[Vatnos]

SHP9500 on an XDuoo XD05 with the burson V5i opamp is delicious. Adds body to the mids and bass and softens treble a bit. Enjoy your $60 HD800s.

The schiit loki is another interesting idea. Tubes could probably have a positive impact as well. Any amp that warms them up basically.

A good dac+amp pairing will improve anything, regardless of how easy or hard to drive it is.

 

[VRacer-111]

Can an amp/dac make the shp9500 sound "better", compared to running them through my motherboard?

In short yes, a better DAC/amp will bring more out of the SHP9500 - but like with most headphones its of really finer details not a major change of the overall sound. They sound pretty good straight out of my Samsung Tablet unamped, I really like them unamped - mainly use them for surfing YouTube and gaming right out of the Elite controller of my Xbox One Elite edition. Going with a better DAC/amp setup you will also reach a point to where you hear their limits, and why they are lower level mid-fi cans compared to the likes of an HD6XX or anything above that level. The bass really comes out great if you EQ them though...or swap to Shure 1840 pads with custom attenuator inserts.

 

[SomeTechNoob]

I found very little improvement with an amp dac though. I would generally try to get fancier cans first.

 

[Muldeberg]

Thanks for the answers, I'll probably just stick to my motherboard for now then. Now another question, I bought the shure 1840 pads for replacement. Will these ruin the soundstage or maybe even better it?

 

[Muldeberg]

@VRacer-111 What do you mean by custom attenuator? Never heard that word before.

 

[VRacer-111]

Thanks for the answers, I'll probably just stick to my motherboard for now then. Now another question, I bought the shure 1840 pads for replacement. Will these ruin the soundstage or maybe even better it?

It won't ruin the soundstage, pretty much no different from stock from what I can tell.

Custom attenuators are thin pieces of stiff material you cut into shape (like a crescent moon) and put inside the ear opening between the driver cloth and bottom of the pad. They help restore bass back which you loose with the 1840 pad and also help out a little bit with clarity and detail.

See the following pictures.

Attenuators are the blue pieces in the middle:

They go inside the pad behind the ear as shown with these pads (for Fostex TH-X00):

 

[mib91]

Can an amp/dac make the shp9500 sound "better", compared to running them through my motherboard?

Pairing it with a warm source definitely brings out more fun and enjoyable sound over stock. With E10K's bass boost on, it serves good amount of extension in sub-bass having more body and texture with punchier mid-bass that overall makes the whole signature ever so alluring to me. The clarity gets a wee bit better and so does separation as well as soundstage's width.

Of course, your millage may vary depending on the dac/amp of your choice. Like, this E10K's bass boost I mentioned usually doesn't go very well with warm headphones(makes their bass loosy) but works wonder with neutral to bright headphones that lacks bass something like SHP9500. For the same principle, you'll find people pairing SHP9500 with a tube amp and find the presentation to their likings.

 

[Vatnos]

I found very little improvement with an amp dac though. I would generally try to get fancier cans first.

I found large improvements with a warm amp/dac that paired well with the SHP9500s frequency response. When fed correctly, these can be very enjoyable and resolving headphones. Based on what I've heard from the other offerings in the mid-fi universe, I'm sticking with these.

Also a word of warning: everything in life will be a step down in comfort from here.

 

[Muldeberg]

@VRacer-111 Interesting, I will try that when my 1840 pads arrive!

 

[gargani]

It won't ruin the soundstage, pretty much no different from stock from what I can tell.

Custom attenuators are thin pieces of stiff material you cut into shape (like a crescent moon) and put inside the ear opening between the driver cloth and bottom of the pad. They help restore bass back which you loose with the 1840 pad and also help out a little bit with clarity and detail.

See the following pictures.

Attenuators are the blue pieces in the middle:

They go inside the pad behind the ear as shown with these pads (for Fostex TH-X00):

[Nice pictures
Two questions, though. What material did you use for the attenuators; and did you have to slice through the bottom of the earpads, to fit them in?

 

[VRacer-111]

I used a hanging file folder (basically equivalent to a manila folder) can use any thin, stiff material...plastic plate, styrofoam plate, manila folder, etc...

They insert right in at the bottom of the pad inside the earhole, no cutting whatsoever. Install or remove in seconds...

 

[gargani]

I used a hanging file folder (basically equivalent to a manila folder) can use any thin, stiff material...plastic plate, styrofoam plate, manila folder, etc...

They insert right in at the bottom of the pad inside the earhole, no cutting whatsoever. Install or remove in seconds...

Oh, now I see. Thanks for the information.

I used a hanging file folder (basically equivalent to a manila folder) can use any thin, stiff material...plastic plate, styrofoam plate, manila folder, etc...

They insert right in at the bottom of the pad inside the earhole, no cutting whatsoever. Install or remove in seconds...

 

[RandomDave]

Guys i'm an idiot and i didnt turn my notifications off while i was listening. I use very loud-ass sound for notifications (it needs *-20dB* when ran through ReplayGain). I was listening through FiiO Q1 at low gain, knob at 6.5. It scared the hell out of me, it's barely bearable when slowly raising the volume up to 6.5 while playing the sound. Could i have clipped my amp/damaged my headphones? Everything sounds OK, but i need to be sure otherwise my OCD is gonna kill me (i need everything perfect for inner peace).
Speaking of amps, is LittleDot MK2 toobe viable for 9500S? It has gain switches and its advertised for 32-600ohm.
Thanks

 

[Vatnos]

I've done something similar at some point, and my SHPs are fine. They're pretty robust. Your brain probably needs some time to recover from that kind of shock though.

Can't help with tubes but I think a warm tubey amp could do good things for the SHPs. Good luck with that search.

 

[RandomDave]

One last question, if i ran headphones at say 105 dB SPL, would +20dB make them go 125 dB SPL or it works differently?