[Urokoz]

Hello Head-Fi
 
I'm very new to the audio world. I have been using the past month to look around a bit and I must say that I'm becoming very interested in audiophile grade sound! It all sounds very exciting!
 
Now I am thinking about getting myself a nice pair of headphones and probably a matching amp. I have been looking around on the forum a bit and seen some interesting stuff. 
 
I would like a comfortable pair of over-ear headphones. My budget is around $350, but I might be willing to go a bit higher. Also I am thinking of getting a good DAC and amp to support the headphones. 
 
My main use for these headphones will be music. I listen to a wide variety of music, but mostly electronic music like EDM, house, dubstep and also alot of classic rock. Depending on my mood I also tend to listen to more quiet music like coldplay or similar. I like having bass, when I listen to music, within reason of course. I might also use these headphones for gaming, but I already have a pair of Astro A50's, which are great for 7.1 surround sound (blasphemy I know

). The Astro's sound quality is great in my opinion, so I'd love to hear some actual high quality headphones.
 
I have been looking around a bit and I have heard alot of good things about the Beyerdynamic DT 990/600ohm and I think they look quite interesting. Some people also mentioned HiFiman HE-400's and AKG K/Q701. I have also heard alot of good things about Sennheiser. I would like it to be high impedence cans if possible. Any other cans I should be aware of?
 
When it comes to a DAC and amplifier I am thinking about the O2+ODAC combo, which I have heard a lot about and seems inside my pricerange! Tubeamps have also caught my attention though like the LDMKIII, but they seem very expensive and I've heard about a lot of distortion? Any other amps I should be aware of?
 
I you need more information please ask! Any help is highly appreciated! 
 
Matt

 

[nimbostruck14]

I think if you can shuffle out $50, the sennheiser hd 650 or the hifiman he-400 would be great options.
I am not quite sure what dac/amp combo would be great for either of these cans. I would go searching around about that.

 

[Urokoz]

The Sennheiser HD 650's are too expensivefor me, at least in my country. :/
The HiFiman HE-400's seems nice, but are quite low ohm for what I had in mind. I don't know how much that impacts the listening, but I read that people who went from 250 ohm to 600 ohm could hear a clear distinction(driving 600 ohms wont be a problem I plan on getting an amp powerfull enough to do that anyways).
 
Today I also read something about the Schiit Modi/Magni and they sound similar to the O2+ODAC combo. Any thoughts?

 

[GaryWA]

High ohm =/ better.

 

[Urokoz]

Are you saying that higher ohms isn't better? Isn't higher ohms supposed to reduce noise from the source or so?

 

[billybob_jcv]

No. Different designs have different impedance loads - but it is not true that higher impedance is always better. High impedance phones are most often used in studios and other situations where the amp the 'phones are plugged into has a higher output impedance. Some pro gear can have an output impedance at the headphone jack of 100 - 120 Ohms. The typical audiophile headphone amp will have an output impedance of under 2 Ohms, which makes them perfectly usable with headphones that have an impedance of 16 Ohms or higher.