I've mostly been a desktop headphone guy for several years now, but I've finally given in and decided to get a decent mobile setup. The DAP will be used with my Grado GR8's for walking / exercising and with my SR225's, GH-1's, or K553 Pro's for home & travelling use (though being able to drive...

In the opening scene of the latest Doctor Who episode ("Hide"), a character pulls on these vintage AKGs (I spoiler-tagged the images, because they're large): Anybody know what those are? My first thought was Sextetts, but the photos I can find of Sextetts have a silver "K-240" on the back...

I was a bit late to the K501 game, so I got mine second-hand, and the owner before me had recabled them. After a few years of being my favorite headphones, one of the soldered leads on the cable broke. It'd be a really quick fix, but I'm such a DIY noob that I don't trust myself not to slip with...

I love my SR225's (non-i), but I really can't afford to upgrade to something like an RS-1. I'd been eyeing pre-made woodie cups (I don't do woodwork myself) like J$ or Headphile, but haven't been able to find many SQ-related impressions. Anybody have an opinion as to whether they'd be worth...

My HeadDirect EF1 completely blew my mind...I loved it (except for the unbalanced-channels-at-low-volumes thing), but the chance came to sell it, and now I'm looking to upgrade. I'm looking for something with synergy with an HD580 (my main headphone right now), my YH-1, and ideally (if such a...

I've been thinking about getting a pair of chinchillas, possible after Christmas (I live in a smallish apartment, but want a pet more substantial than a gerbil). Anyone here have experience with them? I'd ask on a more chinchilla-oriented forum, but, frankly, some of those people scare me.

I appear to have lost the little plastic plug that came in my Compass's optical socket. Don't need it at the moment, but it'd be useful to have if I ever have to store or ship the thing. Does anyone know where one could buy some spares? All my googling just comes back with cables.

There's so many contradictory directions online about how to season cast iron cookware...I'm seasoning a couple of skillets now, and the 400+ degrees instructions didn't work (well, it might have, but it filled the apartment with smoke...not the "kinda hazy" level of smoke, but the "OMG I can...

Just signed up for a Magnatune download membership...I swear, I'm like a kid in a candy shop. Maybe it's just that I'm obsessed with the Baroque (one of their better genres), but this is exactly what an online music shop should be. It's so exciting to find a label that's not stuck in the '60s...

I've been MIA from the forums for a little while; started a new job and had a car wreck, so I've had neither time nor money, so bear with me if I'm suddenly kinda newbish. My current work setup is basically my portable setup: X5L > Millett Portable Hybrid > SR225. The Grados, even blu-tack...

It strikes me that a lot of the problems around DBT discussion revolve around a misunderstanding of what constitutes a DBT and, really, scientifically valid methodology in general. I'm not pro- or con-cable, but I've heard about so many "DBT"s that don't use statistically valid sample sizes...

Today, I decided to mod my (second-hand, 2007) Grado SR225s according to this thread, but instead of dynamat I used blu-tack. Also, today I received a used TTVJ Millett portable hybrid amp, which, if you aren't aware, has a startup thump. So, in modding the phones, since this was my first...

I couldn't find a thread along these lines...if anyone knows better than I, please refer me. I just got an awesome job, so I've been considering getting my first electrostatic 'phone...I know Stax is kind of the king of the electrostatic hill, but with all the vintage gear running around...

PayPal decided to "review" my payment for my HF-2 and limit my account...I was able to un-freeze the account, and thank God I emailed Todd in time for one of the last few HF-2s. Supposedly Todd refunded my PayPal payment, but that money's yet to show up in my account. He'd mentioned this had...

Now that I've heard the gospel of clicky keyboards, I just can't use lesser keyboards any more. I've got five clickies myself...two '92 gray-logo Model Ms (one for each of the computers in my dorm), a Northgate Omnikey (I don't like it as much as the Model Ms, but it's clicky), a Dell keyboard...

I'm about as into Chinese tea as headphones. I'm especially interested in mainland Chinese oolongs (Ti Kwan Yin &c) and pu-ehrs (my wallet *really* hates me for that). Typically I use a gaiwan (a Chinese lidded tea cup...probably the most convenient brewing accessory in existance) to brew...