Before I can get an amp, I will plug the HD6XX into the FiiO M11 which output are:
16~150Ω (3.5mm headphone output)
16~300Ω (2.5mm+4.4mm balanced output) Given HD6XX's nominal impedance is 300ohm, does this mean using the 3.5mm will be a no go at all?
Nope, it just means the maximum power will be 6dB less (~114dB) than the balanced output (~120dB)*.
edit: I usually listen at an average of 60 - 80dB,
*calculated SPLs above using Fiio's specs for power and innerfidelity sensitivity measurements for HD6XX
Before I can get an amp, I will plug the HD6XX into the FiiO M11 which output are:
16~150Ω (3.5mm headphone output)
16~300Ω (2.5mm+4.4mm balanced output)
Given HD6XX's nominal impedance is 300ohm, does this mean using the 3.5mm will be a no go at all?
in my case, if I was to get a balanced device, I'd try to use it balanced. that's not my endorsement to balanced amps, just what seems logical to me. if I decided to purchase such design I'd use it.
now for a less personal view on your question^_^:
using FIIO specs I get 5.15V max into 300ohm using the balanced output. while the single ended gives you about 2.57V under the same conditions(if I didn't mess up with the calculator). so we have the very typical 6dB difference between the outputs, which is what doubling the voltage does.
from that old thing https://www.head-fi.org/threads/sen...essions-thread.197776/page-1844#post-11806577 it's easy to see what the safe option is here. if you want to be able to reach 115dB and a little more, you apparently need to use the M11 balanced.
I do suggest to aim for 115dB if you have no idea how loud you tend to go when listening to music and no idea how the amp measures beside the given max output. plus with onboard EQ, some devices lower the gain to make sure you won't clip the signal with an EQ boost, so it's never bad to have some headroom just in case all the little things pile up in the wrong direction one day and you really need to go to 11. but in practice a reasonable listener would never get close to such output levels. 100dB is already pretty loud under most circumstances and most musics for a reasonable guy who cares about his ears.
here, the single ended output on that DAP still suggests it will measure very well(on the variables provided!) and get you above 110db. which many people use as their target when shopping for an amp instead of my 115dB kind of arbitrary and paranoid target. so no reason to worry that you won't be able to use the DAP if you don't go purchase the balanced cable for it and your HD6XX. if that was your fear, fear no more.
Can you post pictures of the headphones and storage box? In addition to the updated retail box, there is also a subtle difference in the physical shape of the upper and lower housings (forks) which now have distinct angular edges. By comparison, legacy versions of the HD600/650 have smooth/rounded housings. Sennheiser also changed the placement of the Sennheiser logo, ⋮ vertical ellipsis, and removed the “L” and “R” letters from the headband.
Just one comment on this which was recently discussed. Balanced vs SE. Here is the view from Rob Watts at Chord:
"Component count is very important for transparency. Doubling the number of parts in the direct signal path does degrade depth perception and detail resolution.
But there is another problem with balanced operation. Imagine a balanced differential in, differential out amplifier. The input stage is normally a differential pair (maybe cascoded) with a constant current source. Now the input stage is free to move up and down to accommodate the common mode voltage - but the input stage common mode impedance is non linear, and if the common mode voltage has a signal component (it always will have due to component tolerances) then this will create a signal dependent error current, thereby generating distortion. Unfortunately, the negative feedback loop of the amplifier can't correct for this distortion as it can't see the error on the summing nodes. So there will always be a limit to the performance. With SE operation, this problem does not occur, as the differential input stage is clamped to ground.
Now DAC designers are well aware of this - that's why all high performance DAC's use two single ended I to V converters from the current OP of the DAC's, then use a differential to SE converter to create the voltage OP. There are other reasons for doing this as well, as the DAC requires a very low impedance virtual ground for low distortion, and you can only get this using dual SE amps - another problem is RF and its much easier to decouple SE than differentially - this in turn creates a lot more noise floor modulation, making it sound less smooth.
But for me the most important is transparency. I had an amp that had two modes - differential or SE - listening in balanced mode flattened the sound stage depth dramatically,and it sounded harder, less smooth. That said, there are circumstances when balanced operation can be better than SE, for example when you are looking at connecting a pre-amp to a power amp, and what is best depends upon particular circumstances. In short, if SE operation is noisy, try balanced.
Hate is a hell of a strong word. I held back on the Mojo as my portable option for a long time. I finally got it last week because it's on a nice sale. Holy baby Jesus... it's so good with my MX4, the Sennheisers... so good.
To tell you the truth I have never heard any kind of transparency from Chord Mojo.
I have heard plenty of it from Q5 balanced.
Of course I was exaggerating with the word "hate" just to point that every Chord I have heard was just overpriced for what I was hearing.
For me a well designed balanced equipment no matter the double parts is always very transparent.
Balanced is about transparency that is why it is existing.
Problem is like everything else that there are a lot of wanna be balanced designs that are just crap.
Just got a pair of 6xx's. The stock cable isnt long enough. Am I better off buying the stock 650 cable which I believe is longer or go for an aftermarket one? Im located in the UK
Just got a pair of 6xx's. The stock cable isnt long enough. Am I better off buying the stock 650 cable which I believe is longer or go for an aftermarket one? Im located in the UK
Go for the 9 feet stock cable from Sennheiser. If you prefer a 3.5mm ending instead of the standard 6.35mm ending, Then you may purchase from Sennheiser the accompanying 6.35 to 3.5mm converter/adapter or better still you may order the fully compatible 9 feet HD600 stock cable instead, which provides a standard 3.5mm ending with a 6.35mm adapter which fully covers seamlessly the 3.5mm jack if needed.
Most claims from third party aftermarket cables are just snake oil, always more expensive than genuine Sennheiser cables and not better.
The only reason I went once for an aftermarket cable was a 4ft cable for my HD58X. The aftermarket cable included a mic + remote on cable, great for phone or portable usage. But the cable itself while good enough wasn’t as good or durable as the genuine cables from Sennheiser and the price was a bit higher (justified however for the added features of the mic and remote).
I doubt you can find a better cable at a better price from an aftermarket manufacturer. I doubt that you can hear better sound from an aftermarket cable, regardless of the price. In fact there are no objective reason not to go for a genuine cable from Sennheiser, except if colour or added features are what you are looking into.
Just got a pair of 6xx's. The stock cable isnt long enough. Am I better off buying the stock 650 cable which I believe is longer or go for an aftermarket one? Im located in the UK
Go for the 9 feet stock cable from Sennheiser. If you prefer a 3.5mm ending instead of the standard 6.35mm ending, Then you may purchase from Sennheiser the accompanying 6.35 to 3.5mm converter/adapter or better still you may order the fully compatible 9 feet HD600 stock cable instead, which provides a standard 3.5mm ending with a 6.35mm adapter which fully covers seamlessly the 3.5mm jack if needed.
Most claims from third party aftermarket cables are just snake oil, always more expensive than genuine Sennheiser cables and not better.
The only reason I went once for an aftermarket cable was a 4ft cable for my HD58X. The aftermarket cable included a mic + remote on cable, great for phone or portable usage. But the cable itself while good enough wasn’t as good or durable as the genuine cables from Sennheiser and the price was a bit higher (justified however for the added features of the mic and remote).
I doubt you can find a better cable at a better price from an aftermarket manufacturer. I doubt that you can hear better sound from an aftermarket cable, regardless of the price. In fact there are no objective reason not to go for a genuine cable from Sennheiser, except if colour or added features are what you are looking into.
Just received my 6xx today. This is my first pair of nice headphones. I am totally blown away. Run through JDS Atom. The clarity, balance, and comfort is so far beyond my crappy airpods and even destroys my ATH- M50. I find them particularly nice on jazzier tracks. The bass seems totally sufficient and appropriately balanced. I was worried because I saw a lot of complaints about bass, but maybe I'm just not a bass head. Used tracks like Terrified by Childish Gambino to test for bass. The kick drum on that track was really popping and definitely brought out some of that sub-bass. Good dynamics too.
Anyways, I'm pulling an all-nighter at work so I'll have 6 more hours of uninterrupted listening, and will post my further thoughts later.
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