Headphones

[gazza1101]

Grado 60, great value.

 

[wiimamp user]

Koss ksc75..sounds also

 

[Danny Linguini]

Ok you guys, I’m taking a stab at the Koss Porta Pro (no mic or remote) - 40 clams on the ‘Zon, hard to go wrong there, plus a pair of Yaxi pads (is it just me, or does that sound like a feminine hygiene product???), just in case. The larger pads come highly recommended, so we’ll see if they’re needed or not. I don’t think I’ve ever had an open-back set, but I like what I’ve read about the improved soundstage with this design. Noise cancellation/isolation are of little concern right now. Due to arrive Sunday, so I’ll definitely be leaving my thoughts on Monday.

In the mean time, I dug up a pair of Sennheiser HD280 Pro phones I had gotten awhile back for my digital piano. They worked ok enough for non-disturbing practicing, but plugged into an iPad they’re absolute trash. The JBL Tune 660NC blows them away, which I found a bit surprising for Bluetooth vs wired. I’m hoping the Porta Pro fares much better - AI and a bunch of comparison articles suggest it very likely will.

Thank you for all the great suggestions!

 

[Machiavelli]

Ok you guys, I’m taking a stab at the Koss Porta Pro (no mic or remote) - 40 clams on the ‘Zon, hard to go wrong there, plus a pair of Yaxi pads (is it just me, or does that sound like a feminine hygiene product???), just in case. The larger pads come highly recommended, so we’ll see if they’re needed or not. I don’t think I’ve ever had an open-back set, but I like what I’ve read about the improved soundstage with this design. Noise cancellation/isolation are of little concern right now. Due to arrive Sunday, so I’ll definitely be leaving my thoughts on Monday.

In the mean time, I dug up a pair of Sennheiser HD280 Pro phones I had gotten awhile back for my digital piano. They worked ok enough for non-disturbing practicing, but plugged into an iPad they’re absolute trash. The JBL Tune 660NC blows them away, which I found a bit surprising for Bluetooth vs wired. I’m hoping the Porta Pro fares much better - AI and a bunch of comparison articles suggest it very likely will.

Thank you for all the great suggestions!

only problem with my old porta pro is that i constantly pinch my hair with the metal bracket . Otherwise it has been a faithful companion for ages. few euros and it is still outstanding. the yaxis are indeed worth a recommendation.

 

[Danny Linguini]

only problem with my old porta pro is that i constantly pinch my hair with the metal bracket . Otherwise it has been a faithful companion for ages. few euros and it is still outstanding. the yaxis are indeed worth a recommendation.

I saw that in a few reviews. I had a pair that did that many years ago - rather unpleasant. I’ll need to remember not to do any on-head adjusting.

Also, just for giggles, I grabbed a cheap USB-C DAC amp. No idea if it’ll be needed, or if it’s an improvement over the iPhone’s DAC, but it’ll be a fun experiment. If nothing else, it opens up other better headphone possibilities down the road.

 

[Machiavelli]

I saw that in a few reviews. I had a pair that did that many years ago - rather unpleasant. I’ll need to remember not to do any on-head adjusting.

Also, just for giggles, I grabbed a cheap USB-C DAC amp. No idea if it’ll be needed, or if it’s an improvement over the iPhone’s DAC, but it’ll be a fun experiment. If nothing else, it opens up other better headphone possibilities down the road.

if your iphone is one of the newer with usb-c there are a lot of cheap dongle dacs. most of them are better than the internal deliver resolution up to 192. internal dac of the iphone is still limited to 48. what i think nobody outside apple really knows.

 

[Danny Linguini]

if your iphone is one of the newer with usb-c there are a lot of cheap dongle dacs. most of them are better than the internal deliver resolution up to 192. internal dac of the iphone is still limited to 48. what i think nobody outside apple really knows.

I thought you could get 192 out of the iPhone using a wired connection? Maybe I’m thinking of what you can get using an external DAC? This is all new to me. Anyway, I got the Fiio KA11, which claims to deliver up to 32 bit/384khz. We’ll see if my old-ass ears can tell the difference.

 

[Machiavelli]

I thought you could get 192 out of the iPhone using a wired connection? Maybe I’m thinking of what you can get using an external DAC? This is all new to me. Anyway, I got the Fiio KA11, which claims to deliver up to 32 bit/384khz. We’ll see if my old-ass ears can tell the difference.

the ka11 is a very good choice. it does also not suck much power out of the phone battery. i really do not believe that iphones with hp socket ever delivered high resolution. this is one of the few stupid decisions from apple: to get the max f.e. of their lossless or higher quality even from their own streaming service you need third party stuff. anyway they build the best one can get as soon as it comes to computers, phones, tablets and anc headphones. they have their market. i belong to that.

 

[Danny Linguini]

the ka11 is a very good choice. it does also not suck much power out of the phone battery. i really do not believe that iphones with hp socket ever delivered high resolution. this is one of the few stupid decisions from apple: to get the max f.e. of their lossless or higher quality even from their own streaming service you need third party stuff. anyway they build the best one can get as soon as it comes to computers, phones, tablets and anc headphones. they have their market. i belong to that.

Yeah, I’m pretty much sucked all the way into their ecosystem too. The stuff mostly just works.