[buke9]

Good god, that's hard core. Oh well, baby steps for me I guess, lol.

@PopZeus
You're DEFINITELY onto something with the Audeze Mobius, if what I read in their website pans out they're gonna sell like hot cakes, I'm skipping on the 1More's and putting a big fat cross-hair on the Mobius when it's out in August, those copper ones look really nice.

In the mean time, it seems I'm left with with either the Meze 99's, E-MU Teaks (Haven't heard from Chan/E-MU yet) or the ZMF Blackwoods to enjoy my music, is the difference between the latter two worth forking out an additional 200 bucks for? To be honest, money that I'm not spending on the headphone, I can spend on Amps, DACs and wires, so there's that to consider.

Right now don’t concern yourself about wires. Good quality will be just fine no sense of spending more than $20 usd on a cable for now most will be just fine. Headphones is the main priority other than dacs or amps and cables.

 

[PopZeus]

You're DEFINITELY onto something with the Audeze Mobius, if what I read in their website pans out they're gonna sell like hot cakes, I'm skipping on the 1More's and putting a big fat cross-hair on the Mobius when it's out in August, those copper ones look really nice.

In the mean time, it seems I'm left with with either the Meze 99's, E-MU Teaks (Haven't heard from Chan/E-MU yet) or the ZMF Blackwoods to enjoy my music, is the difference between the latter two worth forking out an additional 200 bucks for? To be honest, money that I'm not spending on the headphone, I can spend on Amps, DACs and wires, so there's that to consider.

Never heard the ZMF Blackwood. That's a Fostex variant also, except the ZMF's driver is a planar magnetic, and the E-MU Teak uses Fostex's dynamic driver. Personally, I've yet to hear a planar headphone that I like more than a dynamic driver (Fostex and Focal make some of the best), but I've also never heard an Audeze headphone before.

 

[Rhamnetin]

Never heard the ZMF Blackwood. That's a Fostex variant also, except the ZMF's driver is a planar magnetic, and the E-MU Teak uses Fostex's dynamic driver. Personally, I've yet to hear a planar headphone that I like more than a dynamic driver (Fostex and Focal make some of the best), but I've also never heard an Audeze headphone before.

I think that's probably purely due to happenstance, e.g. you just didn't like the tuning of those planars. A good planar has no downsides, only advantages, over dynamic to my knowledge.

 

[PopZeus]

I think that's probably purely due to happenstance, e.g. you just didn't like the tuning of those planars. A good planar has no downsides, only advantages, over dynamic to my knowledge.

Probably. I've only heard a few of them and I wasn't too impressed with the tuning. They all shared a lack of sub-bass and problematic highs. It's a pretty big bummer to spend $400 and not have something you want to listen to. I'm sure there are affordable exceptions I'm not familiar with, but from my understanding a great planar experience usually costs more than a dynamic driver of similar quality. Of course, all the current headphone purchases I'm interested in happen to be planars, so take that for what you will.

 

[Rhamnetin]

Probably. I've only heard a few of them and I wasn't too impressed with the tuning. They all shared a lack of sub-bass and problematic highs. It's a pretty big bummer to spend $400 and not have something you want to listen to. I'm sure there are affordable exceptions I'm not familiar with, but from my understanding a great planar experience usually costs more than a dynamic driver of similar quality. Of course, all the current headphone purchases I'm interested in happen to be planars, so take that for what you will.

Which planars have you listened to? I think the lowest cost planar that really demonstrates the technology's inherent advantages (which include bass extension, bass slam, linear frequency response from bass to mids namely 10-20 Hz up to 1000 Hz usually, faster decay and better transparency) are the $300 Argon MK3 and ZMF Classic.

 

[PopZeus]

All good, @Rhamnetin. I've had some time with the HE400i and the Oppo PM-3.

But I have the Mobius arriving sometime early next month. And once I sell off some other gear, I'll get closer to being able to pick up the Aeon Flow Closed. Tbh, there was a time when I was interested in grabbing a well-considered T50rp variant but that time has passed. Heard too many things that didn't jive with what I was looking for, but all the raves have me curious... Is the ZMF Blackwood better than the Focal Elex? That's sort of where my tastes are at currently in terms of summit-fi, which is why I'm looking into the AFC.

 

[CaffeinatedQ8]

Hey all, sorry for going off the radar for the past couple of days, had to complete a video production project for a client and that always tend to throw my scheduling off, lol.

I was finally contacted by Chan and I guess I'm going to get myself a pair of E-MU Teak after all. Taking into consideration your recommendations, online reviews and price range, I guess it's the right pair to get.. hopefully.

I'll most likely get the Audeze Mobius too sometime later, hopefully by next month.

Any recommendations on what AMP/DAC I should use on the E-MU Teak, is it power-hungry or easily driven?

 

[CaffeinatedQ8]

Alright, just a quick update on the whole thing, I placed the order for the E-MU Teak, should be shipped within two weeks or so I guess, can't wait to get my hands on those!

I narrowed down my DAC/AMP needs to one of the below options:
- ifi Audio xDSD ($399 USD)
- ifi Audio Nano iDSD BL ($199)
- Sennheiser GSX 1000 ($187) (simply because of the virtual 7.1 surround and wider virtual sound staging for gaming. I don't buy into the "virtual" 7.1 gimmick, but many reviewers, some of whom I tend to trust swear by it, so... I dunno)
- Get both the Nano iDSD BL + GSX 1000 (is it possible / beneficial to connect/use both where i use the Nano for my music, movies... etc and only use the GSX for gaming by enabling the 7.1 virtual surround? if so, getting both would really make more sense since getting both units still beat the price of the ifi xDSD)

Any thoughts, comments and/or recommendations would be really appreciated

 

[PopZeus]

My current DAC/amp crush is the Audio-gd R2R-11. Unlike most in this price range, it has a resistor ladder DAC. If you're not totally a spec fiend, it's the best value under $400 imho. My HT system has never sounded better. For gaming, I've read that it's not the most detailed combo, but it has above average imaging for placement. If delta-sigma is more your thing, they also have the NFB-11.28 or 38 for around the same price. I've read it's the more detailed sounding of the two combos. If you can, might as well spring for the preferable combo for music and just wait for the Mobius before getting invested in a 7.1 gaming rig, but that's just me.

Edit: Happy to hear you settled on the Teaks! You're in for a treat. Fwiw, if you had asked for an open rec, I would've probably mentioned the Sundara.

 

[Sonic Defender]

I love the FiiO Q5. Just thought I would mention it as the OP is considering the iFi xDSD. I'm a fan of iFi, currently using an iOne, but damn is the Q5 a fantastic device and well worth considering.

 

[CaffeinatedQ8]

My current DAC/amp crush is the Audio-gd R2R-11. Unlike most in this price range, it has a resistor ladder DAC. If you're not totally a spec fiend, it's the best value under $400 imho. My HT system has never sounded better. For gaming, I've read that it's not the most detailed combo, but it has above average imaging for placement. If delta-sigma is more your thing, they also have the NFB-11.28 or 38 for around the same price. I've read it's the more detailed sounding of the two combos. If you can, might as well spring for the preferable combo for music and just wait for the Mobius before getting invested in a 7.1 gaming rig, but that's just me.

Edit: Happy to hear you settled on the Teaks! You're in for a treat. Fwiw, if you had asked for an open rec, I would've probably mentioned the Sundara.

The Mobius, of course!! they totally slipped my mind, I was gunning for those since you've mentioned them a while back!!
Eh, that took the GSX out of the equation at least, lol.

As for the Audio-gd, I've been to their site, kinda finnicky but it couldn't get any worse than the way I ordered the Teaks, lol. I considered the NFB-11.28's but I wanted something simpler until I fully understand my audio gear better, I'm still not sure I know how R2R, Delta-Sigma or string differ from each other, other than the fact that they're different methods of analog/digital conversion.

Other reasons for sticking with off-the-shelf brands is that there's a higher chance I can find them locally, FiiO, ifi, Oppo, Chord, HifiMan, Woo... etc. can be sourced easily here I believe.
As for what I'm looking for in a combo; portability isn't an issue, it would be nice if it's there (useful when I do my video/audio editing in the field), but meh, I guess I can do without it for now, presentation and style while not necessarily important is highly appreciated, I keep my desktop neat and wanted something sleek that blends with the rest of my setup, I don't have/use a speakers setup (because kids, lol) so.. yeah... with that in mind, I figured the ones I mentioned fit the bill.

I know I'll eventually upgrade to something on the higher-end later on, that's why I'm sticking with something not so expensive for now. under $400 bucks seems about right for my budget at the moment. I might reconsider the NFB-11.28 if I didn't settle on anything else, I really like what people say about it, but yet there are some people who reported quality issues (bad soldering, noises... etc.), that was a major factor in me taking it off my list.

I love the FiiO Q5. Just thought I would mention it as the OP is considering the iFi xDSD. I'm a fan of iFi, currently using an iOne, but damn is the Q5 a fantastic device and well worth considering.

The FiiO Q5 was on my list, I took it off because I read somewhere that it's too bright or at least brighter than the ifi xDSD/ Nano iDSD, but since you brought it up, what sets it apart from the xDSD if you don't mind me asking and what kind of cans you use them with.

 

[god-bluff]

If the looks don't matter and you don't mind spending a lot less/ don't associate price with quality ..
.. . maybe give the the DT150 a whirl

 

[Sonic Defender]

The Mobius, of course!! they totally slipped my mind, I was gunning for those since you've mentioned them a while back!!
Eh, that took the GSX out of the equation at least, lol.

As for the Audio-gd, I've been to their site, kinda finnicky but it couldn't get any worse than the way I ordered the Teaks, lol. I considered the NFB-11.28's but I wanted something simpler until I fully understand my audio gear better, I'm still not sure I know how R2R, Delta-Sigma or string differ from each other, other than the fact that they're different methods of analog/digital conversion.

Other reasons for sticking with off-the-shelf brands is that there's a higher chance I can find them locally, FiiO, ifi, Oppo, Chord, HifiMan, Woo... etc. can be sourced easily here I believe.
As for what I'm looking for in a combo; portability isn't an issue, it would be nice if it's there (useful when I do my video/audio editing in the field), but meh, I guess I can do without it for now, presentation and style while not necessarily important is highly appreciated, I keep my desktop neat and wanted something sleek that blends with the rest of my setup, I don't have/use a speakers setup (because kids, lol) so.. yeah... with that in mind, I figured the ones I mentioned fit the bill.

I know I'll eventually upgrade to something on the higher-end later on, that's why I'm sticking with something not so expensive for now. under $400 bucks seems about right for my budget at the moment. I might reconsider the NFB-11.28 if I didn't settle on anything else, I really like what people say about it, but yet there are some people who reported quality issues (bad soldering, noises... etc.), that was a major factor in me taking it off my list.



The FiiO Q5 was on my list, I took it off because I read somewhere that it's too bright or at least brighter than the ifi xDSD/ Nano iDSD, but since you brought it up, what sets it apart from the xDSD if you don't mind me asking and what kind of cans you use them with.

I doubt it is brighter than the xDSD, if it is that would mean the xDSD is dark sounding. I use mainly the Pioneer SE Monitor 5 which is closer to neutral so if the Q5 was inherently bright I would find it too much as I don't like bright. Truthfully I would be surprised if they really had much of a different sound. I would go by the feature set of the devices personally and select the one that had more of what I wanted. All I can say is that the Q5 is simply fantastic and I personally find it delivers everything and more that I could have expected in such a small device. iFi makes amazing products as well so if it is Q5 or xDSD you will have a great device.

 

[avsmusic1]

subbed

 

[CaffeinatedQ8]

I doubt it is brighter than the xDSD, if it is that would mean the xDSD is dark sounding. I use mainly the Pioneer SE Monitor 5 which is closer to neutral so if the Q5 was inherently bright I would find it too much as I don't like bright. Truthfully I would be surprised if they really had much of a different sound. I would go by the feature set of the devices personally and select the one that had more of what I wanted. All I can say is that the Q5 is simply fantastic and I personally find it delivers everything and more that I could have expected in such a small device. iFi makes amazing products as well so if it is Q5 or xDSD you will have a great device.

My bad, you're right and I'm wrong.. kinda, the review bit I saw about the Q5 being brighter was in fact for the unit with the "unbalanced" extension, reading a bit further down, and it's all praises and fluffy unicorns when it talked about it with the balanced extension. And I can't believe I'm saying this, but the Q5 is kinda taking over the top of my list atm.. one question though, how is it with Android devices? Some complained lack of support for the Android platform (this time I read the whole thing just to be safe, lol).

On a side note, My first DAC, in fact the very one I'm using right now, is a FiiO E7... a beautiful relic of a device, kinda got me all sentimental and I'm suddenly leaning more towards the Q5, you know, being a FiiO and all... ok, this is getting weird