[Exit Pupil]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mulveling /img/forum/go_quote.gif In your opinoon To the op, the JVC DX1000 is my favorite of the closed headphones that are less expesive and more readily available than the L3000. It also has a sound signature that seems like it would suit you. Sort of like a baby L3000, but with a slightly more distant presentation. It's a very good value at around $750 shipped.

I was reading another thread of yours in which you were logging some of your time with the edition 9s you had bought. I did notice though, from your headphone inventory you sold them, yet still retain two pairs of the l3000! what happened?

 

[Exit Pupil]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mulveling /img/forum/go_quote.gif In your opinoon To the op, the JVC DX1000 is my favorite of the closed headphones that are less expesive and more readily available than the L3000. It also has a sound signature that seems like it would suit you. Sort of like a baby L3000, but with a slightly more distant presentation. It's a very good value at around $750 shipped.

Mulveling - I was reading another thread of yours in which you were logging some of your time (quite positive) with the edition 9s you had bought. I did notice though, from your headphone inventory you sold them, yet still retain two pairs of the l3000! what happened?

DOH!!! my first double post. that hurts.

 

[M0T0XGUY]

Quote:

Originally Posted by uraflit /img/forum/go_quote.gif i am a believer of the "if you think you need higher-end, get it first" idea. no use in getting lower end gear if you have an inkling that you may upgrade later. some people are also greatly affected by placebo effect too...

I think more people should have this mentality. You end up spending less money in the long run due to continuous upgrades, and you get the best of the best instantly. Even if means waiting an extra 3 months till you have the funds, in my opinion, its definitely worth it.

And sort of off topic, but EricJ, there is something called buying on a whim, and there's generally nothing wrong with it; regardless of whether the item in question is a 1500 dollar pair of headphones or a 10 dollar pair of shoes. If the OP buys the ED9's and likes them, then you can consider his grand well spent. If he doesn't like them, then he can always return them or sell them here for about the same price he paid.

 

[Exit Pupil]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ericj /img/forum/go_quote.gif People in general. I wonder if anyone truly believes that an HD650 sounds an entire $100 better than a K601, for example. Do my DT-770's sound 10 times better than KSC75's?

and following on, is $1000 of KFC worth $500 more than a pair of HD650s??

 

[Hendrix]

Exit Pupil,
Man spend as much as you want. I find the hobby of collecting music and headphone gear a wonderful thing to do with your cash. It is all about the music and reproducing it as close to live as you can afford. I really like the IEM that westone are selling. I use the ES2 almost with everything now. Enjoy!

 

[mulveling]

That's why I said don't trust my first impressions

I always get excited about a new sound signature, and I perhaps got a bit carried away imagining where they might be at the end of burn-in. In the end, they were a very nice hifi headphone but not something that really tickles my fancy; not something I find the "magic" in for the long-run, like with the rest of my headphone favorites. Up to bat for future consideration is the vintage RS1

Quote:

Originally Posted by Exit Pupil /img/forum/go_quote.gif I was reading another thread of yours in which you were logging some of your time with the edition 9s you had bought. I did notice though, from your headphone inventory you sold them, yet still retain two pairs of the l3000! what happened?

 

[OptionTrader]

I highly recommend the Ultrasone Edition 9s. That's all I have to say. I love mine.

 

[Icarium]

JVC DX1000s seem like a safe bet. The Edition 9s as well. If you aren't satisfied with the JVC DX1000s, reselling them doesn't seem hard at all. The Edition 9s are less established rep wise, but reselling them isn't hard either. Moreover, you may find yourself holding the next L3000s in the sense that in a couple of years the price might almost double.

I don't think you are going to find a pair of L3000s at your price point ;p Though who knows, others have done it ;p Even as of not too long ago. (I think some guy found a pair for 1300 used in Japan).

 

[ldj325]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ericj /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have something like 20 different pairs of headphones, most of them ranging from pretty good to excellent in one way or another. The most expensive cost $130 including shipping from germany and a few beers for an operative in berlin who was instrumental in their acquisition. For me a $500 headphone had better be a religious experience that ruins me for other headphones. A $1500 headphone better make me believe that the female cellist is winking at me.

You might want to add up what the grand total is that you spent on your 20 HP. Is it $500-$1000? For me, I'd rather have 1 great HP than 20 HP that are middling quality when compared to a top can. And as for something being 2X or 20X better because the price is that different just doesn't work in audio. I think a more appropriate question is: Is the SQ enough better (or enough different) to make the jump in cost worth it for me? And the "for me" part is all very relative to our desires, tastes, sensitivities, experience, and income (and there are probably more).

Its all downhill with very diminishing returns from the KSC75 if you try to play the "times" game.

 

[Zoide]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ldj325 /img/forum/go_quote.gif For me, I'd rather have 1 great HP than 20 HP that are middling quality when compared to a top can.

x2

Why would you want to have so many cans? I'd find it a pain in the ass to switch between them according to the song / my mood. I'd rather just have one very good headphone so I can focus on listening to music and not on deciding which one to use. At one point I had 3 comparable headphones (DT 990, RS-1, PROline 2500) and I personally found it very stressful to compare them all the time and try to figure out which one was best for what, and which ones were going to be sold.

 

[fierce_freak]

Same for me, Zoide.

 

[slwiser]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Exit Pupil /img/forum/go_quote.gif current living circumstances are dictating a fresh purchase of the sealed can variety. I have heard that the Audio Technica ATH-L3000 is quite a nice can but hard to get, with a similar sound signature to my HD650. If this is the case I would be willing to make the sacrifice, despite their S&M party-goer set leather design (is there an audio technica mask available too?). I am not a perpetual upgrader, so to bring me up to speed, what are the other highly rated sealed cans with that smooth and lucid sound, say up to and around $1500 US mark? if possible, please do not recommend any cans wich are universally known for a lean bottom end, or exaggerated highs, even if these can be 'cured' by careful or expensive associated matching. i have played this game, and know from my experience i will end up irritated. Others who do enjoy, or profit sonically from doing this, have my full respect. I have no problem with upgrading other compnoents if otherwise required, but see no reason to at this stage. I have been very happy with the HD650 and will definitely keep hold of them, but a new purchase may as well represent an upgrade if at all possible. given my location, auditioning sessions are currently hard to come by, so i am relying on research to guide me. this proved successful with my HD650 purchse. any associated links etc would be much appreciated as well. i listen to classical, folk rock, and some trance. MFV3 and rotel rb991 ae cd cheers

You could go balanced with what you have already. Use the Headroom balanced amp with a dac and upgrade your cable (1200$ plus cable). Or use the Apogee mini-dac with an upgrade cable [Mini-DAC is now only $795 (FireWire/USB option not included) Mini-DAC FireWire is now only $995 plus balanced cable for the HD650]. From what I hear the balanced HD650 is also a great upgrade from the stock HD650. Both these options would bring you in under your 1500 budget. The Apogee was recently discussed in a thread about how good it is. Of course keeping what you have does not get you sealed or a closed can. The UE9s have been recently discussed as having very little damping of outside sounds. So even a closed headphone may not be that sealed.

Thee are many paths to get to a higher level in this hobby.

 

[Zoide]

Quote:

Originally Posted by slwiser /img/forum/go_quote.gif The UE9s have been recently discussed as having very little damping of outside sounds. So even a closed headphone may not be that sealed.

I agree that the Edition 9 doesn't damp outside sounds nearly as much as IEMs, for example. However, I think it isolates noticeably more than open cans, making it good enough for my uses (blocking out computer fan noise, refrigerator, and cars going by outside).

The level of isolation is high enough to get a quiet listening environment (I can easily hear the subtle amp hiss, as well as my own tinnitus), and at the same time it is low enough that I can still hear the phone ring and don't hear myself breathe (IEMs that plug your ears are sometimes very annoying because your breathing gets amplified).

That said, YMMV. It may be useful to get the opinion of people who have had the Edition 9 alongside other closed cans.

 

[facelvega]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mulveling /img/forum/go_quote.gif So I'm getting the impression that you haven't even heard $500 headphones, much less $1500 headphones...and you're trying to argue about their value??? Clearly you have no idea what you're talking about...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zoide /img/forum/go_quote.gif Why would you want to have so many cans? I'd find it a pain in the ass to switch between them according to the song / my mood. I'd rather just have one very good headphone so I can focus on listening to music and not on deciding which one to use. At one point I had 3 comparable headphones (DT 990, RS-1, PROline 2500) and I personally found it very stressful to compare them all the time and try to figure out which one was best for what, and which ones were going to be sold.

Let me come in to support ericj a little here, though maybe in different terms. I, like him, have had dozens of different, mostly unusual headphones. And yes I have heard $500 and $1500 headphones as well, spent time with them an A/B tested, the whole bit.

Here's my main argument: price is not equivalent to quality, especially if you take old headphones into consideration. I'm not talking diminishing returns, either. A Stax SR-X/SRD-7 bought now for under $200 is generally considered unmatched by a new SRS-4040a that sells for over $1300. I have a pair of vintage isodynamics I got for under $20 that can stand up to any new headphone available for $300 or less. And head-fi is full of people who will take their K340 over any new European dynamic headphone. One can achieve a very high level of sound without spending cash, if one spends time and diligence instead. Simple enough.

And a supplementary argument in response to Zoide and others. Nobody's saying that one need have more than one open, dynamic, circumaural, especially not three so similarly-intended as the one Zoide mentions. But there are headphones that sound vastly different from one another, that can do very different things. To reflect Mulveling's harsh opinion in different terms, I'd hazard to say that if you haven't heard a pair of earspeakers (Jecklin, Ergo, K1K, or certain stax) and headphones with planar drivers, then clearly you don't know what you're talking about.

(I mean the rhetorical "you", kids, not anyone in particular)

 

[Exit Pupil]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mulveling /img/forum/go_quote.gif In your opinoon To the op, the JVC DX1000 is my favorite of the closed headphones that are less expesive and more readily available than the L3000. It also has a sound signature that seems like it would suit you. Sort of like a baby L3000, but with a slightly more distant presentation. It's a very good value at around $750 shipped.

what kind of isolation do they offer?