[erted]

Hello,

I need a bit of help deciding on a new pair of headphones. I currently have a pair of Creative Aurvana Live!, which I bought way back in 2012. Sadly, they broke (don't ask how). I was really happy with the CAL!, and, despite the fracture, I think they served me well and long.

In short, I'm looking for a new pair of headphones. I was considering getting another pair of CAL!, but then I noticed there is a "newer" version - the Creative Aurvana Live!2. The price difference is minimal - the original CAL! is ~75$, the CAL!2 is ~85$.

Is the CAL!2 a good choice? Bear in mind that I liked the original CAL!. I read the 2 has a bit more bass than the original, but I don't mind a bit of bass. I mainly listen to rock/metal and "soft" electronic music, and would also use the headphones for movies / games. Sound wise, the most important thing to me is clarity. I generally like neutral sound, and as I said, don't mind extra bass, so long as it's clear.

I also don't have a headphone amp/dac and use the integrated soundcard (yeah, I'm a scrub. I've been planning to get a set for a long time but always find other stuff to spend money on...).

As an alternative I was looking at the Audio Technica ATH-M50X / ATH-M40X, though I read these are comparable to the CAL! with the exception of build quality. That's fine and all, but since the M50X are nearly three times the cost of the CAL! and twice the cost of the CAL!2, I'm leaning more towards the latter.

Are there any other alternatives? I generally wouldn't like to spend more than 100eur (the CAL!2 are 75), but would be willing to stretch it to 150 if that meant getting something vastly better. Another headphones I'm looking at are the AKG K550 mkII, though I don't know much about these, and they are a bit on the expensive side.

Any help is greatly appreciated

 

[serman005]

M40x is more neutral than the M50x and probably overall a better headphone, FWIW. What I would recommend, however, is the SoundMAGIC HP151--135.99 eur on amazon.de today. It is truly a terrific headphone and is better than any of these previously mentioned. You should definitely check it out.

 

[erted]

Thanks for the info. I have read that the M40x are more neutral than the M50x, I would probably go for the M40x, were I to choose between those two.
As for your recommendation, the SoundMAGIC HP151, I did check them out. They look really nice. Have you compared them to any of the ones I listed? Also, one more question, can they be driven with my integrated soundcard or do they require a dedicated DAC/amp?

EDIT: I noticed amazon.de won't deliver these headphones to my country. Amazon.co.uk will, though. Shipping included, they would cost me about 160-170eur. Is this still a good deal? I suppose I won't be able to escape shipping costs, regardless of what I choose.

Thanks

 

[serman005]

Thanks for the info. I have read that the M40x are more neutral than the M50x, I would probably go for the M40x, were I to choose between those two.
As for your recommendation, the SoundMAGIC HP151, I did check them out. They look really nice. Have you compared them to any of the ones I listed? Also, one more question, can they be driven with my integrated soundcard or do they require a dedicated DAC/amp?

EDIT: I noticed amazon.de won't deliver these headphones to my country. Amazon.co.uk will, though. Shipping included, they would cost me about 160-170eur. Is this still a good deal? I suppose I won't be able to escape shipping costs, regardless of what I choose.

Thanks

I have not heard the CAL2 in too long to be able to compare it to anything--sorry. The HP151 does not require a dedicated amp, it runs just fine out of a PC or DAP or Mac. I would say that at 160-170 euros you would still be quite happy with them---they are really terrific. Quite a good value, even when compared against significantly more expensive headphones.

 

[erted]

Ok, thank you again. I think I'll sleep on it and decide tomorrow.

 

[erted]

And just as a thought. Some time ago I was looking at getting a pair of Sennheiser HD600 headphones and a Schitt Modi/Magni combo. When I added up, it would set me back a bit over 500eur. How would this setup compare to what I had now (CAL!, powered directly from my PC)? Obviosly I would expect it to be better, but by how much? Come to think of it, I listen to music every single day and since I like to keep my listening private I use headphones every single day...
Maybe I could get the HD600 first and add a dac/amp later?

Also, sorry for the double post, I misclicked.

 

[serman005]

And just as a thought. Some time ago I was looking at getting a pair of Sennheiser HD600 headphones and a Schitt Modi/Magni combo. When I added up, it would set me back a bit over 500eur. How would this setup compare to what I had now (CAL!, powered directly from my PC)? Obviosly I would expect it to be better, but by how much? Come to think of it, I listen to music every single day and since I like to keep my listening private I use headphones every single day...
Maybe I could get the HD600 first and add a dac/amp later?

Also, sorry for the double post, I misclicked.

That would be a major-league upgrade, to be sure. A big one. But if you got the HD600, you would really want to get an amp at the time of purchase. The DAC could wait, but an amp would be very helpful to your overall sound experience. That said, could you just run the HD600 through your computer until such time as you could get an amp and DAC? Sure, you could, it just wouldn't be optimizing your 600 while you were waiting to purchase the amp. The volume and dynamics might be less than ideal, but you could do it for awhile. Either way, it would be a big upgrade, much better with the amp and DAC.

 

[erted]

Again, thank you for the explanation, I was expecting something along those lines.
One of the problems I see is my weekly migration as I go to university, which would mean I would have to transport my headphones, amp and dac every week, which seems annoying to me.

I think for now, I'll stick to my original plan - get something like the SoundMAGIC HP151 but keep the HD600 + amp/dac dream alive, maybe get that at the end of summer.

 

[serman005]

Again, thank you for the explanation, I was expecting something along those lines.
One of the problems I see is my weekly migration as I go to university, which would mean I would have to transport my headphones, amp and dac every week, which seems annoying to me.

I think for now, I'll stick to my original plan - get something like the SoundMAGIC HP151 but keep the HD600 + amp/dac dream alive, maybe get that at the end of summer.

Let us know how it works out.

 

[erted]

I was thinking a bit more about the HD600 and ran into two more issues - AFAIK these headphones leak sound quite a lot, being open and such and one of the main reasons I use headphones is not to disturb the people around me, albeit I think this would present a minor issue. Another thing I realized is that I listen to a lot of songs on YouTube and I'm pretty sure that, with headphones of that rank, a higher quality source audio format, like FLAC, would be desired, though in all honesty this could be resolved quite easily.

That said, I've placed an order for the SoundMAGIC HP151 at hifiheadphones.co.uk a few minutes ago. All in, 167 euros and 19 cents. A touch on the expensive side, considering my initial 100eur budget, but if they're really that good and will last as long as the CAL! did, I don't mind.

 

[serman005]

I was thinking a bit more about the HD600 and ran into two more issues - AFAIK these headphones leak sound quite a lot, being open and such and one of the main reasons I use headphones is not to disturb the people around me, albeit I think this would present a minor issue. Another thing I realized is that I listen to a lot of songs on YouTube and I'm pretty sure that, with headphones of that rank, a higher quality source audio format, like FLAC, would be desired, though in all honesty this could be resolved quite easily.

That said, I've placed an order for the SoundMAGIC HP151 at hifiheadphones.co.uk a few minutes ago. All in, 167 euros and 19 cents. A touch on the expensive side, considering my initial 100eur budget, but if they're really that good and will last as long as the CAL! did, I don't mind.

Very exciting! Be sure to let us know what you think once you have had a listen to them. As far as the HD600 goes, I am sure you will be ordering one before you know it.

 

[erted]

Sure thing, I'll report back here as soon as I get the headphones - should be about a week, I hope. Considering the HD600, as I said, I'm keeping the dream alive

 

[erted]

Very exciting! Be sure to let us know what you think once you have had a listen to them. As far as the HD600 goes, I am sure you will be ordering one before you know it.

Ok, here's the update I promised - a true buzzkill

I'm still waiting for my headphones to arrive. It's been almost three weeks and I'm starting to grow impatient - I sent an email to hifiheadphones inquiring about the whereabouts of the order. In light of my impatience, I've been looking more and more at the HD 600. A short while ago I found them on thomman.de for a ridiculous price of 250eur and immediately proceeded to hit my head against a nearby wall. If my order doesn’t arrive soon, I think I'll order the HD 600 and send the HP151 straingt back when / if it arrives.

And another thought on the HD 600 - I mentioned I was looking to pair it with the Schiit stack, that is, the Schiit Modi 2 and Magni 2. Are there any solid alternatives? Maybe spend a bit more on the amp and get the DAC later, maybe stretch it and get the Asgard 2? Another thing, thomman does actually sell some headphone DAC/amp units, although their selection is a bit limited. From their offers, I have my eye on the Fostex HP-A3, which is, at 300eur, right at the upper limit of my amp/dac budget. Any thoughts on this? I've read good things about the HP-A3, with the mayor complaint being limited power output due to USB power supply, making it a bit less suitable for high impedance headphones. Ordering both the headphones and an amp from the same site would be preferable, as I could get both items for the price of one shipping.

Thanks for your help

 

[serman005]

Sorry you are having trouble with your order. I must say I am surprised. hifiheadphones has a solid reputation (or did --( ). Alternatives to the Schiit stack would be the JDS Labs O2/ODAC pair. Very nice, if a bit brighter than the M2/M2, IMO. The Meier Jazz ff would be a terrific choice. Meier makes really super amps. You might check it out and see what you think. I personally haven't heard the Fostex but it is obviously a resepected brand in headphone audio. The Asgard 2 would also be a good choice, though the Magni 2 (or Magni 2 Uber) is no slouch and has plenty of power for the HD600.

 

[erted]

Sorry you are having trouble with your order. I must say I am surprised. hifiheadphones has a solid reputation (or did --( ). Alternatives to the Schiit stack would be the JDS Labs O2/ODAC pair. Very nice, if a bit brighter than the M2/M2, IMO. The Meier Jazz ff would be a terrific choice. Meier makes really super amps. You might check it out and see what you think. I personally haven't heard the Fostex but it is obviously a resepected brand in headphone audio. The Asgard 2 would also be a good choice, though the Magni 2 (or Magni 2 Uber) is no slouch and has plenty of power for the HD600.

Thank you for the suggestions. I checked out Meier amps, they look super but are a bit on the pricy side. The O2+ODAC was on my list for quite some time though I read somewhere (I'm almost sure it was on this forum) that it is very similar overall in terms of sound to the Schiit stack but costs more. I think the Schiit stack would be a good start for my first amp/dac and I could later upgrade to something like the Valhalla 2 (although tubes give me the chills) or the Meier Jazz ff.

As for hifiheadphones, I still have high hopes. They haven't replied yet, but that's understandable as I only wrote to them this afternoon.