Throwdown: Denon AH-D7000 vs Ultrasone PRO 900

I listened to the new Ultrasones at CanJam 2009 in LA and I am not aware of how many hours they had on them as they were pretty new but I have listened to the D7000's on several amps (RS B52, a DIY B22, Audio GD Phoenix) and I currently own D5000's with Maverick D1 and hifiMan EF2 (both with upgraded tubes) and IMO even the D5000's sound more pleasing then the Ultra's for my listening tastes.

I did however mod the D5000's with J.Money pads which I cut away the cloth protective fabric from the earpiece. The J.Money's definitely help the Denon's more than you can imagine (I am sure you can find many opinions on this forum in that regard) but removing the cloth fabric gave the clarity and definition that was missing (and yes, I a aware I am putting the drivers at risk by removing the protection but the jmoney pads are soo thick it would take some effort to hurt the drivers.

The next step is that I am sending them to Lawton for the Jenna Labs Cabling with SE Furutech 704 plug and nylon sheathing.

I had borrowed a friend's D2000's for a week (I owned AT 700's at the time) and they were good, but the ultrasone's sounded better. Then I compared the D5000's to the D7000's at a local head-fi member meet and the difference between the 5000 and 7000 were not noticible by me. So to concluded, I decided spending roughly $300 for the 5000's and $60 for the J.Money's and another $440 for the Lawton cabling would be better spent then the $600+ for the 7000's.

That's my two cents on the subject. YMMV.

BTW - I also have the UE TF 10's and like their SQ a lot.

You should add DX 1000 to the list as well if you really can´t stretch for the ED 8s. About same price as D7000.

I owned the markl D5000 and they didn´t really impress me. But I seem to be incompatible with how wooden headphones colour the sound. DX 1000 was pretty amazing at times but again the wood resonances got to me

ED 8 give me some of the traits of the DX 1000 and keep some of the 900 magic while being entirely different animal. Can´t make me totally break down into tears like the 900 manages too. "But oooh my goood" More be happy ever after headphone like the DX 1000 at it´s best

I'm thinking about getting a bassy headphone like the 7000/DX1000 since I have been depriving myself of a lot of bass.. & want a more colored & fun sound.. A nice alternative for the times I just want to rock out with a high end headphone..

YES!!!

After listening to the Edition 8s and Pro900s for several different sessions, I did go with the D7000s. They are IMO, the best closed cans out there. Some will say the JVCs, while very nice, I thought they were too boomy and that distracted from the bass. I also found the D7000s had better treble.

The D7000s are really in a different league than the Pro900s and on my listening experiences totally worth the extra $$$.

Better!

The bass goes deeper and better controlled. These cans are in a different league as the Pro900s. They would be in the same league as the Edition 8s, but I preferred the Denons. The bass is better controlled and unlike the Ed8s, the strong bass did not distract from the mids. I also preferred the treble on the Denons.

With regards to the J$ pads, I found it worth it as they improved the sound stage and offered better bass resolution/control.

Get the 900 you'll love the details, sound stage, S-logic and they are very flat above 350hz with a very good resolution. But... beware of the Bassss.

The 900s isolate better if that is worth anything.

You can look at the isolation charts that Headroom made for most of the headphones they sell. It does show that the Ultrasones isolated sounds a bit better than the Denon's. However my Sennheiser HD380 isolates sounds much better than my Denon 2000.

As mentioned markl D5000 hardly isolate at all. And before getting it I was told it isolated a bit better then the stock D5000 due to the thicker ear cups. If you Kees Mod the Pro 900 you do get a pretty much unbeatable mid range. Unmodded yes the bass can overpower it somewhat. It´s better then anything I have heard so far in a headphone. Though the mid range of the ED 8 is more forward if you like that.
Quite sweet too but not as transparent.

Though the Ed 8 have a tone to die, have more fanfares and such going on and as mentioned sweet when I find the 900 to aggressive for some recordings or just want something warmer and laid back . Bass is superbly controlled on the 900 on a good amp. The problem is that it´s just to much quantity at times in low bass also after Kees mod. Edition 8 is overall softer. Goes for bass as well there I do think the ED 8 have an edge over the 900.

DX 1000 is otherwise an option though it´s not that good of an allrounder. Maybe good if you are several that is going to share it. Isolated a bit better then the Denons but not quite as good as the Pro 900 from what I remember. They do encourage more loud volumes though. 900 is good in that way it´s optimized for lower volumes then most other headphones I tried

so many conflicting reviews on this.
my eyes is getting tired. haha

Your best bet is to listen to them first and see if they are an upgrade TO YOU at all. If you have a listening centre somewhere that'd be great. Failing that, find a store that has a great return policy. Then spend an evening or three comparing them yourself. Then start a thread with your impressions. make a decision whether to keep the Denon and sell the Pro 900 or keep the Pro 900 and return the Denons for full refund.
I have listened to both and prefer the Denons. As bass heavy as they are, I also found them more 'refined' in many areas. Clairity, balance ( yes...balance )and even soundstage.