[tinyman392]

And look at how inconsistent pricing is across headphones down the ranks. I wonder too how different the order would be for any one of us trying all these headphones on the list according to his grading criteria.

One of the things that is well known is that as price goes up, the gain you get from going higher in price will go down. Diminishing returns is a real big thing. I would still wager a guess that there should still be a correlation between his scores and price though.

 

[torifile]

What did you do for audio on the move before your APM? Many people own a wireless headphone and desktop setup, they are very different things to me, can you not keep both?

Primarily AirPods Pro. But, TBH, I never really used them for music. I don’t think they fit well enough to give me good sound. I purchased a fiio m11 a couple months ago and lugged my Lcd2c around. It was a less than ideal setup but since mobile audio isn’t happening much, it wasn’t much of a deal.

Do you find yourself liking one more than the other in any particular genre? Or across all genres? It’s tough to get rid of headphones when it offers something another doesn’t. Do they both offer something in sound the other doesn’t? Forget convenience for a moment.

In some situations I really prefer the thump and tightness of the APM but in others the relaxed spaciousness of the LCD2C really is what I’m after.

why not keep both setups?
I'm sure a majority of head-fiers have more than one setup.

I have never been good at having 2 setups for anything. Minor decision fatigue sets in when I need to pick which I’m going to use. I’ve gotten over it with guitars - I’ve got 3: one classical, one acoustic and one electric and watches: one nice one, an Apple Watch and a Garmin. I have 2 setups now with my APP and LCD2C. This will add a third. Which might be fine.

Note: I need the APP because I’m on zoom all day and I won’t just use my computer speakers/mic for the meetings. So it’s a work thing.

 

[tkddans]

One of the things that is well known is that as price goes up, the gain you get from going higher in price will go down. Diminishing returns is a real big thing. I would still wager a guess that there should still be a correlation between his scores and price though.

My intuition says this is generally correct as well. Interestingly though, you can find some wildly expensive stuff on the bottom of the list. E.G. Final Audio Design Sonorous X (eBay $2500 or so; original retail hard to find...$5000 on one site)

 

[tinyman392]

My intuition says this is generally correct as well. Interestingly though, you can find some wildly expensive stuff on the bottom of the list. E.G. Final Audio Design Sonorous X (eBay $2500 or so; original retail hard to find...$5000 on one site)

I pulled all the data into Excel, converted the scores to numbers (S+ = 17, S = 16, ..., F = 1), summed up the prices that had sums and dropped all “discontinued” rows; this left me with 146 total rows with data. Then I computed the correlation coefficient of the overall grade, the tonality grade, and the technical grade To find that they have a 29%, 19%, and 32% correlation, respectively. It’s not the strongest correlation, but it looks like it is there.

Final Audio always seemed more like a brand that focused on style and looks over all things else. They made very beautiful looking headphones, but I’m not sure what their reception was sound wise. Granted this was stuff I noticed back in the day (10+ years ago) when I was more active on this website.

Primarily AirPods Pro. But, TBH, I never really used them for music. I don’t think they fit well enough to give me good sound. I purchased a fiio m11 a couple months ago and lugged my Lcd2c around. It was a less than ideal setup but since mobile audio isn’t happening much, it wasn’t much of a deal.


In some situations I really prefer the thump and tightness of the APM but in others the relaxed spaciousness of the LCD2C really is what I’m after.

I have never been good at having 2 setups for anything. Minor decision fatigue sets in when I need to pick which I’m going to use. I’ve gotten over it with guitars - I’ve got 3: one classical, one acoustic and one electric and watches: one nice one, an Apple Watch and a Garmin. I have 2 setups now with my APP and LCD2C. This will add a third. Which might be fine.

Note: I need the APP because I’m on zoom all day and I won’t just use my computer speakers/mic for the meetings. So it’s a work thing.

To be honest, it’s not uncommon to have two multiple setups like this. A portable super/supra-aural setup, a portable IEM setup, and a desktop setup. Apple’s AirPods make for some of the best headphones you can use for a conference call IMO. I normally use my APP for that, but if I forget them the OG AP are in my bag (the standby battery life on them is pretty damn good, can’t say the same about the Max though).

 

[torifile]

To be honest, it’s not uncommon to have two multiple setups like this. A portable super/supra-aural setup, a portable IEM setup, and a desktop setup. Apple’s AirPods make for some of the best headphones you can use for a conference call IMO. I normally use my APP for that, but if I forget them the OG AP are in my bag (the standby battery life on them is pretty damn good, can’t say the same about the Max though).

You are the devil on my shoulder, aren’t you?

 

[bedlamite]

Primarily AirPods Pro. But, TBH, I never really used them for music. I don’t think they fit well enough to give me good sound. I purchased a fiio m11 a couple months ago and lugged my Lcd2c around.

Can’t imagine lugging a LCD-2c around as a portable setup heh. Don’t wanna bring this too far offtopic but did you try tip-rolling the APPs? The stock silicone tips are flimsy, I swapped them immediately for Spinfit CP1025s and the fit is spot-on. Azla Xelastecs are another option but they’re a bit pricey.

 

[tinyman392]

You are the devil on my shoulder, aren’t you?

 

[gooeyrich]

 

[torifile]

Can’t imagine lugging a LCD-2c around as a portable setup heh. Don’t wanna bring this too far offtopic but did you try tip-rolling the APPs? The stock silicone tips are flimsy, I swapped them immediately for Spinfit CP1025s and the fit is spot-on. Azla Xelastecs are another option but they’re a bit pricey.

Never tried any other tips. I’ll have to check them out. Thanks.

What did I just hear?!? Wow. I just watched some of the Mandalorian with the APM. They did some black magic with these things. If you haven’t watched video with these, do yourself a favor and try them.

See. This what convenience will do. I haven’t listened to this album in years. Tonight, just relaxing on my couch with my nightcap, I just stumbled across it again. And it sounds fantastic. This would not have happened at my desktop setup. My routine is very different there.

 

[Bigtime Audiophile]

What did I just hear?!? Wow. I just watched some of the Mandalorian with the APM. They did some black magic with these things. If you haven’t watched video with these, do yourself a favor and try them.

It's quite astounding. I never would have thought of something making stereo sound kind of flat...but it's really quite something. A couple times while using it I had a moment of panic thinking I had audio blasting at full volume out loud in the room.

 

[CharlesL]

See. This what convenience will do. I haven’t listened to this album in years. Tonight, just relaxing on my couch with my nightcap, I just stumbled across it again. And it sounds fantastic. This would not have happened at my desktop setup. My routine is very different there.

I know SQ is of the primary concern for most people in this forum, but as I've been reading between the lines in the posts it seems like there is more to enjoying a pair of headphones that just SQ. At least for some members. Wireless, just being able to listen in another area, your favorite chair of sofa. For others it seems like transparency mode allows them to listen when they would otherwise. They can hear the deliver guy coming, family members yelling for them or maybe the baby monitor. It seems like the APM is one of the few wireless headphones (or noise cancelling wireless headphones) to hit level of acceptable quality and finally being able to go without a wire. I imagine there was a time where the comparison would of been headpones with amps vs 'portable' headphones that sound good without amps, although I know we've had portable amps for quite a while.

It seems like the lines are starting to blur. Wireless headphones starting to intrude in the area of quality only wired headphones once existed. And technology, wireless, noise cancelling, transparency and spatial audio adding a level of enjoyment to headphones what previously was mostly covered only by quality and comfort. Not for everyone, but for some at least.

 

[tkddans]

See. This what convenience will do. I haven’t listened to this album in years. Tonight, just relaxing on my couch with my nightcap, I just stumbled across it again. And it sounds fantastic. This would not have happened at my desktop setup. My routine is very different there.

Link isn't working for me. Say's it's no longer active. Is there a track or album you are recommending?

 

[torifile]

Link isn't working for me. Say's it's no longer active. Is there a track or album you are recommending?

Weird. Try this one

this is another good one.

I know SQ is of the primary concern for most people in this forum, but as I've been reading between the lines in the posts it seems like there is more to enjoying a pair of headphones that just SQ. At least for some members. Wireless, just being able to listen in another area, your favorite chair of sofa. For others it seems like transparency mode allows them to listen when they would otherwise. They can hear the deliver guy coming, family members yelling for them or maybe the baby monitor. It seems like the APM is one of the few wireless headphones (or noise cancelling wireless headphones) to hit level of acceptable quality and finally being able to go without a wire. I imagine there was a time where the comparison would of been headpones with amps vs 'portable' headphones that sound good without amps, although I know we've had portable amps for quite a while.

It seems like the lines are starting to blur. Wireless headphones starting to intrude in the area of quality only wired headphones once existed. And technology, wireless, noise cancelling, transparency and spatial audio adding a level of enjoyment to headphones what previously was mostly covered only by quality and comfort. Not for everyone, but for some at least.

That’s true. Transparency allows one to use closed back headphones without being cut off. Open backed headphones always allowed sound in but they are a nonstarter with anyone else around.

 

[tkddans]

Playing equalizer in Apple Music on Mac OS. If anyone wants to try these settings, let me know what you think!

Find the equalizer by going to...
Window > Equalizer

Just to have during some music perhaps. Haven't done enough testing to say I prefer it per-se.

Weird. Try this one

this is another good one.

Wow. Those crinkly sounds made me think my headphones were broken. That was scary haha.

Great album that works really well with the strengths of the APM. Nice!

 

[tinyman392]

Might not be perfect, but it is a preset... Spoken word might help flatten these out a bit.