The minimum wage tax rate is 14%. The top tax rate has been set at 42 percent for incomes from 57,052 euros in Germany. In addition, there are 19% import duty & handling fee.
Atticus had some of the best vocal and guitar I’ve heard. It’s unabashedly un-neutral. Aeolus is also very good for this and more flexible in it’s FR with pad rolling.
Hd650 is good here too.
The Aeon 2 Open… (wait, crap, was it the open or closed… whichever is the warm sounding one) is decent, but when hd650 is on the table, it’s hard to justify IMO.
Honestly, if I had to pick, Aeolus all day and twice on Sundays.
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So, 42% of what you make. Another 20% in vat for things you buy. Let’s say 9% for healthcare? I assume there are other little things they nickel and dime you for, property tax, customs, etc…
Sounds like about 75-85% of your income isn’t actually income, as it eventually gets back to the government. Only difference is, does that happen on the front or back end of the paycheck. The only way not to pay more taxes is to not buy things. That’s not fun.
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Good point and makes sense, Schiit product purchases in Europe can be cost prohibitive.
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These are the current top 5 countries with the highest taxes and social security contributions.
Belgium: 52.2%
Germany: 49.4% …
Italy: 48% …
Austria: 47.9% …
France: 46.7% childless singles in France give an average of 46.7% of their salary, families with two children still a proud 36.8%. …
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Thanks for including us in your recommendations mate 
In visiting Switzerland and Italy from the US, I was struck by how the average standard of living isn’t that great. Switzerland in particular is extremely popular and expensive, but everything runs on time and works well. Just to live there one must have lots of assets or income. Italy is not so well organized.
For both, restaurant costs were roughly equal to a large city in the US. Transportation (trains) cost the same as the US. The housing stock is very small and old (i.e., history). They both have little markets with a modest selection and high prices versus US mega-marts. There is nothing like a Costco or Wal-Mart.
Some have argued that Europe is turning into a virtual museum due to low and falling birthrates. Older people often demand and need more support from the government. The entire developed world is on this path.
I haven’t looked it up, but would have thought that some of our Scandinavian friends are among the top.
With the cost of living yes, with the taxes not.
Alcohol is incredibly expensive in Scandinavia.
Good point about cost of living.
Due to wine (other than ice wine), lambic, Scotch, and ales/lagers being imported for the most part?
@Cyan69 - Just to fill in the gaps for the people who haven’t been following your posts on this topic, I’m assuming DSD is still a priority, which is what you’re using the Oppo for right now, using a USB stick to hold the DSD files, if I recall. In that case, Schiit DACs would be out, unless you want to play the DSD straight from your PC, in which case you can use software to convert the DSD.
And you had a Focal Clear, but both drivers failed. But I think you liked how it sounded before it crapped out? Is there a reason you wouldn’t buy another pair?
You know that everyone here is going to tell you not to spend $2000 on new headphones if you’re going to use a Denon receiver as your headphone amp, because that’s the consistent answer you’ve gotten every time you’ve asked. That answer’s not going to change but I admire your tenacity 
So what do you like about the Denon? Is it warm sounding or bright? Once we know the type of sound you like, or what you didn’t like about the other amps you’ve tried, people can recommend a DAC, amp and headphone combination that should sound better than the Sony -> Oppo → Denon setup that you already have.
I just bought a Denon AVR-S650H receiver over the weekend for my bedroom TV, so I should probably try it out with headphones to see what it sounds like. It would be funny if it turns out to be the best headphone amp I’ve ever heard! 
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Thanks for facilitating.
That would be something. Let us know how it sounds with high gain. Sorry, too soon 
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Here are some figures, in US dollars, for disposable income and the cost of Sennheiser HD 660 S headphones in various countries. Disclaimer: there are plenty of problems with these figures and various issues surrounding their interpretation. Full disclosure: I’m not an economist, much less a statistician, and it’s been a long day and I’m enjoying an adult beverage.
I’m getting the first figure, for “household net adjusted disposable income,” from data provided by the OECD. This is “the amount of money that a household earns, or gains, each year after taxes and transfers. It represents the money available to a household for spending on goods or services.” See here. Obviously, this info doesn’t factor in VAT or other things related to purchasing power parities.
Next to the figures for household net adjusted disposable income, in parentheses, are the prices for the HD 660 S on Amazon in the same countries (using each one’s respective Amazon website). The prices have been converted into USD by me using today’s exchange rates. (I have no life). The prices don’t include VAT or shipping.
USA: 45,284 (430)
Germany: 34,294 (491)
Australia: 32,759 (477)
France: 31,304 (606)
Canada: 30,854 (536)
Japan: 29,798 (515)
Netherlands: 29,333 (509)
United Kingdom: 28,715 (585)
Italy: 26,588 (521)
Spain: 23,999 (485)
When it comes to our hobby, it’s great to be in the US, less so in the UK or France.
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Couldn’t have fooled me! Nice work. For France, I wonder if there’s a bit of Focal protectionism! Likely not.
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Hello everyone,
I would like to get your advice on what headphones I should purchase. I’m new to the headphone community, but I have a fairly long background in home theater, electronics, and computers (I have my own IT company).
I’m looking for something to listen from computer sources which are mostly higher bitrate MP3 files and FLAC files, and I would consider streaming from a recommended service. I listen to a lot of classic rock, classical, and big band music. I cannot stand hip hop/rap or country.
I was originally listening on a pair of Sennheiser Momentums (wired) and an Audioquest Dragonfly plugged into my computer via USB. I purchased a Schiit Modi and Magni 3+ after a lot of reading and watching various youtube reviews. My plan was to pair them with the Drop 5xx, but that process turned out to be a nightmare of broken headphones, non-existent customer service, etc. so I finally just returned them for a refund. I do not want anything to do with Drop.
What I would like is something that pairs nicely with the new amp/DAC. Portability isn’t an issue, as this will be strictly a desktop setup.
My problem is a complete lack of headphone experience when it comes to people describing the sound signatures of a particular headphone. I wouldn’t know “warm” from “dark” for example since I have no frame of reference.
I THINK what I want is something that presents a good soundstage (do I want wide or deep?) and something that makes the type of music I like sound better. I don’t necessarily care that it doesn’t color the sound, as long as it sounds good. I don’t know if a hyper-accurate representation would be that beneficial. I don’t want “muddy” bass or sibilant highs, but other than that I’m not sure exactly what would be best for me.
I have heard a lot of general recommendations for the Hifiman Sundaras, and I would be fine purchasing those if it would work for my specific case. I’m trying to keep it under $500 for my first pair, and then I’ll go from there upgrading amps, DACs, and headphones.
Thanks for any advice you can give me.
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Having no frame of reference is only half the problem as audiophile terms such as these are used differently by different people, and to add to that, subjectivity and preference further muddies the waters.
Headphones generally can do soundstage width fairly well, but depth is very difficult. I would not expect speaker-like, somewhere-infront-of-you type of staging from any headphone, even ones reknown for it like the HD800.
Ok, as for a recommendation, the Sundara is alright. I did not like the headband/yolk mechanism and thought they were kind of uncomfortable. You can learn to get along with the ergonomics tho, I would imagine. I also understand the current iteration sounds much better than the originals I heard, so I’ll withhold my less than cheerful opinion of how they sound. 
The regular HD650 are very good, but clamp force on new pairs can be a bit much (but you can flex that out) and the feel of the ear pads can take a bit of getting used to. I usually recommend these as they just get better with more upscale gear, mine are 15+ years old, and I still use them. They are kind of a mainstay of many an audiophile.
I would avoid anything from Beyerdynamics and Grado unless you can demo it first, or buy risk free.
If you want fun, deep bass and clear highs, Fostex TH-610 or Emu Teak are quite good. A pre-owned pair should be within budget. The stock earpads are more on-ear than around-ear, but luckily they can easily be replaced with better sounding and fitting options like the ZMF Suede Universe pads (which is what I use).
Good luck
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The $500 price range is a bit difficult. I think that @ProfFalkin is pretty much right, but it is possible to buy and sell if you need to.
I know you don’t want anything to do with DROP, but their price on the Sennheiser HD-6xx makes it worth considering. Quality control on those is much better than some of the other DROP models, and it is an HD-650 in Cheap clothing. Very much a standard that will get you some frame of reference.
I’d consider getting that, and then looking to spend about $200 on some Grados - possibly used. Grados in general (exception - RS1e, and to a lesser extent RS2e) are accused of having a treble peak that annoys some people. They can be tamed with a 3 cent expedient of wrapping their foam pads with some tape. Really.
This would get you TWO frames of reference, and you might well find that you listen to classic rock on the HD-6xx and Classical on the Grado. I find the my Grados typically have a better soundstage (wider seeming stage, with good placement of instruments) than the Senns.
If you don’t like one or both, there is always the ability to sell and try something else.
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Given your needs and existing equipment I’d go with the Sundara. They are very good headphones. Personally I’ve never had issue about comfort with them but everyone of us is different. Soundstage isn’t the widest but is pretty decent. Instrument separation is very good and they will match the music you listen to. If in doubt since you already tried Sennheiser go for HD650 or even a pair of HD600. They are classics and a good starting point into headphones world. I’d avoid Grados if you don’t have possibility to try them first. I like them but all we are all different and the fit and the peculiar kind of sound you get from them requires a try before buying. I hope this can help
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The HD600, HD650 and Sundara are the main contenders in this price range.
HifiMan has had quality/reliability issues so some people do not recommend the Sundaras for that reason. The Sennheisers are solid and reliable.
I was in your place a few months back and received a lot of help from people here in this thread, probably worth a read:
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