[Lubanja]

If you aren't using Bit-Matched ASIO or ASAPI playback on PC, then your source is TRASH. It gets muddied by windows or mac with post sound processing. The sound isnt accurate, in other words. And it really sounds like you have no idea what you are talking about when referencing a PSU powering on-board sound to get a higher quality product.
 
That said, if the BOSEs make you happy, sell the other set of phones. No one else has to live with the choice other than yourself.

 

[Snips]

Quote:

My source is decent (ALC888 by Realtek and good Psu)
Again, I don't really believe the Amp thing, but if it does exist then I can say my FA-003 is driven really well off my mobo

Wait till you use a awesome source like the MHDT Havana. Hell, even the cheaper Audio-gd NFB-2 or 3 easily beats onboard. 
 
You don't believe in amping? Have you tried using a Hifiman HE-6 with onboard? You'll literally pull out your hair at your inability to hear anything.
 
IMHO the FA-003 doesn't need an amp. Not as much as the higher impedence or lower sensitivity cans anyway. Try to attend a local meet and try out the cheaper setups there. Compare that to yours, and see if you still think that onboard is good.

 

[ubitwarr]

Quote:

My source is decent (ALC888 by Realtek and good Psu)
Again, I don't really believe the Amp thing, but if it does exist then I can say my FA-003 is driven really well off my mobo

You don't believe the amp thing yet you've never tried an amp? 
 

 
 

Are you trolling? Not all onboard sounds bad, some are very decent actually. The chip on my EX58-UD3R mobo is very decent, plus a good psu to feed it with good juice
 
Yes, it makes every headphone overrated because on that particular FA-003 thread, audiophiles said the FA003 to THEIR ears was better than most headphones, including HD600, HD555, M50, SRh440, SRH840 even HD650 in some case

Problem is that those headphones cost even more than the FA003

 

 
 
Yes most onboard is pretty terrible. With 'audiophile' headphones you will find they are much more revealing of a bad source. Besides you may not like the sound signature of the headphone. It's just like Grado headphones. Some say they are harsh while others love the engaging sound.  
Also usually the reason a mainstream headphone (Bose, Skullcandy, Monster) sounds good is because they have designed the headphone knowing that the users will not invest in a amp/dac, ect. 
I really think you are limiting yourself too much here and just basing your opinion off of one headphone out of the literally thousands of options. 
 

 
 

 

[TMRaven]

Just go to a head-fi meet.  There you can compare bose headphones to proper hi-fi headphone rigs and songs.  If you don't find a difference there, then I guess you can color yourself fortunate and keep the bose and never buy anything more expensive.

 

[Arctia]

OP never mentioned what songs he listens to, did he? For about half the songs on the market today, the bass-overemphasized headphones actually sound better just because of how poor the music itself is.
 
Hi-fi is not just a headphone, everything in the chain matters.

 

[Ishcabible]

Uhm...the around ear Boses sound like nothing I can think of... I actually kinda liked them (I'd probably pay $50 for them.), but if they sound like the FA003 (which I've never heard, only read about) then...you're probably not listening hard enough. The AE is the second most colored headphone I've ever heard (the Beats Pro being the top). The highs were smooth, yet have some discordant qualities, the midrange was more colored than a rainbow, the bass was rather boomy, and they have a really weird soundstage. Overall, they're a fun, warm listen, but from the praises people have been speaking of the Fischers, far from the same.
 
Disclaimer: The particular pair talked about was my friend's pair, who may or may not have tinkered with them.

 

[DaBomb77766]

I must say, realtek sucks.  You're gonna need a better source to truly get the best out of your 'phones.  This isn't even just audiophile crap, the difference between a good and bad source should be noticeable to anyone who isn't deaf.

 

[rymd]

"Bit-Matched ASIO or WASAPI" is lol, you will NOT need an amp for headphones that don't need an amp (bose/fa003), and although I've found every Realtek onboard to be horrible (dunno about yours), you should still be able to tell differences between these headphones. I've heard the AE for a short while before... though it wasn't as bad as I expected, it does nothing close to what hi end headphones can do.
As said in another thread, some people just can't easily discern differences between sound. I thought my first IEM (around $45) sounded the same as my stock cheapo earbuds when I first started buying stuff. A year into head-fi later, I re-listened to my stuff after having listened to a lot more things, and easily picked out the differences in sound between the stock buds and the actually much better IEMs.

 

[Curly21029]

 
Quote:

OP never mentioned what songs he listens to, did he? 
...
 
Hi-fi is not just a headphone, everything in the chain matters.

This was my first thought as well.  It's not only the quality of the recording itself, but listening to 128kbps MP3s from the Pirate Bay will sound like crap no matter what you feed them through.  In fact, a resolving 'phone may actually sound worse with said swill.  The old adage of "garbage in, garbage out" applies to both high-end video and audio.
 
As far as the hardware "chain" mattering, I completely agree.  Listening to the TMA-1 out of the Macbook Pro's headphone out goes much louder than necessary, but decidedly far less than ideal.  Adding the DAC ups the detail and instrument separation exponentially.  Adding the amp further brings the details while adding a hell of a lot of punch and dynamics to the mix.  Just because a headphone is loud enough that doesn't mean that it's performing capably.
 
To be transparent and respond to the OP directly, I have never heard an offering from Fischer nor the around ear Bose headphones.  He's not the only one I've seen on this forum giving the AE praise and, based on what I heard with their on ears and a set of noise canceling, I wouldn't doubt that they may sound good and some are making generalizations based on other offerings from the brand.  The Bose headphones that I auditioned were complete garbage.  The AE... I can't speak for.

 

[Uncle Erik]

Bose, Wesc, Dr. Beats are overhyped/overpriced headphones for audiophiles, while for non-audiophiles, those headphones are just fine for their price tag.
 
I started my hi-fi experience with a pair of Bose around-ear (not over-ear because those really suck) triport. After I found head-fi.org, many ppl here told us, Bose owners, that Bose headphones sucked. That's when I bought my pair of 'hi-fi' headphones, the Fischer Audio FA-003. I bought it because head-fiers liked it. So I thought... oh well... if They, the Audiophiles, like that particular headphone, it must be good.
2 months later I'm here with my FA-003 that I enjoy... but... have some of you listened to Bose headphones before? I think Bose is quite underrated here, because a/bing my FA-003 and my Bose AE, I saw no real difference. At least, not a $150+ difference. It's not just going to the shop and listen 2 seconds to them at the local bestbuy and say... those suck... because you heard from other audiophiles that they sucked. Buy them, test them at your home. Then we'll talk.
 
I'm beginning to think that there is no real 'hi-fi' headphone anymore

You haven't heard good headphones yet. Go to a meet and then draw conclusions.

At one time, I thought MGD and Rolling Rock were pretty good.

Then I moved to Oregon in the early 1990s and started trying out all the local microbreweries.

 

[yann3804]

What are good headphones then? If $250 isn't enough, then what is 'good'? $800? $1000? Way out of my budget.
 
I've always used FLAC 44.1khz for everything. I've tested electronic music, like Netsky, rock like Radiohead, Nirvana/Eric Clapton unplugged albums, the Beatles, Stevie Wonder, many groups as far as testing goes.
 
I always used WASAPI from Foobar for listening.
 
The FA-003 apparently doesn't even need amping in most cases, but if the source is the problem then that's... great. Here goes $150 I guess.... (When I read a thread on Head-fi that complains about a headphone, there's always some that come up with the 'source problem'! Eh.)
 
Alright. Onboard is trash. It's like when people told me that the AE was trash. I simply do not believe that anymore, unless there's proof.
 
Too young for meetings...

 

[Lubanja]

Its kind of hard to ask for someone's opinion, then throw it back in their face because you didnt reach the same opinion. Every person hears differently. Over time one will develop ears for certain details that they may have missed. Listening to music is a skill and requires acquiring a taste. Why do you think teenage girls listen to Justin Beiber instead of John Lennon? Probably because their tastes havent matured in that direction, yet, right? And it may never.
 
Quote:

What are good headphones then? If $250 isn't enough, then what is 'good'? $800? $1000? Way out of my budget.
 
I've always used FLAC 44.1khz for everything. I've tested electronic music, like Netsky, rock like Radiohead, Nirvana/Eric Clapton unplugged albums, the Beatles, Stevie Wonder, many groups as far as testing goes.
 
I always used WASAPI from Foobar for listening.
 
The FA-003 apparently doesn't even need amping in most cases, but if the source is the problem then that's... great. Here goes $150 I guess.... (When I read a thread on Head-fi that complains about a headphone, there's always some that come up with the 'source problem'! Eh.)
 
Alright. Onboard is trash. It's like when people told me that the AE was trash. I simply do not believe that anymore, unless there's proof.
 
Too young for meetings...

 

 

[kingtz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by yann3804 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Alright. Onboard is trash. It's like when people told me that the AE was trash. I simply do not believe that anymore, unless there's proof.
 
Too young for meetings...

The proof is in the pudding and the only way to see it is to take a bite.
 
We could tell you all day about how crappy onboard sound is, and how such and such DAC will sound so much better, but like you said, you won't believe us. If you're able to spend maybe another $130 or so, then buy something like the uDAC-2. It is a USB DAC/AMP that you can listen from your computer. You should be able to notice a discernable difference between that and onboard sound. Give yourself a week or two with it, and if you still can't tell the difference, then return the uDAC and count yourself lucky that you'll never be spending thousands and thousands on audio equipment later on.
 

 

[strannik]

You don't need good headphones to enjoy music. Hell, I've spent half my life listening to music on an 80's Sony Walkman and the stock phones that came with it, and I was perfectly happy with it. If Bose does it for you, congratulations, your wallet will thank you.
 
Hi-end headphones are not overhyped if you can learn to appreciate their quality. When directly comparing my LCD-2 and 'inferior' (cheaper) headphones, I cringe, all other phones sound horrible. In isolation however, the 'inferior' headphone's SQ becomes acceptable and enjoyable. I even have the ibuds, and to be honest, they are not that bad.
 
On a side note, most, but not all onboard sound is trash. I've found the SQ on my first DAC (Yulong D100, which seems to be popular on head-fi) to be marginally but not substantially better than the onboard sound on my P6TD Deluxe motherboard. It's a bit cleaner, with a bit more extension, but not in a different league. 

 

[Eric_C]

I'd just like to point out 2 possibilities here:
 
1. The FA-003 actually isn't better than OP's Bose AE. I have heard neither, but given how many recommendations get thrown about in Head-Fi (even unqualified recommendations), it's entirely possible that OP and/or the people who told him to get the FA-003 were mistaken.
 
2. Good headphones (that is, audibly better than FA-003 and Bose AE) are available for less than $250. If this is true OP, then you don't need to worry about "hi-fi" headphones being an unreasonably expensive sham.