[129207]

"In fact there is not much difference to my iPhone 4-CX 300II combination and the HD 650- Little Dot- Shanling combo"
 
quoted from the opening post, this made me go "OH NO HE DIDN'T!" but then I realised I love the sound from my $100 speakers too and prefer them sometimes over my more expensive headphones. I like speakers to rock out to and headphones for immersion and listening. 
 

 

[Pale Rider]

Quote:

"In fact there is not much difference to my iPhone 4-CX 300II combination and the HD 650- Little Dot- Shanling combo"
 
quoted from the opening post, this made me go "OH NO HE DIDN'T!" but then I realised I love the sound from my $100 speakers too and prefer them sometimes over my more expensive headphones. I like speakers to rock out to and headphones for immersion and listening. 
 

Well, I would agree that the "enjoyment" and perceptions of tonal quality could be similar between such experiences, but I am still in the "oh no he didn't" camp, because neither my iPhone nor iPad—even into very good IEMs—delivers the depth of a real amp/DAC into those same IEMs, or a nice amp/speaker combo. Not for me anyway. YMMV.

 

[ShawnSmith]

what do you mean by depth?

 

[Pale Rider]

Quote:

what do you mean by depth?

Sorry for my sloppiness. All I meant in this case was a non-listening-description use of the term. I was referring to the totality of the ability of the device to present a credible musical experience. Neither my iPad nor iPhone delivers the "oomph" alone that I get when I use even just a portable amp like my Pico Slim or Shadow or Mustang. On complex passages—my fave to try out for this purpose is the Dies Irae from the Robert Shaw Telarc recording of Verdi's Requiem—you can tell the iPad and iPhone are being taxed. Simple addition of an amp makes a big difference on the LOD. Even more so with the iMod, and night and day with any of several separate or integrated DAC/amp combos.

Speaking more concisely, I would also say that specifically front-to-back and side-to-side soundstages are significantly different between an unamplified portable device [using its internal circuitry] and an amped/DAC'ed one.
 

 

[titaniumx3]

If you don't notice a difference between the CX300 and HD650, something is majorly wrong.
 
I notice a big difference between my Sennheiser IE8 and HD650 and I use the word big with no exaggeration whatsoever, the difference is very significant. Even though they both have a similiar sound signature, in terms of detail, clarity, separation, etc, the HD650 is way better.
 
Considering that the IE8 is considerably better than the CX300, I find your results odd.

 

[ShawnSmith]

I don't think it was sloppy at all. I was just curious what you meant. I think we all have our own reasons for why we get into hi fidelity sound. I was just curious if you meant physical depth of the sound reproduction or the metaphorical depth of the experience.
Quote:

Quote:

what do you mean by depth?

Sorry for my sloppiness. All I meant in this case was a non-listening-description use of the term. I was referring to the totality of the ability of the device to present a credible musical experience. Neither my iPad nor iPhone delivers the "oomph" alone that I get when I use even just a portable amp like my Pico Slim or Shadow or Mustang. On complex passages—my fave to try out for this purpose is the Dies Irae from the Robert Shaw Telarc recording of Verdi's Requiem—you can tell the iPad and iPhone are being taxed. Simple addition of an amp makes a big difference on the LOD. Even more so with the iMod, and night and day with any of several separate or integrated DAC/amp combos.

Speaking more concisely, I would also say that specifically front-to-back and side-to-side soundstages are significantly different between an unamplified portable device [using its internal circuitry] and an amped/DAC'ed one.
 

 

[estreeter]

Quote:

 
Haha, yes, I noticed this too. Also, it seems like the number of poorly-informed opinions has increased exponentially over the years - more people with less experience giving less nuanced and more bombastic evaluations. To the noobs: if you've only listened to a KSC75 and a ATH-AD700, please stop claiming the ATH-AD700 is the "world's best headphone".
 

 
Old news - almost no keystrokes are expended on the AD700 now. Its all M50, M50 and M50 ....
 
If you can tell me which headphone costs 10x the KSC-75 and sounds 10x as good, I'll order it immediately. Headphones like that are very rare in the land of diminishing returns, at least in my experience with dynamic phones. Only orthos I have owned are the Fostex T50RP, and I've never heard anything from Stax.

 

[rhythmdevils]

the M50 are recommended a lot because a lot of noobs are looking for a headphone just like them
 
easily driven by an ipod
plenty of high quality bass
detailed
closed
portable
durable
 
I think a very high percentage of people mildly interested in upgrading would be totally happy with them as their only and final phone.  So I think the recommendations are justified.  I think most mildly interested noobs will find the AD700 basslight.  Grados are really bright and not everyone is going to like them because of that, and they're open.  etc, etc.

 

[estreeter]

Quote:

 

Grados are really bright and not everyone is going to like them because of that, and they're open.  etc, etc.

 
The thing about FOTM phones like the M50 is that they come and go - I believe several of the fullsize Shures were all the rage here just a short time ago. For all that 'bright openness', the lower-end Grados have been consistently popular during my short time on HF.

 

[Marximus]

If you want something meatier than the Sennheisers, I'd recommend Denons.  The D5000s are fantastic.

 

[spaceconvoy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by estreeter /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Old news - almost no keystrokes are expended on the AD700 now. Its all M50, M50 and M50 ....
 
If you can tell me which headphone costs 10x the KSC-75 and sounds 10x as good, I'll order it immediately. Headphones like that are very rare in the land of diminishing returns, at least in my experience with dynamic phones. Only orthos I have owned are the Fostex T50RP, and I've never heard anything from Stax.

Haha, yeah you can precisely date the last time I spent around here by that reference...
 
PX100s cost twice as much and sound twice as good

 

[pp312]

Hmmm. I must be a vegetarian.

 
Quote:

If you want something meatier than the Sennheisers, I'd recommend Denons.  

 

[idletime1213]

While the Denons might have more bass, I find the HD650 - even the HD600 -  to have a "meatier" sound because of the combination of mids and bass that gives it a thick milkshake-like sound.

 

 

[pp312]

Eh? Now it's meat and milkshakes together. I'm getting confused.

 

[rhythmdevils]

You seem to be a bit thick as well, eh?