The All Purpose Advice Thread

Discussion in 'Advice Threads' started by purr1n, Sep 26, 2015.

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  1. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    From memory I think the 2C is darker than the X but I could be wrong, it's been a while since I owned the 2C. I believe the X is a bit more resolving than the 2C but the tuning is a little different. @rhythmdevils has been obsessing with Audeze headphones lately and may have more useful insights on the differences and similarities between these two models.

    Regarding Focal, I like the Elex and Clear, still need to hear the Utopia on a good chain. If you find they have too much upper mid and/or treble energy you may like the Clear Mg. I didn't like it because that "Focal energy" was lacking. I recall a comparison with Audeze tuning for the Mg and I agree. That said, I don't think Focals would sound great on a Jot 2.

    Hifiman's sound signature is a bit all over the place but I think they tend to have less heft and cooler tuning than Audeze. ZMF is a good consideration, different models allow you to hone in on the type of sound you're seeking. Also the pads can make a big difference and they do a great job documenting this on the site. If ZMF ends up looking appealing, I would consider them as a good compliment rather than a replacement for Audeze. The two brands are different enough with their strengths and weaknesses.

    Unfortunately nobody can say what will appeal to you the most. The best option is to hear on your chain and/or at meets. This can be difficult depending on your access to loaners and/or if meets happen in your area. The next option is purchasing and seeing what you like but that gets very expensive and/or full of hassles.
     
  2. rhythmdevils

    rhythmdevils MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    The LCD-X is better technically I every way. But I think not quite as warm tonally as the LCD2C. It is still very natural sounding with natural warmth, but not quite as much as the 2C. It also is more balanced in FR, with more treble and upper midrange presence. As long as you don't want a dark headphone, the LCD-X is a great choice.
     
  3. ogodei

    ogodei MOT: Austin AudioWorks

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  4. econaut

    econaut Almost "Made"

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    Many thanks for your quick and helpful answers.

    I went to my local store today and got a not yet burned in Clear Mg loaner until Tuesday. Concerning Jot 2, at least @Vtory and @roshambo123 do seem to like the synergy and I also agree it works quite well out of the box. I agree that Utopia and Jot 1 was not a great enjoyment because of the mentioned upper mid/treble energy.

    Hifiman: Less heft and cooler sound signature does not sound appealing to me.

    ZMF: I don't have an easy possibility to demo them, but will read up on them.

    Audeze: I only have LCD-2 Classic right now. I'd preferably use Audezes only with their Roon presets, so I guess I can just compare Clear MG and LCD-2 Classic as if it was a "gimped" LCD-X? So if I prefer the planar, I will return the LCD2C and get a X instead.

    It seems to me kind of a question of principle "dynamic vs. planar" right now.
     
  5. roshambo123

    roshambo123 Friend

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    At only a cool $16k it makes the WA33 look reasonably priced. Transformer block even looks a bit Woo...

    [​IMG]
     
  6. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    Happy to help. :)

    Maybe my memory is wrong about the Jot2 or we have different taste. Either way, a loaner is the perfect way to see if it works for you and your chain.

    I hope you get to try some ZMFs in the near future, they can be fantastic if they are your cup of tea.

    I know you’re not alone in wanting to know if you prefer orthos or dynamics and then sticking with that route. I see them more as interesting variety and will probably always have both. I may even get some estats again too. The Koss that (was? is?) offered by Drop are very good, especially for the price. Each type has their tendencies and I really like variety, it keeps the boredom at bay.
     
  7. nodin2000

    nodin2000 New

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    Hi. I'm finally in a postiion to upgrade myself from Klipsch THX Promedia 2.1 computer speakers, to something that can do proper justice to my love for music, espeically classical music.
    I'll be using my Macbook Pro as the 'source' with Apple Music. Macbook only has USB-C outputs so either a iFi Zen type DAC or just a USB-Toslink adapter will be needed.
    The constraints are:
    - Where I live....Portugal. I sure wish I'd bought this stuff before I moved to Portugal a few months ago! Hard to source things, nearest hifi store is over 3 hour drive, 23% sales tax. So trying a few things out and seeing what works is not really possible. So I need to try and get this right first time - no pressure!
    - The Room....my office and it needs to share the space with my sim racing setup (that's a bunch of electronics, 8020 aluminum and 3 x 32" screens. I also have 2 x 27" screens on my desk. I've attached the room layout. Open to ideas on how to move things around, but I don't want my back to the door and I don't want to be staring at the 3 x 32" screens all day long.
    - Budget...about €1000 which is around $1200 (as sales tax is included here).
    [​IMG]
    I mainly listen to classical music, opera, piano and violin concertos, symphonies...pretty much anything classical. Getting some sense of 'scale' and 'weight' of the music is important, as is the separation of the instruments so it doesn't sound muddy.
    [​IMG]
    I'm really looking for help on two of the basics.

    1) Active vs passive speakers. I've been lurking on forums and doing my research. Lots of people recommend actives for more modest budgets and smaller rooms. But there are very little actual comparisons I can find to an active vs passive setup and in particular how they would cope with complex classical music.
    To give some examples in Portugal, I could get a NAD amp (3020v2 or C328) for around €450, then add some Elac b6.2's for €300, giving me around €200 for some stands/DAC etc. If I feel bass is lacking I can always add a sub later. If I'm pushing the budget I could stretch to the Elac Uni-Fi UB52's or Dali Oberon 3's which are €450.
    Or for Active's, I could get something like a pair of Focal Alpha 65/HS8/Kali Audio IN5/Eve SC205 for €700 and have some change for....a sub, stands, etc? My instincts want separates, because other than familiarilty of brand names and a spreading of the 'risk', I don't have a real basis for that.
    [​IMG]
    2) Speaker location. [I can't seem to get my image of the room to load, but it's a 12'x9' room, 810 cu/ft. I'm sat behind 2 monitors so any speakers at ear height behind the screens and going to hit the screens before my ears. Doesn't sound ideal. Options I can think of are:
    a) To give the most distance between my ears and the speakers (to create a soundstage?) I would need to wall mount them on the front wall, so they are angled down to my ears over the tops of the screens. They'd be about 9 ft from my ears
    b) If I didn't want the speakers with the rears so close to a wall or far from me, then I could wall mount them on the side walls around 5-6 ft to me, but they'd have to be angled more aggressively downward.
    c) If I got slim enough speakers/stands I might be able to squeeze them on stands by the side walls either side of the desk, but I'd have to have them quite far forward so definately not an equilateral triangle
    d) I try and squeeze monitors onto my desk. I could do this with my old Klipsch computer speakers but they were very small. Also not sure about how much sound stage I can get with them this close

    Sorry my first post is a long one. If I had Amazon Prime, or Crutchfield, things would be a lot easier!
     
  8. ergopower

    ergopower Friend

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    Images didn't load, I'm struggling to visualize your room.
    And are you going to listen from an existing desk or gaming chair, or do you want to sit somewhere else?
     
  9. Metro

    Metro Friend

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    He used a link to the imgur webpage instead of the image itself. Here it is:

    [​IMG]
     
  10. ergopower

    ergopower Friend

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    Thanks @Metro

    OK, this is a tough one, there are a lot of reflective surfaces. A possible solution is to mount speakers on high stands so that they are above the 2 desktop monitors, angled down toward your head. Front of speakers in plane with the monitors or you'll have diffraction problems. You can get the equilateral triangle within the width of your desk. You could use stands meant for public address speakers, some of which have angle adjustments. You'll want to absorb as much reflection from the wall behind you as you can, could be acoustic panels or heavy fabric or rug, etc.

    If it were me, I'd want the speakers quite small so that they don't visually dominate the room, which probably means a sub. But maybe that's not a big deal to you and you could use a full-range. Active speakers minimize how much other gear you've got to find space for. This thread has tons of opinions on this exact use case.

    Good luck
     
  11. econaut

    econaut Almost "Made"

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    @loadexfa @rhythmdevils @Vtory

    Alright, I gained some experience now with the Clear Mg and the LCD2C and wonder about one particular question.

    I read everyhere about "hard hitting planar bass", especially with Audeze's.

    Now I don't know if hard hitting is the same as "punchy" or "slam", but in comparison to the CMG the LCD2C seems not at all hard hitting to me, even with Roon Audeze EQ preset and added low shelf.

    I hope it's not too apples and oranges, because I don't have a balanced cable for the LDC2C.

    I understand that the CMG is very dynamic and punchy and I like that. In comparison the LCD2C seems smoother, more "polite", more boring/polished, although I can hear nice sub bass and great bass texture - which I also like.

    To me it seems the CMG is great for rock and metal and the LDC2C is great for electronic music (sub bass + transients, for example Alva Noto and being able to ).

    Not sure about acoustic and pop music right now, but I don't listen to that as much.

    So yeah, I don't want to go dynamic only or planar only, I guess it's two different flavours that have each their merits.

    I guess I'll get the CMG but want to demo the LCD-X 2021 before if possible. I don't expect more punch, but just a bigger brother of the LCD2C with nothing different, just everything to be better. Using EQ, of course.

    Actually even when getting the CMG I might get a planar later. But first impressions are that I prefer dynamic driver bass.

    Thanks for any clarification, maybe I am missing something.
     
  12. Vtory

    Vtory Audiophile™

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    My 2 cents:

    1) I'd say LCD-X isn't too different from CMG. You'll see two different presentations with very similar sets of strengths and weaknesses. And for this reason, having these two headphones together will end up with making one of them a dust collector.
    2) You may also want to check out Hifiman HE6. SE v1, SE v2, and OG 6 with ZMF pads are all meaningfully different and worth auditioning (saying this because you repeatedly talked about bass -- and HFM is also cheaper in both new and used). Susvara is in similar direction and obviously better than any of those mentioned in the conversation but I don't think it's in your budget range.
     
  13. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    I find dynamic bass tends to be more boomy and possibly punchy too so I agree with your observations there.

    If it’s possible to demo the X, that would be best. Along with Vtory’s warning, be sure to remember demos will only get you as far as the honeymoon period. You may find you still love both 12 months from now (and I hope that’s the case if you purchase both) but it’s good to remember the human factor when it comes to new toys. :)
     
  14. roshambo123

    roshambo123 Friend

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    It's hard to predict long term comfort and "what do I reach for most?" I enjoyed my LCD-2r1 (ie. OG LCD-2C) but my chronic neck pain made the weight untenable. I'd have bought an LCD-4 long ago but again, too heavy. They improved weight with the LCD-5 but the new signature isn't for me. The Focal Mg comfort is a lot better, which is something to consider for a daily driver.
     
  15. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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  16. ogodei

    ogodei MOT: Austin AudioWorks

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    I was just looking for the upcoming release date of Pink Floyd ‘Animals’ in 5.1 (haters dont hate) and I came upon the fact that four Floyd albums have been released in Sony's '360 Reality Audio' format.

    Further digging of this rabbit hole indicates you stream this format (available on Amazon, Tidal, Deezer, and of course, 'Nugs') to a device running the Sony 'Headphones Connect app,' or to hardware from a partner who licenses the decoder.

    Then you get to play it on a 'certified' speaker or headphone with the following certification requirements:
    "
    1) Support for personal optimization: Able to use image capture, and analysis of the wearer’s ear shape within a smartphone app, to optimize the sound field for individual headphone users. 2) Support for device optimization: Able to optimize the audio output to suit the unique acoustic characteristics of the headphones. 3) Pass the sound quality test.
    "
    Emphasis mine.

    https://electronics.sony.com/360-reality-audio

    Why haven't I heard of this momentus new technology before now? Who here has already taken the plunge and upgraded their chain to bask in the glory of "Nickelback: Live from Red Rocks" in 360 Reality Audio'?

    Please identify yourselves and post photos of your ears here.
     
  17. fraggler

    fraggler A Happy & Busy Life

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    Well, I have everything necessary to try this, but I know a scam to get kinky ear pics from us when I see one.
     
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  18. ogodei

    ogodei MOT: Austin AudioWorks

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    I went through that huge setup and you blew it. Thanks.
     
  19. dasman66

    dasman66 Self proclaimed lazy ass - friend

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    Thinking about a 2 channel system for my LR and looking for suggestions on a stereo preamp (used). I'm currently anticipating using a Pi2AES to feed a newly acquired Holo Spring 2 KTE to feed a recently acquired EC StudioB to feed a soon to start construction open baffle speaker (using Lii Audio FAST-10 drivers). The EC will also feed headphones.

    The primary need for the preamp is to get remote volume. It would be nice if I could take XLR from the Spring2 to the preamp and then feed RCA to the Studio B (because nervosa tells me XLR out of Spring is Moar Betterer). Preference is Solid State that I could leave on all the time (along with the dac)... because Studio B has enough toobz for me. Would also be nice if the preamp could feed a future sub (if one becomes needed).

    Budget is <$1k (preferably closer to $500)... all thoughts appreciated... including those that tell me my head is up my a$$ and that I'm thinking this all wrong...

    --------edit--------
    I can't shpel
     
    Last edited: Jan 12, 2022
  20. ogodei

    ogodei MOT: Austin AudioWorks

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    @dasman66

    If you want passive I'd look for a Hattor 'Big' or 'Mini' passive. Mine sits after the Holo Spring or, feeds my headphone amps & powered monitors. Remote control, on 100% of the time.
     
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