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AKG N40
Oct 19, 2017 at 9:29 PM Post #108 of 311
Gabriel Sontag said:
Anyone tried the akg n40 paired with an oppo ha 2 se? I have an oppo ha 2 se and just ordered the akg n40, will I be disappointed without a better dac?
Click to expand...
The HA2 can be a DAC or an Amp, so which will it be uses as. I had the original HA2 and it was a fine piece of equipment.
 
Oct 20, 2017 at 3:43 AM Post #109 of 311
Gabriel Sontag said:
Anyone tried the akg n40 paired with an oppo ha 2 se? I have an oppo ha 2 se and just ordered the akg n40, will I be disappointed without a better dac?
Click to expand...
i listened to my n40 + a ha2 (not the se) a couple of weeks ago at a local meeting. it is a fairly neutral sounding and powerful enough dac/amp that drives the n40 with ease. personal preferences might always be different, but i really liked this setup. the ha2 paired better with the n40 than my xduoo xd-05, and sounded almost as good as my centrance hifi-m8. as per the owners, battery life on the ha2 is terrific, and it's pocketable, so i'd probably take it over my 2 devices if portability would be a priority.
 
Oct 22, 2017 at 7:29 AM Post #110 of 311
Very nice IEM. My first AKG, just received it yesterday. :ksc75smile:
 
Jan 4, 2018 at 6:38 AM Post #116 of 311
I keep looking for a portable headphone earphone option.

I have been put off in-ear-phones, because tried some cheap Sony ones that caused horrific cable noise. Pointless for walking with.

I also bought some AKG Y50, but since they isolated somewhat they too suffered cable noise. They also caused terrible footstep booms through the body.


However I have read that the AKG N40 do not isolate completely which should be a good thing. It could help to prevent cable noise I think, but I am not totally sure about that. .. I actually prefer that they do not isolate completely, because I prefer to be aware of my surroundings.

Please can I have some opinions on cable noise when walking about. Are the N40 good for walking about wearing, regarding footsteps also please?

The N40 might be a solution for me and it looks that way. I have literally until now kept buying old (new stock) earbuds, (meaning not ear-canal type).
 
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Jan 4, 2018 at 4:08 PM Post #117 of 311
GreenBow said:
I keep looking for a portable headphone earphone option.

I have been put off in-ear-phones, because tried some cheap Sony ones that caused horrific cable noise. Pointless for walking with.

I also bought some AKG Y50, but since they isolated somewhat they too suffered cable noise. They also caused terrible footstep booms through the body.


However I have read that the AKG N40 do not isolate completely which should be a good thing. It could help to prevent cable noise I think, but I am not totally sure about that. .. I actually prefer that they do not isolate completely, because I prefer to be aware of my surroundings.

Please can I have some opinions on cable noise when walking about. Are the N40 good for walking about wearing, regarding footsteps also please?

The N40 might be a solution for me and it looks that way. I have literally until now kept buying old (new stock) earbuds, (meaning not ear-canal type).
Click to expand...

I don't think you can do much about the footstep boom, apart from maybe landing softly. for cable noise you can solve it with a shirt clip (eg: https://www.amazon.com/Headphone-Earphone-Headset-Headphones-Clothing/dp/B00TRSNRTC). I only use one on the collar. if it is not enough, you can place 1 on the collar and 1 at the bottom end of the shirt so the cable stick to the shirt (wouldn't move at all).

regarding isolation, you will have to weigh the option yourself. here's my take. with low isolation iem, usually I ended up turning up the volume so that i don't hear outside noise or to say hear my music. when the volume is high, i ended up not being able to hear the environment too. I personally prefer iem with high isolation at least you don't turn up the volume too high which might cause hearing damage.

*edit - maybe you can consider bone conducting headphone, according to my friend he can hear both music and environment unlike iem (good or bad isolation). sound quality isn't as great thou.
 
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Jan 4, 2018 at 5:06 PM Post #118 of 311
Around the ear IEMs tend to have less microphonics than ones worn straight down. Then add in a tie clip and you should be good. The N40 are light and the cable has low microphonics in general, IIRC. I think it will be a good choice.
 
Jan 4, 2018 at 11:53 PM Post #119 of 311
Lurk650 said:
Around the ear IEMs tend to have less microphonics than ones worn straight down. Then add in a tie clip and you should be good. The N40 are light and the cable has low microphonics in general, IIRC. I think it will be a good choice.
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It does appear a good choice. I also read again, last night, a note in a What Hi-Fi passage on the N40 mentioning low microphonics too. It wasn't as such the main review which you can see online. It was a page from last years awards, and the N40 taking the £300+ spot. It said, "They also allow minimum cable noise, which is ideal for using on the move".

They do sound ideal at this price point. The negative side of them is kind of worrying. That you need a full fat, well powered quality sound source, to get a good sound from them. Not so much that a poor quality source will be poor, but that the treble can be nasty. Or in What HiFi's words, ".............. treble is rather hard and incessant". (I think a few of the other reviews mentioned needing a good sound source too.)

At the moment I only have an iPod Shuffle, which I think it going to sound horrid. Oddly it pairs exceptionally well with my (slightly bass heavy, £50) AKG Y50. I can't believe the involvement coming from my iPod shuffle with those headphones. (However as said, the Y50 are useless for walking while earing. I got no more that 20m along the road wearing my Y50. Then turned around and took the Y50 back home, due to booming thumping footsteps.)

I am looking for a good sound source though. Either a descent Walkman, or maybe the LG V20, which has a headphone amp in it. Apparently it was easily the best phone DAC-amp combination in any phone. (Embarrassing the competition in other phones.) It would still be a risk though, given What HiFi recommend not using a phone for source. ... I think I have my heart set on the Sony NW ZX300, but I'm waiting for pro-reviews.

It's really hard to find what you want in headphones/earphones though. Either N40 and risk what source I buy. Or start again looking for headphones that will work OK with many sources.
 
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Jan 5, 2018 at 12:27 AM Post #120 of 311
EasyEnemy said:
I don't think you can do much about the footstep boom, apart from maybe landing softly. for cable noise you can solve it with a shirt clip (eg: https://www.amazon.com/Headphone-Earphone-Headset-Headphones-Clothing/dp/B00TRSNRTC). I only use one on the collar. if it is not enough, you can place 1 on the collar and 1 at the bottom end of the shirt so the cable stick to the shirt (wouldn't move at all).

regarding isolation, you will have to weigh the option yourself. here's my take. with low isolation iem, usually I ended up turning up the volume so that i don't hear outside noise or to say hear my music. when the volume is high, i ended up not being able to hear the environment too. I personally prefer iem with high isolation at least you don't turn up the volume too high which might cause hearing damage.

*edit - maybe you can consider bone conducting headphone, according to my friend he can hear both music and environment unlike iem (good or bad isolation). sound quality isn't as great thou.
Click to expand...


I was thinking that footstep boom or thud came from isolation, and hoping the less isolating N40 would be without footstep boom. The AKG Y50 that I got it with do form a seal, even though they are on ear headphones.

Regarding isolation though, I prefer to be aware of my surroundings. I won't turn up the music to cover ambient noises. I just put up with stuff like road noise, when I use my old style Sennheiser MX-500 ear-buds. ............ I was hoping that AKG N40 would be a compromise in isolation. Somewhere between the Senneheiser MX500, and complete isolation.


Do you mean though, that the N40 will still cause footstep boom, or thud. I get no footstep noise at all when earing old style Sennheiser MX500. That's one reason why I keep buying them and putting up with their low sound quality. Other being atroious experience with cheap IEM, of cable noise.
 
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