[Zorander]

I can't put into words what aspects of sound I like, but I can say I really love the Senn HD-580 sound (much more so than the Grado). I guess that makes my preferences fall under "Soundstage" and "Natural-ness", right?

 

[Jam_Master_J]

I've determined that there are three main qualities I like in headphones and speakers for that matter:

They have to be fast, focused and fun. That pretty much describes my SR-325s I suppose. I also like those qualities in my HE 10.1 speakers.

I should add that mids are very important to me, but not for absolute accuracy. I appreciate the "tuned-sweetness" of Grado mids even though they aren't entirely accurate.

 

[fewtch]

(1) Soundstage/headstage... probably the most important aspect of headphones to me. This is why I'll never like Grados, period.

(2) Dynamic range... has to be capable of reproducing music with a wide dynamic range well. Macrodynamics.

(3) Air/Delicacy... capturing the most subtle nuances of the music, and with an "airy" quality (ala Senn HD600).

(4) Neutrality/naturalness. Has to be both. "Clinical" sounding neutrality doesn't interest me, how are you supposed to enjoy the music?

(5) "Softer" treble, warmth, whatever you call a quality that makes it easy to listen hour after hour without ear fatigue. Probably several qualities fall into this category.

Detail has practically dropped off my list lately, although I like it from an "audiophile" perspective. Often, really detailed/revealing gear has me listening either to the gear itself or the recording quality. Very detailed gear often makes recordings sound like recordings and IMO kills the illusion with live stuff. Studio-recorded music, it doesn't matter so much but I have to be able to listen the music without being distracted by the gear. I think Rick hit that one dead on.

P.S. my list of priorities is constantly in flux, and changing. That's not to say I can't be perfectly happy sticking with particular gear for a long time. As long as it has no downright offensive qualities, I can enjoy it.

 

[ken36]

Musicality, warmth, some detail, a sound stage, and above all female and male vocals. I have all of that now.

 

[kenneth11zz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken36 Musicality, warmth, some detail, a sound stage, and above all female and male vocals. I have all of that now.

Is that's the AKG-K701? *wink*

So aerius, when you find a headphone that is close your preference yet? We both have a similar taste here. I'm checking out the K701 and maybe the modified K340 might do.

-Kenneth

 

[Beach123456]

Mainly what I look for is if they are fun to listen to and IMPACT. If it has both, the other things are just details, used to pick between the headphones with impact and fun factor.

 

[aerius]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kenneth11zz So aerius, when you find a headphone that is close your preference yet? We both have a similar taste here. I'm checking out the K701 and maybe the modified K340 might do. -Kenneth

I'm getting there, my K340 and the rest of my system is being slowly tweaked to sound the way I want it to. There's still minor issues here & there which I've yet to completely solve, but I'm pretty happy.

Of all the headphones I've heard to date, the modded K340 and a highly optimized Grado PS-1 Pro system come the closest to fulfilling my needs, with the edge going to the PS-1. Haven't seen or heard the K701 yet, but I'd like to at some point.

 

[HiWire]

Musicality, flexibility, accuracy, neutrality, dynamics, PRAT, speed, impact, in order of importance. I think I've found my headphone nirvana... I'm only lacking flat pads now.

Ugh... due to the hearing loss thread, I'm taking a break from headphones until tomorrow. Better safe than sorry.

 

[no1likesme]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 I only have one test : am i listening to the music or am i listening to the equipment . Any audio device that has me listening to IT and not the music being played is getting in the way.Throw all the audio terms from the Stereophile Dictionary around you want but if I can't enjoy a simple damn song I don't care how detailed or spacious it sounds just me

just add 100% sound isolation,
low weight
pads that dont get hot, itchy, or sweaty after a while
-cheap

 

[setmenu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 I only have one test : am i listening to the music or am i listening to the equipment . Any audio device that has me listening to IT and not the music being played is getting in the way.Throw all the audio terms from the Stereophile Dictionary around you want but if I can't enjoy a simple damn song I don't care how detailed or spacious it sounds just me

Agreed, but it does depend on the recording.
If there is any thing amiss there my ears are drawn like magnets to it.
I like my audio kit to provide a sound that seems natural. [well to my ears]
But the variable nature of music reproduction a compromise has to be made.
Hence with some recordings I think , ooo a tweak here and tweak there
would make this just about perfect.
Quite subtle things can get to me at times.

But on the whole if I love the music then I can usually enjoy it with most
stuff as long as things are not to grossly out of my comfort zone.



.

 

[kenneth11zz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aerius I'm getting there, my K340 and the rest of my system is being slowly tweaked to sound the way I want it to. There's still minor issues here & there which I've yet to completely solve, but I'm pretty happy. Of all the headphones I've heard to date, the modded K340 and a highly optimized Grado PS-1 Pro system come the closest to fulfilling my needs, with the edge going to the PS-1. Haven't seen or heard the K701 yet, but I'd like to at some point.

Sweet... How much does it cost for the modded K340 and optimized Grado PS-1? What are the components consist of for each headphone? I wanted to compare the cost with the new K701. The K701 do have great potential if is well balanced on frequency and tones. If K701 doesn't live up to the initial reviews, I might have to find a used K340 or PS-1 since both are discontinued.

What was the reasons you rated UM2 so low? Before I read your Shure reviews, I decided on the UM2, specially how comfortable it is. Some of the drawbacks that holds me back was not detail and fast enough for complex music. The bass can be boomy that mask the overall sound and results of unbalanced spectrum.

How comfortable is the Shure E4. Is it a big heavy for IEM?

As for the IEM, another option is the Westone ES2 but not much review on that.

 

[rickcr42]

Quote:

Hence with some recordings I think , ooo a tweak here and tweak there would make this just about perfect. Quite subtle things can get to me at times.

why I have tone controls in my system.Rather than deal with a "take it or leave it" purist attitude I make a gentle "suggestion" here to satisfy my own idea of what sounds good then sit back and enjoy the ride

 

[aerius]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kenneth11zz Sweet... How much does it cost for the modded K340 and optimized Grado PS-1? What are the components consist of for each headphone? I wanted to compare the cost with the new K701. The K701 do have great potential if is well balanced on frequency and tones.

I'm not sure what the modded ones go for these days, that is if you're lucky enough to find one to mod. They've been out of production for well over 10 years, the number I'm hearing is 15-20 years. You should be able to snag one on ebay for $200 or so if you're lucky, and if you do the work yourself it'll cost another $10-30 or so, don't know what they're charging to mod them these days. The PS-1 Pro system I'd guess is somewhere in the 5-figure region, not cheap at all.

Quote:

What was the reasons you rated UM2 so low? Before I read your Shure reviews, I decided on the UM2, specially how comfortable it is. Some of the drawbacks that holds me back was not detail and fast enough for complex music. The bass can be boomy that mask the overall sound and results of unbalanced spectrum.

Ummm...buh...? I think you've confused me with someone else, I've never listened or written anything about the UM2.

Quote:

How comfortable is the Shure E4. Is it a big heavy for IEM? As for the IEM, another option is the Westone ES2 but not much review on that.

Hard to say, the E4 is the only IEM I've tried recently, I have vague recollections of the E2 but I just don't know. To me it's small & light enough, but I have no ideal how it compares in size & weight to other IEM's.

 

[kenneth11zz]

Aerius, thanks for the replies. I apology that I misken you for someone else.

The more that I read about the Shure E4, the more that I like about it. Unless I'm going for a custom IEM, then most likely I'm learning twoard the ProPhonic 2Xs.

Does E4 requires an amp in order sound good? I will be using on the new iAudio U3.

-Kenneth