The German Maestro GMP 8.35 D Monitor in the studio... serious about audio, INDEED!! - Page 9

Ack, I just went for the basic setup. I think I'll hold out a bit and maybe wait a couple weeks to order the new pads from the US distributor.

I'm not going to be disappointed with the stock pads, am I?
Keep in mind I'm coming from Alessandro MS-1's...

Also, I only see 2 or so head-fi people with these cans. Anybody else have a pair who can provide some opinions, or are we going to have to be pioneers on this one?

Still - extremely excited to try out these phones!

Attached some FR charts. The 435 S looks quite flat. As for sound quality well all are distortion free . I like 450 Pro more then the 400 though. The 400 have a bit much bass which seem to muddy voices a bit. I feel boxed in despite it being the open one. Has some more out of head moments too but not many.

450 Pro is better balanced but for some music you may miss some bass on it. While it´s better for other music. The most neutral of them is the 8.35D monitors with the new pads though. To bad you can´t use the new pads with the 400 or 450 Pro. Especially the 400 would be interesting to see what would happen to it.

8.35D Monitors really didn´t need much fixing I liked it stock representation as well.

But it´s really cool. You go from a really relaxed, extremely forgiving smooth headphone with a nice warm and slow signature to an almost bright/fast and quite detailed headphone.

So my design idea is for German maestro to steal ultrasones removable earpads by a simple twist. Doesn´t make much sense for the Ultrasones but would make a ton of sense to use the stock ear pads for when needing more warmth/bass and putting these on when you want it more neutral and refined .

It takes a couple of minutes to pry them on and off with the current solution.

edit: Back to the old pads now. The new pads are definiatly more comfortable but if you adjust the clamping pressure it works. They loose a bit of finesse with the old pads in term of soundstage and balance but they go on with brute force instead lol. And more forgiving. I tried R.E.M for example. Hardly enjoyable on the Pro 900. Just about acceptable with the new pads on the 8.35D Monitor and almost good with the old pads. Someone really need to fire their mixer.

I listened to Acix's pair of 8.35 phones at our recent meet, with the new pads, and I didn't like them at all, I thought they had very bright, etched treble, lean mids, and no bass- really not my kind of phones. Do the stock pads sound that different?

I guess we all have different ears!

ps. I was going to keep quiet but if everyone did that when they didn't seem to agree, then head-fi would be a pretty useless place

this definitely wasn't a volume issue. But I don't want to say much more because I only listened for a minute or so and then knew that they were not my cup of tea at all, so I gave them back.

There are a lot of phones that are way too bright for me, but are adored on head-fi, so it doesn't really surprise me, I just thought I'd say something for those thinking of purchasing.

I wish you would have brought your Fostex and yamahas! I should have mentioned something before the meet

THey are stitched to the casing ... Maybe if you cut them loose but then you can´t use the old pads and void your warranty I would assume.

They are very neutral with the pads yes but I still get bass from them. Even though they are slightly brighter then my Pro 900. With stock pads they are a LOT warmer with tons more bass so yes it does change the sound a lot.
I can´t imagine anyone complaining about harsh treble with the stock pads. As mentioned super soft not that detailed

That has not been my experience with a few of the headphones that I have owned. For example, the RX900 and JBL 410 Reference were not this way for me when used with various inexpensive sources.

Cranking up the volume and observing how well behaved the treble remains is a primary test of mine for headphones. Of course I am willing to EQ if doing so helps maintain an enjoyable balance.

I just received MB Quart QP 805 M POS today. It's the version used in listening booths, 300ohm. It should be equivalent to GMP 8.300 D. I wonder how they compare to the 35ohm model discussed here.
According to the Ebay seller they should be new, so burn-in will probably change the sound significantly. So far I notice somewhat strong bass, a little overbearing, recessed mids and clear, but smooth highs. The soundstage is rather small, but okay for closed headphones, instrument separation is very good.
Isolation is worse than I expected. Comfort is not stellar - the cups are not deep enough so my earlobes are touching the driver covers, but overall it's not so bad if you consider that they are closed phones with high clamping force and pleather pads.
Btw, the pads' inside is round, not oval like the GMP 8.35 original pads shown here.
I hope the bass will get more definition and the midrange will be brought slightly more forward with burn-in.

PS: It has the steel-shielded cable, I wonder if I can get it off somehow, it seems permanently fastened to the cups. I mean the steel part.
As I listen more, the soundstage is actually pretty good - not very big, but positioning is precise and 3 dimensional.

UPDATE: Still very preliminary after ~2 hours of listening/burning-in. The highs are not as smooth as I thought and on some recordings can be sibilant, burn-in should improve this. The bass is still bloated a bit (the decay of bass notes is longer than it should be, other than that I would say that the headphones are plenty fast), but I dont't think it messes with midrange as I wrote earlier. The mids are not so recessed anymore.
Overall they sound balanced, neutral and natural (considering these are closed phones I would even say very natural) and are enjoyable.
I've tried them with all kinds of rock, some electronica - Rush, Prodigy, Tool, Perfect Circle, Dire Straits, Zappa, Pearl Jam, Radiohead, Flaming Lips etc. and they are ok with everything except DM, which sound really awkward - congested and muffled.
They are probably the best closed headphones I've heard, but that's not many - Senn HD280Pro, Denon AH-D1001, Beyerdynamic DT831 (these have worn pads so the comparison isn't fair).
I'm leaving for weekend, but will try to post further impressions next week.

Thanks. I was always wondering how they sound. There's not much information about them. Please keep us posted after break-in.

Actually, I was not referring to how loud the headphones could play. I meant at loud listenable levels (and I occasionally listen at very loud volumes), I check for whether the high frequencies maintain their balance with the rest of the frequencies. And that's more of a check on the synergy of the whole rig and source media than just the headphones.

But I've found that amping tends to flesh out and boost the lower frequencies, which in turn tends to attenuate the higher frequencies (as compared to not amping). And I usually find that I prefer the effects of amping.

Take for example the RX900. Even after felt modding and at high volumes, its highs remained under control. That was from a XS71 sound card, no amp. Again, same was true for the JBL 410 Reference. I suspect the highs in these headphones are quite different than that of an MB Quart or the GMP 8.35.

Based on my experiences while here at Head-Fi and FWIR, the GMP 8.35 seems to be headphones that are more sensitive to synergy and preference than most. And, I don't suspect it would be to my liking with my usual equipment and source media: TV // internet radio + XS71 sound card // FM radio + Lo-Fi receiver.