Like others here (and probably on Reddit), I didn't realize that the SDAC is only a stopgap. Whether or not you decide to upgrade the headphones, spending $59 on a Schiit Magni + would offer you an immediate comparison to your current setup. You might end up enjoying the Sennheisers more, and the Schiit could still drive upgraded headphones if you went that route.
I spent the day at a headphone shop listening to some of the recommendations I've been getting, such as the HD800s, Arya Organics, Focal Clear MG, etc. I was playing songs off my phone, through the FiiO K7 DAC/Amp. I brought my 6XX's with me, and they sounded exactly the same on the FiiO amp as I was used to. Likewise, when my O2 amp broke and I had to switch to the SDAC, I didn't notice any change in sound, so I
think I'm in the clear with the SDAC, at least when it comes to the 6XX's. That might not be the case if I get different headphones, but like you and others have said, there are some very cheap Amps I can pick up, and I will do so if necessary.
I don't think you'll be happy with Clears' soundstage. Granted, I've only been listening to them
since last night when I received them. However, as much as you emphasize soundstage, they aren't going to do it for you.
Yeah, so I got to listen to the Focal Clear MG's today. Not the "Focal Clear OG", the MG. The OG version is discontinued and cannot be purchased at the stores near me, so the MG is the only one I can actually try out, and yeah, no, they definitely were not doing it for me. They sounded damn near identical to my 6XX's, I didn't notice any bigger soundstage or anything, just a
bit more detail in the bass.
Great idea! I see you’re getting a LOT of different recommendations for you here. I agree than an amp will make a significant difference in the performance of your 6XX, and only you’ll know what you like when you compare them to other headphones yourself.
That’s mostly right. Electrostatic headphones are the exception, and need an energized (rather than an amp) to be powered. Other than OTL tube amps (which are only good for high-impedance dynamics like your 6XX), it’s safe to say that dynamic driver and planar magnetic driver headphones can be run from the same amp. Whether that amp will really be optimal for each headphone is another discussion. But that’s for a little further down the road in your journey
Further down the road, behind the hill, over the mountain, across the ocean, on the other hemisphere.
I was able to get into a store today to try out most of the headphones that have bene recommended to me... please see my thoughts at the end of this reply.
To answer your question about impedance higher impedance does not mean harder to drive, in fact it can mean easier to drive because they require less current.
But that's not our concern with the SDAC and low impedance headphones, our concern is the output impedance of the SDAC itself vs the input impedance of the specific headphone you are running. Whenever you run an output device that is intended to run headphones or speakers or what have you it is in many cases (OTL excluded) going to have an output impedance of 0-1 ohms, very low. Meanwhile your SDAC 3.5mm line out has an output impedance of around 150 ohm.
Normally you want the input impedance of one device to be at least 10x higher than the output impedance of the preceding device (again, there can be exceptions). This will ensure you are properly damping the driver and not modifying the frequency response around a driver's resonance point. In the case of the HD6xx these problems actually aren't very large problems and in fact many people seek out high output impedance devices (like OTL tube amps) to pair with their HD6xx because subjectively they like the sound. At this very moment I have a HD6xx on my head running off an OTL tube amp with an output impedance of around 150 ohm and its wonderful.
However if I plug my Hifiman HE400se into this it is not wonderful anymore. The drivers are completely uncontrolled, the bass becomes sloppy and bloated, the distortion goes nuts, its just bad. If my OTL tube amp instead had an output transformer to modify the output impedance to a lower amount like say 4 ohms then most of those problems would disappear and the HE400se would sound great again.
In short, high output impedance sources are mostly limited to pairing with high input impedance headphones like 300 ohm dynamic driver Sennheisers or ZMFs.
Thank you for the explanation! It went a little over my heard when you started talking about damping the drivers and resonance points, but I got the point that the input impedance of the headphones should be >>> the output impedance of the DAC/Amp they're running off of.
I agree with the others about getting an amp. I have the SDAC myself, and use it with a Cavalli Spark amp, and that combo will drive most headphones with no issues. In the low price range for amps, I'd consider a JDS Atom II also.
No one has mentioned another headphone option for you in your price range, which is the JM Audio Editions XTC, which comes in an open back version or closed. For your stated aims, I'd go for the open back. John Massaria, the owner of the company, will tune your headphone to your individual needs, and will work with you to your satisfaction. Take a look in this thread:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/jm-audio-editions-xtc-headphones.966501/
Oh wow, what a remarkable product, the JM Audio headphones. Thank you for mentioning them. I don't even know where to begin to incorporate that into my analysis. I'm over here trying to weigh the pros and cons of the HD800s vs the Arya Organics vs the Focal Clear, and then this handcrafted, made-by-a-guy headphone comes out of left field and apparently is phenomenal? How do I compare it to the others? Where does it stack up against the likes of established "greats" like the HD800s? There's no way I could try these on first, so I don't know how I would ever be able to take that leap of blind faith.
It's interesting that you mainly got recommended other headphones when your current way of using the headphones is slightly "dodgy". But just to be clear, there may not be any big difference with a proper dedicated amp, but since it won't set you back that much, I would personally go for it, for the peace of mind.
Regarding point 2), impedance is not everything, how "hard" a headphone is to drive is determined by the impedance and sensitivity. Taking the 6XX, Arya Stealth, and HE6se V2 as example (I did these quickly so hopefully someone corrects me if I made a mistake):
Model | Impedance (ohms) | Sensitivity (dB/mW) | Required for 110 dB loudness |
6XX | 300 | 98 | 2.18 V / 0.0073 A / 15.8 mW |
Arya Stealth | 32 | 94 | 1.12 V / 0.0353 A / 39.8 mW |
HE6se V2 | 50 | 84 | 4.46 V / 0.0892 A / 398 mW |
As you can see, the HE6se requires much more power than the other two due to the low sensitivity, despite having a rather low impedance. Even the Arya, despite having lower impedance, needs more power than the 6XX to get to the same loudness. A higher impedance will require a higher voltage (V) to get sufficient current (A) and thus the desired power (W). Conversely, a lower impedance requires more current at the same sensitivity. Both current and/or voltage can be a limiting factor for an amplifier in a situation where it can't provide enough power to get to the desired SPL.
If you want to check these for yourselves, the calculator I used is here:
https://headphones.com/pages/headphones-power-calculator
edit* to add to this, I actually think it's plausible that the DAC you're using as a source right now can provide adequate voltage for say the 6XX, but may fall apart due to being current limited with a lower impedance & sensitivity headphone.
Thank you very much for your clear explanation of this! This helps a lot.
And yeah, Users on Head-Fi and Reddit were both
unanimous in their declaration that buying better headphones should be my biggest concern, not replacing the SDAC at this moment.
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RESULTS FROM TODAY'S LISTENING AT A STORE:
So, I was able to get into a store today to listen to some of the recommendations I've been getting, such as the HD800s, Arya Organics, Focal Clear MG, etc. I was playing songs off my phone, through the FiiO K7 DAC/Amp. I brought my 6XX's with me, and they sounded exactly the same on the FiiO amp as I was used to on my SDAC, so that was a good sign.
Unfortunately, this experience today left me feeling more confused and lost that I have felt in years.
I tried listening to: Sennheiser HD800s, Hifiman Arya Organic, Hifiman Edition XS, Focal Clear MG, Denon AH-D5200
To sum it up, I could
B.A.R.E.L.Y. notice any difference at all between my 6XX's and the HD800s and Arya Organics. I came to the store expecting a vastly improved soundstage, much greater detail, new sounds/instruments I had never heard before in my songs, etc. Instead, all I got was basically the exact same sound, just less... condensed? Less veiled? More clear? I don't quite know how to articulate it, it was so subtle.
I listened exclusively to the .flac songs that I have, and I did A-B testing over and over and over, replaying a song, replaying a part of a song, replaying a 3-second clip of a song to hear a specific sound, or strum, or gasp, just to see if there were any differences as I rapidly switched back and forth between headphones while keeping things volume-matched, and..... nothing.
The $2500 headphones sounded exactly the same as my $200 ones, just a bit clearer, and a bit less veiled. The sound stage was no bigger at all, all music and instruments were coming from the center of my head (except for the guitar in Snow (Hey Oh), which played outside the right ear in all headphones).
I am at a loss of words. I knew that when I stepped up from the 6XX's to these other models, that I wouldn't be experiencing the same world-changing difference that I experienced when going from $50 childhood headphones to the 6XX's, but I still expected
SOME kind of difference that merited the extra $2300 in expense, and there was just... nothing.
Am I missing something here?
HD 800s - Nice and clear, with a focus on the mids and trebles.
Arya Organic - Equally as clear as the HD800s, but with a bit less mids, an a bit more bass an subbase.
Focal Clear MG - A bit clearer than my 6XX's, but with an equally closed-sounding soundstage as the 6XX's, and a poor fit for my ears.
Denon AH-D5200 - Stronger base and trebles than the others, as to be expected from the more "U" shaped profile, but overall less detailed. Didn't sound any more detailed than my 6XX's.
My 6XX's - Individual sounds and instruments and words sounded just as good as on the HD800s or the Arya Organics, but slightly "condensed", or "muffled", or like they were being said from 20 feet down in a tunnel.
I haven't felt this lost in years. I have no idea what to do now. I really, truly, heard almost no difference in this testing. Only the HD800s and the Arya Organics sounded
any better than my 6XX's, and the only way in which they sounded better was that they sounded a bit clearer, like some muffling had been removed. The Arya Organic's had better base than the HD800's, but once I added a bit of bass to the 800's with an EQ, they sounded identical to the Organics.
Guys. I'm so lost. Please help.