[Hamuraii]

Im in a search for closedback headphone, how hungry is 300ohm for these I mean this sounds pretty hungry:
Nominal 12 W
(2 x 300 Ω headphones connected to the 4.4 mm outputs)

12watt/300ohms???

Speaker amps recommendations for sure?

HD820 mobile Dac/Amp experience.

From the manual :

Long term input power max 500 mW

Sound pressure level at 1 Hz 103 dB




I did hook HD820 up to my laptop 3.5mm jack SE, set them next to the laptop on desk, did play audiobook, at 34% volume.

With the HD820 on the desk face down, louder than the built-in laptop speakers, let it run over night.

Casual watching a movie stream on the laptop, take same amount of juice to get loud Neumann ND20 @ 150 ohms.

HD820, hooked up to Mojo2 @ 300 ohm, 3.5mm SE, input power is about 90 mW @ 70% volume (blue balls) -rock concert stadium experience.


Mojo 2 EQ : listeting to non-vocals music.


Sub bass +6dB,

Bass +3dB

Mid -3dB

Treble [depending on music and loudness] 0dB to +6dB


Get a fun sounding U or V shaped experience, testing EQ the mids, to bring it more forward plus/minus 3 dB.


I think Mojo2 is plenty to run the HD820 plenty loud and give it lots of body, running SE.


iFi DaC/Amps : think of Diablo and Gryphon, running it at desktop level, I'd assume without breaking a sweat, on Balanced and SE

DragonFly Red, USB-A to USB-C

EarMen Colibri, USB-C to USB-C

DDHifi Balanced Dongle, [has two chips running mono]

Apple Dirty DaC Dongle.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Loudness is not the same as well-driven when it comes to high impedance dynamics. Sennheiser 300 ohm cans can get deafeningly loud and still sound like crap without enough voltage.

 

[Hamuraii]

@gimmeheadroom very true.

 

[Hamuraii]

Dekoni Audio Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin Pads [Full sheepskin, with dotted air vents]​

Dekoni Audio Elite Hybrid Pads [ 'Tri-Fecta', full leather outer, fenestrated inner, velour skin side ]​

Whats your experience with these pads vs the stock ?


Have a big head, seem to have issue getting the correct seal, the Dekonis seem to sort better isolation, by being quite more deep, thick and tall, but odd reading the FR, the bass drops even lower, due to drivers being about 1cm further away, I guess.

If I set the headphones all the way down and forward, tilt them ever so slightly inwards, then with feeling, hoist them up two clicks, they come with just tiny more clamp force angled, its for me it seems a really good seal and all is good.


I'd think with thicker, lusher earpads, they'd put even more force on the headband, form a larger 'room' inside the cups, but read horror stories from other users about pad rolling the HD820's


I dont want to bend the headband or do anything dramatic, guess its only one way to find out and order Dekonis and test it out my self.

 

[me7]

Hi, I'm considering the HD820 as my first high quality full-sized headphones. I need them for computer and game console audio, so I intend to pair them with my Marantz 1506 receiver that supports multiple inputs and HDMI passthrough. Should I expect audio issues with the headphone jack of such a receiver?

 

[Hamuraii]

Hi, I'm considering the HD820 as my first high quality full-sized headphones. I need them for computer and game console audio, so I intend to pair them with my Marantz 1506 receiver that supports multiple inputs and HDMI passthrough. Should I expect audio issues with the headphone jack of such a receiver?

its prob just a SE, headphone jack.

Prob. best to invest in a true balanced headphone amp, to get the most out of the hard to drive HD820s

Like the one Sennheiser sells, with the HD820s.

or

iFi Diablo for even on the go options.

 

[Halimj7]

its prob just a SE, headphone jack.

Prob. best to invest in a true balanced headphone amp, to get the most out of the hard to drive HD820s

Like the one Sennheiser sells, with the HD820s.

or

iFi Diablo for even on the go options.

I don’t find the 820 hard to drive at all. Remember the sensitivity is 103db. Balanced is definitely not required or even necessarily beneficial. Don’t be intimidated by impedance alone.

 

[Uguccione]

As always, the problem (with HD800 and HD820) is not to make them sound loud, but to make them sound good

 

[barato]

Loudness is not the same as well-driven when it comes to high impedance dynamics. Sennheiser 300 ohm cans can get deafeningly loud and still sound like crap without enough voltage.

voltage is loudness, wdym?

 

[Hamuraii]

voltage is loudness, wdym?

Instant cup of soup, just add boiling hot water, yes it comes out hot from the kitchen, even scolding, there is no soul no natural flavor, little emotion when you taste it, memory of that single serve meal, forgotten, like little plastic sporks in the rain.

Go to a restaurant with 1 Michelin star or become a person who can execute a recipe correctly with passion, skill and timing, at this level even the plates come out scolding and the drinks are chilled.

 

[barato]

Not sure what you are trying to say.
SPL of headphone is relative to voltage, it cant get deafeningly loud without voltage.#
Not saying they dont need a good amp, just not sure what it has got to with voltage.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Because it can be about transients. Steady state voltage is enough to get them loud. But without a good PSU and a good design, many amps can't provide voltage fast enough to follow the music.

A Toyata can get to 100 mph in 5 minutes off the side of a mountain. A Corvette can there there in 7 seconds. Something like that...

 

[manueljenkin]

Because it can be about transients. Steady state voltage is enough to get them loud. But without a good PSU and a good design, many amps can't provide voltage fast enough to follow the music.

A Toyata can get to 100 mph in 5 minutes off the side of a mountain. A Corvette can there there in 7 seconds. Something like that...

It can even be about measurement settings inconsistencies. Headphone is not the same as a resistor and real world systems are not linear time invariant.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

It can even be about measurement settings inconsistencies. Headphone is not the same as a resistor and real world systems are not linear time invariant.

That's a good point. Dynamic headphones present a complex impedance and it is definitely not the same from 20 Hz to 20 KHz

Planars supposedly present a very flat resistive load.

 

[jabz10]

What cable brand/type have people upgraded to? What's better with the HD820, copper, silver plated or 99.99% silver?