[MixMasterMan]

Nulling headphone EQ's is really only handy for ascertaining which headphone is best for studio monitoring/mixing. For studio monitoring, first and foremost, you want the flattest EQ possible. Sonarworks makes this happen, and is a miracle. It will make all your headphones sound the same, tonally. So you can make accurate individual track EQ decisions regardless of what headphone you use. AKG, AT, Beyer, Senn.... it won't matter with Sonarworks. - For rocking out to music on your phone or DAP, you are going to eq anyway, so nulling has no purpose. You just want to make music sound awesome to you on whatever can you have on your head.

When it comes to EQ, just go where your ears want to hear. Make your own EQ. Someone else's EQ isn't going to work for you. Everyone has different subjective taste. Even if it is just slight variations down to 1db at any particular point in the EQ spectrum. For example, I like to boost bass, but don't like 125hz (at or around), so I almost always notch that out more than any other frequency point in that area. - I like the convenience and limited nature of graphic EQ, but prefer the versatility and customization of parametric EQ. The Poweramp EQ and Tone controls are good. I can get 80-90% close to any curve I want.

 

[RockStar2005]

Nulling headphone EQ's is really only handy for ascertaining which headphone is best for studio monitoring/mixing. For studio monitoring, first and foremost, you want the flattest EQ possible. Sonarworks makes this happen, and is a miracle. It will make all your headphones sound the same, tonally. So you can make accurate individual track EQ decisions regardless of what headphone you use. AKG, AT, Beyer, Senn.... it won't matter with Sonarworks. - For rocking out to music on your phone or DAP, you are going to eq anyway, so nulling has no purpose. You just want to make music sound awesome to you on whatever can you have on your head.

When it comes to EQ, just go where your ears want to hear. Make your own EQ. Someone else's EQ isn't going to work for you. Everyone has different subjective taste. Even if it is just slight variations down to 1db at any particular point in the EQ spectrum. For example, I like to boost bass, but don't like 125hz (at or around), so I almost always notch that out more than any other frequency point in that area. - I like the convenience and limited nature of graphic EQ, but prefer the versatility and customization of parametric EQ. The Poweramp EQ and Tone controls are good. I can get 80-90% close to any curve I want.

Ok. So you're ONLY doing that for studio monitoring/mixing. Then yeah, Sonarworks ftw! lol It just sux b/c they have to have your headphones info ahead of time, and not all headphones are listed with them (i.e. the Meze 99s are not).

Exactly. Nulling doesn't work elsewhere.

Well, I don't fully agree that someone else's EQ won't work for you. The K551 EQ I mentioned earlier most def worked for me! lol Compared to "Rock" EQ, it was clearly superior. I feel the same way about my 99 EQ, or else I wouldn't be offering it. lol I know what you mean though, but I also believe you could even take my 99 EQ and simply adjust it to what you like. Either way, it WILL be in my review. I'm hoping to have that posted by next week or sooner. Yeah parametric is better, but I love Poweramp too much to switch. lol I tried the other ones......it just ain't the same. lol If I HAD to I'd prob use Neutron or N7 or Jet etc, but fortunately I don't have to. lol

 

[MixMasterMan]

I now also want to re-aquire a set of MDR-1a's. I miss the sexy velvety sound, yummy bass, and cloud pillow earcups.

 

[aertus]

there is really nothing wrong with MDR1a unless you dont prefer emphasis on low end like the Sony does. ATH-m50x are not good imo because they are not comofrtable. Honestly to get a great pair of heapdhones material construction and comfort are just as important as sound.

shame that B&o dont understand this with 2nd gen. maybe they will fix this?

You guys are crazy talking about changing EQ all the time i just leave mine flat or use the presets on the sony z3. Otherwise I wanna hear my music the way the artist intended it and thats by not messing with the frequencies the artist made.

also what do you guys think of the list of best brands for speakers? Those seem to be the best ones.

 

[RockStar2005]

there is really nothing wrong with MDR1a unless you dont prefer emphasis on low end like the Sony does. ATH-m50x are not good imo because they are not comofrtable. Honestly to get a great pair of heapdhones material construction and comfort are just as important as sound.

shame that B&o dont understand this with 2nd gen. maybe they will fix this?

You guys are crazy talking about changing EQ all the time i just leave mine flat or use the presets on the sony z3. Otherwise I wanna hear my music the way the artist intended it and thats by not messing with the frequencies the artist made.

also what do you guys think of the list of best brands for speakers? Those seem to be the best ones.

I just remember after a while (though not at first) that compared to other headphones, it seems to be a bit too bassy in the low. Though I didn't try adjusting the EQ on it. But also, it just had an ok soundstage, not WIDE like the K55X, H6, and 99s do.

M50X.............honestly, they're like the worst headphones I've ever tried. lol But that's my take on them. Some ppl love them. I didn't. They had like ZERO soundstage too from what I remember. They were pretty comfortable though, but I'd still take the 1As over them for comfort.

I hope B&O DOES fix that. As I'd mentioned, Meze had the same issue but they actually DID something about it. And now they have my business. So it PAYS to listen to your customers. No way I would've bought the original smaller pads. The larger ones they use now are PERFECT.

It's not crazy aertus. A solid EQ can MAKE OR BREAK a pair of headphones really. I tried doing the Flat or No EQ thing for a while, but you honestly don't hear everything your headphones can do if you do it that way IMO. It can be challenging to find the right EQ, but to me it's worth the struggle. I like the "Rock" EQ in Poweramp, but it's a bit too bassy usually on headphones and too sharp in the treble region as well. So I say just start with that then make your own adjustments. It's hard to find ppl to create one for you. I got lucky with the K551, but there was more info available on that one then there is on the 99s too. The presets can be really good to great too. I remember on my Z3 using "Soul" b/c it sounded better than Flat or Rock. But the Z3's Walkman/Music app only has a 5-Band EQ. I think 10 is the best. 20 is better but too much, but 10 is a sweet spot for me. IMO, if it sounds better than like "Rock", then you got something of value.

The problem is that by doing it neutral your still at the mercy of your headphone's own EQ'ing, which in most cases very likely ISN'T neutral. Initially I was like you and preferred neutral, but yeah.......there's the EQ of your player/app and the EQ of your headphones. The idea of EQ'ing to the headphones is too MATCH your player with your headphone's natural sound, and then if they are really high quality headphones, you'll hear them at their best, and they will sound INCREDIBLE.

Yeah those are some great ones, but honestly I don't know that much about speakers. akg fanboy however seems to be BIG on that now, so you can always ask him.

 

[MixMasterMan]

What the artist intended, or hears, is ultimately balanced out in mastering, by a mastering engineer. So that the program EQ is uniform and matches a certain standardized EQ curve. So that the end user can EQ how we like. Its up to you, to change the sound to how you think the artist intended.

As far as loudspeakers go, there are so many options. So cant say. However, I wouldnt use HS8's or any other flat reference studio monitors, for music enjoyment. Its not their purpose/indended use.

 

[RockStar2005]

What the artist intended, or hears, is ultimately balanced out in mastering, by a mastering engineer. So that the program EQ is uniform and matches a certain standardized EQ curve. So that the end user can EQ how we like. Its up to you, to change the sound to how you think the artist intended.

As far as loudspeakers go, there are so many options. So cant say. However, I wouldnt use HS8's or any other flat reference studio monitors, for music enjoyment. Its not their purpose/indended use.

Yeah. Even when they master an album, they do one master for vinyl, another for mp3, another for CD, another for Hi-Res, DSD, etc. So there isn't even really ONE master or "sound signature" to an album really as far as I know. But the idea is to get the best sounding one you can (which is why I always try to get Hi-Res or else CD over mp3), and then adjust it to your liking. There are some songs where my 99 EQ will sound too bassy on, so I made an alternate one or two with less bass. But I will only need to use those sparingly. Like 95-99% of my songs though will be just fine on the main one I made. Same rule applies to my K551s.

I'd just research it aertus and see about speakers. Just Google top or best stereo speakers and see what comes up on multiple lists. Then take the ones that come up the most and choose from those select few. I really like the look of the B&W speakers with the extra "cone" speaker at top, so I'd prob go with those. For my living room surround sound, I use a Denon receiver and the Energy Take Classic 5.1 speaker system (owned by Klipsch), and they sound INCREDIBLE. Gorgeous design with a sweet piano black finish too. They also look great with or without the speaker grills. So consider Klipsch (and perhaps Denon?) as well.

 

[aertus]

how would you match them you wouldn't know what the natural EQ of the headphones is. You're basically just changin EQ settings to fit your own idea of what sounds good.

Let alone I don't even really want to mess with it because I wouldn't even know how to make it sound better. For my z3 i've been using the Soul setting you were talking about and i've been satisfied with it. Everytime I change EQ presets there is really no good or bad they just all sound difference. Which again brings me back to seeing stuff how they intended.

you know its like getting a TV that has accurate calibration. because you want to watch movies how the directors mastered it as close as possible.

 

[RockStar2005]

how would you match them you wouldn't know what the natural EQ of the headphones is. You're basically just changin EQ settings to fit your own idea of what sounds good.

Let alone I don't even really want to mess with it because I wouldn't even know how to make it sound better. For my z3 i've been using the Soul setting you were talking about and i've been satisfied with it. Everytime I change EQ presets there is really no good or bad they just all sound difference. Which again brings me back to seeing stuff how they intended.

you know its like getting a TV that has accurate calibration. because you want to watch movies how the directors mastered it as close as possible.

Well you can either find that information online (i.e. actual frequency charts, etc) like on Golden Ears' site (assuming they have it listed) and then use that as a basis to create your own EQ (which is what akg fanboy did for my K551 EQ), or try to figure it out yourself by experimenting with the EQ. That is more difficult, but if you play around you will eventually find it most likely.

Well yeah lol, but isn't that the point? To make it sound good TO YOU? The way the artist intended it to sound will sound different on the 1A than it will on the K550 (etc). So again, you should get it to what sounds good to you. There's too much variation going on b/t the studio and your headphones for neutral to give you what the artist heard, so you are better off just EQ'ing it to YOUR liking.

Yeah it can be a challenge. So I can understand not wanting to. I wish they had ppl you could pay to give you an EQ you'd like best like they do with calibrating speakers. I guess the problem is someone else might like or dislike the things you don't. But my advice is, find an EQ preset you already like, and just play with it a little in the areas you feel are "off". You might surprise yourself. I did. lol

Nice! Yeah Soul was great. For me, most presets are bad. lol I only liked "Soul" on Walkman/Music app, and "Rock" on Poweramp.

Yeah they have people who can calibrate the video settings on your TV too. So yeah, same concept.

 

[gazzington]

What are these like for metal? I am particularly fond of black and death metal

 

[MixMasterMan]

What are these like for metal? I am particularly fond of black and death metal

The 598cs is TERRIBLE for metal. It has a treble resonance at around 6k, that makes guitars sound super screechy and irritating (which will make black metal virtually unlistenable). Then the treble drops off at 10k, and there is no crispness or breath to the sound. - The H6's 2nd gen are great for everything. Get those, or those and the meze 99 classics, and keep your favorite

 

[RockStar2005]

The 598cs is TERRIBLE for metal. It has a treble resonance at around 6k, that makes guitars sound super screechy and irritating (which will make black metal virtually unlistenable). Then the treble drops off at 10k, and there is no crispness or breath to the sound. - The H6's 2nd gen are great for everything. Get those, or those and the meze 99 classics, and keep your favorite

Hey gaz.................everything that MixMasterMan just said, ALL true. Thanks! lol

Yeah the Cs 'phones were good but a bit disappointing. Looking back, I think maybe the H6s were better overall vs. the Cs, but their comfort level was awful. Ribbed headband sticks into your skull constantly, while the tiny earcups are just too small (over-ear my FOOT! lol). So yeah, the Meze 99 Classics are the way to go!! See my review here.

I find the stock pads of the 99 Classics to be very good on comfort but now that I've had it a few mos I'm noticing that the comfort isn't as great as I initially thought. I got these Brainwavz Sheepskin Leather ear pads a couple mos ago but they changed the sound to me a bit too much so I returned them. But I just bought them again last night on Amazon and gonna give them another try. Just gotta EQ around them I guess. If I do keep them, I'll update my review with a new EQ just for these pads. So keep checking that over the next few weeks to see if I update it or not (if I keep the new ear pads). You may try the stock ones though and like them, so try the stock ones out first before you get these.

Also, another great one is the Koss Pro4S. Some ppl in the Meze 99 Classics thread are saying it sounds as good or better vs. 99 C. One Amazon reviewer said the same (better), and they cost like half as much as the 99 C too! So maybe consider those as well, esp if $300 is a bit much for ya.

Hope this helps!

 

[mbwilson111]

Also, another great one is the Koss Pro4S. Some ppl in the Meze 99 Classics thread are saying it sounds as good or better vs. 99 C. One Amazon reviewer said the same (better), and they cost like half as much as the 99 C too! So maybe consider those as well, esp if $300 is a bit much for ya.

I have the Koss Pro4s, the Meze 99 Neo (same build as the Classic) and the H6. All three are very comfortable to me. I have no problem with any of the headbands or the cups. To me they are similar in comfort but if I had to choose I would say the Meze is slightly more comfortable. It has thicker pads than the Koss and a more comfortable headband than the H6 (which could use a little padding but does not really weigh on my head). The Koss has the most clamp of the three, something to which I am very sensitive.

Of the three I could wear the Meze the longest without need to adjust or remove. However, of the three, the Koss gives me the least listener fatigue. It has (to me) the neutral balanced sound that I like for long listening sessions. Easy to just forget about the headphone and enjoy the music (in spite of the clamp). I have not listened with my B6 for awhile so I cannot compare it sound-wise right now but my husband has just informed me that that he thinks the H6 has the best sound of the three. He just put them on to check and said "ohhh yeahhh!" He has the B6 and the Classics plus today he listened to my Neo and Koss. I like the sound of the Neo better than the Classic...tighter less bloomy bass to my ears. Ok... now I have just confused myself... I need to get out the H6 ...or I need a nap...lol.

I also have the Sennheiser HD598SE. I do love their comfort plus I really enjoy open headphones. They are great all rounders. I have tried my husbands' 598CS and found the clamp unbearable....hard to even put them on my head so I never really bothered to listen. Same with his HD650s. I do love my HD580s and also his HD700s are very comfortable and sound great as well . All of those are open though. Probably if I were told I could only keep one of my full size headphones it would have to be my Amiron Home but that is also open and I use it with an amp not straight out of a dap or phone. Maybe for closed portable it would be the Koss but of course without the coiled cable that it comes with. Any 3.5 to 3.5mm will work as long as it is thin enough to go into the cup. I have a few.

Update on my husbands listen to the H6 ... he said he can understand why I might enjoy the Koss more for longer listening. The H6 is more dynamic and punchy which for me results in more listener fatigue.... I often just love the sound of silence. I tend to use music to relax. Others might use it more to energize them. Sometimes I do that... like when working out. Actually as I tend to work out at home I would rather just pipe music throughout the house with the Sonos system... Speakers are my first love...

 

[MixMasterMan]

I can not tell a lie!

And yeah...if you got big ears like rockstar2005, your options get slimmer. Also, for metal, you cant go wrong with ATH-M50x's, either. They are insanely popular for a reason. Have you tried them?

 

[mbwilson111]

And yeah...if you got big ears like rockstar2005, your options get slimmer.

Maybe we need a photo of this rock star....to help with the options...