[dakanao]

How would do these do for competitive gaming, like MW2 and COD 4 and COD 5?

 

[maiden7705]

Quote:

I quite enjoy X1 at the moment. There are a few things I would like to have different. I wouldn't mind if bass would be more defined and compact. On the other hand I would like to have sealed headphones with similar sound. Any recommendations? AKG 550 maybe? I have AKG 271S which doesen't suit me (no bass, no bass, just to dry midrange). Can anyone make a comparison with Ultrasone pro 900 or even ATH W1000X. The price bracket is different, but anyway ...

best bet is AKG 550 i would say! but the thing with AKG 550, and for that reason Denon D7100, is they are closed cans trying to sound bright! its not a natural open sound through acoustic but virtual brightness of most closed headphones. on certain mid and lower treble centric tracks. its too overwhelming to ears. i cannot have long listening hours on 550 or D7100, for that matter actually. i cannot have long listening session on X1s too. i guess neutral warm headphones like He-500 (though brighter than HE-400) or mad dogs or LCD-2 would be my next move.

 

[Chris5488]

I currently own a Sennheiser HD595 and have been using it for almost 8 years. I like it's sound (combined with a Maverick Audio Tubemagic D1), but I'm feeling like I'm missing something so I was tempted to look for an upgrade. After searching the web for some days and digging into a lot of reviews/opinions I ended up with the HD650/600 as the best bang for the buck. I saw the Fidelio X1's passing by but I wasn't taking Philips headphones seriously + since production moved from The Netherlands to China (at the beginning of this century) Philips' quality went down (steeply) so I just didn't bother. Today however, when looking for a new router on Amazon.de, I saw the Fidelio X1's at 175 euro's (230 dollars). That took my attention since I remembered during my search the X1's were around 300 euro's (400 dollars). It looks like a steal! So I restarted my quest on the internet, saw Innerfidelity's review, saw this topic and now I'm very tempted to add it to the cart (delivery is free by the way).
 
BUT, I still need to be convinced. First of all: it's a shame that it's nice looking cable is a piece of garbage (confirms the China-related story I told above once again) and after these 140 pages I still don't know which replacement cable I need since I prefer a cable with a 1/4 inch jack (just like the original Philips cable). The V-Moda's CoilPro looks nice (especially the jacks) but It's not available in Europe and don't know about it's impedance. Second: since I really like my HD595's and don't like Beats' oomph, will I like the X1's sound? (I'm not able to test them in the neighborhood). I listen to a lot of genres and I like clear sound with some warmth and a deep bass-response (not bass-heavy or overpowerd bass, but able to go deep).
 
So what's your opinion? And which cable do you propose (keeping in mind I prefer a 1/4 jack)?

 

[MrScratch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris5488 /img/forum/go_quote.gif

First of all: it's a shame that it's nice looking cable is a piece of garbage (confirms the China-related story I told above once again) and after these 140 pages I still don't know which replacement cable I need since I prefer a cable with a 1/4 inch jack (just like the original Philips cable).

 
We are in need of a brave fellow head-fier!

 

 
... or this one:
 

 

[Thujone]

Quote:

Second: since I really like my HD595's and don't like Beats' oomph, will I like the X1's sound? (I'm not able to test them in the neighborhood). I listen to a lot of genres and I like clear sound with some warmth and a deep bass-response (not bass-heavy or overpowerd bass, but able to go deep).
 
So what's your opinion? And which cable do you propose (keeping in mind I prefer a 1/4 jack)?

These have extremely high mid bass quantity and not the best extension. I think you should look into the HE-400 for deep, punchy bass without being overpowering at all.

 

[maiden7705]

Quote:

These have extremely high mid bass quantity and not the best extension. I think you should look into the HE-400 for deep, punchy bass without being overpowering at all.

He-400 is too warm! probably the steepest U-curve headphones i have seen. A sound signature i will only come to like if i may to be placed in a balcony of a hilltop condo with a hot cappuccino and rain!

 

[Sarith]

Quote:

 
So what's your opinion? And which cable do you propose (keeping in mind I prefer a 1/4 jack)?

I would also be interested if there are any such cables worth pursuing. Based on this thread it seems most have gone with 3.5mm cables. I would imagine there is a reason for this.

 

[maiden7705]

Quote:

I would also be interested if there are any such cables worth pursuing. Based on this thread it seems most have gone with 3.5mm cables. I would imagine there is a reason for this.

I will step and and out of line here guys! most head-fiers on this forum, unless someone wants to correct me, have a nominal amp in their stack like E6 or something. Now these cans are 100db/1mW @ 30 Ohms.
Even somerthing as Small as E6 can drive:

Drive ability	16~150Ω(recommend)
Output Power	> 100 mW@32Ω

 
Do an extra 1.8 Ohm arrayed in series with 30 already even matter logically speaking! I mean really, we head-fiers talk about things like Beyer DT880 and He-400 and then we are beating 1.8 cable impedence about the bush for a can thats merely rated 30 Ohm @ 100 SPL db/1mW.
I dont think its that worth a discussion, ONLY IF you are driving it with just the source. FYI, i have heard it through its stock cable using my JDS O2, there was NO PERCIEVED DIFFERENCE in SQ. So advantage now is: The stock cable looks cool and elegant!

 

[Sarith]

Quote:

I dont think its that worth a discussion, ONLY IF you are driving it with just the source. FYI, i have heard it through its stack cable using my JDS O2, there was NO PERCIEVED DIFFERENCE in SQ. So advantage now is: The stack cable looks cool and elegant!

I hope that you are in fact right but unfortunately it appears that the majority do think there is a difference between the stock and different cables. I wish that the stock cable was good and there is no need to upgrade as that would save me having to hunt down a 1/4" adapter.
I cant speak from experience as I have never replaced the cable on a headphone nor do I own these headphones yet. I can only rely on the information that has been presented.

 

[dakanao]

Is it true that these headphones are thin sounding?

 

[Beagle]

 
 
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by maiden7705 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
best bet is AKG 550 i would say!

 
K550 and X1 sound nothing alike.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

NOTHING alike. That's a slap to the face of the X1.

 

[Kamakahah]

I didn't want to mention it before, but we did have that discuss on one of the cable threads with some professionals. Adding a few ohms would pretty much do nothing unless you're the 6 million dollar man.

However, the overall build quality and materials of the cable, I find***, have a greater effect on the sound.

I listened to the HD800 recently with the stock cable vs a pure silver rectangular cable that costs $600+.
Did I hear a difference? Yes.
Was it better or worse? Depends on listener preferences.
Was it worth the price tag? Not to me, but to the owner it was.

I had intended to make a cable for MLE to try, but I ended up comendering the cable I ordered for another rush job. Now I have to reorder and wait, but I'm curious to see how it sounds to him, assuming I ever get it to him.

 

[Thujone]

Quote:

He-400 is too warm! probably the steepest U-curve headphones i have seen. A sound signature i will only come to like if i may to be placed in a balcony of a hilltop condo with a hot cappuccino and rain!

Hehe. Perhaps the HE-500 then?? I have no experience with them, but they fix the dark problem apparently.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

The difference between the stock cable and the others are ultimately very subtle, but it is noticeable. You get more bloom in the bass, and less definition from where instruments begin, and where they end, like minor blurriness, compared to something like the Inakustik premium cable which was quite well defined, if a little on the brighter side. Pushing up the bass to meet the level of the stock cable, further pushed up the details and made things brighter.

Even between my chinese cable and the Mediabridge, you can hear the better clarity in the MB cable. They have basically the same resistance, but the chinese cable isn't as clean. If you think this is expectation bias, well, I WAS expecting the chinese cable to sound better, so scratch that. I'm a bit upset that I spent so much, and got an inferior cable.

You can live with the stock cable. Just don't replace it with some lower resistance cables, as then you may end up eating your words (saying they sound the same).

Would I buy expensive cables? No. The differences are waaaaay too subtle to expect any sort of real improvement. But spending less than $10 to get over the stock cable's flaws is just common sense. You either keep the pretty stock cable and take a minor hit in SQ, or spend next to nothing and improve the sound just a teeny bit.