Novice help

[greigm17]

I'm looking to make a purchase over the coming weeks. In the most basic of terms i'm looking for a cd player and headphones on a budget of £600. I've had my eye on akg k550s @ £125 and a cocktail audio x10 at £400.

My question is, if I don't require the cd player to be connected to an amp and speakers, does the cd player matter as much when it comes to sound quality? If the answer is yes then I may rethink and go for a no nonsense quality player rather than the x10 which has got some mixed reviews over sound quality(which I assume is with speakers connected)

I do love the idea of ripping all my cds uncompressed on the one player though!

 

[JoelSim]

Yes, the X10 creates the sound, so it will directly affect the sound you get through your headphones. The headphones are simply the speakers in this case.

 

[greigm17]

mmm... May have to reconsider my choice now!

 

[JoelSim]

The thing is, what works with one set of 'speakers' doesn't necessarily work best with a different set.

For instance if you have a bright sounding CD player and you match it with bright headphones/speakers then you are likely to get a very bright sound. By bright I mean very treble biased with hard edges.

Read a few reviews of various products and then people on here can help advise on those and the partnering headphones.

 

[greigm17]

My problem is, I've been listening on pretty low end budget stuff so far ie. £80 gale bookshelves and a cambridge audio 340 azur amp with sonos or spotify on the ipod with cx300s so most stuff on my next step up is going to sound a good bit better to my ears and probably, at first at least, I won't be able to tell much of a difference with the mid-range stuff i'd be considering only for me to potentially regret my purchase once my ears are educated on quality sounding audio!

If I was guarenteed I would notice huge differences in my listening I wouldn't mind spending a couple of thousand, however it's too much money for me to end up being disappointed!

 

[dalethorn]

My problem is, I've been listening on pretty low end budget stuff so far ie. £80 gale bookshelves and a cambridge audio 340 azur amp with sonos or spotify on the ipod with cx300s so most stuff on my next step up is going to sound a good bit better to my ears and probably, at first at least, I won't be able to tell much of a difference with the mid-range stuff i'd be considering only for me to potentially regret my purchase once my ears are educated on quality sounding audio! If I was guarenteed I would notice huge differences in my listening I wouldn't mind spending a couple of thousand, however it's too much money for me to end up being disappointed!

If you follow a particular listening scheme when evaluating your new system, you may indeed hear the big difference that makes the investment worthwhile. Basically it's this: Listen to the 'new' sound for awhile, perhaps 30 minutes to get adjusted, then, in the middle of a very familiar music track, switch immediately to the 'old' sound. It works best this way, not the other way around, and that's because you hear what is lost with the old sound much more readily than what you gain with the new sound.

But I'd recommend avoiding the K550 unless you're in the very small minority who get along with that headphone after using it for an extended time.

 

[greigm17]

When I think about it you are totally right, this happened when I purchased my senns then went back for a listen with apples stock phones, I wasn't aware of how big the difference was untill I went back. I guess I assumed taking the next step up would be a bit different for some reason!

I think I've changed my mind on the 550s after your input and reading other negative comments about them. I've read some reviews on sol republic master tracks but there aren't any stockists close by to demo them. Apart from them, I'm at a bit of a loss as to what to try next!

 

[JoelSim]

Look at reviews of various streamers and choose one which will suit your music tastes and requirements.

Then buy headphones that will match.

I know it is easy for me to say, but either audition something, taking your favourite tunes with you or just immerse yourself in reviews.

 

[greigm17]

Purchased the senn momentum over ear versions and a dacmagic xs for my laptop and so far i'm pretty chuffed to say the least! Been listening for a good 3 hours and they're still comfy!

Thanks for advice and info!

 

[Anonymous]

On happy customer!