The Audiophile Thread

[RAZRr1275]

Re: The Audiophile Thread

I know I've been absent from this thread considering I started it so here's a bit of a shortlist of my recommendations for people

Tier 1 - Mid Fi

AKG K702. I did a little shootout between them and the Denon D2000 (don't get this -great headphone but now discontinued and the price skyrocketed to 500 because the new denon line isn't good at all) and put it on reddit http://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/c...2000_shootout/

Tier 2 - For Modders

Grado SR80I - I haven't reviewed these yet so I'll quickly describe them. Open headphone with a tiny soundstage but with a bunch of aggressiveness and bright treble with awesome mids. These are the entry level headphone for rockers. Included in the modders section because they need the L Cush pads to sound their best.

Fostex T50RP - These are a true modders headphone. I got them for 80 bucks and after modding they compete with headphones in tier 1 which are some 300 dollar headphones. The mod I used was this one http://http://www.head-fi.org/t/6186...d-measurements and they are reviewed by me here http://http://www.reddit.com/r/headp..._t50rp_review/

Tier 2 - For non modders

AKG K167 - These are a great value for their price. If amplified properly, I think they compete with headphones almost twice their price and would recommend them to anyone looking in the $150 price range. Reviewed by me here http://http://www.reddit.com/r/headp...g_k167_review/


As for amplification I own the FIIO E9 and would recommend it for anyone looking for a cheap solid state. It can be acquired for $75 and sounds great. I drive my top flight cans with it sometimes. If you think you'd like to try tubes (warmer sound, more rounded) I'd recommend the Little Dot I+ which can be had for $120. I'll also have a review of the Project Sunrise II which can be had for $260 up in a week or two.

[SuperBowlNachos]

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1364158687.343329.jpg

Simply amazing.

[fishepa]

[ATTACH]57468[/ATTACH]

Simply amazing.

Yup!


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[Molarmite]

Re: The Audiophile Thread

How much does a pretty good home theater system cost? I want a good one for when I get my Xbox One, as well as one that will be good for Blu-Rays since I'll be getting one with the Xbox. I know nothing about speakers, what do I look for in them?

[SuperBowlNachos]

Re: The Audiophile Thread

Depends what your budget it. No matter what it is stay away from Bose.

Our resident home theater guru answered a similar question in the TV thread the other day.
http://www.operationsports.com/forum...post2045540813

With a $500 budget:
Samsung BD-F5900 3D Blu Ray Player ($115 Samsung--Amazon)
Pioneer VSX-822K 5.1 Receiver ($200--Amazon)
Yamaha 5.1 Speaker set ($149--Amazon)
200 ft. of speaker wire ($20--Amazon) $10 if you get by with only 100ft. of speaker wire. Not sure you big your room is.
------------------------------------------------
less than $500 shippped from Amazon

For the same $500 I KNOW this will sound better than the Samsung HTIB you plan on getting (you'll also have 6 HDMI inputs vs. only 2)


If you're dead set on buying the whole thing in one box, make sure you get one with a dedicated receiver and active sub. Just buy the 3D blu ray player separate. You really really really don't want your blu ray player having to also drive the speakers. That's just asking for headaches down the road.

I'd highly suggest getting one of these systems :
http://www.amazon.com/Onkyo-HT-S3500...=operasport-20

http://www.amazon.com/Yamaha-YHT-497...=operasport-20

http://www.amazon.com/Onkyo-HT-S5400...=operasport-20

And whichever Samsung 3D blu ray player you want:
F5900 3D Player with WiFi http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-BD-F59...=operasport-20

Don't forget $10 - $20 for speaker wire.

[GAMEC0CK2002]

Re: The Audiophile Thread

How much does a pretty good home theater system cost? I want a good one for when I get my Xbox One, as well as one that will be good for Blu-Rays since I'll be getting one with the Xbox. I know nothing about speakers, what do I look for in them?

Anything you get is going to be better than your tv speakers. What you get really depends on your budget. You can literally spend thousands on audio. In a perfect world you want the best receiver, best speakers and best subwoofer you can reasonably afford.

That means buying each piece separately--the more expensive way to do it. Some go with a 3.0 (no sub) or a 3.1 (with sub) setup until they get more cash to get the rear surrounds. This means buying a quality receiver, a quality center channel speaker, and a nice set of bookshelf or floor standing speakers for the left and right channels. Also a decent sized subwoofer.

The easiest and least expensive way to do it is a home theater in a box. They work just fine in 3 scenarios: 1) You simply want better than tv speakers 2) You're fine with moving the whole thing to a different tv (can't be upgraded) or knowing that you'll want to upgrade down the road

Most HTIBs weigh around 40-50 lbs for EVERYTHING. A decent sized subwoofer is going to weigh in around 40-60 lbs by itself. So you realize you're getting relatively small speakers. Which might be fine if you have a small to medium sized room.

Like I said your budget is the biggest factor. How far do you want to go down the rabbit hole?

[RockinDaMike]

Re: The Audiophile Thread

My bose in ear headphones just busted so was looking into the Bose QuietComfort 20i Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones that's been on commercials.

I wasn't sure how well in ears can cancel noise but wow, they work great and are super comfortable. Definitely getting lost in the music. I would say they are about equal to cancelling noise as the over ear headphones and that's surprising.

They are expensive but I use my headphones everyday all day and I its nice to cancel out noise on boat rides I go on all the time in the Philippines and I'll be traveling by plane a lot and using them with my vita and ipod.

[authentic]

Re: The Audiophile Thread

How much does a pretty good home theater system cost? I want a good one for when I get my Xbox One, as well as one that will be good for Blu-Rays since I'll be getting one with the Xbox. I know nothing about speakers, what do I look for in them?

Depends. If you're looking for cheap, loud, or high quality speakers. You can get a cheap surround system for under $500. That doesn't mean it's going to sound any good or last for long. You can also get a system that is just loud, but lacks the sound quality. IF you're looking to invest in your system, for the future, then I would suggest taking a walk into a Magnolia Design Center, or someplace similar. Either way...

Cheap:

ANY HTIB or All in One

Loud:

Klipsch Quintets, Polk Blackstones, etc

Quality:

MartinLogan
Bowers & Wilkins
Def Tech
Energy/Klipsch


To be honest, Bowers has some really good stuff that isn't priced too badly. I designed a system recently for a guy with Bowers and was a little surprised by the price. With the floor standings, center, rears, sub, and receiver we were around $3,000.

I've heard a lot of sound systems. I've installed a cheap HTIB with our agents in home, and I've installed a $50,000 sound system I sold in home. You'd be surprised to hear the difference in speaker quality even in the "lower end" high end speakers.

[XxJustAguessxX]

Re: The Audiophile Thread

Depends. If you're looking for cheap, loud, or high quality speakers. You can get a cheap surround system for under $500. That doesn't mean it's going to sound any good or last for long. You can also get a system that is just loud, but lacks the sound quality. IF you're looking to invest in your system, for the future, then I would suggest taking a walk into a Magnolia Design Center, or someplace similar. Either way...

Cheap:

ANY HTIB or All in One

Loud:

Klipsch Quintets, Polk Blackstones, etc

Quality:

MartinLogan
Bowers & Wilkins
Def Tech
Energy/Klipsch


To be honest, Bowers has some really good stuff that isn't priced too badly. I designed a system recently for a guy with Bowers and was a little surprised by the price. With the floor standings, center, rears, sub, and receiver we were around $3,000.

I've heard a lot of sound systems. I've installed a cheap HTIB with our agents in home, and I've installed a $50,000 sound system I sold in home. You'd be surprised to hear the difference in speaker quality even in the "lower end" high end speakers.

Do you work at best buy as well?

[Lieutenant Dan]

Re: The Audiophile Thread

Authentic....sounds like you work at Mag/BB? How long have you been there?

[authentic]

Re: The Audiophile Thread

Authentic....sounds like you work at Mag/BB? How long have you been there?

About a year and a half. It's fun stuff. Audio is probably the best part of the whole deal. Most people know what to expect in a TV, but when someone pulls the trigger on a high end system when they've never heard one in a home, that's when the job is fun and rewarding. The 50k install we had the wife in shock at what the entire set up sounded like. Just to give you guys an idea, it was MartinLogan Summit ESL's, the ESL center, FX2 surrounds (4), 15" sub (2), with McIntosh monoblocks, combined into SonosNet, along with a 4k tv and Sonos throughout the whole home, she was in shock.


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[Lieutenant Dan]

Re: The Audiophile Thread

Sounds like a great system!

I was with Magnolia from 1991 to 2003, most of that time as the speaker repair technician at the service department we used to have in Kent, WA. Good times.

My two favorite companies to work with were Martin Logan and M&K.

[XxJustAguessxX]

Re: The Audiophile Thread

About a year and a half. It's fun stuff. Audio is probably the best part of the whole deal. Most people know what to expect in a TV, but when someone pulls the trigger on a high end system when they've never heard one in a home, that's when the job is fun and rewarding. The 50k install we had the wife in shock at what the entire set up sounded like. Just to give you guys an idea, it was MartinLogan Summit ESL's, the ESL center, FX2 surrounds (4), 15" sub (2), with McIntosh monoblocks, combined into SonosNet, along with a 4k tv and Sonos throughout the whole home, she was in shock.


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I work at best buy as well, been there a year and some days. Magnolia is very expensive stuff lol.

[Crimsontide27]

Re: The Audiophile Thread

How much does a pretty good home theater system cost? I want a good one for when I get my Xbox One, as well as one that will be good for Blu-Rays since I'll be getting one with the Xbox. I know nothing about speakers, what do I look for in them?

Audio enthusiasts will never be able to come to any sort of agreement on anything. It is probably one of the most subjective subjects for people to talk about.

First thing you need to do is mention what type of budget you are willing to spend on sound. Systems can run from $300+, all the way up to $30k-50k for home theaters. Now sure, there are those that have million dollar systems in their homes, but we can forget about those type of systems.

Tell us a budget, what type of room you plan on putting it in, and what type of expectations you hope to have with it. IE...if you live in a condo, townhome, or apartment then a nice subwoofer wouldn't be a good purchase. If you plan on putting it in a bedroom, then a 7.1 system wouldn't be necessary.

And remember, when it comes to audio, everyone will have a different opinion. Find what you like and enjoy it!

[GAMEC0CK2002]

Re: The Audiophile Thread

^^^^ Very well said. I'd just add one thing. Have realistic expectations. Home theater audio is one of those cases where you get what you pay for.
You can maximize your dollars buying making smart choices though.