The All Purpose Advice Thread

I have hearing loss in both ears with one side more severe than the other. I don't use balance since my hearing has adapted to that difference in volume for positioning.

What software are you using for playback? If you're using WASAPI etc they bypass those effects.

 

Internet foible, double post, ignore.

 

Hence why I have been googling a hardware interface but I am not coming up with much.

 

That looks perfect I just don't know how many db. In music players a 5-10% shift is perfect for my ears. Nothing extreme. I assume the 3-6 db would be best.

 

Maybe something in a similar vein as this? LR control via knobby knobs. (but this specific model is XLR, so you'll need adaptors)

https://www.amazon.com/DBX-DBXGORAC...TF8&qid=1482222430&sr=8-1&keywords=DBX+goRack

 

Does anyone know of any tube amps, ideally under one thousand dollars, which play nicely with the TH900s? I am ditching my solid state to be a tube guy. My Valhalla 2 gives me chills, in a good way, with my HD800, but sounds like slow nonsense with the TH900s.

Thanks in advance.

 

That's why you'll need to play around with a sound program that lets you adjust balance (or separate left/right) levels WITH an indication of dB levels. It doesn't have to have be fancy or have good sound quality, just functional enough to give a measurement of how many dB difference to get a balanced sound. See if you can find freeware that plays test tones and white/ping noise. You could try Audacity to make various test tracks.

 

I think @JoshMorr has some history with Th900 pairings from a few pages back. And I believe @Warrior still owns the Th900.

http://www.superbestaudiofriends.or...purpose-advice-thread.19/page-163#post-102649

EDITED:
This tube amp thread might nudge you in a positive direction as well: http://www.superbestaudiofriends.or...erbaf-cheap-tube-amp-guide-1200-or-less.2796/

 

See this thing looks kinda cool but I dunno how much it would degrade sound quality:
https://www.amazon.com/PAC-LC-1-Rem...002J226O/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_sims?ie=UTF8

 

I currently use Modi 2U AK 4396 -> Asgard 2 -> HD 650 as my headphone rig. I want to get rid of the MOSFET treble timbre haze (still way better than overall negative feedback STEEL) but not bring in any further compression of staging (the overall negative feedback solid states f**k over compressed recordings) or Jotunheim level treble fuckery for black metal.

I am thinking of the Modibit or a Valhalla 2 for a Christmas upgrade. I don't know if I could put up with the Bifrost Multibit type lower mids of the Modibit all the time though or the Modibit 90s CD player treble -> Asgard 2 MOSFET treble. I don't know if the Valhalla 2 low treble grain will make me want to kill myself over long periods of time with the HD 650. Which should I upgrade to first?

 

As a former Valhalla 2 owner, I wouldn't suggest going there. Always found it grating over time no matter which tubes I used. ECP T3 was a breath of fresh air.

Modibit might be nice. Love me some multibit.

 

Oh god, I hate that. Dealers who don't know how to set up their fancy gear (yet for some reason, who tend to be the most sniffy of all). A recent show in London saw Audio Sanctuary trying to drive HEKv2 directly from the piss-poor amp of the Chord DAVE- which absolutely did not have the balls or dynamics for the task.

I think they just went by what was most shiny and expensive, rather that what would actually work well. Very irritating.

 

There's a clear difference between those that love the hobby too, and those that are in it because of the money.

Those that love it show it.

 

Is there more to power from headphone amplifiers other than more volume for your headphones? Just got a vali 2 and ZMF Vibro MkII, I have to set the vali 2 to high gain and I get it up to 2 o clock or more depending on the song sometimes. I don't think I ever had to max it out, but just wondering if there is any pro to having more "headroom" (I think this means more room to turn the volume pot).

 

Check out this site:

http://www.venhaus1.com/diymains.html

He's got DIY instructutorials, plus he'll sell you all the stuff. I believe you want the 1.5" 3/1, maybe with the adhesive lining. You may know this, but if you want to save some money The Home Depot has 'hospital grade' plugs (and receptacles). No cryo or carbon fiber, but a lot cheaper.

 

Someone who actually knows something about amplifier electronics can correct me, but I don't think you should be concerned about the pot setting with regards to "power headroom", other than not being able to get it as loud as you want. I think the amp will give you the maximum power available at whatever pot setting you need to get the desired volume. I've also read that a given amp has a pot setting "sweet spot". On HF, iFi talks a lot about getting to "3 o'clock" for the best sound. Not sure how much truth there is in this, but I asked an engineer friend who's into audio and he said there might be something to it.

 

I was searching for 90-degree heat shrink boots for a custom USB OTG cable I made and came across a lot of industrial stuff. Maybe you can find what you're looking for somewhere like this: http://www.newark.com/heat-shrink-boots

 

Am I weird for finding the B+K curve far too bassy and unsubtle?

 

@Marvey

You stated that now is not the best time to buy a USB defuckifier and that we should wait a few months. Point noted

Is now a good time to buy a used Mjolnir 2 or should I wait a few months? I only want Schiit but don't want the Raggy (I have the Jot already)

I wanted to mention that I've owned the Mojo before and foolishly sold it even though I loved it's ''slam''

I remember you mentioning that it is 'dynamic in ways not seen before in headphone amps'

I assumed that the Jot would have this same quality but sadly I don't think that's the case.

Anything else below $1500 that hits as hard as the Mojo?