I currently own the Philips X2HR, but it has been used for too long and is damaged. I've read many reviews and found the Hifiman Edition XS, Sennheiser HD 560S, and FiiO FT1 Pro to be quite good, but I'm having trouble making the final choice. I have a Shanling M2s music player which I usually use for listening to music. I also frequently play FPS games and hope to buy a pair of headphones with good sound quality that can also handle sound positioning for FPS games. What are your thoughts, or are there any better recommendations? (My English proficiency is limited, so this post was translated by an AI, please excuse me.)
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How should I choose between the Hifiman Edition XS, Sennheiser HD 560S, and FiiO FT1 Pro?
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DVDdoug
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Sound quality is mostly frequency response (bass, treble, and everything in-between). It was reviewed here (and "not recommended"). So if you know what you like and/or don't-like about it, you can compare the frequency response to other headphones reviewed here.
Headphones don't sound like speakers in a room so we don't normally want flat frequency response. See The Harman Curve.
The good news is, unlike with speakers, with headphones there is almost no correlation between price and sound quality.
That's tricky. It turns out that "soundstage" is also influenced by frequency response but you probably don't want to sacrifice frequency response for soundstage. It's also (obviously) and illusion. Most people don't perceive a realistic soundstage and it's very common to perceive the sound coming from inside the listener's head! Headphone soundstage survey
Understanding Headphone Measurements (English YouTube Video)
There are also other factors such as comfort (which is "personal") and preference for open or closed back, etc.
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Thank you for your reply. I was very busy today, and I apologize for the delay in my response.
I looked at the 'Headphone soundstage survey' post you mentioned, but I find it hard to judge whether I can perceive a realistic soundstage because I have used very few headphones. However, I can definitely feel sounds coming from inside my head (left, right, and between them) and behind my head (left, right, and between them). The area in front of my head seems less obvious, I'm not sure if this is a headphone issue.
In fact, when connected to the M2s (Shanling M2s), I thought the X2HR sounded quite good—full-bodied with decent detail. However, its vocals and bass sometimes felt somewhat recessed (especially the bass), and the forward-facing sound seemed somewhat missing; it felt like I rarely heard any sounds coming from the front. When the X2HR is connected directly to the computer, many details are lost, likely due to the poor performance of the computer's DAC chip; the low, mid, and high frequencies all become flat, and then the issues I mentioned earlier (the recessed vocals/bass) are no longer very noticeable.
Yes, that's right. I'm unwilling to sacrifice soundstage for frequency response; I believe frequency response is the most important factor.
I looked at the 'Headphone soundstage survey' post you mentioned, but I find it hard to judge whether I can perceive a realistic soundstage because I have used very few headphones. However, I can definitely feel sounds coming from inside my head (left, right, and between them) and behind my head (left, right, and between them). The area in front of my head seems less obvious, I'm not sure if this is a headphone issue.
I prefer open-back headphones. Although they don't have good isolation, the soundstage is generally better and the bass is less likely to feel boomy or congested. Comfort is not a primary consideration for now, unless it is ridiculously uncomfortable to wear.
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As someone who is currently wearing a pair of FT1 Pros, these either have an excursion limit or QC issues that causes rattling in one or the other cup when deep bass is played loudly enough. It doesn't show up until a bit after 94db, so it doesn't show up on a graph of harmonic distortion at 94db. That's my two cents with an otherwise very nice when EQ'd headphones.
Bernard23
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That's concerning. They're on my shortlist, but having read this and the review of the closed back RT1 then I'm less confident. I'm leaning towards Sundara (again)
First off, the FT1 Pro has both the pad filter and a separate foam filter attached to the cups. There was no hair of any kind behind either when I took off the pads.
Secondly, Fiio straight up admits the FT1 Pro driver had QC issues and claims they took steps to mitigate it. I purchased mine two months after their statement.
Bernard23
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At least they're honest.First off, the FT1 Pro has both the pad filter and a separate foam filter attached to the cups. There was no hair of any kind behind either when I took off the pads.
Secondly, Fiio straight up admits the FT1 Pro driver had QC issues and claims they took steps to mitigate it. I purchased mine two months after their statement.
Given the description of the defect, arguably they're unsuitable for lots of EQ, which given their measurements, they're going to need lots of to hit my personal preference target. I'm increasingly inclined to give them a miss, especially as I can pick up the Sundara for £105 delivered from Ali
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