Dedpoet
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2006
- Posts
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A long and possibly boring post about my brief Head-Fi journey. Feel free to skip it if you're not interested.
My first Head-Fi induced purchase was a PX-100. I wanted a small and portable but good sounding set of cans for my Creative ZVM. They did the job well enough, but I started hungering for a "bigger" sound and became attracted to Grados. Not wanting to go overboard, I went with the SR-60. I was very happy with the SR-60s sound, but as it turned out the open phones were not meeting my needs. I couldn't use them on a plane and what I had failed to realize at the time of my purchase, when I'm wearing phones it's almost always because I don't want to hear what's going on around me or I don't want to bother others.
Next came the amp curiosity. Before Head-Fi, I didn't even know such things as tiny headphone amplifiers existed. I did my homework again and not wanting to spend much money on this experiment, I went with the PA2V2. I was hooked. The amp added depth, power, and punch to my headphones and I knew I was in trouble...
Next, my girlfriend hijacked my PX-100 right before a short business trip and I was stuck away from home with no cans. "Radio Shack!" I thought. KSC-75s are cheap! Indeed they were. Nice sounding and close to the PX-100's that I had been denied and I didn't mind the ear clips nearly as much as I thought I might.
Next came the Etymotic ER-6i. This met my needs for something for use on airplanes without breaking the bank, and also paired nicely with the PA2V2. Mission accomplished. This purchase was mostly funded from the sale of my SR-60s. I hated to see them go, but as I said before, the open-ness just wasn't meeting my needs.
For a while, I was happy. KSC-75s for most situations, ER-6i's for when isolation was needed, and the PA2V2 was diligently doing its duty. I ripped all of my CDs with EAC and encoded them to FLAC for the PC and LAME 192k --vbr-new MP3 for the portable. I bought a $60 Qables line-out for my Zen. What more could I want?
I wanted fuller sound. I wanted a set of full-sized cans for home use. What to do? I read and re-read what seemed to be every single thread on Head-Fi. I went back and forth between various Beyer DT series phones. I learned all about pre-2005 versions, 2005 versions, how 2006 versions were really 2005 versions, Pro versions, regular versions, huge price variations on undisclosed versions. I read threads about AKG 501s, 601s, 701s, 3-way shoot-outs, decibel levels at various distances from the cans, 150 hour burn-in, and more. I read about Grados, Audio-Technicas, and Sennheisers. I read it all.
Today, I finally pulled the trigger on a pair of Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro/80's. I think that if I didn't, I would have gone insane. I have changed my mind so many times, completely sure each time that this was the one! Of course, if you read enough, you'll always find a reason not to buy a certain model. The 880's can be harsh, the 770's can be bloated, the 701 can be too analytical, the HD-600/650 can be too dark...it never ends.
In the end what it came down to was that since I had sold the Grados for being so open, it only made sense to go with something closed. I took the plunge on the 770s knowing that some have called them "muddy" and lacking in mids, but that others have called them fantastic cans. I feel that I got a good deal on these (gotta love "make offer" on eBay) and that if I find they are not for me the financial hit will be small. Now I wait for shipping...
Next on the list is likely a DAC, probably the Musiland MD10. I can use the optical input from my cheap bookshelf CD player system, the coax input from my PC, and the USB input will be a nice bonus. The integrated amp is said to be very usable and should hold me over until later in the year when funds allow for a home amp.
Thanks to all you Head-Fi'ers, particularly you regulars who offer your endless opinions on these products. My wallet thinks otherwise, but he's never had much say about what I do anyway. I'll let you know how the 770's sound soon enough.
My first Head-Fi induced purchase was a PX-100. I wanted a small and portable but good sounding set of cans for my Creative ZVM. They did the job well enough, but I started hungering for a "bigger" sound and became attracted to Grados. Not wanting to go overboard, I went with the SR-60. I was very happy with the SR-60s sound, but as it turned out the open phones were not meeting my needs. I couldn't use them on a plane and what I had failed to realize at the time of my purchase, when I'm wearing phones it's almost always because I don't want to hear what's going on around me or I don't want to bother others.
Next came the amp curiosity. Before Head-Fi, I didn't even know such things as tiny headphone amplifiers existed. I did my homework again and not wanting to spend much money on this experiment, I went with the PA2V2. I was hooked. The amp added depth, power, and punch to my headphones and I knew I was in trouble...
Next, my girlfriend hijacked my PX-100 right before a short business trip and I was stuck away from home with no cans. "Radio Shack!" I thought. KSC-75s are cheap! Indeed they were. Nice sounding and close to the PX-100's that I had been denied and I didn't mind the ear clips nearly as much as I thought I might.
Next came the Etymotic ER-6i. This met my needs for something for use on airplanes without breaking the bank, and also paired nicely with the PA2V2. Mission accomplished. This purchase was mostly funded from the sale of my SR-60s. I hated to see them go, but as I said before, the open-ness just wasn't meeting my needs.
For a while, I was happy. KSC-75s for most situations, ER-6i's for when isolation was needed, and the PA2V2 was diligently doing its duty. I ripped all of my CDs with EAC and encoded them to FLAC for the PC and LAME 192k --vbr-new MP3 for the portable. I bought a $60 Qables line-out for my Zen. What more could I want?
I wanted fuller sound. I wanted a set of full-sized cans for home use. What to do? I read and re-read what seemed to be every single thread on Head-Fi. I went back and forth between various Beyer DT series phones. I learned all about pre-2005 versions, 2005 versions, how 2006 versions were really 2005 versions, Pro versions, regular versions, huge price variations on undisclosed versions. I read threads about AKG 501s, 601s, 701s, 3-way shoot-outs, decibel levels at various distances from the cans, 150 hour burn-in, and more. I read about Grados, Audio-Technicas, and Sennheisers. I read it all.
Today, I finally pulled the trigger on a pair of Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro/80's. I think that if I didn't, I would have gone insane. I have changed my mind so many times, completely sure each time that this was the one! Of course, if you read enough, you'll always find a reason not to buy a certain model. The 880's can be harsh, the 770's can be bloated, the 701 can be too analytical, the HD-600/650 can be too dark...it never ends.
In the end what it came down to was that since I had sold the Grados for being so open, it only made sense to go with something closed. I took the plunge on the 770s knowing that some have called them "muddy" and lacking in mids, but that others have called them fantastic cans. I feel that I got a good deal on these (gotta love "make offer" on eBay) and that if I find they are not for me the financial hit will be small. Now I wait for shipping...
Next on the list is likely a DAC, probably the Musiland MD10. I can use the optical input from my cheap bookshelf CD player system, the coax input from my PC, and the USB input will be a nice bonus. The integrated amp is said to be very usable and should hold me over until later in the year when funds allow for a home amp.
Thanks to all you Head-Fi'ers, particularly you regulars who offer your endless opinions on these products. My wallet thinks otherwise, but he's never had much say about what I do anyway. I'll let you know how the 770's sound soon enough.
