CHANGSTAR: Audiophile Headphone Reviews and Early 90s Style BBS
Lobby => Headphone Measurements => Topic started by: OJneg on April 19, 2015, 08:26:30 PM
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(http://i.imgur.com/suIx01k.jpg)
I think these headphones are very slick looking. This is one of my favorite design aesthetics around. The AT wing system works well for my head but if your head is small/narrow you might have issues where you get more pressure below your ear than above. I need a rubber band between wings to keep it tighter
Early impressions:
- These still have that kinda romantic/emphasised japanese midrange. Gets fatiguing after a while
- I don't get much soundstage depth in front of me; it's mostly concentrated in lobes to each side of my head. good width
- Better bass than I remember the AD2k, more in quantity and impact. Improved tonal balance, not thin.
- I think these might sound best with a slight output impedance boost. 10-20 ohms
- very lively sounding headphone
- could be cleaner sounding, slight resonant or congested quality going on
- these have a slight edginess with certain instruments
- snare sound good, uncompressed. kick drum is lacking last bit of oomph though
- Treble has just a wee bit of transient sharpness. These are best at low volumes
In summary:
I hear a lot of people saying these are "fast" sounding. While I get why they might say that, to my ears it's a speed by virtue of coloration rather than technical ability. I'm having a hard time deciding whether this headphone is really any more resolving/technically capable than the HD600. But overall I like the increased bass pretense and warmth. I see these going used/import market for $300-500 in which case you could do a lot worse.
Will hand off to Marv for direct comparison to original AD2K and eventual measurements. I think these might have some potential mod-ability to cut down on what I would guess are some prominent upper midrange/treble irregularities.
Questions/comments welcome.
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The AT wing system works well for my head but if your head is small/narrow you might have issues where you get more pressure below your ear than above
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Being a thin-face, that's my experience of the AT winged series, with the AD900. Pressure on the jaw. However, with a bit of adjustment, which also made more than a bit of difference to the sound, I felt so comfortable with them that I could walk away, forgetting the umbilical chord.
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The new X series has a different wing system vs the older AT cans. The new ones wings are practically useless. All thats holding the headphone in place are the cups with the new system. I am basing this judgement on my experience with other X series cans though, not the AD2000X.
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I think the ATH-R70x looks promising!
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I think the ATH-R70x looks promising!
Hate to kill your enthusiasm but I thought the R70x was pretty sub-par when I demo-ed it at NAMM.
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I had the AD2000X as a main headphone early on and I was never too crazy about it. Could never get a decent fit with the headband (couldn't move my head at all) and the sound was pretty "in your face", with a mediocre soundstage (hmm, Grado?). I don't miss them at all (and frankly, I'm done with Audio Technica headphones until they get rid of the wing headband design).
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Hate to kill your enthusiasm but I thought the R70x was pretty sub-par when I demo-ed it at NAMM.
Thank you OJneg for thr info on the R70x. I appreciate it!
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Thanks for sharing your views. I mostly agree with the assessment and I look forward to seeing them measured. Hopefully we could get updated Ad2k measurements while we're at it?
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Looking forward to measurements of this.
I heard this exact pair, and the mids definitely have some kind of decay thing going on. "Romantic" seems like the right word to describe them, but never "technically proficient." That's the kind of cans these are.
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That awkward feeling when you're an ATH fanboy but don't own an ATH headphone anymore.
And, I really feel like I could really use one in a mid-fi rig for low quality recordings in particular.
The real beauty of ATH headphones seems to be in their low amplification requirements and how they lean towards that kind of mid-fi sensibility.
You can comfortably go full-on midfi with your rig, using just an ipod/budget DAC. (and adding an older dynalo amp if you want to give the headphones a tiny bit more soundstage and frequency extension)
Most seem to sound decent on an amp that powerful. Some are even less picky, sounding good on budget op-amp solutions.
The main selling point of the AD2000 in particular is the fact that it was available when the HD650 sounded really veiled on even a balanced rig with cable upgrade etc. zzzz
And the AD2000 seemed, to my mind, just as resolving as the balanced HD650.
Also, since it didn't have the veil/darkness, it came across as moar detailed and therefore moar better.
That's probably the main ephiphany that made me constantly curious about ATH as a brand. The fanboy was born. :spank:
I'd be curious to know if the AD2000 scales on higher end gear. p:3 I still believe. p:3
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Well, I think I'm going to pick one of these up again, they're a hell of a lot of fun. lol
I'll have to update this thread later on with impressions.
Thanks again for the thread, this is shaping up to be one of my top 5 threads of all time. :wheel:
Guys feel free to post impressions about the AD2000 as well as the AD2000x, it's all relevant information imo.
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talking about ad2000 scaling... They don't really get much more detailed but the slaaaaam out of my audiolab integrated amp compared to my old meier headfive was insane! I mean the volume went up to the point of shaking my head without any farting hehehe
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talking about ad2000 scaling... They don't really get much more detailed but the slaaaaam out of my audiolab integrated amp compared to my old meier headfive was insane!
Any idea what the model was and what the output impedance was?
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no idea about the output impedance but it was an old 8000a pre-tag mclaren days
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I mean the volume went up to the point of shaking my head without any farting
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I always fart when I shake my head, regardless of headphones. Hey, it's an age thing :)p12 ...
The Audia Technica wings. Are they that different from model to model? Or is it head to head that varies more? I could have been a fanboy to the exclusion of all others, just for those wings, and the lightness on the head. I really wanted to upgrade within the range, but the message that I got was that the model I have was the sweet-spot value-for-money among the AT-ADHs, and I'd get more from the Senn house.
Granted, they feel as if they are going to fall off, but without heavy headbanging and extreme farting, they just don't.
It's like wearing a dhoti. :)p7
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The older ad2000 was fine as well as the old ad700, ad900 and a900 that I used to all own but when I tried the newer ones like the a700x and the ad900x, they felt too loose and weird
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The older ad2000 was fine as well as the old ad700, ad900 and a900 that I used to all own but when I tried the newer ones like the a700x and the ad900x, they felt too loose and weird
To my head the Ad2000 sits flush all around though my ear touches the driver. I remember that being an issue initially in the past, but I remember it going away somehow. Ad700 are practically on-ears, but super comfy but loose. Ad900 clamped a bit harder but still comfy, true circumaural.
I find it interesting you find the A900x loose and weird though as the cup has vertical and horizontal motion and I find the clamp on par with the old Ad900 (from memory)
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The older ad2000 was fine as well as the old ad700, ad900 and a900 that I used to all own but when I tried the newer ones like the a700x and the ad900x, they felt too loose and weird
To my head the Ad2000 sits flush all around though my ear touches the driver. I remember that being an issue initially in the past, but I remember it going away somehow. Ad700 are practically on-ears, but super comfy but loose. Ad900 clamped a bit harder but still comfy, true circumaural.
I find it interesting you find the A900x loose and weird though as the cup has vertical and horizontal motion and I find the clamp on par with the old Ad900 (from memory)
Interesting reflections. Since my relatives left Singapore, I have no idea when I'll again have the luxury of, at least a couple of times a year, being near shops I can just wander in and try stuff. Oh, wait... going to London in July, but I don't think it is anything like as good as Singapore
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Oh man, just AB'd this vocal track vs. my HD600. The HD600 destroys this thing in vocal clarity + liquidity. My opinion of these just went down a few notches. Did you guys notice this sorta thing?
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Oh man, just AB'd this vocal track vs. my HD600. The HD600 destroys this thing in vocal clarity + liquidity. My opinion of these just went down a few notches. Did you guys notice this sorta thing?
Yup, sounds just about right. It's not a fair fight between these two.
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Yup, sounds just about right. It's not a fair fight between these two.
How would you describe it though? I want to say it's a combination of a thinness + a sort of straining to enunciate words. Like I'm not getting any of the throatiness.
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Oh man, just AB'd this vocal track vs. my HD600. The HD600 destroys this thing in vocal clarity + liquidity. My opinion of these just went down a few notches. Did you guys notice this sorta thing?
I guess I should be glad to hear that. Much as I wanted to be loyal to this brand, with its wings and comfort, I bought (unheard and partly on advice here)... HD600.
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nice to shoot first and confirm later :D
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How would you describe it though? I want to say it's a combination of a thinness + a sort of straining to enunciate words. Like I'm not getting any of the throatiness.
I forget the specifics, but the small soundstage and the combination of the driver being right up against my ear and me never getting it to fit snugly on my head led to a lot of inconsistencies. My pair is long gone, but I haven't missed them at all, nor do I regret not getting a chance to try them with any of the equipment I've upgraded since selling them.
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I never thought the AD2000 or Ad2000x as big on clarity tbh,
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Oh man, just AB'd this vocal track vs. my HD600. The HD600 destroys this thing in vocal clarity + liquidity. My opinion of these just went down a few notches. Did you guys notice this sorta thing?
Does the AD2000 have some redeeming characteristics vs the HD600?
Speed, bass impact?
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side by side comparisons at a meet, the AD2000 and AD2000X sounded very different from one another.
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The ad2000 is a special butterfly. It is not best at anything, especially with hd800 in the picture, but there is some magic to them when you get the amping just right. I think fishki has mentioned intimate to me in the past and it is very correct. In what experience I have had it is not related to cleanliness, power/current/slew rate etc. etc. They are bass weak but I prefer the ad2k soundstage to the Senns. They are "fast" and maybe even a bit artificial in this area, HD6x0 are definitely truer to life to my ears. The fit is not for everyone either, they are better than Grado at least.
The ad2kx fixes some of the old ad2k problems, bass is better with more overall body, amping is much less finnicky. Fitment is even worse IMO. I never got the same magic with the x.
Plug a pair into the MPX3 that I sold to Hans or a Zana Deux and you will see the magic unfold. Maybe it is OTL amps that have something to them?
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i've only heard the X a couple of times briefly at meets, but i didn't feel it had the seamless top to bottom freq response of the AD2K. it was weird sounding. like it's older sibling, it might be require the listener to throw all other HPs in possession into the closet for a period of time, listening exclusively to the ATs, if one is going to half a chance of appreciating their distinctive sonic sig.
the AD2K soundstage is grado-esqueweirdwallofsoundfishlens-ish. it's one of those presentations you either get used to or not. it has an intimate "thereness" that i like. vocals can be sweaty lap dance.
i think part of the reason many feel that they don't respond to amplification like some other HPs is because of their inability to create a credible soundstage. Tari's Moth 2A3 had a freaky real life-like soundstage that was largely lost on the AD2K. the Moth's most awesomeness-est ability to suspend disbelief and portray music as a real, breathing, life-like event was not lost and only augmented the already excellent AD2K in this regard.
the speed and effortlessness of the AD2K pretty much matches any ortho or estat in my experience (i didn't hear this with the X). i think the congested soundstage detracts in an absolute sense of the meaning though. it could be 'cleaner'. irregardless, it can carry a tune with the best.
i don't hear any artificial dynamic-ness, yocto or yotta.
i think the AD2K excels at acoustic instruments. tonally, i love how spanked skin and vibrating wood are rendered. people can moan about the resolution, but i can easily hear the difference when the Wyrd is inserted in front of the Gungnir. an upstream chain that has a little more meat and flesh will get you rounding bases to home plate.
if yer a bass-head look elsewhere. it renders the double bass perfectly.
the AD2K is an idiosyncratic HP.
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I agree with 90% of the above, save for the soundstage part. AD2K is truly a wonky headphone, but out of my ZD it pushes the mids forward, but the secondary sounds can be quite diffused. It's funny that way, intimate and sometimes distant. While it never reaches the point of sounding coherent, damn if it doesn't draw you in sooner or later.
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I had a very brief listen to a 2000x today. In the past I've owned or heard the 700/900/2000 (non-x). Maybe I have an odd-shaped skull, but they actually fit me better than the non-x models and I find it very comfortable.
They didn't feel particularly fast to me. Not bad by any means, but it didn't jump out like a stat. The bass is good for an open headphone. It definitely rolls off, but gently. It doesn't have that "airy" texture that the old non-x cans have; not sure if that's a good or bad thing. There was some grain in the treble, possibly distortion, but I didn't notice any overly sharp peaks (or at least none that bothered me).
I think I'd still take an HD600 over this, although the 2000x are much more comfortable for me.
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Just got my pair of AD2000 in the mail.
They sound pretty amazing from the Super 7. The 4khz peak makes it easier to feel/hear bass impact for me so it's like an ear massage.
Everything else about the tonality and imaging is spot on. Lovely.
Now I remember what I saw in these many years ago.
They scale more than I remember. Mostly the tonality and imaging.
Probably my favorite headphone at the moment. I'm looking into moving up the EC line just for these.
Unfortunately, my Dynahi is too powerful for these. I might have broken the headphones lol.
The drivers were getting some weird vibrations.
I'll investigate more later :wheel: (when it cools down enough to turn my amp on)
Fun hobby.
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LOL! Yes, these are pretty sensitive.
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Yeah, they're fine as far as I can tell.
I don't think I'm going to try that again though. lol walk the plank
BTW, my HD558's took on the Dynahi like a champ. headbang