Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with stereo and audiophile

"Seasoning" headphones?

rwhe — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 12:17:39 -0800

Is the practice of "seasoning" headphones just supersition? In the Amazon reviews for a pair of earbuds I'm buying, I came across the claim that they sounded awful unless they were "seasoned" first by hooking them up to a constant audio source with a wide frequency range overnight or even for a few days. I googled "seasoning headphones" and came across this claim for some other headphones and earbuds, although it's not widespread.

To me this sounds like either (1) rank audiophile supersition, or (2) someone pulling the reader's leg. That's why I'm coming to AskMeFi. Opinions, please. Better, facts.

Cheers!

How to place a good speaker in a bad corner?

aladfar — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 15:28:20 -0800

How to place a good speaker in a corner? After investing in some decent audio gear, I find that I cannot avoid placing the left speaker in a corner due to space constraints. As expected, this emphasizes low the frequencies on that side and makes the sound stage a bit wonky. Short of moving the speaker, is there any way to mitigate this somewhat?

Looking for a Nice, Relatively Inexpensive Turntable+PreAmp

robdon — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 12:12:21 -0800

VinylFilter: Looking for a quality Turntable and PreAmp to fill the needs of a poor audiophile ($500-650 Budget) I've been easing into the world of audiophilia for quite a while now; I've spent my time combing through countless issues of Stereophile, practically live on the Head-Fi forums, and have replaced all of my digital music library with tasty, tasty FLAC. However, after living next to someone with a turntable, and hearing the warm, buttery sound emanating from his turntable rig, I want one. I plan on listening mostly through a pair of DT770 Pro Headphones [80 Ω] (and to a lesser extent a pair of Grados) but will likely purchase a proper Power Amplifier and set of monitors at some point in the future. Just looking for something that will last me awhile and make the vinyl I've had my eye on sound fantastic through my cans.

I've heard fantastic things about the Rega P3, but I feel it might be a touch pricey when you factor in a preamp...

500-650$ Total Budget

Is running in hi-fi a load of nonsense?

humblepigeon — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 10:01:17 -0800

Is running-in of hi-fi equipment nonsense? What have been your genuine experiences pre/post run-in? I can just about understand running in speakers because they have moving parts, but I can't understand running-in solid state stuff like amplifiers or CD players.

Bi-amping: How to using cheap t-amps?

humblepigeon — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 10:16:32 -0800

Bi-amping two cheap Sonic Impact T-amps — is it worth it? I've got two of the notorious Sonic Impact T-amp amplifiers on order. I'm not into audiophilia at all (which is why I'm asking this question here rather than on an audiophile forum). But I really want a clean and distinct sound, and my current amp isn't providing it. I listen to mostly classical and am mostly penniless.

I have Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 speakers, that have bi-wire connections on the back, and my plan is to simply use two line outputs from my CD player for each amp. Wiring from amp then goes to either the low or high posts of the speakers (amp 1 = high inputs, amp 2 = low inputs).

I don't intend to use a preamp because they're too expensive. I'll just adjust the volume of each amp in unison.

Will this work? Is it wise?