[afonsoruivo]

Hi everyone, I'm new on "real headphones" and i decided to invest in a decent set.
Usually i spent a lot of time watching movies / Tv series , listen to music and many podcasts as also Gaming ( i wrote in priority order )
I am thinking in buying a Fii0 E10 to go with them ( i don't know if is the right decision or not ).
I read a lot of threads in this forum and the more i read the more confuse i got. This are the headphones i looked more:
- Sony MDR-MA900
- Sennheiser HD 598
- Sony Prestige MDR-1R
- Audio-Technica ATH-M50S
 
(my budget its around the 200€)
I will use them 90% of the time at home, in my laptop or in desktop 
 
Or maybe any other brands that i don't even know....
I know everyone as seen this questions over and over, but would really appreciate if you could help me.
Thanks in advance.

 

[Trunks159]

I'd choose the ma900. I've heard all of them.

The ma900 has a huge soundstage, great imaging, surprisingly good bass, great comfort, slightly warm.

The 1r is warm, mid-bass heavy, mid centric (focuses on the mids, the vocals and whatnot), dark. Not comfortable for me since the pads are thin. Good sound stage for a closed can.

The HD598 is all miss and highs, barely any bass. The sound stage is great (not ma900 great but great nevertheless) and they're comfortable.

The m50 isn't in any of the other headphones league, though its bass is good. Uncomfortable.

 

[afonsoruivo]

Thanks a lot for answering my post! I'm really inclined to by the ma900...
And about the amp, do you think that it will improve my experience using one ?
I read very good things about the Fiio E10 (Price/quality), and since i'll use it 80/90% of the time in my Macbook or Desktop it seems a good option. I also heard a lot of good thing about the E12, i know its portable but i cant understand if it is better or not than the E10...

 

[PurpleAngel]

  Thanks a lot for answering my post! I'm really inclined to by the ma900...
And about the amp, do you think that it will improve my experience using one ?
I read very good things about the Fiio E10 (Price/quality), and since i'll use it 80/90% of the time in my Macbook or Desktop it seems a good option. I also heard a lot of good thing about the E12, i know its portable but i cant understand if it is better or not than the E10...

The Fiio E10 comes with the WD8740 DAC chip (the E12 has no DAC).
So the E10's DAC should be better then whatever DAC chip is in your Mac or Win PC.

 

[Trunks159]

The e10's DAC would be better since the ma900 doesn't need an amp. If you can't use the DAC, get the fiio e11.

 

[afonsoruivo]

I've order the m9a00 today, for the amp, as you guys suggested i will go for the Fiio E10...taking the price in mind, i think i can't get anything better...
If i wanted to go with something better then the E10, what do you think i should look for ?

 

[Trunks159]

The schiit modi would be better for home use, but the e10 is good.

 

[afonsoruivo]

Do you think , the JDS Labs O2, is better than the E10 or the modi?
What about the E17 ?

 

[PurpleAngel]

Do you think , the JDS Labs O2, is better than the E10 or the modi?
What about the E17 ?

The Fiio E10 and E17 use the same WM8740 DAC chip and you get 24-bit/96Khz with both, when using a USB connection,
The E17 also has it optical, which will do 24-bit/192Khz.
But as music audio can sound fine using 16-bit/44.1Khz, the 192Khz option, at least to me, does not really matter.
My $27 Fiio E6 can easily drive the HD598 or MA900, so the E10's amp is more then enough.
 
If you can find the E17 on sale (under $110), then it might be worth spend the extra cash
As optical it preferred (at least in my opinion) for connecting to laptops and sound cards.
And the E17 can run off it's battery, so it's very portable.