[lonelysuperstar]

Ok, so I bought both the Fiio x1 and the Cayin N3 thinking I was going to get loud big sound. I like my bass and neither of the two put out enough. Sound quality is great, but just not there in the bass department. I'm running SoundMagic E10 and I have a set of Sennheiser IE8 that I waiting on a cable for. Is there I single device with an eq and the power to give me what I want? The only way I can get it with these two are to use my Fiio amp but I would rather not have to carry around two devices. Any help or suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[obobskivich]

This may be kind of generic advice, but: the biggest determinant in how much bass you get is the headphones themselves, not the amplifier or anything else "up chain." So if the headphones just can't deliver the low-end you want, it doesn't matter how much "bass boost" the amplifier/player/etc can apply - there simply isn't the usable response there to be "boosted" on the headphones themselves.

I'd also add: consider if your expectations for bass on headphones are realistic. Even headphones that get ranked on the extreme basshead thread as "cannons" (like the TH-900) will never provide the visceral impact or "thump" of a live performance or full-size speaker system with a subwoofer. Bass reproduction is usually felt as much as it is heard, and headphones will never get you that "felt" component. This may seem obvious but the listening experience *is* quite different on headphones, and can take some time to adjust to if you're used to live sound or listening on a full-size hi-fi or home theater.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

Ok, so I bought both the Fiio x1 and the Cayin N3 thinking I was going to get loud big sound. I like my bass and neither of the two put out enough. Sound quality is great, but just not there in the bass department. I'm running SoundMagic E10 and I have a set of Sennheiser IE8 that I waiting on a cable for.

There are a number of problems with your set up and buying choices.

1. Your DAP (or even amplifier) does not determine how much bass output the system will have. If the headphone can not produce bass you can pour 6watts per channel from a Schiit Lyr into your earphones and it will still amplify the entire signal that the earphone will still play at its given response curve. That's like buying a standmount speaker and a 300watt power amp and expecting it to produce the kind of bass that will shake the whole house instead of just using a 50wpc amp on those speakers plus a 100w 10in subwoofer.

2. The E10 isn't exactly known for earth shattering bass. And quite frankly, not anything else other than a real subwoofer.

3. Have you even tried the IE8 on the X1 and N3? Or did you buy it with a busted cable and haven't yet?

Is there I single device with an eq and the power to give me what I want? The only way I can get it with these two are to use my Fiio amp but I would rather not have to carry around two devices. Any help or suggestions would be appreciated.

The X1 has an EQ, did you try boosting the low freqs there?

62 hz = +6dB
160hz = +2dB
400hz = 0dB
1000hz = 0dB
3000hz = -2dB
8000hz = -4dB
16000hz = -2dB