[EYEdROP]

Since I got my new DAC (behringer fca202) a few days ago, Ive been experimenting with my 120 ohm adapter and am liking the sound of the adapter vs. straight. I'm not sure which I like more yet though, as the difference is small.
 
BTW this DAC is light-years ahead of my on board sound card. The highs are less grainy and distorted. The noise floor is lower, and the details are much easier to hear, less hidden. It sounds more analog, less shout and harshness. The bass has better texture, tonality, and is less distorted. My on board card makes the low end muddy and too warm actually. The DAC did NOT increase or decrease bass extension. It just cleared a layer of mud over it. 
 
The DT48 by far responded the most to my DAC upgrade vs. my other phones. It really likes the DAC.  
 
I am very exited with my new gear. The chilly, hair raising musical moments are more frequent now. 

 

[Deep Funk]

How good is the the built in headphone amp in your opinion?
 
Also, when you turn off the Behringer and your headphone is still connected: do you get this 'plop' sound? The reason I am asking is because I have the SRC2496 and it has the 'plop' which is a shame. 

 

[shamu144]

Lot's of people complain about the DT48 sound beeing uninvolving, cold, clinical... The DT48 will only trully shine with a very good source. No matter how much you upgrade your source, the DT48 will always reveal differences, sometimes it can be absolutely mindblowing. That a manufacturer like NAGRA pair them exclusively with their product should be a good indicator. Now a NAGRA DAC would make me a very happy bunny. Amping also need to be properly matched. At least, IME.
 
In fact, I would say that to trully enjoy the DT48, you need to build a system around them. They are not of the "fit and forget" kind. Rather "fit and start to worry about the rest of your gear"... Good thing is that you can talyor the sound to your liking since every component in the chain will impact heavily on the end results. Yes, the DT48 can sound warm and fuzzy or cold and dry... It is all down to the rest of your gear. Your pick.
 
Quote:

 
The DT48 by far responded the most to my DAC upgrade vs. my other phones. It really likes the DAC.  

 

[REB]

I think you're right. But building a gear around the dt48 is so specific, there's no guarantee it would synergize with other headphones. So if you're a headphone monomaniac, you're alright

if you focus your energy on the dt48. If you are a polymaniac (is that a word?), like me for instance, it probably is not going to be worth it. So I'm letting them go...
 
Quote:

Lot's of people complain about the DT48 sound beeing uninvolving, cold, clinical... The DT48 will only trully shine with a very good source. No matter how much you upgrade your source, the DT48 will always reveal differences, sometimes it can be absolutely mindblowing. That a manufacturer like NAGRA pair them exclusively with their product should be a good indicator. Now a NAGRA DAC would make me a very happy bunny. Amping also need to be properly matched. At least, IME.
 
In fact, I would say that to trully enjoy the DT48, you need to build a system around them. They are not of the "fit and forget" kind. Rather "fit and start to worry about the rest of your gear"... Good thing is that you can talyor the sound to your liking since every component in the chain will impact heavily on the end results. Yes, the DT48 can sound warm and fuzzy or cold and dry... It is all down to the rest of your gear. Your pick.
 
Quote:

 
The DT48 by far responded the most to my DAC upgrade vs. my other phones. It really likes the DAC.  

 

 

[shamu144]

Obviously you are building a closed system around one specific headphone, and it can be a hit or miss with other headphones... But when you already have the DT48, you do not want to listen to other headphones anyway

 
Quote:

I think you're right. But building a gear around the dt48 is so specific, there's no guarantee it would synergize with other headphones. So if you're a headphone monomaniac, you're alright

if you focus your energy on the dt48. If you are a polymaniac (is that a word?), like me for instance, it probably is not going to be worth it. So I'm letting them go...
 

 

[REB]

Sure, I get what you're saying. Chances for synergy with other phones are less though with the dt48, I'd say.
 
OT, but how's the graham slee ultra linear?

 

[Syliano]

 
Quote:

Since I got my new DAC (behringer fca202) a few days ago, Ive been experimenting with my 120 ohm adapter and am liking the sound of the adapter vs. straight. I'm not sure which I like more yet though, as the difference is small.
 
BTW this DAC is light-years ahead of my on board sound card. The highs are less grainy and distorted. The noise floor is lower, and the details are much easier to hear, less hidden. It sounds more analog, less shout and harshness. The bass has better texture, tonality, and is less distorted. My on board card makes the low end muddy and too warm actually. The DAC did NOT increase or decrease bass extension. It just cleared a layer of mud over it. 
 
The DT48 by far responded the most to my DAC upgrade vs. my other phones. It really likes the DAC.  
 
I am very exited with my new gear. The chilly, hair raising musical moments are more frequent now. 

Where did you get the adapter?

 

[EYEdROP]

http://www.apuresound.com/ra.html 

 

[EYEdROP]

Quote:

How good is the the built in headphone amp in your opinion?
 
Also, when you turn off the Behringer and your headphone is still connected: do you get this 'plop' sound? The reason I am asking is because I have the SRC2496 and it has the 'plop' which is a shame. 

On a quick listen, tried the fca202 built in amp but was underwhelmed. I really had to crank the volume as though it were an ipod (this is without the adaptor). Have high impedance phones? Forget about driving them with the built in amp. It also sounded less detailed and had trouble with the bass. My DAC does make a scratching type of sound when cutting the power. My powered subwoofer does the same thing but a click type sound when turned on, which I think is the servo controller it has. 
 
 

 

[shamu144]

I currenlty have the Graham Ultra-Linear and Meier Stepdance at home 

  The UL is blood and flesh (now well burn-in past 400 hours). The Stepdance (only 4 hours) is a little less liquid sounding (despite some warmth to it) and slightly more analytical and for the moment I feel it is a better match for the Fostex T50Rp than the DT48. Impressions might change though in the next days especially with the Stepdance.
 
Quote:

 
 OT, but how's the graham slee ultra linear?

 

 

[Deep Funk]

Thanks, my SRC2496 drives high impedance headphones just fine with gain and volume settings. It is just that 'plop' that makes me consider buying an M-Stage or Little Dot Mark V.

 

[Syliano]

I just got my dt48e, out of my ipod they sounded like rubbish, plugged them in the amp. That was better, I needed to get used to them (for about 5 minutes hahaha) the first thing i noticed is the cold sound and sometimes there isn't a lot going on in the bass department, at times it gives me some sweet bass but not the deep bass. These things are ruthless, I listened to my home made tracks on these, they demolished them, my tracks sounded like first class garbage.
Some music sounds perfect like goosebumps perfect, others sound really off.
I wonder how mixing is going to be with these things

 
Weird thing I noticed, the right pad seems more inflated then the left one -.-, so the leftside of the headphone sounds a little bit different then the right side. It's kind of annoying.
 
Edit: I did some improvised padding, adding paper underneath the pads so they inflate less, well that did it. The highs changed from ordinary to extraordinary. Amazing really.

 

[RTF]

I should be getting a pair of dt48a 5 ohm today that I ordered from B&H while they were in stock and on sale. I'll be running it out of my Meier Prehead-1 which has a 120 ohm output and a low gain switch so it should be ideal for them. I also got a pair of dt48e style pads as I've read that the stock pads are pretty uncomfortable. I'll post some impressions if anyones interested, I've tried some higher end phones lately like LCD-2, D7000, and SR-507 so I'll see how I prefer dt48a's to those phones, of course it won't be a direct comparison just from memory.  I tried some dt48es 25ohm awhile back and thought they were pretty amazing, they were the only headphones I've ever tried that didn't have any harshness in the upper midrange and always sounded 'natural'. But between the rolled off bass and the 2ft single entry coiled cord I decided to return them. I'm so tired of upper midrange brightness/harshness though that I think I may be able to live with the rolled off bass this time around. I also picked up a pair of Beyer T1s in the FS forum so with those I'll be able to do a direct comparison to the DT48a, I think this will be my last foray into hi-end headphones if the T1s don't work out. Hmm I think this my longest post ever, cheers.

 

[lejaz]

Look forward to your impressions of the dt48a. My impressions of the dt48e are very similar to yours. I compared them head to head with the k702 and the akg sounds REALLY bright compared to the Beyer, which sounds more 'flat' and true to life. Was listening to Sinatra Live at the Sands which features some great orchestrations by Quincy Jones, I think, and the Count Basie orchestra. The horn sections with the dt48 are exactly like I remember hearing them when I heard horns live. The 702 added a brightness and thinness that was unnatural. In some ways I DO prefer listening with the 702 though. The bass is warmer and fuller and goes lower and they have that huge sound stage....they produce more of an 'audiophile' type of sound IMO. Plus the 702 is way more comfortable to wear for long periods. They're very different animals for sure
 
Quote:

I should be getting a pair of dt48a 5 ohm today that I ordered from B&H while they were in stock and on sale. I'll be running it out of my Meier Prehead-1 which has a 120 ohm output and a low gain switch so it should be ideal for them. I also got a pair of dt48e style pads as I've read that the stock pads are pretty uncomfortable. I'll post some impressions if anyones interested, I've tried some higher end phones lately like LCD-2, D7000, and SR-507 so I'll see how I prefer dt48a's to those phones, of course it won't be a direct comparison just from memory.  I tried some dt48es 25ohm awhile back and thought they were pretty amazing, they were the only headphones I've ever tried that didn't have any harshness in the upper midrange and always sounded 'natural'. But between the rolled off bass and the 2ft single entry coiled cord I decided to return them. I'm so tired of upper midrange brightness/harshness though that I think I may be able to live with the rolled off bass this time around. I also picked up a pair of Beyer T1s in the FS forum so with those I'll be able to do a direct comparison to the DT48a, I think this will be my last foray into hi-end headphones if the T1s don't work out. Hmm I think this my longest post ever, cheers.

 

[shamu144]

What an exciting competition round for the DT48A. Now I am really interested in reading your impressions... The Prehead with the 120 ohm output impedance should be perfect indeed, at least technically. And I also second using DT48E pads on the DT48A instead of the original rubber pads which are a real pain for the ears. Funny that your longest post ever is DT48 talk, the headphone that probably gets less attention in forums !
 
PD: the DT48A comes usually bare ended... You might have to reterminate it with a proper plug.
 
Quote:

I should be getting a pair of dt48a 5 ohm today that I ordered from B&H while they were in stock and on sale. I'll be running it out of my Meier Prehead-1 which has a 120 ohm output and a low gain switch so it should be ideal for them. I also got a pair of dt48e style pads as I've read that the stock pads are pretty uncomfortable. I'll post some impressions if anyones interested, I've tried some higher end phones lately like LCD-2, D7000, and SR-507 so I'll see how I prefer dt48a's to those phones, of course it won't be a direct comparison just from memory.  I tried some dt48es 25ohm awhile back and thought they were pretty amazing, they were the only headphones I've ever tried that didn't have any harshness in the upper midrange and always sounded 'natural'. But between the rolled off bass and the 2ft single entry coiled cord I decided to return them. I'm so tired of upper midrange brightness/harshness though that I think I may be able to live with the rolled off bass this time around. I also picked up a pair of Beyer T1s in the FS forum so with those I'll be able to do a direct comparison to the DT48a, I think this will be my last foray into hi-end headphones if the T1s don't work out. Hmm I think this my longest post ever, cheers.