^^ yes, his post has nothing to do with the 003s. haha

the review and following conversation described them as as sounding similar to the HD600.

I have been waiting for a closed can, such as this one, to come along, and have a similar air and space as a large notable open can. Not to mention, the review + following posts also stated that they were relatively easy to drive. Lets say not very hard to drive, as I will not guess as to exactly how much amp they need. My hope would be that they could be driven by something around the size of an E-MU 0202, as in, better than out of a DAP, but not as good as a dedicated headphone amplifier. I have two dedicated headphone amplifier sources, but would prefer not to *need* them for the pair of headphones I buy. This limits me to where and when I can use them, thus erasing the advantage of having the uncommon air and space.

Hope that clears things up.

FA-003 is indeed open sounding, quite laid back and forgiving without sounding dark/muffled or lacking in any part of the spectrum. The main strength of this can is balance - the bass, mids and highs all blend in perfect harmony. I also have the HD555 to compare with and by comparison the Senns have a noticeable emphasis on mid bass and a bit recessed in the highs, not to mention that they also sound less detailed and "boxier" with a more compressed dynamic range and a generally smaller, soundstage. HD555s being open back headphones, however, do have one advantage over FA-003 and all other closed headphones though - they have this sense of openness in their sound that closed cans just don't have (well, at least the ones I've heard so far). And no, I am not talking about more air as in better treble or bigger soundstage, but rather a feeling that the music you listen to flows out into the world around you. This gives an interesting (interesting in it's own way - not necessarily superior!) listening experience, especially on instrumental music, when you can almost feel the sound floating in the air around you (well not all around of course, but to the front and to the sides). Closed headphones can't give this experience in principle I think. But other than that, FA-003 is the better headphone. Please note that I am talking about stock HD555 here, not modded.

I wish these would get in stock so I can order them!

I'm halfway ready to order a "lesser" can, like the Shure 440 or 840 or ATH M50.

Fischer Audio Headphones

gd_audiobase

Thanks for NOT providing a link for purchase,............................ Here's 2 links I found on my own.

yeah a lot of people would say a well modded set of 555s surpasses the 595s, and comes close to the hd600s. There is a "grain", but after performing the mods, I am going to chalk this up to the unique diphram shape, as well as the driver mounting/suspension. The membrane is like that of a large domed tweeter, but extremely thin material, and a large open hole in the magnet leading to the inside cavety, which, after the mod is basically unobstructed. This sucker moves a LOT of air to cover the freq. spectrum that it does, and I am guessing the HD600 is not a whole lot different, except it is actuall designed to be this way, so probably a more solid build, engineered for purpose and so on. Also the impedance is different, lower on the 555s, which could have something to do with how it behaves. Still it comes down to a large driver dome of an extremely thin material with a large openeing to allow airflow out the back, and this driver suspended by plastic click-locks, all things that can be reenforced during the mod, but nothing will equal the real deal. The real deal is still going to have this massive openness to it, and likely, moving as much, or more air, to perform it's best.

003 out of stock on both sites :(

The basic principles of the senns are all very cool, and it works, which is also very cool. Senn hd380s look like they would be similar to what a closed hd595 or hd600 may be, but sounds nothing like that. That this phone sounds a bit like the HD600, and of course, lacking the true ambience of the room, but still open, spacious, and non-fatiguing, other trats of the hd600 being it's soft HF, bass-when-you-need-it, and natural sound overall, makes it something I am interested in because it is, indeed, a closed design, and it is harder to find closed headphones that carry some of these characteristics, especially at the efficiency that the OP is stating they may be able to work with. I would be very much attacted to such a headphone. Basically what the hd380 and such *should* sound like.

.

is there any chance the dba 2 will be in along with me

I have my FA-003's for a month or so now and am very happy with them. Great crisp bass and very natural mids and highs.

Isolation, both in and out, is very good - certainly more so than my D7000 and ESW10's. And while the sound is open I am clearly aware that this is a closed headphone.

My one fixable issue has been the tight clamp - must be my large head. I have to leave them clamped around the carry case every few days to loosen them up a bit.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pariah1 

I wish these would get in stock so I can order them!

 

I'm halfway ready to order a "lesser" can, like the Shure 440 or 840 or ATH M50.

The 440 and M50 are indeed lesser cans, but not the 840 IMO. Actually, I have both the SRH840 and FA-003 here right now. I bought the SRH840 from Future Shop to test them out against the FA-003. Now that I have about an equal amount of burn in on both (~100 hours), I can say with certainty that they are both great. I wouldn't really consider either to be an upgrade over the other, unless you are only listening to very specific music genres or have very specific requirements. The SRH840 is the more colored of the two - the sound is full and warm, but at times perhaps a bit too aggressive in the lower treble and mid bass. The FA-003 is still warm, but more neutral and also has a more spacious, open sound than the Shures. Not that the SRH840 is closed in, but it just sounds smaller than FA-003. With SRH840 you get better micro detial/texture than with FA-003 and also somewhat tighter bass. FA-003 has a slightly lower detail resolution, but better separation of instruments and better clarity. It also has a more neutral, balanced low end than the Shures. Upper treble on SRH840 is a bit recessed and slightly grainy (just slightly), whereas FA-003 has a very crisp and present upper end, although perhaps a little too pronounced at times at higher volumes.

Right now, I am torn between these two cans. They both sound so great but in different ways. They compliment each other well, but I can't afford to keep both unfortunately so I will have to decide which one suits me better. It will probably be the FA-003 that I will keep, because it is more balanced than the SRH840 overall and is just less picky about music and source quality.

Quote:

Originally Posted by blackadd 

 

My one fixable issue has been the tight clamp - must be my large head. I have to leave them clamped around the carry case every few days to loosen them up a bit.

I've had my Fa-003's for around 1 week and they are great. The only problem for me was also the tightness but after a few days they have loosened up and are perfectly comfortable. Burning them in really does make a difference for these headphones.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pianist 

The 440 and M50 are indeed lesser cans, but not the 840 IMO. Actually, I have both the SRH840 and FA-003 here right now. I bought the SRH840 from Future Shop to test them out against the FA-003. Now that I have about an equal amount of burn in on both (~100 hours), I can say with certainty that they are both great. I wouldn't really consider either to be an upgrade over the other, unless you are only listening to very specific music genres or have very specific requirements. The SRH840 is the more colored of the two - the sound is full and warm, but at times perhaps a bit too aggressive in the lower treble and mid bass. The FA-003 is still warm, but more neutral and also has a more spacious, open sound than the Shures. Not that the SRH840 is closed in, but it just sounds smaller than FA-003. With SRH840 you get better micro detial/texture than with FA-003 and also somewhat tighter bass. FA-003 has a slightly lower detail resolution, but better separation of instruments and better clarity. It also has a more neutral, balanced low end than the Shures. Upper treble on SRH840 is a bit recessed and slightly grainy (just slightly), whereas FA-003 has a very crisp and present upper end, although perhaps a little too pronounced at times at higher volumes.

 

Right now, I am torn between these two cans. They both sound so great but in different ways. They compliment each other well, but I can't afford to keep both unfortunately so I will have to decide which one suits me better. It will probably be the FA-003 that I will keep, because it is more balanced than the SRH840 overall and is just less picky about music and source quality.

Once again, thanks for all the information and reviews.

I haphazardly threw in the 840 in that list because some actually say the 440 is better. But I would expect the 440 to not be as good as the 003, so then it is reasonable to think that the 840, if truly not as good (or just as good in a different way but not "better") as the 440, would also not be as good as the 003.

From what you say it seems that the 003 is more to my liking (I've also heard the 840 is dark and kind of laid back or "boring"). But then I like the description of more micro detail and tighter bass with the 840. But that's it over the 003.

I think I will get the 003 and if I was unsatisfied with it in some way then I could try the 840 and see if it was better (and which one to ultimately keep). The M50 is so tempting because of the price, but then it is also NOT so tempting because of the price if you know what I mean. I'd rather not throw around $100 into a "good for it's price but..." can; instead I'd rather just spend the extra to make sure I get something more "hi-fi" in the first place. It's not worth it to have a can that sounds ok compared to one that sounds good/great for twice the price iow.

Still waiting for these to come in...

I'm all ears :D

.