a second hand Sonore opticalRendu streamer set and a new (!) AC filter from Supra cables along with a new (!) 3x 2,5 / 10 AWG generic power cable. I connected those into my system at the same time. At first I was amazed with the detail retrieval in the sound and with overall sound quality bump. But... I quickly realized that while liking the described upgrade in the sound there was also something that started to bother me. Now from my perspective I can say that the whole sound moved up in the frequency spectrum. There was less bass, midrange was barely interesting a there was suddenly lot more going on in the upper range. I started to be desperate thinking that this change was brought with the (very good and very expensive) opticalRendu streamer. I was desperate because I was in a point where I was having pretty expensive gear which sonic outcome I did not like. That was the point where I asked you great people for help...

Anyway, today happened something very strange that I did not previously experience - I went to listen to my system and evaluate how bad things really are... and I was shocked... bass and the whole frequency spectrum starting to change back... that was in the morning... now in the evening not only it is fully back... through the headphones I here more bass, mid-badd and midrange I have ever heard (of about 3 months owning the system). The upper region changed also, sibilants are almost gone, details are more pronounced, everything is smoother and more enjoyable to listen...

Now, I have no idea what the hell happened here but the only thing I was able to figure is that most probably the new Supra AC filter and the new power cord were going through a burn-in period. Of course I heard about burn-in before though never experienced one myself. I thought that that will have minor barely audible effect. But this was something different, this was clearly audible change shift in the frequency spectrum. Don't realy like the "night and day" comparison but in my case the sound changed from "I barely like it" to "I'm absolutely thrilled and excited with it, no need for a different headphone set at all".

I am very new to the headphone scene so bare with me . I would like to hear your opinion this subject though. And I need to add - I don't have any hearing problems, I'm not crazy and I do not tend to overreact. All the described above was a very real experience for me.

 

[Frankie D]

OK, things approached an unexpected shift, a little story here... Few days ago I brought home a second hand Sonore opticalRendu streamer set and a new (!) AC filter from Supra cables along with a new (!) 3x 2,5 / 10 AWG generic power cable. I connected those into my system at the same time. At first I was amazed with the detail retrieval in the sound and with overall sound quality bump. But... I quickly realized that while liking the described upgrade in the sound there was also something that started to bother me. Now from my perspective I can say that the whole sound moved up in the frequency spectrum. There was less bass, midrange was barely interesting a there was suddenly lot more going on in the upper range. I started to be desperate thinking that this change was brought with the (very good and very expensive) opticalRendu streamer. I was desperate because I was in a point where I was having pretty expensive gear which sonic outcome I did not like. That was the point where I asked you great people for help...

Anyway, today happened something very strange that I did not previously experience - I went to listen to my system and evaluate how bad things really are... and I was shocked... bass and the whole frequency spectrum starting to change back... that was in the morning... now in the evening not only it is fully back... through the headphones I here more bass, mid-badd and midrange I have ever heard (of about 3 months owning the system). The upper region changed also, sibilants are almost gone, details are more pronounced, everything is smoother and more enjoyable to listen...

Now, I have no idea what the hell happened here but the only thing I was able to figure is that most probably the new Supra AC filter and the new power cord were going through a burn-in period. Of course I heard about burn-in before though never experienced one myself. I thought that that will have minor barely audible effect. But this was something different, this was clearly audible change shift in the frequency spectrum. Don't realy like the "night and day" comparison but in my case the sound changed from "I barely like it" to "I'm absolutely thrilled and excited with it, no need for a different headphone set at all".

I am very new to the headphone scene so bear with me . I would like to hear your opinion this subject though. And I need to add - I don't have any hearing problems, I'm not crazy and I do not tend to overreact. All the described above was a very real experience for me.

Interesting story. I have some Puritan power cables and power mgmt coming in and they also mentioned a burn-in time for the cables. I never thought power cables should need to burn in. I will try to compare for myself after I get them.

 

[UseThe4s]

Interesting story. I have some Puritan power cables and power mgmt coming in and they also mentioned a burn-in time for the cables. I never thought power cables should need to burn in. I will try to compare for myself after I get them.

Yes, I like Puritan products a lot and a PSM 156 unit is definitely on my list. Now I only need to be patient to find it second hand as it's MSRP is killer...

 

[MrHaelscheir]

OK, things approached an unexpected shift, a little story here... Few days ago I brought home a second hand Sonore opticalRendu streamer set and a new (!) AC filter from Supra cables along with a new (!) 3x 2,5 / 10 AWG generic power cable. I connected those into my system at the same time. At first I was amazed with the detail retrieval in the sound and with overall sound quality bump. But... I quickly realized that while liking the described upgrade in the sound there was also something that started to bother me. Now from my perspective I can say that the whole sound moved up in the frequency spectrum. There was less bass, midrange was barely interesting a there was suddenly lot more going on in the upper range. I started to be desperate thinking that this change was brought with the (very good and very expensive) opticalRendu streamer. I was desperate because I was in a point where I was having pretty expensive gear which sonic outcome I did not like. That was the point where I asked you great people for help...

Anyway, today happened something very strange that I did not previously experience - I went to listen to my system and evaluate how bad things really are... and I was shocked... bass and the whole frequency spectrum starting to change back... that was in the morning... now in the evening not only it is fully back... through the headphones I here more bass, mid-badd and midrange I have ever heard (of about 3 months owning the system). The upper region changed also, sibilants are almost gone, details are more pronounced, everything is smoother and more enjoyable to listen...

Now, I have no idea what the hell happened here but the only thing I was able to figure is that most probably the new Supra AC filter and the new power cord were going through a burn-in period. Of course I heard about burn-in before though never experienced one myself. I thought that that will have minor barely audible effect. But this was something different, this was clearly audible change shift in the frequency spectrum. Don't realy like the "night and day" comparison but in my case the sound changed from "I barely like it" to "I'm absolutely thrilled and excited with it, no need for a different headphone set at all".

I am very new to the headphone scene so bare with me . I would like to hear your opinion this subject though. And I need to add - I don't have any hearing problems, I'm not crazy and I do not tend to overreact. All the described above was a very real experience for me.

Welp. The human mind is a powerful thing. So long as you are happy with the sound.

I would also warn of the fickleness of human hearing. A few days ago, I listened to a recording of Mahler Symphony No. 1 that finally had me feeling quite pleased with my DSP solution insofar as I was hearing that "bright openness" and clarity I had been longing for among other "you are there" things with strings or woodwinds. Then just yesterday, I finally attended a live performance of said symphony which I rather well enjoyed, some things indeed sounding familiar to what my playback system could now yield, but on returning home, those recordings were no longer sounding so lovely. And now today, my state of mind is back to perceiving the exquisiteness that I had heard a few days ago with the same DSP and gear, say whatever you may of the mains power quality in Toronto.

 

[Solasuke]

OK, things approached an unexpected shift, a little story here... Few days ago I brought home a second hand Sonore opticalRendu streamer set and a new (!) AC filter from Supra cables along with a new (!) 3x 2,5 / 10 AWG generic power cable. I connected those into my system at the same time. At first I was amazed with the detail retrieval in the sound and with overall sound quality bump. But... I quickly realized that while liking the described upgrade in the sound there was also something that started to bother me. Now from my perspective I can say that the whole sound moved up in the frequency spectrum. There was less bass, midrange was barely interesting a there was suddenly lot more going on in the upper range. I started to be desperate thinking that this change was brought with the (very good and very expensive) opticalRendu streamer. I was desperate because I was in a point where I was having pretty expensive gear which sonic outcome I did not like. That was the point where I asked you great people for help...

Anyway, today happened something very strange that I did not previously experience - I went to listen to my system and evaluate how bad things really are... and I was shocked... bass and the whole frequency spectrum starting to change back... that was in the morning... now in the evening not only it is fully back... through the headphones I here more bass, mid-badd and midrange I have ever heard (of about 3 months owning the system). The upper region changed also, sibilants are almost gone, details are more pronounced, everything is smoother and more enjoyable to listen...

Now, I have no idea what the hell happened here but the only thing I was able to figure is that most probably the new Supra AC filter and the new power cord were going through a burn-in period. Of course I heard about burn-in before though never experienced one myself. I thought that that will have minor barely audible effect. But this was something different, this was clearly audible change shift in the frequency spectrum. Don't realy like the "night and day" comparison but in my case the sound changed from "I barely like it" to "I'm absolutely thrilled and excited with it, no need for a different headphone set at all".

I am very new to the headphone scene so bare with me . I would like to hear your opinion this subject though. And I need to add - I don't have any hearing problems, I'm not crazy and I do not tend to overreact. All the described above was a very real experience for me.

I had the exact same thing happen to me with my ultimate cables.

 

[shafat777]

My Endgame....

 

[chesebert]

My Endgame....

How do they differ from Pietus max?

 

[shafat777]

How do they differ from Pietus max?

I would honestly say that the Pmax sounds like the little brother of the Bliss. Pmax sounds like it has a great balance between the mids and the top end. The low end is controlled and tight but still has plenty of power to produce the oomph if needed. The soundstage and presentation is where the bliss takes off and leaves the Pmax in its dust. The bliss has one of, if not, the best 3d holographic soundstage i have ever heard from an amp. The pmax sounds a little congested in comparison and it fails to separate the instruments the way bliss does. For $500, compared to Bliss' $3500 footprint, I think the pmax is no slouch. Its a small compact SS amp that can go head to head with my other big amps (bliss, HA-6A, Euforia EVO)

 

[Cosmin Stanescu]

Hi guys,

I have a holo bliss and a rockna wavelight and i like them with my empy but im looking for an upgrade or complementary headphone.... was thinking of susvara or zmf caldera or atrium ? What would you guys recommend for someone looking for an organic, analog sound along with musicality and timbre (not really a details nerd since i have the empy)

 

[chrisnyc75]

Hi guys,

I have a holo bliss and a rockna wavelight and i like them with my empy but im looking for an upgrade or complementary headphone.... was thinking of susvara or zmf caldera or atrium ? What would you guys recommend for someone looking for an organic, analog sound along with musicality and timbre (not really a details nerd since i have the empy)

Sus & Caldera are both amazing headphones that sound nothing like Empy, but they are very different. If you want ultimate resolution, clarity, & timbre, Susvara can't be beat. Caldera is warmer, with bass that is clearly in the running for best bass in head fi. I might say Caldera is perceptually v-shaped (though it's not actually v-shaped in the graph).

Both work beautifully with Bliss.

 

[kumar402]

Hi guys,

I have a holo bliss and a rockna wavelight and i like them with my empy but im looking for an upgrade or complementary headphone.... was thinking of susvara or zmf caldera or atrium ? What would you guys recommend for someone looking for an organic, analog sound along with musicality and timbre (not really a details nerd since i have the empy)

If you are not detail nerd then you can’t go wrong with Atrium.

 

[chrisnyc75]

If you are not detail nerd then you can’t go wrong with Atrium.

I feel like Empy & Atrium are almost redundant in that way? Both are relaxed listens that lean in more to smoothness and euphony than resolution or detail.

 

[kumar402]

I feel like Empy & Atrium are almost redundant in that way? Both are relaxed listens that lean in more to smoothness and euphony than resolution or detail.

Empy is warm but has lot of D3 in air region and Atrium has better tonality and timbre then Empyrean OG.