[tdockweiler]

Quote:

Now that is an idea I like, I just don't have room for a desktop amp at the moment.. Maybe I'll build a shelf

One suggestion to get you by is to get the Creative X-Fi Go Pro. It's $35 online and is an amp/dac combo. It's pretty much ruler flat I think and sounds pretty impressive for the price. It actually drives my HD-580 quite decently!
 
You can even get them at Best Buy (can check stock online) and then return it if you don't like it. It's cheaper online though.
 
I remember loving the HD-598 with this tiny DAC. Not sure why it sounds so good.
 
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Creative+-+Sound+Blaster+X-Fi+Go!+Pro+External+USB+Sound+Card/1173369.p?id=1218230515852&skuId=1173369
 
There's some measurements on another site (that I can't name) and it did pretty well.

 

[Irishpwnstar]

Quote:

One suggestion to get you by is to get the Creative X-Fi Go Pro. It's $35 online and is an amp/dac combo. It's pretty much ruler flat I think and sounds pretty impressive for the price. It actually drives my HD-580 quite decently!
 
You can even get them at Best Buy (can check stock online) and then return it if you don't like it. It's cheaper online though.
 
I remember loving the HD-598 with this tiny DAC. Not sure why it sounds so good.
 
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Creative+-+Sound+Blaster+X-Fi+Go!+Pro+External+USB+Sound+Card/1173369.p?id=1218230515852&skuId=1173369
 
There's some measurements on another site (that I can't name) and it did pretty well.

Is this device going to make them sound better than the FiiO E11? If so, I may have to purchase it

 

[Z3disD3ad]

I don;t think the SB Go! Pro is a proper amp. It's just an external sound card probably similar in power output to your internal sound card. In fact, I cannot see any reason for you to purchase this at all.
 
P.S. I already have the SB Go! Pro USB stick for old games that used EAX.

 

[Irishpwnstar]

So is it worth it? I don't think so after that comment

 

[Irishpwnstar]

Does anybody know of a hard carrying case for these headphones? I have a pelican case but.. That's a little extreme haha.

 

[XxDobermanxX]

Ive heard go things about the fiio e17 and the hd 598 combo , thats the combo i have premeditated for the last 8 months 

, i ordered the fiio e17 about 2 months after their release , but something went wrong and i got the fiio e11, hopefully but christmas i can have them both 

 

[streetdragon]

do you guys think it is still worth it to upgrade from a HD558 to a HD598?

 also how well do they scale up to amps?

 

[AgentCOPP1]

Quote:

do you guys think it is still worth it to upgrade from a HD558 to a HD598?

 also how well do they scale up to amps?

One word: YES. At least to me anyway lol. Both of them are extremely easy to amp, but it's true that the 598s sound better with one.

 

[Irishpwnstar]

Quote:

Ive heard go things about the fiio e17 and the hd 598 combo , thats the combo i have premeditated for the last 8 months 

, i ordered the fiio e17 about 2 months after their release , but something went wrong and i got the fiio e11, hopefully but christmas i can have them both 

I plan on purchasing the e17 in the near future for sure, I had already purchased the e11 to amp my Q40's but I don't have a dac. So the e17 is definitely my next purchase

 

[vc1187]

So... it pained me, and I actually considered giving my HD650 as a gift instead of the HD598, but lo and behold, I have gifted my HD598 to my buddy who just got married as a wedding gift.
We did have a listening session shortly after with HD800, HE-500, HD650, and HD598 all on the HRT MusicStreamer II+ paired with the Violectric HPA-V200.  I can say with great confidence that the HD598 was still able to hold its own in terms of musicality and enjoyment...
 
Though I must say, truth of the matter is that I don't really like A/B comparing headphones, as my brain often goes biased to the first pair I hear during that listening session (Given it's a high quality headphone), and every pair following it takes time to engrave its signature into my brain.  I call this phenomenon headphone corruption 

 

[streetdragon]

Quote:

So... it pained me, and I actually considered giving my HD650 as a gift instead of the HD598, but lo and behold, I have gifted my HD598 to my buddy who just got married as a wedding gift.
We did have a listening session shortly after with HD800, HE-500, HD650, and HD598 all on the HRT MusicStreamer II+ paired with the Violectric HPA-V200.  I can say with great confidence that the HD598 was still able to hold its own in terms of musicality and enjoyment...
 
Though I must say, truth of the matter is that I don't really like A/B comparing headphones, as my brain often goes biased to the first pair I hear during that listening session (Given it's a high quality headphone), and every pair following it takes time to engrave its signature into my brain.  I call this phenomenon headphone corruption 

probably cause the first headphone is used as the reference for the second headphone. and after comparing too many times we become lost at what is good and what is not

 

[vc1187]

Quote:

probably cause the first headphone is used as the reference for the second headphone. and after comparing too many times we become lost at what is good and what is not

Yea seriously... either my pair of Apple IEMs were custom made to have better drivers and SQ than all of the rest, or I'm just seriously losing the concept of what's good and what is not... cause IMO, they sound pretty darn good lol. 

 

[streetdragon]

Quote:

Yea seriously... either my pair of Apple IEMs were custom made to have better drivers and SQ than all of the rest, or I'm just seriously losing the concept of what's good and what is not... cause IMO, they sound pretty darn good lol. 

maybe cause when you audition these 'cheap' headphones our expectations are lowered so low that we find them good? it happened to me