[rapzoo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yo-Yo Ma? /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hello, I apologize in advance for my noobness. I've been an owner of 595's for about a year now and only recently have I been wanting to get into 'higher quality sound'. I do 99% of my listening at home on my laptop with winamp, and I was wondering if you could help me find a DAC and amp because I hear that a dedicated DAC is the way to go when using a laptop as a transport. Or anything like that to get the 'best' quality sound out of my 595's. I'd say my budget for this would be about $400 for the DAC and amp. I could be willing to spend more if it meant getting the most out of the 595's. Thanks dudes!

At $499 the Headamp Pico is slightly above your $400 range, but if you can spring for the extra cash it would give you a good amp/dac combo.

 

[Yo-Yo Ma?]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rapzoo /img/forum/go_quote.gif At $499 the Headamp Pico is slightly above your $400 range, but if you can spring for the extra cash it would give you a good amp/dac combo.

It's a bit over my budget for now. But, I thank you for the suggestion.

Does anyone else have any suggestions for a nice combo for the 595's?

 

[zaero69]

Meier Audio amps are a good match for the HD595, and for the sennheiser series in general. IMHO

 

[donaldekelly]

"Dedicated DAC" - as in seperate from the amp? I was thinking a meier 2Move myself, but that is a 2 in one.

I just ordered an E-Mu 0404 for my desktop computer since I don't have a portable DAC. The 0404 seems to be where a lot of people who just want to use headphones and who don't have a DAC in their amp end up. USB 0404 is about $150-200.

Also the aforementioned E-Mu 0202 which is cheaper -
Emu 0202 USB 2.0 Audio Interface from zZounds.com!

Amazon.com: E-MU EM8740 Professional Quality USB 2.0 Audio/MIDI Interface with 2 Inputs & 2 Outputs including Mic/Line/Digital/Headphone: Electronics (the listing is confusing - but it is cheaper)

But, maybe I am more of a noob than you and I don't fully understand the question.

 

[Tone Def]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nabwong /img/forum/go_quote.gif We'll see these 2 weeks....BOOYAH!

Good luck mate!

 

[indysmith]

I've borrowed these phones off a mate. I'm definately impressed. It's a very nicely contrasting sound to my grados. The bass is deeper and atmospheric, but less punchy and precise, the mids are relatively similar EDIT: in strength, but the 595s seem rather grainy, and the highs are very much recessed in comparison, but more natural sounding.
The best thing about these phones when comparing them to Grados is the soundstage, which is far wider. I might end up buying a pair - never tried any HD600s or HD650s, but apparently they are more veiled sounding, and i don't think i'd like that.

 

[mikeg88]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yo-Yo Ma? /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hello, I apologize in advance for my noobness. I've been an owner of 595's for about a year now and only recently have I been wanting to get into 'higher quality sound'. I do 99% of my listening at home on my laptop with winamp, and I was wondering if you could help me find a DAC and amp because I hear that a dedicated DAC is the way to go when using a laptop as a transport. Or anything like that to get the 'best' quality sound out of my 595's. I'd say my budget for this would be about $400 for the DAC and amp. I could be willing to spend more if it meant getting the most out of the 595's. Thanks dudes!

Get a HeadRoom Total BitHead. I love mine and it powers all but the highest impedence cans like 650s, 880s. Your 595s will be a great match, and it can power itself off the BUS from your USB. Super smooth, even, articulate sound, man! And as a bonus - it's only $150. With the extra money you save, you can get another headphone!

M

 

[donaldekelly]

Yeah - for such a good price and from such a good site/company - how good is the bithead? Are the 2move or other more expensive dac/amps clearly better?

Seems like the big lists of amp reviews like skylabs don't bother with the bithead or airhead.

 

[Tone Def]

How's the 0202 compared to the 0404 and how does it synergize with the 595's?

 

[breakfastchef]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yo-Yo Ma? /img/forum/go_quote.gif I apologize in advance for my noobness. Or anything like that to get the 'best' quality sound out of my 595's. I'd say my budget for this would be about $400 for the DAC and amp. I could be willing to spend more if it meant getting the most out of the 595's.

I have 595's, and my iBasso D1 solid state portable amp makes them sound great. I have been rolling the op amps looking for my favorite sound signature. Since the D1 is a USB/DAC and has optical & coax inputs, it is extremely versatile so I can use it in various configurations with different equipment.

The DAC portion of the D1 is very nice, and I usually feed it into a Little Dot MKII tube amp. Lovely combination. You could probably score both the D1 and LD MKII pretty close to your budget.

Lately, the flavor-of-the-month headphone amp is the Octavart. There is a thread currently active on the forums in which members are giving it very high praise. The Octavart is a DAC/Amp with coax and optical inputs. At $299, it sounds like a fabulous deal. Check it out at Head-Direct.com.

 

[Yo-Yo Ma?]

Thanks a lot for the suggestions everyone! I'm going to check them all out as soon as I can.

Thanks again for your help!

 

[Yo-Yo Ma?]

double post...

 

[feverfive]

Does anyone know of any online shops that sell the Sennheiser headphone holder (like the one that comes stock w/ the HD595?

 

[jcustom]

i just recently got myself a pair of hd595s and gotta say im loving this thing, i really disagree with the comments on the lack of bass, (but then im not a pro at audio lol) is just not gonna pound u hard like some other phones but it certainly has the range for it.

some quick questions:
if i want to get a decent amp to go with it, wot would u pros recommend? like somewhere around $150 bucks,
and how many hours would i have to burn this baby to get its full power?

Thanks guys
this appreciation thread is pretty overwhelming for a newbie like me haha

 

[zaero69]

So did anyone get those replacement cables for the HD595 from soloz audio?

Anybody?