[Drjim]

Greetings all.
So through alot of research and a few threads, I have learned alot.
From many months ago being blown away by Beats Studio's......to finally purchasing the HFI 580 + FiiO E10.
 
Unpacked,....hooked up E10 directly to USB on motherboard (no hub).  Plugged in and started listening.
 
Daft Punk, DJ Baby Anne, Crystal Method, Black Eyed Peas, Dev, Hybrid, Tiesto, Radiohead. Rammstein.
192-256 bitrate MP3's.
Also doing some streaming through Pandora and Spotify (both around 160K I believe)
 
First thoughts:
- Hmmmm......not sure I am 'blown away' by the bass.  It's tight.  It's there.  It is really nice,.....but I am not sure it is 'amazing'.
Even with bass boost on via the E10.
 
- Overall everything seems a bit narrow,....not wide at all. Seems like the entire range is 'squeezed' a bit. Kinda seems like the lows aren't THAT low and the highs aren't THAT high.
 
- They are tight.  I read about this.  I am aware they will loosen up.
- Build quality seems awesome. Substantial headphones!
 
As I listen I will note more.
 
I will also stress that aside from Sen HD 201's....the ONLY other 'good' cans I have heard were the Beats Studio's I bought my wife.  I just remember putting them on for the first time and being completely blown away. 
Now I am not sure if I am feeling the same with these 580's + E10.
I am planning on bringing the gear home tonight and doing a side by side.
 

 

[noxa]

I hear it the exact opposite way, was completely underwhelmed when i heard the beats a few years ago and that was coming from ibuds, now many iems and headphones later i got my DJ1 and think they're pretty awesome. Can't wait to hear more impressions how you get on with them during and after burn in.

 

[TMRaven]

That's probably what monster's betting on with people buying Beats.  They're hoping the Beats are like the first 'high-end' headphone someone hears coming from apple buds, resulting in a wow so dramatic that other higher end headphone wouldn't have as much of a wow factor.
 
The Beats by Dre honestly aren't that authoritative down low.  They have lots of mid-bass, but I wouldn't say they extend very deep.  I'd listen to the Ultrasones for a couple weeks then try going back to the studios and see if the mids and highs sound distorted or muddy at all.  

 

[Drjim]

Most definately.  I am certainly not making my end-all critique at this point!
 
I am going to keep the 580's for a bit.
And as I said,....I will be very interested to doing a side by side tonight with the Beats.  I am simply going from a "memory" of about 8 months ago which was the first and last time I listened to "The Beats Studios".
 
So yeah.....you got a good point.  I've never heard good cans......put on the Beats....go "OMG wow!", give them to my wife and now I have a "memory".....
 
More to come.
 

 

[cudakite]

 
 
 

- Hmmmm......not sure I am 'blown away' by the bass.  It's tight.  It's there.  It is really nice,.....but I am not sure it is 'amazing'.
Even with bass boost on via the E10.

 
I kind of feel the same way.  Especially since these particular HFIs were supposed to be the basshead set as opposed to the HFI-780.  I do however feel they responded well to increasing the bass thought my video card software equalizer.    
 
 
 
 

- Overall everything seems a bit narrow,....not wide at all. Seems like the entire range is 'squeezed' a bit. Kinda seems like the lows aren't THAT low and the highs aren't THAT high.

I didn't really feel that way.  
What I do like is how wide they sound in the sense that the far right and far left sound more separated than any other headphone I've had.  Is that what you would call a wide sound stage?  (noob here).    

 

[weipim]

i am half with op since i wasn't impressed by the hfi 580 tbh. they are good headphones for 118 dollars, but the sound signature just goes against my listening type.

 

[Astrozombie]

Burn baby burn!! I also jumped on them at $118

Try them out of a home theater receiver and see if it makes a difference.

 

[Drjim]

OK.
 
Apprx 24 hours later.  I have let them run to a varied playlist as well to at least begin a bit of a burn in process.
 
Compared to wifes Beats:  There is NO comparison.  My memory was simply that, a memory.  These absolutely destroy the beats.  Range is infinitely wider....the highs are so much higher and more detailed.  Bass as well is substantially lower and proper.  Much better separation of mid to low bass.....versus just the 'boom' of the Beats.
 
I will also note that it's either just "me" or maybe the overnight of playing?......But the Bass has increased?.....Yesterday I was using the bass boost of the E10....and today I had to turn it off!  I just literally couldnt take it! 
 
On a side note:  I discovered that a TON of my MP3 library was low bitrate    And suprisingly,....you can hear it!   The difference between a 128K mp3.....and a 256K-320K is huge with this amp/can combo.
 
So I am now in the process of using Itunes Match to completely upgrade my MP3 collection to 256K.
 
More to come,.....gonna let them run nonstop for 48 hours of the weekend.....

 

[mhtn]

Quote:

......But the Bass has increased?.....

Yes I definitely noticed this too.  Right out of the box, the bass was weak and sounded worse than my HTF600 but only about 1 hr of burning in with a heavy bass song, the bass changed drastically and became much more pronounced and extended.  I don't know why someone would think the HTF600 was better than HIFI580 but in my system it is nowhere near the HIFI580 in term of sound quality.

 

[killmurer]

Its nice to hear about a fellow head-fi er having eargasms. Enjoy the ultrasones 

 
Quote:

OK.
 
Apprx 24 hours later.  I have let them run to a varied playlist as well to at least begin a bit of a burn in process.
 
Compared to wifes Beats:  There is NO comparison.  My memory was simply that, a memory.  These absolutely destroy the beats.  Range is infinitely wider....the highs are so much higher and more detailed.  Bass as well is substantially lower and proper.  Much better separation of mid to low bass.....versus just the 'boom' of the Beats.
 
I will also note that it's either just "me" or maybe the overnight of playing?......But the Bass has increased?.....Yesterday I was using the bass boost of the E10....and today I had to turn it off!  I just literally couldnt take it! 
 
On a side note:  I discovered that a TON of my MP3 library was low bitrate    And suprisingly,....you can hear it!   The difference between a 128K mp3.....and a 256K-320K is huge with this amp/can combo.
 
So I am now in the process of using Itunes Match to completely upgrade my MP3 collection to 256K.
 
More to come,.....gonna let them run nonstop for 48 hours of the weekend.....

 

 

[noxa]

I was waiting to see your update, but i knew what your thoughts would be once you did your comparison :wink_face: