Impressions: RS-1 & K340

[deepak]

Speaking of which, you must download this file!

http://www.danleysoundlabs.com/Finale4.ZIP

Fireworks with full dynamics and no compression. Crank it up and wait for the big booms at the end.

Yeah I did, I will be playing them at my buddies' over winter break

[recstar24]

You would need the speakers because 16 hz is sub-bass and headphones cannot get the resonance properly for you to hear it (save select ones that have mucho mucho bass).

That is where the rump is. In capturing the true power and dynamics and weight of a "live" performance, headphones, IMO, simply can't touch speakers. You have to be able to actually move air to get that visceral response. Headphones really don't have it in comparison. I do love the bass on really nice headphone set-ups, it is very tight, detailed, and does go quite low, a very linear sound, but it doesn't have the ooomph behind it.

Overall, just because there is not a lot of musical material down there, doesn't mean that it is not important for a system to be able to capture those tones. Speaker rig 40 hz should be just fine, but if you can get in the mid 20's, your good. I've heard headphone rigs that went down to a clean mid 20's just fine, but again it lacks the power and drive when you hear it on a speaker rig.

[Dusty Chalk]

Is it enjoyable listening to fireworks? I've always gone to watch more than listen personally...

L, yeah, fireworks are a unique auditory experience.

[HiWire]

The HP-2 go pretty deep into the bass... a lot of headphone listeners keep trying to boost or mod their headphones for more bass, only to be disappointed. You can't get the impact of moving air or moving ground (like the drums in a marching band, for example) hitting your body through headphones. That's why headphones will always be a more cerebral listening experience than speakers, which are more visceral.

The lack of dynamics probably has something to do with the playback medium. It's hard to convey the information from a full orchestra using the CD standard for example - it's just an approximation.

[Dusty Chalk]

Hey Dusty is the SDS your preferred amp for the L3000 now?

I should qualify my original response: of what I have, yes. But I've heard better, and I know better is possible. The Singlepower Supra++ preceded by the Musical Fidelity X-Tone is not comparable to the Dragon driving a rewired pair. It's better than anything else I have, but that's about all I can say.