Sony MDR MA 900 (new release from Sony) - Page 40

There'll always be somebody benefiting from a review on this site. I remember after growin tired of the d2000 I was lead to believe the hd650 might be my golden can of choice. There was only one other review that directly compared the two, and it was well received. I thought I would add my own contribution after my audition of the hd650 to help contribute to the overall wealth of knowledge that is head-fi, as I'm sure I wouldn't be the last person to need an inquery about a weird comparison like that. The same applies here, there'll eventually be somebody with their own specific questions that a review like this could help answer. It only adds to the knowledge of this site, and if it doesn't concern you, then simply ignore it. I see no reason to waste your time talking about it otherwise.

Maybe some of you should start reviewing each others reviews.  It would be really beneficial for the wealth of knowledge here to learn more about each others reviews.  Maybe we can make a special section for it. 

 

 

 

Thanks. 

I tried using the gold carrying pouch for a bit in real-life usage. While it is large enough for the MA900, it provides little to no protection, especially for the headband, so it isn't practical. I guess the pouch will be used for other things. It can comfortably hold six cans of beer.

Edited by colgatetotal - 6/30/12 at 1:35am

Six cans?! Wow, methinks it's bigger than the F1's pouch then. And yeah, the pouches included with most headphones don't seem to do much for them; hard-cases is where it's at.

Shootout vs. my vented 225i, which was similar in price in Canada when I bought it. The 225i is now $70 CAD less than the MA900 due to the strong dollar. Will compare against other headphones later, maybe.

 

Sound:

Sub-bass: = (they're both equally terrible)

Mid-bass: 225i >> MA900

Mids: 225i > MA900

Highs: MA900 > 225i (based on treble peaks)

Clarity: 225i > MA900

Soundstage (width): MA900 (reverse) > 225i > MA900 (normal)

Soundstage (depth): MA900 >> 225i

Decay: 225i >> MA900

 

Intangibles:

Weight: 225i > MA900

Comfort: MA900 >> 225i

Design: 225i >> MA900

Cord: MA900 > 225i

Leakage: =

Driver protection from hairs: MA900 >> 225i

Included accessories: MA900 > 225i

 

While the MA900 has a nice, polite sound signature for prolonged listening, I can confirm the slight midrange veil that others have reported. Which is a shame, because the treble is a heckuva lot smoother compared to the vented Grado 225i. The bass is still a bit too light for my taste. If I wear the MA900 normally, it still doesn't have the midbass of the vented 225i, and the soundstage width is actually worse. If I wear it in reverse, soundstage width is superior, but then much of the bass impact is lost. Soundstage depth is better than the 225i in either position, though obviously it doesn't come close to something like the K1000.

 

The MA900 is great with notoriously shrill instruments, because they don't become shrill at all. Xylophone, piccolo, and anything else occupying the 1500hz-3000hz+ range. Slow decay time on the MA900 means that pianos will sound like they're resonating in a large room, and electric guitars won't be sharp. This may or may not be a good thing depending on your taste.

 

The MA900 is the comfort king at any price. If I had to choose a TOTL headphone that is close to the MA900 in comfort, it'd have to be the Sennheiser HE60, which would be a very close second and is also ridiculously light.

 

I think in terms of overall sound signature I have to give it to the vented 225i. But personally I'm not looking for a neutral sound signature, so the MA900 gets the nod for people who want something smoother and less in-your-face. I'd take both over the HD598/600/650 solely because of the weight and comfort factors. I'd have to go up to HD800-quality sound to accept the added weight, and even then I might just pull a Gu Sensei and say "forget it, comfort is my #1 priority." Besides, the HE60 is much lighter than the HD800 and sounds just as good so I'd take that over the HD800 anyway if I had the money for it.

 

Maybe the midrange veil can be lifted by cutting a hole in the driver pads, or removing them altogether, but the MA900 isn't mod-friendly at all. It's a one-body design, and the driver pads seem to be glued on. I'm undecided as to whether I want to cut up my MA900, or send it back for a refund. So even though the Grado is super simple, it wins in utilitarian design because it's easily moddable with a hairdryer, and I can bend the headband to extreme lengths, as I wear all my headphones very loose. The MA900 can only have its the headband mesh at the top bent straight. In fact, out of the box, the MA900 has too much clamping force (the cups touch each other), so bending it is almost required for extra comfort. The MA900's swivels can be snapped without much effort, so that means you don't ever want to handle it with one hand on a cup.

 

As stated previously, the carrying pouch, while having the bling factor, provides zero protection against impact or sharp objects because of how thin the fabric is. I heard no difference between the included Sony "Unimatch" 6.35mm adapter vs. a standard 6.35mm adapter that came with my PortaPro. But the PortaPro adapter's a lot more secure. I can yank the plug out of my amp without the adapter staying in the jack.

Edited by colgatetotal - 7/1/12 at 10:45am

Thanks for posting your impressions. I have a Denon D2000 and Koss PortaPro and was looking for a comfortable set of open cans as an alternative. Was hoping the MA 900 might work but still haven't read any rave reviews convincing me that it would be the absolute right choice.

 

I'm sure you will find some in time and if you filter the reviews well enough and find a person with the right amount of experience. 

 

I'll tell you right now that the PortaPro sound is basically the polar opposite of the MA900. The PortaPro is bassy, in-your-face, and smears the mids, while the MA900 has a more delicate all-around sound.

 

FWIW there's a review on Kakaku that compares the MA900 vs. F1 vs. PFR-V1 vs. D2000 here. He rated them 『ATH-AD2000>PFR-V1>MDR-MA900>>>MDR-F1』 amped and 『MDR-MA900>ATH-AD2000>PFR-V1>>>MDR-F1』 for unamped portable devices. And his review also said that the MA900 sounded cloudy compared to the D2000.

 

Since you're in Guelph, you could come down to Toronto to listen to mine and possibly get it off me for cheap. I'm 50/50 on deciding to return this, since the sound isn't for me (don't like the midrange veil) and I can't afford to keep 2 home cans. And I'd rather sell it to a fellow head-fier than return it and eat the 15% restock fee.

 

Still, I think this thing is one mod away from being a killer headphone, and that's why I still have hope. But if that means I have to be the guinea pig, hrm.....

Edited by colgatetotal - 7/1/12 at 2:58pm

So the MA900 can be opened via screws that are hidden beneath the pads? Interesting.

 

I thought about modding them, but realized that if I removed the acoustic bass lens that covers the driver in order to clear up the mids, what little bass it had would probably be killed. I returned my MA900 because it just wasn't right for me at stock, and I wasn't about to play with fire on any irreversible mods.

+1 on the low-impedance thing; the F1 are problematic for a lot of tubed devices that I've come across thus far.

I think the only exception to low impedance cans with high impedance tubes are AKG's... they pretty much just sound like whatever you plug them into. IME

got these one a few weeks a go, so far so good for me only complaint about the clamping that are quite weak.

at least now i've got a closed and open headphone :D

Hellöööö.

 

It's always the same: no consensus at all.

 

As far as I got it until now, some say the MA900s sound veiled, others say they sound clear.

Some say the bass kicks ass, others say the bass is kind of a lame duck.

 

Compared to what exactly?

 

Additional info:

 

I haven't heard the MA900s yet, but I'm very interested in them.

My headphones no.1 are the HD800 mainly because of their love for details, but also for dozens of other reasons.

How much do the MA900s fall behind in terms of detail level? Like K701? Like HD600/HD650? Like SRH1840?

 

I would like to add a new headphone to my collection that is able to cope with "not so good" recordings.

That's clearly the weak point of the HD800, because of its 6kHz peak, but K701, HD650 down to HD515, DT770/880/990, D2000/5000/7000, T1/T70/T90, some Ultrasones and Audio-Technicas and Grados, etc. can't satisfy me here neither.

Yeah, I know, every can has it flaws...

 

A friend told me to try out the HE500 for that kind of music. The LCD-2 is not bad, but to me it has not enough treble energy, so in the end it's disqualified.

 

I would like the MA900 to sound like a slightly bass heavier version of the K701/Q701/K702 with its kicking bass, resolving mids and rolled off highs.

BUT without its artificial huge and sometimes strange soundstage and with a better level of comfort.

Some would say, "hey, this seems to be the K550", maybe, but I hate closed headphones because I'm very sensitive to resonances and nearly every closed cans offer them and my brain seems to be a smug resonance-detector...

 

If the MA900 sounds veiled or even muddy, I think I can pass it.

 

Btw. the sometimes (even in this thread) praised Fidelio L1 just sounds false to me, because of its unbearable 2kHz peak.

And for my liking it is too warm and not detailed enough and offers too much bass.

On the other side, the tightness of its bass is great, but the rest really sucks IMHO.

 

So, how would some of you exactly describe the sound of the MA900 in comparison to other cans I mentioned above?

 

Just my 2 + 1 + 0.75 + 0.03 cents - virtually...

Can't comment on MA900. But sounds to me like you want Yulong D18 + Yulong A18+ LA7000/TH900. Thats about as forgiving and musical whilst remaining clean that I have ever read about on here, haven't heard them though. My D7000 is definitely not analytical, and from what I read, neither is the D18 or the A18.