I’ve never considered my an audiophile–ever. Sure, I enjoyed listening to music but I was pretty content with just about anything with speakers. Recently, I’ve been really interested in good quality sound.
So, went ahead and spent a little bit on audio gear for my computer. A decent headphone and sound card it was then!
Headphones
I was going to get me some Audio Technica ATH-AD700 but had to ship it all the way from HongKong. Having heard of multiple instances of fake items arriving, I decided to wimp out and grab a local item.
Sennheiser HD555
Reading a few reviews online made me go for these bad boys. They’re pretty good value for the money spent–according to them.
Sound Card
This computer item, I have not purchased separately for years. I’ve always thought that onboard sound was adequate enough for my needs. There was a stage when I didn’t even care about the onboard card as all I needed was just SPDIF pass through so my Logitech Z680 could decode the signal into Dolby or DTS and output it through the 5.1 system. For this Audiophile project, I again referred to numerous reviews. High praise was given to the ASU Xonar Essence ST and so I got myself that card.
Xonar Essence ST
Immediately after my eyes set on the box, I knew I wanted it. It’s..let me look for an appropriate word..regal. This thing is packed looking like it’s the king of all sound cards! I know I’m talking like an Apple fanboi but go see it for yourself and tell me I’m mistaken. Opening the package, I see that the card is very decently built and I can see the high end components used to make this piece of hardware. (It’s about the only thing I understand from the item I was holding!) Anyway, it very much resembled a miniature video card from 2003 down to the molex plug that it takes. Didn’t take long to install and so machine’s powered up real quick.
Experience
I was blown away. I’ve never been appreciative of headphones before. Now, I’m hearing details from my CD that I never even knew existed. Listening to Queen and Guns n Roses right now and it’s just a blast. The base on my headphone choice does lack a little but the sound stage is so good! A little playing around with the equalizer helps put out a little more doof but I’m not expecting miracles. I’m finding myself just sitting on the chair and listening and doing nothing but that. I’ve NEVER done that before! I tried to, once or twice, when someone recommended I do it to enjoy music better but I’ve never really seen (or heard) the point. Turns out, what I’d been listening to was a little crappier than what my ears deserve. I’m not claiming salvation or anything extreme like that here but you have to try it to understand. A little more pennies spent in the right direction does count towards a better experience.
Wising
Having owned the set for a while now, there are a few things I wish I’d done.
1. Buy a much more decent pair of headphones. Don’t get me wrong, these cans are great! Gaming-wise, I can’t ask for more. Reason, I’m longing for better ones, is that I’ve realized that I really do enjoy base. I don’t want to sacrifice sound stage either. Which only leaves me with the higher-in-the-price-rack headphones that offer more in these terms but just needs a little more power to drive.
2. Higher impedance headphones. The HD555s are 50-ohm headphones, an iPod can drive these (albeit not very well). The Xonar Essence ST has a built in amplifier that does a decent job. Had I realized it sooner, I would’ve resorted to taking the plunge and investing in maybe an HD600!
Wiser
Well, I suppose if I had jumped directly to all the bigger and better, I wouldn’t be able appreciate them. I’m glad that I took this path. The leap in experience from this simple mid range spec duo is more than enough to wet my lips into the world of audiophiles. Maybe soon when I’m ready, I’ll audition some better cans running on headphone amps–and then we’ll see where it goes from there.
Advice
Try it out. If you don’t like it, sell it. They have a very decent 2nd hand price.
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