The All Purpose Advice Thread - Part 2

Anyone got recommendations for dash cams? After nearly getting run off the road by some swerving idiot yesterday, I figure it wouldn't hurt to have something.

 

@Josh Schor you’re likely only going to find Chinese ones at that price range with those specs. These are pretty good, Telema transformers and a Furutech inlet, some carbon fiber shielding etc - AfterDark (they’re in Hong Kong) site says 6V/3.5A, but this domestic dealer is cheaper than their official site. See if they can do a 6V one for you, it does list a “custom” option:

https://ctronicmusic.com/shop/ols/p...ck-modernize-lps-x-giesemann-ocxo-10m-edition

 

thank you for the info
best,
Josh

 

Heya, I am curious as if there is a difference in how a headphone re6solves with different amps? As I understands it, people chase amps for their coloring once their amps can match a low enough noise floor and distortion for the headphones.

Also I was wondering what y'all consider your favourite vocal-focused headphones?
I have a HD600BS set that I love, however always feel surprised by how much better resolving my Sundaras the trebles and bass. As I understand, the JAR600s are the go-to below the utopia, rd-x and HE-1, wish I had the oppurtunity to try the A vs B mods when the loaner tour happened. I run my stuff through a balanced cable for the added power from my qudelix.

 

I don’t think anyone would argue that the headphone itself becomes more resolving but you get subjective increases or decreases in apparent resolution from some amps, sure.

 

In the vein of "all purpose" does anyone know what watch it is that Stephanie Ruhle is sporting these days?

I really want to get a knockoff of it....

 

Any good pictures of what you mean? A quick Google search and watching a recent clip or two, and she doesn't seem to consistently wear a watch.

 

Yeah, she doesn't. There's an interview with Malcolm Gladwell where she's wearing it.
Then, during her daily broadcasts, it's hit or miss. I think Oct 10th or 11th she's wearing it.

I tried taking a picture off the TV. Too blurry.

Here's the Gladwell interview. The best view of it is in the first 30 seconds.
https://www.msnbc.com/11th-hour/wat...gues-and-endorsing-kamala-harris-221114949888
thanks!

 

Rolex Cosmograph Daytona is my best guess: https://www.rolex.com/en-us/watches/cosmograph-daytona/m126508-0003

 

Yes, there is.

It's helpful to think of your chain as a single entity, though, with overall synergy being the key. Any one weak spot in the chain will have an effect on resolution. Don't forget your source, in other words. And make sure your headphones are resolving enough in the first place.

An amp doesn't have to be expensive or totl to be resolving. For some planars, the Monoprice Cavalli Liquid Gold X is incredibly resolving. The Mjolnir 3 is also outstanding in this respect.

Don't forget that diminishing returns kick in hard, especially with resolution, which can become a rabbit hole down which fervent audiophiles spend ungodly amounts to get that last 3% improvement.

What's your budget? For my preferences, the rhythmdevils modded Audezes are close to ideal for vocal-focused music. The RD-X is excellent and the RD-4 and RD-4z are even better, if your pennies permit a purchase of either of them. A decent DAC like a Gungnir A2 + LAuX + RD-X would make for an outstanding combination: great for vocals while also being exceptionally resolving, especially for the price.

 

Tbh I don't quite understand what the word "source" means in the community, like your audio files & the device(desktop/phone/laptop/vinyl) should be the source right?

My budget is around $1.1k for the total stack. My initial thoughts were to either send my HD600s to ext1 for some modding, or getting a used lcd-x and get an rd-x, also just saving a bit more for used LCD-4/5s and saving for a rd mod down the line might be smarter.

However, as I understand it might be smarter for me to invest into a stack than a headset.
I currently own just the qudelix 5k, sundaras, the hd600bs and ety er4xrs.

Thanks for the reply.

 

Yep, you've got it - the chain before your amp.

Here's some good reading for you: check out my post, the sixth one down the page, which links to an earlier thread and that copies and pastes good advice from @purr1n, whose opinion I'll defer to.

Thanks, that's all good to know.

I don't know the qudelix but have heard people speak well of it. You've got some good headphones there. I don't know how well the Sundaras scale. Scaling is the ability of a headphone to sound better with a superior chain. Some headphones scale only so far. Driving them from the world's best amp and vinyl rig will only get you limited improvements. Other headphones scale like mad. The HD 600 is famed for scaling incredibly well. There are plenty of guys here who have built entire systems around them as they'll reward you handsomely when fed by a great DAC and amp. I used to have an HD 600 fed from an Yggdrasil A2 and DNA Stratus and can confirm that a system with a $200 headphone and a $5500 chain sounded glorious.

If you like the sound of the HD 600, I'd recommend upgrading your DAC and amp. I went from a humble but great little Schiit Fulla 2 ($99) to a Drop R2R DAC ($350) and tube hybrid amp ($250) and got a major upgrade with my HD 650.* I'm not familiar with the latest DACs in the ca. $100-$500 price range but you could do far worse than a Schiit one, like the Modi Multibit, and something like a Lyr + or a NITSCH Pietus Maximus. This latter can also include an ESS or multibit DAC module within it as a single unit, and many here and elsewhere have raved about the great sound quality from the ESS DAC version. I'd recommend checking out the threads on those amps. I was a greater fan of the Lyr+ than the Jot 2, fwiw.

* the DAC was the Massdrop x Airist Audio R2R DAC, which is seldom available used these days, and the Massdrop x Cavalii Tube Hybrid amp, which show up in the classifieds occasionally for ca $90-130.

Remember that if you get an LCD-X or LCD-4/5, you'd still benefit from upgrading your source and amp. In fact, with the 4 and 5, you'd need a powerful amp. The LCD-X isn't all that hard to drive but it will wake up nicely when fed properly by a good amp, and the qudelix won't do it justice. FYI, an LCD-4 or 5 will set you back around $2k, used, at a minimum these days.

I'm not sure how much the JAR mods cost. It looks like $800 on his website. NITSCH sells them for $850. That would chew up a lot of your budget, leaving you with just $300 or so for the rest of your chain. Since you have an HD 600, I'd suggest placing more of your funds on the DAC and amp.

I'm reluctant to recommend particular options for you. Have you heard the LCD-X? I would recommend, though, that you upgrade your DAC and amp and then experiment with your current and other headphones.

Most importantly, while figuring out what you like and experimenting, buy used so you can re-sell gear at a minimal loss. Consider it a rental fee! There's an ESS Maximus Pietus for sale right now on head-fi for $470. They come up for sale quite regularly. I'd suggest trying something like this, or a separate DAC and amp in the same kind of price range, and then trying different headphones with it to get a sense of what combinations go well together. Good luck!

Edit to add that a used LCD-X can be had sometimes for ca. $650, so you could get both those headphones and a DAC and amp and then experiment with and compare your three headphones.

 

My understanding is that none of the RD mods are commercially available at this point. I'm in line for an RD-X, which is supposed to be the headphone they start with commercial release.

 

My Liquid Gold X broke down on warranty, Monoprice accepted the warranty claim and promised to replace it or I can use store credit. It has been many months and LGX is still not available.
Scanning the Monoprice Monolith product list I cannot find anything I need, or if I need it, I do not trust quality:
1. I was considering Monolith AMT headphone but has very bad reviews
2. Their line of small subwoofers 10,12 build quality is widely questioned etc.

Is there anything in the speaker, sub, HPs, amplifiers category worth considering?

 

Last year, I wanted a pair of desktop speakers and I scored an open box pair of Monoprice MTM-100 for $155. Totally not worth the MSRP of $500, but $200 -$300? Probably. Probably not audiophile grade by this group's standards but good for my use case. I run my Modi plus from my PC via USB and optical from my tv. Narrow sweet spot, so only decent at best as a sound bar alternative.
https://www.monoprice.com/product?p...uvs_LK0LhM80trQVAVCYY4ZqYb1EdBnYcKlWfgxV3XG9_

 

Any where to point me for value of audio gear? I was told audiogon, don't really want to give them my phone number and credit card! Thanks for any help!

 

I often use HiFiShark to get a sense of value. I search for the gear and then look at the old listings/current listings.

 

Hey thanks! I will do that!

 

Yep, that HiFiShark method is how I see where things are at, too. Filter results by “Sold/Expired”.

 

Thanks! I did figure that out!