[Jd007]

Of course the law of diminishing returns is there, just as it is there in pretty much every "high-end equipment" scene, nobody should really be surprised. The difference from $10 cheap setup to a $300 setup could be big, but going from $300 to $1000 setup the difference probably will be a lot smaller and subtler. People are willing to spend disproportionate amount of money to get the small gains because they want the best. Another example is the high-end PC market. The top of the line Intel Extreme CPUs are usually ~20% faster than the next best CPU, but the price is 2-3x more.
 
A lot of the price difference at the higher end of things come from price discrimination/inelasticity of demand, but also partially because it is just harder/costlier to make something that's better than something else that is already very good. Also keep in mind that a lot of people tend to exaggerate the difference between setups to better illustrate the difference to people.

 

[tomb]

Quote:

The problem is that you needed to listen to stuff even higher up the ladder. You need to get a Stax SR009, a BHSE, a PWDAC mk II. Plus all the associated upgraded power cables, interconnects and digital cables. Then you’ll get your moneys worth

/whistles suspiciously

^ This
 
It takes a while in the hobby to get experienced ears.  Early on, it does seem like a lot of things are, "wow," but that fades to a certain plateau for a period of time.  (You may be there right now.)  As time goes on, you start to want to address the little differences in what you hear.  A tweak here, a new amp or source there, it's incremental, but after a while you begin to appreciate the differences.
 
OTOH, a Stax SR009 and BHSE will blow you away every time - guaranteed end game.  'Course, I think I like the SR007 better, but I can't afford either one of them.

 

[Punnisher]

First, I think your setup is an excellent one so you are doing yourself a disservice by thinking otherwise.

Second, the law of diminishing returns is very real and most people with similar gear have reached that point. Only incremental differences will occur from here on out.

Third, think of your audio memory. Comparing headphones back-to-back is a good way of comparing the obvious difference on a basic level. However, comparing back-to-back is NOT a good way of finding the subtle nuances of each headphone. You need a longer audition to achieve that. This is like tasting a strong piece of cheese and immediately eating a different one and trying to compare them. Your palate needs to be cleansed and you need a long-term audition of each INDIVIDUALLY in order to form an accurate opinion.

I think meets are awesome and are a great way to meet people and try gear. Though it is merely a hint, a suggestion or a shadow of what that gear can achieve. All gear needs a proper audition. A long term display of its strengths and weaknesses before we can truly comment on its capabilities.

 

[ForShure]

Quote:

You just need to open your ears more. Your own opinion has been burned into your current setup. It's hard to appreciate something from a cursory trial since you'll just be looking for more of what your own system already gives you and miss out on everything that more expensive setups can provide. I find that things like detail and soundstage are not instantly noticable to me unless I'm either looking for them or concentrating really hard. For five years the HD650 was the only phone I had and I got burned into it too. I even bought an LCD-2 thinking it would be an improved HD650 and ended up reselling it because I felt it wasn't. I still haven't found a better HD650 which is why I still have it but after buying an HD800 and living with that for six months, I would wholly agree that the HD800 is the better phone in every aspect by a very wide margin. Switching back and forth between the two is night and day now. The thing is, when I only owned the HD650, I only really knew the type of sound the HD650 provided. I was completely untrained to other aspects such as sound stage and treble detail, which the HD650 has very little of (but still in a very pleasant sort of way).

 
Ahhh yes I guess that could be part of the problem. I just wish I knew people who would let me borrow their gear to train my ears a bit more and break me out of the sound I'm used to. This did happen to me when I first bought my pair of expensive headphones (HD595) and when I plugged them into my computer I thought they sounded bad! I was comparing them to my $50 skull candy earbuds and I was like this is a compete waste of money. But something kept me from returning them and slowly I began to appreciate the detail and truth they brought to the music. Maybe this problem is similar or maybe we are just all insane

 
Quote:

Just curious, but how much of a difference did you see when you went from HD595 to HD600? Were you expecting something similar to that difference?

 
The HD595's are very good headphones in their own right but the HD600's are better. The overall detail is greater and the bass extension much better in the 600's however I find the 595's more exciting to listen to for some types of music such as electronic and indie stuff (most likely because this type of music is recorded horribly).
 
I guess in terms of what degree of difference I came to expect, I think it was too much. I was thinking that the difference would be the difference I experienced going from listening to ibuds to Shure's SE530's. It blew my mind! Had my expectations been a bit less I could have enjoyed myself more.

 

[jibzilla]

First, I think your setup is an excellent one so you are doing yourself a disservice by thinking otherwise.

Second, the law of diminishing returns is very real and most people with similar gear have reached that point. Only incremental differences will occur from here on out.

Third, think of your audio memory. Comparing headphones back-to-back is a good way of comparing the obvious difference on a basic level. However, comparing back-to-back is NOT a good way of finding the subtle nuances of each headphone. You need a longer audition to achieve that. This is like tasting a strong piece of cheese and immediately eating a different one and trying to compare them. Your palate needs to be cleansed and you need a long-term audition of each INDIVIDUALLY in order to form an accurate opinion.

I think meets are awesome and are a great way to meet people and try gear. Though it is merely a hint, a suggestion or a shadow of what that gear can achieve. All gear needs a proper audition. A long term display of its strengths and weaknesses before we can truly comment on its capabilities.