[ashishkushwaha]

Hi All,

Firstly, this is my first post on Head-Fi, to hi to all. I am Ashish from India, but i am currently in Houston, TX.

That said, I am entering the audiophile segment for the first time and need some suggestions.

1. Headphones - I listen mainly to trance (uplifting, progressive, vocal, epic). Mainly the kind Armin plays. Other genres that i listen to are - New Age (Engima, Karunesh), Ambient (Cafe Del Mar), Techno (game osts and all), instrumentals (yanni kind).

I would also use these headphones for gaming and movies. In fact breakdown would be

Music - 40%
Gaming - 30%
Movies - 30%

So I need to know which headphones will be best suited for these needs. Budget being 300-400$. Not more than that.

After doing loads of research on head-fi and other places, i did find that Beyerdynamic DT990 are well suited for trance. But i am not too sure. Also, the dt990 come in 2 flavors, 250ohm and 600ohm.

I want to know if i can drive the 600ohm dt-990 with the Audio GD compass DAC, as that is the DAC/Amp combo i plan on buying. I already have the Auzentech X-fi forte. If you all have some other DAC/AMP suggestion in the same budget (350$), please recommend.

So it would be

forte -> Compass DAC -> Headphones ....

What i need to know is, is this combo good enough for 600ohm dt990's ???

And if you people recommend some other headphones, then i just want to know if the compass DAC would be good enough to drive them.

----------------

2. Place to Audition in Houston - Which headphones are good can be a very subjective thing and can vary from person to person. Can someone please tell me a good place to audition these high end cans in Houston. I had gone to best buy and they just had Sony's and Bose ... they didn't have AKG's, Beyers, Sennheisers, Ultrasones, Denons, Audiotechnica's or anything that i wanted to audition. Any pointers ????


Thanks in advance ... Ashish.

 

[ashishkushwaha]

bump ?????? any suggestions please ...

...

 

[fluffygdog95]

Well depending on your goal with electronic music, cans can be vary wide ranging. I love electronica. I have the sennheiser hd650 with the Compass DAC/amp and it is pretty good. The layering in the bass for artists such as Infected Mushroom is phenomenal. The hd650s could leave you a bit disappointed though if your goal is in your face detail. The Compass doesn't really have the full power to open up the hd650 into the beast it is proclaimed to be. So you may be missing some detail. If you only are going to listen to trance stuff and techno based instrumentals like Yanni, the hd650 with the Compass should not disappoint you.

There have been a few people that are saying the new hd650 is brighter than the older version. I think it would come down to preference. If you want more prominent bass tones, go with the old one. If you are maybe more into a detail oriented can, try the new one. Many have said that the hd650 goes well with the Compass, so with either you should not be disappointed.

 

[ashishkushwaha]

^ Hey thanks a lot ... but also on several other threads on head-fi itself, many have recommended dt990's for trance. Since i don't know any place to audition, i will have to trust the reviews and take the plunge. Some also say ultrasones, but i don't want to get closed ones as my ears are very sensitive and pain a lot due to the pressure build up. I prefer open cans as they don't cause my ears to pain. Not that i have tried a lot of cans, but the few that i have tried, i always found open to be better for me.

So its either 650 or the dt990 pro (600ohm). Can someone tell me how the dt990 pro would be for trance, specially Armin kind?

Also, as i mentioned in the OP, is the compass DAC good enough for 600ohm headphones ???

 

[Justice Strike]

for the 650 i would suggest listening to them somewhere where they have the same setup as you do. I've listened to them yesterday, and they absolutely did not sound as i had heard some other people describe them. They are very dependant of the amp.

as for other good headphones. Try to look at the mdr-sa5000. Very very very detailed headphones.

 

[Mad Max]

Is detail really related to power? I think that relates more to the amp's transparency rather than power. The Compass' amp section isn't the most transparent, for sure. My portable amp is significantly more detailed than the Compass' amp, but not at all as powerful. The DAC section of the Compass is real good, but I do not have a better desktop amp to see just how good it can be, but my portable amp kind of gives me a preview.

A 600-ohm DT880/990 or HD600/650 will fit your needs nicely if you are really interested in those. An AD900 would also get the job done just as well. =]

The beyers and audio-technicas will have faster, tighter bass though, as opposed to the sennheisers. I haven't played games in a long while, but for gaming I did try both HD600 and AD700 (AD900's younger sibling), and I prefer the AD700's soundstage for gaming though the HD600 will not disappoint.

The AT's have little bit better definition in their placement of sounds, and combined with the Compass they will have seriously accurate imaging, enough to pwn your opponents without even seeing them, lol. Okay, maybe not pwn, but you will know right where they are by their footsteps and be better able to anticipate them. The AD700 are real good for gaming, I think the AD900's should be better as per what I've read around here - that they do everything better than AD700 in general.

 

[ashishkushwaha]

Thanks a lot .... well i ordered the following ...

1. Compass DAC
2. Beyerdynamic DT-990 Pro (600 Ohm)

lets see how it goes ...