Headphones

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New headphones - not impressed with the overall sound - improvements possible without amp? (alien.top)

submitted 1 year ago by xXRyuuGinXx@alien.top to c/headphones@hi-fi.community

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Hello guys.

A few days ago I got a new headphone.

It's the Fostex T50RP 50th anniversary edition.So not a T50 in a standard way because it has T60 drivers, T60 earpads and a different headband.My old headphones were audio technica ATH-M30.

I'm only driving them through my PC.

Mainboard is an AsRock B650E Steel Legends Wifi with a Realtek ALC897 Audio Codec sound chip.

The biggest difference compared to my old headphones was that the Fostex headphones were a lot quieter which is probably normal given that they are way harder to drive and given that they are planar headphones. Usually I was using 30% volume on windows and that was more than enough for me. Now with the Fostex headphones I have to use something between 40-50% but I still have the feeling that somehow punchiness is missing. They are way more clearer and more detailed compared to my old headphones but my old headphones had more punch (as in bass). At least that's what I'm thinking.

I read a few days regarding this "issue" and some people mentioned that the Nahimic sound driver could be an issue. But I tried both... With and without (completely uninstalled everything that was related to it) and it made zero difference. Now when playing songs I can hear still random noises in the background but it's at the exact same place where it was when listening with my previous headphones. That gives me the impression that a DAC would be a good idea.

My question is now: Is there something I can change on the windows settings to make my Fostex headphones fuller and louder without damaging my ears or is an amplifier the only solution here? Because originally I haven't planned to purchase amp and/or DAC and finding a good budget option is hard. Already tried looking for something on AVexchange but most people selling CONUS only or one guy doesn't even reply anymore (he sold a JDS Labs Atom stack but it seems like he is either banned or didn't came online anymore for a few days now which is a bummer). Also it's hard finding good options because I'm from Germany so majority of amps would cost extra taxes like Schiit stacks or JDS Labs stacks. But I read about quite a lot of issues with Schiit (ground issues, overheating issues, some headphones died when you did not turn them off etc.). For iFi it's a bit similar. There seems to be an issue with the autoplay function where everything is delayed somehow. I really don't know what to do at this point.

Thanks for everybody who is able to help.

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[–] KingBasten@alien.top 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

IMO you should first get headphones you really like and only then worry about EQ and amp/dac. People should see that you are on a budget, in that case spending hundreds on source gear gets you very low return on investment. The headphones make up so much of the total sound and while some people can get really great results with EQ, for the average person it's a bit much to get that deep into it. Most of us are just looking to boost the treble or bass a bit, or use a harman curve preset maybe, which for all of that if you don't start with headphones you already like, will be an uphill battle.

If you like bass a lot you should look into something like Meze Neo maybe, they are quite bass heavy and easy to listen to. Pads get hot though. Fidelio X2 is also pretty banger, or DT990. If you don't like bass, look into Sennheisers first. Good luck, it really can be a rabbit hole.

[–] xXRyuuGinXx@alien.top 1 points 1 year ago

There are a few things I can tell for headphone requirements:

I am very treble sensitive. My old audio technicas are having this problem with YouTube videos. S, T and Z sounds do sound like an ice pickle in my ear. That's why I know that Beyerdynamic won't be good for me. I heard that if you're getting older you won't notice these frequencies anymore and then people tend to use Beyerdynamic more often but I have a few years more until I am reaching that point (I'm 33 years old). The DT 700 Pro X and 900 Pro X should be an exception and maybe the DT 177x GO but I have no option to test those because Germany isn't selling them in their stores.
I really like bass but not so much that everything else starts to sound muddy which I heard is the case for the Meze headphones.
The main music I am listening to are genres like deathcore, metalcore and japanese rock and visual kei. Bands like Orbit Culture, Within Destruction, Until I Wake, Currents, Hollow Front, Dir En Grey, Girugamesh but also softer stuff like Dayseeker, Sleep Token, Bilmuri or Valiant Hearts.
My father and brother are having Sennheiser headphones but they are Bluetooth ones and they sounded a bit dull and lifeless to me. But it could be because my ears are too big to fot in those tiny earpads so a lot of sound leaked. Also the sub-bass is really short for the music I am listening to because bass is required for the kick drums for example as far as I know.
As previously mentioned I have big ears. The earpads from the Fostex headphones were very comfortable and I head enough space for my ears although my ears touched a bit the material where the drivers are lying behind.