[extrabigmehdi]

Quote:

1) I have a asus xonar essence stx sound card in my pc with a built in headphone amp. Will this be suitable to get the best sound out of my HD 700's while using my pc?

 
Perhaps not the "best sound", but it should certainly work nicely. You'd see lot of user shouting that the xonar stx is not good for the hd800, however there are few that made seriously the experience, and then you get the comment "better than expected". I  run myself the hd800 out of a xonar stx, and find it's pretty good. I  don't know the supposed "mind blowing" experience from a better source (often, interpreted as significantly more expensive) , and I don't care because the hd800 still sounds better than any headphone I  tried before.
So here you get an other user like takato14, that would say it sucks without even trying regarding the xonar stx + hd700 combination.
Also, there's jude that tried the hd700 of the audioquest dragonfly, and said it worked nicely
Personally when I  see the tiny size of the dragonfly I  doubt it would beat the xonar stx (although there's no clear comparisons here).

 

[srr2449]

Quote:

If you want a gaming headphone the HD700 is a bit overkill, but if you're gonna use it for other things I guess not.
 
1: I don't think the Asus can handle the HD700.
2: N/A
3: I doubt such a thing exists, just use the same amp you normally would.
4: N/A

 
These are the specs for the asus xonar essence stx:
 
 

[tr] [td] Audio Performance[/td] [td] Output Signal-to-Noise Ratio (A-Weighted):
124dB for Front-out,117dB for Headphone-out (600ohms) dB 
Input Signal-to-Noise Ratio (A-Weighted):
118 dB 
Output THD+N at 1kHz:
0.0003% (-110dB) for Front-out, 0.001% (-100dB) for Headphone-out 
Input THD+N at 1kHz:
0.0002% (-113dB) for Line-in 
Frequency Response (-3dB, 24-bit/192kHz input):
<10Hz to 90KHz 
Output/Input Full-Scale Voltage
2 Vrms (5.65 Vp-p) [/td] [/tr] [tr] [td] Bus Compatibility[/td] [td] PCI Express: 
-PCI Express Rev. specification compatible 
-Compatible with X1, X4, X8, X16 PCI Express slots 
 [/td] [/tr] [tr] [td] Main Chipset[/td] [td] Audio Processor:
ASUS AV100 High-Definition Sound Processor (Max. 192KHz/24bit) 
24-bit D-A Converter of Digital Sources:
Texas Instruments PCM1792A*1 for Front-Out (127dB SNR, Max. 192kHz/24bit) 
24-bit A-D Converter for Analog Inputs:
Cirrus-Logic CS5381* 1 (120dB SNR, Max. 192kHz/24bit) 
High Fidelity Headphone Amplifier:
Texas Instruments 6120A2*1 (120dB SNR, 100dB THD+N @ Vcc±12V, RL=600Ω, f=1kHz)[/td] [/tr] [tr] [td] Sample Rate and Resolution[/td] [td] Analog Playback Sample Rate and Resolution:
44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @ 16/24bit 
Analog Recording Sample Rate and Resolution:
44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @ 16/24bit 
S/PDIF Digital Output:
44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @ 16/24bit, Dolby Digital 
ASIO 2.0 Driver Support:
Supports 44.1K/48K/96K/192KHz @16/24bit with very low latency[/td] [/tr] [tr] [td] I/O Ports[/td] [td] Analog Output Jack:
RCA jack *2 (Front R / Front L), 6.30mm jack*1 (Headphone out) 
Analog Input Jack:
6.30mm jack *1 (Shared by Line-In/Mic-In) 
Other line-level analog input (for CD-IN/TV Tuner):
Aux-In (4-pin header on the card) 
Digital S/PDIF Output:
High-bandwidth Coaxial/TOS-Link combo port supports 192KHz/24bit 
Front-Panel Header:
Shared by Headphone out / 2 channels out / 
Microphone in 
S/PDIF Header:
Connects to compatiable graphic cards for HDMI output[/td] [/tr]

also the mixamp pro made by astro does what I'm talking about, however I'm not sure if it will work well with the HD 700. 

 

[srr2449]

Quote:

 
Perhaps not the "best sound", but it should certainly work nicely. You'd see lot of user shouting that the xonar stx is not good for the hd800, however there are few that made seriously the experience, and then you get the comment "better than expected". I  run myself the hd800 out of a xonar stx, and find it's pretty good. I  don't know the supposed "mind blowing" experience from a better source (often, interpreted as significantly more expensive) , and I don't care because the hd800 still sounds better than any headphone I  tried before.
So here you get an other user like takato14, that would say it sucks without even trying regarding the xonar stx + hd700 combination.
Also, there's jude that tried the hd700 of the audioquest dragonfly, and said it worked nicely
Personally when I  see the tiny size of the dragonfly I  doubt it would beat the xonar stx (although there's no clear comparisons here).

Great to hear that you run the HD 800 from the xonar stx  
 
I know the HD 700 is more user friendly so it should be fine. I guess if that does all that I need it to do from the pc side, can anyone recommend an amp that is tried and tested with the HD 700 that gets everything out of the headphone as intended? My main fear is that I don't know enough about how to squeeze every ounce of goodness out of the headphone that I end up wasting my money and time by not enjoying it completely!

 

[extrabigmehdi]

Quote:

 My main fear is that I don't know enough about how to squeeze every ounce of goodness out of the headphone that I end up wasting my money and time by not enjoying it completely!

 
1 - If you don't test other headphones, you'll never know how good is your hd700. Squeeze "every ounce of goodness", but how, when you don't know what to expect ?
2 - The best would be to listen to the hd700 before buying it, because there's no warranty you'd like it, even at its price.

 

[srr2449]

Quote:

 
1 - If you don't test other headphones, you'll never know how good is your hd700. Squeeze "every ounce of goodness", but how, when you don't know what to expect ?
2 - The best would be to listen to the hd700 before buying it, because there's no warranty you'd like it, even at its price.

 
Oh sorry I should have said I already have listened to it and like it very much. I just don't have the knowledge to know how to replicate the setup it was on. I sampled it at an ex coworkers sound studio and don't have his info anymore.

 

[extrabigmehdi]

Quote:

 
Oh sorry I should have said I already have listened to it and like it very much. I just don't have the knowledge to know how to replicate the setup it was on. I sampled it at an ex coworkers sound studio and don't have his info anymore.

Well, I  suggest you upgrade your source later if you are not satisfied. Anyway, one "non official" argument for hd700, promoted by jude, is that they are easier to drive than hd800. And frankly, IMHO, two transparent source , with low output impedance should sound same. The more you nitpick regarding minor differences, the more likely these difference could be attributed to placebo.
Note:  you could at least ensure if the setup you tried before was tube  or  solid state.

 

[srr2449]

Quote:

Well, I  suggest you upgrade your source later if you are not satisfied. Anyway, one "non official" argument for hd700, promoted by jude, is that they are easier to drive than hd800. And frankly, IMHO, two transparent source , with low output impedance should sound same. The more you nitpick regarding minor differences, the more likely these difference could be attributed to placebo.
Note:  you could at least ensure if the setup you tried before was tube  or  solid state.

Thanks for all your help. I guess that's what I will do. Hopefully there are enough members in Atlanta GA area that a meet could happen one day and maybe someone will let me try their amp. It's so difficult to find places with headphones like this to try

 

[satanigatan]

So after having to wait, I'm finally getting to borrow my friends pair tomorrow.

I sure hope this doesn't cause Tinnitus. Ouch!

*ducks*

 

[satanigatan]

Forgot who mentioned Grado (I think it was Purrin) - but I think that's pretty accurate for these. These cans remind me of a monster hyrbrid between Grado and Sennheiser. I still need time to break them in, but they sure are transparent/fast and heavy on treble.

I had to mix down my treble, was a little too hot for my liking. I guess it's the price point, but these would be really popular at a lower price for sure. Grado w/ much better quality build/ and comfort. I've owned the HD-800 and read these were a bit warmer. And I do find these to have a warmer sound signature. But the treble is a lot more harsh. At least to my ears.

 

[zenpunk]

What equipment/music were you using? I agree they have a relatively strong treble presence but like many people on this thread I never found it to be problematic and certainly never harsh. Though I use a balanced tube amplifier so that might be why 

 

[LCfiner]

I'd like to chime in here. I bought a used pair a few weeks ago and am quite enjoying them. I don't want to give too detailed an impression as I don't have a high quality amp at the moment. Just using iphone out or a cmoy. But, even with subpar amping, they are really nice. definitely a mix of the HD650 and HD800 (both of which I've owned before). The sound has a FR that is darker than the HD800 but not quite as lush as the HD650. And, in terms of instrument separation the HD700 has more precise placement and pinpoint imaging than the HD650. 
 
But the main thing I noticed is that the treble peak isn't nearly as bad as I expected. Yes, I can notice the peak around 7 or 8 kHz as it creates a slight "crinkly" or artificial crispness to sounds that is not present with my Koss ESP 950. But I don't hear any huge peak at 5 kHz - and I'm relatively sensitive to peaks in the upper mids (2 and 5 kHz peaks on Grados can make me wince at slightly louder than average volume). And if I create a notch EQ to drop the 5 kHz down, the sound is more "sucked out" and doesn't sound natural - it doesn't sound like the ESP 950, that's for sure. it's only that 8 kHz peak that's audible. When I EQ that frequency down, then the HD700 response sounds a bit more like the ESP 950 (although there are other differences in soundstage, clarity and bass impact) and that artificial crispness (or "fake detail" to the highs) is diminished.
 
And this treble peak is not nearly at the same level of harshness as what I've heard from the kings of the treble peaks - the GS1000 and PS1000. Those headphones had very smooth upper mids but the treble peaks above 6 kHz were so strong that they would overwhelm some songs. I suspect the difference is that the HD700 has a peak but very little ringing and distortion compared to those Grados.
 
In other words, I'm hearing something that matches the innerfidelity and headroom charts (single peak at ~8 kHz) and NOT the purrin chart which shows a nasty, frightening triple peak with huge dips in between. I'm not sure why there's such a large discrepancy between the charts. Other headphone measurements between sites have been very similar despite using different measuring setups. Regardless, I'm glad I gave them a chance. 

 

[eleathar]

Harsh for someone, may be clear for others.
Veiled for someone, may be smooth for others.
No ear is the same, nor the brain is linked to.

 

[LCfiner]

Harsh for someone, may be clear for others.
Veiled for someone, may be smooth for others.
No ear is the same, nor the brain is linked to.

yes, I understand that. But that's not really my point (well, I did make comparisons with other headphones I've heard but that's separate from the impressions of the same headphone between different people).

The odd bit is that even the measurements from two sources show responses that would appear to be very different above 5 kHz. I haven't seen that kind of discrepancy between those sources for other headphones before. Differences were usually just a mater of the scale of the chart and the amount of smoothing applied.

 

[eleathar]

yes, I understand that. But that's not really my point (well, I did make comparisons with other headphones I've heard but that's separate from the impressions of the same headphone between different people).
The odd bit is that even the measurements from two sources show responses that would appear to be very different above 5 kHz. I haven't seen that kind of discrepancy between those sources for other headphones before. Differences were usually just a mater of the scale of the chart and the amount of smoothing applied.

Mine was just a consideration in general, not specifically on your post.
I'm among those who don't consider Hd 700 harsh: treble is there, I don't deny it, but I never felt it too intrusive. Maybe, on some tracks, cymbals tend to have too much of an evidence, but my ears never bleeded because of that.
Only one time, during first use, I heard too much sibilance on a track, Goodbye my lover of James Blunt: it was not only the sibilants, all the song felt a bit thin and harsh.
The same track on the same system sounds different now: no more sibilants, no more harshness. Burn in? Brain burn in? Amp failure? Dunno why, but now is fixed and I' m really enjoying my headphones with every track and every genre.

 

[garysan]

Quote:

Only one time, during first use, I heard too much sibilance on a track, Goodbye my lover of James Blunt: it was not only the sibilants, all the song felt a bit thin and harsh.
The same track on the same system sounds different now: no more sibilants, no more harshness. Burn in? Brain burn in? Amp failure? Dunno why, but now is fixed and I' m really enjoying my headphones with every track and every genre.

 
Amen to that. I found the same. Little bit thin in the very beginning but warmed up/opened up nicely after a few hours of use. Delighted with mine