[Devarika Woulf]

Hi. I currently have an Ultrasone PRO 550 with PRO 750 earpads which are more comfy and refine the bass nicely. It's a great headphone, and amazing for gaming because of the S-Logic.
 
As I've noticed my 5.1 setup isn't really the best...I've thought about upgrading my speakers. But since I live in a studio Apt., I really cannot have it too loud here. I listen to music at a medium to low level and can watch a BD movie loud because it isn't constant banging, but at night I get concerned about the bass, and I am an all nighter sometimes. So I have thought about getting a top of the line headphone and a amp with it.
 
I like the PRO 550 for everything really. FLAC, 24-bit FLAC, games, and Blu-rays. But I feel like I want something more impactful. I want to be a part of what I am listening to, and with these I do not feel that. It feels like I am just listening.
 
I've been reading about the top headphones. The Sennheiser HD800 with a proper amp is about $2500 which is not happening. Some people feel they are much better than the AH-D7000 but some feel they are different but equal (reading on Amazon and Headphone.com). Someone said they the AH-D7000 had the best bass out of all the headphones he had tried (including the 800s) and was closest to a home theater.
 
I was also concerned about them being closed headphones but people don't seem to mind it. These are for home use only so I wish they were open but whatever. The soundstage seems to be big enough. Someone said it's like having real speakers next to your ears which is really appealing. Compared to the AD-D5000, from what I've read, these are better in every way including comfort and tightness. They look really cool too. They would look great on a wooden headphone stand.
 
Anyway, I am comparing them to the Sennheiser HD 800, the Ultrasone Edition 8, Beyerdynamic T1 & Beyerdynamic T5p, and anything else I missed.
 
I like a warm sound. Not too much treble, heavy but refined bass. Very loud and in your ear so I can FEEL it, be a part of it. For FLAC files, I have a Creative Titanium HD, and for Blu-rays, I have a PlayStation 3 and a Phillips 42" HDTV which has a headphone jack and a really nice theatre sound mode with cool surround sound. I might use these for single player gaming but I bet my PRO 550s have a bigger soundstage so I will use them online for Battlefield 3 and Modern Warfare 3, etc...
 
Anyway, I need to know what amp too, but that can be later. I am gonna contact some dealers and see if I can get it around $700 or so as someone on Amazon had done that. If you know a good price let me know. 

 
Does the Denon sound right for me? It is worth all that extra dough to upgrade to them? Thanks. 

 

[MalVeauX]

Heya,
 
If you don't like treble, you probably won't like the Denon D7000 (nor the HD800, T1). You may like the D5000. It's warmer. It has everything you're looking for, and is much less costly and is woodback too. That gives you a lot of play room to get a nice DAC/AMP setup too (what's the point of going high end on a headphone and then using a soundcard source instead of a proper DAC, right?).
 
I'm going to divert you though, or at least your attention for a moment, to the Hifiman HE-500. It's affordable high-end and planar magnetic. It's the sound you're looking for. It's warm, bass is superb and deep, it's open, and very comfortable (velour pads). Also, they look awesome. They recently dropped their retail price, so they're quite affordable for the quality they are. $699 new now. That leaves a lot of room to get a nice DAC/AMP. Right away, I'll suggest the Schiit Lyr for an amp, it's great for it. But also, there's something like the NFB-5 or NFB-12 which would also be really good for your needs. I would suggest you consider a nice DAC (Bifrost maybe?). But it all comes down to your max budget. There's also the LCD-2 of course, which many are on sale now for a decent price.
 
Very best,

 

[Devarika Woulf]

I had just read how amazing people felt about the Denon headphones. I do like treble, but at average. I don't like high treble...it kills my ears for some reason. I like it WARM with bass...

 
I usually listen to Classic and Modern Rock, as well as Punk, and some Techno and Modern Pop. And stuff like Enya. Yummy Enya.
 
Wow, this review and the comments are way in favor of the HE-500. 

 
The Schiit Lyr, Bifrost, and Hifiman HE-500 comes to around $1650. Affordable, if it's worth it. Please help with this as I am a newbie in this area completely. Some questions, please.
 
How is the HE-500 compared to both the HE6 and LCD-2 and IYO? 

 
Lyr: What tubes and voltage do I pick? I live in America BTW...
http://schiit.com/cart/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=3:b7815c7c6581553a5c707b7652e16248
 
Bifrost: Do I need the USB input or not? And what voltage?
http://schiit.com/cart/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=7:77e8b4fcd77720032362b4d207c600d9
 
How will this sound compared to my current setup: Ultrasone PRO 550 ($150), Creative Titianium HD ($135), unammed? That was my first quality audio equipment I ever bought. What will I think of this?
 
Thank you for your time, brother. Please guide a nOOb gently. Peace. 

 
 
 
 
 

 

[MalVeauX]

Quote:

Wow, this review and the comments are way in favor of the HE-500. 

 
The Schiit Lyr, Bifrost, and Hifiman HE-500 comes to around $1650. Affordable, if it's worth it. Please help with this as I am a newbie in this area completely. Some questions, please.
 
How is the HE-500 compared to both the HE6 and LCD-2 IYO? 

 
Lyr: What tubes and voltage do I pick? I live in America BTW...
http://schiit.com/cart/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=3:b7815c7c6581553a5c707b7652e16248
 
Bifrost: Do I need the USB input or not? And what voltage?
http://schiit.com/cart/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=7:77e8b4fcd77720032362b4d207c600d9
 
How will this sound compared to my current setup: Ultrasone PRO 550 ($150), Creative Titiaum HD ($135), unammed?
 
Thank you for your time, brother. Please guide a nOOb gently. Peace.

Heya,
 
The HE-500 has more relaxed treble than the HE-6, and is more efficient (so easier to power, the HE-6 needs serious power to make it sound like it's supposed to, it's very expensive to buy and expensive to power, I'd avoid it for now. The HE-500 is actually Dr Fang's response to the HE-6 and was supposed to be the HE-6's brother but they renamed it to a new series and called it HE-500, it's their best headphone in my opinion in terms of overall value). The LCD2 is a little warmer and has more laid back treble. The HE-500 is just bright enough to be fun, has awesome mids, and really good extended bass. I can listen to it all day without fatigue. I find it more comfortable than the LCD2 (a wee bit lighter, I prefer the velour pads too). For a more detailed review, there's a lot of HE-500 vs LCD2 comparisons out there as they're very similar and everyone has something that put them more on one or the other. For me, I liked the comfort of the HE-500 and that won me over.
 
$1650 for the HE-500, Bifrost & Lyr is an excellent entry High End setup. And I mean excellent.
 
For the Bifrost, you only need USB if you're going to plug it into a computer's USB port. If you have optical/spdiff out from your PC/laptop, then you can simply use that instead and not spend the extra $100. So ultimately it comes down to your needs. I got the USB simply because I can use it with a laptop/netbook when on the road since they don't tend to have optical/spdiff output. On my main machine, I have optical output to it and I'm happy with that. The voltage depends on where you live in the world. Here in the States, we use 115v. So that'd be your choice unless you live in Europe some where for example.
 
As for the Lyr, the tubes are up to you; just look for reviews on those tubes and see what you think. Really you cannot go wrong with any of them. I'm not much of a tube connoisseur, so I can't really go into detail there (there's oodles of threads about tube rolling and tube reviews in general). Again, the voltage for you in the States would be 115v.
 
Compared to the PRO550 and an HD Titanium combination, you're going to have a much more natural sound, more organic, better extension, clearer, better imaging, nicer sound stage and it will be less bright so a smoother listen. It's like going from an Accord to a Luxury Performance Sedan. Also, all the above has a really good re-sale value. So down the road if you want to change it up, you could sell them relatively easily.
 
Very best,

 

[Devarika Woulf]

You made everything very clear to me. Also, thank you on the voltage. I am too tired to Google everything. 

 
One more question. This review states that the quality of the earcups are poor and tend to crack a lot. Any tips on how to avoid this from happening? Has it happened to you?
 
Thanks bud. 

 

[TheMiddleSky]

Both of modern ortho (HE500 and LCD2) have awesome sound, but just make sure they are comfortable enough for you to long use, especially for movie. I found my head isn't that enjoying the weight and clamp to both of them ( an hour is ok, more than that I would complain)
 
and at the other side, Denon D-Series famous for their comfort level.

 

[MalVeauX]

Quote:

You made everything very clear to me. Also, thank you on the voltage. I am too tired to Google everything. 

 
One more question. This review states that the quality of the earcups are poor and tend to crack a lot. Any tips on how to avoid this from happening? Has it happened to you?
 
Thanks bud. 

My cup liner has not cracked, but I'm not taking them on and off all the time, so perhaps that's why. But it is a known problem. You can get new earpads from Head-direct if you email them. It's the one flaw of the headphone. It was not enough to sway me though, and I've had mine a while now and still no issue. It sounds so good I don't even care since that's a replaceable bit.
 
Very best,

 

[Devarika Woulf]

Quote:

Both of modern ortho (HE500 and LCD2) have awesome sound, but just make sure they are comfortable enough for you to long use, especially for movie. I found my head isn't that enjoying the weight and clamp to both of them ( an hour is ok, more than that I would complain)
 
and at the other side, Denon D-Series famous for their comfort level.

Do you have a big head? 

 
My PRO 550 is VERY comfy to wear. I have a normal sized head. I will have to make sure before I order. Anyone else find the HE500 uncomfortable?

 

[Redcarmoose]

 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/333953/denon-ah-d7000
 
 
There is a great thread here at Head-Fi talking about the Denon AH-D7000s. I purchased mine used for $450.00 usd. Love em.

 

[TheMiddleSky]

Quote:

Do you have a big head? 

 
My PRO 550 is VERY comfy to wear. I have a normal sized head. I will have to make sure before I order. Anyone else find the HE500 uncomfortable?

 
Well, I don't think I have oversize head, just typical asian people with 180 cm height and 73 kg weight.

 

[tim3320070]

I am treble sensitive too. I had the original HE-5 and those hurt my ears (literally). HE-500 may be different in that regard though. I disagree with MalVeauX about the D5000 being different from the D7000- they are very similar (I owned both for an extended period of time and the D7000 is my current phone). The D5000 may be slightly less refined and have slightly boomier bass but very similar otherwise. D7000 should not be fatiguing in the highs for you but they are not dark sounding either- lush and detailed is my description (with my setup). Awesome for movies. The only drawback to the D7000 is the price, I feel they are a $400 headphone max. Also, they don't isolate worth a damn (but more than an open phone for sure). But if you're patient, they can be had for $600 from J&R (negotiated) or Dakmart.
And.....I had the Pro650 and Hfi780 and both are fine headphones, great bass and detailed but they can be sharp sounding and lacking midrange. Not nearly as spacious and lush sounding as the D7000.

 

[eucariote]

Quote:

Heya,
 
If you don't like treble, you probably won't like the Denon D7000 (nor the HD800, T1). You may like the D5000. It's warmer. It has everything you're looking for, and is much less costly and is woodback too.

My experiences exactly.  The treble on D7000 was in the long run intolerable.  D5000 with their smoother treble were much easier to listen to.  But their recessed/missing mids were also too much to bear.  HE-500 and LCD-2 are *much* better than either Denon.

 

[Devarika Woulf]

OK, so, I have been doing some thinking and farting. While doing the thinking, I was doing some searching too. 

 
As of now, I think I am going with the LCD-2 Rev. 2. The HE-500 is fine and I'm sure I'd love it, but, despite the $300 lower price, most people prefer the LCD2 and it seems to be better suited for the heavy pop and rock I listen to. It has better bass which I love, though, perhaps a smaller soundstage. And it comes with a waterproof travel box. Yipee dodo...
 
Anyway, I have some more questions if anyone would help me.
 
1. I have been looking at some amps and DACs that people have been using. I saw a combo of the Violectric V181 amp and V800 DAC (around $1000 each), and also the Violectric V200 and Rega DAC (around $1000 each). Compared to the Lyr amp and Bilfrost DAC ($900 together), how would either of those combos sound? Which one would be better for me? Remember, I've never spent more than $150 on a headphone, so this is the first time I'd be hearing a headphone of this quality, so I don't really know what I am looking for. I have money but I'll only spend it if it's worth it. 

 
2. What am I looking for in an aftermarket cable? Where do I buy one? Is it needed?
 
3. Is the LCD-2 OK for using in an recording studio? I am asking because I was disappointed when found out the Denons were not.
 
Thank you so much. 

 

[Devarika Woulf]

Bump.