[ghansen]

Happy new year,

Looking for your honest recommendations and guidance.

I am currently running Bluesound POWERNODE 2i (HDMI) connected to an old pair of PSB speakers. I mostly use streaming, either Tidal Hifi, bluetooth internet radio or podcasts. I also have a Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO 2M connected to the Powernode with a riaa from NAD (
PP 2e). Mostly enjoying during the weekends for real music listening. I mostly listen to Classical, Jazz and Pop.

Lately I have been increasingly listening through headphones. It's very enjoyable and keeps my neighbors happy. Spouse too for that matter. Today I am running something that is easy to drive (ATH-AD2000X, Meze 99 classics and sometimes a pair of B&W PX7). The Powernode is more than capable of driving those, but perhaps not as well as the Ifi zen dac v2 I have connected to my Imac in the home office.

For domestic purposes I am considering a second pair of Closed earphones. It's mostly because the ATH-AD2000X is not that enjoyable with Pop (let's say Taylor Swift) or with bass dependent instrumental jazz (say.. Esbjørn Svensson Trio). The Maze works, but it is a bit on the heavy side for bass and does not sound as lovely as the Audio-Technicas. Currently Considering ATH-AP2000Ti, ATH-AWAS or Audeze LCD-2 or X, HIFIMAN HE-R10D or the Focal Celestee. None of these considerations are based on hearing preferences. It's just me reading and getting eager. Anyways. The point here is that I might require something that demands more power than the PowerNode can supply. I am therefore in the market for advice. Closed backs not only for the bass but also to keep my spouse happy.

Is it perhaps time to get a dedicated headphone amp? Will that also perhaps increase the perceived performance of my ATH-AD2000Xs?

Domestically, the Shiit Jotunheim 2 with a riaa module might work as I can “sell in '' that it's just replacing a box (the NAD Riaa) with a more useful one. Not sure if anyone has any experience with the Powernode, but pretty sure I would connect it to the Powernode for headphones using the mini-jack (will need to plug/unplug, but that fine) and then connect the RCA from the turntable to the Shiits Riaa module. Not sure if this will give me the ability to listen to headphones with Vinyl but perhaps some of you smart and experienced people will know? I mostly stream when I listen to headphones as I am not that fond of the crackling sounds. I live in the inner city and keeping the records free for dust is a full time job. Especially during the winter. So for headphones listening it's 90 % Tidal.

 

[HiFiWar]

Happy new year,

Looking for your honest recommendations and guidance.

I am currently running Bluesound POWERNODE 2i (HDMI) connected to an old pair of PSB speakers. I mostly use streaming, either Tidal Hifi, bluetooth internet radio or podcasts. I also have a Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO 2M connected to the Powernode with a riaa from NAD (
PP 2e). Mostly enjoying during the weekends for real music listening. I mostly listen to Classical, Jazz and Pop.

Lately I have been increasingly listening through headphones. It's very enjoyable and keeps my neighbors happy. Spouse too for that matter. Today I am running something that is easy to drive (ATH-AD2000X, Meze 99 classics and sometimes a pair of B&W PX7). The Powernode is more than capable of driving those, but perhaps not as well as the Ifi zen dac v2 I have connected to my Imac in the home office.

For domestic purposes I am considering a second pair of Closed earphones. It's mostly because the ATH-AD2000X is not that enjoyable with Pop (let's say Taylor Swift) or with bass dependent instrumental jazz (say.. Esbjørn Svensson Trio). The Maze works, but it is a bit on the heavy side for bass and does not sound as lovely as the Audio-Technicas. Currently Considering ATH-AP2000Ti, ATH-AWAS or Audeze LCD-2 or X, HIFIMAN HE-R10D or the Focal Celestee. None of these considerations are based on hearing preferences. It's just me reading and getting eager. Anyways. The point here is that I might require something that demands more power than the PowerNode can supply. I am therefore in the market for advice. Closed backs not only for the bass but also to keep my spouse happy.

Is it perhaps time to get a dedicated headphone amp? Will that also perhaps increase the perceived performance of my ATH-AD2000Xs?

Domestically, the Shiit Jotunheim 2 with a riaa module might work as I can “sell in '' that it's just replacing a box (the NAD Riaa) with a more useful one. Not sure if anyone has any experience with the Powernode, but pretty sure I would connect it to the Powernode for headphones using the mini-jack (will need to plug/unplug, but that fine) and then connect the RCA from the turntable to the Shiits Riaa module. Not sure if this will give me the ability to listen to headphones with Vinyl but perhaps some of you smart and experienced people will know? I mostly stream when I listen to headphones as I am not that fond of the crackling sounds. I live in the inner city and keeping the records free for dust is a full time job. Especially during the winter. So for headphones listening it's 90 % Tidal.

Wow, that's a long post - good info though. Should make it easy to help. First off, figure out the headphone situation. Buy something that matches what your preferences are. I'm one of the people that likes the Celestee quite a bit but I would not say that is is bass light and I would not say it's a neutral detail monster. All-rounders are tough to find, especially in closed back. I have a set of JM Audio XTC2.5 coming in a couple of weeks, which are supposed to be some of the best closed-backs out there, so I can let you know what I think of those when they get in. The Focal Radiance is supposed to be the upgrade of the Celestee, so that's a good option and the Stellia is a good choice, but costs more. Sennheiser makes some solid closed back and DCA makes some excellent ones - the E3 and Stealth. I'm not a huge fan of the Audeze LCD-X, but everyone is different and there's a bunch of version that vary in how they sound.

OK, on to the AMP. If you're currently happy with the performance on the Powernode, keep it. If you're not, get an amp. every amp is different and tube amps might fit your style. A new amp will change the sound profile of your current headphones. In my opinion, Headphones will give you the biggest change to sound followed by DAC/AMP, and lastly your source (Tidal, etc.) Cables can fine tune the flavor. So, as long as you're not having power issues with your Powernode, you could leave it alone and try the new set of headphones. Or, you could get an amp and see if that changes things up - the Jot 2 is a great choice, though there are tons of options to choose from. Playing around with different gear is half the fun of this hobby. Step 1 though is figuring out what sound profile you're going for, and then grabbing gear to try to meet it. Hope that helps!

 

[ghansen]

Wow, that's a long post - good info though. Should make it easy to help. First off, figure out the headphone situation. Buy something that matches what your preferences are. I'm one of the people that likes the Celestee quite a bit but I would not say that is is bass light and I would not say it's a neutral detail monster. All-rounders are tough to find, especially in closed back. I have a set of JM Audio XTC2.5 coming in a couple of weeks, which are supposed to be some of the best closed-backs out there, so I can let you know what I think of those when they get in. The Focal Radiance is supposed to be the upgrade of the Celestee, so that's a good option and the Stellia is a good choice, but costs more. Sennheiser makes some solid closed back and DCA makes some excellent ones - the E3 and Stealth. I'm not a huge fan of the Audeze LCD-X, but everyone is different and there's a bunch of version that vary in how they sound.

OK, on to the AMP. If you're currently happy with the performance on the Powernode, keep it. If you're not, get an amp. every amp is different and tube amps might fit your style. A new amp will change the sound profile of your current headphones. In my opinion, Headphones will give you the biggest change to sound followed by DAC/AMP, and lastly your source (Tidal, etc.) Cables can fine tune the flavor. So, as long as you're not having power issues with your Powernode, you could leave it alone and try the new set of headphones. Or, you could get an amp and see if that changes things up - the Jot 2 is a great choice, though there are tons of options to choose from. Playing around with different gear is half the fun of this hobby. Step 1 though is figuring out what sound profile you're going for, and then grabbing gear to try to meet it. Hope that helps!

Thanks for the well written response. I am inspired to get out and about finding my headphones preferences, and leaving the amp. Situation for later. The distribution and availability of testing of many headphones are limited in my domestic market, but research and elimination will help determine what I crave and absolutely don’t. I am fortunate to be able to travel quite often and far so getting hold of gear is not the biggest challenge.

 

[HiFiWar]

Thanks for the well written response. I am inspired to get out and about finding my headphones preferences, and leaving the amp. Situation for later. The distribution and availability of testing of many headphones are limited in my domestic market, but research and elimination will help determine what I crave and absolutely don’t. I am fortunate to be able to travel quite often and far so getting hold of gear is not the biggest challenge.

Awesome! Also, a good return policy from an online retailer is nice as well, but mostly research