Followup:

       My headphones: beyerdynamic dt 770  pro 250 Ohm 

DAC: Fiio ka3

I feel like im pushing the edge of the amp.. on loud recordings 90% vol is fine and enough but on those old recordings (or Steven Wilson's remixes) I need to turn it up to 97%..

I have all the right apps, (FiiO control, UAPP) and my dac is configurated..

The headphones are connected to the regular headphone jack bc they don't have a balanced cable ):

Should I buy a new dac?

The 7Hz Timeless AE is the follow-up to the original 7Hz Timeless released a year ago that swept the IEM world by planar storm. Like its predecessor, the Timeless AE also sports a 14.2 mm planar driver but comes with an increased price tag of $260 (compared to the original’s $220).

You can read my full review here if you want to see some frequency response graphs but basically, the Timeless AE is a bass boosted version of the original Timeless. It's very very similar, with like maybe 2 - 3 dB extra bass. While it doesn’t cross into the bloated territory, the Timeless AE is distinctly a bass-first IEM and even the smallest hints of low end energy in a note is emphasized. However, as it is a Timeless, you can expect to have a well-tuned midrange and treble.

Personally, I would get the original Timeless. Not to get too cynical but the Timeless AE feels like an all-too-familiar cash grab to tempt people who already own and enjoy the Timeless to spend another $200+ for an “improved” version. You’re not really missing out on anything.

I have a working Compaq Laptop that might run that PCI card. Runs windows 98. Thinking about finally upgrading to Win 2k. Have an unused copy of that also.

Right now I’m pleased with my set up, but I would love to get more pairs of headphones over the next couple of years!

That’s awesome! I got my HD8XXs for 900, but I actually got my ADI-2 for 900 and some change! Huge deal that I got from Sweetwater and it was brand new :)

The Momentum 4 has vastly improved ANC, if you don't really care about the more generic looks. The Momentum 3 can't really compete with Sony in terms of ANC, the Momentum 4 can although Sony is better. In terms of sound quality both Sennheiser headphones beat the XM4/XM5 respectively

If i'm not happy with the sound for additional money being spent, there's always the Qudelix 5k!

Thanks for the comment!

It wasn't perfect. The volume on mine collected a lot of dirt / debris over time and things got scratchy. The plastic was flimsy and I had to superglue mine to keep everything together.

But back in the day, it rocked and was a huge improvement over on-board laptop audio.

I wonder if I can find drivers and a USB PCMCIA... nevermind.

I only really use the balanced output on my BTR5 when using headphones which need the extra output. I personally can't tell the difference in quality. It sounds cracking either way.

Had a K712 for over 2 years going through motherboard audio, an ASUS external soundcard, an E09k + Sanskrit stack and finally an A-GD NFB-11 and each pairing sounded markedly different.

I was (and still largely am) amp and DAC agnostic, but bought the NFB for more headroom to build out my collection at the time since the AKG was my first "proper headphone" and so imagine my surprise when it immediately made a clear difference to the attack and dynamics that I hadn't heard before.

All that is to say, yeah that's a very weird headphone. I've observed the same thing going back to it later, but not as clearly with almost any other headphone. Who knows what they did to that thing in design and production 🫠

Oh, you've really stepped in it now.

On my PC, I 3.5mm out of the motherboard into a vintage Pioneer XS-828 receiver which pushed a pair of Alesis MK 1 Monitor One's.

I ran across a used FX-Audio DAC-X6 on marketplace. Retired the pioneer and picked up a used PJ Miaolai M6 'tube' amplifier. I bought a 5-pack of vintage RCA tubes for a whopping $10 on eBay. So went TOSLINK out of the motherboard to the DAC and then line level to the PJ Miaolai and push those same Alesis monitors. Was definitely a step up in sound quality. But what made the difference? Was there a deficency in the 40-year old receiver? Probably. But offloading the sound processing from the noisy PC was a huge improvement in itself. Even the vintage RCA tubes made a difference compared with the stock no-name tubes.

Then, still not really satisfied with how music sounded on my PC, I replaced the PJ miaolai with an Aiyima A07 + Suca Tube-T1 'tube' 'pre-amp'. Alone, I think the A07 is detailed but sterile. The Tube-T1 adds tone controls and really allows the 'depth' and 'breadth' of the music to come through. Adds 'warmth'.

In conclusion, I think the biggest thing you can do for a PC is a DAC. But I believe there's diminishing returns when it comes to cost when it comes to DAC. And keep in mind, that better headphones will 'show' the shortcomings more than 'cheaper' (for lack of a better term) headphones. After the DAC, it's really where you want to go and how much you want to spend. Powered monitors can be great for near field listening. Finding the right combo of speaker and amp is important, too. Like headphones, quality speakers and amps will show the shortcomings in the chain. But here on the internet, we get all caught up in percentages of percentages and specifications that probably don't hold a lot of weight in the real world where rooms are less than perfect.

Mine isn't pretty. Those Monitors are grey and utilitarian. None of the 3 boxes match and I have a redundant volume on the Suca. In fact, if I don't turn down the A07 when I power everything up or down (PC Audio is on a smart switch that turns on when I get home and shuts off at 11), there's a huge thump from the Tube T1.

But I'm happy with how things sound.

For now.

That PCMCIA card looks awesome. Reading up about it, seems like it was a pretty good bang for buck

EQ works good on these. I listen to Hip Hop aswell, although I sometimes prefer the HD-58X for hiphop cause it doesnt separate all the sounds in the mix + puts the rapper's voice more forward in the presentation. So you hear the music all blended together and behind the rapper so to say. But the HD-8XX sound amazing with well mastered music of anykind, you got an amazing setup there!

I got my 8XX with zeo's code for 700bucks and some change and for this price its one of the deals of the century imo. enjoy

it's comparable to the Arya, but rounded off a bit at the very tippy tops. So slightly less sibilance with the very sharp material. I don't feel like it's too bright but I'm coming from planars.

So cool!

it'll probably narrow the soundstage a bit too since it's a less transparent material.

I saw a couple reviewers state how the EQ on these is worse than the normal 800S, but I agree with you on the point that changing the pads on these helped tremendously! I changed the EQ to resemble the normal 800S but with more emphasis on the lows. I like bass and I listen to a lot of hip hop! ( I’m better off getting some closed back headphones I know) BUT I love the sound stage on these and it makes listening to music a BLAST!!

I've been using my X2HRs for years now, and the only noticeable difference is the pad depth. Love them.

Thanks for the write up. Lots of nostalgia for me here. I remember getting the shure 500s when they were new with the switch pack mic that came with it. Eventually I found Heir/Noble and stopped with the first production pair of K10s. And don’t sleep on the apple dongles they are quite good. I never had much luck with the iFi stuff it was always too noisy for me.

The total airhead was so so so great. I was a road warrior traveling 50 weeks a year then and the airhead was pure bliss for me as a traveler.

What do you mean by "I heard that the EQ on these don't really shine."?

For me EQ is a must with these, I myself am using 'IEF neutral over-ear with bass' profile i found and it really fixes the sound for me. The mids were recessed but I changed to ZMF lambskin pads and while they are still not forward, there is now more impact to the sound making them push through when needed.

That was what? 24-bit / 96kHz back in 2003! I believe mine was one of the first ones with dual 3.5mm outputs. Later models had 1 output and 1 input and multiple channels. I used mine with an IBM thickpad.

[deleted]

If you're a measurement-freak, I suggest turning on auto ref level to maximize SNR.

I’ll try that! Thanks!

I have had budget ANC headphones in the past (Anker Q30 and Edifier), never had problems. The ANC on the Boses is much much heavier.