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Is there a local store in Singapore that allows audition / sells Zu Mobius cable, or do they have to be ordered online from USA?

You can use Yodobashi's website to compare prices with what you find at Bluetin. In my experience, Yodobashi (right next to Akihabara JR station) has the same prices as other shops if you choose to hunt for them in the streets and back lanes of Akihabara. Here's the link for the AD2000: http://www.yodobashi.com/enjoy/more/i/27782992.html

See www.raysamuelsaudio.com for details. I've heard good things about PPAV2 as well, but it is DIY or you'll have to request for a custom build on forums or eBay.

Not sure about pop on K701 but classical like Nigel Kennedy's four seasons was almost magical the first time I heard it on a burned-in K701, almost like being immersed into the live performance.

I guess it won't be hard to run electrical signals through the drivers for a period of time before the headphones are assembled. But I guess you're right that it is cost to the manufacturing process and the audiophile market is willing to live with it and also to debate endlessly on the benefits (and lack) of "burn-in"

I'm wondering why manufactures don't "pre-burn-in" headphones, especially if high-end stuff requires burn in. Aren't they worried that their product doesn't shine right out of the box when a consumer tries to compare them.

Did you get a chance to compare it with the HD650? If you did, any comments why did you choose HD600 over the newer HD650?

Yes, I intend to take it out. I'm dumping it in the office for listening with the iPod. A desktop amp is not practical and overkill for the office desk so I'm looking for something that is small and will run on batteries. I know performance is better, I've listened to it on my home amp. Regardless of that, I'm still hunting for a portable headphone amp to pair with for office listening.

What is the sound like, biased towards treble or bass in anyway? I assume Stereo is the place to audition?

What is the recommended portable amp that is sufficient to "drive" the HD650 close to its potential SQ? So far, I've auditioned the RSA Hornet with the HD650 and I would say that I liked the clean and punchy base with sufficient separation to my liking. I don't have any budget in mind, as long as the amp is portable, sufficient to bring out the quality of HD650 and easily available (not something that I have wait for months on a mail order). Finally, I'm going to use it to listen to mostly instrumental and jazz music. Please share some good recommendations. I'll probably get the Hornet unless there is something good that I can audition as well.

I think you should listen and see if you really here a difference with your own ears before deciding on wasting space with lossless or swearing off MP3 players for audiophile beliefs. It is easy to "go with the crowd" and listen to placebo effects. Indulge in all the ways of the purist if it really improves your listening experience, but not for the sake of just gearing up. Having a friend helping with real blind tests where possible will surprise you.

The complete article can be found here: http://consumerist.com/362926/do-coat-hang...-monster-cables Are expensive inter-connectors snake oils? I've tried "silver" connectors and heard no difference from a $5 connector.

I can understand that encoding classical, instrumental and jazz music at high rate, such as 224kbps or higher will ensure good clarity that is close to the original CD. However have you ever noticed difference with loud music like Linkin Park or electronic dance / trance music? The impression I get is that they are not very detailed to start with.

Do a test and even better, a blind test with someone's help to find out if its just placebo effect or you can really hear the difference that will justify the space premium

When an MP3 has been "compressed" from CD into 128kbps, data has been removed and is lost forever. You cannot restore this lost data by converting it to higher bit rate. You'll need to re-encode again to 320kbps from the CD source again.

Thanks for the correction on the correct Sony earphone model, sorry I wasn't really in the market. I thought this post was about "in-ear" and cost which is a high concern, so sonic quality wasn't in consideration in terms of recommendation, right?

Sony MDR-EX71 or Apple's iPod in-ear headphones.

Curious, what's the total cost of all of them?

I'm going to try out Sennheiser, Audio-Technica and Grado/Alessandro, comparing them with Shure E3C. Looking at a budget of $300 or less, what are the good models to try and what are the sound difference between them, in terms of music. I listen mostly to Jazz and Latin vocals, with some pop music once a while.

I just tried a friend's PA2V2 with my current Shure E3C. It appears that the amp is way too "powerful" for such earphones. The reason is that a good quality volume is just a bit too loud, but if I turn the volume down a bit, the sound becomes unbalanced between left and right. Is this because the PA2V2 is cheap/low-end or will all other amp has such problems because earphones have low impedance?

Thanks for the advise, I guess I'll give it a try on-site. Where is the recommended place to test and buy SR80 at $160? Stereo or Jaben?

I'm thinking about $200 max for a headphone and $200 max for the amp, if it is really practical. I've read Grado's spec and the headphone impedance is 32ohm. Sounds like something that iPod could drive, compared to other higher end headphones.

I'm curious to try getting nice headphones for music in the office. Is it necessary to get a portable amp for better audio or even "drive" the headphones for an iPod? I'm guessing the iPod output might not be sufficient to power headphones in terms of volume.