[artnoi]

Now I regret not having believed NwAvGuy’s word that ‘if a brand doesn’t provide a measurement, it gonna measures bad’ or something like this. Should have bought an O2.

 

[pinnahertz]

Well I have some issues with my amp now.
I have got a new desktop DAC/amp from Yulong Audio. The manufacturer provided many measurements regarding THD (without specified loads except for power output) but doesn’t state the Z out nor would they reply my emails, so I bought the DAC/amp blindfolded. After getting it I found out it has serious bass boom and treble roll-off on my 250Ohm DT880 that’s not present in any zero-ohm source. I then tried to contact every email I could find on the internet and finally one from YA replied me and said Z out is 10< ohm.
Should this be the reason for the distortion I’m experiencing?

Hard to tell from way over here....but not likely. Output Z along isn't usually a distortion cause, more like a symptom.

I think Yulong is really not fair to provide critical information of their products. And now that even my 250Ohm Beyer suffers a lot from its Z out, I’m very excited to try it with lower impedance headphones (I’m getting k7XX tmr, note that K7xx has overall smoother impedance and phase measurement).

Again, not likely just output Z that's the problem.

And also I want to properly measure the Z out, anyone here has done it before? Attached is photo of my amp’s headphone output circuitry

Yes, but I'm out of time right now. If nobody else replies I'll be back later.

 

[pinnahertz]

Now I regret not having believed NwAvGuy’s word that ‘if a brand doesn’t provide a measurement, it gonna measures bad’ or something like this. Should have bought an O2.

I have two, and a couple of stories. Got to run now, but let me know what the source device is when you get a chance.

 

[artnoi]

I have two, and a couple of stories. Got to run now, but let me know what the source device is when you get a chance.

Source? I don't think my source plays a role here since It's a DAC/Amp so I just feed digital signal from computer or DAP into it via USB, Opt, etc.
Now I have to go too, it's 4.27AM here. Thanks for your insight anyway.

 

[artnoi]

another thing I forgot to mention was that the amp does make noise when turned on. I meant it really makes noise, not through headphones. maybe it’s normal? I’m not serious though.

 

[pinnahertz]

Source? I don't think my source plays a role here since It's a DAC/Amp so I just feed digital signal from computer or DAP into it via USB, Opt, etc.
Now I have to go too, it's 4.27AM here. Thanks for your insight anyway.

The reason I asked what the source was is because I tested my O2 for an audible difference as compared (ABX) to my DAP, and there was no difference. That's because my DAP already could easily drive my headphones.

The effect of a headphone amp, and therefore its necessity, is determined by the application. If your source already drives your headphones well an amp won't change anything.

 

[artnoi]

The reason I asked what the source was is because I tested my O2 for an audible difference as compared (ABX) to my DAP, and there was no difference. That's because my DAP already could easily drive my headphones.

The effect of a headphone amp, and therefore its necessity, is determined by the application. If your source already drives your headphones well an amp won't change anything.

Yah ok I got your point.
My players drive them well, but just not loud enough on quiet tracks.
And actually I hear no differences between my player (0.2) and Fiio A5 (0.3 ohm)

 

[Strangelove424]

I've decided to quit streaming music for a little while. I know this probably goes without saying, and hopelessly redundant, but I really like the music I own. I chose it. It is my music. Spotify thinks it understands my taste, but it really doesn't. I keep hearing the same things suggested to me over and over on these music services. Ironically enough, there's more variation in my own collection. Maybe I'm just soured on streaming for a bit. It'll probably change next month when there's an album I need access to.

 

[93EXCivic]

I use Spotify Premium to discover new music. I like to look at artists I like and there is a section of similar artists which takes me to new artists I haven't heard before. Or I just search for random playlists based on my mood. I like to then go out and buy music from the artists I find.

 

[castleofargh]

I've decided to quit streaming music for a little while. I know this probably goes without saying, and hopelessly redundant, but I really like the music I own. I chose it. It is my music. Spotify thinks it understands my taste, but it really doesn't. I keep hearing the same things suggested to me over and over on these music services. Ironically enough, there's more variation in my own collection. Maybe I'm just soured on streaming for a bit. It'll probably change next month when there's an album I need access to.

I've always identified this a being old. that moment when novelty alone doesn't make anything and everything a worthwhile experience anymore, like how babies are amazed by anything new. and we instead would rather spend a good time with something we know and enjoy.
I was old at a fairly young age when it comes to music. almost never listened to the radio and totally stopped when it became filled with ads. I loved stuff like Pandora for a few years as a way to find stuff similar to what I already liked(which in itself was already a sign). and now if I was told I'd have to only listen to my ripped library until I die, I'd be very fine with that.
I have a few buddies who try 10, maybe 20 new albums every week. they're fully into the idea that there are so many gems waiting to be experienced that it would be a waste to spend too much time on stuff we already know. the fun thing is, I totally understand. I was young too once.

I'm still young when it comes to books and manga. but even there, I've started to enjoy revisiting something I read a few years back. time is relative to hobbies but it still does pass(yeah that's what Einstein meant all along, the more you know). ^_^

 

[bigshot]

I've decided to quit streaming music for a little while. I know this probably goes without saying, and hopelessly redundant, but I really like the music I own.

I have the opposite problem. My library is at the point where I already have all the "regular suspects". I want to hear new things that can start me off down a new branch. I had XM radio for a while and even though it had a gazillion channels all curated by knowledgable folks, I found that it was basically a "greatest hits" selection off of my own library. I didn't discover anything new. At my level of collecting, no algorithm is going to know which dusty corner I should be rooting about it. I have to do that myself. It costs a little more because I have to buy physical media put out by small independent labels and rip it myself, but at least I'm not hearing Patsy Cline's "I Fall To Pieces" and Chuck Berry's "Johnny B Good" for the millionth time. It's amazing how much great stuff there is that nobody knows about. But after you've exhausted the greatest hits, you have to dig for it.

 

[Strangelove424]

I've always identified this a being old. that moment when novelty alone doesn't make anything and everything a worthwhile experience anymore, like how babies are amazed by anything new. and we instead would rather spend a good time with something we know and enjoy.
I was old at a fairly young age when it comes to music. almost never listened to the radio and totally stopped when it became filled with ads. I loved stuff like Pandora for a few years as a way to find stuff similar to what I already liked(which in itself was already a sign). and now if I was told I'd have to only listen to my ripped library until I die, I'd be very fine with that.
I have a few buddies who try 10, maybe 20 new albums every week. they're fully into the idea that there are so many gems waiting to be experienced that it would be a waste to spend too much time on stuff we already know. the fun thing is, I totally understand. I was young too once.

I'm still young when it comes to books and manga. but even there, I've started to enjoy revisiting something I read a few years back. time is relative to hobbies but it still does pass(yeah that's what Einstein meant all along, the more you know). ^_^

Yes, I can understand this feeling and perhaps that has contributed to my weariness of streaming. I have no interest at all in music that has been recently released. If there is one good thing that came from streaming in the last 6 months it would be my opening up to electronica, and specifically getting deep into DaftPunk. That was a genuinely new high of discovery, which I admittedly showed up late to the boat for because of years of resistance toward electronic (and still having only found one band or "duo"). But eventually I went out and bought the albums and now it is my music, not Spotify's. There is a process by which music discovered becomes your own, and it requires the effort to purchase, rip, organize, etc. The problem is that even Daft Punk is how many years old? Decades. I have zero interest in anything recently released, and I find before I take interest in something, it usually needs to be around for a while in order for me to acclimate to it. The billboards I have no interest in. The week's releases I have no interest in.

This issue is tied up with the quality of music made today. I really think it stinks. Not just the mastering, but the entire artistic premise. I've been having a lot of trouble trying to find new acts I like. Even the ones I find talent in, are utterly disappointing in many other ways. Everything modern, from modern pop to modern classical, seems to get on my nerves a little. It can be so contrived. And is filled with despair. There are exceptions, and I do have new artists saved to my Spotify account, but I don't seem to be all that passionate about them, nor do I see the kind of excitement in the music industry that seemed to exist in the 60s, 70s, or even 80s. Perhaps that is partially down to me becoming jaded, but I like to think of myself as an open minded person. My newfound passion for DaftPunk is atleast a reminder to myself that a spark can still ignite, it's just harder to find that spark now.

 

[bigshot]

I've found lots of great modern music. But the problem is that the digital world has made the production of music so easily accessible, the good stuff is mixed in with an ocean of mediocrity. A selection algorithm isn't going to be able to pick the wheat out from the chaff. That takes human curation. I find that on certain radio and podcasts done by people who know their stuff.

 

[Strangelove424]

I have the opposite problem. My library is at the point where I already have all the "regular suspects". I want to hear new things that can start me off down a new branch. I had XM radio for a while and even though it had a gazillion channels all curated by knowledgable folks, I found that it was basically a "greatest hits" selection off of my own library. I didn't discover anything new. At my level of collecting, no algorithm is going to know which dusty corner I should be rooting about it. I have to do that myself. It costs a little more because I have to buy physical media put out by small independent labels and rip it myself, but at least I'm not hearing Patsy Cline's "I Fall To Pieces" and Chuck Berry's "Johnny B Good" for the millionth time. It's amazing how much great stuff there is that nobody knows about. But after you've exhausted the greatest hits, you have to dig for it.

That's why I was on streaming to start out. Really wanted to open up my horizons and listen to everything I hadn't exposed myself to already. The problem is exactly as you say the Spotify suggestion system is "a greatest hits of my own library". I kept hearing Johnny B Goode too! And Chuck Berry has a giant catalog! It's almost as though Spotify forgets it has access to every song ever made, and keeps suggesting the same 10 over and over.

I'm a lazy person, so I'm still holding out hope for them algorithms. But in the meantime, you're right, it's better to take matters into your own hands. One thing I began doing was Googling "top" lists. Top 100 jazz albums ever made... Top 10 composers of a certain era... Top 10 conductors... you can go on and on this way, and there are articles out there to suffice, typically by music mags like RollingStone. Once I find something I am unaware of, or haven't explored, I dig into it, and try to scope out contemporaries to get a context of the time and sound. It takes work at this point though, very enjoyable work, but it has to be a very active exploration. I just don't get many new artists magically landing in my lap anymore.

 

[bigshot]

I do myself what the algorithms do... Look for relationships. If I really like Chet Baker, I take note of who he played with and other performers in the same genre. Then I start off down the branches and see what I can find. If it's a dead end, I locate another branch and try that. That way I always have more new things to explore. I like great new music a lot better than great music I've heard a lot.

To find new music, you have to find a curator and pick their brain. I have a lot of musician friends and whenever I see them I ask them about current musicians they might have worked with that they like. I also keep my ears open on the internet to people on Facebook who know more about it than I do. I jot down the names they mention and google up samples. I've found some amazing things that way. Music is alive and well.