[Clayton72]

Has anyone tried to use a Sennheiser HD-800 with an X3?  I already have the X3, a friend is offering me a great deal on the HD-800s.  I'm guessing it wouldn't work very well...  I pretty much only use headphones at work and I can't leave anything on the desk when I leave because it is shared with other shifts.  What would be an effective portable DAC / Amp to use with HD-800s? 

 

[Sefelt103]

The stock Fiio X3 has a rather powerful amp. for a portable player. So it should be OK with the 300 ohm headphones but you won't be hearing the exquisite sound possible with these headphones. The HD800 is not really a portable headphone. Not really recommended for use in a working environment. People pair this headphone with their hi-fi or a laptop into a Dacmagic and desktop amplifier, a CD player and amplifier or something like a QLS QA660/860. To see the beauty of these the signal in needs to be very high grade which discounts many but not all portables.

 

[Clayton72]

I'm using the X3 with these headphones right now, at work.  The biggest issue seems to be that a co-worker across the room can hear the music clearly and thinks I must be deaf to be listening so loud.  Fortunately I work graveyard so there aren't many to disturb. 
With Gain set to High, I have the volume turned up to 25 out of 60.  So yes, the X3 has more than enough power to drive the headphones and they sound pretty darn good.  They sound like headphones with the X3 though and with a good amp they sound better than headphones.  The sound stage blooms to something that exists outside of your head with a good amp.  But yeah, they also sound better than any other headphone I've had on the X3, hands down.  So one of these days I need a better portable amp, but for now the X3 will do.

 

[Sefelt103]

Presumably the X3s warm sound signature is faithfully reproduced with great accuracy. There is a modification that makes the player more neutral sounding but you would then lose the capability to drive these high resistance headphones. Perhaps semi-open headphones like Beyerdynamics might suit a work environment better, like a relatively cheap pair of 250ohm DT880s and then you could save your HD800s for leisure listening.

 

[Peti]

I know around here it sounds like blasphemy but in the beginning I used my HD-800 solely with the X3. What's more I used the X3 connected to my laptop as a dac. And you know what? It got loud enough without turning the volume to the max. how about that? On the other hand I must tell that I mostly listen to metal which tend to be overcompressed as far as dynamic range goes. When I tried some classic reference rock albums like Brothers in Arms (First Warner Edition) or the best of Queen (again, first, japanese edition) and some classical albums I had to turn up the volume to the max and even it wasn't loud enough.
 
But I'm just planning to buy a pair of JVC DX-700 or DX-2000 headphones and I intend to uses'em the very same way.

 

[Sefelt103]

Now the Fiio X5 is here you might consider upgrading, there is even the X7 coming out sometime next year that will be a little more neutral for these high grade headphones.

 

[Peti]

Right now I'm quite content with my X3 esp. now as I discovered I can expand its memory with a 128 gb memory card. My next step for a "proper" amp/dac will be the O2/Odac but not anytime soon. I had a chance to try it with my HD800 and that was indeed HIGH fidelity at its best! It sure sounded "sterile" and "clinical" but you pretty much heard everything the way the artist intented to AND the audio engineers engineered to.
 
No coloration whatever. That, unfortunately, meant I literally couldn't listen to some of my all time favourite metal albums b/c they were soo poorly recorded/mastered and/or higly compressed. But if the source was correct [my best recommendation: Queen - Greatest Hits II (TOCP-6913) jap, first ed. AND Tchaikovsky 1812 Cossack Dance from Mazeppa (Erich Kunzel & Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra)] it was a sonic orgasm (or eargasm?)

This album has a dynamic range of a massive 17(!) and let me bring your attention to the warning sign at the upleft corner. This, combined with the HD800 plus O2/Odac gave me a sonic pleasure I have never heard before.
 
Long story short, I now want to try a typically coloured pair of headphones, preferably a closed one and I figured the JVC DX series will do the trick for me, especially b/c they are pretty easy to drive so my X3 will do the job.

 

[JeffR714]

Listen I'm new to the forum and I guess I'm just frustrated I just bought a pair of Sennheiser HD650 thinking I could use them with the Fiio X3 well

 

[Polar1]

Now the Fiio X5 is here you might consider upgrading, there is even the X7 coming out sometime next year that will be a little more neutral for these high grade headphones.

 
Is the Fiio X5 capable of driving a hi-fi headphone better that the X3? 

 

[Sefelt103]

They have quite similar output power at 32ohms, but X5 is better with high impedance headphones:
X3 - 250mW @ 32ohm, <16mW @ 300ohm
X5 460mW @ 16ohm, 255mW @ 32ohm, 28mW @ 300ohm

 

[Polar1]

They have quite similar output power at 32ohms, but X5 is better with high impedance headphones:
X3 - 250mW @ 32ohm, <16mW @ 300ohm
X5 460mW @ 16ohm, 255mW @ 32ohm, 28mW @ 300ohm

 
Interesting. So if I understand correctly, this means that the HD-800's or HD-650's will sound better on the X5 right? 

 

[Sefelt103]

An X5 has more capability to drive high impedance headphones and is more neutral than the X3 so it should be an improvement. The question of whether the amplifier on the X5 is good enough for Sennheisers wonderful HD800 is doubtful. Headphones like that need a HDVD800 or Hifiman EF6 to realise their potential.

 

[Polar1]

Thanks Sefelt.

In your opinion, an X5 will drive Sennheiser HD-650's more sufficiently than the X3 or it will be a waste?

 

[FlyingKiwi]

Just to keep it real, don't overlook the two posters who currently use HD800s with an X3 and are perfectly happy with the result.....

 

[Peti]

Yeah, for me the HD800 with X3 worked flawlessly when listened to some compressed (dynamic range-wise) music. Like most of the metal and hard rock releases.