[bcasey25raptor]

Quote:

I think the fact that I spend serious time on this board tells folk all they really need to know about my mental state. That, and the fact that I like to sign cheques 'Charlie Manson'.
 
To the OP - I dont think anyone here denies things like diminishing returns and self-generated hype are disincentives to 'moving up the ladder', but it comes down to a simple proposition :
 
- do have the disposable income for a *luxury* like audio ?
- if so, what is the opportunity cost of spending money here vs spending money on more profitable hobbies like stamp collecting or growing your own herb, er, vegetables ?
 
Push comes to shove, we pay our money and we take our chances. Where the 'VFM' equation falls over in Head-Fi, for mine, is that very few of us can stop at one or two of anything. There are several people in this thread who would be ahead financially if they had simply gone out and bought a good mid-fi speaker rig - lets say 5-7K total - even though the speakers wouldnt give them everything they can get from a pair of thousand dollar cans. My experience in this hobby is that very few seem to get off the merry-go-round (the trick seems to be staying away from sites like this), and 'bang-for-buck' is relative - you previously lament the fact that a sub-$100 portable amp didnt sound any different to your onboard audio, but I *guarantee* that changing headphones will give you a different sound. You've obviously read enough threads to realise that 'different' doesnt automatically mean 'better' - c'est la vie.
 
In short, if you have money to spend and there is a competing priority in your life, my suggestion is that you spend your money on that other priority. If not, welcome to Head-Fi and sorry for your wallet.
 

other then computers i have no other hobbies to spend money on.
 
 
also i think this describes how i think about a lot of things in this hobby.
 

 

[estreeter]

Quote:

other then computers i have no other hobbies to spend money on.
 
 
also i think this describes how i think about a lot of things in this hobby.
 

I could be wrong, but I dont think anyone here is asking you to buy 800 dollar cables or 400 dollar power cords - headphones remain superb bang-for-buck in the grand scheme of this silly, silly hobby. I agree that we should be calling bulls*t on *some* things in audio, but that doesnt mean its ALL total crapola. If there is a single characteristic that defines most Head-Fiers, its aspiration, even if our internal accountants tell us that our dream kit is poor VFM
 
If I can stray onto your other hobby, imagine how good onboard audio would be if it had kept pace with onboard video. Gamers will laugh, but for the rest of us, we just *assume* that we will be able to watch stutter-free HD video and play basic games on any of Intel's Core range : it came with the chip and we didnt have to pay any extra for that. 18 months ago, you wouldnt have bothered with onboard video for anything beyond the most basic of tasks.
 
Onboard audio, for all the marketing shinola attached to various laptop speakers, is a very poor second cousin. The difference, for mine, is that Intel and others feel they are giving people what they want, and anything else is left to the aftermarket - this will only change when the demand for aftermarket soundcards begins to approach the demand for aftermarket video cards, and I cant see that happening - for most, including gamers, its enough to just add a pair of Logitechs (pref with a sub) and pump up the volume. I know thats a gross generalisation, but what this hobby can potentially give you is the ability to go a long way beyond that baseline - even a cheap DAC like the MSII gives me a significantly better experience with everything from movies to music.
 
I suspect that you know all this - you wouldnt have come here if you didnt see some potential value in this hobby - but it all comes down to choices. Generally speaking, Head-Fi recommendations tend to be from the budget end of the audio spectrum, but you are always welcome to spend more:
 
http://www.computeraudiophile.com/content/Computer-Audiophile-Suggested-Hardware-List
 

 

[Joelby]

raptor I know the site is addictive and in my last post I didn't necessarily mean you should completely abandon it. Just a hiatus, like another member mentioned. I definitely feel your frustration with this site. It took me a while to snap back to reality after I joined. It's so easy to get sucked into the vortex and spend all your time nit picking your gear, losing sight of why you came in the first place: to enjoy your music more.
 
As far as those MS-1s go, I really hope they treat you well. I'm a metal head myself and I own them. I really enjoy them. Give them time to shine. There's a golden rule around here when it comes to initial impressions of headphones: Sometimes the headphones that "wow" you out of the box end up on the for sale forum a couple months down the road. The best models just do their job without drawing too much attention to themselves.
 
I wouldn't bother with amps at this point. Find the sound sig you want in your headphones first. MS-1s are great right out of an ipod. Afterall, they're designed to be enjoyed out of these devices. Amping them is only going to change the flavor, if anything. What you really need is a flux capacitor to lift the veil and bring out the micro details, increase head space and make your balls tingle.
 
BTW I just noticed that Wintersun album cover in your avatar. Wicked!

 

[Graphicism]

Quote:

While reading the OP thread I will try to  answer this as I have owned the T1,HD800,HE6,LCD2 and  had the loaner HE500 in here.. I am listening to the Beyer 880 600 ohms street price is 269.00 and the biggest difference I hear with the more expensive headphones it slightly more detail more transparency in all the higher priced models. I would say the 880 is 90-95 percent of all the top tier and its no placebo.

The 880 is my main headphone and after comparing it directly with a T1 I actually prefer the tonality of the 880 in both mids and highs, the bass was better on the T1 perhaps giving the illusion of better of dynamics but I wasn't that impressed. In addition I auditioned the T1 on an A1 and my meagerly priced 336i was a lot fuller sounding, perhaps giving the 880 the edge over a lifeless T1, A1 combo. It has to ultimately come down to synergy and the sound you're looking for. Bang for buck in my instance means buying what sounds good to you, if you're short on time or have money to burn a top-tier headphone might be the quicker way to find your audio bliss but it's no guarantee.

 

[estreeter]

This seems to be turning from an 'audio is just overpriced BS for deluded fanboys !' rant into a DT880 appreciation thread 
 
I like this product description from someone who isnt backward about bagging most of Sennheiser's range, which he also sells:
 
Featuring a very sturdy and good looking design, the DT880 is Beyer's previous top of the range model. The Beyerdynamic DT880 has comfortable velour earpads and a single sided coiled cord. It features an amazing all-round sound with one of the best soundstages we've heard. A very smooth sounding headphone with excellent balance the DT880 has instantly become a favourite of ours suiting just about every genre of music, this headphone rivals and even outdoes many other companies' flagship models, especially a specific well known brands top of the range dynamic which costs significantly more.
The DT880 requires amplification for best performance.

 

[RymezWithOrange]

 
Quote:

i have a fiio e7 dac and i hear minimal improvement over my onboard. that was my main reason for starting this thread.
 

Well then...hmm. Not hearing significant improvement over onboard audio using the E7 is quite a curio.
Just to check, are you sure it is not in the "amplifier-only" mode? If it is, it's not bypassing your onboard audio, and only amplifying the onboard signal, which would certainly not do much.
Make sure it's connected to a USB port to replace the onboard audio adapter completely. This is crucial to it serving its purpose.
 
Also, to answer your title's question, these "bang-for-buck" headphones are compared to the "more expensive" (Monster, Bose, the 'big names') because those headphones' inflated cost compared to their SQ does not in any way justify the price, their only merit really being their 'looking nice' and their status symbol.
Funny when they're called 'studio sound' and people jump for them when next to no musician would even think to use these in the studio, and these suddenly show up, acted and advertised as if they are better than the generations of real, professional studio headphones before them.
Those brands range from Audio Technica to Shure, Sennheiser to Beyerdynamic, AKG to Ultrasone, and so forth, but most are makers of actual studio gear, and with Monster or Bose, "studio" is used as a buzzword to try to reel in potential buyers, that are curious to what "studio" sound sounds like, likely having not heard it before. Simple and scheming marketing, really.
With Bose, it's quite the same as Monster and their Beats. Aggressive advertising, overpricing, cost higher than quality.
But then they have "tactics" like pushing stores that they set their foot into to not allow other brands of equipment that's anything else to be within a certain feet of them, for fear that gets heard and bought instead, because, well, just about anything else is better than Bose.
Honest. Won't even take your energy to walk into their store and end up dealing with their dealers or in-person listening to know this. Better uses for time.
Bose = Blows, common knowledge 'round these parts.

 
The "bang" you will get from a pair of reputable phones is just about a guaranteed night-and-day difference between the overpriced, overadvertised and hyped, and good sound equipment is most certainly not a product of placebo.
This is why I'm not doubting your DAC, or gear, or anything about your ears. You just want to hear the music better, and it surely can be heard so.
So I think that something is indeed amiss that your Fiio E7 is carrying over a signal hardly different from stock, generic onboard sound.

 

[sexiewasd]

Ok, so hifi isn't making your music sound better to you.  It's probably your music's fault.  Now that is out of the way why the heck can we not figure out what IS going to make your music more enjoyable to you.  I certainly have tracks and tastes that just get worse and worse the more detail you hear, and get very harsh with a flat response.  The good thing is that backing away from hifi the price goes down and you can even find some killer deals, also speaker setups become feasible again.
 

 

[TMRaven]

I didn't hear a big improvement with my HRT Music Streamer over my iMac's intel hd audio, and as well the E7.  I can sympathize.  It's definitely not anything wrong with our setups, it's another subtle improvement that people can tend to sensationalize.  The Mullard tube drivers over the stock chinese tube drivers on the little dot was another example.

 

[bcasey25raptor]

Why resurrect this thread? I now understand that headphones are more revealing though more harsh then speakers.

 

[Blue Boat]

As someone who's new to audio gear (been using stock earphones all my life), I think that some things are a little overhyped. I have read some of Ethan Winer's things, AES myth workshop, etc. and I feel it's best to keep a clear mind about things. If you try out equipment with the mindset that it's probably just junk that is more of a want than it is a need, then nothing is going to satisfy you. If that is the case, you should probably move on to another hobby.
 
It all depends on who you are and what you like. A critical listener will be able to appreciate the $500 headphone, while a casual music listener will probably remark that while the $500 is better, it is way overpriced. It's the same with bags and watches/clocks. Some women don't see the value in buying $1200 bags, some do. Why get a Rolex when a cheaper Adidas watch will do? 
 
All that said, I do believe placebo plays a big difference in audio. But it doesn't matter if you have the funds. 
 
 

 

[Gwarmi]

No amount of high end gear can ever polish a poor recording.