[Arunabha Lahiri]

Well I have heard that hd 598 sounds better through iPhone than through fiio.. An odd thing but many claims it..

 

[Roly1650]

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Well I have heard that hd 598 sounds better through iPhone than through fiio.. An odd thing but many claims it..

In a roundabout way, that's telling you that if you tested properly, ie: level matched and blind, there'd be precious little dfference between them, which is pretty much what you'd expect. It isn't difficult to produce audibly transparent devices in the 21st. century, even modestly priced ones.
If you don't level match and you know what you're listening to, you'll always hear differences, louder will always sound better, the human brain is extremely sensitive to level changes, without necessarily being aware they are level changes and sighted biases are well known and understood.

 

[Arunabha Lahiri]

Actually I haven't tested it myself. I only own an ipod nano and a pair of hd598se. I also own a klipsch s4i which is my companion for 4 years. I generally listen to music in a moderate volume. So 50% volume in my ipod with hd 598se is ok for me with most tracks. In a bit louder volume the Soundstage, minute details become more apparent. Say at 75% volume. But that way I can only listen to say about 10 minutes. So I stick with the 50% for long time pleasant listening.. And you are true about the louder sounds better. I too sometimes felt that my hp laptop is better sounding as it is so loud with iem. But with hd 598se it sounds bad though.. A kinda harsher and hollow sound.

 

[Roly1650]

Actually I haven't tested it myself. I only own an ipod nano and a pair of hd598se. I also own a klipsch s4i which is my companion for 4 years. I generally listen to music in a moderate volume. So 50% volume in my ipod with hd 598se is ok for me with most tracks. In a bit louder volume the Soundstage, minute details become more apparent. Say at 75% volume. But that way I can only listen to say about 10 minutes. So I stick with the 50% for long time pleasant listening.. And you are true about the louder sounds better. I too sometimes felt that my hp laptop is better sounding as it is so loud with iem. But with hd 598se it sounds bad though.. A kinda harsher and hollow sound.

Without knowing the laptop, it's hard to tell why SQ is worse, could be a dsp effect in the OS, could be an impedance mismatch, it could just be a lousy sound card........

 

[milosingh]

Will an O2 + ODAC just be louder than an IPhone 5s headphone out with an HD 650 or will the difference be more than that?

Is the iPhone 5s line out and headphone out the same if I use an external amp like O2? Will that be as good as O2 plus ODAC besides the volume?

Is O2 + ODAC really as good as Benchmark?

 

[Arunabha Lahiri]

Without knowing the laptop, it's hard to tell why SQ is worse, could be a dsp effect in the OS, could be an impedance mismatch, it could just be a lousy sound card........

It's a hp Pavillion g6, a 5 year old budget laptop. I bet it's a lousy sound card..

 

[davidsh]

Will an O2 + ODAC just be louder than an IPhone 5s headphone out with an HD 650 or will the difference be more than that?

Is the iPhone 5s line out and headphone out the same if I use an external amp like O2? Will that be as good as O2 plus ODAC besides the volume?

Is O2 + ODAC really as good as Benchmark?

That'd be what I would expect from experience with my iPhones and the amps I have owned.

 

[krismusic]

Will an O2 + ODAC just be louder than an IPhone 5s headphone out with an HD 650 or will the difference be more than that?

Is the iPhone 5s line out and headphone out the same if I use an external amp like O2? Will that be as good as O2 plus ODAC besides the volume?

Is O2 + ODAC really as good as Benchmark?

I don't have the ODAC. Just the O2. That simply increases volume. Nothing more.
IMHO that is what an amp is for. For anything else, DSP is the way forward.

 

[milosingh]

Have you compared HD 600 to HD 650? Is the difference significant?

 

[krismusic]

Have you compared HD 600 to HD 650? Is the difference significant?

I have heard both and much preferred the natural, open sound of the 600.
I found the 650 too dark and woolly. YMM definitely V! It seems to be something that you have to hear for yourself.
Some people even claim that there is very little difference. Which I really do not understand TBH.
IMO the 600's are glorious except I could wish for a weightier bottom end.
Even so, they are an all time audio Billy bargain.
(IMO again )

 

[canali]

here is a question;
 
I'd love to get one of the newer allegedly better sounding daps (ak jr, etc)
but most don't have the plethora of features that the user friendly ipod touch 6 does.
...nor do they have wifi (and my main music source is streaming).
....sure the fiio x7 does but look at the cost...and in a yr it'll come down of course.
 
has anyone listened to the ak jr, or fiio x7 or sony players and compared it with souynd of the ipod touch 6 gen?
is it that significant a diff when using the same cans/iems etc
(heard the mojo can run off of this device which would no doubt help the sound quality).
 
thinking of going this route until more daps/mp3 players offer good wifi and sound quality and come down in price.

 

[watchnerd]

Latest gen iPhones and iPads are good enough to do live recording if you attach an interface to the Lightning port.

 

[milosingh]

here is a question;

I'd love to get one of the newer allegedly better sounding daps (ak jr, etc)
but most don't have the plethora of features that the user friendly ipod touch 6 does.
...nor do they have wifi (and my main music source is streaming).
....sure the fiio x7 does but look at the cost...and in a yr it'll come down of course.

has anyone listened to the ak jr, or fiio x7 or sony players and compared it with souynd of the ipod touch 6 gen?
is it that significant a diff when using the same cans/iems etc

(heard the mojo can run off of this device which would no doubt help the sound quality).

thinking of going this route until more daps/mp3 players offer good wifi and sound quality and come down in price.

Most DAPs including anything by FiiO will likely be audibly coloured compared to any Apple product. Regardless of price.

Expensive DAPs may go louder than the iPhone though.

 

[JWolf]

Most DAPs including anything by FiiO will likely be audibly coloured compared to any Apple product. Regardless of price.

Expensive DAPs may go louder than the iPhone though.

 
I think you have it incorrect. I have an iPhone 6s and an X3II. The X3II is not colored vs. the 6s. The 6s is not in the same league as the X3II. The 6s can be a bit tizzy at times where the X3II is smooth. The X3II has better imaging, smoother top end, more realistic mids, and deeper bass. I don't know of any cell phone that beats a good DAP on sound and if there is, it's not made by Apple.

 

[Arunabha Lahiri]

I believe sound quality depends on the headphone or iem and what type of source it is comfortable with. I have an HD 598. It is quite sensitive pair of headphones and my ipod nano 7th gen drives it quite well. At 70% volume I get a decent loudness, impressive sound stage and the bass is just the right amount.