Hi Guys,
Been a long time since I've opened up a thread here. Anyway, let start off with a little introduction.
Over the last few years since joining HF I've had the opportunity to own and to audition many headphones. As time went by I found myself unable to listen to all these Grado/Beyer/AKG/Senn headphones since it either made my ears hurt (Grado/Beyer 880-990) or the sound was just too "fat" or boring (HD580/600/650/K701). There were a few more "considered" headphones I didn't like (O2 for instance). The only headphones I've enjoyed in the last couple of years were the modded K340/K1000/HE60/SRS-4040 (the 4040 were a bit too bright, but I did like the overall result). I know it sounds kind of snobbish, I'm aware of that, but there was nothing I can do about it.
Now to the present:
After this "high-end" episode I've decided I dont want to have that much money invested in headphones since I need money for other things (still a student), and I've started looking for a headphones which will fit my needs:
- no need for an expensive amp
- no big drawback's
- balanced sound
- no more than 400$
Anyway, last weekend looking at the FS adds in one of the local HT/Stereo forums I've came across a pair of AD900 FS. I've contacted the seller and he was kind enough to let me borrow the headphones for the weekend and decide at the comfort of my own place if I like them or not.
So, I drove to him yesterday, came back home, connected the headphones and started listening. I've first connected to the Asus Xonar D2 which was very detailed but I wanted a little extra bass, than tried the DV336SE which couldn't deliver the bass/speed of some albums due to the low impedance of the AD900. Finally I've settled on the Kenwood KA7100 vintage amplifier which was the best match.
Before going onto the sound let me mention once last thing. I knew nothing about the AD900 sound before getting them on my head. I read nothing about them (I didn't want to read about them, but there's very little information about these here on HF anyway). The only AD headphones I've heard was the AD2000 which sounds very strange to me and I really dont like it.
Sound:
This is what you are all waiting for. While in most cases I start my review by saying "these can make bass/treble/mid", let me start in a whole different way. The AD900 can produce something completely different, it doesn't make sounds, it cant play frequencies, it does however a great job of producing that very elusive term you rarely meet in gear reviews, it plays music.
Yes, I've said it, Music.
For the first time in I dont know how long, I wasn't looking into treble, I wasn't looking into bass, and I dare not think about terms like sound-stage or detail, I just sit back, melt into my sofa, and enjoy the sweetness and the great deal of emotion that most headphones aren't able to produce to my ears, the emotion that's in the music.
You know how in most headphone reviews you break it down to different genres of music? No need to do so, these AD900 are just the same in all of them. I am aware of the fact that these last paragraph or two are very subjective and when looking into these as a potential headphone to buy most will need something more solid to hold on to, some of these "frequency" comparisons which are just a way of putting a number onto something so non-mathematical. Since I want to introduce as much information as possible, here it comes.
In terms of the amount of bass, its somewhere in the middle. Not as much as the Beyer/Senn produce, but significantly more than Grado. I'd say its about 10-20% stronger than on the K701. As for the quality of the bass, its very impressing, its well controlled, it has great extent. I didn't once feel like there's too much mid-bass, and I've never had too little low bass. The bass detail isn't amazing, but indeed acceptable for that price range.
Going up in frequencies to the mid range. One of the great things about the AD900, not one time did I feel like there's not enough mid/vocals, not once did I feel like its uneven. Male vocals, female vocals, violins, all of them are very satisfying and "sweet" like mids should be.
Going even higher into the treble, I must say a very pleasant surprise. I am very sensitive to sharp treble, the AD900 have no sharpness into them at all. Even on bad recordings with much distortion the AD900 is able to sit on the fence and just give you a small reminder of what sharpness could be like.
Going into the sound-stage. It is somewhere between your regular "head-stage" and actual sound-stage. I'd say its about the same or a bit wider/deeper than most open headphones in this price range. The K701's do have a larger sound-stage, but to me it seems a tad less focused than on the AD900. Details are about the same as on other headphones in the price, maybe above the average. The nice thing is this detail isn't a result of extra brightness like in the Grado/Beyer, so I'd say the AD900 have the edge here.
The dark side of the conclusion:
So as you must now know, I love these. All that's left for me to say is that these are amazing headphones, probably the best in the price-range and I recommend to all of you Head-Fi'ers to go out and buy a pair, right? Well not exactly, or why else would I name this part "The dark side"?
SQ wise, yes, these, IMO, are absolutely amazing. I can honestly say that these are the cheapest headphones I actually love and enjoy. However, I guess the AT engineers think I have too big ears. Just like the AD2000 the AD900 sit too close to my ears and the metal mesh on the driver in putting pressure on my ears which after about 15-20 minutes starts to be annoying.
So now I am torn between the AD900's ability to produce music, and the pressure they put on my ears. I am yet to decide if I'm going to keep them or not (trying to stuff some foam between the pads resulted in much better comfort but significantly less bass), once I will make a desicion I will report, however, I do urge all these who have the AD900 fall in their price range, check these headphones out.
Been a long time since I've opened up a thread here. Anyway, let start off with a little introduction.
Over the last few years since joining HF I've had the opportunity to own and to audition many headphones. As time went by I found myself unable to listen to all these Grado/Beyer/AKG/Senn headphones since it either made my ears hurt (Grado/Beyer 880-990) or the sound was just too "fat" or boring (HD580/600/650/K701). There were a few more "considered" headphones I didn't like (O2 for instance). The only headphones I've enjoyed in the last couple of years were the modded K340/K1000/HE60/SRS-4040 (the 4040 were a bit too bright, but I did like the overall result). I know it sounds kind of snobbish, I'm aware of that, but there was nothing I can do about it.
Now to the present:
After this "high-end" episode I've decided I dont want to have that much money invested in headphones since I need money for other things (still a student), and I've started looking for a headphones which will fit my needs:
- no need for an expensive amp
- no big drawback's
- balanced sound
- no more than 400$
Anyway, last weekend looking at the FS adds in one of the local HT/Stereo forums I've came across a pair of AD900 FS. I've contacted the seller and he was kind enough to let me borrow the headphones for the weekend and decide at the comfort of my own place if I like them or not.
So, I drove to him yesterday, came back home, connected the headphones and started listening. I've first connected to the Asus Xonar D2 which was very detailed but I wanted a little extra bass, than tried the DV336SE which couldn't deliver the bass/speed of some albums due to the low impedance of the AD900. Finally I've settled on the Kenwood KA7100 vintage amplifier which was the best match.
Before going onto the sound let me mention once last thing. I knew nothing about the AD900 sound before getting them on my head. I read nothing about them (I didn't want to read about them, but there's very little information about these here on HF anyway). The only AD headphones I've heard was the AD2000 which sounds very strange to me and I really dont like it.
Sound:
This is what you are all waiting for. While in most cases I start my review by saying "these can make bass/treble/mid", let me start in a whole different way. The AD900 can produce something completely different, it doesn't make sounds, it cant play frequencies, it does however a great job of producing that very elusive term you rarely meet in gear reviews, it plays music.
Yes, I've said it, Music.
For the first time in I dont know how long, I wasn't looking into treble, I wasn't looking into bass, and I dare not think about terms like sound-stage or detail, I just sit back, melt into my sofa, and enjoy the sweetness and the great deal of emotion that most headphones aren't able to produce to my ears, the emotion that's in the music.
You know how in most headphone reviews you break it down to different genres of music? No need to do so, these AD900 are just the same in all of them. I am aware of the fact that these last paragraph or two are very subjective and when looking into these as a potential headphone to buy most will need something more solid to hold on to, some of these "frequency" comparisons which are just a way of putting a number onto something so non-mathematical. Since I want to introduce as much information as possible, here it comes.
In terms of the amount of bass, its somewhere in the middle. Not as much as the Beyer/Senn produce, but significantly more than Grado. I'd say its about 10-20% stronger than on the K701. As for the quality of the bass, its very impressing, its well controlled, it has great extent. I didn't once feel like there's too much mid-bass, and I've never had too little low bass. The bass detail isn't amazing, but indeed acceptable for that price range.
Going up in frequencies to the mid range. One of the great things about the AD900, not one time did I feel like there's not enough mid/vocals, not once did I feel like its uneven. Male vocals, female vocals, violins, all of them are very satisfying and "sweet" like mids should be.
Going even higher into the treble, I must say a very pleasant surprise. I am very sensitive to sharp treble, the AD900 have no sharpness into them at all. Even on bad recordings with much distortion the AD900 is able to sit on the fence and just give you a small reminder of what sharpness could be like.
Going into the sound-stage. It is somewhere between your regular "head-stage" and actual sound-stage. I'd say its about the same or a bit wider/deeper than most open headphones in this price range. The K701's do have a larger sound-stage, but to me it seems a tad less focused than on the AD900. Details are about the same as on other headphones in the price, maybe above the average. The nice thing is this detail isn't a result of extra brightness like in the Grado/Beyer, so I'd say the AD900 have the edge here.
The dark side of the conclusion:
So as you must now know, I love these. All that's left for me to say is that these are amazing headphones, probably the best in the price-range and I recommend to all of you Head-Fi'ers to go out and buy a pair, right? Well not exactly, or why else would I name this part "The dark side"?
SQ wise, yes, these, IMO, are absolutely amazing. I can honestly say that these are the cheapest headphones I actually love and enjoy. However, I guess the AT engineers think I have too big ears. Just like the AD2000 the AD900 sit too close to my ears and the metal mesh on the driver in putting pressure on my ears which after about 15-20 minutes starts to be annoying.
So now I am torn between the AD900's ability to produce music, and the pressure they put on my ears. I am yet to decide if I'm going to keep them or not (trying to stuff some foam between the pads resulted in much better comfort but significantly less bass), once I will make a desicion I will report, however, I do urge all these who have the AD900 fall in their price range, check these headphones out.
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