Here are some EQ files based on this chart (thanks fallrsk!). Disclaimer being that it took me 5 minutes to make these, I used a lot of guesswork and estimation, and I have no clue what I'm doing. The foobar2000 one is for use with the
Graphic Equalizer plugin, and the
Equalizer APO works system-wide.
foobar2000:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B3fhrQO4W3Xea2JjTVRRV2o2V28/view?usp=sharing
Equalizer APO:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B3fhrQO4W3XednpLVkVSLVphOXM/view?usp=sharing
Screenshots? Screenshots.
Hammy, remember this post? You had suggested using the sonarworks calibration EQ profile for the 598s to help remedy the poor sound I was hearing out of my 598SE. At the time, I thought it sucked the life out of the vocals, and didn't do a real good job of "fixing" the shortcomings of my inferior sounding 598SE.
Well, seeing as I'm not totally happy with the E10K, and considering upgrading it, last night, I decided to apply the sonarworks 598 EQ curve to my Ivory 598 and E10K combo. This time, I really enjoyed the effects of this EQ profile, especially at louder volumes. Bass boost turned off on the Fiio now, the bass really opened up, with lots more bass information and texture coming out across a broader range. The mids and highs also sounded a lot smoother, the slight grain and slight sizzle virtually gone, allowing me to play the music louder and hear and feel the impact of the lows without the highs sounding too loud. I guess you can say the music sounded more balanced between bass, mids, and highs, which is what a proper EQ is supposed to do after all.
Initially, going back and forth between EQ on and off, I wasn't sure which I liked better. EQ off definitely sounded a bit clearer and cleaner. EQ on sounded more balanced and smoother, with only a small hit to clarity. I left the EQ on for a few hours of listening, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I didn't feel like I was missing anything. I will continue to listen with the EQ on for a week or so to get used to the sound. Then I'll turn it off and see which I prefer.
I think the SE I had was so far off Sennheiser's target curve for the 598, that the sonarworks 598 EQ curve, which is based on an average of frequency response measurements of multiple 598s, couldn't be properly applied. My SE was too much of an outlier to be representative of the average. So what I heard from the SE with the EQ applied didn't sound that good.
Ultimately, I feel the sonarworks 598 EQ curve did a very good job addressing the shortcomings I was hearing with the 598/E10K combo (lacking some bass quantity and depth, overall bright sound), that I may not end up upgrading the DAC/AMP at this time. I still want to listen to alternatives however to hear for myself how much they improve the sound.
So thank you for that post about the sonarworks calibration.