Beats are unbelievable. I was just going to ask where I could buy some REALLY cheap or used? I checked craigslist but it's not really cheap. I can get them for $200 because I know a guy who works at Futureshop but I want it at like 150 if I can.
They are unbelievable. Saves you battery power on the iPod and you can hear the little "ooooohs" and "ahhhhs" that the producers put in that you can't hear from regular headphones or speakers.
Beats are grossly overpriced IMO(I'm starting to sound like a broken record), but if you can get them for cheap they aren't bad headphones. Seriously though, you could probably pick up a $50 pair of Sennys, crank up the bass in your equalizer settings, and get comparable sound quality.
A headphone amp. My Audio Technica's get plenty loud enough most of the time, but with certain kinds of music(classical specifically) there just isn't enough juice. I could still hear some coworkers talking in the background over the music. First I picked up one called a "Boostaroo" from Radio Shack. I was hesitant, due to it being so tacky looking. Returned it due to there being a constant hiss coming from it over my headphones.
This one is a lot better though, and cheaper too. Better build quality, smaller, better aesthetics, charges via USB, and most importantly there's no hiss. Also, it's tiny, only about the size of a book of matches.
Does the E5 improve quality or bass, or is it just volume?
Bought a gaming headset thinking I could swing it both ways and listen to music as well. Really bad when listening to music so I need to get some different headphones.
Does the E5 improve quality or bass, or is it just volume?
It does have a bass boost switch but I never use it. The M50s are plenty bassy for my tastes. Otherwise the difference in audio quality is probably negligible. One thing I kind of don't like about it is that it doesn't give you any sort of indication when the battery is about to die, and it doesn't continue to send the signal through when it's off. No biggie though.
Speaking of my M50s, I gotta say they were extremely uncomfortable at first. They would literally cause my ears stinging pain after wearing them for a couple hours at a time. I almost took them back and instead got a pair of Beyerdynamic DT770s after like three weeks or so, but I decided to stick with them since the Beyers didn't sound AS good, and they seemed to be getting slightly more comfortable the longer I used them. That was a good decision because now the comfort is fine. Just took a really long time to break them in. Interestingly enough they're a top ten headphone on both HeadFi and HeadRoom.
For you bass heads who want an alternative to Beats, maybe give these a shot:
Sony XB500
Tried them out recently and they sound just as good and bassy as the Beats, but cost far less(50 bucks on Amazon).
I've never tried that Sony model before I don't think, but the Senn 201s are a great value. Bought a pair for my brother a couple years ago and they sound great, especially when you consider that they're only like 20 bucks.
Does the E5 improve quality or bass, or is it just volume?
Depends on the headphone, but it definitely improves quality somewhat and it will also allow you to raise the volume more. E5 is a cheap amp so the difference won't be as noticeable as with other more expensive amps. E5 is better than no amp at all though.
Unfortunately, I am stuck with a used pair of vintage Beyerdynamic DT880s but can't afford a $100 amp. Bought the 880s for $105 used but I am using it underpowered. Never spend big bucks on a headphone and then cheap out on the amplifier. Usually (not always true), a $300 headphone with NO amp at all will sound the same or worse as a $100 headphone with a nice $100 desktop amp. Your typical soundcards cannot fully power up powerful headphones like the DT880s..
BTW - don't buy the Dr Dre Beats. Absolute rip-off. My old Denon D1001 at $150 sound almost as good than the Beats by Dr Dre for half the price. The Denon D2000 at $350 will COMPLETELY blow the Dr Dre Beats absolutely out of the water for $50 more than the Dr Dre Beats. So will the regular Beyerdynamic DT770s (even the pro version of them will beat them) for around $220.
Again, do NOT waste your money. The bass blows on them and they say on the box that recording studios use the Dr Dre Beats. Completely false advertising.. People at head-fi laugh at how people get ripped off with the Dr Dre Beats.
Check out this thread where people review the Dr Dre Beats; most people will mention how horrible those Dr Dre Beats are and their sound quality is not worth more than $150 at the very best. http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/...eats-by-dr-dre
Take the word over those guys at head-fi over anything you hear around here or in best buy. If you have the $300 to spend on the Beats, do yourself a favor and do some kind of research. You are doing yourself a disservice otherwise. I spent a couple weeks doing research on those head-fi forums before I decided to buy the Denon D1001, which was my first true decent headphones after I blew money on garbage "Gaming" headphones or "True 5.1 surround sound" headphones with all false advertising. I realized that I was getting ripped off so bad by headphones that I thought sounded great, but in reality, I was throwing my money away. Then I bought a pair of DT880s, unbelievable headphones that blew me away.
Depends on the headphone, but it definitely improves quality somewhat and it will also allow you to raise the volume more. E5 is a cheap amp so the difference won't be as noticeable as with other more expensive amps. E5 is better than no amp at all though.
Look at the E7 then if you can afford to shell out $90. Those are also solid for on-the-go. E5 is Fiio's low-end amplifier so keep that in mind. E7 is smaller and lighter than the E9, but made for ipods and mp3 players and stuff. E9 is only used as a desktop amplifier that will be sitting around on a desk.
Re: Post Your Headphones
