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The Official Headphone Thread 2.5: We're Making WAVs and Catching FLAC

S

SolarMystic

Member
andylsun said:
that's really nice. Lifetime warranty from Koss too - just send them in if you have any problems. I believe you don't need to be the original owner either.
Click to expand...

The warranty does not transfer. However he may be able to work something out with Koss if they ever need to be sent in.

Sun Bather said:
I will check them out thanks. Might just wait a little and get the OPPO PM-3 new, can't really find anything around here used.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure if Oppo sells directly in Europe, but they sometimes have refurb models show up on their website. Every time I've seen someone get a refurb from Oppo, it has come in pristine like new condition.
 
M

my6765490

Member
Sun Bather said:
Hmm that sucks. Any recommendation of ones in the same price range, without the big sound leak? I don't need them to be completely quiet to the outside, just not so it bothers people.
Click to expand...

If my experience with the HD558 (similar) is valid, it doesn't really leak alot of sound outwards (little isolation), TH-X00s leak more..
 
J

JustHadToJoin

Member
Looking to spend less than $100 on IEMs that do well with the kind of grainy/distorted sound that Kanye popularized, you hear it in the Weeknd, Banks, and Travis Scott music.with volume control! Any recommendations
 
T

Tommy DJ

Member
The leak magnitude is basically setting phone speakers on low volume. Some open backed headphones do leak more than others depending on design but I still wouldn't use it on public transport unless you want to want to be that guy who plays music out of his phone's speakers.
 
Chittagong

Chittagong

Gold Member
SolarMystic said:
Hd800 (superdupont mod if you want an 800s sound)
Ether

That's about the only two I've tried that really impressed me. LCD-X was disappointing and uncomfortable. Lcd-3 also uncomfortable and apparently not much better than LCD-2 and X. Beyers high end has qc issues and typical wonky frequency responses.

Most everything else is massively overpriced (he-X, he-k, abyss, etc)
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leng jai said:
HD800.
Click to expand...

Thanks! Gaf agrees on one thing at least then, lol

1000e for HD800, 1500e for HD800S, these better be good! Dampened treble sounds compelling on the S model, but need to try them.

I wonder how their HDVD800 DAC/Amp compares to the Mjolnir/Gungnir combo with these?
 
S

SolarMystic

Member
Chittagong said:
Thanks! Gaf agrees on one thing at least then, lol

1000e for HD800, 1500e for HD800S, these better be good! Dampened treble sounds compelling on the S model, but need to try them.

I wonder how their HDVD800 DAC/Amp compares to the Mjolnir/Gungnir combo with these?
Click to expand...

Supposedly the hdvd800 doesn't hold up as well to other options in that price range, though I haven't heard it myself.

Don't bother with the 800S. Just get the superdupont mod from sbaf or build one yourself. Essentially turns an hd800 into an hd800s, minus the hundreds of dollars wasted.
 
L

leng jai

Member
Haven't heard the HDVD800 but it doesn't have the best reputation. The HD800 is by far the best value high end headphone around these days, which is ironic because when it first came out the price was seen as astronomical. In terms of comfort and technical proficiency you'll be hard pressed to find much better at any price.
 
S

Sleeping Lesson

Member
Soo that thing I said I wasn't going to do, I went ahead and did it.
vAbaubf.jpg
Click to expand...
They sound incredible to me, but I've never had headphones that cost over $100. I still have my other pair on order from Massdrop, and I think I'll keep it since those are going straight to the mod guy. Once I have those I'll sell these.
 
T

Tommy DJ

Member
SolarMystic said:
Supposedly the hdvd800 doesn't hold up as well to other options in that price range, though I haven't heard it myself.

Don't bother with the 800S. Just get the superdupont mod from sbaf or build one yourself. Essentially turns an hd800 into an hd800s, minus the hundreds of dollars wasted.
Click to expand...

Just like to add that, from a technical point of view, the HD800S is actually worse than the modded HD800. The Superdupont mod does nothing but push down the 6khz peak while the HD800S also has some changes that increase 2nd order distortion to sound thicker and warmer.

I'm actually using the modded HD800 with a Mjolnir 2 and NAD M51, as I needed a DAC that could work with my NanoAVR and XLRs for my active speakers. The DAC and amp are pretty irrelevant compared to the Superdupont mod.
 
S

Sleeping Lesson

Member
Antiwhippy said:
Goddamn, and I thought that I had no self control hah.

Any further impressions?
Click to expand...

Didn't have a lot of time to listen this evening, will give them a workout tomorrow though.

My first listen was Radiohead's Kid A on vinyl. This is a very sonically diverse album which I figured would be good to test them out. The bass is definitely as good as others have said, very prominent and punchy but doesn't muddy the midrange at all. One thing I never noticed before is that some of the electronic bass percussion actually has a very trebley attack, which is crystal clear with the TH-X00s.

Soundstage isn't huge but is faaar better than my Sonys, which sound like every instrument is an inch from your ear.

I love them, and now I'm in no rush to get my modded ones.
 
R

Robobandit

Member
Tommy DJ said:
Just like to add that, from a technical point of view, the HD800S is actually worse than the modded HD800. The Superdupont mod does nothing but push down the 6khz peak while the HD800S also has some changes that increase 2nd order distortion to sound thicker and warmer.

I'm actually using the modded HD800 with a Mjolnir 2 .
Click to expand...

Did you do the mod yourself or did you get the creator to send you the discs pre-made? I'm a little nervous about tearing a hole in the mesh covering the driver to place the little "donut" in there.
 
T

Tommy DJ

Member
Antiwhippy said:
Thicker and warmer are positives honestly in my book.
Click to expand...

Yeah I agree with that but the kicker is that you also get shittier bass quality due to said distortion.

I just think adding distortion to a flagship headphone to deal with tonal balance issues just rubs me the wrong way.

Robobandit said:
Did you do the mod yourself or did you get the creator to send you the discs pre-made? I'm a little nervous about tearing a hole in the mesh covering the driver to place the little "donut" in there.
Click to expand...

I did both. I got him to send it to me as it was actually cheaper for him to make and send (5 Euros) than it would be for me to buy the craft foam. I also ended up creating one since he was taking forever. The measured results were basically the same between both of them so you could easily do it yourself for cheap if you already have punches.

You don't tear a hole in the mesh. You just pinch at the screen until you gather enough material to get a good grip of it. Then you just pull 3/4 of the screen back. Put the resonator into the hole, put screen back, then you're done. The screen is much tougher than you expect and the glue on the screen is the sort of that doesn't really dry out.
 
R

Robobandit

Member
Tommy DJ said:
I did both. I got him to send it to me as it was actually cheaper for him to make and send (5 Euros) than it would be for me to buy the craft foam. I also ended up creating one since he was taking forever. The measured results were basically the same between the one I made and the one he made proving that there's nothing special about it.

You don't tear a hole in the mesh. You just pinch at the screen until you gather enough material to get a good grip of it. Then you just pull 3/4 of the screen back. Put the resonator into the hole, put screen back, then you're done. The screen is much tougher than you expect and the glue on the screen is the sort of that doesn't really dry out.
Click to expand...

I guess I could just use an exacto-knife to cut a circle out of craft foam. It would be $25 USD for me to order from him because I'm in the US.
 
R

Robobandit

Member
Tommy DJ said:
It isn't just craft foam, it's a combination of very thin card, felt, and foam as described here:
http://www.innerfidelity.com/conten...rench-diy-response-page-2#wBlHeU4XaIGqucmt.97

You're probably going to have some trouble if you don't have 6, 10, and 14mm punches.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I don't have punches. I was able to get the screen off of one of the two ear cups.. so it will be easier to remove once I have a resonator to stick in there.

maybe I can find the tools locally
 
M

my6765490

Member
Sleeping Lesson said:
Didn't have a lot of time to listen this evening, will give them a workout tomorrow though.

My first listen was Radiohead's Kid A on vinyl. This is a very sonically diverse album which I figured would be good to test them out. The bass is definitely as good as others have said, very prominent and punchy but doesn't muddy the midrange at all. One thing I never noticed before is that some of the electronic bass percussion actually has a very trebley attack, which is crystal clear with the TH-X00s.

Soundstage isn't huge but is faaar better than my Sonys, which sound like every instrument is an inch from your ear.

I love them, and now I'm in no rush to get my modded ones.
Click to expand...

You may have posted this before, but how are you modding your TH-X00s?
 
M

my6765490

Member
Sleeping Lesson said:
Trying out some quieter music tonight. Sufjan Stevens' Seven Swans sounds extremely intimate with these headphones, I love it.




Yep. He's also making me an additional 5 foot cable.
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Nice, I seriously considered modding them with removing cables for portable use before testing this idea out and realizing the obvious shortfalls of taking $400 wooden-cupped headphones out and about...
 
Celcius

Celcius

°Temp. member
It was hard passing up on the Fostex TH-X00's on massdrop but now's just not a good time for me to buy. They look so nice though (and sound great in person as well).
 
S

Sleeping Lesson

Member
my6765490 said:
Nice, I seriously considered modding them with removing cables for portable use before testing this idea out and realizing the obvious shortfalls of taking $400 wooden-cupped headphones out and about...
Click to expand...

Yeeeah I've considered that. As absurd as it is, I may end up having a work pair and a home pair.
 
A

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
Want to join the VE monks hype? Massdrop has them. For $10 shipping to australia without having to deal with taobao nor aliexpress, might as well.
 
A

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
Sleeping Lesson said:
That's those $5 earbuds? And they aren't total shit?
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Well I haven't listened to them, but they've gained quite a cult following by having a sound that exceeds their price.

At that price might as well. Plus earbuds have a different function than iems to me because sometimes you don't want total isolation.

VE also had a more premium earbuds range. They're pretty well known for their earbuds.

Really wanted to try them but I didn't want to deal with aliexpress.
 
max_505

max_505

Member
Ordered two of the Monk+ from Massdrop. Was looking for a new beater earphone for running/commuting and those seem perfect for the price.
 
S

Sun Bather

Member
Found a pretty good deal on Denon AH-MM400. Most reviewers seems to like them, anyone got any objections to them (like they break easily or something)?
 
L

leng jai

Member
SolarMystic said:
Same here. I'm honestly not expecting much from a $5 "flagship killer".
Click to expand...

I wouldn't pay that much more for ear buds really because every pair I've ever owned seem to die or fall apart within 6 months. Granted that was when I was back in highschool and took the train everyday.
 
H

Haroon

Member
Recently bought STAX SRS-2170. I will post impressions here
(if the seller does not cancel my order).

Edit: Well... The order was cancelled.
 
L

leng jai

Member
shadow2810 said:
I'm currently using HD598 with Xonar DGX sound card, I'm planning to get an O2/ODAC but would it make any difference?
Click to expand...

Zero for video games. Music might sound better, but there's also a pretty good chance you won't hear much difference. The 598s aren't exactly hard to drive to begin with from my experiences with the 595.
 
D

DeathByBacklog

Member
Friggz said:
if im looking for the flexibility to use a pair of phones wherever throughout my house.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TOT9G1W/?tag=neogaf0e-20

whats everyones opinion on this pair? also, is there any difference in using a dac/amp with a wireless pair of cans? or does that not come across the rf.
Click to expand...

Been scouting out the 175's myself (waiting on a price drop) for late night tv viewing next to my sleeping wife. There are lots of reviews out there for the series. All seem very positive.
 
H

Haroon

Member
SolarMystic said:
Pricing error? Been considering an electrostat myself lately.
Click to expand...

It was on Ebay for $400. I felt that it was not worth it due to how sensitive they are to moister, and water. The newest review from Z made me buy it immediately, but after looking at the sound demo for Stax 207. He mentioned the flaws of the earphones, and I decided that if the seller was to cancel it. I would not buy it.
 
A

andylsun

Member
Atsou said:
It was on Ebay for $400. I felt that it was not worth it due to how sensitive they are to moister, and water. The newest review from Z made me buy it immediately, but after looking at the sound demo for Stax 207. He mentioned the flaws of the earphones, and I decided that if the seller was to cancel it. I would not buy it.
Click to expand...

Was the eBay one used? Brand new the SRS-2170 is $523 on pricejapan at the moment.

What are your concerns about moisture? Do you live somewhere humid? There are warnings in the manual about not listening when you have wet hair, but I think they are more robust than people give them credit for.

I've three pairs of stax from the 1970's (and I have the 2170's) that are all pretty much flawless. They will last for ever in normal use.
 
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