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dantechpro
8
Aug 5, 2020
I've been using my HD6XX headphones for a few months now. Overall I'm happy with them, but I'm starting to notice that they seem very dark. All my other headphones (cheaper ones) have much more mids and highs. I'm using the AAA 789 as the amp. I'm mostly happy using my Echo AudioFire12 as the DAC but I recently switched to the Grace SDAC Balanced. The darkness seems much more extreme with the Grace SDAC. I get fatigued by the low-mids. When I switch back to the Echo, it's like a fog is lifted on the highs. My other headphones seem fine on the Grace SDAC. Are the HD6XXs supposed to be dark like this? Overall, I prefer the sound over my other headphones, but I'm very disappointed in the pairing with the Grace SDAC. Others seem to like that combination, so I'm a little worried something may be wrong with my HD6XXs. Thoughts?
raansire7
1507
Aug 28, 2020
dantechproNothing is wrong with your HD 6XX. They are just picky headphones. They will sound dark on one setup, muddy-ish on the other, clear on the next, but they will never be "normal sparkly". They have a not-so-bright, thick from the mids down sound signature overall and it's why lots of people enjoy them. I greatly appreciate mine, but I have to be in the mood for them. Sometimes I just want sparkle and some a lot of my favorite tracks have reverbs and delays that are not too noticeable on the HD 6XX.
dantechpro
8
Aug 28, 2020
raansire7That’s great to hear! I was worried. I’ve since purchased the RME ADI-2 DAC FS and I’m using the parametric EQ to counter the frequency response a little. Now they sound amazing! I basically set the EQ to do the opposite if the frequency response graph and bumped the 80 hz and below a little. Drop recently announced a headphone amp that’s dedicated solely to the 6XX. They have some hardwired EQ you can engage specifically for the 6XX. Knowing how well they perform with my RME, I’d highly recommend everyone gets that amp for their 6XX’s assuming that amp will do what I’ve done with the RME. The difference is night and day.
raansire7
1507
Aug 28, 2020
dantechproIf you got yourself an RME ADI-2 DAC FS, then I suppose you know in what kind of awesomeness you have gotten yourself into. You're like...at the top regardless of price. You made it, ha-ha! Nothing else Drop sells can really touch it. I haven't gotten one myself because I feel really lazy to spend that amount of money even if I have it, ha-ha, and I don't want to get something that'll make everything else I own sound lesser. Yeah, I was reading about the new iFi audio ZEN CAN Signature 6XX Amp. I dislike the form factor, but the idea seems promising, and I'll probably try it when it's easy to just buy without waiting ten years.
dantechpro
8
Aug 29, 2020
raansire7I agree. That iFi thing is ugly. And yeah, this RME ADI-2 DAC FS is freaking amazing. It really is endgame. I thought I'd use my AAA 789 with it, but the built-in headphone amp sounds better to me. Given how accurate the 789 is, I guess the RME headphone amp has a distortion that's pleasing to me. I wish the RME came with a balanced headphone output. I could still use my 789 for that assuming I could hear the difference. It's amazing what you can do with the parametric EQ. I made presets for all of my older sub-$100 headphones and actually got them all sounding pretty good - cringe to smile. It's so hard to find the perfect headphone. The EQ helps mitigate one of the factors. I gather you don't need the recommendation, but maybe a small push: buy it! Buy it now! Just make sure you get the most recent iteration with the upgraded remote.
raansire7
1507
Aug 29, 2020
dantechproI've been noodling with computer music production for almost 20 years and do appreciate parametric EQs, but I am a bit of a puritan when it comes to headphones, ha-ha. I accept their raw sound...flaws and all. I've tried to EQ them, but psychologically, I can't handle the fact that I'm altering their sound. It's why I've refused to get a Schiit Loki even if I am curious about it. I'm a Schiit head, BTW, so I really like their stuff. I don't pay attention to measurements. My ears are not lab equipment. If I don't hear it, I don't care about quieter equipment which I can't appreciate. Twice as inaudible isn't better than inaudible. Unless that inaudibleness affects the audible parts, I don't worry! I simply have to like what I hear even if it's full of distortion. If the distortion will make my hair neck stand-up, I welcome it. Distortion doesn't mean lack of clean sound. My Vali 2, which I gifted to a friend along with my Modi Multibit, was super clean-sounding and the thing had more distortion than everything else I owned. I pay more attention to detail retrieval and layering and depth and all the good stuff. I like holographic sound. It's why I love Schiit Audio. Everything I've bought from them sounds very 3D and precise to my ears. I got a Modius a few months ago and it sounds so clean and spacious, and also measures impressively. Thinking of getting the new companion Magnius. For now, I'm rocking it with the Asgard 1. Sounds delicious. I like it more than my Asgard 2. Must be the distortion, ha-ha. Eventually I will get the RME, because I don't want it to be discontinued or replaced with a "better" model. Thanks for the pointer about the latest iteration. What headphones do you own?
dantechpro
8
Aug 30, 2020
raansire7I get what you're saying about being a purist. It takes so much effort and money though chasing down the best sounding gear when you gotta get the combinations just right. I'm fine with EQ if it saves me from trying to find a better match for my 6XXs. I'd like to have a chance to demo some Schitt gear. I've heard so many great things. I came close to buying their Bifrost DAC. That whole multibit thing is intriguing. The 6XXs are the only headphones I have that are worth mentioning. I haven't had them for very long but now that I've splurged on the RME, for some reason it seems like spending $1.5k on a pair of Hifiman Arya's would be my next logical purchase. The idea of trying to find perfect audio reproduction seems a little silly to me. When I play my acoustic guitar, that must be as good as perfect can get, but it doesn't sound nearly as exciting as that same guitar picking up "distortion" through a sweet mic, mic pre, mixing console, ADC, DAC, amp and top notch headphones. All that stuff adds its own signature and we're all chasing down whatever "distorts" the best.
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