So what's the word on the new Ultrasone HFI-780???? - Page 140

To those of you that have heard both, do you prefer the HFI 780's or the HFI 2200's?

should I get the 780?

the hd555 was geared towards movies and I liked it a lot but it lacked bass.

So will the 780 do for me?

From memory (currently have 780 and previously owned 2200), the biggest difference is the 780 is more aggressive and in your face. The 2200 was more laid back. They do share the same relative sound signature however.

It's been close to 2 years since I've sold the 2200, so I really can't get any more into detail.

Never had the 555, but I did own the 595, so if it helps, the 780 has much greater bass quantity than the 595.

Ah ha nice.

Would you say the HD595 has the same amount of soundstage and stuff that the 780 has?

I looking for that kind of open speaker like soundstage and acoustics that the sennheiser has.

But at the same time I want to totally avoid any studio monitors I do not like something thats harsh on my ear drum.

I guess I would like something laid back?

Some think the 780 can be harsh. I don't share that sentiment. If you are really adverse to harshness, maybe the 780 won't be for you.

As for soundstage, the S-Logic really does have a unique presentation. It's not as pronounced (at least to me) as it claims to be, but it's noticeable when you immediately swap to another headphone. In direct comparison to the 595 (from memory keep in mind), the 780 is wider and deeper.

For $160-170 I can't think of a lot of headphones I'd rather have than the HFI-780, even stock. I was able to tolerate the stock cable, and the first time I listened to it I giggled like a school girl. If I hadn't borrowed a pair of ALO recabled 780 for review I wouldn't have known what I was missing.

You also had an opportunity w/ an S2 and APureSound V3 re-cabled HFI-780s. All sound very good albeit w/ some differences.

Actually, Skylab never sent me the S2 cabled one to try. I only mentioned the ALO ones as they were the catalyst for me sending mine off for Jenna Labs cable to compare to the Vampire wire demo pair. Later I did hear your APS V3 cabled ones and felt they would have been on par with the Jenna Labs version if I'd still had them, and both more transparent than the Vampire cabled or stock cabled.

Larry, I never listened to Skylab's S2 HFI-780 either. Thought you had but now I see I was wrong. :-(

I still think all three sounded much better than stock.

how do these compare to the HFI 680?

I hear the 680 is very harsh and painful.

I have my ALO 780 for about 3 weeks now. They have been on pin k noise for about 4 days. The highs were still noticeable and at times nice and at times a bit irritating. So I grabbed a piece of damping material I got from Lotus Group. He carries two very very effective damping products. One is Phone Art which is meant for IEM. It comes with strips, squares, and shapes of a very sizes of a advanced dampener material for IEM. I put this on my ep4 and they really mellowed out and tamed the brightness. I also got some material that was larger sheets meant for larger applications. I took a strip which was 1/4 inch by 10 and slapped it on the side straight accross the ultrasone name and I do believe it attacks the shrillness. I just did this about a hour ago and I then took it off and the shillness was back. It is hard for me to talk correctly about a lot of sound aspects because I have had a eardrum transplant and my other ear has a loss that can make cans sound unbalanced. But none the less I do know quality sound vs crap. I do believe this may be a solution to this concern. I have this stuff on all my mirage v2 speakers and it toned them down allot.I type with two fingers and very rarely do I type what I am thinking. Sorry. Joe Cohen is at CES this week and showing his line which includes some very high end stuff. He is the North American Rep for Accoustic Revive. If you use any of their products you know the wonderful effects they have on sound quality improvement. I have used them for years and do not listen to anything without them and I am half deaf. Just kidding. Only 1/3. Anyway the products are Phone Sound Improvement Seal and TA-102 Tuning Material fo.Q. Cost about $25 per sheet. You will be pleasantly pleased. Have a Happy New Year. I even put this on my stax sigmas and wammo, got all white again. Just like the first time.

I recant the negatives I have stated about the 780's, except build but then . . .

Anyway, with the dampening I have done, change of cable and a few other things, the phones are really very, very good and exceed the money spent in return for sound quality. Very tangible sound quality now.