[Azure]

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Originally Posted by Csidinim ...Soundstage and every extra feature that you ask for samples of, seems rather irrelevant if it isn't compatible or existent in your current music. If the music that you have gives no soundstage like you claim, and you find some random song that does so you can play it once, then what, since it's not any useful to you.

Um...if you paid $100+ for headphones and you NEVER got to hear soundstage and what not, wouldn't you want to experience it at least once before you give up the headphones? What's wrong with doing this? I don't care if I like the song or not, I just want to experience it at least once so I personally know that this audiophile stuff isn't bogus and that the A500s are good for SOMETHING.

 

[zeyus]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azure Um...if you paid $100+ for headphones and you NEVER got to hear soundstage and what not, wouldn't you want to experience it at least once before you give up the headphones? What's wrong with doing this? I don't care if I like the song or not, I just want to experience it at least once so I personally know that this audiophile stuff isn't bogus and that the A500s are good for SOMETHING.

Dude, try some stuff by Rage Against The Machine, (eg, Microphone Fiend ) ...

Try Muse - Stockholm Syndrome

and whatever else anyone else suggests.

But really, if YOU don't think its worth it, and you can't tell the diff, send em back or sell them, and just be happy with your old 'phones knowing thats what you want!?

 

[atrain]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azure Um...if you paid $100+ for headphones and you NEVER got to hear soundstage and what not, wouldn't you want to experience it at least once before you give up the headphones? What's wrong with doing this? I don't care if I like the song or not, I just want to experience it at least once so I personally know that this audiophile stuff isn't bogus and that the A500s are good for SOMETHING.

i've had my pair for two weeks now & couldn't disagree with you more. they are an excellent 'clean' phone that reproduces music & soundstage with a clarity your crap phones would never match. try & find a pcdp with a line out & listen to an original recording or music files ripped at a minimum of 192 & you'll hear the things the muddy noise you are used to represents, yet they'll also drive well off an unamped minidisc or flash player, let alone ipods. listening to in game midis or crappy mp3s is beside the point, isn't the mantra of this board crappy in = crappy out? perhaps for you this 'audiophile stuff' is bogus & a new hobby should be found. how about DDR?

 

[Azure]

The problem is that I KNOW my old headphones suck, I heard them after hearing the A500s. But the thing is, the A500s sound like how my old headphones sounded before they sucked. That's the problem. If I give up the A500s I have to go to crap sound quality. If I don't, then I have to keep the same sound quality that I had before I got the A500s.

 

[Cyrilix]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azure The problem is that I KNOW my old headphones suck, I heard them after hearing the A500s. But the thing is, the A500s sound like how my old headphones sounded before they sucked. That's the problem. If I give up the A500s I have to go to crap sound quality. If I don't, then I have to keep the same sound quality that I had before I got the A500s.

I think if you weren't worried about finances so much, you'd be happier. Thinking about how $X has not given me benefit Y really makes you wonder...omg, did I get ripped off? On the other hand, just enjoying the music and letting go of some of your worries may help.

I don't think your sound quality is the same as you had previously because that logic simply doesn't make much sense -- it seems very much like your brain is tricking you. The problem is, when you take a look at how much money you've spent, you suddenly get a reverse feeling that maybe something's not right, when in fact, everything has indeed gotten better. If you simply don't enjoy the headphones at all, you should give it up, since it's all about enjoyment and worrying about finances doesn't help.

 

[Vinny77]

If like to point out that in japan the ATH-500 run around $40-$60 USD. You just paid a preimium to audiocubes for there service.

Id also like to point out that maybe, I dont mean any harm by this, your ears just cant hear what you want. It could be a possibility that you werent even getting the full result from your old phones and now when you get better ones you will get the same exact thing because that is all your ears can actually hear. Everybody is different. Like me I have very wide feet. lol. I dont mean any offence by this or disrespect but its a definate possibility.




I think you were expecting to much. I am a knife collector. We have production knives and then custom knives. You cant expect perfection and the highest level of quality and experience from a factory produced product that is below $100. If you were to go out and spend $500-$5000 on a pair of headphones, I garentte you would most likely be blown away,(if you dont have a problem with your ears like I mentioned above) same with the knives i collect. I dont expect the best for the little bit i pay. if I want the best, I am going to have to spend $500+ on a custom. Im not saying that the oroduct you bought should not be perfect, just that, there is only so much you can buy for $100. If you want the best, simply buy the best. if you cant afford the best then you dont get the best and you must get what you can afford.


I mean if you dont like them, I am sure you can sell them here on the forum or on ebay at a deducted price from what you origionaly paid.



I really love mine, I cant complain.

 

[Azure]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vinny77 If like to point out that in japan the ATH-500 run around $40-$60 USD. You just paid a preimium to audiocubes for there service.

...So I actually bought $40-$60 USD entry level headphones? Why didn't someone tell me this before I bought the headphones! Ugh, I know price shouldn't really determine quality, but $40-$60 USD!? That's really cheap compared to the other headphones I was considering (I was looking for something in the range of $100, give or take). Why did you guys recommend these headphones again?

 

[atx]

Quote:

Um...if you paid $100+ for headphones and you NEVER got to hear soundstage and what not, wouldn't you want to experience it at least once before you give up the headphones? What's wrong with doing this? I don't care if I like the song or not, I just want to experience it at least once so I personally know that this audiophile stuff isn't bogus and that the A500s are good for SOMETHING

Don't know how you came to the decision of getting the A500, but if you want soundstage, you could return the A500 and get the AKG K501 new for $130-140 or so on ebay.

Next time don't go so far to Japan without first experiencing easier-to-grab headphones.

Sennheiser, Grado, Beyerdynamics, AKG.

 

[ilovesocks]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azure Why did you guys recommend these headphones again?

Unfortunately, Azure, you so seem to have instant adaptability to headphones. As soon as you hear a pair, it becomes the standard, and you don't experience the being-blown-awayness that everyone else gets. Also, the A500's are only available for $40-$60 USD in Japan; to everyone else (which I'm guessing is the majority), they're $100, and they perform in an even higher price range.

Because of your unique affliction, I'd say you should return the A500s and get something more domestic, like atx suggested. It seems you want to hear real soundstage. Maybe experiment with binaural recordings? I was blown away when I heard some after searching around on this forum.

Anyway, return the A500s and get something cheaper, like Koss PortaPros, Senn 212s or something like those that are more available. Sorry about your problem!

 

[South_Korean]

i wonder if anyone in the world could have instant adaptability for the 212pros

 

[Azure]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ilovesocks Anyway, return the A500s and get something cheaper, like Koss PortaPros, Senn 212s or something like those that are more available. Sorry about your problem!

Wait, why again should I downgrade?

 

[MoSXS]

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I just used my TV's headphone jack

That IS a problem. TV headphone jacks are flat out awful.

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In fact, now most of my songs are at least 192.

Thats not exactly good either.

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I also have high quality LAME 320 rips and they still didn't show me any good results with the A500s. And I got rid of ALL of my midi->mp3 songs.I even have the actual CDs to some of these songs and I still wasn't getting all this soundstage/instrument separtion nonsense. So "crap in crap out" isn't the case.

Well, what music are you using? As I said before, I noticed an instant change from my old V700s, which, despite what some here might say, are better than pack-in headphones.

Honestly, if you're listening to videogame, anime, and jpop music, you're not going to get good results with anything. Infact, in all honesty, it's really a waste to buy good headphones to listen to that type of music. They aren't exactly the prime definition of music, and you're not going to get a lot of "instrument seperation" or "soundstage" because anime and videogame music were made to be played on TV speakers, and most likely just a bunch of sounds jumbled together. JPop is really more of the same.

Quote:

Compared to <$10 headphones, they sound pretty much like any normal sub-$600 stereo set up. Loud and full of bass. That's it. It's going to be like having two floor speakers on both sides of you. Don't expect anything more.

How exactly is that a problem? haha I mean.... certainly a "$600 stereo" isn't bad! haha I mean.. a set of headphones that costs $100 and sounds as good as something that costs 6x more is a VERY good thing. I mean.. really, what in the world were you expecting? Espicially with the types of music you want to listen to on them. I mean, you're saying they sound like something that costs 6x more, and then you're saying its a BAD thing? I believe you won't be satisfied with anything if you're not satisfied with the A500s. You should try some other types of music and see how they sound as well.

The A500s were a huge jump for me. Not in the audiophile sense of "huge" either, like 10%. I mean it was a night and day difference. Espicially when I listen to SACDs or movies.

I really think you were expecting miracles with music that wasn't ever intended to be heard on good equipment. As the saying goes "crap in crap out".

Quote:

So, should I continue burning them in? They've got about ~20 hours on them right now. I remember reading that they didn't require burn-in during my long thread about which new headphones I should get.

They do require burn in. My A500s sound vastly different now than they did when they first arrived.

Quote:

Err...I meant a whole stereo system that costs like $600. Basically the average person's home stereo system is what I'd compare the A500s to.

I don't know anyone besides myself who would spend $600 on a home stereo. Even so, you can get a decent home theater in a box system for $600, and they sound VERY good for what they are. You're not getting the benefits of the A500s because of the music. Listen to some real music and see how they sound. I'm not being a jerk, I'm just telling the truth. Jpop, anime music, etc. are definitely not even worth buying good headphones for. You could get the same results out of $30 XD200s.

Quote:

Um...if you paid $100+ for headphones and you NEVER got to hear soundstage and what not, wouldn't you want to experience it at least once before you give up the headphones?

If you really are having a problem with the soundstage, with the A500s of all headphones, its definitely what you're listening to. The A500s are *known* for having a HUUUUGE soundstage. If you're not experiencing this, it's definitely whatever you're listening to. I mean.. wow, you can go into PowerDVD and use "Cyberlink Headphone" mode with a DVD movie and get a very convincing replication of movie theater sound because of the huge soundstage of the A500s. I think you're either expecting the A500s to perform miracles, or you're just using very very very poor music.

Quote:

Why did you guys recommend these headphones again?

Because they're great. It's not everyone else's fault that you're expecting miracles with Jpop and anime music.

 

[JWFokker]

Get a pair of SR60's already. Or the AKG 501's as mentioned by someone else. I don't think you're looking for better sound so much as different sound. It seems to me like you're looking for a change, rather than just a better version of the same sound you already have.

 

[Kazuya]

Do you know an accounting/economic sunk cost is? Its a cost that has been incurred which shouldn't matter in future decisions. ie. The cost is now irrelevant. You're COMPLETLY basing your enjoyment of the headphones on how much they cost you.

So heres my question to you: How exactly did you put a value on what sound is. You're just using your ears right? Yet it seems like you can easily put a dollar value on headphones, sorta a quantitative value? You're looking too hard for a direct return in investment, they're headphones, not bonds or shares.

MoSXS: What's wrong with JPop and Anime Music? Anime Music isn't like midi's or anything, its generally JRock.

 

[atx]

Quote:

Wait, why again should I downgrade?

If you ask me, forget about the middle-weight and "value" headphones. I was using labtec computer headphones for over a year, then I upgraded directly to a Sennheiser HD580 (skipping all those Koss, SR60, etc). It was plugged in directly to my cheap soundblaster soundcard and the fact that I didn't use an amp didn't bother me one bit. Compared to computer headphones, the 580 was spectacular! The 580s are relatively cheap now, but they used to retail for $350 back when I got them.

Since you're obviously not happy with the A500, I say return it, get the K501, or save more money and get a HD580, refurb HD600 from amazon, or a Beyer DT880, or even a Grado SR225 (skip the SR60,80,125). Even with a crappy source, you should notice the immediate difference with these headphones (I plug my Beyer 880 directly to an iPod Shuffle and it sounds great).

edit: I forgot you wanted to experience soundstage. Forget Grados and Koss! They have ZERO soundstage.