Now my Sony WF100XM4s are starting to die I'm starting the search for a replacement that I'll be using for music alone, so I don't really need ANC or microphones or any of the other gubbins that often comes with true wireless earphones these days -- I never used any of that on my XM4s because I...

Is there a difference between the V200 and V280 in terms of power and sound signature for SE output? I'd love to try the Violectric sound but would prefer not to shell out for a V280... not that the V200 is cheap, but at least it's cheaper. I assume the V280 costs more simply due to the balanced...

I'm rejiggering my home headphone setup and now need an amp (and possibly DAC) to drive my 250-ohm Beyers (990 and 1770). I'm currently stuck with only a Meridian Explorer, which does OK but is clearly underpowered for the job at hand.    I would prefer a SS or hybrid amp, potentially with a...

Anyone know anything about these? They look like a Hifiman interbred with an Audeze!   http://www.monoprice.com/product?c_id=120&cp_id=12009&cs_id=1082302&p_id=16050&seq=1&format=2     Due at the end of October from what I can gather. They're also launching a $199 planar headphone, the...

There were a couple threads years ago on this subject but none recently, so I thought I'd ask what folks would recommend from some of the recent crop of new 'phones as a closed-back option with similar sound profile and comfort to the Beyerdynamic DT990 in the $150-$250 price range.    The...

I currently use a Styleaudio Carat-Emerald DAC/amp as my main desktop unit but am looking for something slightly smaller for when I'm on the road. Question is, how do the newer generation of portable DAC/amps stack up compared to the Emerald?   I'm thinking of the NuForce uDAC (2 or 3), the...

I'm currently running a USB DAC (Styleaudio Emerald) on the USB3.0 port of a Windows 8.1 Pro x64 machine and using MediaMonkey's WASAPI output plugin, but there is no option anywhere for 24-bit sample rate, either in the WASAPI settings or Windows settings. The best I can choose is 16-bit...

having sold my full-size closed phones for something more portable I settled on the AKG 518LE (mainly because Amazon was selling the red ones for $45).... sound is great, perhaps a tad lacking in detail but I'm happy enough considering they're portable cans. BUT they are not the most comfortable...

For about a week now I have been unable to reply to any thread on Head-Fi when using the Chrome browser... type my reply, hit 'submit' and it just hangs and the 'please wait' just spins forever. I was able to start new threads, but even that ability stopped today and I am typing this on Firefox...

I've spent far too long here researching the various reviews and comments on headphones at the $200 price point and have reached an impasse. I'm hoping the good folks here can help me choose one of these 'phones as a replacement for my Shure SRH840 based on the following criteria:   The...

Now my work environment has changed I decided it's time to replace my Shures with something a tad more comfortable and perhaps with a tad more excitement to the sound signature.   I like the sound of the SRH840, don't get me wrong... they're fairly flat, smooth, not too analytical, but I...

anyone got any techniques on improving strain reliefs on IEMs with poor build quality? My initial thought was heatshrink tubing, but the small diameter stuff would be impossible to get over the IEM itself. Tape is only ever gonna be temporary at best. Any other suggestions?

I was a little put off by joker's description of the MTPG as a sonic version of "rocking chair" (hilarious image, however), but it sound like their sound might be for me -- bass emphasis going deep without losing focus in other frequencies and enough high-end sparkle without harshness or...

It's rare to find an IEM with so few comments here and even on Amazon... but the Beyer DTX100 seems to be one of the most anonymous brand name IEMs in existence! Searching finds only a few older comments here, so I'm curious if anyone has recently bought these and if they're worth their current...

Am considering buying the HJE900 but have this nagging doubt in the back of my head created by the occasional review that describes them as everything I DON'T want an IEM to be (harsh, mids too recessed for rock, sibilance, overpowering mid bass, lack of soundstage). Furthermore, most reviews...

Love my Grado SR225s but I'm now listening to more electronic music and the bass is obviously not deep enough to make that genre shine, so I'm wondering if anyone has suggestions for alternative, open cans that go a little lower yet still have the same dynamic punch and speed as the grados, for...

Head-Fi is always bad news for my wallet... having just spent hours researching new phones for my better half, I now have decided that maybe it's time to finally get round to replacing my fart-box CX300s with something in the sun-$80 range.   So without further ado, I'm considering either...

Been doing some research here to find some new IEMs for my gf's iPhone and was curious if any recommendations jump out from folks. She mainly listens to alt rock and electronic and would appreciate an IEM that sets her foot tapping rather than something too analytical. Obviously a Mic is also...

I had a quick question for those in the know... is it OK to leave a DAC/amp (solid state) permanently switched on, or should it be switched off overnight and when not in use?

So I finally want to get my long-suffering girlfriend something to replace the crummy ipod buds she happily lives with and wondered what people would recommend with the following specs: Price: $50-70ish (she won't appreciate a $200 pair of IEMs and I can't afford them anyway) Music styles...

I'm trying to narrow down choices for a portable/semi-portable dac/amp and wondered if either of these models stands out above the other. They're all about the same price when shipping is included. From what I can tell the D4 should have the edge in the DAC department while the Fubar probably...

I'm in the market for a dac/amp and am wondering what sort of premium, if any, we pay for portable vs. full-size options. I want to spend no more than $150ish for something that'll give me better sound than my onboard soundcard (pretty much anything will, for what I gather) and have narrowed...

My Shure SRH840s sound great straight from my laptop soundcard but now I'm curious if a sub-$100 DAC/amp is gonna make any improvment to overall SQ. As far as I can tell there's no audible "noise" from my laptop, and such noise seems to be primarily why external DACs tend to be recommended...

Although I have a good tolerance for crummy-sounding audio out of my computer I am considering trying to improve it a bit by bypassing the computer soundcard/audio-out. My laptop has a Conexant HD soundcard and I simply use the computer's headphone jack. Can I improve on that using an...

As I search for new headphones and throw these AKG's into the mix of suggestions no-one seems to recommend them above any others -- they're always the also-rans in shortlists as far as I can tell. There are also not many reviews of them, either good or bad, here or elsewhere. Is it because...