joeq70
1000+ Head-Fier
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- Sep 26, 2007
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I'm pretty new to this audiophile business, but I've stepped into it pretty well so far. My first purchase was the ksc-75, followed by the Denon AH-D2000, and now most recently the Grado SR80. I've tried to get a sampling of the different options out there, but I still don't think I've found the right pair of phones. I'll try to describe what I like and dislike about what I've listened to and perhaps some of you here could steer me in the right direction as to what I'm really looking for.
It's the Denon that I'd like to focus on first. The D2000 sounds quite good. The bass quantity is great, although it could be a little tighter. I have done the markl mods btw (though I still need to put cotton in the cups). I've noticed that I prefer the feel of open headphones compared to the closed Denons. I have tinnitus and the closed cups make the ringing seem louder (of course it's just the noise cancelling effect). That's also why I don't like IEMs. Anyway, the D2000s end up sounding good, but the highs could be clearer (or have more "sparkle" as some say). I've read that recabling them may remedy this. I also noticed that the Denons have a larger soundstage than both the koss and grado headphones, but even the Denons isn't too terribly large. The Grados have a clearer high end but are definitely lacking in soundstage.
So basically here is what I'm looking for--a headphone with:
-Ample bass, not unlike the D2000 but perhaps a little tighter.
-A large soundstage--Denon soundstage is okay, Grado pretty cruddy--I think this characteristic is more important than I initially realized. The larger soundstage the better!
-Nice crystal clear highs--That's what I enojoyed about the SR80--the highs were more prominent (but perhaps a little too prominent) I'd like something in between the Denon and Grado when it comes to highs.
I'd also like to add that my amplifier is a CIAUDIO VHP-2
Thanks for the help folks!
It's the Denon that I'd like to focus on first. The D2000 sounds quite good. The bass quantity is great, although it could be a little tighter. I have done the markl mods btw (though I still need to put cotton in the cups). I've noticed that I prefer the feel of open headphones compared to the closed Denons. I have tinnitus and the closed cups make the ringing seem louder (of course it's just the noise cancelling effect). That's also why I don't like IEMs. Anyway, the D2000s end up sounding good, but the highs could be clearer (or have more "sparkle" as some say). I've read that recabling them may remedy this. I also noticed that the Denons have a larger soundstage than both the koss and grado headphones, but even the Denons isn't too terribly large. The Grados have a clearer high end but are definitely lacking in soundstage.
So basically here is what I'm looking for--a headphone with:
-Ample bass, not unlike the D2000 but perhaps a little tighter.
-A large soundstage--Denon soundstage is okay, Grado pretty cruddy--I think this characteristic is more important than I initially realized. The larger soundstage the better!
-Nice crystal clear highs--That's what I enojoyed about the SR80--the highs were more prominent (but perhaps a little too prominent) I'd like something in between the Denon and Grado when it comes to highs.
I'd also like to add that my amplifier is a CIAUDIO VHP-2
Thanks for the help folks!