[dorino]

Quote:

Are the Mad Dogs forgiving of lower bitrate music?

Not really. I mean, they're not rude, it's not like you need to have a bunch of 24-bit lossless on hand (16-bit is fine 

), but with "lower bitrate" - below 192kbps - the degradation isn't really masked. MP3's sound perfectly fine, but these are definitely the kind of headphones where the differences between lossless and lossy encoding can become audible.

 

[SanjiWatsuki]

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Are the Mad Dogs forgiving of lower bitrate music?

You also have to realize that "forgiving of source" is often times code for "these are low resolution, but I like them." Modded Fostex headphones are pretty darn high resolution.

 

[wje]

Quote:

You also have to realize that "forgiving of source" is often times code for "these are low resolution, but I like them." Modded Fostex headphones are pretty darn high resolution.

 
In the days of cheaper and larger storage amounts, I really think that the use of lower bit-rate MP3 files is becoming more rare.  Usually, now, a 320kb CBR or VBR file seems to be about the norm.  Also, at that level of compression, there seems to be quite a bit less degradation than the lower bit rates.  Sadly, for the albums I've downloaded from Amazon, they've kept their bit rate at 256 or so - and I could hear the poorer quality.  Then again, that was a download that was only $5.00 for the whole album.  However, I'd gladly pay $7.00 - $7.50 per album if they were to use 320kb downloads of much better quality.

 

[paradoxper]

Quote:

Are the Mad Dogs forgiving of lower bitrate music?

I would say they're revealing (just not ruthless), but even so you can find enjoyment with low Bitrate.

 

[clairyvic]

How do these compare to to the SRH950, AKG 550, and hm5 (AKA FA-003)? I'm looking for neutral yet lively headphones. Will they blow away someone whose only used 200$ aiaiais?

 

[wje]

Quote:

How do these compare to to the SRH950, AKG 550, and hm5 (AKA FA-003)? I'm looking for neutral yet lively headphones. Will they blow away someone whose only used 200$ aiaiais?

 
I can't speak to the Mad Dog versions of the modified Fostex headphones.  However, I can to the Blue Monkey Flyer 8.1 version of Fostex.  When compared to the HM5, it is no competition room for comparison at all.  The Fostex headphones will blow by the HM5 in an New York minute.

 

[olegausany]

I heard both Mad Dog and K550 and for me Mad Dog have more better quality bass while K550 lacking bass even with Burson 160D amp

 

[kskwerl]

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  In my opinion they are in the same league sonically as the much more expensive Audeze LCD-3 and in a few specific ways I feel the Mad Dog's are actually superior to the LCD-3.
 

I had a pair of modded T50RPs before I got my LCD-2's, being driven by the Schiit Lyr and I was..not disappointed but thought my T50RPs sounded better than the LCD-2's but having spent 1k on them I just didn't want to believe it. If I could go back I would have never gotten the LCD-2's, don't get me wrong they sound great and are awesome but not for 1000 bucks. Not even close compared to what i spent on the T50RPs and modding supplies.

 

[paradoxper]

Quote:

I had a pair of modded T50RPs before I got my LCD-2's, being driven by the Schiit Lyr and I was..not disappointed but thought my T50RPs sounded better than the LCD-2's but having spent 1k on them I just didn't want to believe it. If I could go back I would have never gotten the LCD-2's, don't get me wrong they sound great and are awesome but not for 1000 bucks. Not even close compared to what i spent on the T50RPs and modding supplies.

I also have the Mad Dogs, LCD 2 and 3 being driven by Lyr. I am still of the opinion that the Mad Dogs best anything in the sub $1000-1200 range. But I do still
listen to my Audeze's considering no headphone does it all right, and the LCD's do many things better than the Mad Dogs. (Vice versa)

 

[mikek200]

Quote:

I also have the Mad Dogs, LCD 2 and 3 being driven by Lyr. I am still of the opinion that the Mad Dogs best anything in the sub $1000-1200 range. But I do still
listen to my Audeze's considering no headphone does it all right, and the LCD's do many things better than the Mad Dogs. (Vice versa)

I also have the lcd-2's and t50rp..
I sent the Mad Dog's in for a free upgrade last week..
I'm very anxious to hear what the difference will be ,when I get them back.
 
The Mad Dogs are a great headphone..light/comfortable{not as good as the hd650's ,though}..excellent SQ..all for $299-

 

[clairyvic]

Anyone else have opinions on the question posed in my post?

 

[paradoxper]

Quote:

Anyone else have opinions on the question posed in my post?

We've gone round n round with this question with another Head-Fier. It depends ultimately what you're looking, what your budget is, what your chains is.
Bang for buck/price to performance. You can't go wrong with the Mad Dogs for neutral yet lively. And IMO a giant killer. Other options in this range are
LFF's Paradox: very neutral, dynamic, Smeggy's Thunderpants a full woodied mod, very punchy, alive. (But expensive)
Another headphone to be thrown out there is the HE-400 I've spent a few months with it loved it with electronic, and it's "affordable"
 
Other than that it's hard to really advise anything for you. I looked on your profile for your chain, but you don't have it listed. So kind of flying blind.
 
I suppose another route you could go is modding the T50RP yourself. There's a comprensive thread on this. With some great members to seek advice on modding techniques.
 
Hope this helps you out a bit. 

 Good luck!

 

[wje]

Quote:

We've gone round n round with this question with another Head-Fier. It depends ultimately what you're looking, what your budget is, what your chains is.

 
Boy, you're not fooling on that one.  So many round n' rounds that I'm practically dizzy.  But, I will say that I wish there was something I could say about a modified pair of Fostex headphones that could be hateful, but I can't.  However, if I were to pick any other pair of headphones that I've owned in the past, or currently own, I could pick them apart.  Some of it might be the great base price for these.  Certainly, the low cost leads to less buyer's remorse.  Then, add in the relatively cheap cost to perform the uprades and you easily see (and hear) how the Fostex then starts to perform like a headphone at least three times the cost, and then you're really impressed.
 
The great feature regarding all of the variation techniques is that an individual can "fine tune" the Fostex to their own liking or what they desire to achieve based on the hundreds of inputs and contributions based on the member contribution.  Many, many techniques have been tried and fortunately, the pros and cons of each technique has been listed out.  So, if someone is willing to take a bit of time, read through the modification thread to have a full understanding on how the Fostex has involved, they'll have a good knowledge of where things started and where they are now as well as what works and what doesn't work so well.

 

[olegausany]

But Thundepants have overpowered bass which bleeds into other frequencies so some tracks don't sound as intended while Mad Dog doesn't have this problem

 

[preproman]

Quote:

 
Blue Monkey Flyer 8.1 version of Fostex.

 
wje,
 
Can these be purchased somewhere?
 
Darryl