[zekexz]

I first started my life as a audiophile at the age of 12, buying myself a pair of RadioShack cheap imitation of the ‘Koss UR 20’ thinking typically that bigger is better. But I wasn’t satisfied, the springs eventually lost its strength to keep my headphone completely sealed to my ear, finding out the bass was escaping

. So after a long contemplation on my next step of headphones as an audiophile I bought myself a ‘Sony MDR-EX71SLA – black’, an in ear headphone that gave a good punch to my inexperienced ears. But I soon got bored of them, they didn’t give me the desired bass I’ve always wanted

. By this time google have become a popular search engine and googled myself ‘in ear’ ‘headphones’ ‘bass’ and bought myself ‘Ultimate Ears – super.fi 5EB’. These headphones I stuck with for some time but still wasn’t happy with the bass and sound quality in overall it gave. If you need an example of what kind of bass I’m looking for, I’ve fallen in love with the bass the Bose speakers give in my dads ‘Cadillac 2007 CTS’

. After buying myself an ‘Iriver H10 (20GB)’ with its “SRS WOW – TruBass” feature that almost satisfied me, I’ve learned that the headphones regardless of how good it is can only give as much bass as the source outputs.
So I stumble upon www.headphone.com where they constantly compare and rate one of the best headphones and fell in love with the site, and noticed that my UE super.fi 5EB sure was up there in the bass, but its ratings faltered with its overall sound quality it gave. From there I found my way here, www.head-fi.org, audiofiles united, haha.
So I come to you to ask, where’s the bass???? I’m contemplating buying myself a ‘Shure E500’ but I know it’ll just give me just as much, if not worse, bass as my UE super.fi EB when listening from the same source (H10). So what mp3 player is recommended for me, a bass-addict? Good bass might I add, not the – “oh just crank up the frequency band of bass in the equalizer of your mp3 player until you get your desired bass”-b*ll****. Is there any mp3 player out there that will give me the bass the Bose speakers of my dads car will give me? Or atleast close?

-Zeke

 

[rockin_amigo14]

i don't know exactly that the H10 is really that great of a source to begin with. You may want to look into Cowon/iAudio products. I really enjoy the bass they give. If you like the bass you get from Bose products, you may want to look into a pair of Bose headphones?

 

[RubenNYC]

For starters, I don't understand how using an equalizer to increase bass output (within reason) is a bad thing.

Secondly, I don't imagine IEMs, by there very nature, are going to give you that kind of bass no matter what the source. (Not speaking from experience as I'm personally not a big fan of IEMs.)

FWIW, the best bass I've ever heard has come from pairing my recently deceased Rio Karma with a pair of Grado SR-225s (not mine, a pair I sampled from a co-worker). My current setup is the Trekstor Vibez + Grado SR-60s. At a combined value of <$300, the bass and overall SQ are phenomenal.

 

[ekinwang]

i heard the zunes have great bass, might want to check them out as well.

 

[sgrossklass]

Oh my, a Basshead with a capital B. First off, try your EBs on some other sources to make sure it's not just the coupling caps in the player (these IEMs have a pretty low impedance and would exhibit a noticeable frequency response dropoff in the bass with the usual 100 µF output coupling caps - something that uses capless operation would be better, but this is hard to find out). Oh, and make absolutely sure that you get a good seal with the UEs, otherwise even the EBs may struggle in the bass department.

Anyway, the ultimate basshead setup seems to be the old (pre-2005) DT770 (I don't quite remember which one was bassier, 80 or 250 ohms, but the search is your friend) with a moderately powerful headphone amplifier. If that doesn't cut it, I don't know either. If you don't feel as deep-pocketed, maybe try a HD485. And no, neither of these cans is ultra-portable (and while one is likely to get pretty decent sonic results as well as weird looks with the Beyers, the Senns would be entirely unsuited for noisy environments).

Oh, and car audio makes a lousy reference. Due to the fairly small enclosed volume, a highly uneven bass response seems to be very common. A slow 200 Hz ... 20 Hz sweep with a look on an SPL meter would probably be quite insightful. I wouldn't be surprised if the bass impact were related to some pretty strong resonances. Many car audio setups seem to be tweaked for a tizz-boom response anyway - phat bass, strong highs, not a lot in between.

In any case, headphones will always struggle to deliver the impact speakers can produce - something which IMO is related to (i) bass that is also felt, (ii) uneven bass response due to room modes and (iii) speaker related distortion. Due to (ii), headphones can most certainly reproduce higher-*quality* bass.

 

[sgrossklass]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RubenNYC /img/forum/go_quote.gif For starters, I don't understand how using an equalizer to increase bass output (within reason) is a bad thing.

Provided the EQ is cleverly integrated so that it cannot lead to signal clipping so easily, it isn't one either. My iAudio G3 belongs into this group, for example, while the average Apple player doesn't.

Oh, and I forgot to mention that no, the E500s will not have as much bass as the 5EBs. But the 5EBs apparently are the kind of IEMs that are fun to listen to for some tracks, but in the long run most seem to find their mega-bass ridiculous.

 

[zekexz]

alright, replying from top to down- here i go.
-
I have thought much about the bose headphones considering - bose speakers in my dads car- bose headphones!, so i actualy will be buying myself a pair of bose headphoens (only for the 30free day trial though to try it out).
I do wish i could try out these many mp3 players everyone always suggests me to such as the kowon, iaudio, but does anyone know if i could buy them and return like the bose headphones??
-
Utilizing the Equalizer within reason i agree isnt a bad thing, but my ears are drooling for more than adjusting two-3 bars to get the bass i want (which i usually cant get).
But yes ive always been in a constant fight between IEM's and skullcrushing-big headphones that engulf your head, especialy if they seal any escape for the bass. www.headphone.com actualy allow free trials so that is what ill be doing as well as spare time of my college life. I am however getting thoes Grado Sr-60 you speak of considering ive heard much about it and just wanted to see what the fuss is about. but i am sry about ur Rio Karma- RIP lol. i always feel much sorrow after a death of my own mp3 players as well being used to them too much.
-
Hrmm zunes...ive heard of zunes..and.. yes sure i will try them thank u for ur suggestion
-

haha, sgrossklass, ur tittle "Headphoneus Supremus" sure doess preceed you lol. you sure know ur stuff. But yes, i have tried my EB's on many other sources which is why ive been lead to the conclusion that the ammount of bass outputed by the headphones matter on the source.
but i guess it was a fault in my part to mention that im not a dj nor do i like to walk around with a clutter of gadgets to satisfy my ears. in other words i dont want to be carrying any headphone amplifier. The headphoens you mention are however intriguing and i will surely try them out of curiousity and considering you know ur stuff.
lol but yes, the bose speakres in my dads care is a lousy refrence, i agree. but i just meant that playing around with the equalizer will surely never give me that kind of "thump"ing bass n instead give u that very ugly bass that if i ever hear that from my EB's id surely throw the headphones away in an instant. and though i know headphones will always be the tailcoat of speakers when it comes to sound quality and bass, i want to get close enough to hear that bass wherever i go n not just from speakers of cars.
but yes, i unfortunately believe u when you say the e500's wont give me as much bass. but i will stay with my EB's for now and soley concentrate on the source of the sound first- the mp3 player. So do you know of any mp3 players that will give good bass? The only one time ive heard of good bass from mp3 players was of the Iriver H300, though no longer manufactured, can still be found used or "new" off ebay for the same price as it was when it first came out. the H10 i have has the Trubass, that you can change from 1 to 10, but the H300, can change from 1 to >>20<<. lol

but thank u for all ur replys, they have been helpful and comforting that theres actualy ppl out there that seek bass as much as me lol.

-Zeke

 

[lutwey]

if ur a bass head and willing to spill out major amunt of cash then go with the darth beyers(modded dt770) go to headphile.com to check them out.

i've done the research and started a couple of threads the darths are always in discussion when it comes to bass

 

[Kees]

For a cheap and simple solution you might check out the AKG K81DJ. Plenty of bass, no amp required. Portable & closed.
Not the ultimate in comfort though...

 

[zekexz]

ty for all of your feedback on ur suggestions of headphones. but i posted this thread in the portable audio section asking for what mp3 player gives good bass, after all the headphone can only give out as much as its being put in from the mp3 player.
ull agree with me when i say that using a AKG K81DJ or Dt770 wont sound as good if i was listening to it from a regular cd player rather than from a cdplayer that has a "bass boost" feature to it and such.

 

[Molondro]

Meizu M6 Owners say it has great bass. You can try it

Or you can just stop being so close-minded and try a headphone amp. There are many small amps that aren't necessarily a burden to wear, namely Xin Supermicro/Minibox D/iBasso T1...

I'm sure any of these amps will give you morebass than any player alone. The iBasso T1 has in fact a bass boost switch

 

[lutwey]

if u want some bass...........the major contibutor in your rig would be the headphones. sq differ in many daps but not as distingiuisble as headphones a "bassy" headphone would provide enough bass even though your source has no bass boost. i have an ipod and when i use my k81 i do notice the bass without any special configuration

 

[zekexz]

lol, sry- i guess i am kinda close-minded. i always thought amps were always a big hassle. but ill deff. look into the amps u mentioned. and if small enough i will get one for myself. ty for the tip about the amps molondro

 

[bonethugz]

i love bass too but why i still don't have a pair of eb? first, money. second, i only tried eb for 5 minutes but i didn't feel it has enough bass. or at least not as much impact as my pa2v2(amp) and k81. that got me thinking, if you want bass, you need power. i suppose no mp3 players will have enough power. i suggest you get an amp first. specially those with a bass switch. i've ordered a c&c box, which as a bass boost.

 

[Febs]

Quote:

the H10 i have has the Trubass, that you can change from 1 to 10, but the H300, can change from 1 to >>20<<. lol

Nigel Tufnel: The numbers all go to eleven. Look, right across the board, eleven, eleven, eleven and...
Marty DiBergi: Oh, I see. And most amps go up to ten?
Nigel Tufnel: Exactly.
Marty DiBergi: Does that mean it's louder? Is it any louder?
Nigel Tufnel: Well, it's one louder, isn't it? It's not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you're on ten on your guitar. Where can you go from there? Where?
Marty DiBergi: I don't know.
Nigel Tufnel: Nowhere. Exactly. What we do is, if we need that extra push over the cliff, you know what we do?
Marty DiBergi: Put it up to eleven.
Nigel Tufnel: Eleven. Exactly. One louder.
Marty DiBergi: Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number and make that a little louder?
Nigel Tufnel: [pause] These go to eleven.