Audiophile and gears

Rockfella said:
Not buying .. just very curious to know.... what packs the most punch for its price :)
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sorry not the same guy. I have stopped spending on this uneending well of burning money of a hobby called audiophile. Although partly because after trying tons of various headphones I found my hold grails m40x for closed and Grados for open ( have 2 Ps500s and a Gs1000e ) . I never listen to closed cans unless I need isolation never found them enjoyable like open .

I think Mdr -7506 are best bang for buck closed cans but were uncomfortable for me so I instead got m40x.

Coming back to topic I havent tried blon as i stopped looking at market. But for best bang for back open cans ( well they are sort of clip ons ) nothing can beat Koss ksc-75 imo especially after modding.They cost like 15$ and have great sound ! Sadly mine got destroyed but probably will get one again ! Maybe even two or three !

I want to try blons and beyer 770 if I ever get chance as I hear great things about them but dont think I will spend more on cans anytime soon unless I sell one. But i am really curious to try them !
Btw @red dragon or anyone else, I never ever use speakers only headphones so have no idea, but i need some speakers just in case someone comes over are there any cheap speakers between 10-20k that are great or whats best bang for buck in speakers ?
 
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farrukjavid said:
price of 1 Adam t5 = 2 job 305s in My country
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No brainer. Get the JBL 305s! The hiss is not a big deal if you ask me .. I can't notice it unless I really want to ... even if I do when I am sometimes too close to it and there is nothing else running running in my room .. fan music etc the hiss is so less it's barely an issue for me .. In-fact I found out about it after purchasing them .. reading about it online .. not from my own pair.
 
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No idea about budget speakers available in India.
Active speakers are not cheap by any means ( look at the Barefoot speakers!!!) They cost a bomb and sound absolutely superb.
And yes, most studio monitors are active nowadays for a reason. They are driven by not one but multiple inbuilt amps.
The woofer requires lots of power, but in active speakers, those have seperate amps and don't take away any energy from the other speakers as (on a passive speaker, that happens all the time except extremely powerful amp) Having dedicated amplifiers for each speaker also makes it easier to build proper crossovers. Not only because the crossover can be placed before the power amps, but also because active circuitry can be used for steeper filter slopes. This reduces overlap between the woofer, mid-range,and tweeter.
These are not marginal benefits, the monitoring/ mixing gets much easier with active speakers.
I do have decent passive speakers at home ( which are perfectly adequate for casual listening with a decent amp) but for mixing or any production related work active speakers are simply superior.
Regarding speaker vs headphones... personally will go with the speakers...but it's not obviously practical, moreover one MUST use at least a pair of headphones to check the mixes.
However any sane person ( I'm not) should be more than satisfied with a closed back like M40X ( not the 50X/70X...those are definitely not great as casual headphones..they magnify the flaws in recordings considerably) or DT 770 ( much more comfortable and clean sounding compared to 40X) and an open back like DT990 ( or even HD 598...not 599..they also magnify flaws considerably more)
 
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Rockfella said:
Everything has pros and cons. This statement is too naive :)
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That was just some guy’s opinion.. referring myself here.

I know most mixing is done on active speakers called studio monitors. But enjoying music is completely different from analysing it. So different equipment for different needs is all I can say.
 
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red dragon said:
No idea about budget speakers available in India.
Active speakers are not cheap by any means ( look at the Barefoot speakers!!!) They cost a bomb and sound absolutely superb.
And yes, most studio monitors are active nowadays for a reason. They are driven by not one but multiple inbuilt amps.
The woofer requires lots of power, but in active speakers, those have seperate amps and don't take away any energy from the other speakers as (on a passive speaker, that happens all the time except extremely powerful amp) Having dedicated amplifiers for each speaker also makes it easier to build proper crossovers. Not only because the crossover can be placed before the power amps, but also because active circuitry can be used for steeper filter slopes. This reduces overlap between the woofer, mid-range,and tweeter.
These are not marginal benefits, the monitoring/ mixing gets much easier with active speakers.
I do have decent passive speakers at home ( which are perfectly adequate for casual listening with a decent amp) but for mixing or any production related work active speakers are simply superior.
Regarding speaker vs headphones... personally will go with the speakers...but it's not obviously practical, moreover one MUST use at least a pair of headphones to check the mixes.
However any sane person ( I'm not) should be more than satisfied with a closed back like M40X ( not the 50X/70X...those are definitely not great as casual headphones..they magnify the flaws in recordings considerably) or DT 770 ( much more comfortable and clean sounding compared to 40X) and an open back like DT990 ( or even HD 598...not 599..they also magnify flaws considerably more)
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Now my eyes are set on Sundara OR the new Kali Audio IN5:

www.kaliaudio.com

Kali Audio

Kali Audio is a Studio Monitor and Loudspeaker manufacturer, Designed and Engineered in Southern California.
www.kaliaudio.com www.kaliaudio.com

3 way FTW!
Nalin said:
That was just some guy’s opinion.. referring myself here.

I know most mixing is done on active speakers called studio monitors. But enjoying music is completely different from analysing it. So different equipment for different needs is all I can say.
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Many mix/produce music on hi-fi speakers and many enjoy music on monitors :)
 
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Wow!! That Project Independence seems fantastic..and the pricing is very decent.
Go with it man. Yes, Sundaras are fantastic, but they are just headphones at the end of the day.
You are a lucky man mate ( who can use speakers at home all the time!!) Are you single?
 
red dragon said:
Wow!! That Project Independence seems fantastic..and the pricing is very decent.
Go with it man. Yes, Sundaras are fantastic, but they are just headphones at the end of the day.
You are a lucky man mate ( who can use speakers at home all the time!!) Are you single?
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Yes single hahahahaa. I actually don't see myself using M40x and the blons much.. speakers are just more convenient.
 
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red dragon said:
However any sane person ( I'm not) should be more than satisfied with a closed back like M40X ( not the 50X/70X...those are definitely not great as casual headphones..they magnify the flaws in recordings considerably) or DT 770 ( much more comfortable and clean sounding compared to 40X) and an open back like DT990 ( or even HD 598...not 599..they also magnify flaws considerably more)
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While i totally agree with all the headphones mentioned , but even with these headphones I have seen 2 people side by side one liking them and other not. Headphones are very subjective I feel , they have different signatures , soundstage and then some genres shine with some but not so much in other also depends if you want to listen or monitor etc etc. One of the reasons I love grados are they arent perfect but for rock / metal they are just unbeatable especially the drums, kick drums and leads sound fantastic on them makes you move your feet. But i know people who find them too bright for other genres.

But I agree these should be amongst top choices to try first , I havent tried beyers though because no one I know has them.

Anyway ,i also wish i had freedom to listen to speakers but dont hence want budget ones for rare use but donno know which are good in India.

Btw does anyone know a decent budget Dap which can also stream spotify etc ? I only know fiio m6 but was thinking if any other device does that ? I like keeping dap and listen to music without phone distraction , I use lg v20 now which is fantastic but want something more portable than can stream too . Any suggestion ?
 
Kick drums in Grado!?? Cymbals, overall energy, the general crispy sound..all great, but Kick drums!!??
Lead guitar sounds great in any decent cans, it's the rhythm guitars, acoustic guitars and anything above 100 Hz sounds great in all Grados.
And all Grados sound same, the higher you go, they give you little more low end.
For DAP sky is the limit...M11 is a good starting point.
 
Yup , I feel they sound punchier which is what i prefer with ,also bass isnt pronounced at all in them but more tight , punchier and cleaner rather. I think It suits my tatse better but my friend doesnt like them at all. You are probably right about guitar part.

Thanks for m11 suggestion, although a bit expensive , seems like a super solid option. I will look into them.
 
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Yes I agree, there's nothing like listening to speakers.
can't compare to any headphones but room acoustics is another important aspect.
Poor room acoustics made my listening experience horrible, few months back I remember listening to sony home theater setup in 2.1 stereo mode. Already exaggerated bass on my system became more boomy, as if listening from another realm.
 
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Nalin said:
Sennheiser just launched their flagship HD8XX on Drop for $1100.

HD8XX
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Though very unique pair of headphones, only suitable for a very limited type of sound preference.
And they are asking for a lot of money...there are plenty of options at that budget ( with a much broader sound preference... except that amazing soundstage)
(I don't own HD800, but had them for close to a month)
 
red dragon said:
Though very unique pair of headphones, only suitable for a very limited type of sound preference.
And they are asking for a lot of money...there are plenty of options at that budget ( with a much broader sound preference... except that amazing soundstage)
(I don't own HD800, but had them for close to a month)
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So what would you recommend instead, Arya or something else?
 
Nitendra Singh said:
Yes I agree, there's nothing like listening to speakers.
can't compare to any headphones but room acoustics is another important aspect.
Poor room acoustics made my listening experience horrible, few months back I remember listening to sony home theater setup in 2.1 stereo mode. Already exaggerated bass on my system became more boomy, as if listening from another realm.
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Very very important topic you brought up here..I bought a pretty expensive Dali Oberon system for our drawing room, it was set up in a very wrong way, the entire house literally rattles with slightly higher volume ( very bassy and non resolving sound, movie dialogues are incomprehensible, but if there is sound of a gunfire or anything, it shakes the bedroom floor upstairs)
May be our drawing room is too small, but still...I didn't even bother to call the service guys again. Simply gave up on it.
Nalin said:
So what would you recommend instead, Arya or something else?
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All depends on your preference. I like certain Focal headphones over HD800 or 800S.
But those are also pretty expensive, but far more practical.
If I ever go truly all out, it will be Abyss Diana for sure.
IMHO Focal headphones are overshadowed by their speakers.
Focal clear is a brilliant and beautiful piece of art.
I know Utopia should be the next logical upgrade, but if you hear Diana once...it will win you over.
 
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red dragon said:
Very very important topic you brought up here..I bought a pretty expensive Dali Oberon system for our drawing room, it was set up in a very wrong way, the entire house literally rattles with slightly higher volume ( very bassy and non resolving sound, movie dialogues are incomprehensible, but if there is sound of a gunfire or anything, it shakes the bedroom floor upstairs)
May be our drawing room is too small, but still...I didn't even bother to call the service guys again. Simply gave up on it.
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I got rid of a lot of "boom boom" in my room by isolating my speakers from the table and buying some foams to be kept under them.
 
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