General Headphone Audio
- Thread starter garyfl
- Start date
Caporegime
- Joined
- 20 Oct 2002
- Posts
- 78,847
- Location
- Wish i was in a Ramen Shop Counter
Canjam is July 18-19, I will be going on the Sunday.
Oops I remembered that incorrectly. Ty for the clarification!
i am still perplexed by the current reviews for the Egret online, even the ones on Headfi, for example:
I mean, other than upper end treble being peak-free, I can't agree with anything else, the imaging is nowhere near precise!
All of the reviews seem overwhelmingly positive for the sound which is odd because the SV021 Pro also had similar and they sound even worse as per my last post about them. On headfi someone replied to me when I posted a comment in a thread about those models saying they posted a negative review of the 021 Pro but got blacklisted by Sivga.
The comment about the bass I semi-agree with but do not agree that you got to be a bass-head to not like them, the bass lacks low end extension to the point even the HD600 exceeds the Egret.
I'm standing by my observations though regardless. It is a 6/10 headphone for the way it sounds.
I mean, other than upper end treble being peak-free, I can't agree with anything else, the imaging is nowhere near precise!
All of the reviews seem overwhelmingly positive for the sound which is odd because the SV021 Pro also had similar and they sound even worse as per my last post about them. On headfi someone replied to me when I posted a comment in a thread about those models saying they posted a negative review of the 021 Pro but got blacklisted by Sivga.
The comment about the bass I semi-agree with but do not agree that you got to be a bass-head to not like them, the bass lacks low end extension to the point even the HD600 exceeds the Egret.
I'm standing by my observations though regardless. It is a 6/10 headphone for the way it sounds.
"the bass lacks low end extension to the point even the HD600 exceeds the Egret."
All the measurements ive seen show it as linear and extended fully to 20hz the same as is normal for many planars, if it doesn't sound extended to your ears then its either your ears or you've got a faulty unit.
I have not looked at the measurements and I can categorically tell you that it's not my ears, otherwise other headphones would also lack the same bass. I don't think it's a faulty unit either because the same sort of traits were observed with the LCD-5 which were then enhanced by PEQ.
Not all measurements reflect what is heard though remember, so cannot be used as the ultimate decider on how a headphone will sound.
Not all measurements reflect what is heard though remember, so cannot be used as the ultimate decider on how a headphone will sound.
Sennheiser HD505 substantially discounted currently - but I have a bit of a hard time recommending them - which isn't a fault of the headphones themselves as such but despite being more comfortable than the HD560S they aren't massively better and kind of sit in a bit of a no-man's land where arguably slightly more expensive or cheaper headphones are a better buy.
"Not all measurements reflect what is heard though remember, so cannot be used as the ultimate decider on how a headphone will sound."
The frequency response saying it should have flat bass extension down to 20hz cannot be mistaken or interpreted differently, and that aligns with those over reviewers views. If you are saying that the hd600 has more bass extension than them then there are only two things it could be, your unit is faulty/isnt sealing properly and does not have the bass extension that it should or you are misinterpreting what you are hearing and thinking the hd600 has more sub bass extension.
That's generally dynamics though and not planars isnt it?
Was just going to edit my post to say I'm not sure if it applies to planars.
The long and short of it is that it doesn't have good bass at the low end, this much has at least been confirmed by other reviews as well so it is not just me. And yes the HD600 does have more immersive impactful low end bass, this is not a mistake of my ears, you can literally feel the bass. Also I don't see how missing low end bass can be a fault either as these are planars, this issue isn't something that generally exists with the tech, either the driver goes out completely if it's busted or it's in working order.
It's open back too so there is nothing to seal, not that this would be an issue anyway as the cup and pad size is smaller than the Hifimans (It's LCD-5 size) and surround the ear efficiently with no gaps on edges. I can hold the HE1000se 3 inches apart from each ear and still experience the same bass as with them on my head normally. That is what I expect when listening to a decent planar as that has been my experience with all but the LCD-5 and now Egret to date.
It's not this either as between 3 amps the same can be observed, and the A90D is transparent, high current, high voltage and super low noise as it is anyway. For ref one reviewer used the normal A90 with the Egret and the DAC was the RME ADI-2. Perhaps a brighter DAC is what makes them sound neutral to others I don't know, I don't have any bright sounding DACs any more, only smooth and warm, but even still I can make the X8 sound bright via the PEQ/DSP controls so it's not that either lol.
It's open back too so there is nothing to seal, not that this would be an issue anyway as the cup and pad size is smaller than the Hifimans (It's LCD-5 size) and surround the ear efficiently with no gaps on edges. I can hold the HE1000se 3 inches apart from each ear and still experience the same bass as with them on my head normally. That is what I expect when listening to a decent planar as that has been my experience with all but the LCD-5 and now Egret to date.
It's not this either as between 3 amps the same can be observed, and the A90D is transparent, high current, high voltage and super low noise as it is anyway. For ref one reviewer used the normal A90 with the Egret and the DAC was the RME ADI-2. Perhaps a brighter DAC is what makes them sound neutral to others I don't know, I don't have any bright sounding DACs any more, only smooth and warm, but even still I can make the X8 sound bright via the PEQ/DSP controls so it's not that either lol.
Last edited:
If you are adamant that there are no issues with the headphones, then it sounds like you could be mistaking mid bass for sub bass, along with the possibility that the distortion in the 600's bass is making it feel like they have slightly more than they do. Literally all the other reviews so far on head-fi and elsewhere either have measurements showing their bass extension or comment on how they have well extended but not boosted bass.
Your view that they have less sub bass extension than the hd600's(which have around a 10dB drop from 100hz-20hz) is the outlier here. Any other person, especially someone who is producing reviews, would look at all the other data and descriptions contradicting their own experience and think that mayvbe something was wrong with their setup or understanding, not continue to say that clearly they are correct and its everyone else and the objective measurements that are wrong.
Last edited:
It has mid bass yes and I noted to that earlier anyways, it's sub bass that is distinctly absent.
I don't want to beat this horse to death either, it's really as simple as me having a certain expectation of a standard a headphone should adhere to given the price and the Egret does not meet what I consider to be good enough.
I don't want to beat this horse to death either, it's really as simple as me having a certain expectation of a standard a headphone should adhere to given the price and the Egret does not meet what I consider to be good enough.
My review is subjective just like always, there is nothing I have been wrong about, I stated my observation, it has been used on 3 different amps, it isn't a fault with the headphone, it just does not sound good to the standard I uphold a headphone to at this sort of price range. I don't care what measurements say.
You are unbelievable, you didnt just make a subjective claim based on your preferences. You claimed an objective fact by stating they had less sub bass than the hd600 which runs counter to what is shown by measurememts from multiple sources.
To then not only claim the measurements are false and everyone elses ears must be wrong you then move onto deflecting, continuing to deny you were ever possibly wrong and claiming that "my review is subjective" to try absolve yourself.
No idea how you expect anyone to take your reviews seriously.
Last edited:
Question for anyone; does the amount spent on a USB to Optical adaptor make a quality difference?
So if I want to convert USB to Optical will there be any discernable audio difference between using an SMSL PO100 (£31) vs a Topping D10 (£95-100)?
Basically want to ditch Windows as the daily driver again and don't want to use either the K13 or K15 over USB (as it would mess with my Tube Amp setup) so one option is to connect the Minisforum PC (as the Windows scratchpad/second PC) via a spare Optical input on the K15. Other option is to use the iFi stack (would have to use RCA inputs on the K15). But I'm wondering whether there is any difference in a cheaper vs. more expensive USB to Optical convertor. I know the D10 has it's own DAC and LCD screen that would increase the price/features and that's a major reason for the higher price (I sold my old D10B so could have used it again, doh).
Thanks in advance.
So if I want to convert USB to Optical will there be any discernable audio difference between using an SMSL PO100 (£31) vs a Topping D10 (£95-100)?
Basically want to ditch Windows as the daily driver again and don't want to use either the K13 or K15 over USB (as it would mess with my Tube Amp setup) so one option is to connect the Minisforum PC (as the Windows scratchpad/second PC) via a spare Optical input on the K15. Other option is to use the iFi stack (would have to use RCA inputs on the K15). But I'm wondering whether there is any difference in a cheaper vs. more expensive USB to Optical convertor. I know the D10 has it's own DAC and LCD screen that would increase the price/features and that's a major reason for the higher price (I sold my old D10B so could have used it again, doh).
Thanks in advance.
Considering its just a digital media converter i doubt there will be any difference. As long as ones not broken they should be the same
Thank you. I thought as much given it's just digital to digital.