Thanks for your reply monochromios - I am a little confused though. Are you suggesting the issue is power? I get that the FiiO K5 pro may not be as refined as a more expensive dac / amp - but it will deliver a full watt into 33 ohms. The Ananda is only 25 ohm (sensitivity 103 dB) - easier to drive than a 6XX. I know there are planars that are hard to push, but the reviews I have read suggest the Ananda is pretty efficient.
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My fault. I’ve checked the specs of the FiiO K5 and it seems to have the power to drive Anandas.
Check them, try them and let us all know if they fit you.
One thing to chime in on here: More money does not mean better headphone for you. Arya is a great example for me. I prefer it’s less expensive siblings. Not that it isn’t gorgeous, it is, but the wide open soundstage is more of a curiosity than a benefit for me. I actually prefer the cohesive sound of more filled in sound stage, even if that means losing all that width. Arya feels like a flat plane with instruments way the hell out on the edge or right next to you. I much prefer a sphere with instruments spread evenly around said sphere. My musical preferences also don’t benefit from that enormous sound stage.
So, for me, hearing it helped check off an understanding of my musical preferences. One of the most well rounded headphones I have heard, at any price, continues to be the Blessing 2 dusk IEM. $329. I have listened to and currently own things well above that price point, but that continues to be a solid all around reference headphone for me. And I would not cry if that were the only thing I could ever listen to for the rest of my life. (except that IEM irritation has been a thing for me. so I might cry).
My rule of thumb: above $500 continues to be primarily about preferences and diminishing returns that matter to you. Listen, learn, enjoy. No matter what you buy now, you will find new things at every price that are both better and worse than what you are currently listening to. Accept that, and enjoy the journey.
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Also see @mfadio and @Dynamic above.
Trying high priced headphones helps you decide whether they are worth the cost to YOU. I own the Focal Clear and tried the $4,000 Focal Utopia. The Utopia is technically amazing, but the treble is too intense for me. I greatly prefer the Clear for general use, but others who are not treble sensitive love the Utopia.
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A few brief things to add to the above, excellent advice: beware of auditioning too many headphones all at once. It can be hard to keep everything straight (I’m speaking from experience here!)
I take a notebook with me that has a list of the qualities I want in a headphone so that I can quickly jot down impressions immediately afterwards. This helps me to take a break between auditions, letting me reset a bit before moving on to the next pair of headphones.
Finally, I’d recommend making a list of the headphones you want to audition and then concentrating on just auditioning them for most of the time you’re at the store. This means you can give them a couple of whirls and compare them with each other within a consistent frame of reference. And then, when you’ve got things more or less figured out, you can go hog wild the fancy, expensive stuff.
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I have a lot of geezer, tightwad trouble spending over $1k on headphones also. While my go-to headphones are Nectar Hive e-stats, I enjoy the Hifiman HE-560, but that would not be my choice as a complement to the HD6XX. They are bigger and heavier - yes more resolving. There are many here who may disagree (and even most of those may have actually tried them), I find the GRADO RS1e does it much better than the 6XX. Far better air and soundstage.
While “technically” a “geezer” I still have decent hearing, but do not find the GRADO RS1e to be fatiguing or too bright. This is not the case with some of the other Grados, although I do like the GRADO sound. I really like the light weight and the on-ear design. I suspect @Lothar_Wolf and @Wormsdriver might agree. I bought my pair from @MCM who posted these comments in the GRADO thread.
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What’s a good open back TV/Movies/Gaming headphone.
Not competitive FPS gaming, just casual single player gaming.
No, I will never sell it. I believe it was Moses that stated it best, “… pry it from my cold dead hands.”
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My Beyerdynamic DT880 Pro is 250ohm. Same drivers as the new ones. However, worn pads and broken in drivers makes Beyers sound better with age.
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Hi!
I am considering getting a portable dac/amp for my Hifiman Sundara and AKG K371 and a future IEM.
My short list contains the AQ Dragonflies, Lotoo Paw S1, Fiio BTR5, IFI Hip Dac. Which should I get? Any other options I should take into account?
I need real-life suggestions. 
I know many people would claim that the Sundara could never be powered by a dongle, but I have seen several accounts that prove the opposite. And a desktop solution is out of the question atm.
Thanks!
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I never had the qudelix 5k while I had the sundara. And I preferred my sundara with a lot of power behind it. (Like more than a watt) But, if I didn’t have a lot of power, then the qudelix 5k would be my next choice.
Idsd micro signature was my favorite amp with the sundara. Not cheap though.
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The Chord Mojo is a popular pairing and regularly available in the used market in a similar sub-$300 price range. Should be easy to sell if you don’t like it 
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I didn’t know the mojo used was that low. I’m going to have to investigate. I have the btr5 and hip dac and hands down prefer the hip dac unless I need Bluetooth.
See here for $309 ones new:
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HiFiman Sundara or HarmonicDyne Zeus. Sundaras are excellent and can take eq like a champ.
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Blessing 2, FiiO FD5; also the upcoming Dunu Falcon Pro should be well under $300.
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Thinking of something like the HD660S or Shure 1840 maybe. I find cheaper Hifimans a bit annoying, noisy when you move or adjust them. Though Sundara meant to be good.
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The Dragonflies are super portable, and do bulletproof MQA. They are limited by the input - usually what your iDevice outputs. If you can live with that, they are great. I use them as my best super-portable when I ditch the Audeze cipher cable and LCDi3 or an iSine20. They power the Grado RS1e to perfection, and can just manage the Sennheiser HD-6xx.
My next step up is the iFi xDSD, which is probably a step up, but in the ballpark of the Zen DAC or Hip DAC. At this point, it’s a matter of portable utility, not sound quality, Note that the iFi stuff has a real line out mode, which the Dragonflies do not.
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I’m a Roon user and (obviously) a heavy headphone user and currently on the lookout for a network/DAC/headphone amp unit that can provide both Ethernet and USB connectivity for inputs, a great DAC, and very high quality headphone amping.
Do you have an opinion how these units (may) stack up, and whether there are any that are missing on this list?
- Bricasti M3H
- Mola Mola Tambaqui
- Boulder 812 (to be released)
I current have the Mytek Brooklyn bridge in another room which I like (though Mytek have had service and quality issues I’ve grown tired off).
Many thanks for pointing to any omission on this list and offering any comments on the aforementioned.
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I think that’s great advice. When I was auditioning speakers a few years ago, someone told me the same thing and it was very helpful. It’s good to start with a somewhat narrow list based on your preferences/research. If you don’t like what you’re hearing, take your time and you can start opening up the search from there.
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Hey guys, apologies for bothering you with my indecisiveness yet again, I’ve spent some time price hunting for all the headphones I thought would be worth a buy, and these are the results:
- Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro 80 Ohm - €135
- Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro 250 Ohm - €140 (will need to buy an AMP)
- AKG K361 - €105
- AKG K371 - €140
- Shure SRH840 - €115
- Meze 99 Neo - €200
All of them fit the budget so the only thing that prevents me from making a choice are the minor nuances when they are compared against one another. I have to admit, no matter how many reviews I read or the details of each of these headphones, I can’t seem to make a decision since all of them look so similar 
I’m not particularly well-versed in sound quality, so whether some headphones have good bass, midrange, the treble doesn’t really mean much to me because I can’t go into a store and test them out to notice the differences between them before making a decision on which one I should buy, so I have to make sure that the ones I get will be a good choice.
In your opinion, out of all of these, which one would you take if you don’t do any professional / studio editing, mixing, etc. and would mainly use them for your everyday purposes at home (music, movies, video clips)?