Hello guys.
A few days ago I got a new headphone.
It’s the Fostex T50RP 50th anniversary edition.So not a T50 in a standard way because it has T60 drivers, T60 earpads and a different headband.My old headphones were audio technica ATH-M30.
I’m only driving them through my PC.
Mainboard is an AsRock B650E Steel Legends Wifi with a Realtek ALC897 Audio Codec sound chip.
The biggest difference compared to my old headphones was that the Fostex headphones were a lot quieter which is probably normal given that they are way harder to drive and given that they are planar headphones. Usually I was using 30% volume on windows and that was more than enough for me. Now with the Fostex headphones I have to use something between 40-50% but I still have the feeling that somehow punchiness is missing. They are way more clearer and more detailed compared to my old headphones but my old headphones had more punch (as in bass). At least that’s what I’m thinking.
I read a few days regarding this “issue” and some people mentioned that the Nahimic sound driver could be an issue. But I tried both… With and without (completely uninstalled everything that was related to it) and it made zero difference. Now when playing songs I can hear still random noises in the background but it’s at the exact same place where it was when listening with my previous headphones. That gives me the impression that a DAC would be a good idea.
My question is now: Is there something I can change on the windows settings to make my Fostex headphones fuller and louder without damaging my ears or is an amplifier the only solution here? Because originally I haven’t planned to purchase amp and/or DAC and finding a good budget option is hard. Already tried looking for something on AVexchange but most people selling CONUS only or one guy doesn’t even reply anymore (he sold a JDS Labs Atom stack but it seems like he is either banned or didn’t came online anymore for a few days now which is a bummer). Also it’s hard finding good options because I’m from Germany so majority of amps would cost extra taxes like Schiit stacks or JDS Labs stacks. But I read about quite a lot of issues with Schiit (ground issues, overheating issues, some headphones died when you did not turn them off etc.). For iFi it’s a bit similar. There seems to be an issue with the autoplay function where everything is delayed somehow. I really don’t know what to do at this point.
Thanks for everybody who is able to help.
Buy an external DAC and amp because they are both a problem. If the headphones are bad anyway return them. Don’t wait
The headphones are not bad in a way that they are not functioning properly because they do. From what I could read over the past months majority of people were always typing that those “hard to drive headphones” won’t even be drivable through a normal PC. But it turns out that they are. I think 40% on windows volume is still quiet normal. I often read that people are using 70% or even higher. I would just like to know if the sound can be improved somehow with an amp or if that won’t make a big difference in the end? Because I saw that these headphones require a lot of juice and I don’t even know if the power from my mainboard is enough which maybe causes the lack of punchiness in the sound.
I don’t think that other headphones that are maybe easier to drive would sound better if windows is the culprit.
It should not make a difference.
That’s a shame.
But I guess I will give these headphones back then. They are really not what I was searching for. Thanks for the fast reply.
It’s not the DAC or power that’s the issue with the lean midbass, it’s the fact that you bought planar magnetic headphones. It’s common knowledge that they can’t make the air pressure that the dynamic driver does in the midbass.
Ohms (power) and dB (loudness) are two different things.