[xeroian]

Quick question, will the P7s benefit from an amp/dac combo like the Schiit M&M or Vali & modi? Or should I just look for an external dac like the dragonfly, meridian explorer and skip the amp. Someone did mention to me that a schiit stack would probably be too excessive for the P7s and it'll only benefit open headphones, I just need to know which way to go as my home source is just a 2 year old toshiba laptop and I have to say it doesn't sound as nice when i have them plugged in to my nexus 5.

People say they scale well but how much more money do you want to put behind a pair of headphones designed for portable use? If the sound from the Nexus 5 satisfies you then I would plump for the Dragonfly route you suggest. That way you also retain portability. Alternatively you may want to consider the following. I used to travel on business with a Lenovo laptop and a set of B&W P5 headphones. The sound improved dramatically when I added a little Fiio E10 DAC and in the UK the E10 is about half the price of the Dragonfly.

However if your longer term aim is eventually to have a top notch home system then buy Schiit now then upgrade the headphones later. Remember that although the P7 is probably the best designed solution for portable use it is not the best solution for ultimate sound quality.

 

[Beagle]

 
They are stated to scale up well.

 

They scale well

 

People say they scale well

 
Pardon my ignorance, but what exactly does this refer to? Does it mean that the images portrayed are lifelike?

 

[Illustrator76]

Remember that although the P7 is probably the best designed solution for portable use it is not the best solution for ultimate sound quality.

 
When you say this, are you referring to portable use compared to other headphones in it's price range, or for home use? If the former, what other portable headphones in this price range do you feel sound better than the P7s?

 

[xeroian]

When you say this, are you referring to portable use compared to other headphones in it's price range, or for home use? If the former, what other portable headphones in this price range do you feel sound better than the P7s?

Each of us hears differently and I don't want to derail this thread.

What I was trying to say is that if you want to get the best sound straight out of your iPhone/iPod type device and in to your ears then the P7 with its low impedance and overall driver design is probably / potentially the one to go for.

There are better headphones out there for less money, the AKG Q701 might be such a headphone, but it won't work well with an iPhone since the iPhone output does not have sufficient grunt. A head amp is almost essential.

There are better headphones that cost more money, the Audeze 2/3X might be such a headphone, but I suspect it won't work well with an iPhone for the same reason ( I have not tried though).

So I was suggesting to xriddler that he can probably get an adequate sound with a relatively cheap external DAC for his laptop. However if xriddler has aspirations beyond the P7 then by all means buy an expensive DAC/AMP combination.

Please note that AKG and Audeze are purely used as examples here, I am not trying to start a fight.

 

[tinyman392]

   
 
 
Pardon my ignorance, but what exactly does this refer to? Does it mean that the images portrayed are lifelike?

 
Scaling up implies that the sound quality improves as you drive it through better hardware, or even better source files, it doesn't specifically portray to sound stage and imaging, although those can improve as well. 

 

[Illustrator76]

How does everyone feel that the sound leakage on these are compared to other closed-back headphones? I listen to my music at fairly normal levels, but I have seen more than a few reviews complain about sound leakage on these. It's hard for me to tell, but something like this may be a problem in an office environment.

 

[Beagle]

 
Scaling up implies that the sound quality improves as you drive it through better hardware, or even better source files, it doesn't specifically portray to sound stage and imaging, although those can improve as well.

 
OK, but doesn't the sound quality always get better when you improve the hardware and source? Why would something "scale well "?

 

[tinyman392]

   
OK, but doesn't the sound quality always get better when you improve the hardware and source? Why would something "scale well "?

 
Everything scales...  Well would be an adverb in this case, it's saying that the improvement that you get from using better hardware (or software) is increased or larger in contrast to other headphones. 

 

[tinyman392]

  How does everyone feel that the sound leakage on these are compared to other closed-back headphones? I listen to my music at fairly normal levels, but I have seen more than a few reviews complain about sound leakage on these. It's hard for me to tell, but something like this may be a problem in an office environment.

 
You'd have to define what a "fairly normal level" is XD  I listen to my music 6 notches up with an iPhone (no amp) when I use the P7, which isn't loud (on the lower side of things).  No leak for me  

 

[Illustrator76]

   
You'd have to define what a "fairly normal level" is XD  I listen to my music 6 notches up with an iPhone (no amp) when I use the P7, which isn't loud (on the lower side of things).  No leak for me  

 
I have a Galaxy S III unamped and I listen to my music on anything from 50% - 70% volume. Most of the time I am at 50% or 60% volume.

 

[Beagle]

   
Everything scales...  Well would be an adverb in this case, it's saying that the improvement that you get from using better hardware (or software) is increased or larger in contrast to other headphones.

 
OK gotcha....it's a compliment to the potential quality of the headphone, in other words.

 

[tinyman392]

   
OK gotcha....it's a compliment to the potential quality of the headphone, in other words.

 
In a way, yes. 

 

[Dratino]

I realized that the B&W website states the P7 as having a maximum power input of 50mW, which seems like a pretty low load rating as compared to some other portable headphones (Momentums, for example, have a stated load rating of 200mW). Does this mean that the P7 is relatively easier to damage if used with an external amp?

 

[reborn]

So what are you bad boys finding to be a good portable amp/DAC pairing with these cans?

So far I'm really liking the original SOLO > RSA Shadow via copper interconnect.

The Continental V2 is a horrible pairing.

The microstreamer doesn't sound bad, but so far I'm really liking the SOLO and Shadow.

 

[lostinla]

The mS was subtle in its improvement with the P7 I thought. Not enough to justify it for these cans. Keen to hear others thoughts /experience too.