CHANGSTAR: Audiophile Headphone Reviews and Early 90s Style BBS
Lobby => Headphone Measurements => Topic started by: ultrabike on November 06, 2013, 07:28:39 AM
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Yet another set of cans available at the SD meet.
These are Burns cans, and are described as fun and enjoyable. I agree. Hopefully he'll chime in with his impressions since I only had a brief period of time with them.
Frequency Response
(http://www.changstar.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=1210.0;attach=4445;image)
Compare with TH900s (http://www.changstar.com/index.php/topic,351.msg5575.html#msg5575):
(http://www.changstar.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=351.0;attach=1373;image)
CSD right
(http://www.changstar.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=1210.0;attach=4447;image)
CSD left
(http://www.changstar.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=1210.0;attach=4449;image)
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Maybe a more accurate representation of FR would be the first couple of slices of the CSD instead :-00
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Dunno. Those actually measure close to what was measured previously from their siblings the TH900s.
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The treble peakage of the TH600 is much worse. I could just stand them with the TH900, but not so with the TH600. Also the TH600 don't have the uber clarity of the the TH900.
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Maybe a more accurate representation of FR would be the first couple of slices of the CSD instead :-00
Yeah, that's really odd that the recession at 2.5k-5k is nearly recovered in the first couple time slices. Does this happen often with other headphones? Never noticed it before.
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I think the recession (and in some cases full null) around those frequencies happens in some sealed cup headphones and it might be even wider depending on design.
I feel the ridge around 4 to 6.5 kHz in the CSD is a result of both the 2.5-5 kHz recession and subsequent peak around 5 to 6.5 kHz. Seems relatively short in duration though.
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What I'm wondering about is the area directly left of the ridge. At time=0, you can't even see the plot because the time slices directly afterward are at a higher dB. It seems a little odd.
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From time slice to time slice things may change quickly. On an idealistic/perfect infinite bandwidth headphone situation, from t = 0 to t = delta_t there should be an abrupt drop given the IR is very narrow. If there is an abrupt change affecting a particular frequency in the IR, CSDs might drop or fill quickly.
I can try adding more slices and changing the perspective of the CSD to see what's going on there.
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Whoa! Not exactly what I was expecting... but has cured any interest I had in these! :-0
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LOL!, the measurements show a can that is not neutral. I didn't spend too much time with them to form an opinion, but I know Burns has and likes them. I would definitively give them a shot.
Probably wouldn't buy tho, but that's 'cuz I'm cheap.
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Didn't MuppetCase say the TH900 / TH600 were the best dynamic driver HP's at one point?
Not easy for me to see in this data, I fail at school.
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are the cups dampened at all?
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Seems so:
http://www.fostexinternational.com/docs/products/TH-600.shtml (http://www.fostexinternational.com/docs/products/TH-600.shtml)
"Piezo-sheet inside the housing for dispersion of resonance as well as high damping treatment"
There might be a port inside the cups that may be a little too large, but that's pure speculation. I know there is one inside my HD202s and the Alpha Dogs. In the HD202s it is very tinny and fairly sensitive. Carefully covering it reduces the bass. Totally covering it results in no bass. These are some results of doing just that to my HD202:
(http://www.changstar.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=967.0;attach=3358;image)
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If you're local (SoCal) and want to borrow them to try out, PM me. I need them back by 11/22, because I'm leaving on 11/23 for eight days and want to take them along.
Roadshow will have to wait until after the holidays.
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I did not noticed much treble peak on this. And I'm very sensible to it. It had fun sound, but not unbearably so. I liked it alot.
About inner damping - I dissambled them, and inside they looks very much like D2000 if I remember correctly. There is also two ports on each cup.
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First of, will the TH900 be re-measured any time? :)
Second, as for the treble peak, I own the TH900 and seeing as from listening sessions and measurements the TH600 is very similar in many aspects (I've listened extensively to both) I'd say its only an issue on some specific tracks. To give an example, if I listen to Hammerfall, their vocalist is male, of the slightly high pitched variety as you often find in power metal, and his "s" sounds in parts where he sings loudly can get a tad harsh or sibilant, but when he sings more calmly its not an issue.
You can listen to entire genres and not notice the peak, but with others (like power metal) it can be a slight issue.
Also, with poor recordings they can sometimes be absolutely merciless, because the background noise or hiss of a bad recording seems to hit that frequency. So overall, not a big issue, but definitely there... And more an issue with the 600's gritty sound than with the 900.
Just my two cents on the matter p;)
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My experience with the TH600 doesn't really match these measurements or the subjective impressions (of this set I'm assuming?). I heard the TH600 as pretty much similar to the TH900 in treble response with a touch less bass presence---or rather the bass seemed slightly more reigned in---and the midrange was slightly less sucked out subjectively as a result. The TH600 sounded less lively and less dynamically apt to me: if the TH900 was a fizzy drink, then the TH600 was the same drink but after being left out for an hour. The TH600 was still preferable to the D7000 for me in just about every respect however.
Didn't MuppetCase say the TH900 / TH600 were the best dynamic driver HP's at one point?
Not easy for me to see in this data, I fail at school.
I said the TH900 (not the TH600) was one of the best dynamic headphones currently in production, and certainly one of the best choices for those who want a clean U shaped signature. I think one needs to look at the distortion measurements for the TH900 in particular to get a better sense of why it's such a good headphone, as the bass is just incredibly clean for a dynamic, and it's not as subjectively bassy as the FR alone would suggest. I thought the TH600 was a good headphone as well after living with it for a few months, though it lacks the TH900's refinement.
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My experience with the TH600 doesn't really match these measurements or the subjective impressions (of this set I'm assuming?). I heard the TH600 as pretty much similar to the TH900 in treble response with a touch less bass presence---or rather the bass seemed slightly more reigned in---and the midrange was slightly less sucked out subjectively as a result. The TH600 sounded less lively and less dynamically apt to me: if the TH900 was a fizzy drink, then the TH600 was the same drink but after being left out for an hour. The TH600 was still preferable to the D7000 for me in just about every respect however.
I went to a local headphone shop and compared my friend's TH600 with my TH900 out of the Soloist and Bifrost Uber. To me, the 600 sounded way too spiky and aggressive, not in the sense of FR, but the presentation. Listening to vocals, I would cringe at how sharp and intolerable it sounded compared to my TH900 which sounded almost the same FR-wise but less edgy and aggressive. The TH600 hurt my ears but the TH900 clearly didn't. It reminds me of the Gungnir, which I cannot tolerate due to the same aggressiveness which makes me cringe all the time.
I should note that my TH900 is recabled with OCC silver litz. I can't say this makes any sort of difference, but I do find silver plated copper, what the stock cables are, do sound relatively edgy in general. Take it for what it's worth.
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I went to a local headphone shop and compared my friend's TH600 with my TH900 out of the Soloist and Bifrost Uber. To me, the 600 sounded way too spiky and aggressive, not in the sense of FR, but the presentation. Listening to vocals, I would cringe at how sharp and intolerable it sounded compared to my TH900 which sounded almost the same FR-wise but less edgy and aggressive. The TH600 hurt my ears but the TH900 clearly didn't. It reminds me of the Gungnir, which I cannot tolerate due to the same aggressiveness which makes me cringe all the time.
I should note that my TH900 is recabled with OCC silver litz. I can't say this makes any sort of difference, but I do find silver plated copper, what the stock cables are, do sound relatively edgy in general. Take it for what it's worth.
The TH900's treble is irritating for me as well after a while, but I find the bass kind of offsets it, like providing a counterbalance on a seesaw.