Nope, my impressions are straight out of the headphone jack. As I mentioned, I find the internal amp to be quite good. The D2 actually doesn't have optical in, so I wouldn't be able to test out the combination. On a handful of newer recordings I've tested on it, it can sound a bit cold. The...

I didn't set out to find a good digital player, but I found one in this rather unassuming DAT. I do binaural recordings of nature and music, and I was pretty frustrated with the SQ from the Olympus LS-10. Once I made the upgrade to the D50, I took it for a spin with some WAV files, just for fun...

I listened to tons of headphones at CanJam last weekend, including the HF-2 and HD800. The noise on the show floor probably influenced my impressions, but to me the stars of the show were: 1. Jerry Harvey JH10x3 2. Westone UM3x 3. Headroom re-cabled Sennheiser HD600 through a Micro Stack...

Ordered, second grado after a (promptly returned) SR-80. The HF-2 will be awesome!

The first symphony is my personal favorite; I could listen to the fourth movement all day long.

Thanks, everyone for your advice! I decided to go with the popular vote and pick up a D2. It indeed is out of stock, but I found one on the Buy & Sell forums here. It looks good too IMO; I can't wait to hear it. Quote: Originally Posted by HeadphoneAddict Livewires customs...

Quote: Originally Posted by HeadphoneAddict iBasso D2 - with 300 hours of burn in is as good or better than my iBasso D1 via USB, and cheaper to boot! It's in you price range and tested on my Mac already. Thanks! I'll definitely look into that. Out of interest, which headphone(s)...

A few months ago when I got my ProLINEs, I got an E-MU 0202 USB and thought that would be enough. The amp turned out to be too weak to drive my new cans, so I added a cheap Go-Vibe which makes the whole setup sing! I really love it. What I don't love is this: Because my interconnect...

I don't know how they compare to the K501 or the Sennheiser models, but I love my Audio-Technica AD700 for classical and acoustic. It's a lush, soundstage-rich can with a strong midrange. It improves with amplification, but it's probably one of your best choices if you don't have an amp.

There are "compromise" phones, but that's not a choice I would recommend. No single headphone in that price range will handle what you want as well as a AD700 + SR80 combo will. If I were you, I'd grab the used deal below for an $85 AD700, then you can get the SR80 as well and still be under...

I haven't heard the 280; maybe someone else can comment on that.

I've tried both of these cans, and you don't get much farther apart in sound signature than these two. The SR80 is bassy and in-your-face; making it a sublime choice for rock. On the other hand, the AD700 sounds light and airy with a huge soundstage; making it great for movies and gaming (I love...

Thanks guys! I'll give them some more time and fiddle with the headband a bit. An amp would probably be a good idea. To anyone who knows, what kind of improvements can I expect with amplification? EDIT: The more I listen, the main component to my "Ultrasone fatigue" feels most like a...

Last month I decided I wanted a step up from my old closed cans; the M40s in my signature. I was looking for some warm, bassy and fun cans and settled on the PROLine 650 after a lot of research. Let me preface my thoughts on it by saying that I'm pretty much a noob when it comes to headphones...

IIRC they became the norm when the second-gen nano came out in 2006. The foamies were replaced with a soft gray plastic/rubber around the edge. Doesn't matter to me though; I chuck 'em either way.