gstepic
Head-Fier
- Joined
- Nov 21, 2014
- Posts
- 92
- Likes
- 21
I am an old guy that has always loved music. Being married for over 35 years has dictated compromises since my wife does not have the same commitment to quality as I do. I am pretty much limited to listening to my music through headphones, which is really not so bad.
For years I have mainly listened to streamed music through my Zune/Xbox subscription. Microsoft's lack of commitment to their products has caused me to start purchasing all my music and listening to the difference between streamed and 320 kbps purchased music has been a very pleasant surprise. I am also getting interested in trying out FLAC files through HDtracks. I love all kinds of music, a lot of country, celtic, Hawaiian and other world music, pop, oldies, classical, and jazz. I have discovered jazz especially requires a decent system to truly enjoy it.
Instead of my Zune I have started using a Sansa Clip mp3 player and I use my Yoga Pro 2 laptop a lot for listening to music. I know this is probably an audiophile sin but I have been using the Bose Quiet Comfort 15 headphones and just upgraded to the QC25. I have read several reviews and do understand there are better cans for music in that price range but the noise cancelation and portability feature solve some problems for me and they do sound decent as I like some punch in the base without being muddy.
But as so many of you I am always looking for a way to improve the music listening experience. For the few times when I can listen to music at home alone I want something with a wider more upfront soundstage and that is clearer when there is a lot going on in a song without sacrificing bass. I have been looking at the PSB M4U 1 headphones and the Blue Microphone MO-Fi headphones as well as the Sennhieser Momentums. My laptop uses an unchangeable Realtek sound chip so my question is would a DAC/amplifier such as a FiiO 17 be helpful (the MO-Fi does have a build in amp)? It seems like all those headphones are pretty low impedance, which I think means they may not need an amp.
The reason I am asking you take it easy on this first time poster is I am seeing the more I research the more I understand I don't know. I am learning a lot of stuff does not always play well together and a lot of money can be wasted on components that really do not make any noticeable difference in the listening experience. My thinking is the FiiO 17 is not that expensive and either are the headphones I mentioned but there does seem potential for a fairly small outlay I could notice a difference, but I would love to hear your opinions and recommendations.
Gary
For years I have mainly listened to streamed music through my Zune/Xbox subscription. Microsoft's lack of commitment to their products has caused me to start purchasing all my music and listening to the difference between streamed and 320 kbps purchased music has been a very pleasant surprise. I am also getting interested in trying out FLAC files through HDtracks. I love all kinds of music, a lot of country, celtic, Hawaiian and other world music, pop, oldies, classical, and jazz. I have discovered jazz especially requires a decent system to truly enjoy it.
Instead of my Zune I have started using a Sansa Clip mp3 player and I use my Yoga Pro 2 laptop a lot for listening to music. I know this is probably an audiophile sin but I have been using the Bose Quiet Comfort 15 headphones and just upgraded to the QC25. I have read several reviews and do understand there are better cans for music in that price range but the noise cancelation and portability feature solve some problems for me and they do sound decent as I like some punch in the base without being muddy.
But as so many of you I am always looking for a way to improve the music listening experience. For the few times when I can listen to music at home alone I want something with a wider more upfront soundstage and that is clearer when there is a lot going on in a song without sacrificing bass. I have been looking at the PSB M4U 1 headphones and the Blue Microphone MO-Fi headphones as well as the Sennhieser Momentums. My laptop uses an unchangeable Realtek sound chip so my question is would a DAC/amplifier such as a FiiO 17 be helpful (the MO-Fi does have a build in amp)? It seems like all those headphones are pretty low impedance, which I think means they may not need an amp.
The reason I am asking you take it easy on this first time poster is I am seeing the more I research the more I understand I don't know. I am learning a lot of stuff does not always play well together and a lot of money can be wasted on components that really do not make any noticeable difference in the listening experience. My thinking is the FiiO 17 is not that expensive and either are the headphones I mentioned but there does seem potential for a fairly small outlay I could notice a difference, but I would love to hear your opinions and recommendations.
Gary