The All Purpose Advice Thread

Not that I can think of. I was at the gym, but it wasn't on me getting sweaty, it was on the shelf on the treadmill

 

Try a reset — press and hold the power button for 12 seconds:
https://www.astellnkern.com/eng/inc/down.asp?it=D00&key=1000033&pos=1 (page 5)
If that doesn't work, you'll probably have to send it back for repair.

 

I did that, it's all good and working now

 

Sorry to go off topic and super noob-ish here, but how do you search within a thread?

 

Got it, so you gotta click on the "Search..." instead of the magnifying glass icon, which is what I did everytime....

 

Does MJ2 run cool with the LISST tubes? I demoed a Lyr 2 with glass tubes and was totally put off by how hot it ran.

 

Hi guys,
I'm still looking for an audio player. Basically, I need it to drive my mrspeakers AEON comfortably (i've tried them with for e.g.Oppo Ha2, and i would not consider that close to being 'driven comfortably', though it can get too loud at times i often had to have it at max volume). Under $500, i don't need streaming or anything. Also, availability is an issue so it's down to the following:

• Cayin N3
• Sony NW-A35
• AK100 ii (there's a shop here that's selling a used on for cheap).
• AK Jr.
• DP-X1 (maybe getting it on sale here)

Any suggestions? or or none of these good enough to drive MrSpeakers to the level i want it to?

P.S: using my phone as a transport is completely out of the question.

 

How about FiiO X5iii and their amp fiio e12?
Smoth sound and good output power

 

I am doing a pretty drastic change of my desk and listening room setup, and need advice on cables and audio interfaces.
My main setup now includes Bryston BDA-2 and BHA-1, way too early for even first intelligent impressions but .. I cannot stop listening.
Teac UD-501 already sold (I know.. we told you), I am considering a sale of Sony HAP-Z1ES as well.
Until I get a good music server, Auralic Aries is my top pick, I will be feeding Bryston BDA-2 with SPDIF from RP 3 Digi+ Pro, and from my office computer through Gustard U12 and a long, like 25 feet Toslink cable.
But DBA 2 has also AES/EBU and BNC connectors. I already ordered a Hifiberry BNC jack, not sure how much improvement it will be over SPDIF but mods are fun, so I will do it anyway.
Should I replace Toslink with AES/EBU? AES/EBU cables from Monoprice are cheap, but is it better?
And I use a USB to SPDIF converter, does the USB connection quality really matter? For example, is it better to move my U-12 close to the DAC, and run long USB cable with repeaters from my office to U-12, or to use long Toslink, or AES/EBU?

 

x5 iii by itself or with the amp? is it at least as good (in terms of power and SQ, objectively) as oppo ha2? (or better than Fiio E18?)

 

Sorry mate, I don’t like DS sabre chips. They sound crap to me. With a large budget I do recommend Sony signature series 1a

 

sony what? you mean the $1.5k sony one? (the store here has NWZX100 for $800 and WM1A for 1.5k)

P.S: I'm generally thinking that I can get a picopower or more likely Fiio A5 which seems to be powerful enough to drive my headphones so I need smthg with a brilliant DAC section.

 

I feel like you should get a Bryston BDP to complete the stack... http://www.canuckaudiomart.com/details/649367277-bryston-bdp1/

If you can go with AES, I would pick that. Get a Canare star-quad or Grimm TPR cable and call it a day.
If sticking with optical, a Lifatec cable is probably the "high end but not crazy" brand of choice.

Given the choice, keep the usb cable short and run longer optical or AES.

 

I’ve just now reached the point in my adult life where I have any kind of discretionary spending at all, and the audio bug has hit me really hard. I still have a bit of discretionary spending left, but as of next year it’s going to start going into home repairs on two different houses and I’m pretty certain this will be the end of my ability to buy anything new at all for quite awhile. I also live way out in a rural area, so I have just about zero chance to try anything out before I buy it or make it to any kind of meetups before I commit to something.

Still, I ended up managing to get my hands on both a pair of HD800’s, and a pair of pre–fazor LCD-2 Revision 2.2s. Before trying the LCD-2s, I managed to try out HD600s, HiFiMan HE400S, HE560s, and probably a couple others I can’t remember. The HD800s blew all of those away for me. For me personally, the HD800s did everything I loved about the HD600s, it just did it all better. I wanted to love the HiFiMan stuff, but as much as I had the sense that I was missing out on bass impact, I still couldn’t shake the perception of losing clarity any time I switched off the HD800s. On A/B testing, I kept wishing I could take the bass impact of the HiFiMans and transpose it onto the HD800s, but it was a clear-cut winner that as a whole I'd take the HD800s anyway every time. I ended up sticking to the HD800s and thinking I was done.

But then I ended up with the chance to get a great deal on the LCD-2.2PFs. So I tried them. And for whatever reason, the cut in clarity / increased muffled sound compared to the HD800s was tolerable for me here. I'm still disappointed that it doesn't seem possible to combine the fun sound of something like the LCD-2s with the ridiculous levels of clarity on the HD800s, but all else equal, if I could only ever listen to one of the two again I'd feel really f'ing bad about it but I’d have to cringe and hope nobody overhears me and go with the LCD-2s.

I don't think I could bear going back to any closed-back headphones under $500 again even for casual listening. For reference, I listened to a pair of B&W P7s and with my new audiophile baseline set I found them just shy of actually unlistenable. If I had to downgrade my headphones for budget reasons, the HE400S would be an easy pick for me based on what I've heard so far (in fact the HE560s barely seemed like a noticable improvement in side-by-side comparison) but I definitely wouldn't listen to music as much as I do now if I downgraded.

Note: I’m Amp/DAC’ing everything through a Schiit 2 stack. I’ve never even had the chance to try anything else out, besides some cheaper FiiO gear. It seemed obvious to me that the quality of the sound as such was better coming out of the Schiit, so that inherently inclined me not to believe the stuff I was hearing about how anything that can get your headphones to an adequate sound level is totally equivalent to anything else. That’s the main reason I signed up here at SBAF, because I kept getting that feedback any time I tried to ask questions anywhere else. Even if I decide I personally can't tell the difference with different quality amps, listening to those people is never going to allow me the opportunity to make up my mind about it for myself. Someone who thinks there's a marked difference in quality can at least do the best job of recommending something that will allow me to see or not see that for myself. Even when I told people in other forums that I explicitly wanted that, the "Schiit 2 is all anyone could literally ever possibly need" brigade just wouldn't stop chiming in.

Obviously, I can't help wondering if the amp/dac source is why the HD800s don’t sound as good to me as they could and if a different source would make them my end-game and settle it once and for all. But frankly there is just an impossible number of choices to make here and none of the recommendations seem anywhere close to unanimously agreed upon outside of the best basic entry-level stuff (e.g. Schiit). So I haven't even found a way to make a purchase decision given that it will pretty much wipe me out.

Sidenote: I played around with EQ’ings for the HD800s on Peace before picking up the LCD-2s. I don’t know what happened here… but before I tried the LCD-2s, there seemed like a drastic difference to me between the different settings I came up with or copied from other people. At the most extreme end, some tracks sounded downright muffled and like the treble was being played from the other end of a tunnel several feet away. After I spent awhile listening only to the LCD-2s, I tried switching those settings back around... and I literally couldn't tell any difference between them at all anymore. I have no idea how or why this could even happen. It was enough to make me worry that I didn't have Peace set to change the EQ on the right sound device anymore, but I confirmed everything as best I could and that doesn't seem to be the case.

SO... like I said earlier on, money is tight and I'm stretching my budget as hard as I possibly can to make sure my audio listening will be more than enough to make me happy before shit really hits the fan. I want to keep 2 headphones so that I have a backup go-to if something somehow happens to the other one and I can't afford to fix it or whatever.

If I replace my amp, my max budget can stretch up to about $500. If I decide to buy a different headphone, I can stretch up to about $1000 (by selling either the LCD-2s or the HD800s for about 500). So the LCD-2s and HD800s are each kind of balancing the perceived deficiencies in the other for me right now. If I replaced the HD800s I'd probably want the replacement to be more HD800-y and if I replaced the LCD-2s then I'd want them to balance the HD800s similar to the way the LCD-2s do for me currently. Based on some of the comments I've heard, I've been wondering if the ZMF Atticus wouldn't be the perfect upgrade to the LCD-2s that would give me the bass I'm lacking in the HD800s but upgrade the LCD-2s in a very HD800-y direction by increasing the clarity in the rest of the sound. It also might be convenient to have a closed-back option? As long as the soundstage isn't as cramped as the other cheaper closed-backs that are currently the only thing I have to make reference to like the B&W P7s! As another point in favor of this reasoning, I figure I'm better of selling the LCD-2s than the HD800s because the LCD-2s are at risk of driver failure and if they died I would be devastated and have no way to replace them or anything. So trading up on the LCD-2s is probably what makes the most sense, I'd assume. But then again for all I know putting a better amp on the HD800s could turn them into everything I'd ever want or need, and I just don't know and have no way to try anything out first.

What do I listen to? I've learned that it really depends on how the gear I'm listening through makes it sound, and realized that my musical preferences throughout my entire life have probably changed based on what I was listening through even though I didn't realize it at the time. On the HD800s I gravitate towards things like Radiohead, The Mars Volta, Aquilo, PVRIS, music where a greater proportion of the interesting stuff going on is up towards the higher ranges. On the LCD-2s I start gravitating towards things like FKJ, Mastodon, Tool, Zeal and Ardor. Rock/metal/electronic. But I seriously dig for new music constantly and listen to everything from soul to classical to rap and country. My recently played has Slipknot, Tigran Hamasyan, Submotion Orchestra, Le Trio Joubran, Tinariwen all side by side and I do even just sit around and listen to really well made recordings when I'm in the mood.

So... damn, there's my long-form essay about the situation for you guys. Please help!!

 

Since my PW no5 keeps getting delayed by USPS, I would like to to use the waiting time to ask for other cable recommendation my Andromeda (pair with zx2).

I found the stock sound to be a bit too thin and v-shaped for my liking so I would like something that's more warm and lush. Female vocals are my favorite so I would prefer a mid-centric sound that would result in thicker and more "romantic" mids (ADx series-ish if you will, just not that colored). My max budget is$500 but would be very very happy with something that's lower-priced and is a better value. Thank you.

 

Try this for your Andros while you're waiting for the No. 5. It'll help take the edge off the treble and maybe make the mids more to you're liking.

Use pointy tweezers and don't insert them too deep so you can take them out more easily.

 

Sorry but I almost slept reading your text... can you hi light what you want ? Maybe someone could chime in and help you then...

 

Is the best tube amp option < $500 still the Valhalla 2 for the HD650? I have a Jot at home which I understand is a very good SS option but the overwhelming majority believe OTL is a better synergy albeit I don't know how exactly they differ. With the Jot I have to assume a cleaner, more detailed presentation with smaller stage but lacking the amount of body and lushness the Valh2 would bring.

The Atticus is still in the back of my mind as most of the time I require closed and this seems to be another 'phone that apparently likes OTL. My closed option now is the TH600 and dekoni perf pads into the Jot and Yggdrasil.

 

Both Pre fazor LCD-2, and HD800 are nice, and I've owned both of them before. However, what source are using to feed your Schiit stack?