I second the recommendation on the Alessandro MS1. I use mine all the time on a 5th gen Ipod (using rockbox) and they work very well unamped. 

  Quote: These two quotes here are probably the best summary of Bose I've ever come across.   Worst part of it is, you actually can find some sennheisers and grados and such in stores now, but nobody knows who they are, or to give them a try.

Quote: Grados are less comfortable than some. Depends a lot on which pads the model you get uses. I personally think the best entry point for the Grado/Alessandro (which are modified Grados) line is the Alessandro MS-1s, which come with "comfie" pads, which are about as comfortable as...

What TheWuss said. Think of it as almost like a permanent "EQ setting" built into the headphones. (simplistic description, but best way to get your head around it)   Almost all families of headphone have some sort of coloration, although those that aspire to "neutrality" minimize it. Also...

Incredibly generic question. You're going to have to specify exactly what it is about rock you want emphasized. Are you looking for screaming guitar solos? Grinding riffs? Big double bass hits? intricate vocals? Are you looking for details on each instrument, or a "musical whole". Do you mind...

Hate to say it, but that's totally going to depend on two things:   1. your ears 2. what you are comparing the lossless version to.   If you're comparing the lossless version to a 128kbps mp3 encoded by some encoder other than LAME, you can teach yourself to notice the differences on...

Amp will almost always help with all but the cheapest cans. The difference is just the degree.   I run my Alessandro MS-1s unamped most of the time directly off my ipod, and they sound great. But when I plug them into the full desktop rig, I get just that bit more out of them. Things clean...

Hi Head-Fi, it's been awhile, mainly because I've had a good solid system set up and working for a long while. Today I've got new hardware for a new gaming system coming in, and my old system will become the music server, using an E-mu 1212m as my source. Well something occured to me, my...

I have listened to 650s unamped vs 590s... and it's really a toss up. See, the 650s are still 650s, but they sound like they're not trying their fullest. They are missing high end, they are missing low end, and they're quiet. They are still refined and detailed, at least compared to the 590s...

Quote: Originally Posted by Jmmmmm if you like the headphones you have, keep them and be happy. don't let other people tell you that you don't like your headphones. oh head-fi... This sir is GOOD advice. The 570s are bad headphones for the price, but they are NOT bad headphones...

Quote: Originally Posted by RockCity Wow, EAC says that it'll take an hour to compress this one track.. An hour??? What kind of processor do you have? It takes me about 30 seconds to encode a track to FLAC, and maybe 30-45 to transcode a FLAC to Ogg -q6.

Quote: Originally Posted by Nuke Well its been almost 2 hours and they already sound better. They are however, a little tight around my head. Will they become looser over time. Yes, all senns start out tight, but get more comfortable over time as the foam softens. The 570s...

Quote: Originally Posted by gloco What accuracy is that? Just for ammusement value, try ripping some new/newish (i.e. no scratches) cds in secure mode and watch the block of dark red squares. If even a few light up, then EAC has hit sectors that gave different values on the...

Quote: Originally Posted by wallijonn I say put the Graods away for at least two weeks and allow your ears to be re-trained and to get acclimated to the hd650 sound signature. I agree. My MS-1s were pretty underwhelming when I first got them, as I was coming from about 5 years of...

Hmm, I just did a google search, and apparently there is a new generation of HD570s out that are 64ohms. My generation of 570s was 120ohms. I don't know what they are doing differently now, and how that affects the sound of the cans... nor do I know why they bothered to make a new version of a...

Erm, that's like saying you bought a ford, could be something as crappy as a tempo or a festiva, or something as sweet as a GT. Senn has a very wide range of products, and some of them sound pretty crappy unamped out of a portable. Edit: The 570s are pretty underwhelming (I know, I used to...

Quote: Originally Posted by Andrea Burn in just makes the HD650 the headphone it was meant to be. Simple. My 650s had, by far, the weirdest burn-in of any of my gear. I liked them pretty decently right out of the box, but they started changing quite soon. There was a time around...

Quote: Originally Posted by Kirosia ksc-35 or 75. I'd take em over the ms1 for portable use anyday. If the earclips are ANYTHING like their sister phones the KSC-50s (actually I hear that they are even stiffer, to give you a better ear seal), then you'll be crying to rip the cans...

My reccomendation is the Alessandro MS-1. They are driven particularlly easily out of a portable jack (I usually listen to mine at 2/3 of full volume on my portable). Sound incredible for a $100 pair of cans, and they even come with a 1/8" jack so no adapter needed. Take this for what you may...

Quote: Originally Posted by sgrossklass If you're staying with full-sized 'phones, give the 590s another look (used if necessary). I've owned the 590s and I'm a proponent of them (not many here on head-fi are), but I'm not sure I'd reccomend them as portable cans. They are much...

I have been using the MS-1s with my portable for months now, and I have to say it's one of the best purchases I've made in awhile. I use them easily 3hrs or more every day at work. I don't know what people are talking about when they say the cans arn't portable, I've never had them fall off...

Quote: Originally Posted by descartes I want to go from Optoplay -> Sony MDR-V700's to Ego Systems Waveterminal u24 -> Headamp Gilmore Lite -> Grado SR-125's which is going to set me back $750. Does anyone have a better suggestion at less than or equal to that price point? The...

Do not get worried when they start sounding completely different (and not as good) between hours 25 and 75 or so. It's normal, it happens to every pair. They will eventually settle down even better than before around the 150-200 hour mark. A good amp is just about a must with the 580/600/650...

Quote: Originally Posted by Edwood If you ever want to to multiple monitors stick with NVidia or Matrox. ATi still has it's head up it's @rse when it comes to multimonitors. -Ed Eh? My r9700p did 2 monitors quite well. In fact, I prefered it a bit to the way that my 6800gt does...

Quote: Originally Posted by RAI Thanks for all the input. It sounds like the Zu may be what I want, although the Equinox sounds good too per Patrickhat2001. PATB hit the nail on the head for what I'm looking for. I've had Grado 225's, and I'm trying to move the HD650s a bit towards the...