HeadphoneAddict

That reminds me, I need to install the CMMG short barrel upper on my AR-15 someday.

I agree, they have a niche to fill. In the end, after owning 2 different modded/re-cabled HFI-780 I sold them in favor of my re-cabled D2000 which improved even more with wood cups. Eventually I realized my woodied recabled D2000 were better than my Edition 9 and I sold the 9's as well. But the modded D2000 still were lacking in the midrange presence and lower treble (could be dark at times) and I was using my ESW10JPN or IEM more when I needed closed phones. In the end it's hard these days for people to find a nice "affordable" closed can that doesn't have problems somewhere. The HD25-1 have no soundstage and clamp too tight, the Ultrasones are too colored, the ESW9 are too dark, the ATH-A900 too lopsided without mods like a Denon (although my modded A900 are fun to listen to). The ESW10JPN are a great closed phone but also a costly limited edition and not everyone was lucky to get a pair. I thought about getting a pair of Shure SRH840 after I heard them at CanJam, but in the end it just didn't make sense to get another mid-grade closed phone when I have enough nice ones right now. Someday I will have to join team minimal. It should make life easier. As for Takashi, I can see where you are frustrated with his post, but he's just excited about his new purchase and amazed at his friend's method of adjusting iTunes to make it sound bad.

Great, that's what I'm saying.

Okay.

Grawk, only the first and last post quoted above would be construed as constructive criticism. The rest is a team bashing.

So, if I do that do you guys get to keep acting like the junior high school bully?

So, your solution? I should sell it all, give it away, or shut up and not help others like Takashi?

Being able to help you makes it all seem worth it in the end.

Now I get to look even more stupid because jp11801 was talking about the Icon Desktop so I replied talking about the desktop amp, not the mobile that Takashi bought. A quote of jp11801 was supposed to be in my last post. It's too late to edit, so let her rip! PS: The Icon Mobile is good with Denon, responds very well to 200 hours of burn-in, and sounds best via USB. Battery life sucks, and it's a little bright/forward with ipods.

Well, I'd be worried about someone flipping switches on the ZDT to another input or speaker out, turning up the volume, getting no sound, flipping a switch, and suddenly blasting sound, thus cooking phones. Or the hair gel guys leaving a stench on my phones because they weren't considerate enough to not wear hair products. Gear getting up and walking away is always a concern when there are people who are not members of the community who are trying out gear. And more...

Welcome to Colorado!

I only enjoy reviewing stuff that I like, and want to share that with others. I like finding the "best bang for the buck" gear. If I don't like it, I don't want to waste my time reviewing it, but I will still be very verbal in the forums when the subject comes up, and warn people off. And, in my reviews I still try to compare the subject to other gear so that others will know where it stands in the order of things. I believe in my comments that I stated the $190 Travagans Red is a better headphone amp in terms of detail and refinement. I've always said the Nuforce performs best as a speaker amp, and does a better job driving a Stax transformer than it does with headphones. So, saying that it sounds good doesn't mean it will keep up with my WA6, nor is it saying that a cheaper amp can't sound better. The Nuforce sounds like a $200-250 amp, and that doesn't mean it can't sound nice, even though my ZDT will make it sound like a joke. I think that there are varying degrees of nice. I simply found that the Nuforce did a good job with the Denon headphones and posted that. Takashi agrees. 12 months from now he'll have a nicer amp and maybe he'll think the Nuforce was crap in comparison, but for now it gets the job done on a budget. From his posts I can see that he's getting far more enjoyment now than $200 in the bank would give him. And, I still find things I don't like in my reviews. My review of the StyleAudio CARAT-TOPAZ wasn't all positive. StyleAudio Topaz Amp Eval / Review Thread Nor was my review of the Freq Show custom IEM: The FreQ Custom IEMs - Impressions Thread (Updates on First Page!) - part 1 and The FreQ Custom IEMs - Impressions Thread (Updates on First Page!) - part 2 And then there was my review of the Firestone Audio Fubar III that said it wasn't so hot: REVIEW: Firestone Audio Amps - Cute Beyond and Fubar III I posted a mini-review about not liking the Senn IE8. And my review of the Grahm Slee Solo SRG wasn't all that positive since I mostly liked it with the HD600 but not as much with other headphones, and I even did an update after CanJam to discuss it's lack of synergy with HD800. Those are just a few examples. [EDIT] I don't know why the hell I even bother coming back here for more abuse about my reviews. You guys suck all the fun out of this hobby. There's no room for budget gear, and if someone doesn't have the best gear then they're not worthy. Or, if they have nice gear, it still isn't good enough. Maybe you should have an admission test for head-case - if new members don't have a DAC over $2000, or one piece of gear from Headamp or with Gilmore in the name then they can't play.

I was using 2 left over small Velodyne satellites from my "Deco" 5.1 system and a Travagans or Nuforce mini speaker amp, but my Audioengine A2 are better since their internal amp is EQ'd for their proper balance and best sound. I didn't want anything as big as the A5, so this works well for me and should for others out there as well. I haven't felt the need for a subwoofer yet, but that could be useful. Funny how this thread was resurrected from the dead...

That link isn't dangerous is it?

4 inches including the thickness of the material around it, so maybe 1/16th inch less than 4".

Photos from my upcoming mini-review:

There is another CanJam this year, being held at Rocky Mountain Audio Fest. Go figure.

I liked the BA at CanJam more than the WA5, which seemed a little underpowered with my K1000. I only got to hear someone elses HD800 single ended on the BA which was very nice, but my own 4-pin XLR HD800 were in the TTVJ/Woo room at CanJam and those were pretty good with the WA5. I also don't think my K1000 sound quite as good with my ZDT as with the BA, but my ZDT is at least as good and maybe better than the WA5 was with my K1000. Craig Uthus says he thinks the BA is better for the K1000 than the ZDT, but I wasn't able to compare them side by side because the prototype ZDT didn't make it to CanJam. I think he recommended 300B tubes for K1000.

For the locals setting up "member rigs", we should do shifts where members can take turns watching each other's rig so that each member isn't stuck guarding their own rig the entire time. Any suggestions for making it work?

Audioengine A2

I can't even build a cmoy...

Ron, are there issues with hiss using your ES3X?

What, huh?

I've posted complaints about the same thing - my Jade arrived with the leather ear pads smelling like a sweaty horse saddle, and the smell would transfer to my head. Now, 8 months later the smell is much better and doesn't transfer any more. The Jade are still a little loose on my head though, and I wear a medium hat size (around a 7.5). There doesn't seem to be any way to easily bend the head band to be tighter. My Jade and Naamanf's HE 1.2b both sound very good on his rig or mine.

The only ones I listen to right now are the JH13Pro, ES3X and UE11Pro. I don't bother with the old customs anymore - they don't sound as good or fit as well as these. The Livewires T1 needed 3 re-fits and went from too loose to too tight. The SE530 in custom LW shell are slightly loose in the right, and actually have less bass than the LW T1 and a slight sibilance. The Freq Show never sounded that good to me, but work much better with a 75 ohm switch on an amp, but also fit a little loose on the right as well.