[b00tang]

oh no what have I done??? I've been using IEMS for years and decided to take my first step into the world of cans so I would have something comfortable at work. I settled on Ultrasone HFI-780s. I've had them a little over 3 weeks, they have burned in for well over 100 hours using pink noise and I have been listening to them with music for a couple hours each day... But somehow they still don't sound nearly as good as my little v-moda vibes. Does that even make sense?

I think the biggest place I can hear the limitation is in cymbal crashes. On the Ultrasones the cymbal crashes sound like I'm listening to a 96kbps mp3 (thats the best way I can describe it, there is probably a word for it but hey, I don't even have 50 posts yet, I'm still a noob in this world)... if I take the same mp3 and listen to it on my vibes the cymbal crashes sound like cymbal crashes, on the vibes I just don't even think about it because they sound clear, on the 780s its hard NOT to think about what I'm hearing.

Is there something I can do or that I am doing wrong? I'm not amping anything right now, its just sound coming directly out from my imac. Does this mean I should have gone with Dennon's as many people suggested or would I probably be hearing the same thing? I might even consider a recabling but I'm not confident right now that the end result would be something I would be happy with.

Thanks for any opinions

 

[analogbox]

I would definitely invest in a decent amp to drive that 780 adequately. I never heard of v-moda vibes but it's hard to imagine 780 to be anywhere near vibes in terms of SQ. But, if that really is the case I would guess that you're not providing enough current to drive those cans.

 

[b00tang]

uh oh my wallet was afraid someone would say that. So is that what an amp would do? clean up those ugly symbol crashes? It seems like everyone on head-fi already knows what an amp would be used for... i don't quite appreciate what it would really do for me sound wise.

 

[Shahrose]

i've heard the vibes, and it's surprising that you could conclude that they're better than the hfi780, let alone comparable. maybe the recording (or source) just sounds that way? maybe you got used to the vibes' smooth presentation? and it could also be the fact that the 780s are brighter and present more detail in the upper registers (or perhaps sibilance).

 

[analogbox]

Quote:

Originally Posted by b00tang /img/forum/go_quote.gif uh oh my wallet was afraid someone would say that. So is that what an amp would do? clean up those ugly symbol crashes? It seems like everyone on head-fi already knows what an amp would be used for... i don't quite appreciate what it would really do for me sound wise.

It could tidy up the sound. Rather than sounding like there are 20 cymbals all around you, it would make it sound like there are actually 6. It could also tame some of the bass if you find it too overpowering. Whatever the benefit may be, it's always good idea to have at least one portable headphone amp. That way, when you feel like upgrading, you don't have to spend any more money than the actual upgrade.

 

[TheMarchingMule]

Mmm, first off something is wrong with your hearing perception. I've heard both, and neither one is close to sounding realistic. I've lived around instruments my whole life, so I'm guessing a major "problem" is that your opinion on what sounds nice and/or realistic is skewered.

I've also learned that if you don't like the cans within the first 5-10 minutes of listening, you won't like them no matter what; there will always be a nagging feeling in the back of your head saying that you could have found something better, and not have to jump through extra hoops in order to achieve a sound in the end that is still off from what you desired.

So don't recable, don't do anything to them except sell or return them. Then research some more for a headphone you'll like, perhaps the Denon or Sennheiser HD600.

 

[kg21]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheMarchingMule /img/forum/go_quote.gif Mmm, first off something is wrong with your hearing perception. I've heard both, and neither one is close to sounding realistic. I've lived around instruments my whole life, so I'm guessing a major "problem" is that your opinion on what sounds nice and/or realistic is skewered. I've also learned that if you don't like the cans within the first 5-10 minutes of listening, you won't like them no matter what; there will always be a nagging feeling in the back of your head saying that you could have found something better, and not have to jump through extra hoops in order to achieve a sound in the end that is still off from what you desired. So don't recable, don't do anything to them except sell or return them. Then research some more for a headphone you'll like, perhaps the Denon or Sennheiser HD600.

I agree with that, a lot of times people post on here about being extremely disappointed by a certain headphone. Usually it is recommended to make sure they get a proper setup of source/amp or recable but I think sometimes you will just hate the sound signature and you need to try something else. No matter how good something is, if it's not to your taste there's no point in keeping it. For example, some people say the sony r10 is overrated or that the orpheus sucks. I wish I could hear them to verify if that is true or not though if I had to guess I would say they don't.

 

[dfkt]

Quote:

Originally Posted by b00tang /img/forum/go_quote.gif they have burned in for well over 100 hours using pink noise

You might have damaged the drivers that way. It's better to just listen to music than blasting this unnatural material through fresh dynamic drivers.

I had two MylarOnes, one I listened normally to, the other one got a treatment of ~50 hours pink noise... the pink noise treated one sounded worse than the one with normal usage.

 

[odigg]

Ultrasones have a particular house sound. It isn't for everybody.

Just to make sure, did you screw in the cable properly (assuming it is a screw in type). I remember a thread where people found out that was causing problems with the sound.

I don't agree with the argument that a source+amp will fix the problem. Yes, that makes a difference. But if you don't like the headphones you don't like them. Throwing more money at the problem isn't going to make you love them. You're better of finding a headphone which you like with your setup then adding stuff to improve/tweak it.

Your source has enough juice to give you a good idea of the basic sound signature of your headphones. Make a decision based on that.

 

[eruditass]

try repositioning them on your head, search for that unwritten guide for ultrasones thread.

ultrasones are the type of cans you need to try before you buy, they have the biggest dichotomy of headphones on headfi i'd say.

 

[warrior05]

It certainly is possible that the 780s are not your cup of tea but you are not giving them a fair chance. Before people accuse me of defending the 780s due to fanboyism, forget it. I actually do not like the 780s, especially in stock form. That being said, the 780s are a revealing enough headphone that not plugging them into a quality source will curtail their potential and will show you that you are not using a quality source. Plugging them directly into your iMac is far from ideal.

I think the first thing you need to do is step back and consider how you will use headphones. If you have no intent on building a quality portable solution then spending over $150 in headphones is a waste of money. If you want to truly discover how your 780s really sound, try and meet up with someone that has decent kit. Bring music you know well and if you still don't like what you are hearing, then it is best to move on. The 780s are VERY different sounding from your Vibes. You would be better off just listening to the 780s for long stretches rather than jump back and forth. Your ears need time to adjust to sonic sigs of ear/headphones.

Oh, and burning them over 100 hours of pink noise, as long as you didn't do so at excessive levels, shouldn't have damaged them. Personally, I think it is a bit much but, again, the drivers should be fine.

 

[donunus]

I cant believe no one has suggested a recable hehehe anyway b00tang, if you read the big hfi-780 thread you will notice that those cans still change in sound after hundreds of hours of burn in and in the end they will still be bright cans but are supposedly improved by a recable.

 

[silverrain]

The big HFI-780 thread should be required reading for anyone considering these cans.

It has important information in it, that can make a big difference in the perception of these decent cans.

 

[b00tang]

Alright, I read through all the comments and I think it is probably exactly what Shahrose described. The vibes have somewhat muddy highs that are kind of behind the rest of the sound, especially being dwarfed by the bass. The HFI-780s have pretty in your face highs, very bright, and much clearer than I am used to.

So I think the complaints I have about the cymbals is more a problem with the recordings I have than the headphones I am using. I just couldn't hear the poor quality before because the vibes covered it up. (I like to listen to a lot of smaller/independent bands who can't really afford the nicer studios).

It still sounds as though on good recordings the highs are clear but don't have as much punch as I would want to hear in a cymbal crash.

So I think for now I am just going to take it slow, learn what I can about the sound signature of the HFI-780s and what that means for what I want to hear out of headphones in the future. That option is certainly much cheaper than going out and recabling + getting an amp.

I'm still not convinced that these headphones can't be enjoyed through the setup I have, and I've played in a band long enough to be at least a little offended by TheMarchingMule's suggestion that I don't know what cymbals should sound like (oh well). I appreciate the advice regardless.

I think I will also re-read the HFI-780 thread. I dug through it before I purchased but now I might better appreciate what everyone is trying to describe when talking in there.

 

[silverrain]

Quote:

Originally Posted by b00tang /img/forum/go_quote.gif I think I will also re-read the HFI-780 thread. I dug through it before I purchased but now I might better appreciate what everyone is trying to describe when talking in there.

Especially note all the various comments about the burn-in "roller-coaster ride"!

The HFI-780 needed the longest burn-in of any can I ever owned, before they settled-down to their final good sound signature.

Just needed repeating for new HFI-780 owners, to possibly save a few premature sales!