All the 6x0's have this smoothness to them, in my experience, that you might be hearing as muddiness. Not a lot of things seem to quite pop out like they do on many other headphones (things like the attack of snare drums being the exception in the case of HD600/650s). And they tend to roll off pretty hard at both ends (i.e., not much bass or treble extension).

But they're pleasant sounding headphones that emphasizes the vocals. Dynamics are good when properly amped, and resolution is good though perhaps not as apparent. Ultimately easy to listen to and enjoyable headphones imo.

I don't think they're for everyone. but I like them for what they are.

We all have a desk fetish.

$20 a night? Looks to me like you're not enjoying your music enough.

jk

But which drugs give you the biggest soundstage?

I wish drugs were cheaper. Such an expensive hobby.

Now do one with what drugs you take.

I like both of those headphones.

Very satisfied with SHP9500 out of motherboard.

I can't eat. I can't sleep. I've lost my will to live knowing that someone exists that would go out of their way to steal a cable like that. I've lost faith in humanity.

>someone returned a pair that has been lacking it or snatched the cable and returned what I believe to be a completely unused headphone

Who in god's name steals a Hifiman stock cable?

Haven't messed too much with cables. I went through a few professional ones (a few Mogami's, Canare, Gotham, etc.) and ultimately found Mogami 2534 to be the most preferable for me across different gear. Amazon stuff is probably fine. I have monoprice 3.5 to RCA and while not great, don't really have a problem with it either.

Hmm, dunno, all of the measurements, maybe?

I personally stopped trying to tie measurements like SINAD and THD to sound quality, as some of my favorite sounding gear measure poorly (Soloist 3xp, OG BF2) and some of my least favorite gear measure very well (THX 789). I reckon some correlations exist but I couldn't figure it out over the 2 dozen or so stuff I've cycled through over the years.

That said, I like Schiit stuff. I don't think you'd necessarily be making a mistake with something like the Modi E, though lately I've been more into stuff like the Modi multibit.

>Am i overthinking this whole thing or am i on the right track?

Yes.

It may yield better results, it may not. You may like it, you may not. We can't tell what your motherboard is outputting, or how it compares to the Modi, or if you'd prefer the Modi over the motherboard.

Is your motherboard audio well shielded? Is your USB well isolated from the rest of your computer? Too many variables.

If you're curious, give it a go. Even if you do hear a difference, you may not like it, or it may not materially affect your music enjoyment.

Personally, I'd say to try Modi Multibit or something like Cayin RU6. Something more likely to sound different than your integrated audio.

EDIT: Saw your primary use is games. I've found several R2R dacs to introduce a little bit of latency so that could be a dealbreaker.

My OG Clears never clipped, but I don't think I listen too loudly (~70-75 db, which, actually, I'm pretty sure is still too loud).

But yes, it's a common complaint.

Gimme the Arya's. Then I can tell you whether you should've held onto it. xP

Can't really tell you what you're actually hearing and what's placebo, but I'm inclined to suggest that it doesn't really matter. Just find something you enjoy.

Some people think DACs sound different. Or you might have some issue somewhere somehow.

I didn't think the original AKM E30 sounded harsh (least harsh among K5 Pro AKM, Apple Dongle, El DAC II), but don't know about the E30II.

If you're looking for other options, I think Cayin RU6 is a very attractive option to try R2R. Got NOS option which may help with harshness.

I had a similar relationship with the HD6x0's, where I always felt they were just "meh." Over time, I got to try them on different source chains and thought that the right chain made them sound really really nice.

I stumbled on one such source gear, and ended up getting a 660s. Wish the 600/650 worked out for me so I could use tubes, but the upper mids are just too much for me.

Listening is subjective. I only look at measurements.

Music is subjective. True objectivists listen to sine tones.

I just listen to the frequency response graphs.

F. Sorry for your loss.

But while you're at it, are you going to share the measurements?