New here and need some advice

[Jagamov]

Hi everyone...long time reader, but I finally feel compelled to post.

I'll try to keep this as short as I can, but I want to give a quick background.

I've been into music and equipment as long as I can remember. I still have my Kenwood receiver and CD player from the late 80's. I was neck deep in "high end" audio during the 90's. I heard differences in amps, preamps, cd players, DACS. Cables made a huge difference. More air, wider soundstage, more power, veil removed, more detail. All of the buzzwords resonated strong with me.

But then things started to change. Speakers still made a difference, but amps and cd players seemed less so. Cables became a joke to me with the ridiculous claims. I'm in IT, don't get me started about audiophile ethernet cables....(BTW, I'm a big Blue Jeans Cable fan).

Then a few years ago I bought my first set real over the ear headphones. I've just always been a speaker guy, but listening privately or late at night change that.

So I bought a pair of Focal Elex headphones (I have some HD6XX's on order). I really like them.

So, old habits die hard...

I started with a Modi 3 and a JDS Labs Atom. Perfectly fine, right? Nope. There had to be something a bit better right? More power, "nicer" looking, whatever. Next came an Asgard 3. Wow, more power, better sound, more musical, less clinical. Next came a Modi Multibit 2. DACS make the biggest difference in the chain, right? Of course its more detailed. Better layers, bigger soundstage. Everything R2R is supposed to be. Except it wasn't.

I was starting to feel like nothing had changed. I broke out the Modi/Atom combo and did some back and forth....hmm.....they both sound great. All the details I heard on one, I heard on the other. They both sounded the same. I tried really hard to tell a difference, but there appeared to be none.

Fast forward to 2 days ago. I received my JDS Element 3. I was drawn to it from my experience with the Atom, and the all in one design, the digital volume control, and the big knob. It would work perfect for my desk.

It also sounds great. Comparing it with the Asgard 3 / Modi Multibit 2, I discern no differences other than I LOVE the digital volume (and the display).

This is where I'm at...am I too old to hear plankton (lol), decay, soundstage, layers, etc....or did I not spend enough money to truly hear the difference? Or is it that the truth is more that well designed gear all sounds about the same and maybe I'm moving beyond listening to gear and instead focusing on features and just listening to music?

Thanks for reading and I appreciate all comments.

 

[Marc v E]

Yes, you are right. There's not much if any difference to be heard unless the amp is not able to drive your headphone properly. The only thing left that makes a real difference ime is eq.

 

[DVDdoug]

Other than amplifier power, electronics rarely make a difference (in scientific blind listening tests) except some has more noise (hiss, hum, or whine) than others. Frequency response and distortion are usually better than human hearing unless you over-drive an amplifier into distortion. If aren't getting audible noise you are unlikely to hear a difference.

That was pretty-much true in the 1980s too. It's been pretty easy to make good-quality electronics ever since solid state replaced tubes.

More air, wider soundstage, more power, veil removed, more detail. All of the buzzwords resonated strong with me.

That kind of "audiophile terminology" is meaningless, or it can mean whatever you want it to mean. There is a link here on the forum somewhere to a video by Dan Clark (headphone manufacturer) and he says that headphones with more distortion are often described as "more detailed"!

See Audiophoolery.

 

[DavidEdwinAston]

Welcome jagamov.
The music. The music! I blame the music for my subjectivity.
Now, thanks to ASR, it is the music again!
Enjoy listening, and saving money here, as you listen.

 

[Sgt. Ear Ache]

Yeah, you've reached a completely valid conclusion. Basically at this point (and for some considerable time now actually) dacs and amps are solved science. In so far as sound quality is concerned, spending more won't really make any difference at all (assuming competently engineered stuff of course.) Any two amps or dacs that have the sort of great measurements we've become accustomed to - no matter the price point - will sound the same. More money might (not necessarily a given) get you better fit and finish, or better longevity or of course some different features but that's about it. Well, more power too for an amp of course, but you can find pretty powerful amps at every price point too really...

 

[AdamG]

Hi everyone...long time reader, but I finally feel compelled to post.

Welcome Aboard @Jagamov . We love Lurkers who decided to become more active and dive into the pool filled with Sharks with friggin Lasers! Enjoy your swim Sir…

 

[LTig]

This is where I'm at...am I too old to hear plankton (lol), decay, soundstage, layers, etc....or did I not spend enough money to truly hear the difference? Or is it that the truth is more that well designed gear all sounds about the same and maybe I'm moving beyond listening to gear and instead focusing on features and just listening to music?

This! I couldn't hear a difference between an old Edirol UA25 and the RME ADI2 PRO fs (both USB sound interfaces). Good enough is just this, good enough. Stop worrying and enjoy the music!

 

[radix]

Really nowadays, any decent dac and amp will be fine, as long as it meets your headphone drive requirements or speaker sound level for your listening distance. As was mentioned by @Marc v E, the next step would be to use EQ, either in your streaming service or computer or DAC. You can find recommended starting EQs for most headphones at https://www.reddit.com/r/oratory1990/wiki/index/list_of_presets/.

Features, like looks or connectivity or size/weight or UI, are mostly what distinguishes systems now. Yes, there are all sorts of measurable differences, but a lot of that is not audible differences once you get beyond a threshold.