Amp For Sennheiser HD600 coming from Xonar D2

easyrider said:
Had an email from Nick from NJC audio and now I want a Monitor II :o
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Lol ah the old bug sets in. This is the problem with audio as you can keep going.
No doubt the Monitor ii will be that bit better but it really depends on your needs and ears.
In the way of costs its a good amp and their is a review on another site where a chap has put this amp up against some others including A Woo Audio amp. The thing to remember is that the Woo is valve and as such adds its own sound just as a solid does.
The problem is amps while they do a grand job will not be a woo factor but tend to be more of a ah that is a bit better unless you go from a very poor amp to a top amp.
Ask Nick if you could try them both out to see which you like as he may just do that for you but I would guess he would like payment for both to start with.
The trouble is your mind plays tricks and for some reason the equipment that your heart is set on is always the best:D
 
Ok I got the HD600's and from the Onkyo they don't sound that good.

So an amp is needed.

However when coming direct from the the Xonar 2 they don't sound that bad. They blow chunks over the HD415's and I can only imagine how good they will sound with an amp.The shotgun in Half Life Ep 2 is glorious, weighty and meaty....a stark contrast when playing with the HD415's that sound mushy, and dull

Music is another story...I have now ditched my MP3 collection and re-ripped some albums to FLAC.

I cannot listen to 320 MP3's with these phones.:eek:

I loaded 320kb/s Bowies Moonage Daydream into Winamp and then loaded the lossless flac. Before I had not really noticed the difference when using my amp and speaker setup... or even the HD415's, With these phones it was amazing. The MP3 sounded like it was in a vacuum and the Flac had open space.

Ok its not a fair comparison with the using the same track and lossless but its really made me think about the garbage stored on my home server.:eek:

The difference with these phones is night and day even without an amp coming from the Xonar 2.

Can I justify the £255 for the Monitor II:eek:
 
Heh - it was a Xonar D2 feeding a borrowed set HD600s without an amp that started me off on my headphone hobby! They don't sound bad straight out of a soundcard by any means but they can do more with an amp.

If you're using Dolby Headphone, that's not kind to mp3s. I can usually happily listen to 320kb/s mp3 but DH seems to bring out the worst of the compression, making it all quite fatiguing. Lossless is the way forward. I recommend EAC (Exact Audio Copy) as it error checks while ripping. Have had a few nasty skips creep in when using Windows Media Player and Foobar2000 to rip.

I've still not got around to replacing everything. Still have some stuff at 192kb/s mp3 (ripped when I had an Audigy 2, pc speakers and Speedlink Medusas) and it just sounds painful to listen to now.
 
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^^^^hehe

I don't use anything when listening back to music. No DH or anything. The 320kb/s sound meh..The Flacs sound exciting again.

I leave DH for gaming. I have yet to watch a movie with the HD600's but I have my home cinema room for that.
 
I find that hard to believe, unless your 320k mp3s are poorly ripped or there's something in your computer that is affecting the playback of the mp3s and flacs.

Have you done double blind testing?
 
titaniumx3 said:
I find that hard to believe, unless your 320k mp3s are poorly ripped or there's something in your computer that is affecting the playback of the mp3s and flacs.

Have you done double blind testing?
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Yeah I mentioned this to a few mates of mine

Few beers and I got it right everytime:p

I was amazed that a pair of phones could do this TBH
 
Have you looked at the Fiio E9 + Fiio E7 + Fiio L2 Combo for £120 mp4nation ?

I know the e5 is a volume booster toy but the e7 and e9 get good reviews on head fi.
 
Have you considered selling the D2 and replacing it with an Essence STX?

I found the STX was able to drive the HD600 just fine.

In the end though I bought a Graham Slee Solo which of course was great (it was designed with the HD6x0 range in mind), but ultimately preferred my D7000 over the HD600.

C64's recommendation is also meant to be a very good budget choice.
 
Sorry to slightly hijack this thread but, I've got the following gear currently:

** Sound Cards**
- Creative X-Fi XtremeMusic
- Asus Xonar DG

** Headphones **
- Roccat Kaves
- Razer Carcharias
- Goldring NS1000

Now I'm *mostly* a gamer, so I'll be using the Razer Carcharias with the Xonar DG most of the time. As far as I can tell, adding a headphone amp to that combo won't really make much of a difference as the Carcharias are low-impedance (correct me if I'm wrong!!).

But when I do listen to music or no longer need a microphone, I want to be able to switch to the NS1000's, for which a headset amp would be beneficial(?). So, I've seen people recommending the FiiO E5, and the E9. If I can afford the E9, (without the E7, as there's no need?) is that the one to go for?
 
E9 for £75 does seem pretty good not sure how it all works but i think the e7 is a portable amp + dac all in one but when combined with the e9 makes an amp which punches well above it's weight.

The only decent headphones you own are the ns1000 though (no offence meant) so I'd just get an e5 tbh.
The e5 really does work well with the ns1000.
 
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None taken, the Kave's are being sold this weekend anyways. And the Razer Carcharias are because I use Teamspeak/Mumble every night, and all desktop microphones pick up every little noise from the other end of the house.

So you don't think that the E9 is worth it for the NS1000's alone?
 
Nah unless you are looking long term and recharging the e5 is a pain I suppose and then there's the fact that eventually it wont hold a charge.
Probably worth it long term though.
 
NS1000s are so picky with amps I would only take recommendations from someone who has actually used them with a particular amp. I can confirm that the E5 does a reasonable job but have heard them sound dreadful from several more expensive amps.

E9 is very new so not many people have one yet.
 
Uriel said:
NS1000s are so picky with amps I would only take recommendations from someone who has actually used them with a particular amp. I can confirm that the E5 does a reasonable job but have heard them sound dreadful from several more expensive amps.

E9 is very new so not many people have one yet.
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which amps have you tested the ns1000 on ?

i now people on head fi are saying the e9 etc works nice with hd600/650 etc though
 
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