KRK KNS-6400 Review - Impressive $99 Giant Killer - Page 14

tdockweiler didn't lead me astray with the DJ 100s, so I got my KRK KNS 6400s today. Gotta say, I'm actually rather surprised by the quantity of bass. I expected the most bass shy headphones ever, but the bass was present, but unemphasized. With a bit of equalization, the KRKs were definitely rumbling decently for electronic music. I will admit, the bass impact is not the same as it is on my Grados or Superluxes, but there is a definite bass presence. The clarity is excellent.

I tried doing some bass frequency sweeps to figure out if I could verify the graphs with what I was hearing. I took a bunch of the Youtube bass sweeps that showed the frequency they were on, closed my eyes, and opened them when I felt there was a kind of bass drop off. It basically verified to me that there was a drop off in the ~50hz region that comes very slightly back at around 40hz and then starts to drop off again at 30hz. 

I'm pretty pleased so far.

The bass is more accurate on the KRK 6400 than on the Grados.  People complain about the DT1350's bass, too, but it's more accurate than the boomy stuff most headphones produce.  If you look at the Headroom graphs, the 6400's frequency response is similar to the DT880 600, but with less of a treble peak, more extended extreme highs, and a slight dip in the 60-70hz range, if I remember.  And of course, it's closed.  The impulse response is not as exaggerated and the bass square wave is better.  It's a very good sounding headphone when amped properly... remembering this is a 32ohm headphone that needs an output impedance of 3 ohms or less.  It's sounding nice from the E7 right now being fed the Emu 0204 and I'm not missing the ESP 950 as much compared to when using the T1350 or modded HD25.  The KRK is very pleasant like the Koss, though not as pristine, delicate, or grit-free.  It's also less dry than the DT1350 and seems a little better balanced overall.  I only think the ESP 950 and the ER4S exceed the KRK 6400 when looking at their overall performance.  ESP is the most delicate of the three and the most refined, but lacks bass tightness for some reason.  ER4S is very neutral with exceptionally tight bass, but not the most delicate or refined in comparison to the ESP.  The KRK isn't really super delicate, super neutral, super refined, super distortion free (like the ER4S, ESP, or DT1350), or perfectly tight in the bass, but it's extended, surprisingly neutral, not too dry or liquid, has above average bass accuracy (even compared to the DT990 and DT880... ignore volume, I mean quality), and isn't too bright or hard usually.  ESP is warmer, smoother, more open, and more delicate without question.  Sent it back due to hums, though.  For the price the KRK goes, it's highly under rated, in my opinion.  Its closed sonics is probably its biggest handicap.

Bass-quality wise, the 8400 were much better. More accurate to the note. The 6400, while not boomy or agressive, were monotonic in comparison. Melodic instruments in general with the 8400 were more tuneful: easy to distinguish notes. Actually best I've heard at this price point. Only qualm I have is that they don't isolate as good as they could... Also, though the bass is very articulate and goes well with jazz and the kind, there are times when transients are not the most refined.. Still, best I've heard in this price range. 

Listened to Nucleus mainly during the time I compared them and with so much "action" going on, it was easy to tell that the 8400 was the better headphone. Not sound wise necessarily, which may be a matter of taste, but in distinguishing musical information definitely. 

Ah, I had both. The FA003 and 8400 that is. Both were excellent, but in the end I found the 8400 a bit better in discerning musical information and they were more portable. Could live with both really. 

I do like how comfortable the upgraded pads for the 6400 are, and the added bass is nice... but it seemed to have lost quite a bit of crispness and upper end extension. Is it just me or has anyone else noticed this?

hey tdockweiler,

i am looking at a pair of dt770/600ohm with black dragon cable upgrade and leather pads on the for sale forums and have seen in another thread that you have recently aquired a pair of these and are happy with them. how would you rate them vs the 8400. i went and had another listed to the 8400 v 6400 v fa003 today and love the 8400 most out of those so it will be the way i will go but if the dt770/600 are a big step up then i might splurge on them.

The DT770 are rather monotonic, muffled and colored in comparison. Haven't done an a/b but the small time I had with them, they weren't that enjoyable. At least with acoustic or instrumental music.

I posted a review for these guys now that I've used them for a bit more. Really enjoying the KRK KNS 6400s, we're still in the honeymoon phase, but they're one of my favorite headphones.