[OddE]

Please forgive the Rolling Stones reference in the subject line.
 
I am 35 years old, and live on the northwestern coast of Norway.
 
While I've 'always' - that is, at least since I was 10-11 years old - have had a very intense relationship to music, be it live or recorded - I've only sporadically listened through headphones. (Current setup - various sources to a Benchmark DAC1, a pair of mid-nineties vintage AKG K240 cans)
 
I am currently considering upgrading the K240s - I find myself listening more and more using headphones, and while the K240s are _good_, I know there's even better stuff out there - and, where I currently live, there is no room for a proper listening room; hence - if I want great sound, I need great 'phones.
 
Oh, besides, I kind of, sort of, missed hanging around with people who wouldn't throw up their arms in despair and roll their eyes if I spent more than a few tens of bucks on headphones; I miss being around people who _get_ hi-fi.
 
Enter head-fi.org.
 
As far as music goes, I tend to listen mostly to rock, blues and jazz - in that order - with a sprinkling of classical strewn over every now and then, mostly choral works.
 
I'm a source agnostic - while I much prefer vinyl for the sheer feelgoodness (is that even a word?) of putting on one of my favourite albums, I enjoy listening to CDs, SACDs, DAT, reel-to-reels, even.
 
Currently playing - The Decemberists' excellent live album 'We all raise our voices....' Feel like somewhat of a heathen, though - seeing as my only headphone amp is the DAC1 (Which has no analog inputs) I run the output from my RIAA amplifier through an old throwaway ADC. Oh well. Guess I had better start saving up for a DAC2.  

 

[cel4145]

Welcome to Head-Fi! Sorry about your wallet

Maybe you are ready to move up to a great open headphone? Lot of good choices out there.

 

[manbear]

 
Currently playing - The Decemberists' excellent live album 'We all raise our voices....' Feel like somewhat of a heathen, though - seeing as my only headphone amp is the DAC1 (Which has no analog inputs) I run the output from my RIAA amplifier through an old throwaway ADC. Oh well. Guess I had better start saving up for a DAC2.  

You could get a dedicated headphone amp for a lot less than a DAC2. Then you could drive your headphones from all your sources, DAC1 included. Perhaps a sexy tube amp?

 

[OddE]

Welcome to Head-Fi! Sorry about your wallet

Maybe you are ready to move up to a great open headphone? Lot of good choices out there.

 
-Yeah, I've been thinking along those lines for the past few months (Hey, I'm blistering fast - by geological standards... )
 
My problem (or, rather, 'challenge', as problems tend to be called nowadays) is that I live way out in the boonies - so if I want to try any candidates, I'll have to get on an airplane to either Oslo or Amsterdam. (Being direct flights from the local airport). Chances are this will end with me taking a chance based on what I read here and other places - after all, when you have to choose between a few (excellent!) headphones, chances are you'll pick something excellent, and I do enough flying as it is without flying anywhere to check out a pair of headphones... (Oh, I can hear my wife already. "You went to Amsterdam to do WHAT????" )
 
Seeing as my next headphones will go a long way towards replacing my loudspeakers (Nothing too fancy, a pair of System Audio Exacts paired with a Velodyne 12" to extend their range slightly at the lower end), I have a budget which pretty much allows for anything barring the most exotic stuff. Good thing I'm not into cables.
 
 

 
You could get a dedicated headphone amp for a lot less than a DAC2. Then you could drive your headphones from all your sources, DAC1 included. Perhaps a sexy tube amp?

 
-I've been thinking the very same thing, but in the end, (perhaps paradoxically) the quality of the DAC1 is what makes me want a DAC2 - it is so well and truly over-engineered (Which I appreciate, being an electronics engineer an'all) that I am very interested in seeing what a decade's worth of experience with the DAC1 has culminated in.
 
Anyway - current plan is to upgrade my headphones, then stick with what I've got source-wise for a while. Oh well, plans tend to change as time passes by. We'll see, but first - something to replace the K240s. (Or, perhaps - complement them; I really like their sound, but this is probably down to my familiarity with them more than anything else.
 
   -Odd Erling