[dap_pad]

Woah.. the D2000 are a bit over my budget... in fact so are the HD650... So I guess it's the older model K701s for me. Thanks alot guys!

 

[nick20]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dap_pad /img/forum/go_quote.gif Woah.. the D2000 are a bit over my budget... in fact so are the HD650... So I guess it's the older model K701s for me. Thanks alot guys!

The older K701's don't cost any more than "new" K701's.

 

[khbaur330162]

K701's are one of the hardest mid-priced dynamic cans to drive. Good luck doing it from a portable, battery powered, IEM oriented amplifier.

 

[dap_pad]

Damn... the Mini^3 isn't enough? That sucks, since it's the only amplifier I have and it'd suck to have great headphones that I can't use to it's full potential. What other headphones fulfill my needs and are $150-$250?

 

[buddha911]

Maybe this?

 

[khbaur330162]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dap_pad /img/forum/go_quote.gif Damn... the Mini^3 isn't enough? That sucks, since it's the only amplifier I have and it'd suck to have great headphones that I can't use to it's full potential. What other headphones fulfill my needs and are $150-$250?

In my opinion, it isn't. Not by any means. Your Mini³ simply wasn't designed to carry that kind of a load... Sure, you might be able to get the K701's to a volume you can deal with, but probably only when you crank it to 85-100% its potential output, and even then you'll be horridly under-amping them. What this will equate to mostly is a relatively lesser bass quantity and quality, a flatter/more deflated soundstage and imaging sharpness, overall decrease in it's airy, effortless sound sig, and lesser retrieval of detail.

That all said, as others have stated you could obviously go for the K701 now, deal with these flaws, and later upgrade your amp when you get funds. I'm one for the idea you should upgrade to a headphone that can be driven properly from the amp you currently own, however, because I think you'll simply get a lot more enjoyment out of it.

And if I could make one more suggestion, the Mini³ is a fine portable amp, but as such, it's meant to drive portable headphones. If you're looking for a home based rig I suggest you build one otherwise the performance you'll get from your hard-to-drive cans will always be half baked. Also, the qualities you now are in search for from other headphones are very attainable from none other than your PK1; I'm sure of it. More clarity? More bass? More EVERYTHING?! Go for a source upgrade. Buy yourself a nice, well respected PCDP with an analogue line-out with a couple CD's (I can recommend you a few if you'd like

), or even an iMod. The sit back, enjoy the music and watch that smile get pasted on your face. Source fist, baby!

 

[jrosenth]

Here's your answer: buy the Grado 225

Here's why:

1) they are more similar to the Yuin PK1 than any of the other cans mentioned
2) they can be driven by the mini or similar amp amp with great success
3) they are a sweet spot in the line, effectively a mid range can that will keep you happy until you need to go higher, at which point you'll want a different source and amp anyway - so they're cheap ($150 used and will keep you happy for a long time)

 

[dap_pad]

Do the DT880s have the great bass that I hear the DT770 Pro/80 Ohms have? I think something along the lines of the K701s great treble, clarity and soundstage with the DT770's bass impact and quantity (I like bass impact

) plus easy "drivability" would be perfect! LOL I keep on hearing great things about the Denons but they're out of my price range

I have a feeling my perfect headphones doesn't exist, should I just go with an "older" version of the K701 and hope for the best? LOL

 

[khbaur330162]

DT880's have somewhat of the stigma as being low in bass quantity along with the K701 (although not as bad).

K701 with DT770 bass would simply not be K701, lol. I believe the other frequencies would get too muddled with and that type of bass is rather hard to reproduce in an open can, regardless. As of right now I'd say you're right in the assumption that the can you seek simply doesn't exist unless you're willing to EQ heavily and/or implement some type of floor standing woofer to help your headphones out.

Did you see my recommendation of the Denon AH-D1000?

 

[khbaur330162]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jrosenth /img/forum/go_quote.gif Here's your answer: buy the Grado 225 Here's why: 1) they are more similar to the Yuin PK1 than any of the other cans mentioned 2) they can be driven by the mini or similar amp amp with great success 3) they are a sweet spot in the line, effectively a mid range can that will keep you happy until you need to go higher, at which point you'll want a different source and amp anyway - so they're cheap ($150 used and will keep you happy for a long time)

How would you compare the SR-225 to the RS-1/2?

 

[dap_pad]

I've had the MS-1s, they had a great sound that I liked but the main point that made me sell them was the super small soundstage, so I'm looking to stay away from Grados for now.

The Denon D2000/D1000 is looking pretty great right about now... Your right khbaur, I'm expecting too much LOL I can't have everything right? I guess what I really want is just a bit more clarity than the PK1s with more bass impact, which I think the D2000 might be able to give me. The DT700 seems to lack the clarity part from what I've read.

The problem is right now, I'm still a really really poor (relatively) high school student with extremely limited funds. Of course I want a $1k+ home rig LOL if I had the money of course and once I get a job, it'll be my first target

 

[MatthewK]

You can find the D2000's for around $250 on eBay.

 

[khbaur330162]

dap_pad: I know it's hard because I was in a very similar situation about a year and a half ago; trying to research and figure out which hi-end can I wanted to finally throw down my hard earned, high school cash on. However --and I've said it over at dapreview, and I've actually said it in this thread, I just don't think you're getting the picture-- I wish some one told me what I'm going to say right now: SOURCE FIRST!

You don't need $1k for a nice sounding rig, honestly.

It's so easy to get into the mindset that headphones have the largest play in the end quality of your system's sound performance because you come to a place like this to find good quality headphones in the first place! Then after a while of reading about all the coolest and latest FOTM headphones you find out an amplifier is a MUST to make them sound good. Yet, we've never really learned what makes everyone's system sound so good in the first place because we've yet to really create a capable rig... We usually forget about our source so that comes as a last resort when we have extra cash on hand.

Most modern sources are going to be converting a digital signal to an analogue one that your brain can in turn interact with via your eardrums. This digital to analogue conversion is one of, if not the, most important constituents to higher fidelity. No matter how sensitive and well amped your headphones are they will always be reproducing a crappy signal if your DAC is crap to begin with. That said, most consumer grade audio equipment contain DAC's of poor quality, and/or have other elements to their output topology that fuddle with the sound.

So until you can get a cleaner signal from your transport/DAC to your Mini³/PK1, I'd wager any upgrade in the headphone department you currently make will only be a 1-5% upgrade. Sound of a higher accuracy is nearly impossible because your PK1's are a heck of a pair of buds to begin with. And they are probably sensitive/driven well enough by your Mini³ to replicate the sinusoidal signals your portable sources are sending them (to a precise enough degree) that any headphone more competent really couldn't expound a more faithful reproduction.

If any of this makes sense, buy a cheap home based CDP (Sony SCD-CE595 is a good place to start looking

, but you can also PM me for an even cheaper solution on par in quality), hook it up to your Mini³ and PK1's and just see where that takes you. Once the original signal is higher in fidelity you can think about reproducing it with more prowess (via better headphones), but all that comes later.

Once again, good luck on your journey.

 

[silverrain]

You can get great-sounding Sony V6 cans for around $75 or so -- you WILL be happy with the sound they give you.
And, they are easy to drive, with a low-powered amp, or even no amp at all, and STILL sound good.
The best bang-for-the-buck cans I own.
Then, when you got bucks available, experiment with more expensive cans -- and plenty of them will NOT sound as good as the V6 does. Trust me -- been there, done that.

 

[dap_pad]

Hm... maybe I should really invest in a decent source first then... What others CDPs are decent other than the Sony SCD-CD595.