[benton]

to spend on my first real audio setup. I would rather not spend it all, but I will if completley necessary. I am looking for a setup to use on airplanes and trips, as well as when I need them at home. So, to make things easy, here is what I am looking for in my setup. I just need you to help me connect the dots...

Headphones:

-Need to be closed, or have very little sound leakage because of use on planes and such
-Must not look extremely goonish while wearing in public
-Must have excelent sound quality, not passive like my old HD-555, have nice bass, very clear sound, accurate
-NO IEM's
-Must be reasonably comfortable
-I listen to rap, jam bands, some rock, reggae(Dave Mathews, Marley's, Grateful Dead, MF Doom, People Under the Stairs)

Amp:

-I am very new to amps, and have never owned one so I don't know what I want except it must be portable and pocket sized
-Must be battery powered
-would like if it could also be plugged in as well as battery powered if that is even possible


Ipod Line out adapter:

-Just needs to work and be compact, preferably black

Source:

-iPod 30GB with Linux/Rockbox(already own)

Other Cables:

-What else do I need? I don't really know

If you could help it would really mean a lot because I know that I will be in desperate need of this for an upcoming plane ride from MA to Oregon and back and a car ride to New York and back.

 

[Reputator]

what was wrong with your old thread, or rather the DT770 contender?

For an amp, there's the Total Airhead, or you could try one of the Xin Super- amps, the SuperMicro-IV being extremely small and portable. There's also the classic PA2V2, which would be considerably harder to find, but more price efficient.

 

[benton]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reputator what was wrong with your old thread, or rather the DT770 contender? For an amp, there's the Total Airhead, or you could try one of the Xin Super- amps, the SuperMicro-IV being extremely small and portable. There's also the classic PA2V2, which would be considerably harder to find, but more price efficient.

I decided to buy an entire rig instead of just cans, and wanted to see peoples views on other closed cans to see if I can get better for the price.

 

[VR6ofpain]

You should look at the K81DJ. They are also very easy to amp.

 

[Quake1028]

AKG K81DJ + PA2V2 + AudioLineOut Dock = ~$160
AKG K81DJ + XIN SuperMicro-IV + AudioLineOut Dock = ~285

 

[Bob Mahoy]

DT770, as I always say.

 

[benton]

As for headphones, I am between the K81DJ and the DT770. What makes one better than the other? As for amps, is the XIN SuperMicro-IV really worth the price diffrence of the PA2V2?

 

[Quake1028]

Quote:

Originally Posted by benton As for headphones, I am between the K81DJ and the DT770. What makes one better than the other? As for amps, is the XIN SuperMicro-IV really worth the price diffrence of the PA2V2?

If you go DT770, you need something more powerful than the PA2V2, which is going to put you way over $300.

 

[benton]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gloomfire If you go DT770, you need something more powerful than the PA2V2, which is going to put you way over $300.

So even with the 32ohms DT770 20005 with a PA2V2 it will STILL not have enough power? Why would they make a headphone that can't even be powered with a decent amp?

 

[lmilhan]

DT770s are way to big for practical portable use. You will look 'Goonish' wearing them in public. You would be very pleased with the K 81 DJs - they fit all of your criteria. They are a bit uncomfortable out of the box, but with some adjustments, and a couple of weeks usage they become comfy.

 

[benton]

Okay so now this is what my setup is looking like:

Headphones:

K81DJ: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...nce&n=11091801

Price: $68.95

Amp:

No idea....

Cables:

Audio Line Out:
http://www.audiolineout.com/standard.html

Price: $42.50

Money left to spend on amp or change around anything:

$188


Should I change anything?

What should I do about an amp?

 

[benton]

up

 

[Quake1028]

Quote:

Originally Posted by benton Okay so now this is what my setup is looking like: Headphones: K81DJ: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...nce&n=11091801 Price: $68.95 Amp: No idea.... Cables: Audio Line Out: http://www.audiolineout.com/standard.html Price: $42.50 Money left to spend on amp or change around anything: $188 Should I change anything? What should I do about an amp?

Get the K81DJ's from Ebay. There is a seller there who will accept $55 shipped for a new pair. As for an amp, you have PA2V2 for $60, Xin for $190, Total Airhead/Bithead for $200, etc. Lots of choices in a sub $200 portable amp.


http://cgi.ebay.com/AKG-K81DJ-K-81-D...QQcmdZViewItem

Just offer that guy $55 and they are yours.

 

[benton]

Thanks for that link. All though I don't know much about those cans, everyone has been reccomending them and at that price I can't go wrong. So now all that is left is the amp...

Will there be a noticable diffrence between a PA2V2 and Xin? If so, what? Are both battery powered?

 

[lmilhan]

$55 for K 81 DJs.

No need for that expensive iPOD line out, get a Pocket Dock for $20 instead and use your own 1/8 to 1/8 interconnect.

For a very small/portable amp, the Xin Supermini is hard to beat. It seems to play for-freakin-ever on a pair of triple A batteries (upwards of 140 hours), and sounds spectacular. You also get Bass Boost and Crossfeed among other cool features. You can score a Supermini 3 for around $135 on the for sale forum here at Head-Fi.

Just be sure that your MP3s are at 192Kbps or better.

Total spent: $210. Use the rest for another pair of Headphones, beer, women or CDs.

Good luck.