Upgrading from DT990

[whereami2000]

Hi, I have been looking around and I must say dont understand half of the things being said here.. but it seems like a lot of people are passionate and know a lot about headphones.
The problem i have with these headphones is that i dont like them (for vocals). They are definitely better than my previous gaming headset but its impossible for me to equalize the vocals to my liking. They are pretty good to very good for gaming though. I've tried the oratory preset but that is not for me, i think my ears are bad! I dont know how to explain what im looking for and it depends on the song, but i drew sort of where i hear the vocals "from". Grey is default vocal sound to me, green is equalized.. im looking for the pink stuff! (cannot seem to get it through equalization)
I dont know if that makes sense...

Anyways my budget is ~500 USD. I was looking at HD600 (300$) and a k7 (240$), a bit over my budget but its okay.. i like that the k7 doesn't draw power from my pc. From what i was reading i would be set with the atom combo but its not available in my country and i think shipping would be pretty expensive. First i want to know what sort of dac amp do you guys recommend because i want to buy it first. Maybe the problem is my Fiio K3 and not these headphones. Right now its between 600 and Sundara, i really like how meze 99 looks but from what i read they're not very nice . If anyone has some suggestions for me (good headphones for vocals, i guess? at least something i can equalize easier.. im a casual guy music listener gamer person) i would be thankful. Maybe i could get a cheaper dac/amp and buy some more expensive headphones instead?

I have just started looking for a new pair, still looking around and so hopefully ill get some extra help here ^_^ thanks!

 

[staticV3]

Hi @whereami2000! Welcome to ASR.

I recommend you spend the majority of your budget on the headphone.

For the DAC+Amp, first try the Apple headphone adapter (Model A2049).

It has enough grunt for the majority of headphones, and if it's loud enough for you, then no amount of money spent on fancy DACs and Amps will meaninfully increase sound quality.

As for the headphones, it sounds like you're primarily looking for wide soundstage.

For this, take a look at rtings' headphone table sorted by passive soundstage: https://www.rtings.com/headphones/tools/table/143328

It's by no means a perfect quantization of soundstage, but still a good reference IMO.

Hifiman's egg-shaped headphones rank near the top, and can be had for cheap with open-box or refurbished deals:

Open Box

Default Description

store.hifiman.com

Refurbished

Default Description

store.hifiman.com

Or just new if you prefer that.

Hifiman's one big weakness is subpar QC, so you may have to send the headphone back for a replacement one or two times before you get a perfect pair.

Hifiman know this and usually make the return process very easy for customers.

Models within your budget include:

• Edition XS
• Arya
• Ananda Stealth
• Ananda Nano

Regarding soundstage, with EQ applied to the Arya, Amir wrote:

Transformation was incredible. Some of the easiest EQ jobs with great improvement. Once in place, the tonality was excellent as was the spatial capabilities. You almost felt like the band was miniaturized and your head was placed inside it! Kind of neat the way everything separated to the sides and back of my head (I never get forward projection). Remind me of when I reviewed the Sennheiser HD800s.

 

[DVDdoug]

but i drew sort of where i hear the vocals "from"

Sound localization and "soundstage" with headphones mostly depends on your brain and different people get different perceptions. The most common perception is the sound coming from inside their head.

Headphone Soundstage Survey

Frequency response/equalization can have an effect, but personally I wouldn't want to sacrifice frequency response for soundstage.

With speakers, Floyd Toole says:

The important localization and soundstage information is the responsibility of the recording engineer, not the loudspeaker.

 

[whereami2000]

For the DAC+Amp, first try the Apple headphone adapter (Model A2049).

Well i have this Fiio K3 already, so I'm good then!
Seeing the comment about the sound coming from the sides and the back of his head seems like the stuff that gives me tingles. I am now considering Arya just because of that and also the fact that he said its easy to EQ, but I will look around on that list now that i understand what im looking for.

Frequency response/equalization can have an effect, but personally I wouldn't want to sacrifice frequency response for soundstage.

I like the sound of that, one less thing to worry about

Thanks ^_^ I am pretty sure whatever choice i go for is going to be alot better than these headphones so theres not alot of comparison i can make.. but i will still post what i went for and how i feel about it after i try them!