Recent content by PieterG

+1 for sound quality (availability matters too - only a few things so far i have searched but not found)

Parametric EQ is quite detailed and even less obvious than graphic EQ. Fortunately a quick AI search goes a long way. For what it's worth, i don't use EQ with headphones either, only with my speakers. It can be fun to play with the presets but most of them are too much.

What leaps out at me from your pictures is the massive -12dB overall and the +9.7dB in deep bass. Those are not exactly subtle tweaks. I wouldn't be surprised if your excellent HD600 now sound like a JBL bluetooth speaker ;) Nothing wrong with that, but designed to be exciting from low listening...

The Cocktail has a display that shows stream format, right? If it plays Tidal without resampling, a hi-res stream should appear as something like PCM 24bit/96kHz. (That's assuming you picked a 24/96 source of course...)

Is that a sign of your ears getting old? :( Future-proof just took on a whole new meaning ;) I'm not sure either if i prefer musical warmth or analytical detail. The type of music makes a difference too, and i listen to many different things. With the recent upgrades i did, it seems easier to...

Surprising. But since you prefer the WiiM already, what's the additional DAC for again? Was it usb input for lossless Apple Music? Perhaps take another good look at the Topping DX5-II. It has a lot of connection options and much more power to drive headphones, if you plan on adding them later...

Have you checked what's possible with Apple? I think wireless tops out at 256 kbps, assuming there is still no native support for aptX or LDAC. If so, there is no point in buying the best wireless IEMs unless you'll be using them with another player as well. That Sennheiser dongle or another...

I have the same experience, and for the sake of this conversation i measured SPL. (Don't look at these as accurate measurements, i just used a free phone app to get a general idea at my normal listening position.) Up to 45 dB i would say it's background music. If the room is otherwise quiet...

Excellent summary. It looks like i've been doing it right :):( This deserves a nice little table... FrequencyEQ Impact 50-75Hz Boost to beef up kick drums and sub bass lines. Cut to reduce excessive low-end weight. 80-200Hz Boost to add body to snares and guitars, punch to kick drums...

True. Don't buy those ultra neutral speakers because some people on a forum, some respected reviewers, or the "expert" sales guy said so. In addition, i have tried to learn how to use an equalizer to my advantage. I have a few custom curves that i play with depending on the music genre and the...

The instinctive reply should be: neutral. After all, you want an accurate representation of what was recorded. My idea - true or false - is that neutral speakers can be tuned to taste by applying minimal EQ. For my taste, in my untreated living room, i add some body and take away some sharpness...

Just adding an extra vote here for WiiM. I have the Pro and use it for streaming only, connected to a DAC via coax. I get along very well with their app, and it supports a load of services out of the box, plus DLNA/uPNP (a must for me). I do use wired ethernet, but wifi should generally be ok...

This is very triggering to me. I have a very basic Yamaha cd player that gets very little use (as a transport only). I've been streaming flac files in various ways for some time. I want to compare a cd selection to the Tidal source now ;) (On a related note, i have thought on a few occasions...

Let me look that up for you ;) FormatApprox MB / minuteApprox MB / 4 min song 16-bit / 44.1 kHz (CD)5–7 MB20–28 MB 24-bit / 44.1 kHz8–10 MB32–40 MB 24-bit / 48 kHz9–11 MB36–44 MB 24-bit / 96 kHz16–20 MB64–80 MB 24-bit / 192 kHz32–40 MB128–160 MB

It's interesting how many UK hifi brands have very little exposure in mainland Europe. The name Leema only sounds vaguely familiar. That black finish in the pictures does look nice. Reminds me a little bit of Arcam but with blue accent instead of yellow ;).