(http://i.imgur.com/lw7ErO0.jpg)
I finally got my wish of trying a ton of high end headphones for an extended period of time! Thought I’d share some of my thoughts with everyone. I also can talk about some of the other headphones I tried in Dallas when I met up with tjcaustin (http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=48816.msg1083222#msg1083222). However, I’ve left the Audeze LCD-2s, Mr. Speakers Mad Dogs, and Fostex T50RP out of this because I didn’t try them for as long as I did all of the headphones I have on the tour. I did fall in love with the Mad Dogs at first listen though so I can update this review with my thoughts on those when I get them.
This review wouldn’t have been possible without tjcaustin’s headphone tour (http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=48918.0) so shoutouts to TJ for that :D. Also, shoutouts to TheGunner100 for lending me a couple of headphones and helping me understand some of the more technical things about the audiophile hobby and answering all my questions.This post (http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=47925.msg1063051#msg1063051) was very helpful for my understanding of the graphs I’ll be posting later.
Background with music
I played violin for seven years and guitar on and off for five. I’m more familiar with discerning the high end (mid and treble) than the bass end. I’m also inclined to a bright warm sound, with little bass. And for what it’s worth, my preferred genre of music is metal. I listen to metal primarily with a lot of hip hop mixed in; I also have a soft spot for electronic dance music and pop.
Gear
All of the headphones on this tour are open-backed. Open headphones are open behind the drivers, which allow you to hear your surroundings and will leak sound so others can hear you. Closed headphones have a sealed enclosure, which isolates and reflects the soundwaves back into the ear. Little sound will leak into your surroundings. I like Wikipedia’s explanation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headphones#Open_or_closed_back) and this discussion on Open Vs Closed at Head-Fi (http://www.head-fi.org/t/424375/difference-between-closed-and-open-headphone#post_5681908).
The IEMs are closed.
(http://i.imgur.com/iliib5K.jpg)
In that lovely pile on my desk, I have the following headphones/IEMs:
Cans from left to right:
- Hifiman HE-500 (http://hifiman.com/Products/?pid=102)
- Grado SR-80i (http://www.gradolabs.com/page_headphones.php?item=ec27f1750be96023333af0dfe546af44)
- AKG K702 (http://www.akg.com/K702-1039.html?pid=1209)
- Sennheiser HD600 (http://en-us.sennheiser.com/best-audio-headphones-high-end-stereo-hifi-hd-600)
IEMs from left to right:
- Monoprice MEP-933 (http://www.monoprice.com/Product/?c_id=108&cp_id=10823&cs_id=1082303&p_id=8320&seq=1&format=2) (Monoprice Product ID Number 8320)
- Vsonic (http://www.vsonic.com.cn/product/GR07.htm) GR07 (http://www.head-fi.org/t/549580/review-vsonic-gr07-dynamic-monitors-check)
And then I’m driving everything with a Schiit Magni (amp) (http://schiit.com/products/magni) and Modi (DAC or digital-to-analog converter) stack (http://schiit.com/products/modi)
(http://i.imgur.com/glVPyEf.jpg)
TJ also included some cables that he made and sells at his website (http://www.mimic-cables.com):
(http://i.imgur.com/S2CpL8O.jpg)
- RCA cable sheathed in aramid (Top)
- RCA cable sheathed in stainless steel (Middle)
- USB A male to USB B male cable sheathed in Kevlar (Bottom)
Yes I know Kevlar is a form of aramid but the two cables didn't feel the same so I wanted to differentiate them somehow.
Playlist
Dipset – Wouldn’t You Like to Be a Gangsta Too?
More
Dada Life – Feed the Dada
More
Between the Buried and Me - Silent Flight Parliament
More
Gershwin – Rhapsody in Blue
More
Aesthetics and Comfort
- Grado SR80i: These headphones are a classic to me. They were what started the whole audiophile journey for me. I like the simplicity of them but the headband looks a little cheap. I would’ve like to have them to have a thicker wider headband for both looks and for comfort. I like the driver enclosures, even with the SR80 badge. I think they look very retro. The pads I’m using are the stock cushions, also known as the S-cushions or “comfies”. I’ve then done the ”quarter mod” or comfy hole mod (http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/evaluation-grado-stock-and-modified-ear-pads), where you cut a quarter sized hole in the middle of the S-cushion. I think the mod adds to the retro look. I also like how the wires look; very thick and looks like they’re proper cabling for an audiophile grade set of headphones. The cans are very light and comfortable. I think that the S-cushions are the most comfortable of all the pads. I bought L-cushions, or the small bowls, to try for both comfort and sound quality. I could only listen to the L-cushion Grados for an hour or two before feeling extreme discomfort from the pads pressing against the top of my ears. Because of this, I returned to the S-cushions and have been very happy with the quarter mod. With the comfort from my S-cushions combined with the their light weight (130.408 grams) mean that I can and have wear these all day with no discomfort. If the headband was more substantial, these would be as or more comfortable then the HD600s.
- Hifiman HE-500: Of all the headphones I tested, these looked the sharpest to me. The dark gray/titanium driver enclosure is just sexy. And then there’s a nice fat leather headband which looks nice. I like the nice circular shape too. The cable confuses me though because you have these gigantic and heavy headphones paired with a thin, delicate looking wire and connectors. However, I couldn’t listen to these for more than thirty minutes at a time. These monsters weigh in at 502 g or 1.107 lb. My neck was aching after a listening session. These were the least comfortable headphones I tried.
- AKG K702: These cans look futuristic to me. There’s a lot of plastic, curved/bent headband, and a metallic color on everything. I wasn’t a huge fan on how all the bent plastic looked, it’s a bit flimsy. The headband is nice and thick and the pads look very plush. On my head they felt great: the headband was extremely easy to adjust, the pads felt nice, and the cans weren’t too heavy; they weigh 235 grams. I think these were the most comfortable headphones I tried on the tour.
- Senenheiser HD600: The mottled plastic look was a bit too cheesy for me. It reminds me of Formica with the speckling. The oval shapes of the driver enclosures are also very odd looking. And the cables look too small and thin for the headset. But everything actually is very sturdy and durable. It just looks a little goofy. Reminds me of the Logitech G500; the mouse is fantastic but the mottled pattern is terrible looking. Anyways, the pads look like they’d be very comfortable, and they are. I also like the simplicity of how the headband expands: the extension slides out of the headband. The headphones weigh 260.816 grams, so they’re a little more substantial than the Grados but they’re still very comfortable. I think these are the second most comfortable headphones overall on the list.
- Vsonic GR07: These were re-cabled by BTG Audio. However I think that the length that it was re-cabled to was extremely awkward and I ended up having to use an extension on them. Also I didn’t like the oxidation on the clear cable but the non-oxidized part looks nice.. They do fit in my ear very nicely with the smaller tips and worn around my ear. And they look very boxy and awkward.
- Monoprice MEP-933: These look silver and cheap but have a nice cable. I also need to get better tips for these since they fit in my ears a little poorly. They’re about what I’d expect them to look like for the pricetag I paid.
Thoughts on the Headphones/IEMs
In this section, I’m going to give my impressions of the sound then show to Golden Ears’ measurement data. I would like to say that I’m not in any means an audiophile expert and so my portrayal of the sound and measurements may not be technically correct. Anyways, I think the Golden Ears’ frequency response and cumulative spectral decay graphs show good information on how the sound works. An explanation of how the data can be read can be found here (http://en.goldenears.net/456). But in general, the way I understand it:
- Frequency Response Graph: Shows how the treble and bass signals across a range of frequencies measure on the decibel scale. How I read these graphs is that it shows a visual representation of the sound; the bass, mids, and trebles.
- Cumulative Spectral Decay Graph: Shows how the sound decreases in intensity over time. Golden Ears says, ”…the mark of a good product is a balanced decaying across all frequencies.” So the graph should be as smooth as possible.
Other sites that will provide measurements include headphones.com, innerfidelity.com, and changstar.com. I just prefer Golden Ears because they had all the headphones I had on the tour listed, the graphs are easy to read, and they make sense to me.
I also found that this glossary at Head-Fi (http://www.head-fi.org/a/describing-sound-a-glossary) helped me to describe the sound I heard more clearly. Reading this might help you with my following thoughts.
Anyways, let’s move onto the meat of the review :D.
Grado SR80i
These headphones are the most familiar to me so they were my baseline in terms of sound. As I said earlier ,the pads in the headphones do have a quarter mod, or a quarter sized hole, cut out of them which changed the sound to me. With the quarter mod, I think there is more bass and opens up the soundstage a little more. In general I would describe these headphones as bright, forward, and treble-focused. They have a small sound stage and are very clear. The high end is a touch sibilant, but mostly smooth overall. They don’t have a lot of bass though so for genres like hip hop, they’re a little lacking. However, they sound great when I listen to metal.
More
Golden Ears’ Frequency Response Graph
(http://en.goldenears.net/en/files/attach/images/254/817/003/fb638508a9788abacfc37a12d08a8c62.png)
Golden Ears’ Cumulative Spectral Decay Graph
(http://en.goldenears.net/en/files/attach/images/254/817/003/5a474c2e6563957bec9ed1a2a2a763f4.png)
Golden Ears’ Grado SR80i Measurements (http://en.goldenears.net/3817)
HiFiMAN HE500
These headphones are warm, detailed, and have a great soundstage. They are laid back, which surprised me when I first listened to them. I wasn’t sure how to describe the sound until I figured that out. Actually, I think they are a little too laid back. I also think that they have good bass when it’s needed but not overwhelming when it’s not in the music/song. The mids are darker than the Grados. I actually really liked how these sounded. If I could keep them on my head for more than the four songs in my playlist, I would’ve loved these. Unfortunately, my neck was asking me, “WTF” by the time I was listening to the Between the Buried and Me song. By the end of the session, I was discomfort bordering on pain. I really couldn’t keep them on my head. As great as they sound, they were just far too heavy for me. I don’t think I’d ever purchase these because of that.
More
Golden Ears’ Frequency Response Graph
(http://en.goldenears.net/en/files/attach/images/254/149/015/c9a56b352f59374decb2822c6267e4e0.png)
Golden Ears’ Cumulative Spectral Decay Graph
(http://en.goldenears.net/en/files/attach/images/254/149/015/0daebb657a7026d22be5144f069d8ebf.png)
Golden Ears’ HiFiMAN HE500 Measurements (http://en.goldenears.net/15149)
AKG K702
I was pretty disappointed with these overall. These were my least favorite headphones on the tour. I would describe them as dark, a little muddy, and muted. The bass was good. That’s about all. The mids felt like they were the dominant sound in this set of headphones. The trebles felt like they were restrained or muffled. It almost felt like the treble were supposed to progress to higher frequencies and just couldn’t get quite there. The treble was also sibilant. It’s really unfortunate too because like I said before, I thought the K702 were very comfortable.
More
Golden Ears’ Frequency Response Graph
(http://en.goldenears.net/en/files/attach/images/254/281/008/362752f7b026efd21037a66e04af3e36.png)
Golden Ears’ Cumulative Spectral Decay Graph
(http://en.goldenears.net/en/files/attach/images/254/281/008/e2d58d6ec97631f27e600b712dd9ade3.png)
Golden Ears’ AKG K702 Measurements (http://en.goldenears.net/8281)
Sennheiser HD600
These were my favorite headphones on the tour. I couldn’t shut up about them. After all my testing, I just kept using them because they sounded so good. They’re detailed, warm, and balanced. When I read “warm” in the Head-Fi glossary, I thought that these headphones defined that sound and term. The bass is present and balanced. The mids and treble sound very smooth and just sound spot on. There’s a good soundstage and laid back, but not too laid back like the HE500s. They’re also incredibly comfortable even if they look kind of goofy.
More
Golden Ears’ Frequency Response Graph
(http://en.goldenears.net/en/files/attach/images/254/072/008/4af27f9cfa44b65f1ab4a6dfb9730286.png)
Golden Ears’ Cumulative Spectral Decay Graph
(http://en.goldenears.net/en/files/attach/images/254/072/008/1c53a0ea9f1c710b111140fb512bfe84.png)
Golden Ears’ Sennheiser HD600 Measurements (http://en.goldenears.net/8072)
With the IEMs, I couldn’t find any measurements for the Monoprice MEP-933 so I’m going to leave them out for both pairs of IEMs. The Vsonic GR07 have measurements but they’re from Inner Fidelity, which has a different set of measurements and graphs than Golden Ears. If you’re interested in seeing the GR07 measurements, check them out here (http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/vsonic-gr07-and-gr07-bass-edition-measurements).
Vsonic GR07
I would describe these as dark and neutral. The mids are a bit darker than I’d like, the bass is a bit lacking, and the treble is a bit muted. They’re also laid back and have a nice sound stage. I would say that the Dipset song didn’t sound so good with these IEMs but the rest of the songs sounded good.
Monoprice MEP-933
I know these aren’t audiophile grade but I got them for cheap and included them in the review for giggles. Honestly I am surprised with how much better these sound compared to my old SkullCandy earbuds though. The bass on these are better than the SkullCandy earbuds, but they seem to have more mid-bass than sub-bass. The mids are a muted and the treble are sibilant but they aren’t muddy. I think these are pretty fun overall and worth the $6 I paid.
Overall, I would say that I was very disappointed with the HiFiMAN HE500 and AKG K702. I would love the HE500 if they weighed half of what they did. Actually, if I could have the HE500 sound in the AKG K702 enclosure, that would be great. The AKGs were very comfortable.
I really like the HD600 and GR07. Actually I think that if I bought HD600s, that would round out my collection and I’d be very happy with all my headphones. Did I mention I like the HD600s? ‘Cause I really dig those :P.
More reading can be found in the following links:
GeekHack’s Headphone thread, best read backwards in my opinion. (http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=13775.2040)
GeekHack’s Amp/DAC thread. (http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=47925.0)
IEM discussion at GeekHack. (http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=43827.0)
I like these reviews from Inner Fidelity. (http://www.innerfidelity.com/)
Golden Ears measurements (http://www.goldenears.net/)
Statistics like range and weight, pricing, and more measurements from Headphone.com
Sennheiser HD600 (http://www.headphone.com/headphones/sennheiser-hd-600.php)
AKG K702 (http://www.headphone.com/headphones/akg-k-702-black.php)
Grado SR80i (http://www.headphone.com/headphones/grado-sr-80i.php)
HiFiMAN HE-500 (http://www.headphone.com/headphones/hifiman-he-500.php)