A while back, when I was a student who also had a job, I had some extra cash to burn. I’ve always been a bit of a tech whiz. Ever since my parents got me my first computer in the 5th grade, I’ve loved tinkering with it, always trying to make it faster, better.
Anyway, one day I found out my old pair of earphones, nothing fancy, just some Sennheisers that cost 40 bucks, had gone kaput. I saw these ads for 7.1 surround sound headphones from Logitech and thought they could be my next “upgrade”.
One night, I chatted with my buddy George on messenger, telling him about my idea to buy these Logitech headphones. But George, who’s an audio enthusiast himself, made a face. He told me those 7.1 headphones were just marketing gimmicks and not really worth it. He instead recommended I check out the Sennheiser HD595, which cost 200 bucks! I thought, “Man, what’s so special about those headphones to cost that much?”
But then, he told me he was planning to buy a pair of Sennheiser HD800 and a Meier Symphony 2, which together were going to cost him over 2000 bucks! I was dumbfounded, thinking he was absolutely nuts to spend that much on headphones.
Still, I decided to look into these Sennheiser HD595 and also their cheaper sibling, the HD555. Reviews suggested that the HD555 was nearly as good as the HD595, and at half the price, it seemed like the better deal.
So, I went to the Sennheiser dealer in Bucharest, only to find out they didn’t have the HD555. They did have the HD545 and HD595, though, and offered me to try both. I thought, “Okay, I’ll give them a listen, but there’s no way I’m buying the expensive one.”
They plugged the headphones into a laptop, and I started with the HD545. They were okay, but nothing mind-blowing. Then I tried the HD595, and I was blown away. The difference was night and day. The HD595 had a broader soundstage and just sounded so much richer.
I looked at the salesman and without a second thought, I said, “I’ll take the HD595.”
That’s how I got my first proper pair of headphones. I’ll never forget the moment I first heard them. It was like a revelation. That was the day I began my journey into the world of high-quality audio, and I’ve loved every minute of it since then. So, in a way, I owe it all to that pair of 7.1 Logitech headphones that I never bought. They unknowingly led me to something much better.
“I’ll take them!” I said, completely stunned by the sound quality I had just experienced. It was better than any computer sound system, my old Technics system, and every other headphone I had tried before (which to be fair, the most expensive one was only 20 bucks).
I was overjoyed with my new headphones, even though they cost more than I had originally planned to spend. I went home, plugged them into my Creative Extreme Audio sound card and started going through my music collection. It felt like I was hearing all my songs for the first time.
Each day, my appreciation for these headphones grew. I shared my excitement with my friend George. He seemed happy for me but then suggested that I could enhance the sound even further with a headphone amplifier. I was dumbfounded. An amplifier? Just for headphones? It sounded crazy, but George was adamant it would take the sound to another level.
So, I started to look into headphone amplifiers. This led me to headfi, an online forum for audio enthusiasts. As soon as I posted my first question there, I got a reply saying, “Welcome to headfi and sorry for your wallet!” I didn’t know what they meant at first, but it didn’t take long for me to figure it out.
At that time, there weren’t many options for headphone amplifiers in Romania, and I had set a budget of 200 bucks for myself. After reading countless reviews and discussing with George, I learned about Meier’s amplifiers.
Long story short, I ended up dropping 500 bucks on a Meier Cantate 2 amplifier and DAC. I was blown away by its design, build quality, and the significant improvement in sound. The bass was deeper, more controlled, and I could hear more details in the music. Plus, the soundstage seemed even wider.
As I kept reading more reviews and posts on headfi, I realized that my headphones weren’t fully utilizing the potential of my new amplifier. So, what did I do? I started hunting for better headphones, of course.
That’s how I met Darku (Sandu Vitalie), who turned out to be not only a valuable resource in my audio journey but also a great friend. But, that’s a tale for another time.
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