audiophiles help me

[psychobiologist]

Let's put it this way... if you have good earphones, you will be able to tell poorly encoded MP3s from the good ones.

i rip most of my mp3s by EAC + Lame.. sometimes i accidentally forgot to adjust the bitrate and it comes out as 128/160/192kbps stuff which at times i might not realize when i dont do a side by side comparison. my default rippin' bitrate's 320.

the culprit for bad sound is more of poorly recorded CDs for me though.. EAC ripping's pretty accurate

not all recordings are recorded equal.. diff equips.. etc.. some cds no matter whether i listen to the mp3 ripped from it, or the original CD.. they just dont bite..(an example's one of olivia ong's SACDs) something really lacking in the sonic balance.. maybe some CDs sound more analogue than others? :bsmilie:

well i dont know but if anyone thinks 128/160kbps is too lossy.. you could try ripping some mp3s off some telarc recordings at different bitrates on a good encoder. it will still sound good, but side by side comparison of course 320's audibly better.

 

[nottipiglet]

I recommend that you try the following before you decide:

Koss PortaPro
Sennheiser PX100

These are very affordable open-back headphones (not earphones). I always find open back headphones to have a much more airy and natural sound. Also, these headphones are low-impedence. Meaning, they are very easy to drive. You can get some very high-end headphones, but they will sound crap with your ipod.

If you like Rock/Pop... the Koss is a better choice because it has more bass.

Don't like earphones. They sound enclosed and unnatural... even the best ones. But then again, with these audio equipment, it's personal.

 

[lsisaxon]

i rip most of my mp3s by EAC + Lame.. sometimes i accidentally forgot to adjust the bitrate and it comes out as 128/160/192kbps stuff which at times i might not realize when i dont do a side by side comparison. my default rippin' bitrate's 320.

the culprit for bad sound is more of poorly recorded CDs for me though.. EAC ripping's pretty accurate

not all recordings are recorded equal.. diff equips.. etc.. some cds no matter whether i listen to the mp3 ripped from it, or the original CD.. they just dont bite..(an example's one of olivia ong's SACDs) something really lacking in the sonic balance.. maybe some CDs sound more analogue than others? :bsmilie:

well i dont know but if anyone thinks 128/160kbps is too lossy.. you could try ripping some mp3s off some telarc recordings at different bitrates on a good encoder. it will still sound good, but side by side comparison of course 320's audibly better.

Yeah.. That's why I prefer US mastered CDs. ;p Remastering in SG or EU for certain pressings destroys the quality. 3 labels I consider to be audiophile class are Telarc, Sheffield Labs and Reference Recordings. Most of my country CDs are US import. ;p

LAME does quite a good job though I encode my stuff using VBR instead of a fixed bitrate.

 

[psychobiologist]

Yeah.. That's why I prefer US mastered CDs. ;p Remastering in SG or EU for certain pressings destroys the quality. 3 labels I consider to be audiophile class are Telarc, Sheffield Labs and Reference Recordings. Most of my country CDs are US import. ;p

LAME does quite a good job though I encode my stuff using VBR instead of a fixed bitrate.

yup!! i love telarc, but most of their cds are not very common in sg, unless i take a peek over at NDV at adelphi..

have lots of jazz albums from telarc.. superb stuff.. monty alexander.. ronnie earl etc..
these are the times where by a cheap mp3 player (iriver) + a pair of nice earphones take me out of this world

i only have a couple of sheffield recordings but they are test-discs

 

[lsisaxon]

yup!! i love telarc, but most of their cds are not very common in sg, unless i take a peek over at NDV at adelphi..

have lots of jazz albums from telarc.. superb stuff.. monty alexander.. ronnie earl etc..
these are the times where by a cheap mp3 player (iriver) + a pair of nice earphones take me out of this world

i only have a couple of sheffield recordings but they are test-discs

Mine are mostly test discs since country music isn't released under these labels. But most country music are very well mastered, afterall, some of the best mastering labs are found in Nashville, Tennessee. ;p You could find many titles mastered with HDCD before Microsoft bought Pacific Microsonics.

 

[seankyh]

absolutely positively. the earbug that came with the iPod sucks. you are in for a surprise.

I'm using the best earphones my pocket allows at the moment.. Shure E2C and Etymotic ER6i. They do enhance the audio from my iPod and the earphones that came with my iPod is untouched :bsmilie: Having these earphones also alerts me to poorly encoded MP3s which is why I normally encode at 320 kpbs minimum. I tend to go higher for classical music. iPod these days got 160GB so space is not an issue anymore.

I find the Etys quite good for classical reproduction but very poor for low frequencies. I'm not an audiophile so sorry, I don't really know the term. I just know that I need the 2 headphones that I have for different music.

I do have my eye on the new Shures but at that price ... :sweat: shheeeeshh

 

[Noakram]

Yeah.. That's why I prefer US mastered CDs. ;p Remastering in SG or EU for certain pressings destroys the quality.

Absolutely agree with your comments here. I prefer US mastered CDs too while in the case of Deutsche Grammophon, I would prefer those Made In Germany.

 

[jeanie]

appreciate all the feedback and recommendations.

u guys rock.:thumbsup::kiss:

 

[lsisaxon]

I'm using the best earphones my pocket allows at the moment.. Shure E2C and Etymotic ER6i. They do enhance the audio from my iPod and the earphones that came with my iPod is untouched :bsmilie: Having these earphones also alerts me to poorly encoded MP3s which is why I normally encode at 320 kpbs minimum. I tend to go higher for classical music. iPod these days got 160GB so space is not an issue anymore.

I find the Etys quite good for classical reproduction but very poor for low frequencies. I'm not an audiophile so sorry, I don't really know the term. I just know that I need the 2 headphones that I have for different music.

I do have my eye on the new Shures but at that price ... :sweat: shheeeeshh

Try the Sony MDR-EX90LP. ;p Maybe I should have bitten the bullet and bought them instead of the cheaper EX85LP, also claimed to be studio monitor class. The EX85LP sounds so good that I felt that for the price difference, the EX90 should be even better. But then again, maybe it isn't.. I'll never know unless I buy a pair of the EX90.

 

[Loupisk]

Sorry to OT.

My shoots now will be of the pregnancy of madam Loupisk.

No more big spending in nice little toys. Paying a little cabana in Europe for the future of the family.

BTW, for the taxi ride : Jazz or Led Zeppelin?

hey, when are you swinging by to pick me up? Need to try out the sound in your "taxi"?

How's going? Been shooting much lately?

 

[cwtan12]

No Bose is not bad. It just not can be considered as audiophile equipment that is all.

Bose is very nice for background listening. Put some music and enjoy doing something else.

Do a critical listening against some Mak Levinson or MBL gear for instance and you will put bose quickly away !

Mark Levinson is another class lei. Price also diff

 

[wind30]

I just got the westone UM2.. tried the shure and ultimate ears found the UM2 the most comfortable. Just fit into my ears securely. Shure is too ex and the UE doesn't fit well.

One thing I noticed about the UM2 is that they are too sensitive. I have to set the volume on my N95 to 1 bar and I can hear a HUGE hiss in the end I bought a dedicated MP3 player, creative zen but I can still hear a light background hiss.....

wonder if the ipods are better....

 

[psychobiologist]

I just got the westone UM2.. tried the shure and ultimate ears found the UM2 the most comfortable. Just fit into my ears securely. Shure is too ex and the UE doesn't fit well.

One thing I noticed about the UM2 is that they are too sensitive. I have to set the volume on my N95 to 1 bar and I can hear a HUGE hiss in the end I bought a dedicated MP3 player, creative zen but I can still hear a light background hiss.....

wonder if the ipods are better....

ipod also have. iriver also have (slight) hiss..

thats because your um2s have a lower impedance, and a very high sensitivity, above 115db/watt if i didnt remember wrongly

if the hiss bothers you, get a level attenuator, i use one all the time because everything has a hiss..

 

[wind30]

ipod also have. iriver also have (slight) hiss..

thats because your um2s have a lower impedance, and a very high sensitivity, above 115db/watt if i didnt remember wrongly

if the hiss bothers you, get a level attenuator, i use one all the time because everything has a hiss..

thanks. The hiss is very small for the creative zen compared to my N95. Wonder if there are any published data on this level of hiss/noise for the mp3 players out there. Like ISO noise figures

The sound is very different compared to my SR80. With the isolation, everything is clearer but I don't really like the sound in your head kind of feeling. Maybe I am listening too loud. I find the SR80 airy sound more comfortable.

 

[seankyh]

ipod also have. iriver also have (slight) hiss..

thats because your um2s have a lower impedance, and a very high sensitivity, above 115db/watt if i didnt remember wrongly

if the hiss bothers you, get a level attenuator, i use one all the time because everything has a hiss..

Whats a level attenuator and where can I get one? Is it s large device or is it something portable I can carry around with me? I get hissing too sometimes.

 

[afbug]

thanks. The hiss is very small for the creative zen compared to my N95. Wonder if there are any published data on this level of hiss/noise for the mp3 players out there. Like ISO noise figures

The sound is very different compared to my SR80. With the isolation, everything is clearer but I don't really like the sound in your head kind of feeling. Maybe I am listening too loud. I find the SR80 airy sound more comfortable.

That is the limitation of such earphones. Not as open and airy as open design headphones like Grado and top end Senns. But they give you portabality and convience. The isolation will be at its best when out doors.

At home, use your SR80 and the UM2 when out doors or dun want others near you to be disturbed by your SR80.

Whats a level attenuator and where can I get one? Is it s large device or is it something portable I can carry around with me? I get hissing too sometimes.

Shure has them and you can check with Stereo Elec, Hung Bros or Uncle Wilson's place at Adelphi.

It is a small little gadget with volume control attached to a short cable with 3.5mm jack and plug.

http://www.shure.com/PersonalAudio/Products/Accessories/CasesAdapters/us_pa_pa235_level_attenuator

 

[lsisaxon]

That is the limitation of such earphones. Not as open and airy as open design headphones like Grado and top end Senns. But they give you portabality and convience. The isolation will be at its best when out doors.

At home, use your SR80 and the UM2 when out doors or dun want others near you to be disturbed by your SR80.

You guys really should try the MDR-EX90. ;p

 

[lsisaxon]

Whats a level attenuator and where can I get one? Is it s large device or is it something portable I can carry around with me? I get hissing too sometimes.

Get Philips GoGear.. Best I've heard so far.. ;p

 

[auron]

http://www.shure.com/PersonalAudio/Products/Earphones/SEModels/index.htm

please take a look at the various models listed.

may i know what are the significant difference that justifies the price difference in the models?

the high end ones cost about $900+SGD.

appreciate all inputs.

if u are using it to listen to ipod that cost $300.
i think a IEM cost $100-$200 is more than enough.
bring your ipod to the shop and test them out, if you cannot hear the difference, there is no need to pay for the more ex stuffs.

trust your ears, YOU are going to PAY for it and YOU are going to LISTEN to it.

 

[Loupisk]

Within what you can afford, it is not so much what you pay as such but the pleasure you get out of it.

A 200 SGD pleasure is cheaper than a 50 SGD average ear pain.

Again a 50 SGD pleasure is even better than a 200 SGD ear pain. You are the only judge of that. See what you like. Indeed as you say, trust your ears !

if u are using it to listen to ipod that cost $300.
i think a IEM cost $100-$200 is more than enough.
bring your ipod to the shop and test them out, if you cannot hear the difference, there is no need to pay for the more ex stuffs.

trust your ears, YOU are going to PAY for it and YOU are going to LISTEN to it.