Commotion

Someone at work just bought some beats and couldn't stop raving about them. I wanted to butt in, but I figured he'd save a shit load of money in the long run if I just shut up and my minded my own business. As for the sporta-pros, I don't think anyone interested in something like the trendy beats would want to be caught dead wearing those

Just wanted to weigh in on a non-apple product... I bought a HTC One about 4 months ago and it's been one of the best investments I've ever made. Just one of the most rock solid pieces of technology I've laid my hands on. My last android phone (Motorola Atrix) freezed up nearly everyday whereas this one maybe twice since I bought it. Screen was a little bit too big coming from 3", but I got used to it quickly and can't imagine going back now. Additionally, this thing boots in under 10 seconds and the sound quality is way above average for a phone. HTC hit an absolute homerun with this thing and I suspect in long run it's going to be looked at as one of the best products that came this decade. Absolutely get one if you have the chance unless you're absolutey set on an Iphone (which there is nothing wrong with). I don't usually rave about stupid things like phones, but this phone might be the one exception. Edit: Sorry, the Atrix actually has a 4" screen, but held side by side the difference seems bigger

Me too, me too

So just for the heck of it I plugged my HE-500's into my 10+ year old Denon receiver which I never thought to do since it's a freaking receiver, but shit... peaky treble is all but gone and everything is toned down a notch. Detail is not the same but the headphones are way more listenable to now. Looks like it is the Gilmore Lite that's not gelling with these phones. I'm honestly pretty shocked since I like the Lite with a lot of other headphones, both high and low impedance. But it really does not play well with the Hifimans for some reason. So there might be a chance I can be happy with these afterall... just need to try something else in the way of amps. Oh well, end of rambling

Well, since this thread got bumped, I finally got my HE-500's a few days ago and still trying to figure out if it's for me. I'm getting a little bit more used to them now, but there is one big issue so far: music just sounds fake and unnatural on them. They have detail in spades and the soundstage, bass and imaging is pleasant enough, but the mids are not convincing (vocals sound hollow and raspy) and the highs can be a little shrill. I'm guessing my Gilmore Lite and using the coax out of a Squeezebox has something to do with this, but then again, I'm not sure I can see a better amp changing them enough that I can live with them (unless I explore the megabucks stuff, which I can't). Sucks, because I bought these thinking they would be a permanent fixture on my head for at least several months. Oh well. The Parasound will stay though since I don't think it's at fault here. I know this isn't the headphone section, but I didn't want to bump the HE-500 thread which is a decade old.

That's crazy I don't think the 1600 is anything near perfect, even without knowing what perfect is by source component standards. It just does a lot of stuff right. The mid-range and bass is a little too prominent on it, almost to the point of being vulgar. I haven't listened to any piece of gear yet that puts the mids so much in the forefront. Sometimes I listen to crappier sources that are obviously not as good, but it's a nice break from the 1600 because they aren't anywhere near in your face. By the way, I replaced my "K" PCM63's to "KY" that I bought from someone on ebay a long time ago who supposedly pulled them out of a Yamaha component. After selling the "K's" it was only like a $40 difference. Supposedly it's a higher grade and I seem to remember noticing a difference, but because I couldn't AB them for obvious reasons it's hard to tell.

I'd say it's more my inability to stay satisfied with anything ever Sadly, I listen to my gear instead of the music more often than not. Sometimes I break away from that but not for long

Just bought some HE-500's... going to see if these headphones show the limitations of this DAC. Anyone think a Gilmore Lite w/DPS will be a bottleneck in between those two? Going to get something better eventually, but probably not anytime soon unless the synergy is obviously terrible

Actually, my whole point was for moot since I don't think he did design it. I've had so much of his gear that I just automatically assumed it was him since the DAC is from the same era as the other stuff. Stupid me

Hmm, I'm considering it. The problem is I don't know if it's going to be worthwhile upgrade over the 1600, and if not it's going to be waste of time and money (not a lot, but still more than I care to). I was hoping to upgrade to something clearly better. Plus, the DAC-1600 has more coolness factor being rare and everything. And I know it's stupid, but I have some irrational preference to Parasound things designed by John Curl. I also have one of his speaker amps that I really like. On the downside, my DAC-1600 is at least 15 years old and I can't imagine at least some of the electronics didn't deteriorate yet. Has anyone else compared the two?

Wow, way more info than I expected, thanks. I know I jumped right into the fray, but I've been reading this forum since it opened... just never posted. Plus, I must have fallen out of and jumped back into the headphone game at least 10 times now. I took a detour with speakers and still enjoy them way more than headphones, but now that I have more neighbors I'm trying not to be a dick all the time by blasting my music. I really like the Parasound DAC. I've also owned the Parasound CDP-2000 CD player that's supposed to be similar to the DAC-2000 and I thought the 1600 was slightly better overall. The CDP-2000 was more polished and easier to listen to but not as fun, not to mention the whole CD thing is 100 times more cumbersome than turning on my Squeezebox. The only thing I can think of that might be wrong with it is I find it a little too aggressive at times, and like Sherwood said it's not the end-all when it comes to resolution, but it's still better than most things I've listened to it. And all it's other traits more than make up for that. I think I'm going to abstain for now and hope I get lucky and steal it from someone who hasn't researched the completed listing on ebay beforehand. Doubt that'll happen anytime soon though

Ancient Dac, but has anyone heard one of these? How does it compare to the Parasound D/AC-1600 I have? Supposedly the 2000 was touted as being a noticeable step up and was much more expensive (I think 2x the price) at the time. I see them come up a few times a year on ebay and was wondering if they're worth the 600-800 dollars they normally go for. I'm a huge Parasound fanboy and have wanted one for a while. Anyone ever hear one?