Hello from Coimbatore

[harsha89]

Hello fellow Audiophiles,
I'm very glad to be part of this community. My name is Harsha, as the title says, I reside in coimbatore, TN. My preferred music genres are classic, soft rock, blues, country. My Audio equipment include a Schiit Magni 2, Fiio K1, Sennheiser HD 650, HD 598, SoundMagic HP200 connected to a MB Pro. Hoping to have a great time with all your people and also gain some sonic-knowledge in the process. Good Day

 

[vinothkumar]

Welcome Harsha.

 

[efernand1]

Hi

Welcome to HFV!

I am sure you will enjoy your experience here browsing through the rich posts and experiences shared by our fellow members......

Happy Browsing......

 

[apk]

Hello fellow Audiophiles,
I'm very glad to be part of this community. My name is Harsha, as the title says, I reside in coimbatore, TN. My preferred music genres are classic, soft rock, blues, country. My Audio equipment include a Schiit Magni 2, Fiio K1, Sennheiser HD 650, HD 598, SoundMagic HP200 connected to a MB Pro. Hoping to have a great time with all your people and also gain some sonic-knowledge in the process. Good Day

Hello,

Welcome to the forum.

Those are some good headphones and associated equipment that you have.

Do pen down some thoughts on the HD650 - I am planning to upgrade from my AT M40x to either the HD600 or HD650. Am using the M40x with a FiiO X3 II - so some comments on the pairing of the HD650 with the Fiio will be helpful.

Best,
apk

 

[harsha89]

Hi

Welcome to HFV!

I am sure you will enjoy your experience here browsing through the rich posts and experiences shared by our fellow members......

Happy Browsing......

Thank you for the warm welcome, efernand1.. I hope to gain atleast a tiny bit of knowledge from this amazing forum. Glad to be a part of it. [emoji4]

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[harsha89]

Hello,

Welcome to the forum.

Those are some good headphones and associated equipment that you have.

Do pen down some thoughts on the HD650 - I am planning to upgrade from my AT M40x to either the HD600 or HD650. Am using the M40x with a FiiO X3 II - so some comments on the pairing of the HD650 with the Fiio will be helpful.

Best,
apk

Thank you apk. I'm very much glad to be part of this music community. I got my HD650 only a mere 10 days ago, I'm still in the process of burning in, maybe only 8-10 hours of usage has been completed. As of now, the headphone sounds truly sensational, even w/o proper amp/dac support. It's in a different league compared to my HD598. I'm planning to go for a Chord Mojo soon if things go well, also in the process of trying to sell my HD598, HP200 and Magni 2. In your case, I'm sure you'll find the HD650 to be a huge step up, but you need to understand that open backs sound comparatively different to closed backs, and there's also the Sennheiser house sound which you must take into account. Once again thanks for the welcome and my best regards, Harsha[emoji4]

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[harsha89]

Hello,

Welcome to the forum.

Those are some good headphones and associated equipment that you have.

Do pen down some thoughts on the HD650 - I am planning to upgrade from my AT M40x to either the HD600 or HD650. Am using the M40x with a FiiO X3 II - so some comments on the pairing of the HD650 with the Fiio will be helpful.

Best,
apk

Coming to your question about pairing the HD650 with a Fiio X3, personally I haven't tried an X3 before, but I've owned a E12 previously, which was a great amp in its own right. But what I do feel about Fiio products is, most of them color the sound a bit, also due to which the sound stage seems a bit small and there's a warm tone to it. If you use cold sounding headphones, like my SM HP200, it would pair well, but the HD650 has a smooth, dark sounding sonic character with a medium sized sound stage which will expand out very very well, when using the right amp and dac, meaning a nice powerful tube amp, say like a Valhalla 2 will make the 650 sound airy and wide. So I would suggest you to create a proper setup before investing in a HD650. Just my two cents. [emoji4]

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[apk]

Coming to your question about pairing the HD650 with a Fiio X3, personally I haven't tried an X3 before, but I've owned a E12 previously, which was a great amp in its own right. But what I do feel about Fiio products is, most of them color the sound a bit, also due to which the sound stage seems a bit small and there's a warm tone to it. If you use cold sounding headphones, like my SM HP200, it would pair well, but the HD650 has a smooth, dark sounding sonic character with a medium sized sound stage which will expand out very very well, when using the right amp and dac, meaning a nice powerful tube amp, say like a Valhalla 2 will make the 650 sound airy and wide. So I would suggest you to create a proper setup before investing in a HD650. Just my two cents. [emoji4]

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Hello....

Thanks for the reply and appreciate the feedback.

You are spot on regarding the feedback on the Fiio. It is similar to what I have read from other forums such as head-fi. For my current headphones - AT M40x - which are a bit treble heavy (though less than the M50x) - the Fiio is a good pairing.

My primary setup is a 2 channel one, and I use my HP mostly when I travel, at hotels etc - so I am keen to stick to a portable setup. Have been trying to evaluate between the Massdrop AKG 7xx and Senn HD650/6xx for a good open back - which will be a step up from what I have. From what you say regarding the pairing of the Fiio with HD650, the AKG may be a better bet.

Any thoughts on a good open/closed in the $200-300 range, that will work well with portables. BTW, I also have a Fiio A5 (the next version of the E12) stacked with my X3 II - so the overall driving power is quite decent.

Thanks again, and appreciate the response.

best,
apk

P.S - where did you get your HD650 from? Indian prices (from places like headphone.in) are quite high compared to the prices abroad.

 

[harsha89]

Hello....

Thanks for the reply and appreciate the feedback.

You are spot on regarding the feedback on the Fiio. It is similar to what I have read from other forums such as head-fi. For my current headphones - AT M40x - which are a bit treble heavy (though less than the M50x) - the Fiio is a good pairing.

My primary setup is a 2 channel one, and I use my HP mostly when I travel, at hotels etc - so I am keen to stick to a portable setup. Have been trying to evaluate between the Massdrop AKG 7xx and Senn HD650/6xx for a good open back - which will be a step up from what I have. From what you say regarding the pairing of the Fiio with HD650, the AKG may be a better bet.

Any thoughts on a good open/closed in the $200-300 range, that will work well with portables. BTW, I also have a Fiio A5 (the next version of the E12) stacked with my X3 II - so the overall driving power is quite decent.

Thanks again, and appreciate the response.

best,
apk

P.S - where did you get your HD650 from? Indian prices (from places like headphone.in) are quite high compared to the prices abroad.

Hello,
Regarding a suitable alternative instead of the AKG K701/HD650, I feel there's one other near equal headphone. That is the Philips Fidelio X2. They are open back, 30 ohm impedance, so relatively easy to drive, they are very well made too.. Most of the reviews have given it top marks. Currently it retails for about 240 dollars in amazon.com. A closed back alternative would be the ATH MSR-7. Since you are already accustomed to the A T house sound, I'm sure you'll like it. Coming to your current choice of selections, K701 is a different phone compared to the HD650. The AKG has an extremely wide but shallow soundstage which would work well for movies and such but would not give you the best experience when you really want to go into the music, as in while listening to a OST or an orchestra. For that, you have the HD650.. It may not have such a wide stage, but it melts upon you with its intimacy, tone and pure texture of notes. I'm sure it would be hard to go back, once you go the 650 route. Many people have compared the easily accessible HD598 to the 650, but in my books, the 650 is in a different league. After using it for a while, I felt the 598 sounded very open and hollow, with a lack of detail. So there's my "brief" sum up of the HD650 I got mine in the US, via a friend for about 430 dollars, Headphone zone may seem like a friendly joint, but they swindle well, never give out offers, but try to play the nice guy every time you want to make a purchase with them, please avoid as per my opinion. Lose an extra 50 dollars in shipping, but better to get it from abroad... Regards, Harsha [emoji4]

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[apk]

Thanks a lot Harsha for the candid feedback. This really helps.

Sadly, in India, we do not have the luxury of being able to audition any quality 'hi-fi' equipment before you buy - and as such a lot of purchases end up being blind ones. In that context, feedback from actual users such as you and other forum members are of immense value while taking that 'calculated' risk! Do post in the 'headphone' section of the forum regarding your experiences. Am sure that may FMs interested in headphones will gain from your views.

So thanks again, and appreciate the feedback.

best,
apk

 

[balzac]

Welcome to the HFV Forum!

I hope you get all the queries resolved over here.

Cheers!

 

[gbkrao]

Welcome to the forum

 

[Dude111]

Welcome to the site!!!!!!!

 

[harsha89]

Thank you for the welcome @balzac @gbkrao @Dude111

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