Speaker and Headphone Choices for listening to Classical Music

[xochitl]

Have you replaced the filters on your ER-4s?

yeah it's not that. i've had multiple cable failures i keep trying to fix and the red/blue pin connector things are so loose i actually super-glued em so i dont end up with the damn things in my hands and the transducers STUCK in my ears when i try to pull em out

they've seen their share of action 

[otare]

I am definitely in the "natural" camp. And even if my brother (erato) hates headphones, I don't I have 2 sets that I use a lot - Sennheiser HD800 and Stax SR-009. Both sound very natural, and both are extremely comfortable. The HD800 are fantastic at recreating the recording space. The instruments have a lot of space around them and sound very natural.
The SR-009 are extremely precise, and really shows all the detail in the recordings. Things you cannot hear on other equipment is quite audible in these headphones. Very pricey, but extremely good.
Both headphones are sometimes criticized for being "bright", but I think this is just another way of saying that they don't colour the sound by emphasizing the bass.

BTW: The HD800 can sound a bit "anemic" without a good amplifier. I use a Woo Audio WA2 with them - a very good combination in my ears (the WA2 is a tube-amp, and this may go against my stand on "natural reproduction" since tubes do color the sound a bit, but who cares when it sounds as good as this   )

[bigshot]

My speakers are custom made studio monitors built in the late 70s along with Klipsch center and rears and a top of the line Sunfire subwoofer. 5:1 is a huge advantage, even for two channel stereo recordings.

For headphones, I use Oppo PM-1s and I'm pretty satisfied with them. Nice balanced response. Very natural sounding.

[Todd]

Just got the Beyerdynamic DT 880 Premium Edition Over Ear Stereo Headphones 250 Ohm Bundle.

A most excellent choice, especially if you got any kind of discount. 

[Spotted Horses]

I like Beyerdynamic, and wow a thread resurrected from 2014 with a post from "bigshot."

[Todd]

A bit over 200 for all the stuff. I am very interested in the accessories, especially after have read your post about the Asgard, do this is my foray into this world. I use headphones pretty much all the time, might as well begin optimizing them.

Schiit offers some extremely fine, cheap headphone amps.  The Magnis all sound excellent.  (I have three different versions since they are cheap and fun to play with.)  The Heretic would be an excellent budget choice - it's so clean with such perfect measurements.  (I have the earlier Heresy unit.)  Of course, I kind of want the Mjolnir 3, despite its price, not because the price can be justified by sonics, but because of engineering reasons - Class A, true dual mono with two transformers and two chokes, giant heatsinks, lots of caps, etc.  My current day in/day out serious listening headphone amp is the Jotunheim 2.  It pairs nicely with Beyers.

[Spotted Horses]

Schiit offers some extremely fine, cheap headphone amps.  The Magnis all sound excellent.  (I have three different versions since they are cheap and fun to play with.)  The Heretic would be an excellent budget choice - it's so clean with such perfect measurements.  (I have the earlier Heresy unit.)  Of course, I kind of want the Mjolnir 3, despite its price, not because the price can be justified by sonics, but because of engineering reasons - Class A, true dual mono with two transformers and two chokes, giant heatsinks, lots of caps, etc.  My current day in/day out serious listening headphone amp is the Jotunheim 2.  It pairs nicely with Beyers.

Hope you have better luck than I did with Schitt. I just got a RMA number to send my Schiit Magni+ for (warranty) repair - defective volume control with static/intermittent contact as it is turned. My experience seems to be the exception, since I mostly read that people are happy with them.

[Todd]

Hope you have better luck than I did with Schitt. I just got a RMA number to send my Schiit Magni+ for (warranty) repair - defective volume control with static/intermittent contact as it is turned.

I've owned many pieces of their gear, and never had any issues.  This goes back to around 2010-11.

[DavidW]

Just got the Beyerdynamic DT 880 Premium Edition Over Ear Stereo Headphones 250 Ohm Bundle.

An excellent headphone.  But needs some serious amping.  The FiiO K5 Pro is a powerful all in one dac/amp that can drive anything and only costs $150.  Separates will run you at least $200.

[AnotherSpin]

Hope you have better luck than I did with Schitt. I just got a RMA number to send my Schiit Magni+ for (warranty) repair - defective volume control with static/intermittent contact as it is turned. My experience seems to be the exception, since I mostly read that people are happy with them.

I had Schiit Gungnir Multibit and it stopped working properly after a year or so. Repaired by authorised dealer and happily sold.

[Spotted Horses]

I've owned many pieces of their gear, and never had any issues.  This goes back to around 2010-11.

It's a data point. In my case they are 1 for 2 (DAC is fine). Looks like I'll be listening though bluetooth for a while.

I'll report on their customer service. The RMA came with an email threatening that if the device isn't received within 7 days the repair will be canceled. That's nice of them.

[Todd]

It's a data point.

And my experience is a data point.  My life is comprised of many data points, as it turns out. 

[Holden]

As mentioned, the Schiit Asgard 3 is a fine amp and will drive virtually anything you throw at it because it is so powerful.

[DavidW]

An excellent headphone.  But needs some serious amping.  The FiiO K5 Pro is a powerful all in one dac/amp that can drive anything and only costs $150.  Separates will run you at least $200.

And for more choices the Topping DX3pro is $200 dac/amp combo.  I had a bad experience with a defective model from them in the past, but I recognize that it is a reputable brand on par with SMSL, FiiO, Schiit etc.

[Mookalafalas]

And for more choices the Topping DX3pro is $200 dac/amp combo.  I had a bad experience with a defective model from them in the past, but I recognize that it is a reputable brand on par with SMSL, FiiO, Schiit etc.

  I have a topping DX3pro, and am very happy with it. The physical unit does get surprisingly hot, though.

[71 dB]

I simply use a pair of headphones that do the job well on any kind of music (Sennheiser HD-598). My ears are "burnt in" to those cans, so whatever sound signature they have, I am used to it and instead of worrying about if something else would be better (of course there are tons of "better" cans out there), I concentrate on listening to music.

While many are finetuning the frequency response of their headphones with EQ and what not, I use crossfeed to shape the spatiality of recordings mixed for speakers more binaural to suite headphone listening. For some reason I am very allergic to excessive "unnatural" channel separation on headphones and simple crossfeed improves the perceived sound quality often dramatically for me.

Using a lot of more money on Hi-End cans I could probably improve the sound quality, but after the initial joy of greatness my ears would get used to that and the joy would fade away leaving me with a weaker bank account. Sennheiser HD-598 + crossfeed allows me to enjoy music in a way where it is the quality of the recording and music limiting my enjoyment rather than my gear. Wanting better and better all the time is greed. Being contempt with the good you have is happiness. I want to choose wisely if I can.

[Spotted Horses]

It's a data point. In my case they are 1 for 2 (DAC is fine). Looks like I'll be listening though bluetooth for a while.

I'll report on their customer service. The RMA came with an email threatening that if the device isn't received within 7 days the repair will be canceled. That's nice of them.

Ok, I sent the amp by USPS on Wednesday, and tracking said to expect delivery on Friday (today). Hmmm. They are 40 miles away from me, in Valencia, CA. Today tracking says my package is in Kentucky. Not an auspicious start.

[DavidW]

Just got my headphones, and they are very fancy, but my current system is not so much, so I need to get a few more things. Lol. Thankfully, Christmas is right around the corner, and I have a solid stopgap.

Did you get the original silver finish or the black finish?

[ando]

I don't know, today my Sony XM4s sounded particularly good (Don't understand the complaints about breaking parts and the like. I don't think peeps are handling the phones with any kind of decent care). Was streaming Mozart on Apple Music but I don't recall this particular set of tracks sounding as crisp as it did on my morning jaunt. I did switch mobile carriers yesterday because of continued long term drop/low signal issues (T-Mobile). Anyway, until they fall apart my XM4s are my my steady.

[Holden]

Ok, I sent the amp by USPS on Wednesday, and tracking said to expect delivery on Friday (today). Hmmm. They are 40 miles away from me, in Valencia, CA. Today tracking says my package is in Kentucky. Not an auspicious start.

Sounds like Australia Post. I live on the east coast (Qld) and one parcel I was expecting was coming from 800 kms further south in Sydney. Then it went 3000 kms west to Perth, then back to Sydney then finally to me. Every stop was at least a two day further delay in the journey.