Ultrasone HFI780 ALO Mod

[Al4x]

this is one of those damned hard decisions, i have no amp as yet, but i will be looking at a pico/predator

to alo, or not?

with no way to try them its hard, the only other can i have is the d2000, which is not ideal, too boomy and bassy

grr, i wish i could try a pair!

[CountChoculaBot]

The two options I'd recommend to you is to either:
Get Markl'd ($160)
or
Buy a stock HFI-780. If you like the sound (give it about 200hrs, I'd say), but want some improvements (harshness/sibilance especially), then send it in to ALO.

[HeadphoneAddict]

Originally Posted by Al4x

this is one of those damned hard decisions, i have no amp as yet, but i will be looking at a pico/predator

to alo, or not?

with no way to try them its hard, the only other can i have is the d2000, which is not ideal, too boomy and bassy

grr, i wish i could try a pair!

I answered your question about Pico, you only just now mentioned the Predator. The Predator is better with the HFI-780 than the Pico, as it does not exacerbate the highs while still remaining clear and transparent.

As for the D2000, if you open them up and put in some cotton dampening material inside, just a tiny bit, and then stretch out the headband so they are looser, the bass will be tamed down. Then if you stuff the rear section of the earpads on the D2000, so they tilt forward from the rear, the sound stage will expand even more. (markl mod).

I bought my D2000 with another manufacturer's cable already on it, and the result was good enough that I found I didn't need to do anything to them after that.

[HeadphoneAddict]

Here are some full-size higher-end headphones that I bought, which sound great without the need for a re-cable to fix something.

Ultrasone Edition 9
Ultrasone Proline 2500
STAX SR-Lambda and Lambda Signature, etc
Grado HP-1000

The HFI-780 were okay with stock cable, but I had to pick the amp, opamps or tubes to best suit it's characteristics. The iBasso D1 with AD743 in the main opamp section, LMH6643 in the buffers, and LTC6241 in the DAC was a good match. My Dark Voice 336i with Sylvania VT-231 front tube and RCA 6AS7G rear tube was also a good match. With the ALO modded 780, the headphones are not very picky about what amp I use now.

[Al4x]

Originally Posted by CountChoculaBot

The two options I'd recommend to you is to either:
Get Markl'd ($160)
or
Buy a stock HFI-780. If you like the sound (give it about 200hrs, I'd say), but want some improvements (harshness/sibilance especially), then send it in to ALO.

i might have to do that, tho $450 in total, (more if i have to send them about) is alot of money, especially seeing as i may have to buy an amp also around the same price! if i did that option i bet i wouldnt get them modded!, its like £100 more! and i live in the uk!

and from the sounds of it, people prefer the pico, and i will only be getting one that a definite. i kind like highs, i use the tf10s with silicon tips cause the foam tips lost too much hi range

one thing, they are still effective as portables after the mod arent they? if not then thats out the window.

oh yeah, i think i will wait until i get an amp before selling the d2000s, i dare not mod them, i dont understyand headphones that much!

[Sceptre]

Originally Posted by Al4x

i might have to do that, tho $450 in total, (more if i have to send them about) is alot of money, especially seeing as i may have to buy an amp also around the same price! if i did that option i bet i wouldnt get them modded!, its like £100 more! and i live in the uk!

and from the sounds of it, people prefer the pico, and i will only be getting one that a definite. i kind like highs, i use the tf10s with silicon tips cause the foam tips lost too much hi range

one thing, they are still effective as portables after the mod arent they? if not then thats out the window.

oh yeah, i think i will wait until i get an amp before selling the d2000s, i dare not mod them, i dont understyand headphones that much!

It's rare for a member to be close to me so I'll offer an audition of cables, portable amps and thoughts over a beer.
PM me,
John

[Al4x]

Originally Posted by Sceptre

It's rare for a member to be close to me so I'll offer an audition of cables, portable amps and thoughts over a beer.
PM me,
John

that sounds like a plan!

[HeadphoneAddict]

So what's the word on the new Ultrasone HFI-780????

If you look at sound alone, and not microphonics or cost, the ALO modded headphones were better sounding than the S2 re-cabled 780 (smoother with less lumpy bass).

Originally Posted by Skylab

Thanks to HeadphoneAddict, I was able to spend some time comparing the ALO Audio modded and recabled HFI-780 to the S2 Audio modded and recabled 780.

First and foremost, both of these mods do a great job in addressing the main shortcomings of the stock 780. Both smooth out the treble peaks, and relax the midrange aggressiveness. The ALO modded set are slightly smoother throughout, but just a little. In either case, the main goal is accomplished - both versions sound excellent in this regard.

However, neither mod significantly improves the problem with the soundstage being shallow. Both improve it a little, and again the ALO maybe just slightly more, but for people who are ga-ga over soundstage depth, look elsewhere.

The ALO 780 also had slightly less lump bass response, I felt. this was still pretty subtle versus the S2 audio version, though.

So overall, in terms of JUST sonics, the ALO version is slightly better, IMO.

HOWEVER, there are some other factors. First, the ALO mod is more than 2x the price of the S2 mod. But more than that, the ALO modded cable is really badly microphonic. The S2 Audio cable is somewhat microphonic when it's rubbed or tapped, but the S2 cable isn't microphonic when one just turns one's head - the ALO cable is. With the ALO cable, you have to stay totally still, or you get loud microphonics. I found this troubling.

I also greatly prefer the single entry configuration of the S2 Audio recable, and I prefer the looks. That, and the price, make the S2 version much easier to recommend than the ALO version, IMHO, in spite of the ALO version offering very slightly better sound.

[HeadphoneAddict]

PS: The ALO cable microphonics never bothered me, and others reported in that other thread that they didn't think it was that bad. The ALO re-cable cost is in line with other companies like APS which would be about $230.

[slwiser]

I found some microphonics yesterday. I have had my ALO-780J over at my easy chair and when I listen to them the cable rest on me while I am sitting and laying back. Nothing occurs when in this position.

Yesterday I moved the headphone over to my computer. When the cable rests in the open air between the ear cup and the desk I hear this effect of grating contact with the keyboard tray.

For my normal use I never hear this since the cable rests on me and I am not to hard a subject to come in contact with to produce much sound.