There should be ample discussion about amplifiers.

Buy a microDAC and you can use it as a usb soundcard and it will be the best youve ever heard.

I didnt really like the cardas cable when i listened to it. I;ve heard good things about the Zu cable. Check that out.

1. i need a new pair of earbuds, i live in nyc and ride the subway so the noise cancelling earbuds sound perfect. my budget is $100, whats a good pair to get?

2. i need new basic speakers for my new apartment now that ive moved out of the dorms where I couldnt play loud music. Budget is 100-150, what should I get?

Thanks a lot, didnt really know where to start looking and I figured one of you would be able to tell me whats a good value pretty easily.

ok, i'm a total n00b, but here we go:

i'm looking into buying the sennheiser hd-555's b/c that is about how much i want to spend.

two questions:

will these sound good w/out an amp, and do they fit all the way around your ear. i find ones that don't uncomfortable.

i don't really want to buy an amp, but just the headphones. i'll be using them mostly for my zen mp3 player.

edit: i wouldn't mind an amp if i could get one for this cheap. it's only $20...will it make a significant difference?


web page

1. Here. Assuming that when you say "noise cancelling earbuds" you mean "canal phones"

2. Celestion F15. A quick google search found a price tag of $113. You really should be spending MUCH MUCH more for speakers, but yeah, these are pretty sweet. I actually bought new bookshelf speakers YESTERDAY, they are Usher S520($400) which are just absolutely ridiculously awesome speakers for the price. just a recommendation for anyone else interested.

rage,

The hd-555'[s do not need to be amped and will sound pretty sweet for unamped headphones. dont waste money on that thing, it looks like garbage imo.

thanks!

ordering the 555's now, and will let you know how they work out.

edit: ok, i was about to order, when i read about them being open as opposed to closed (letting sound in and out). i don't think this would be good for me, so i'm thinking about the 280's instead. any advice?

Yeah thats exactly what i want, just wasnt sure which to get.

why is it worth an extra 300 for the other speakers? i definitely wasnt planning on spending that much, i can think of a lot of other things that i could spend that on.

Any idea why i couldn't find a Hornet on ebay or amazon? Is there no second hand market for them?

PIITM,

I have a pair of grado SR-80's that I loved that crapped out on me, and I'm looking to take the next step. At what level of impedence does one need to start considering an amp? Also, any recommendations for a new set of cans and a USB soundcard?

price range is key here. what are you looking to spend? I would say anything that is good quality and has an impedance>65 should be amped.

$200-250 +/-. If I could find the K-701's for a decent price I'd love to pick up a pair. Open to other suggestions however.

go to www.northernsound.net for the k701s. they have by far the best price i have seen(they dont even post it):

$244.42

I havent seen anyone else come within 100 bucks of this price so i would certainly recommend going to them. At this point, I guess we have reached the limit of your budget. But if you still want a usb soundcard and are willing to spend more, buy the Headroom MicroDAC

Ok well the micro dac is a bit more than I want right now, I can wait a little while (next month) for source. What kind of amp would you suggest for the k701's? I've been looking at the hornet, but will something less pricey like the tomahawk or a portaphile drive them?

spyder,

The tomahawk might not do the job as it was built for people using in ear monitors. I seem to remember the hornet being like 50 bucks more. The hornet is way worth it and absolutely owns the portaphile in terms of sound. I owned both for an overlap of about a month before i sold my portaphile and did lots of a/b listening. If you are worried about price, I imagine you could find a used one cheaper, especially since the initial price for them was $299. I know a lot of people have duplicates since the initial run was all black and they have since come out with a bunch of retarded chassis colors and people got a 2nd for that and often sold their black one for slightly less than the introductory price. In fact, looking at The Head-Fi For Sale section there is a portaphile selling right now. It is completely maxxed out so it should sound better than mine and is 225. I hope this helps. gl dude.