[boznia]

Is there any setting or something that needs to be done before using an external Dac?

 

[aimlink]

You sound like you're using a Mac? If so, then there's no particular setting to change unless you're play 24bit stuff.

 

[Sasahara]

What exactly do you not like about the sound btw?

 

[boznia]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sasahara /img/forum/go_quote.gif What exactly do you not like about the sound btw?

Nothing in particular it's just that people say headphones sound nice without EQ, where as mine sounds terrible. So I thought I did something wrong. As much as the sound is nice if it could be better I want to know.

Could the music player (winamp) actually sound worse then foobar?

 

[moonshake]

Are your K701s well burned? Seems that burn-in effect is more prominent in K701s than in others.

 

[Mochan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by boznia /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hey i've been seeing people on the forums talking about not using EQ with their headphones but when I turn it off with winamp the sound is really pore. I thought that it was a Dac problem untill I purchased a dacmagic. I still need to EQ heavily to get good sound, the Dac is connected to my PC via optical. I think that something may be wrong and I thought that you guys might know.

You're just not the kind of person who likes neutral sound.

I love colored sound and I don't really listen to neutral that much. I EQ all the time and like phones that have emphasis on bass and treble. I don't think there's anything wrong with this.

When listening to K701 I like to bump the bass a bit. My typical listening EQ looks a bit v-shaped.

 

[Mochan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by boznia /img/forum/go_quote.gif Nothing in particular it's just that people say headphones sound nice without EQ, where as mine sounds terrible. So I thought I did something wrong. As much as the sound is nice if it could be better I want to know. Could the music player (winamp) actually sound worse then foobar?

Don't let what you read here fool you too much. A lot of the people here, especially the ones who really spend a lot on their gear, are "classic audiophiles" who value linear sound response and neutral sound. They like to hear things "as is." A lot of the higher end, expensive audio gear is geared towards this kind of audiophile, and there is nothing wrong with that.

You, on the other hand, sound more like the people who prefer coloration in their music. Again, nothing wrong with that. So go ahead and EQ your K701s the way you like to hear them. Stop thinking that there's something wrong with your equipment -- that's how they're supposed to sound. The question is whether this is the kind of sound for you. If not, you can either EQ, or buy new equipment. Seems to me EQing is the smarter option.

 

[aimlink]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mochan /img/forum/go_quote.gif Don't let what you read here fool you too much. A lot of the people here, especially the ones who really spend a lot on their gear, are "classic audiophiles" who value linear sound response and neutral sound. They like to hear things "as is." A lot of the higher end, expensive audio gear is geared towards this kind of audiophile, and there is nothing wrong with that. You, on the other hand, sound more like the people who prefer coloration in their music. Again, nothing wrong with that. So go ahead and EQ your K701s the way you like to hear them. Stop thinking that there's something wrong with your equipment -- that's how they're supposed to sound. The question is whether this is the kind of sound for you. If not, you can either EQ, or buy new equipment. Seems to me EQing is the smarter option.

While I agree with you, the truth inevitably lies somewhere in the middle.

Try a D5000, and you'll not feel inclined to boost the bass.

In fact, I ended up modding them to reduce the bass response. Before that, I'd EQ the bass to tame it a bit.
OTOH, With the HD595, I had to EQ it to sound the way I wanted, i.e., boost the bass a bit.
Try a Pro900 and you'll be inclined not to use the EQ. When I listen to the Ed8, I feel like I'm listening to a flat can with a gentle smile in the EQing.

Equipment will have similar effects on cans. It's not only about detail, but also about how the various gear options influence the balance of a particular can.

I do agree anyway, that there are those who prefer a neutral sound, but this isn't as common as one would think. Just check the frequency curves of the T1 and HD800 and compare with earlier models. The Grados are also big hits and this may be explained by their far from neutral sound. In a community where it's taboo to use an EQ, a Grado makes for a nice 'cheat'.

 

[Ypoknons]

I really haven't had that level of experience with gear, but it seems to me subtle colorations have their place with high-end gear. My Icon -> Minipod speakers setup, for example, does not have many of the technical abilities my headphones have, but there's something about them that's very pleasing and easy to listen to.

Now, I do want better, so there's no way I'm stopping here. There is a certain thrill to hearing a high-end setup fed with lossless, excellently recorded music, as accurate, detailed and neutral as possible (what is neutrality? I'm not firm on this definition yet). But there'll always be a place for forgiving setups in my book, simply because I don't want my equipment to limit my listening material. There's music I really like but it's poorly recorded, there's guilty pleasures, as well as popular music I listen to so I get a sense of others like... coloration helps to make them more palatable. But to achieve this result in hardware or software, I'm not sure at this point. I have a certain taste for craftsmanship, getting the effect I want through my hardware even when a software solution is possible, but I have no qualms with a software EQ used well either.

 

[fjrabon]

I typically EQ all my headphones to have an equal loudness curve.

I actually have an equal loudness track I run, but this website does a pretty good job as well. So, I'm trying to EQ them to be neutral, not based on some sort of "crazy subwoofer and highs bias" like aimlink suggests. For me, the point of referrence isn't what I think speakers should sound like, it's just whatever makes a track that is designed such that all the frequencies should sound equally loud actually sound equally loud. My speakers typically only have to have a relatively small adjustment to reach flat, which is mostly room effects, whereas most headphones require a rather large amount of EQ'ing.

Equal loudness contours and audiometry - Test your own hearing