[RockStar2005]

The Best solution for Akg k550 is simply an amp (fiio e11)! Suits just these over ears much better than e17 (that's difficult using as Dac otg! It sounds piercing to the almost free AKG K550 £99,-

)

 
Hey Gilles, 
 
I don't know if I would call an amp-only device the BEST solution lol, but it's certainly also a pretty good one. If someone was really tight on money, I'd say yes, but for another $30 you can have the Dragonfly Black. I had the E11k (now called the A3), and it WAS fantastic! But a good premium DAC will help refine the sound even more......... filter out the crap you don't want like "tape hiss" noise, help expand the soundstage, make the sound render more fully, etc. 
 
Also, having the E11k means a bigger 3rd device to drag around, where the Dragonfly Black or Red are not much bigger than the cables they connect to. I'd still rather someone bought the E11k or even E6 for $30 if it meant that or nothing at all. 

 

[Rainmaker91]

Right... so I just took another listen to my k551s and annoyingly I can't seem to get a proper seal with these earpads (they have to be in a very specific position on my head to properly seal). Anyone know of some good larger pads (thinking thicker) that will fit these cans?

 

[Frozenhaze]

  Right... so I just took another listen to my k551s and annoyingly I can't seem to get a proper seal with these earpads (they have to be in a very specific position on my head to properly seal). Anyone know of some good larger pads (thinking thicker) that will fit these cans?

I suggest you to take a look at one of my previous posts regarding K550's earpad mod which I made to my cans a while ago. It can be found at the following thread:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/807132/akg-k550-vs-k553-comfort#post_12556187.
 
You can try that first if it works for you before you decide to buy new pads.

 

[sludgeogre]

  Right... so I just took another listen to my k551s and annoyingly I can't seem to get a proper seal with these earpads (they have to be in a very specific position on my head to properly seal). Anyone know of some good larger pads (thinking thicker) that will fit these cans?

Either the trick linked above or putting some kind of extra padding (most people just use toilet paper) inside of the pads to beef them up. I bought replacement pads and they were thinner than the stock ones. I'd suggest trying to find some extra foam to shape and stick in there.

 

[Vorpax]

Hello! I've just acquired AKG K550 MKII, I'm a new to this audiophile world, so excuse my stupid questions. I own the hifimediy sabre usb dac, I would like to know if I need to get an amp, because I've read some posts about the high impedance output (or something like this) of this dac, that causes problems with low impedance headphones like K550... Will I see any improvement using an amp along with the sabre dac?

 

[RockStar2005]

  Hello! I've just acquired AKG K550 MKII, I'm a new to this audiophile world, so excuse my stupid questions. I own the hifimediy sabre usb dac, I would like to know if I need to get an amp, because I've read some posts about the high impedance output (or something like this) of this dac, that causes problems with low impedance headphones like K550... Will I see any improvement using an amp along with the sabre dac?

 
Hey Vorpax, 
 
NICE on the K550 MKII purchase! I love these headphones to death! 
 
It's not a stupid question at all. When you hook up your player, DAC, and headphones together, does it get loud enough? If so, then I don't think you'll need the amp as the DAC is enough. But if not, then you could definitely get an amp like the FiiO A3 (formerly E11K), which I used to own. Great amp!! 
 
But buying that means having not one but TWO in-between devices. To make life easier, I would instead suggest a different route..........sell that HifiMeDIY DAC and buy a device that can do BOTH, and do them both well. Depending on how much you wanna spend, I have 3 suggestions, and ALL 3 utilize a Sabre DAC: 
 
1) AudioQuest DragonFly Black v1.5 (The Really Good): More info here. Sabre DAC 9010. 
 
2) AudioQuest DragonFly Red v1.5 (The Great): More info here. Sabre DAC 9016. 
 
3) Oppo HA-2 portable premium amp/DAC (The Outstanding): I own this device, and I've heard it match the quality of amp/DACs that cost TWICE as much! More info here. Sabre DAC 9018. (Buy this cable with it as the ones it comes with are really short.) 
 
Note: If buying either of the first 2, then you will need a cable like this to attach to your smartphone (which is what I'm assuming you're using). If you're using an Apple device, reply back to me and I'll find the right cable for those devices. 
 
Take your time and look over these options, then let me know which one you like, and if you have any questions. 

 

[sludgeogre]

  Hello! I've just acquired AKG K550 MKII, I'm a new to this audiophile world, so excuse my stupid questions. I own the hifimediy sabre usb dac, I would like to know if I need to get an amp, because I've read some posts about the high impedance output (or something like this) of this dac, that causes problems with low impedance headphones like K550... Will I see any improvement using an amp along with the sabre dac?

You may find that it is loud enough, but lacks impact and bass, which may be due to low damping factor caused by impedance mismatch. I'd suggest a Schiit Magni or one of the other amps listed.

 

[episiarch]

  Either the trick linked above or putting some kind of extra padding (most people just use toilet paper) inside of the pads to beef them up. I bought replacement pads and they were thinner than the stock ones. I'd suggest trying to find some extra foam to shape and stick in there.

I have two K550s.  On one, I plumped up my existing pads by cutting some bubble wrap into strips and stuffing that in between the existing padding and the flat disk the padding sits on.  That worked very well, improving comfort without noticeably changing the sound, and you can add/subtract padding as needed. 
 
On the other I switched to Brainwavz pads (these), which are very deep and very comfortable but which altered the sound considerably, reducing bass quantity and impact though treble remained very clear.  I suspect the K550 driver/enclosure combination just wasn't engineered for the volume of air inside the deeper pads (before you ask, yes I'm getting a very good seal). 
 
YMMV but for me the deeper pads were too big big a trade-off, and I recommend the stuffing approach.

 

[Vorpax]

Thanks for the quick replies! Well, I will buy an amp, it seems I won't get the best from k550 if I dont
Dragonfly seems great, but since I'm running low on money, I was thinking about a cheaper portable DAC/amp like Fiio Q1, what do you think?

 

[RockStar2005]

Thanks for the quick replies! Well, I will buy an amp, it seems I won't get the best from k550 if I dont

Dragonfly seems great, but since I'm running low on money, I was thinking about a cheaper portable DAC/amp like Fiio Q1, what do you think?

 
Yw Vorpax! 
 
The Q1 is $70 on Amazon right now. The AudioQuest DragonFly Black v1.5  is only about $30 more. If you're sure that's too much, then go ahead and get the Q1. I'd rather you at least had a decent to good amp/DAC vs. just using the one on your smartphone. (Don't forget if getting the Black to buy this cable if it's for an Android phone. If not, let me know. It might come with this cable, but I'm not sure. If so, you can just return the cable back, or only buy it if Black arrives w/o one.) From what I've read, the Black will sound better than the Q1. That's why I'm recommending that. But again, it's up to you. I would sell that Sabre DAC you have now though and put that money towards the Black. 

 lol
 
Let us know what you end up doing. 

 

[JBal4]

Popped the cover off my K551 to see what was behind. With cover off these sound ridiculous, tons of bass. I tried covering the outer 2 areas, leaving only center open, and it did not sound terrible. I am thinking about drilling holes in the cover but ended up just putting covers back on for now.

 

[sludgeogre]

 
Popped the cover off my K551 to see what was behind. With cover off these sound ridiculous, tons of bass. With the cover off they sound like a Beats 

. I tried covering the outer 2 areas, leaving only center open, and it did not sound terrible. I am thinking about drilling holes in the cover but ended up just putting covers back on for now.

The K55X Series is based on AKG "E.A.R." technology that has something to do with how they implemented the closed design. It completely depends on how the inside of the headphone is shaped, so drilling holes in it will only take away from all of the hard work they did to tune the driver for that enclosure. Still, kinda interesting to see what's inside and how those little port thingies work. I bet that is their E.A.R. design, whatever that stands for.

 

[JBal4]

I would just be drilling the center hole, the cutouts for the support would still be covered/sealed. the way the plastic is molded behind the cover it looks like the center hole already vents through the channels to the edges of the cover. 







If I were to drill open the center up I would probably cut out metal discs to use as test subjects before touching the original covers. These are just things I am thinking about doing later, right now I am just playing around with internals... 

 

[GiantAssPanda]

A question.
 
I'm very much interested in the K550s but I'm not sure if they'll be comfortable for me to use since I have rather large ears.
 
In comparison, I have the HE-400s with Focus pads and they just about fit around my ears but without much leeway.
 
Thanks in advance.

 

[voxie]

Hi, Have the K550's and find them comfortable as i too have large ears. Only problem is the lack of clamp. One has to readjust to get a good seal. Lots of information here to mod this issue. Would only use them for home use.