Thanks, Eric! I made a left turn and got the Sennheiser HD 650’s instead. I also ordered a set of Dekoni ear pads as an upgrade. I want to be able to spend time practicing/playing without discomfort. These should help!
So the final setup will be the Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 going into the Fiio E10k to power the HD 650’s. They’re due to arrive sometime around the 15th. I’ll post a review once I take shipment.
Thanks again!
Blockquote
How do you like the Fiio? I am just using a budget Audio-Technica to drive my 250-ohm DT990s.
I don’t have all the equipment yet, @howard, but I will post as soon as it gets here.
I’m currently having issues with Zoom Meeting recognizing the Scarlett 2i2 as both speakers and microphone.
What kind of computer are you connecting the DAI to?
Hi @eric.kiser,
The computer I’m using for the 2i2 is a Dell XPS One 2710, Windows Home 64bit.
However, after some tweaking and fiddling about - and a restart - it seems to be working fine now. Running Bose QC35’s until I receive the HD 650’s - hopefully next week.
I know the 2i2 is very popular, but the one I got had poor build quality and a faulty port so I returned it. After a lot of research, I went with the new SSL2 from Solid State Logic. Very happy with it. It does cost twice as much though, but I think that’s a fair price as it’s high quality.
There is a SSL2+ for a bit more if you collaborate more, but I just do solo stuff at home so went for simplicity.
My brother got some of the KZ ZS10 Pro IEM’s that you recommended.
His report was that they are so clear, he has been able to experience music in a way he has never heard before. Previously, he had owned some really nice Bose.
Does this equate with your experience?
Some aficionados will say that’s an oxymoron.
Based on my experience with Bose, I am one of those.
I was this way until I got my QC35’s. Which are not so good for music but are easily the best noise canceling headphones I have ever tried.
So there you have it. Bose are great when silent 
That’s where you lost me. 
I mean the QC-35s are ok for music but nothing special. But they are amazing at canceling noice and being comfortable.
I love my Bose earbuds! They are what I use to judge all others. When I find something better, that I can afford, I’ll keep them.
The Bose I have are not good with noise cancelling. That’s why I’m looking for an alternative.
@howard, I got that. It’s just that I think wearing headphones for anything else but listening to music is kinda… weird? 
Great topic. I’ve learned a lot. I live in an apartment (duplex) and have not had a neighbor until recently. So, being the thoughtful and nice guy I am o decided to get some headphones. I have a pretty low budget so I slapped “add to cart” on a pair of OneOdio headphones for $38. I’ll provide an update when I get them.
Thanks for the tip. I been looking for a new set of headphones, I been using a cheap pair of over ear wired / wireless headphones that I use at the gym.
I have been planning to upgrade.
After testing some new pedals yesterday, when it got late, and I switched to headphones, I really felt the need to take the upgrade plan more seriously.
I couldn’t get. Yself to pull the trigger on that OneOdio set shown above, but when I back read to the Bluedio T4’svyou have, I ran to the amazon app to do a search.
Well,
The T4’s are now $50
The T2’s are $22 to $29
The H’s are $26 ish
But
The T5’s, the newer T4’s were $29.99, a price I am comfortable with. I mean, I try them, if They don’t live up to your T4’s, they can go back, and I can get the tested T4’s, or another of the recommended pairs in this thread.
But I suspect, based on your review and recommendation, That I am gonna like them.
I’m guessing that’s because you haven’t heard what good noise cancelling does for airplane cabin noise, office background noise, etc. It’s pretty amazing.
I was traveling a lot for work a few years ago. Chile, Iceland, Bahamas. Travel via commercial flights and small charters, seaplanes, helis, and living on yachts underway with loud generators, and diesel mains There was no way I could survive without the noise canceling Bose buds. Even bought a backup set of Audio Technicas which are pretty good too. They are a game changer!
Now I just love them for all things noise canceling. Well worth it.
Look what I just got delivered from Amazon @peterhuppertz
They are the T5, not T4’s. They were $29.99 and the T4’s were like$47.99 to $52.99. The T5 are the new one’s apparently, so I figured, why not.
Out of the box, they look and feel awesome.
First plug in pre
Imonary testing before plugging them in to fully charge, and I am blown away. Now, the headphones I have been using are a cheap. Pair of over ear wireless / wired that I bought for the gym. I can’t stand ear buds, so I ordered these off Amazon for like $12, main,y cuz it was the first set under $20 that was Bluetooth, and was…
ORANGE, of course.
After being blown away by the Bludio T5’s, I put the old Orange PowerLocus set back on. Surprisingly to me was that they were actually handling the bass pretty good, as I had turned it way up to test the new T5’s. I had felt that my headphones were inadequate for the lows, and had been really failing me on that end of the sound wave, especially while I have been testing out some new pedals, and my Zoom B1Four.
Well, it’s not the low end that was the problem, because he held the lows as well as this new set, what it was is the dynamic range, and being able to play the highs, mids and lows at the same time.
The T5’s are great for this, the Orange set is, well, great for the sweaty gym. I knew I had cheap headphones, but they did not sound all that different then playing thru the cheap practice amp I just sold, after buying the Orange Crush 20b.
Now that I had the 20b, I started hearing things that were not there before with the old amp, or the “GYM” headphones, so I knew I needed new headphones. And now having them both here to compare side by side, its really cool to hear the difference.
I was testing pedals last two nights. I was really kind of unhappy with them, and was gonna send them back, but then I decided to wait til I get the new headphones. So tonight I will be testing the pedals again before deciding what to keep and what to send back.
Anyway, thanks @peterhuppertz for pointing me to Bluedio, I like a lot so far, and would like to pass the recommendation on to anybody looking for new 
on a budget, still wanting great dynamic range, wired / wireless, headphone sharing, etc… these are it.
My headphone requirements were pretty simple: for practice only so as not to annoy my family, comfortable, decent flat sound, prefer open back design for comfort and to prevent ear fatigue. Lots of folks thought the AKG K245 would fit the bill. So I got them here for a good deal:
But now that I have them… every time the cord moves, I can hear the “rubbing” sound distinctly in the headphones. Very distinctly. So when practicing if I move even a little I can hear the cord creaking and rubbing. It’s not “electronic” noise… its more like the sound made when the cord moves is mechanically transmitted up the cord to the phones. I can verify that because if you touch the cord at the coiled section or below it’s just fine. But if you barely touch the cord in the few feet between the top of the coiled portion and where it plugs into the left earphone you can hear all the rubbing creaking etc. And of course that’s the portion of the cord that inevitably has to touch your shoulder, bass, strap, etc. It’s incredibly annoying.
So they are 100% being returned but my questions are:
Thanks.
Ken
