[WhiteCrow]

XB700>anything made by monster.

 

[Dancingduck]

.

 

[ac500]

Tried out some XB700's today. Impressive bass coming out of my laptop's audio port. Sadly the fact that they had no 1/4" converter meant I couldn't try them out of my DAC/Amp. My question to you guys: How much better is the XB700 properly amped, and how do you do this with it's awkward small headphone jack which doesn't fit any my usual screw-on 1/4" converters?
 
I ask this because I realized that with an absurd EQ boost, my Sennheiser HD 650's out of a proper amp actually surpassed the XB700's bass impact strength quite noticeably, as well as being far more articulate and detailed in bass. Obviously the XB700 doesn't even come within a mile of the HD650's mids/highs, detail and clarity, but that's expected of a $80 headphone vs. a $400 one. 
 
What I did not expect though was for the HD650's EQed bass to win out over the XB700 in quality and quantity, since the XB700 is kind of designed for bass. EQ'ing the XB700 just distorted the bass it seemed but again I suspect this may be due to me not running it from an amp so I'm wondering what people's experience is here with XB700 vs Amped XB700.

 

[Kukuk]

XB700's, from my experience, benefit greatly from proper amping. They gain a little bass quantity, but the biggest improvement is the quality of the bass. It cleans up to the point where you can actually follow a bass solo.

 

[wind016]

Quote:

Tried out some XB700's today. Impressive bass coming out of my laptop's audio port. Sadly the fact that they had no 1/4" converter meant I couldn't try them out of my DAC/Amp. My question to you guys: How much better is the XB700 properly amped, and how do you do this with it's awkward small headphone jack which doesn't fit any my usual screw-on 1/4" converters?
 
I ask this because I realized that with an absurd EQ boost, my Sennheiser HD 650's out of a proper amp actually surpassed the XB700's bass impact strength quite noticeably, as well as being far more articulate and detailed in bass. Obviously the XB700 doesn't even come within a mile of the HD650's mids/highs, detail and clarity, but that's expected of a $80 headphone vs. a $400 one. 
 
What I did not expect though was for the HD650's EQed bass to win out over the XB700 in quality and quantity, since the XB700 is kind of designed for bass. EQ'ing the XB700 just distorted the bass it seemed but again I suspect this may be due to me not running it from an amp so I'm wondering what people's experience is here with XB700 vs Amped XB700.

 
If you're EQing properly, the XB700s should also double as massaging pads I don't remeber bass distortion from using a J3, but the mids and highs are always going to be grainy. 

 

[autoprimeph]

good day, i really want to purchase a 700

locally we don't have stocks..so i've checked it out on ebay..i found a seller from Hong Kong..
good feedback..he mentioned "100% GENUINE Sony Item + Brand NEW in Official Retail Packaging!!!!!"..but im still hesitant..
is ebay still reliable for purchasing genuine products?
am i risking something here?i badly need one..they're awesome..but that's my only option..

please help me out..can't wait to sync w/ one of these ^^

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

XB700's strength lies in the sub bass, not the mid bass (the type that punches you in the face.). So perhaps that is why a bass boosted HD650 wins out vs an untouched, unamped XB700.

 

[autoprimeph]

oh please..any clues?

 

[nonsupremous]

Can you purchase from Amazon?  That's the way I'd go.

 

[Ouspensky]

Anything coming from Hong Kong or China and sold through Ebay is usually fake. Your have been warned.

 

[maverickronin]

If you EQ the sub bass up too much on the HD650s they'll start distorting like mad.  The sub bass also happens to be what the XB700s live for.  They will rumble like and earthquake at only a few Hz if you feed them the proper signal.
 
If you're looking for "punch" the XB700s probably aren't the first choice.  I do like them better with a proper amp though.  They're great with my Objective2.

 

[ac500]

It would have been nice trying them with a proper amp while I had them, but the stupid headphone connector is the wrong size and they don't include an adapter. That was surprising, for a headphone that's high quality and requires amping, that they wouldn't include an adapter for the most common jack amps use.

 

[roker]

Quote:

It would have been nice trying them with a proper amp while I had them, but the stupid headphone connector is the wrong size and they don't include an adapter. That was surprising, for a headphone that's high quality and requires amping, that they wouldn't include an adapter for the most common jack amps use.

I mean if you're that serious about headphones, you can bust out, I don't know, 5 dollars for an adapter SHIPPED from monoprice or eBay or something.

 
Quote:

If you EQ the sub bass up too much on the HD650s they'll start distorting like mad.  The sub bass also happens to be what the XB700s live for.  They will rumble like and earthquake at only a few Hz if you feed them the proper signal.
 
If you're looking for "punch" the XB700s probably aren't the first choice.  I do like them better with a proper amp though.  They're great with my Objective2.

 
I was under the impression that the xb500/700 don't respond much to amping.  I'm rolling with an XB500 for right now and it sounds great with my amp, but I assumed it was because of the dac and not the amp itself.

 

[farika]

I recently bought the XB700 and I confess that I have a mixed review.

On comfort, I have really nothing to say it's perfect. I bought these headphones because I like the bass. But there is really too much and it's tiring after a while.

Music: This is where it is the least worst. But it may be because I'm not at all manage EQ. Without EQ, the bass is excellent but there is that. The medium and high frequencies are masked by the low. One gets the impression that there is a veil over them.

Film / Gaming:
The XB700 really gives a new side to movies and games. It is better able to distinguish distances, and the bass is really pespectibles. However once again the mid and treble are bad and it tends to increase the volume. Except that film and games, the bass is just too strong. A shot gun and you can feel the ball coming but in our ear.

I had one before sennheiser and bass were bad but he had very good treble. The beautiful but I have low invading the rest.

I appeal to your advice. I am a beginner. Sorry for my bad English.

 

 

[maverickronin]

Quote:

I was under the impression that the xb500/700 don't respond much to amping.  I'm rolling with an XB500 for right now and it sounds great with my amp, but I assumed it was because of the dac and not the amp itself.

I haven't heard the 500s, but my 700s do better with an amp that has a low output impedance and doesn't roll off the bass from improperly sized coupling caps or something.  The HP outs on some DAPs /lapstops/PCs/etc meet those requirements but a lot of them don't.