What headphone(s) do you own ?

[ObjectiveSubjectivist]

DCA Stealth
Sennheiser HD600
AKG K371
JBL Endurance Run
Koss Porta Pro
Blon bl-03 - horrible fit

 

[Polycentric]

Started off with the DT 880. Had been interested in stats for a long time so upgraded to the stax SR-303. Then after a few years wanted to have some other dynamic cans so got a pair of Focal Clears!

 

[david.aj.silva]

Welcome @Polycentric , you have good taste in headphones!

 

[JanesJr1]

Plenty of good reviews out there that compare them better then I ever could

But the Liric sound better... But considering the price difference the noire come damn close if you use oratory1990 EQ settings on both.

The liric feel definitely more valuable (material quality). And have better isolation. They are easier to drive.

The noire are more comfortable and sound very good as well. Especially for half the price of the liric.

On using Oratory with the Noire: I did that at first, but wondered what would happen if I EQ'd using Oratory, except that I would leave the Dan Clark upper-bass "bump" from about 60Hz to 160Hz in place. (Oratory eliminates the bump in order to conform to the Harman curve in the upper bass.) I decided I liked it better that way, and that the bump does give a little pep to the upper bass, pretty much as Dan claims it does, and without bleeding up into the mids.

(I did this by removing the 100Hz PEQ band in the Oratory settings ... this band is the one Oratory uses to eliminate the bump. I also lowered the gain on the other bands covering the bass to offset the boost afforded by eliminating the 100Hz PEQ band, and fiddled a little bit to dovetail the FR curve leading down from the bump into the lower bass.)

But I'd be curious if others find the same thing. If you try it, let me know what you think...

 

[slsmaster]

Headphones I owned at some point:

• HD800 -> used only Oratory EQ, nice sound but sounds to distant in many tracks and lacks bass extension even when EQed
• Meze Empyrean -> nice tuning for rock, but meh technicalities, extremely overpriced when buying retail
• Denon AH-D9200 -> tuning is really hit or miss depending on the track, technicalities are average I would say.
• Hifiman HE6SE -> compared to newer Hifiman offerings, the technicalities don't seem to hold up
• Focal Clear OG -> absolutely solid for a headphone that can be bought for around 700-800€ today, would be my recommendation for entering the hobby.
• Focal Clear MG -> much worse then the OG Clear IMO except timbre, not worth buying.
• DCA Noire -> Bought it at the same time while having the Stealth at my home in hope of getting a similar sound experience for way less money, unfortunately that is not the case as the Noire just is way worse from an technicalities standpoint IMO, but of course it is also a 1/4th of the price....

My current headphones:

• Hifiman Arya Stealth with EQ -> Bass shelve and sometimes reduced treble depending on the track, very good allrounder and my recommendation before reaching for Summit-Fi cans.
• AirPods Max -> for conference calls/work, really great pair of cans for casual listening while working with a great set of functionality.
• AirPods Pro Gen2 -> for commuting to work via train, in my opinion the best TWS offering to date.

Headphone that I want next (once I can afford it lol):

• DCA Expanse -> A Stealth with better tuning and soundstage?

I have had the fortune of listening to the DCA Stealth for a few weeks and found its midrange a little lacking and treble to be a little to hot for my liking, but the technicalities just were breathtaking! A little EQing has fixed my personal tuning gripes with the Stealth tho.

 

[SRKRAM]

Headphones I owned at some point:

• HD800 -> used only Oratory EQ, nice sound but sounds to distant in many tracks and lacks bass extension even when EQed
• Meze Empyrean -> nice tuning for rock, but meh technicalities, extremely overpriced when buying retail
• Denon AH-D9200 -> tuning is really hit or miss depending on the track, technicalities are average I would say.
• Hifiman HE6SE -> compared to newer Hifiman offerings, the technicalities don't seem to hold up
• Focal Clear OG -> absolutely solid for a headphone that can be bought for around 700-800€ today, would be my recommendation for entering the hobby.
• Focal Clear MG -> much worse then the OG Clear IMO except Timber, not worth buying.
• DCA Noire -> Bought it at the same time while having the Stealth at my home in hope of getting a similar sound experience for way less money, unfortunately that is not the case as the Noire just is way worse from an technicalities standpoint IMO, but of course it is also a 1/4th of the price....

My current headphones:

• Hifiman Arya Stealth with EQ -> Bass shelve and sometimes reduced treble depending on the track, very good allrounder and my recommendation before reaching for Summit-Fi cans.
• AirPods Max -> for conference calls/work, really great pair of cans for casual listening while working with a great set of functionality.
• AirPods Pro Gen2 -> for commuting to work via train, in my opinion the best TWS offering to date.

Headphone that I want next (once I can afford it lol):

• DCA Expanse -> A Stealth with better tuning and soundstage?

I have had the fortune of listening to the DCA Stealth for a few weeks and found its midrange a little lacking and treble to be a little to hot for my liking, but the technicalities just were breathtaking! A little EQing has fixed my personal tuning gripes with the Stealth tho.

Great descriptions and really helpful - thanks. I've owned several of the cans on your ex list and your thoughts pretty much align with mine. I'm curious what source you use though?

 

[slsmaster]

Great descriptions and really helpful - thanks. I've owned several of the cans on your ex list and your thoughts pretty much align with mine. I'm curious what source you use though?

Right now I use an D30Pro + A30Pro stack.
Previously I had an Questyle CMA600i, Questyle Twelve Master and an Cocktail Audio HA500H.

 

[Grobbelboy]

On using Oratory with the Noire: I did that at first, but wondered what would happen if I EQ'd using Oratory, except that I would leave the Dan Clark upper-bass "bump" from about 60Hz to 160Hz in place. (Oratory eliminates the bump in order to conform to the Harman curve in the upper bass.) I decided I liked it better that way, and that the bump does give a little pep to the upper bass, pretty much as Dan claims it does, and without bleeding up into the mids.

(I did this by removing the 100Hz PEQ band in the Oratory settings ... this band is the one Oratory uses to eliminate the bump. I also lowered the gain on the other bands covering the bass to offset the boost afforded by eliminating the 100Hz PEQ band, and fiddled a little bit to dovetail the FR curve leading down from the bump into the lower bass.)

But I'd be curious if others find the same thing. If you try it, let me know what you think...

I’ve done almost the exact same thing. However much I kept tweaking and fiddling with the Oratory settings, the bass frequencies just wouldn’t sound quite as I’d like them.

The solution for me was to remove all the filters below and including 180Hz and add a bass shelf of 3.2dB with a Q of 0.7 at 32Hz (based on the FR graph, where the frequencies below the “bump” measure below Harman). This placement at 32Hz came pretty exact for me, because at 35Hz the shelf made the bass just a tad too boomy and at 30Hz it would become a tad anemic. This could of course all be placebo.

 

[JanesJr1]

I’ve done almost the exact same thing. However much I kept tweaking and fiddling with the Oratory settings, the bass frequencies just wouldn’t sound quite as I’d like them.

The solution for me was to remove all the filters below and including 180Hz and add a bass shelf of 3.2dB with a Q of 0.7 at 32Hz (based on the FR graph, where the frequencies below the “bump” measure below Harman). This placement at 32Hz came pretty exact for me, because at 35Hz the shelf made the bass just a tad too boomy and at 30Hz it would become a tad anemic. This could of course all be placebo.

A good case of great minds thinking pretty much alike. I put a shelf at 50 with a Q of 1, and used that in conjunction with the 105k band to shape the EQ curve ... the raw FR curve droops in a slightly concave shape, and I moved both inflection points around to get a higher sub bass than out-of-the-box, but less than Harman bass, which I find a bit too steep for a smoothly integrated FR curve up and down the line using acoustic sources. I wasn't that sensitive to the hinge frequency (at 32hz in your case, 50hz in mine), but your comment makes me want to go back and listen again. I will do so when I get frustrated with something else I'm working on and want to go into EQ-fiddle-mode to escape for a bit.

 

[oleg87]

wired:
Sennheiser HD600 - my go-to headphone for many years. Sound, comfort, price, everything is on point. I've demoed various more expensive headphones over the years and have yet to find something I like more as an overall package. Only complaint is that they're a bit bass-shy without EQ.
AKG 371 - was looking for a low-cost closed-ear alterantive to my Sennheisers. Was sold by these supposedly closely following the Harman curve/seeming to measure pretty similarly to the HD600 with some added bass. They're ok, but I don't really love them - getting a good earcups to seal around my glasses is very fiddly, and I find them overly bright.
Etymotic ER2XR - Adequate, but uninspiring sound. I find their tuning broadly similar to the HD600s, but there's something lacking in the high end that doesn't lend itself to EQ-ing, and they've got a bit of an unflattering mid-range honk. Cable microphonics are a serious irritant.
Truthear Zero IEMs - my latest acquisition, another supposedly Harman-tuned headphone that is close but no cigar. A bit too much sizzle in the upper mids, a bit too much bass. EQ makes them shine though.

Waiting for delivery of the Moondrop Chu's since they seem to tweak the things I don't like about the Truthear's tonal signature. Will see how that goes.

bluetooth stuff, in order of acquisition:
Apple Powerbeats Pro buds - Pretty well-balanced tonality, but some unpleasant resonance spoils the show a little without EQ. Good gym earbuds, since they fold around your ear.
Sony WH1000XM3 ANC over-ears - overbearingly bass-heavy without EQ, but turns into a capable and comfy ANC headphone if EQ is available.
Apple Airpods Pro (gen1) ANC buds - Pretty good sound without EQ, a bit mid-heavy but otherwise well-tuned IMO. Too bad I can't seem to keep a pair working for longer than a year or so without various problems developing.
Sony WF1000XM4 ANC earbuds - Somewhat better-balanced tonality than the WH1000XM3 to my ears, but similarly bass-heavy - the onboard EQ isn't the most capable but it helps. Haven't had them very long, hoping they are more durable than the Airpods they replaced.

 

[ThatStKildaGuy]

What I told my wife

HD650's - My father sold them to me on his deathbed $15
HD800S - Purchased at a trash and treasure $45
ZMF Verite Closed Stabilised - Dog brought them home
ZMF Atticus - Given to me as a present by a friend before he was deployed overseas to Iraq for safekeeping
Audeze LCD2's - Found on the beach $Free
Audeze LCD3's - Found on a bus coming home from the beach (another trip there) $Free
Focal Clear OG's - Won them in a raffle. Ticket $2

I think she is getting suspicious!

 

[Tkay]

Right.
Report back when you have them, they are not for me, but others are always interested in hands on experiences.

I had them (Dan Clark Closed X from Drop) for a while, I forgot to reply. It was actually a mixed bag with them. I feel that the previously owned Fischer Audio FA TI-003 were superior in some ways, they seemed to be more liniar than these. The DC ones are more "tame" to my ears. They have a better lower end, they are very comfortable and the most important part is that they are not leaking as much sound as the previous ones , which is important to me, since I am working from home next to my wife. I also noticed that they are VERY power hungry (which I saw later on in Amir's review of RT) and my iFi Micro iDSD amplifier just died on me today. The DAC part works, just the amplifier doesn't . I will check to see what are my options, if I can use the iFi as a DAC and just buy a power amplifier or just get another DAC / amplifier combo.

 

[Dazerdoreal]

Hifiman Deva Pro
Beyerdynamic DT 880
Superlux HD 660 Pro
Teufel Aureol Real Pure

Used to Own:
Teufel Aureol Real
Sennheiser HD 555

 

[Golem]

I hear a lot over headphones. I only had ie from various brands, from 30-80€.

Now i use DT 770/990. I think i dont need anymore.

 

[rsoffer]

M50X
DT770 80 Ohm
Sony XM3
HD598
HD6XX
Focal Clear

Still listening to the M50X as we speak while working out of a coffee shop and love them.

My favs of the bunch are the Clear, the HD598, and the M50X.

 

[simon62]

Currently, SennheiserHD650 ,and HiFi Man He6Se, obviously there are get differences taking into account the price, the technology used, but for serious late night early morning it's the He6Se's.
I have a few amps, in no order, Mass drop THX AAA 789, Musical Fidelity X can V1, Audio Lab M+ , NJC Audio Reference series, an excellent amp with the 650's, unfortunately not enough to power the He6Se's , a WHAMMY diy amp, excellent, currently in the process of collecting components to build a balanced version, just some thing to do being disabled, so i've plenty of time to use.
I have also tried with grate results using the HiFi Man adapter with my Devialet 400's , and a Meridian G57 power amp, total over kill but stunningly good to me at least, we all have different perceptions of how music should sound, and try various ways to get the sounds we require.

 

[phrwn]

Replaced my "this is it I'm done now" E-MU Teaks with the Focal Elex. Nothing wrong with the Teaks apart from a comfort incompatibility with my stupid new glasses. And to resolve my tedious anxiety of whether my onboard audio is getting the best out of whatever I'm listening to I've got an E30II/L30II stack coming.

 

[imayroam]

Hi, guys.

I bought Samson Technologies SR850 Semi Open-Back Headphones on sale a while back and am delighted with them.

The only quibble I have with this model is that the cable is not detachable.

 

[xavx]

@solderdude Given the amount of headphones you tested, I would be interested to know which headphones you kept in the long run (not the temporary flings) and why.

 

[solderdude]

Kept as in still own but not sold (yet) ?
kept as in stored but not used ?
kept as in 'collection that is hard to part with' ?
kept as in used most often ?

Used most often: HD800 (with non Harman EQ), DT1350 (portable duty with EQ) and recently for closed usage (max a few hours) modified Creative Aurvana Live! 2.
Used now and then depending on mood and need:, modified/filtered DT770, filtered DT1990, modified S4X Reference 1.1, filtered HD560S
Kept (hard to part with): HD650, HD58X (modified, filtered), HD681 (modified, filtered), Edition XX, Audeze Sine (modified, filtered), HE35X(modified, filtered), old DT990(600) and a few prototype headphones.
Have not sold (yet)

Why ? Because I either like the sound + comfort or they have some kind of 'sentimental value' to me or have not put them up for sale (yet)