MOMOMO67890's HeadPhone Shootout

The Setup
Mobo : Evga X58
Memory : Gskill 1333 mhz 9.9.9.12
CPU : i7 920 @ 3.3G
GFX : Ati 4780
Sound : Xonar STX , X-Fi Forte ( CMSS-3D , DDL , DH )
Games : COD:4 , CS:S , CS 1.6
The HeadPhones : A40s , turtle beach hpx , audio technica 700s, senn hd 650s , speedlink 5.1s, denon d7000s , Ultrasone HFI-780 , senn pc-350s

I Tested these by turning on some Aim Bots I downloaded for each game then went into game on my computer / another computer stood in one place then had my other computer run a line strait out to test how far they got then recorded the distance with the Aim bots distance meter in game for each headphone . I found this to be the best way to judge the headphones and how far you could hear those lovely foot steps with CMSS-3d , DDL , DH this took quite some time. Sorry no numbers for this for you I have over 100 numbers total for all the headphones and I took the avg number and gave it a rating 1-5 one being the shortest five being the furthest in game so I might end up with 3.78 / 5 with 1 being the worst 5 being the best headphone . In my review I named this “How Far Can you hear ?” this represents CMSS-3D only for the reason being DH / DLL were on Avg 5-7 % shorter with that you could hear distance wise with Accuracy being the same or worse on all headphones all more or less the same for the most part .

Pic of the cans
http://img4.imageshack.us/i/img7920o.jpg/

Audiotechnica ATH-AD700 Open-air Dynamic Headphones

Tech specs :
Type Open-air
Dynamic Driver Diameter53 mm
Magnet Neodymium
Voice Coil Copper-clad aluminum wire
Frequency Response 5 – 30,000 Hz
Maximum Input Power 500 mW
Sensitivity 98 dB/mW at 1 kHz
Impedance 32 ohms
Weight 280 g
Cable 3.0 m (Single/Hybrid-PCOCC)
Connector 1/8" (3.5 mm) mini stereo, gold-plated
Accessory Included Detachable 1/4" (6.3 mm) adapter

Approx Burn in time : 48 hours

Comfort/ Build Quality : 5. / 5.

The Audiotechnica ATH-AD700 are made of plastic besides the side grills witch a some light weight metal alum most likely they seem sturdy and well made. These headphones feel like air when you wear light as a feather on your head and super comfy huge ear pads very nice for many hours of gaming .

Over all Sound : 4.4 / 5.

The one down fall of these headphones is there bass is very lacking. After 24 hours of burn in there was the smallest gain the in bass but noting to offset the lack of bass that plagues these phones. If you plan to buy these you will need to increase the EQ on your sound card or if it had bass boost that would fix up the headphones tested, and I didn't seem don't lose any sound quality by doing this and makes the phones sound what they should .

How Far Can you hear ? 9.54 / 10

At there price point these are the clear winners sound quality , accuracy , sound stage are all amazing on these cans. I would recommend this to anyone who wants to game under 100$. All I can say is amazing . another thing that helps the headphones for gaming is there lack of bass.

Price : 79.99 $ (Amazon) MSRP* US$249.95

Ultrasone HFI-780

S-Logic™ Natural Surround Sound Plus
Dynamic principle
Frequency range 10-26.000 Hz
Impedance 35 Ohm
Sound pressure level 96 dB
MU Metal bufferboard,

reduced field emissions
in accordance with ULE (=Ultra Low Emission) standard
Driver 40 mm gold-plated
Weight 285 g (without cord)
Straight cord (length

ca 3m)
3,5/6,3 mm screwable gold-plated plug

Approx Burn in time : 12 hours

Comfort/ Build Quality : 4.0 / 5. (Stock) 4.5 / 5. (DE-PLETHER'D)

The Ultrasone Hfi-780s one word PLETHER ATTACK another plether headphone the day plether things burn and and 6 ft under is the same day world hunger is

cured seriously. They are comfy cans the headband could use a little more padding but that's about it . Replacement ear pads can be found at around 20$

replacement being NOT PLEATHER yes maybe its just me that hates PLETHER WITH A PASSION. They feel sturdy made mostly of metal I don't see these breaking

even if I dropped onto a hard surface . On a side note my spell checker has plether as spelled wrong but PLETHER as correct lol …

Over all Sound : 5 / 5.

They have great sound Bass is there mids lows highs all there very good cans they sound almost as good as my hd650s but totally different in a good way

much more rock / metal cans then classical. Great for music and movies I see no end to the awesome of these cans. These are isolation cans and they truly

are isolation no leaking what so ever.

How Far Can you hear ? 10 / 10

These got me I didn't ever think they could be top dog of my cans if you are serous about fps gaming these are your only choice in my eyes with there

superb sound huge sound stage accuracy that non other compare to these are truly great cans for every thing I could hear things that my team on css

couldend hear 4-5 secs before they could enough time for me to tell them in vent and for them to turn and kill unlike having a 2-3 sec advantage over

others headphones . One example I will give for you cs:s players http://img2.imageshack.us/img2/3353/distaceinpic.jpg the white shows the distance you

can hear allowing a huge prefireing box for fun times ^_^ Another thing to add these headphones imo sound the best when cmss-3d , dh , ddl are turned

off they have all they need without the help of the soundcard. So these would work great for on board sound .

Price : 189.00 USD / MSRP 259.00$ USD

That price might seem steep but these are the best


And Then The worst

trurtle trash HPX-1 Headset

Tech Specs :
Who knows they don't post them

Approx burn in time : 100 hours

Comfort/ Build Quality : 0 / 5.

These headTrash are so uncomfortable after 45 mins of playing cs:s I had to take them off . Felt like my ears had been clamped to death by the hard

plastic so called padding used in these headtrash the worst of the worst they have been sitting stretched by a 13 inch box with my wallet and a notebook

trying to expand them with no luck .

Over all Sound : 0 / 5.

Once again these headtrash truly sine here being the worst sounding **** I have ever heard in my life I wouldnt want to hear music played on these it

would be spiting in the face of the artist these are truly the worst headphones I have ever used or had noted headtrash by me. Even though I torrent all

my music ^_^

How Far Can you hear ? : 8.46 / 10

I am not going to lie these headphones do have a huge sound stage but there accuracy is not there. When using in 5.1 mode 2.1 no matter what setup I used

these headphones still didn't have accuracy making them useless in gaming no pre-fire for you b/c these headphones had him behind the wall still.

Price 80$

how can I say these suck go buy some audio technica ad700s and get larger sound stage with accuracy.

btw pm me ill sell these for 30$ shipped for anyone who wants ^_^ I kinda feel like putting them to rest in the trash but rewiring headphones is not a

cheap thing ^_^

MIX AMP By Astro gaming

Tech specs :

Power Supply: USB mini-B (USB 2.0 compatible), or 4 x AA batteries (not included)
Power Output: 70mW 32ohm per channel
Battery Life: 12+ Hours
Frequency Response: 35 - 20,000 Hz
Inputs (front): Headset connector, 2.5mm Xbox Live voice communication connector
Inputs (rear): L/R analog RCA, TOSlink digital, coaxial digital, 3.5mm microphone (PC voice), 3.5mm mp3 connector, USB mini-B (power only)

Build Quality : 4.0 / 5.0

This Amp Loses points for build quality on the fact that its not stepped so the left and right channels are never matched unless you do it with your

ears. This small little amp is what I would think of as the jack of all trades gaming amp it really has every connector you could ever need for pc ,

xbox360 and ps3. It can be powered of battery's only lasted around 4 hours so you have to turn it off when not using or it wont last long. It has DDL

built into it who dose not love 2.1 ? 5.1.

Price : 129.99

if you game a lot on consoles you might want this over your speakers . But if your a pc exclusive gamer stick to the sound cards that can do much more

and much better in terms of SQ

A40s By Astro Gaming

Tech specs :

Transducer Principle: Dynamic, open
Frequency Response: 15 - 28,000 Hz
Nominal Impedance: 50 ohm
Weight w/o Cable: 324 g
Characteristic SPL: 104dB
Ear Coupling: Circumaural
Kessel Run Distance: Under 12 Parsecs
Headband Pressure: 2.6 N
Distortion: Less than 0.1%
Connector: 3.5 mm mini-stereo with 1/4" adapter
Microphone: 6.0mm uni-directional noise canceling

Comfort/ Build Quality : 2.5 / 5.

They are for sure very comfy as good as any of the other headphones BUT they need to work on there QC Mine randomly the right screw Fell out wile I was

using them Shot out and I have yet to find that lonely screw so now being held together by wonderful packing tape. Which is more secure then you would

ever think.

Over all Sound : 3.5 / 5

like the AT's there not a lot of bass they sound alright I noting amazing just your average headphones.
They say there isolation element to the headphones but I don't really hear that or I do hear every thing around me .

How Far Can you hear ? 8.0 / 10

Nothing to see here really A40s dont compare to the AT's in any way.

Price : 199.99

Over priced at this price you could get the ultrasones and be 10 times as happy

DENON AH-D7000
Tech specs :

colour Wood
Description Premium Over-Ear Headphones
Features Stronger magnetic circuit for the driver unit / Piano finished real wood mahogany housing / Microfiber diaphragm / Acoustic Optimiser /

Cloth-wrapped cable with high-purity (99.99999% OFC) 7N-OFC wire / Gold plated connector
Weight (g) 370
Cord Style both headphones
Diaphragm Diameter 50
Headphone Drive Units ø 50 mm Neodymium magnet
Headphones Cord Length 3
Impedance (Ohm) 25
Max Frequency Response 45
Min Frequency Response 5

Approx Burn in time : 0

Comfort/ Build Quality : 5.5 / 5.

The Chinese built these for Denon japan They are plether Stock but i must say its very nice plether ultrasone is not good plether of course I replaced

the stock ear pads with j$ over-stuffed lamb skin pads much better that s why I am giving them 5.5 b/c there just that great. They are 100% Wood / Metal

frame and weight a little more then the AT's but nothing to heavy.

Over all Sound : 5.0 / 5.

I Love these headphones but there is a reason they are in this review besides the epen Boost . Their sound is the best I enjoy them over HD800's had both

at one point sent the HD800's back. these are my fav gaming headset / music / im to lazy to get up out of my chair to unplug the denons and plug in the

ultrasone

How Far Can you hear ? 9.66 / 10

This is surprising for me again these are my every day audiophile Gaming headphones I would not trade them for anything. They don't quite match up to the

ultrasone's but they hold their ground. And sound just way too good to game with but they just do both so well .

Price : 550.00+ used 700.00 New 999.99 MSRP

and yes I do have 3 in the pic I only own 1

Medusa NX 5.1 Gaming Headset

Tech specs
There gaming headphones they don't have them I guess

Aprrox burn in time : 6 hours

Comfort/ Build Quality : 4.5 / 5.

These Cans Feel good to wear nothing bad about them 100% plastic and light weight. The ear pads are nice big and comfy .

Over all Sound : 3.0 / 5.

These Can be used for music but I do find them to bass heavy but if you like bass they have nice bass uncontrolled and all over the place but they get

that job done for music sounding decent.

How Far Can you hear ? 8.80 / 10

These headphones work will sound well 5.1 is not every ones cup of tea some people hate them I don't care all I care for is how good they sound and how

good of a gaming headphone it is. But don't buy these just b/c you hear 5.1 headphones are good or w/e you will need a sound card for these. X-fi forte

dose not work with any headphone amp or regular amp you will end up with a static filled headset unless you turn down the built in amp all the way down

then turn up the x-fi.

Price : 109.00 USD

I would not recommend these to anyone over the AT's at 20$ Less.

AKG K702

Type open-back, dynamic headphones
Sensitivity 105 dB/V
Frequency range 10 to 39,800 Hz
Rated impedance 62 ohms
Max. input power 200 mW
Cable 3 m single-sided (99,9% oxygen-free)
Connector gold plated stereo jack plug 6.3 mm (1/4")
Adapter gold plated convertible jack plug 3.5/6.3 mm (1/4" to 1/8")
Net weight (without cable)235 g (8.3 oz.)

Approx Burn in time : bought them used I have no clue 300 hours +

Comfort/ Build Quality : 4.5 / 5

I found the headband to hurt the top of my head after about 4 hours. They are solid in build Quality very light not to much of a clamp. At first they didn't sound so good apparently you have to wear them a certain way to hear correctly in them they leak sound so much. If I were watching tv every one within 30 ft of me could hear it even in the next room.

Over all Sound : 5 / 5

These headphones sound good for classical ware you don't want to be overwhelmed by bass. With that said there headphones are lacking the bass I love in my denons. So with the lack of bass and the openness of these headphones is still had to rate them as a 5 they are great headphones for music just not so much for bassheads .

How Far Can you hear ? 8.2 / 10

I had heard from many reviews these had a huge soundstage but I could never find it, musically it did have a nice soundstage but for gaming I could just never hear footsteps very far that and I could hear my computer fans something I cant hear with any of my other headphones even the open ones.

Price : 250.00 $

Sennheiser PC 350 Gaming Headset

Tech specs :
Cable length 9.8 ft. (3 m)
Connector Two 1/8” / 3.5 mm plug
Distortion < 0.1%
Frequency response 10 Hz – 26,000 Hz
Frequency response 50 Hz . 16,000 Hz
Headphone Around-the-ear, closed
Impedance 150 Ω
Pick-up Pattern Noise cancelling
Sensitivity 108 dBSPL
Sensitivity -38 dBV at 94 dBSPL
Speaker data Dynamic, 38 mm, Nd magnet

Approx Burn in time : 400+ hours

Comfort/ Build Quality : 4.5 / 5

The Sennheiser Pc350 are made of plastic meaning there light and nice to wear for many hours. They have the Sennheiser clamp all there headphones have this I didn't think they took away from the comfort of the headphones not as much as other Sennheiser I have put on. They are isolation a major plus for gaming headphones except I think Sennheiser did I good job with isolation and overall design of the headphones. I gave these to a friend I have known for about 15 years b/c he has a naggy gf and he cant hear her at all most of the time while gaming.

Over all Sound : 3.5 / 5.

these headphones sound like basshead phones to me thats not a bad thing but they use the same drivers in them as HD 555 / HD 595 and they sound nothing the same I have only heard HD 595s and not for a long amount of time at that.

How Far Can you hear ? 9.26 / 10

These sit just under where audio-technicas and the difference is there but I would say it wont be a game breaking difference in your play. I would say the accuracy is a little better then the audio-technicas I find accuracy to a lot of the times to be much more helpful then just purely how far you can hear them coming at you from.

Price : 140$ Retail MSRP 229.95$

Steelseries 5.1 so yeh i couldn't get them to work so i will post my beyer DT880 600 ohm in this spot. as far as i can remember i hated them and there software was bad in vista and they broke siting in a box with them self's. for 6 months

Sennheiser HD650 Audiophile Open Dynamic Stereo
Headphone

Tech info
Cable length
9.8 ft. (3 m)
Contact pressure
Approx. 2.5 N
Ear coupling
Around-the-ear
Frequency response (headphones)
10.....39,500 Hz
Jack plug
6.3/3.5 mm stereo
Nominal impedance
300 O
Sound pressure level (SPL)
103 dB (1 Vrms)
Total harmonic distortion (THD)
0.05 %
Transducer principle
Open, dynamic
Weight w/o cable
Approx. 9.2 oz. (260 g)

Approx Burn in time : 200 hours

Comfort/ Build Quality : 2.5 / 5. ( Stock ) / 4.5 / 5. ( Stretched )
The Sennheiser HD650 when they arrived stock they could be used as a clamp for clothing. Made my jaw hurt for days wile I used a book and towel to expand them. After that week there noting less then great cans. They are slightly heavy because of the use of aluminum for housing and headband but very sturdy and seem like they would never break. Approx Burn in time : 200 hours

Over all Sound : 5.0 / 5.

These headphones are pure bliss there not too bass heavy , but at the same time there just perfect for just about every piece of music I listen to these days. Vocals are very clear compared to some of the other headphones I will be reviewing for you. These are the least fatiguing headphones I have very flat sound.

How Far Can you hear ? : 1 /10

Sennheiser HD650 have the smallest sound stage making them the losers out of all my headphones. Your lucky to hear anyone sneak up on you with these they are the worst headphones for gaming hands down. And the 2nd best headphones for music I own and have ever owned.

Price : 330$ USD / MSRP 500$ USD

These headphones are out of 98% of most of our budgets for headphones but if you truly want some amazing sounding headphones for music these are the best at there price range of 300-500$.

Interesting thing about the HD650's soundstage. I had looked in to purchasing them a few months back. Good thing I skipped on them :shrug:

nice so far, looking forward to pc350 review as i thought they where pretty much hd555's modded with a mic?

pc350s are hd595s + isolation + some type of crazy bass gain truly the most bass heavy headphones ive had not in a good way either.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by momomo6789

pc350s are hd595s + isolation + some type of crazy bass gain truly the most bass heavy headphones ive had not in a good way either.

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I like the DT 770 80 pros better than the HD595's. Also worth note are the Denon AH-D5000.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by momomo6789

pc350s are hd595s + isolation + some type of crazy bass gain truly the most bass heavy headphones ive had not in a good way either.

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I have tested both sets and I would easily take the HD595's over the PC350's.
They do have some type of "tuned" response I guess they think it is better for gaming.

HD555's are the same as 595's - just remove the rubber dampener and save your money.

I have the 555's, modded to 595's - i have no issue hearing someone sneak up in any game I've played...

By any chance were the HD650s properly amped?

Im confused about their performance....

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Silverion77

By any chance were the HD650s properly amped?

Im confused about their performance....

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I'm pretty sure that the Xonar STX can drive them properly.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Silverion77

By any chance were the HD650s properly amped?

Im confused about their performance....

---

QFT Lowfat and I'm sure Forte can as well. Hell, my old school receiver could blow them up!:rofl:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by lowfat

I'm pretty sure that the Xonar STX can drive them properly.

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O, lol missed the STX part...:rolleyes:
Jumped straight to results...i was antsy :D

Yea, it probably drives them well enough to attain results

Ty for a great review...:clap:
HAXXXXXXX :rofl:

i drove the hd650s by my 1200 $ amp didnt change the fact that there pure fail for gaming. will be adding the rest of the headphones reviews + beyer bt 880/600 ohm when i get my hands on some

Quote:

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Originally Posted by momomo6789

i drove the hd650s by my 1200 $ amp didnt change the fact that there pure fail for gaming. will be adding the rest of the headphones reviews + beyer bt 880/600 ohm when i get my hands on some

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TY!!!!!!!
Ur work is actually well thought out and great. :up:

I've heard great things about the 880s being some of the best headphones for gaming due to their realistic and great positioning

might have to buy some brand new ones =/ if i cant find any by tomorrow

nothing on headfi??
Edit: Just saw ur WTB ad...

Well I guess not the 600ohm :x, no one wants to give them up. lol

yep and i dont feel like waiting being as i get my amp + dac next week

My best gaming cans are without a shadow of a doubt the Stax Omega II's the 404 vintage signatures come a close second though, Then the ultrasone 2200ule's all open, all properly amped.

O2s do not have a large headstage ... it would be confusing to wear for gaming dispite the fact their 2400$

I have a question for you (mainly momomo6789, but anyone is more than welcome) on the Ultrasone HFI-780. If I can get a very lightly used pair for $180ish, would these be the headphones to get? I have an Asus rampage 2 extreme and it has an add on x-fi card and in the review you said that they were the best for on board sound without anything turned on, so would these be a good choice for me as I'm not going to add an amp or sound card any time soon? Thanks.

seen them as low as 160 used try head-fi.com you can get 189$ shipped new. i dont look on here much so pm if you got any more questions.

great review dude

I have Only HD650 and its amazing for music , but i am looking forward to buy D7000 for gaming only ,

Can my DACMagic and Graham slee amp drive the D7000 ?

d7000s are the easiest headphones i have to amp @ 106 DB sensitivity D7000s destroy Hd650s for music and games.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by momomo6789

d7000s are the easiest headphones i have to amp @ 106 DB sensitivity D7000s destroy Hd650s for music and games.

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thank you

I just grab DENON AH-D7000 from amazon :up:

another question please

Since the D7000 has only Impedance (Ohm) 25 , and the DACMagic has Impedance (Ohm) 50 ,

Is it better if i disconnect the Graham amp and i connect the D7000 direct to the DACMagic with balanced cable ?

you would need a balanced amp to use the xlr out.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by momomo6789

you would need a balanced amp to use the xlr out.

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I thought that i can connect the D7000 direct to the DACMagic :p:

any way i thing i will be fine with my dac + amp

OH MY GOD! :eek: DHL guy just brought me Audio technica ATH-AD700 and that was the first impression. Well, not quite, fisrt I thought that "wow, really big and quite ugly... oh well", but when I fired these up... oh my god! The soundstage is amazing. I really have been living in a bottle. :D

All my favorites like pink floyd, dire straits, infected mushroom, yello, neil young, sarah mclahlan, patricia verve, norah jones, etc. just sounds amazing. And I do mean, all those really good mixes like pink floyd just blows your mind.

I just don't understand people who says these don't have bass? Well maybe not if you are half deaf ADHD child who listens all that low dynamic cra* what music industry is bumping to market and if your head has to shake every time bass drum hits. If the music has bass then these will deliver it. Maybe there could be a tad bit more but not much. As of now, it's sound balanced. Don't even think to use some sort bass boost, it just makes bass sound more flyffy and it doesn't deliver the clarity and deepness. If there isn't clarity and deepness then no bass boost will help.

Don't get me wrong, these definately might not be the best headphones, but for the price... wow. And the comfort, I could use these all day long with ease. Maybe just a little big for my head, but still fits quite good.


Finally for educational reason, here is for those who don't understand how music industry is raping our music. Turn Me Up!

BTW, how should I burn in these new headphones? Just by listening normally music or much more volume?

burn in huh. metallica is what burn in with i burn in at about 15%-20% louder then i would use them at. i put like 500 hours on my d7000s didn't really do anything as far as i could tell but some would say otherwise.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by momomo6789

burn in huh. metallica is what burn in with i burn in at about 15%-20% louder then i would use them at. i put like 500 hours on my d7000s didn't really do anything as far as i could tell but some would say otherwise.

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^^^ Which is why the whole concept of "burning in" headphones is a very controversial subject among those of us in the world of audiophile headgear. ;)

Over the years, I've heard people recommend burn in times of anywhere from 24 hours all the way to over 500 hours. And the type of music is also as varied as the time frames they're burned in for.

A few years ago a friend who is one of the top audio techs @ Sony Pictures gave me some "sound" advice on the burn in process which was confirmed through countless tests and computer analysis of the sound production throughout the process.

The best results were achieved while being powered using a quality tube based amplifier, while playing classical music at a level slightly above that of what you'd normally listen to. The added power of the amplifier was crucial to properly breaking in the drivers, the classical music was ideal for bringing a very dynamic, yet smooth range of harmonics... and keeping the volume above the norm is to ensure the excursion of each driver is broken in at any tonal range that you may listen to music.

Harsh music like metal does not typically bring a frequency range to the drivers that covers everything from 20dbA to 20,000dbA... the typical range of hearing for humans.

He also noted that tubes are better for burning in new cans specifically because they give a much warmer tone to music and are not nearly as harsh on the new drivers.

But like any theory regarding headphones... no two people are the same.

As for my audio setup... here is what I run: (see avatar for pic)

- Main: Sennheiser HD580's
- Portable: Shure SE420
- Antique Sound Labs MG-Head OTL w/ vintage black plate sylvania gold pin tubes.
- Optical: Samsung BD2500
- PC: X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion Series
- Cardas 10ft headphone cable
- ALL Outlaw Audio interconnects
- Panamax MAX 5400-PM (power regulator, conditioner, and protector)
- Harman Kardon AVR-354 Receiver
- JBL Studio L Series (S310's, LC1-Center, L820 surrounds)
- Mirage Audio OMNI S10 subwoofer
- AudioQuest G2 Speaker Wire