I previously demoed the HE 1 at CanJam Dallas. It sounded very good there, but CanJam is a difficult place to evaluate something like this. You are sharing a small hotel room with several people, the environment is not particularly quiet, listening time is limited, and many people are streaming from their phones over USB.

During my roughly 15-minute demo, I came away thinking the HE 1 was probably comparable to my best headphone stack, but more consistent across different genres.

Having it at home has completely changed that impression.

In a quiet environment, using an Aurender N20 into an MSB Premier DAC, with the word clocks synchronized, and then feeding the HE 1 through its analog input, the experience was breathtaking. I honestly did not know headphone reproduction could reach this level.

For context, these are some of the components and headphones I have for comparison:

Headphone amplifiers

• Riviera AIC-10
• Feliks Audio Envy
• Woo Audio WA33
• Woo Audio WA5
• DSHA-3FN
• Blue Hawaii SE

DACs and streamers

• Chord DAVE
• Aurender N20
• MSB Premier
• Eversolo DMP-A8
• RME ADI-2 DAC FS
• iBasso DX320MAX Ti
• WiiM Ultra
• Bluesound Node 2i

Headphones

• Focal Utopia OG
• HiFiMAN Susvara
• HiFiMAN HE1000 Stealth
• Stax SR-X9000
• Sony MDR-Z1R
• Sennheiser HD 800 S

Initial impressions

The HE 1 almost turns each song into a choreographed story that you can visualize as it unfolds. It is difficult to describe without falling back on the usual audiophile terminology.

• Separation is extraordinary, but nothing sounds artificially pulled apart.
• Several of my other systems reach what I would call complete coherence. The HE 1 seems to go beyond that.
• Soundstage width, depth, clarity and imaging are all exceptional, but those familiar descriptions still do not fully capture what it does.

The best way I can describe it is that sounds do not merely occupy identifiable points in a three-dimensional space. They have shape, scale and physical presence within that space. A vocalist is not just a voice positioned in front of you. You hear the space around the voice, the subtle movements involved in forming the words, and the relationship between the vocalist and everything surrounding them.

I realize audiophile descriptions can become extremely loose, particularly at this end of the market. That is why I included my other equipment. I am not comparing the HE 1 with a conventional headphone setup and mistaking “better” for transformative. I already had what I considered summit-fi systems. At least from my first extended listening sessions at home, the HE 1 is operating at another level.

Hi, I'm Morgan and I'm fundraising for my good friend Brian Hayden and his family.

Their house was flooded last night in the torrential rainfall that hit West Virginia. After taking refuge on the second floor of their house, Brian's family was picked up by Search and Rescue at 2am. They are now safe and sound at the local high school, but now face a challenging rebuild phase ahead.

As I type, Brian is headed back to his house to see the extent of the damage now that the flood has reached the high point. He managed to move some of his equipment out of harm's way, but his cars, 3D printers, servers, and much of his inventory were submerged.

Many of you know Brian as the mind behind Capra Audio. Between his comfort-improving headphone straps and his own DIY designs, he's improved the listening experience for thousands of headphone enthusiasts. He doesn't yet know what insurance will cover, so I'm raising money to help with the out-of-pocket costs ahead — relocation, replacing essential equipment, and everything else that comes with rebuilding a home and a livelihood.

Anyone who knows Brian knows how selflessly he shows up for others. Now it's our turn to show up for him. Whether you donate or simply share this page, every bit of support means more than you know.

Thank you

Morgan

Been grabbing the AirPods Max 2 more often ever since the new eq update. Maybe because the ease.

Got my hands on the HE6 Remastered. I got this unit yesterday and have had just an hour or two of listening so far.

I paired it with the Questyle CMA18 Master. The volume level remained near 50%, which means it takes a good amount of power. However, I felt the CMA18M did it justice. I do not listen loudly.

A couple of days ago, I tried a friend’s Modhouse Tungsten, and man, it’s really notorious. I found myself at the 70% volume level with it. Though the CMA18M did really well, I also felt that a better source could do it some extra justice to it.

A few things I have to share:

1. The fit is such an easy one. It feels lightweight, with no extra pressure from the cups. I have very little tolerance for heavy headphones, and this one does not feel heavy at all. The pressure from above is not much for me.
2. I am not sure if this makes sense, but at $1,899, I was expecting better accessory inclusion. It is the same as what they did with the HE600 - just bare-bones. You get two cables, though: one with an XLR termination and the other with a 6.35 mm termination.
3. The bass is not quite heavy. It takes more of a balanced approach. That is also what I remember from the Adorama HE6se, which I guess was the V2.The bass feels detailed, with all good things there, and is very controlled, but I could definitely use a bit of extra punch in the mid-bass.
4. The tonality is just great. The midrange feels so natural and rich. I think it could have a little more lower-midrange presence, a little more weight in string instruments, and make vocals, but nothing feels off here. The smoothness and coherence give this tuning a special edge. Resolution is top-notch. I find the vocals/instruments crisp and clear, with well-defined details.
5. Somewhere on Head-Fi, I read that these are dark-sounding, but I do not think so. True, the extra focus is not on the treble, which is what makes it smooth, but I do not find anything masked here. Songs such as “Schism” by Tool, where you have a good amount of cymbals and treble presence, feel very tolerable and greatly articulated. I really enjoy this kind of treble, where I do not have to worry about exaggeration. This is perfect for me. I loved the sparkles and how it rendered the track "Brother (Live)" by Alice in Chains.
6. I find the soundstage to be fairly wide. Also the height feels good, as does the depth. The separation feels solid, and nothing feels congested. Songs such as “Piano Man” by Billy Joel are rendered really well. The dynamics are super strong. That is one good part of its tuning. "Another One Bites The Dust" by Queen hits like a truck.

Also a side note: I really liked the Tungsten on CMA18M, though I will try it in the future on a more suitable setup. I know it can sound better. The bass impact on both the HPs felt similar. HE6 Rem goes slightly deeper.

Also, tonally, I prefer the HE6 Rem, Tungsten felt slightly spicy in the top end, though; I believe a better setup may even that out. HE6 Rem is very smooth with the right amount of energy and also sounds a bit fuller.

I can report back with more impressions once I have spent some good time with it.

So after receiving my hybrid custom earpads from vesperaudio (highly recommend) for my Stax SR-007S, I'm wondering if there are any aftermarket earpads out there that makes hybrid pads similar to SR-007S stock pads.

What I'm talking about is not your typical brainwavz, dekoni, zmf hybrids, or any other generic ones off AliExpress, but the special hybrids where the leather is still touching your ears and the velour/cloth part is the inner lining material instead of the part touching your ears.

Does anyone know where they might exist? I do know vesperaudio already makes made to order custom earpads that do this, but I just want to know if anyone has found other alternatives since everything related to hybrids is always the velour/cloth part touching your ears.

These are my first headphones. Sweetwater kept me in the loop over a week of financing a turntable. So they emailed me and said they were giving me 250 gift card. I eas recommended the Meze 105 Silvia headphones. I put it in my cart and just got a email that they were taking care of and they are being experdited shipping. Are these good headphones?

This unit is a pre-release unit, loaned to me for review.

The Ultrasone Signature Quantum is best described as Ultrasone’s edition-lite.

The careful attention to detail on the internal elements gives it a similar feel to the Tribute 7. This time, however, Ultrasone decided their new headband technology is so good it needs no changes across models - from the Rayvo to the Quantum - except for the swapping of alcantara to leather ontop. The underside remains the same soft and supple headmesh throughout all models however.

It ships with a 3.5+6.5mm adapter cable and a 4.4mm Cable.

**Build & Comfort*\*
The headband and overall build are entirely new and feel truly premium. This alone makes the headphone worth considering.

It distributes pressure better than ever, despite the added weight, which is noticeable but not uncomfortable.

The new flat-faced leather earpads feel much better on the skin than the older rounded ones. These are the most comfortable leather earpads Ultrasone has ever made. They are very smooth and soft, with some of that elastic quality found on Editions' ethiopian sheepskin pads.

They stay cool even after hours of wear during, even, a 30°C UK heatwave. Clamp force is linear and even, with zero pain or discomfort. This is unlike any model prior.
This also extends to all of the current lineup of ultrasone headphones.

The case the headphone comes in looks deceptively heavy but is, in fact, very light and well built. Ultrasone always uses quality dense plastics in their builds. Keeps weight down and maintains all the security of more heavier metal cases.

**Cable*\*
The cable is built like a tank and retains little memory. The terminations are manufactured with a precision I have never seen before - you have to use them to understand.

However, both this and the Master Pro have prominent microphonics on my pre-release units. I am discussing this with the CEO and he is looking into the matter. This should be fixed by release.

**Sound Signature*\*
The Quantum uses Edition 15 GTC drivers. These typically offer silky smooth mids and ultra-revealing highs.

The imaging and sound stage are excellent. This is truly the best of any closed-back headphone I have ever heard - genuinely 3D.

Ultrasone has also improved the treble response significantly, this generation. It is now much more smooth and linear, retaining detail without any noticeable peaks or harshness. The best treble response ultrasone has ever done by far.

The overall sound character features a downward tilt. This creates a dark, dense presentation. The bass hits very hard - similar to the Master Pro.
Although bass quantity is overall increased and ever present on whatever music you play - the texture is smooth and nimble. more so than the quick and thumpy master pro. Despite it all, you never feel a loss of detail or speed. No matter how complex the track gets. I am reminded of the edition 15 in spirit.

**Mids & Treble**
The mids shine through with pristine clarity and naturalness. A standout feature of this headphone.

The treble is subdued but still delivers outstanding resolution, timbre and instrument separation.

Detail overall is excellent, but presented in a relaxed, thick, and bassy way rather than everything being shoved in your face at once. It colours the sound in a pleasant, ZMF-like manner - not unnatural, just... flavoured. However this can be changed depending on what cable you use as this headphone is super sensitive to cable changes.

It should also be noted that there are zero resonances to be heard. This is one of the most controlled sounding headphones I have ever seen. Owning to very high end damping technology.

**Cable Tuning**
The Quantum proclaims a new cable tuning technology. The single-ended cable being more linear and neutral than the balanced configuration.

With single-ended, the mid-bass drops by about 2 dB, as well as the mids and treble are being more relaxed.

It is not a game changer. It will not make you like the headphone if you dislike it. However, it serves as a useful “Mode B” alternative. The sound stage becomes a bit closer and easier on the ears.

A hidden "Mode C" I have recently discovered, is to use the base ultrasone balanced cable found in their lower teir models. Like the aero and rayvo.
The base cable sounds more exciting and more upfront with treble details and less woofy and more tight bass. You do lose some of the 3D sound stage however, which is a standout feature of the quantum.
If excitement is more important to you than a raw linear sound and TOTL 3D sound stage, this would be a good option for you and the preferred option for me, personally. it really is worth trying and the soundstage is still excellent. This is ultrasone's gtc drivers we're talking about.

**Overall Impressions**
With the stock cables, this is a slightly woofy and enveloping headphone. It started quite congested but opened up nicely after about two weeks of use and burn-in, with its woofy nature subduing quite a lot. Relaxing in being an overall very soulful listen.

For my tastes, it can feel a bit claustrophobic and fatiguing due to the constant bass. Perforated leather earpads might have helped in this reguard. Still, it makes almost anything sound good and thats merit enough.

As-is. It works best as a complement to brighter, more revealing headphones. A great choice for those who like technical precision combined with a unique, coloured sound. The Master Pro is more to my taste in most cases, but that is for the next review.

Buying a HIFIMAN edition xs can I use a tube amp? If so which one, Any recommendations?

Whenever I buy IEMs or headphones above a certain price it's always after much research and careful consideration. That inevitably leads me to Head-Fi. On the face of things, Head-Fi is a great tool and resource for getting information, impressions and feedback on gear. However it seems like for every honest/useful take there are three others people parroting feels, psuedoscience or outright bullshit.

The one that broke me was the thread on Mysticraft IEMs. If you don't know, Mysticraft is a new IEM brand founded by Mr Lee of Elysian fame (or perhaps infamy). The IEM I am interested in is the Myth. It costs $1000 and is the cheapest (but still very expensive) of Mysticraft's offerings. The thread contained many impressions about the Mythand other Mysticraft IEMs. It also contained many accounts of the effect on cable rolling. I'm not sure how the thread derailed but at a certain the point the consensus shifted from "the Myth is one of the best things you will hear for a $1000" to "the Myth can be a very good IEM but it's held back sonically by its stock cable." I felt like I was losing my mind reading things like people saying that the IEM was too sibilant right out the box but the highs were tamed after they swapped to their $2000 silver copper alloy cable. And like nobody ever stepped in to say stop it; you're full of shit.

Instead I saw like a clique 3-5 users just masturbating each other over how good their increasingly expensive cables made the Myth sound and egging others on to buy upgrade cables. (An upgrade that Mr Lee will happily sell you for an additional $500 Practically a bargain.) One person was like well I think the Myth is pretty good but it costs $1000 for the IEM then another $2000 for cable so in reality you need to pay $3000 for the experience and when you put the Myth up against other $3000 IEMs the Myth doesn't seem that impressive.

It's kinda frustrating trying to find information on products past a certain price point. Youtubers/reviewers have their own problems and conflicts of interest and now it seems like the buyers are so far down consumption the rabbit hole that they aren't good sources of information.

I went to CanJam London expecting to come back with a list of IEMs I wanted to buy. That is usually how it works for me: I hear something interesting, spend the next few days reading everything about it, and then start finding reasons why the price is somehow acceptable.

This time, though, I came home thinking about something else.

I have been in this hobby for around 15 years, but this was probably the first time I had the chance to hear so many of the current high-end IEMs in one place. I tried a large part of what people now consider the top of the market, from the $2,000–3,000 range all the way to things like Campfire Chimera, Mysticraft HEX and the Brise Audio FUGAKU system.

After a while, the prices almost stopped feeling real. Someone hands you a $3,000 IEM, then a $7,000 one, then a complete system costing close to $20,000, and eventually you just stop thinking about the number and listen.

Of course, CanJam impressions are still CanJam impressions. It is noisy, listening time is limited, tips are not always ideal, and by the end of the day both your ears and brain are tired. I would never treat a short demo as a proper review.

But listening to so many expensive IEMs one after another made something very obvious to me.

Five or seven years ago, there were expensive good IEMs and expensive bad IEMs. Some genuinely sounded unfinished, strangely tuned or simply not worth the asking price. When something like the 64 Audio U12t appeared, part of what made it so impressive was that it was simply good at almost everything. It was balanced, technical, easy to listen to and relatively easy to recommend. At the time, that was unusual.

Today, basic competence is everywhere at the top end. Almost none of the expensive IEMs I tried at CanJam were bad. Some were not for me, but that is a different thing. Most were well tuned, technically strong and clearly designed by people who knew what they were doing.

At first, that was very impressive. Then, after a few hours, I noticed that I was forgetting some of them almost immediately.

I would listen to an IEM, think it sounded very good, take it out, move to another table and ten minutes later struggle to remember anything specific about it. Nothing was wrong with it, but nothing stayed with me either.

That became my main takeaway from the show. At this level, I am no longer really asking whether an IEM is good. At these prices, it should be good. The more important question is whether it has something of its own.

Does the bass have a character I have not heard before? Does it create a particular sense of scale? Does it make vocals or instruments feel different enough that I want to go through my library again? Or is it simply another detailed, balanced and technically impressive IEM?

I think that is why some imperfect IEMs remain in people’s collections for years, while supposedly better ones are sold after a few months.

The Sony IER-Z1R is not perfect. The Campfire Trifecta is definitely not perfect. The JVC FW10000 is not something I would recommend blindly to everyone. But they all have a clear personality, and when I use them, I immediately remember why I own them.

After hearing so many modern flagships, I actually came home appreciating my own collection more than before.

Maybe this is simply what happens after spending enough time in the hobby. Years ago, I was always searching for an obvious upgrade: more detail, better separation, a wider stage, cleaner bass. Now I am much less interested in replacing one technically capable IEM with another technically capable IEM.

I would rather hear something with a strong point of view. In a strange way, buying an expensive IEM today is both safer and more difficult than it used to be. It is safer because most established high-end models are genuinely good. It is more difficult because being good does not mean you will love it.

Once almost everything is competent, understanding your own preferences matters more than knowing which IEM is currently considered the best.

For me, bass needs to feel physical and convincing. I mostly listen to hip-hop, R&B, rap and pop, so I need weight, rhythm and emotion. I still care about detail, imaging, stage and timbre, but technical performance alone does not make me want to keep listening.

I did not leave CanJam thinking I had found one ultimate IEM that made everything else obsolete. I left thinking that the flagship market is no longer really divided into good and bad.

It is divided into memorable and forgettable.

And if you forced me to rank the ones that left the strongest impression on me, based purely on my own taste and limited show listening, it would be:

1. Nightjar Duality
2. SoftEars Enigma
3. Hercules Audio Moses

Not necessarily the three “best” IEMs at the show, whatever that means, but the three I kept thinking about afterwards!

Fostex is silly. I have been keeping tabs on their accessories and parts pricing for a while, and I have been noticing a pattern where they just double the price if a thing is sold outside Japan. For example, even before COVID and tariffs the t50rp mk3 pads would be like $30-$40 in the US and $15-$20 Japan. Those pads are whatever, but then when you get to the TH909 stocks pads, it's $100 US and $50 in Japan (again, before COVID and Tariffs came into play).

Enter the new Suede pads for the T50rp MK4 and T60rp mk2. These were announced like 2 years ago with reviewers but never seemed to be sold in the US until now. Keeping tabs on Japan pricing since their announcement, I have seen these pads go for around $80 in Japan and around $120+ in other countries that had access to them. I asked dealers in the US a couple months ago what they were going for and they said $160+ depending certain conditions. Absolutely silly. (Un)Fortunately, I found a seller who just has them in stock for $120 and my obsession overpowered my better judgement and I picked them up.

So, what do we get with $120 worth of pad? The positives here are they are very comfortable and built of some great stuff. The material is unlike the suede I see with Dekoni and ZMF and more in line with the Alcantara I have on my ADX5000. The stock t60rp MK4 pads are a pleather that can kind of get sweaty whereas the suedes do not have that issue. Hopefully the material is just as hardy as I never had to replace my ADX5000 pads and they're still in great condition after 6 years (especially given the price). Soundwise on the t60rp MK4, I would say there is an improvement over stock. I would call the stock sound of the T60rp MK4 a v-shape with some extra energy on the upper mids. The suede pads reduce the mids dip and make the headphone sound even more open (i.e., the stock pads sound closer to a closedback in comparison). Bass is still as good as it ever was here.

I also tried the pads on my TH909 before mounting them on my T60RP. Comfort is great. Sound compared to stock is comparatively more neutral as you lose the whomping bass. Honestly a great replacement if you would want the TH909 as your single headphone, but I want the whomping bass, so the suedes are not viable for me here. Maybe a Dekoni attenuation ring would help here but I can't mount one it seems...

I remember watching Skeeb23's review and thought he was being overly dramatic about how hard it was to mount the pads. No, he's right, these things are absolutely ass to mount. Not only is the mounting lip tiny for some reason, but the pad material is not very stretchy. I imagine the material not being stretchy leads to some to some sound benefits, but I have no idea why Fostex made the mounting lip so damn tiny. It honestly feels like you might break something mounting the pads on the T60rp MK4, a headphone the pads are specifically designed for. Mounting pads is usually very easy on my TH909 because of the disc system they use, but the suedes had difficulty there too. So, I'm hard pressed to suggest these pads for other headphones because I'm not sure if they'll mount and I don't want to deal with remounting them on my T60rp.

TL;DR: Pads expensive and hard to put on but are very comfy and sound good. I have mixed feelings on Fostex because they make stuff I like but price themselves as if they do not want my business.

I use hd560s with fosi audio ds2 DAC, the LED light changes to yellow when i turn this option which means it's playing at more than 96kHz. Does it actually make the quality of the song better? Should i leave it on or off?

The Nothing Headphone (1) is a truly complete wireless headphone. I've tried many headphones that cost significantly more, and they all seemed to have at least one major drawback.

Let's start with the sound. Out of the box, they sound somewhat veiled and warm. The treble is relaxed relative to the bass and mids. Surprisingly, the bass isn't excessive, and the mids are well tuned. However, I bought these knowing I wasn't going to settle for the stock tuning. The built-in 8-band parametric EQ is a huge advantage over the competition, which typically offers only fixed-band graphic EQs or, at best, a limited 5-band parametric EQ like the Sennheiser HDB 630. The Moondrop Edge 2 appears to be the only wireless headphone that surpasses these with a 10-band parametric EQ, but its ANC, microphone quality, app refinement, quality control, and build quality aren't on the same level as Nothing's.

After dialing in the sound with the parametric EQ, these headphones sound excellent. There are still a few adjustments I'd like to make, but the EQ, while far superior to any fixed-band graphic EQ, still has center-frequency limitations for each band. Overall, I was able to achieve a sound signature that I enjoy more than what I've been able to get from much more expensive headphones using their companion apps, with the exception of the Sennheiser HDB 630. Both the HDB 630 and the Nothing Headphone (1) sound fantastic to my ears after EQ, but the Headphone (1) is significantly cheaper, better built, more comfortable, and offers slightly better ANC, transparency mode, and call quality.

Comfort is also very good. They aren't quite as comfortable as my Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones, but they're noticeably more comfortable than the Sony WH-1000XM6. The ear pads have plenty of depth, so my ears don't touch the drivers or experience any pressure. The clamping force is secure without being excessive, unlike the AirPods Max. The headband padding is also adequate, and I didn't notice any significant hot spots. These are a slightly heavier pair of headphones, though, so you're always aware that you're wearing them.

The ANC is excellent. It suppresses background noise very effectively without introducing any noticeable hiss. Once music starts playing, outside distractions virtually disappear. Transparency mode is also impressive. Everything sounds natural, although just slightly less clear than real life. I can comfortably hold a conversation while wearing them.

The controls are another highlight. I really like the roller button, which provides satisfying tactile feedback for volume adjustments while also functioning as a play/pause control and ANC/transparency toggle. The paddle switch is genius, allowing you to scrub through tracks, skip songs, and answer or end phone calls. The customizable button is also useful—I have mine set to launch Siri with a single press and mute the microphone during phone calls with a press and hold.

These headphones include all the features I look for in a modern wireless headset. Bluetooth multipoint lets me stay connected to both my iPhone and MacBook simultaneously, and spatial audio with head tracking is available when I want a more immersive experience while watching videos. Battery life is excellent, delivering over 35 hours with ANC enabled and up to 80 hours with ANC turned off. Finally, the microphone quality is excellent, doing a great job of reducing background noise while keeping my voice clear during calls.

At $230 on sale, these headphones are honestly both surprising and refreshing. It's almost embarrassing for the competition that they outperform every other wireless headphone I've tried overall. A large part of that comes down to the onboard 8-band parametric EQ, but it's the combination of excellent sound (after EQ), thoughtful features, strong usability, and competitive pricing that makes the Nothing Headphone (1) such an impressive package.

Just got the Albas and gave the stock tips a go. Never been keen on Silicone. I've got Sony WF-1000XM5 with Comply foam tips (https://www.complyfoam.com/) , and they fit the Albas. Brilliant.

If you're struggling with the standard tips, I'd recommend trying Comply.

As for the earbuds themselves very comfortable. I actually forgot I was wearing them.

Gripe: the USB-C/DAC adaptor feels cheap. There's no reassuring click when you plug into the 3.5mm jack. Build quality on that bit is definitely lacking.

I also use with my Mojo2 - very good indeed.

Like many before me, I got around to EQ'ing my HD800s which has made it a subjectively much better headphone in my eyes.

But it also got me wondering (which may have been asked before) - why do headphone manufacturers steer away from the Harman tuning?

I'm guessing a different take on tuning provides a level of differentiation in a very competitive market?

On the flipside, pursuing a tight Harman tuning would potentially broaden the mass appeal of a given headphone? But maybe then we'd end up with a sea full of headphones that don't sound particularly unique?

I am looking to buy a pair of headphones for school and work. I get a lot of my stuff used off of Ebay, so I thought why not do the same for headphones? But is Ebay the right place to get used headphones? And what should I look for before I buy a used pair to make sure I'm happy with the purchase and they work almost good as new? Or is it worth buying used headphones at all, and should I just buckle down and chuck up the money for a new pair?

I bought those AKG headphones at a flea market in Serbia , and later I decided to search for the model (Akg k18) , but unfortunately I didn't find any information about these. So I asked some questions to AI (because I needed any advice) . So.

As I see , these are unlikely to be fake . And DeepSeek said that these can be OEM headphones for the studio or something like that (I don't know if this legit information)

Also I need to mention that these headphones look almost identical to Akg k10 ( but may be with different characteristics) , and also as I see the jack may be replaced ( old headphones usually have big 6.3. jack )

So what I want to know:

Can It really be a OEM model ?

Are they rare?

Thanks :)

I just bought the Topping DX5II. This is a fully balanced DAC/AMP.

All the other times I have bought a new DAC/AMP there was just mild differences in sonic characteristics if any. When i hooked this one up I was only expecting a mild difference compared to me latest DAC/AMP, which was the SMSL C200 Pro, which is a nice DAC/AMP in its own right.

Boy, was I in for big surprise!! The difference is pretty substantial in terms of dynamics, tightness of bass without sounding thin at all, openness of midrange & attack when dealing with percussion instrument.

Appearantly the hybrid output stages which combine discrete transistors for input & output with a opamp gain stage. All this using nested feedback which helps minimize the need for large amounts of overall negative feedback. This seems to open up the sense of dynamics in the music. Some of the louder percussive instruments sound exceptionally dynamic & really stand out in the mix.

How they are able to do this while still maintaining very high degree of technical performance is astounding. Measured distortion & jitter as well as linearity are all amongst the best of the available DAC/AMPs out there. Channel separation was tested to be over 140db!!

I know it may seem like I am painting a super rosy picture & sonically, I am. All is not perfect though. There are some things to be careful of. In particular the 4.4mm Pentaconn connection can cause the amp to blow if you insert or disconnect while the headphone amp is active. For this reason i bought an XLR 4pin balanced cable to feed my headphones. Some have reported operational difficulties with certain functions not working or not working correctly. All the things I am utilizing so far work correctly. I admit though that my needs for many of its features are not great. I was looking for exceptional basic DAC/AMP performance & in that sense I perfectly got what I was looking for, not only in measured performance but also in its sonic performance.

My system is comprised of a self built computer this new DAC/AMP, a set of JBL LSR 306P monitor speakers with some mild modifications, a self designed & built subwoofer that was designed for huge low frequency extension extending somewhat into the infrasonic region & powered by a Behringer NX3000D limited to 800 watts via DSP. All connections are made with balanced cables. Modifications to the JBL studio monitors is limited to replacing all electrolytic coupling capacitors with metalized film coupling capacitors. This is quite a powerful system. It gets more than loud enough in my small listening space.

My headphones are the Fiio/Jade Audio JT7s. These are quite neutral sounding open back magnetic planar headphones. After all, why buy a DAC/AMP if you don't have the appropriate headphones to utilize it's power. These compare nicely with the sound of my main speakers, lacking only slightly in the very deep bass below about 25Hz. No modifications were needed with these as they sounded great out of the box which is unusual for me as most headphones have needed some tweaking to get a more balanced sound. Not these. The nice thing with these headphones they are not expensive & have been reviewed and raved about in those reviews as they sound great, especially for price & even compared favorably to headphones over twice thier price.

These heaphones sound exceptional on this DAC/AMP. The extra power really helps to achieve a great sound without sounding strained at higher volumes.

I love the idea of blocking out distractions (like keyboard clicks or loud chewing), but every time I turn on standard ANC, my ears feel like I'm on a plane that's dropping way too fast. It feels incredibly... claustrophobic?

If you deal with this ANC pressure or dizziness, how do you currently deal with background noise? Do you just turn ANC off and suffer through the noise, or is there a workaround for this weird feeling?

Hey does any one know of some replacement pads for the Hifiman Edition XV? I tried checking previous threads but they're months old and I was wondering if anything has changed since then. I tried calling customer support and they said to check back in a few days. Really enjoying the headphones otherwise.

£135 used like new! There's a few left guys

First off, One thing no reviewer or sales person lied about is comfort, These things fit unlike anything else, Completely dissapear with 0 sense of something being in your ears. I have an S eartip on my left and M on my right ear and they feel good without causing pressure. They also are in very securely.

Onto the sound, Well they sound like a €169 Meze Product, Not as good as my €500 Meze Silva's but that isn't expected for the price. I dont have other IEM's to compare except some cheap KZ's but these are I think best described as a Meze headphone with wooden cups that has a V boost added to it. More bass and more treble but still quite balanced and controlled. Currently I have it on a tube amp and it sounds clean and surprisingly spacious and wide, Got a good 2 heads width of space on either side. Treble is sparkly but controlled without much sibilance, Mids are relatively flat and natural, Brass sounds great on them. Bass is a bit boosted like I said earlier but still well controlled with good lunch rather than Rumble, I dont think these go very deep as in room my Focal subwoofer goes deeper but they do have good punch and dynamics.

Overall I'd recommend them just for the comfort alone. These things rock! Cable Is a little tangly tho but that's an easily replaceable part.

Overall for the money 9/10 for me, Would be a 10/10 if it had a slightly thicker cable and perhaps a bit less bass and slightly more 800-1khz as it seems to dip a little bit there based on what i'm hearing. I could be way off tho so that's that.

Hi to everyone , i was searching online and stumbled upon this new product that apparently no one knows about yet .

S.M.S.L's new compact DAC/headphone amplifier, the D100, was recently released,

this new device seems perfectly suited for a small desk , browsing the gallery reveals a refined design, featuring an all-aluminum chassis and a 1.66-inch tempered glass display that offers nine brightness levels and an "auto-sleep" function with a configurable shut-off timer ranging from 5 to 40 seconds.

It offers very basic connectivity, but the outlined specifications suggest great potential , especially regarding the internal circuitry . Thanks to dual USB-C ports , one dedicated to power and the other to data transmission , the company claims it delivers a signal without interference with imperceptible background noise , making it perfect even for very sensitive IEMs.

Internally, it is equipped with the new ESS ES9081 DAC chip , XMOS XU-316 USB driver, and dual TI OPA1612A Op-Amps, which support a resolution of :

• PCM 32 bit / 768 Khz , DSD 512 , DOP 256 via USB
• PCM 24 bit / 192 Khz , DOP 64 via Coaxial / Optical

On the front panel, in addition to the screen and the volume knob, we find:

• a BAL 4.4 mm headphones output
• a SE 6.35 mm headphones output

capable of delivering 400mW x 2 into 32Ω

On the back panel , in addition to the dual USB-C ports, there are:

• an Optical input and a Coaxial input
• an RCA output to connect an amplifier or active speakers and utilize the device's preamp function

According to the official product page, the D100 also works when connected to a smartphone or tablet via the rear USB-C port , powering it through the second auxiliary USB-C port ensures your device's battery life is not compromised, also supports Full-MQA decoding across all its digital inputs.

With dimensions of 127 x 127 x 31 mm and priced at around $ 139.99 USD , it offers essential functions and judging by the description , with its quality components , it would be very interesting to test it on my tiny desk. I am also quite curious about the solutions used to ensure extremely low background noise, and to be honest , i really like the design of S.M.S.L’s latest products , i find them very elegant.

I know it’s an entry-level device and doesn’t offer enough power to drive the most demanding headphones, but i don’t think that’s its intended purpose , what do you think?

Hey - I made a post yesterday where I was wary of keeping my Sony MV1s but have since started to like them quite a lot.

However, they heat up my ears worse than my Beyerdynamic closed backs.

Do we know of any velour/breathable material replacement pads that do not affect sound too much? Thanks