Seems to be akin to having the gene that makes cilantro taste like soap. There's just a subset of people for whom ANC creates a uncomfortable sensation of pressure in their ears.

What I'm curious about, and haven't read anything either way, is if those who experience it do so with all ANC or just specific versions of ANC. Can you use Sony 1000XMx series without this sensation? What about Airpod Pros/Maxes? Sennheiser Momentums?

Yeah I'm anticipating that - the suede pads I'm getting seem like they may tone down the top end just a touch but otherwise keep it feeling pretty similar. Crossing my fingers.

Is that an M3X?

Yo we have the same audio setup! Nice. I actually bought the pair on recommendation of a friend who was also using the same.

What keyboard is that though?

> while my Arya is still alive

Don't jinx it...

I had the dragonfly black for a few days a while back. Ended up returning it because of the high-level noise floor.

So many better dongles for the price, even back then.

So you have zero evidence to present to back up your claims, got it. That's not how science works.

Im a senny fan, and I 6 even know this subreddot existed wtf??? But I think they had a firmware update that actually improved the ANC because when I first got them, it felt weaker. But I tried a friends xm4, and the anc is a noticable step up on the sonys. But the sound on the momentum is much better, def one of the better sounding bluetooth headphones.

Lol, no worries, I'm much the same way. I keep all of the packaging because "just in case" I never know if I will find the urge to sell off things.

Holy fuck that image is cursed.

I'm terrible about throwing audio stuff away. I even keep boxes.

Would you like to see a vintage shure and a new grado green? I think I've even have an AT hanging around, too. It's been a while since i've opened that banker box and those ziplock bags. What about headshells?

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Which is your fave? I have the dragonfly and it’s my first one… looking into possibly getting another portable-ish DAC for my Focal Clear MGs (very weird ratio of cost… I know)

After adjusting the volume, I can't tell any difference between the balanced cable and the balanced cable with a 3.5 adapter.

There's a part of my lizard brain that still gets hung up on the 'louder is better' argument and the BTR5 also has dual DACs for the balanced output, which triggers an idea that they create a wider soundstage with more defined channel separation. But like I said, I can't tell any differences and I'm cognitive of my bias and opinion that I really like the sound of the BTR5.

I've not tried any A/B comparison between the shure MMCX / 3.5mm cable and any aftermarket balanced MMCX / 2.5mm cables.

Well i guess i just comes down to personal preference after all. I do like my k702 in both tonality and detail, it's less of a "less bass=more detail", but rather "less bass = me more like it". I'm not very sure about K612, as i don't own them currently, but comparing K702 to HD600 both of which i have at hand right now, i would choose akg over senny, and i would choose them both far over K371 which i keep mostly because it's sometimes fun to stirr things up a bit.

Anyway, as i said, i did try using my K702 with both my amp and my phone. I admit, the difference is a lot less than i expected, i didn't notice much difference in neither bass nor mids. I did, however, notice difference in treble, from my phone (Redmi note 8) the treble is sharper. The problem with my methodology is that i am using different DACs while changing AMPs. I think, that the extra sharpness might be because of lost detail, as with K5 pro the treble is effortless, while with my phone it's... Clipping? Might be, i'm not shure, but it definitely results in an overall sharper sound.

So you were right, it does seem that amplification of headphones is all volume. I really want to try now my KA1, to finalise this, but it's broken, so better luck next time. Probably my experience after buying K5 was due to a better DAC in it, which resulted in less harshness.

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Right? It's been an issue for like 5 years, and they've finally fixed it. It'd be one thing if it were just an isolated product run, but for this long? "Shit" seems to describe more than just their name.

GRIS soundtrack, respect! Most underrated game soundtrack in the world.

If you wanna upgrade something, definitely upgrade the headphones.

I personally have never gotten over 6 hours, but I use the DAC in LDAC 990kbps mode at manual 16bit 44.1khz exclusively when in wireless mode. Did the balanced cable make a difference to the SE535 sound, other than making them louder?

It's amazing to see how far we've come over the years and then realize that we haven't really taken any big steps at all. I can't tell you how many times I've had to take that Supermacro 3 apart to clean up battery goo and here we are, still fighting batteries. Instead of leaking cells, now it's duty-cycles, capacities, and what feels like a planned obsolescence / intentionally disposable devices.

Thanks for replying.

Phone and IEM would do. BTR5 does nothing.

I knew it. Let me know how zmf treats you when the day comes :)

I already decided I'm going to sell my Ananda, DT990, K702, NTH-100, and 99 Classics. I just want to get a new pinna first (the seller that makes the clone gras rigs is coming out with an updated pinna based on the KB5000) and update my squiglink with them first, then I'll sell those and put it towards something