[Furmang08]

The only hi-fi headphones I've ever owned are the Grado SR-60's, but my dad bought some very nice Polk Audio speakers with a subwoofer also. I plan on getting the Sennheiser HD-595's soon.

Personally, I think headphones and speakers are just the gateway to experiencing your favorite music as you would like to hear it. I know some people who can't tell the difference between ibuds and my Grado's... and I feel sorry for them. It's like seeing a beautiful sunset and everyone else is oblivious.

Also, I'm not exactly rich (college student), so I can't afford to buy AKG's or the top-of-the-line Grados or Ultimate Ears. But I love reading about what people think of them, and I love imagining what they might sound like. I'm appreciative of the "obsessive" types (the ones who write pages of detailed reviews) because they have a way of putting into words what I currently can't experience.

Finally, the fact that a lot of audio equipment is so expensive gives me something to look forward to, and helps me aspire to earn a lot of money one day!

 

[CuriousVoiger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Electric_Mofo /img/forum/go_quote.gif ...I just feel that sometimes people need to remember that there was probably a time when they were the ones with stock buds...

oh, I don’t need to remember… I know, how bad they sound!

Personally, I’ve never been happy with any of the stock earbuds, unlike most of the people I know, I’ve always longed for better sound. In fact they’d find it difficult to understand why I’d spend $500 on a pair of earbuds. So when I found this site for me was like - OMG I’m not alone!

For me is not a hobby at all, it’s more like a craving, a want for better sound (it’s a scourge I’m telling ya!). I like music… hearing the notes extend clearly, and the sweet balance among them, etc…etc. I just don’t like listening to mushy revolting noise.

I guess one cannot just be an audiophile – you either are or aren’t - you obviously ain’t (no offence).

You'll forgive me, but I had that on my chest too

cheers!

 

[dizzyorange]

"Finally, the fact that a lot of audio equipment is so expensive gives me something to look forward to, and helps me aspire to earn a lot of money one day!"

My thoughts exactly.

 

[spaceconvoy]

Yes, this hobby, like any and all hobbies, is a joke. That's what a hobby is, just something to kill the time between birth and death, for those of us fortunate enough not to have to worry about much in the meantime.

 

[Vicomte]

It's more of an ironic musing, actually.

 

[redshifter]

a joke? compared to what? there are lots of things in this world funnier than headphones.

 

[Electric_Mofo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CuriousVoiger /img/forum/go_quote.gif oh, I don’t need to remember… I know, how bad they sound! Personally, I’ve never been happy with any of the stock earbuds, unlike most of the people I know, I’ve always longed for better sound. In fact they’d find it difficult to understand why I’d spend $500 on a pair of earbuds. So when I found this site for me was like - OMG I’m not alone! For me is not a hobby at all, it’s more like a craving, a want for better sound (it’s a scourge I’m telling ya!). I like music… hearing the notes extend clearly, and the sweet balance among them, etc…etc. I just don’t like listening to mushy revolting noise. I guess one cannot just be an audiophile – you either are or aren’t - you obviously ain’t (no offence). You'll forgive me, but I had that on my chest too cheers!

Well how do you define audiophile? My family mostly consists of people who are either working in a studio or have in the past. I myself am a Sound Engineer in my part time, my mother owned a studio in Ghana, my uncle is a top producer of Ghanain music and my cousin is on the brink of signing to a major Hip-Hop label. But being able to go back and listen to cheap headphones doesn't mean that Im not an Audiophile, it just means that I can listen to the 'music' and ignore the fact that the source is ****.

I know its addictive, I often look at myself and say "why the heck did I spend that much on my headphones" but when you start taking notice of things like treble and base extension, mid-range and frequency response you begin to wonder and crave more. You start thinking to yourself, hmmm I would love some base response and deeper base and then things go downhill from there. Your wallet becomes anorexic and you find yourself putting all your priorities on money for headphones.

 

[fondy44]

"Get back to the basics.. It's all about enjoying the music.."

I think this is some valuable advice. Every hobby can be taken to the extreme, try browsing sites dedicated to coffee, cigars, or anything for that matter, and you'll see what I mean. With that said, I think this hobby is a little misleading for those of us who don't realize what we're getting into.

My first "investment" in headphones was spending $50 (which I thought was excessive at the time) on a pair of Sony EX-71's to replace the pack-ins that came with my DAP. Though many people consider these phones to be crap, as a noob I was completely blown away by the improvement in sound quality, especially the bass-response in something so small.

I quickly upgraded to Shure E2's, thinking that a $100 pair of phones must sound 2x better than a $50 pair. It wasn't until I dropped almost $200 on the E4's that I realized I have neither the physical ability nor the financial freedom to appreciate the sonic differences in a lot of these high-end phones.

Though I can't afford most of the gear that people discuss here, I still enjoy reading other folk's experiences. Not to mention that without Head-Fi, I never would have discovered that great little gem that is the KSC-75!

 

[DaNuS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by redshifter /img/forum/go_quote.gif a joke? compared to what? there are lots of things in this world funnier than headphones.

Fantastic! That made my day

As far as hobbies go: I've moved from Home Theater to Stereos, and now to Headphones now. I usually end up on sites like this so that I can get more info on the subject. A good rule of thumb for me has been to:

1) Identify what you want out of something, in this case a headphone system
2) Read, read, read
3) When you find your desires changing based on reading about the latest and greatest in this hobby, see 1)
4) When you are just about finished with a system and still find yourself looking towards "upgrades", see 1)
5) When you've finished your system, use it as much as you can
6) After you've gotten a good deal of use out of the system 1 of 2 things will happen: You'll either find a new hobby and this one won't be as interesting as it once was, or you've realized that you find this hobby enjoyable and you'll invest more into it as a result. If it is the latter, go to 1) and your goals should have changed since the current system is now "lacking"

What often happens is a new person like myself will be firehosed with information and they suck up as much as they can. This leads you to change direction rapidly in a short amount of time. For your first system stick with your plan even though it's tough since one day you find something that seems like it would "fill" that void in your system. The funny thing is... there are always going to be those types of products.

 

[khbaur330162]

Amps, sources, headphones and synergy are most definitely not limited to equalization. You simply must listen to some more stuff. I'm not saying I'm a headphone connoisseur, but I do know that some headphones just sound boring. I don't care what kind of voodoo EQ preset you throw at it, it will still be boring w/o a stellar amp and stellar source combination.

Amplifiers also have much more to offer than voltage and current to supply to headphones. Just because two amps can, specifications-wise, drive a pair of headphones, and may even have a similar sound signature, does NOT mean that the resolution and pure authority will be the same.

Now, without ever hearing all this stuff, you're right, it's a lot of words shoved in your mouth with little meaning. Only until you perceive all these terms first hand will you know what in the hell the people here are talking about, and I'm quickly finding this out myself.

One piece of advice I can give you: I used my $2000 computer as a source and it sounded like ****. I used my $150 DVD player as a source, and to my ears, it sounds heavenly. Source really does make a huge difference. No matter how I ripped my CD's, I couldn't get the music to sound 10% what they did being played straight from the DVDP. A DAC may be able to help things a bit with your PC rig, but honestly, do yourself a favor and head over to the "Dedicated Source" forum and do a little research. You can find something for pretty cheap that will sound worlds better, imo. Good luck.

khbaur

 

[Jokieman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Electric_Mofo /img/forum/go_quote.gif Sometimes I think this addiction to sound is a joke. Sometimes I feel like some people here need all that expensive equipment just to enjoy music, which is abit strange. On occasion I feel like some people here look down upon people who listen to music through cheap headphones and consider them inferior. And I dont get this attitude towards EQ'ing either, like do you really think that music is recorded straight onto a CD and left alone? are people even aware of how much EQ has gone into recorded CD's to get it to sound correct. Everthing from snare's to hi-hats and to kicks are EQ'ed to change the sound to the artists preferance, so why get objective when people want to change the EQ on the DAP? Its already been EQ'ed to hell already so why not embrace the option? And I also agree with the thread starter about amps basically being an EQ because it is. All amps add their own sound signiture to a source either it be increasing the base, bumping up the mid-range or high-range. So how comes this is accepted but internal EQ's aren't?

That's a good point, and I'd also like to point out that the songs you hear on the CD are usually a LOT different than what the bands prefer to play in concert in terms of bass/treble/ etc.

Quote:

Originally Posted by leng jai /img/forum/go_quote.gif A lot of the time differences here are made to sound massive when in fact they are minute which 9/10 people wouldn't even notice.

/agreed. Sometimes it is very difficult to get a really accurate and objective viewpoint on headphones and IEMs because of the over-exaggeration on how "bad" some headphones sound.. I have read posts from people that made it seem like one IEM was handed down from God himself, while another would make your ears bleed if you listened through it. The reality though is they can all be listened to, and they can all be enjoyed, and I think somewhere along the way a lot of fine patrons to this forum have forgotten that it's not all about what YOU like when making suggestions, it's about trying to help someone else find what THEY will like. I think that gets forgotten all too often, and I think a more objective viewpoint could only help the person seeking advice.

I also quite frankly find it amazing that some can give suggestions without knowing the kind of music/setup the person enjoys listening to. How can anyone really help someone without knowing that basic information since many headphones and IEM's are setup for certain types of music...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Electric_Mofo /img/forum/go_quote.gif But being able to go back and listen to cheap headphones doesn't mean that Im not an Audiophile, it just means that I can listen to the 'music' and ignore the fact that the source is ****.

Indeed it does not, I said something similar recently when I felt a bit ashamed to call myself an Audiophile because so many would say that I am not--because I have not spent X amount of dollars to join the club-- Some forums even exclude people from doing reviews on headphones/iems if they weren't actually 'purchased' by that person. They claim it is because they feel that if those items were given to them by the factory, it would skew the review, but I guess no one ever thought about loaners. I've got over $2500.00 in IEM's sitting here that I have borrowed from a colleague of mine and have been listening to them all over the course of the last couple of weeks. (and I'll have another 2 weeks with them.) Yet because I didn't purchase them, I can't review them. Go figure. -- I'd also like to add that one of these websites receives items for free to review. The ultimate in hypocrisy.

 

[ferraro25]

I've definitely helped make it a joke for myself. I bought so many headphones but only one source and one amp upgrade, and I won't sell anything even though I only use the K501 and hate all my other headphones in comparison.

Another joke is people liking a headphone a little too much, being overly defensive of it. Humans like to feel as part of a group. Same as the BS with sports teams, politics, superstition, etc. I would like to be able to overcome that kind of social ape crap, but I never will.

I think that all of my headphones suck. It is just that my K501 is the least annoyingly flawed to me. If other people think the K501 is the worst headphone ever, why should I argue? It is just another random mid-fi headphone that lacks bass, big whoop.

I've already wasted about $1000 total on headphones and related crap, and I'm going to be wasting a hell of a lot more trying to find a decent headphone setup. That is a joke.

My trolling is a joke, but I enjoy it, and that is what matters (to me).

 

[Hi-Finthen]

Lots of great multifaceted responces to a basic question of yours.... Not to change your mind so much, as it is useful to regain to courage to persue the fun you see others having perhaps....

Only you yourself can decide if the pursuit of what this hobby offers is of value to you...Time, effort and yes money must be spent for the appreciation of music either live or reproduced. Ultimatly, I do think ones love for what music does for us individualy, has to be the great motivator as to its value to us with better reproduction gears. Also our mindset can ruin this potential experience for us either at the live venue or with our assembled reproduction gears. I am constantly amazed with the variety of musical experiences I have with my gear that I wouldn't have experienced otherwise...And networking thru Head-Fi as a resource for gear has been helpful in that pursuit.... YMMV

 

[ZenFountain]

nah I don't think any hobby is a joke as long as you know where that fine line between obsession and enjoyment is.

 

[IPodPJ]

You can buy all the amps, all the sources, all the headphones, all the EQs, and all the cables you want. One person makes a recommendation to another person. When was the last time you ever heard of someone asking you to replace your eardrums for a different pair? Oh, you haven't? Exactly. Sound is subjective. No two people will hear anything in the same way, and I think that's something that needs to be thrown in as a reminder every once in awhile.

Some people get carried away here and think others are inferior for their perhaps inferior equipment. The only thing I see as inferior about a person is the augmented reality they are subjected to by those who think they are superior.