[dbdynsty25]

Quote:

Go and do some more research.

 
Why? I'm perfectly happy with my amps.

 

[nicholars]

Quote:

 
Why? I'm perfectly happy with my amps.

 
Hmm well amps can have an effect on the sound quality. If ALL they do is make it louder.... Then something like the Burston headphone amp at £900 better go LOUD! You can get most headphones to deafening levels with a cheapo £50 amplifier.

 

[dbdynsty25]

Quote:

 
Hmm well amps can have an effect on the sound quality. If ALL they do is make it louder.... Then something like the Burston headphone amp at £900 better go LOUD! You can get most headphones to deafening levels with a cheapo £50 amplifier.

 
That's why I said they don't noticeably change per se.  Yes, all amps have some coloration and change it a bit, but I personally cannot tell the difference between the Fiios I've got.  Maybe it's just the Fiio house sound that I'm used to and I like it.  In reality, the point of an amp is not to change the sound, that's an EQ.  

 

[nicholars]

Quote:

 
That's why I said they don't noticeably change per se.  Yes, all amps have some coloration and change it a bit, but I personally cannot tell the difference between the Fiios I've got.  Maybe it's just the Fiio house sound that I'm used to and I like it.  In reality, the point of an amp is not to change the sound, that's an EQ.  

 
Probably because they are all fiio lol.

 

[nicholars]

An EQ cannot make the bass better controlled etc. But an amp can.

 

[MattKelly]

Quote:

Yes, that is what he said.

Darn, so I have to wait to purchase this BoomPro now?  

 

[DrGonzo]

Just ordered the M-100 Matte Black from Musician's Friend. They have a 4th of July sale going on 12% off $299+. Just after I place my order I found out that Guitar Center, who also have the M-100's on their site have a similar sale going on $50 off $299+. Anyway just a heads up for anyone looking to get these headphones, but better hurry sale ends after holiday. I placed a rush order so I can get mine on Friday. Looking forward to trying these cans out while on my trip to San Diego next week, we'll see how well they isolate on the plane.

 

[Bruin9999]

jds labs c5 for 180 is an awesome amp and does bring the mids a tad more forward and gives them a wider soundstage, I really like the combo

 

[adman164]

My M100s arrived today and I'm very impressed! Whilst the bass is indeed the focus its much cleaner and tighter than I feared it might be, and played flat they are absolutely perfect for my electronic music. Reduce the bass a few decibels and they are perfect for all my other genres. Very satisfied!

 

[II Humble II]

Nice! I also have a question for you guys, how would you describe the bass/lows on the M100, and also on the M80. I just want to see if I am experencing the same thing. My M100s are going to be sent in for an exchange repair, so I might be getting a white one in return! I always like the matte black, but white seems to show the details more. But lets see! Do you guys like the white, I know tealrice returned his because his white was more of a creme color. But I remember some time ago we had this battle/hype thing with the colors. 

 

[adamlr]

Quote:

 
What are you expecting it to improve exactly?  Most amps main goal is to amplify and clean up the sound, while giving you more headroom for turning them up louder.  They don't really noticably change the sound per se...at least from my experience with the E6, E07K, E11, E12 & E17 (FIIO FOR LIFE, lol).

 
well technically your probably right, the main "goal" is to amplify, but thats not the only advantage. impedance conversion is one thing that an amp gives you, i think these days a low impedance of ~2 ohm or even less has become more or less standard, which theoretically allows for your headphones' "true" sound to come out, without any changes due to impedance miss-matches.
other than that, just because your headphones get loud enough, doesnt mean they are "properly driven". an amp provides the cans with as much power as they need, and can provide the sufficient current/voltage swing when called for, something that a phone may not be able to.
all that being said, i agree that the differences, and especially with "easy to drive" headphones such as the m-100, are hardly night and day. i remember at first i couldnt tell any difference whatever between the m-100 with, vs, without an external amp. but then i started to use them portably more often, and came to realize that what i was hearing when driven from my phone - even in quiet places- was simply not as good as when driven by my O2 at home. i find the soundstage improves quite a bit, and the bass becomes more "textured", or "layered" when driven from the O2. again, im sure if i let one of my flatmates try they wouldnt hear a single difference. its subtle, but, atleast to me, noticeable. once more, the m-100 arent exactly the right can to demonstrate the advantages of an external amp. with my dt 770 (250) for example, the difference is quite drastic. 
 
Quote:

My M100s arrived today and I'm very impressed! Whilst the bass is indeed the focus its much cleaner and tighter than I feared it might be, and played flat they are absolutely perfect for my electronic music. Reduce the bass a few decibels and they are perfect for all my other genres. Very satisfied!

congrats! wow that was some speedy delivery! you were talking about ordering them just a few days ago werent you? anyway, im glad to see that youre eqing successfully. if you play around abit, youll find youre learning quite a bit aswell =]

 

[Craigster75]

Quote:

So then it would be an unfair comparison to say VERZA > E11 in the first place, no?

I would say the unfair comparison is based on the price difference, but comparing overall SQ seems okay to me as it is part of the package.  As you mentioned in your C5 review, the O2 is your reference amp, Verza is my reference amp.

 

[adman164]

Nice! I also have a question for you guys, how would you describe the bass/lows on the M100, and also on the M80. I just want to see if I am experencing the same thing. My M100s are going to be sent in for an exchange repair, so I might be getting a white one in return! I always like the matte black, but white seems to show the details more. But lets see! Do you guys like the white, I know tealrice returned his because his white was more of a creme color. But I remember some time ago we had this battle/hype thing with the colors. 

Personally I really like the bass on the M100, lots of punch, reaches pretty deep. It does have quite a bit of emphasis and interferes with the mids a little, but for the right genres I find it perfect. As I've mentioned before I can eq it down a little with power amp on my phone and it still retains its quality but becomes more balanced with the rest of the spectrum, making it enjoyable for all genres.The m80's bass is lesser in quantity and does not reach quite as deep, but I also find it very enjoyable. I believe it is about 3 db above neutral which is goes down well with me. I doubt I have the keenest ears but that's roughly how I hear it! Hope this helps a little.
Oh from an aesthetics perspective I really love the white, I have a white M100 and a shadow M80, and personally I prefer the looks of the white, despite the fact it is indeed an off-white colour.

 

[adman164]

congrats! wow that was some speedy delivery! you were talking about ordering them just a few days ago werent you? anyway, im glad to see that youre eqing successfully. if you play around abit, youll find youre learning quite a bit aswell =]

Yep it was! I started a trial of amazon prime to get the one day delivery, just for my M100s . And yes, I'm enjoying good results from eqing and i agree, it is a good learning experience!
(Oops should've multi-quoted this with my previous post, apologies)

 

[dbdynsty25]

Quote:

well technically your probably right, the main "goal" is to amplify, but thats not the only advantage. impedance conversion is one thing that an amp gives you, i think these days a low impedance of ~2 ohm or even less has become more or less standard, which theoretically allows for your headphones' "true" sound to come out, without any changes due to impedance miss-matches.
other than that, just because your headphones get loud enough, doesnt mean they are "properly driven". an amp provides the cans with as much power as they need, and can provide the sufficient current/voltage swing when called for, something that a phone may not be able to.
all that being said, i agree that the differences, and especially with "easy to drive" headphones such as the m-100, are hardly night and day. i remember at first i couldnt tell any difference whatever between the m-100 with, vs, without an external amp. but then i started to use them portably more often, and came to realize that what i was hearing when driven from my phone - even in quiet places- was simply not as good as when driven by my O2 at home. i find the soundstage improves quite a bit, and the bass becomes more "textured", or "layered" when driven from the O2. again, im sure if i let one of my flatmates try they wouldnt hear a single difference. its subtle, but, atleast to me, noticeable. once more, the m-100 arent exactly the right can to demonstrate the advantages of an external amp. with my dt 770 (250) for example, the difference is quite drastic. 
 
congrats! wow that was some speedy delivery! you were talking about ordering them just a few days ago werent you? anyway, im glad to see that youre eqing successfully. if you play around abit, youll find youre learning quite a bit aswell =]

 
Yeah that's probably my issue as I don't have any headphones that are difficult to drive, so it's really difficult to tell the difference between amps.  But my point was that amps are meant to change the sound sig and I think everyone agrees on that, even if I didn't explain my point well enough.  You did it for me.  So thanks.