[freestyler]

Hello to everyone on this wonderful, full of info forum.
I love headphones. From the time i bought some philips Full-Sized closed Circumaural till the todays sennheiser pc160. (which i mainly got cause i wanted mic)
Because of the place i live, i can't listen in high volume through speakers so headphones is my only choice if i want to listen loud. (and i want)
So basically whenever i'm on my pc almost always have my headphones equiped. From listening music and playing games, to watching movies and talking on ventrilo-teamspeak.

But i'm not satisfied with the sound experience i get from pc160 senns combined with my audily ls (lol).
So now i want something "bigger", something much better that will make me "feel" the music. (i'm so missing the bass on my headphones)
I have around 1700$ and it's either for a new pc or for my little dream to get some kick ass cans.(there is no way i will spend all those money in music equipment tho) So this decision is very important to me cause getting headphones now means no new pc for many months/years.
Anyway i came to this forum while i was searching and i concluded to sennheisers hd650. Ok i thought, i will spend 450$ and that's it, my friends will call me crazy but at least i got something i always wanted.
But as i continued reading this forum things kinda got a bit more complicated. Seems that a pair of headphones alone won't give me the satisfaction i seek without proper amplification. (obviously audily ls is not enough for those)
And after AMP goes the DAC... Ok here is the point that i realized that this sport is getting quite expensive and wasn't sure if i could follow. (another 300+ for a good sound card like prelude or external DAC).
So in disappointment i forgot about it until today where i came to look for some portable AMPs and found iBasso D1 which seems a good deal in my case, avoiding those extra costs for DAC/sound card.

So from audigy ls + sens PC160 i'm going to make huge step forward to Sennheiser HD650 + iBasso D1. (total of 700$ around)
Do you audiophile experts think this is a good combo? Also will it be good for movies? (as in general for high end cans+amp)
I'm a bit afraid to make this move because this is something totally new for me. I've never listened to any expensive headphones (let alone amps) and i can't seem to find any shop here in Greece to check them. I don't even have any high quality music on my pc but like i said it is my little dream.

Thanks for any answers and sorry for the length of the post and my poor engligh.

 

[Dept_of_Alchemy]

HD650 ($300) + LDII++ ($150) + $200 DAC of your choice + $50 cables

That's close to what I would do.

 

[freestyler]

Any other opinion? (won't bump again )

 

[rb67]

Yeah, if you break apart the amp/dac so you have them as separate components, you can switch out your amp should your tastes change. I've heard great things about the LDII++. If you are looking for a solid state amp, a CKKIII (Cavalli Kan Kumisa III) would be a great choice. You can make one yourself for about $120 or find someone to build one for you for extra.

Consider buying your HD650's used. Most of them that pop up on these forums are in great condition and you'll be saving a good amount.

 

[kool bubba ice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by freestyler /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hello to everyone on this wonderful, full of info forum. I love headphones. From the time i bought some philips Full-Sized closed Circumaural till the todays sennheiser pc160. (which i mainly got cause i wanted mic) Because of the place i live, i can't listen in high volume through speakers so headphones is my only choice if i want to listen loud. (and i want) So basically whenever i'm on my pc almost always have my headphones equiped. From listening music and playing games, to watching movies and talking on ventrilo-teamspeak. But i'm not satisfied with the sound experience i get from pc160 senns combined with my audily ls (lol). So now i want something "bigger", something much better that will make me "feel" the music. (i'm so missing the bass on my headphones) I have around 1700$ and it's either for a new pc or for my little dream to get some kick ass cans.(there is no way i will spend all those money in music equipment tho) So this decision is very important to me cause getting headphones now means no new pc for many months/years. Anyway i came to this forum while i was searching and i concluded to sennheisers hd650. Ok i thought, i will spend 450$ and that's it, my friends will call me crazy but at least i got something i always wanted. But as i continued reading this forum things kinda got a bit more complicated. Seems that a pair of headphones alone won't give me the satisfaction i seek without proper amplification. (obviously audily ls is not enough for those) And after AMP goes the DAC... Ok here is the point that i realized that this sport is getting quite expensive and wasn't sure if i could follow. (another 300+ for a good sound card like prelude or external DAC). So in disappointment i forgot about it until today where i came to look for some portable AMPs and found iBasso D1 which seems a good deal in my case, avoiding those extra costs for DAC/sound card. So from audigy ls + sens PC160 i'm going to make huge step forward to Sennheiser HD650 + iBasso D1. (total of 700$ around) Do you audiophile experts think this is a good combo? Also will it be good for movies? (as in general for high end cans+amp) I'm a bit afraid to make this move because this is something totally new for me. I've never listened to any expensive headphones (let alone amps) and i can't seem to find any shop here in Greece to check them. I don't even have any high quality music on my pc but like i said it is my little dream. Thanks for any answers and sorry for the length of the post and my poor engligh.

1,700 COULD put you in audio heaven.. HR-2..Raptor..650's..Ear max..

 

[vcoheda]

amp. i can highly recommend the LD2++. i am selling one but only to US residents at the time. however, one can be purchased new from ebay with a 1 year warranty and Little Dot has great customer service. the LD2++ is a very good entry level tube amp that easily performs above its price point. there are other Little Dot models. a little more expensive, but worth looking into as well. see this link. amps range from $200-$350.

http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZdavidzhezhe

dac. i would look into an external DAC. if using it with a computer, you will want it to have a USB connection. there are some very good DACs sold here, ranging from $150 to $400. something for everyone.

http://www.pacificvalve.us/SolidStateDacs.html

headphones. not sure what type of music you listen to, but i would look into buying a Sennheiser HD580 (one of the best bargain, high quality headphones on the market), or one of its more expensive siblings, HD600/HD650. all three headphones have a slightly laid back sound but with overall excellent sonics across the spectrum. the 650 has the better bass of the three. if you like rock and more aggressive sound (forward musical presentation), you should look into a Grado, maybe an SR225 or SR325. Other good choices would be the Beyerdynamic DT880 (great highs, little light on bass), the DT770 (good bass and closed), or the K701 - a somewhat neutral sound but very good headphone; huge sound stage as well. all of these can be purchased for $150-$250. the HD650 is a little more though.

music. i would stop listening to music on low encoding. to get the most from your setup, listen to lossless or FLAC encoded files. lossy MP3 should be avoided, if possible.

this is one way to approach things, will not cost you that much - $500 to $1000 depending on choice of product - and will be a very good entry to mid level audio setup. the key is to do lots of research before you buy. make informed decisions. good luck. let us know how it works out.

Quote:

Originally Posted by freestyler /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm a bit afraid to make this move because this is something totally new for me. I've never listened to any expensive headphones (let alone amps) and i can't seem to find any shop here in Greece to check them. I don't even have any high quality music on my pc but like i said it is my little dream.

it was a dream of mine once too. now it is closer to reality.

 

[rb67]

excellent advice, vcoheda.

 

[feh1325]

try and hunt down an hd580 and buy a grado sr225 or sr325i (or alessandro ms1 or ms2 if you're not in the states)

see which you like better, return both and upgrade to an hd650 or rs1
....or keep all four

hahahhaha

 

[MonolithTMA]

Quote:

Originally Posted by vcoheda /img/forum/go_quote.gif music. i would stop listening to music on low encoding. to get the most from your setup, listen to lossless or FLAC encoded files. lossy MP3 should be avoided, if possible.

Or at the very least, if you must use MP3, re-rip them as LAME V0.

Here's a good guide for proper ripping.

jiGGafellz' Step-by-Step Guide to Secure CD Ripping w/Exact Audio Copy

 

[slwiser]

Amp+Dac for 499$ pre-ordered from www.Headamp.com the Pico. You have to email him to pre-order I think. Wonderful tiny unit that has been reviewed very well over the past couple of months.

Any headphone you want.

 

[ken36]

You are jumping into our world with both feet. Congrats.

 

[grawk]

I will second the pico recommendation. It's an amazing little box, if you can wait for it.

 

[Ruckus]

If its desktop....

I'd personally would make a new computer. This time with a great soundcard for your music.

And then buy and Audio Technica AD2000. This way you can get great sounding headphones and your new computer. You can build an incredible computer with 8800 GT, quad core for 1100 easily. Or get the 2900 XT with the new AMD Quad Core. Spend the rest on the AD2000, you'll have enough.

Then at a later point in life, can save up for your amp for the AD2000. That's me personally.

New amazing kickass computer > New headphones.

New amazing kickass computer + kickass headphone > New headphone

 

[freestyler]

After days of endless reading i just ordered HD650 + Corda Cantate.
Thanks all for your input and i will make sure to post some opinions when i listen to them.