Fostex TH900 Impressions & Discussion Thread - Page 228

Looks like PriceJapan has it cheaper.  I think.  Anyone from the US ever order from there?

TTVJ has them on sale again for $1800.  Sale only lasts for another day though.

Quote:

Originally Posted by preproman 

Looks like PriceJapan has it cheaper.  I think.  Anyone from the US ever order from there?

Check with MuppetFace

Just looked at the price on PriceJapan.  Hope it stays that way.  I've ordered from them twice and got my phones in a week.  Once the outside box was beat up beyond recognition b/c someone didn't put any filler in, but the original box was unharmed and in perfect condition.  They're pretty legit. I'd order from them again.

Recently, my opinions toward the TH900 has become more and more favorable. Not because it gradually sounds better, but because every time I compare it against other flagship headphones, the TH900 holds its ground very well and is difficult to beat.

I've auditioned many top-of-the-line headphones, including SR-009, LCD-3, HD800, PS1000, HE-6, and so on... even the Sennheiser Orpheus on one occasion. I've only listened to the HE-90/HEV-90 combo once (which I currently use as my avatar) and haven't done a direct A/B against others so I can't comment on it. However, I've listened to the rest several times and compared them to the TH900, and the TH900 never let me down.

I think the SR-009 is unanimously the best headphone currently available in the market today. I've never owned one but auditioned it nearly 10 times in different setups, meets and places, but for some reason, I never found it really jaw-dropping or anything. A great headphone to sit back and relax to, but the music felt distant to me. Ditto for the HD800. In fact I recently auditioned the SR-009 on both Woo WES and BHSE, but once again it failed to truly impress me. F*** me, right?

Anyway, over the times I realized that I prefer the LCD-3 over both SR-009 and HD800 if I were to own only one headphone. The LCD-3 is a headphone that I can find myself immersed in music. Then I heard the TH900, and I knew that I would have to own one of them and keep it forever. In the end, the TH900 won over me because of its comfort and isolation (at least compared to the LCD-3), not to mention the sound. Now, I can tap my fingers and shake my head while listening to my TH900 driven by the best desktop headphone amps you could think of. Again this is only me, but I prefer the sound of my headphone rig to a full-fledged loudspeaker system that would cost 10 times more.

I know many people will disagree with me. Maybe my ears and musical tastes are immature that I cannot truly appreciate the sound of SR-009 and HD800. But for now, no headphone gives me more enjoyment than the TH900. These are my confessions.

Wonderful confession ..  And nice read.

Quote:

Originally Posted by preproman 

Looks like PriceJapan has it cheaper.  I think.  Anyone from the US ever order from there?

Ordered my W3000ANV from them, no problem. Note that you'll need a verified PayPal account to pay them.

The TH900 has really grown on me, but I still prefer the LCD-3 just purely from a SQ perspective. However one is open, the other closed, so I don't consider them necessarily in direct competition. It will get interesting if/when Audeze release their closed model

Quote:

Originally Posted by songmic 

Recently, my opinions toward the TH900 has become more and more favorable. Not because it gradually sounds better, but because every time I compare it against other flagship headphones, the TH900 holds its ground very well and is difficult to beat.

 

I've auditioned many top-of-the-line headphones, including SR-009, LCD-3, HD800, PS1000, HE-6, and so on... even the Sennheiser Orpheus on one occasion. I've only listened to the HE-90/HEV-90 combo once (which I currently use as my avatar) and haven't done a direct A/B against others so I can't comment on it. However, I've listened to the rest several times and compared them to the TH900, and the TH900 never let me down.

 

I think the SR-009 is unanimously the best headphone currently available in the market today. I've never owned one but auditioned it nearly 10 times in different setups, meets and places, but for some reason, I never found it really jaw-dropping or anything. A great headphone to sit back and relax to, but the music felt distant to me. Ditto for the HD800. In fact I recently auditioned the SR-009 on both Woo WES and BHSE, but once again it failed to truly impress me. F*** me, right?

 

Anyway, over the times I realized that I prefer the LCD-3 over both SR-009 and HD800 if I were to own only one headphone. The LCD-3 is a headphone that I can find myself immersed in music. Then I heard the TH900, and I knew that I would have to own one of them and keep it forever. In the end, the TH900 won over me because of its comfort and isolation (at least compared to the LCD-3), not to mention the sound. Now, I can tap my fingers and shake my head while listening to my TH900 driven by the best desktop headphone amps you could think of. Again this is only me, but I prefer the sound of my headphone rig to a full-fledged loudspeaker system that would cost 10 times more.

 

I know many people will disagree with me. Maybe my ears and musical tastes are immature that I cannot truly appreciate the sound of SR-009 and HD800. But for now, no headphone gives me more enjoyment than the TH900. These are my confessions.

Nice read and I feel the same way. :)

How is actual isolation? I don't need it to be perfectly isolating but I need something less open than the HD800s for work as I don't want to annoy my coworkers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by figaro69 

Quote:

Originally Posted by zerodeefex 

How is actual isolation? I don't need it to be perfectly isolating but I need something less open than the HD800s for work as I don't want to annoy my coworkers.

Isolation is not the best. It will annoy your coworkers. Better get the ultrasone ed.8s or Beyer T5ps for the work environment if you want to go hi-end.

I've listened to open headphones for years, it's only recently that anyone has complained. Like I said, it doesn't have to be perfect, but it would be interesting to hear anyone put the leakage in context of other cans.

Quote:

Originally Posted by songmic 

 

I know many people will disagree with me. Maybe my ears and musical tastes are immature that I cannot truly appreciate the sound of SR-009 and HD800. But for now, no headphone gives me more enjoyment than the TH900. These are my confessions.

Great confession and mirrors my sentiments exactly with regards to the SR-009s and HD800s. I've not heard the LCD-3s (have heard the LCD-2s and wasn't impressed by its sonic signature). Would you say that despite the SR-009s being a technically superior headphone, there's something about a dynamic headphone that "wakes up" your audio enjoyment? Or is it something completely different?