Sony has new headphones, MDR-1R - Page 80

 

The Z1000 has a really nice screw on connector; this seems like yet another oversight. *sigh*

Has anyone bought mdr-1rbt Bluetooth headphones yet ? I'm inclined between those and Sennhieser 550 which one you guys recommend ?

Once again, I am trying to find some sensibly-priced closed cans for use at home, when the use of my open HE-500s or HD600s is not practical (i.e. when my wife is watching television, or in summer when the air conditioning is running at full blast).

The cans will generally be used on the end of an Opera Consonance Cyber 20 or an O2 (Epiphany), but it would be good if they could also be used with the Little Dot Mk. III OTL amp (which I use in a secondary system in the study). Musical genres are Classical, Opera (both Western and Chinese) and Jazz. Key requirements are:

- Open, detailed sound with good treble resolution
- Wide, "airy" soundstage
- Controlled bass (no "bloat")
- Speed and attack

Portability is not important - they will not be used OTG. They must be circumaural and offer decent isolation.

I currently have a number of closed cans, but am not really happy with any of them:

- Sennheiser HD25-I: good for portable use, plenty of attack and detail, but grainy treble and no sounstage whatsoever
- Fischer FA-002w: better than the HD25s, some soundstage width, but confused, compressed and "shouty" in complex orchestral tutti, sub-optimal isolation
- Denon AH-D1001: too little treble, too much bass, poor isolation (but very comfortable)

Consequently, I have shortlisted the following options (up to a street price of about GBP200 in China or the UK):

- Sony MDR-1 R
- Audio Technica ATH-A900X
- Beyerdynamic DT-770 Pro 250 Ohm
- AKG K 550

The Sennheiser Momentum will be over budget (and probably too "warmly"-balanced). Whilst the Denon AH-D2000 is still readily available here in China, I don't think I will like it (too much boomy bass, like the AH-D1001 I am about to sell....).

Do you think the MDR-1Rs are the best option? Any advice or further suggestions?

 

 

well everyone hear differently and have different taste as well, so it's normal if you comment like that :D

 

as myself, i already like them as they are :D

Yea thats true, everybody is different. i would like them more sharp, more aggressive and more loudly sounding :D but thats me. You could mabey recommend me some headphones :) i am looking for something around 300 for outside use.

Ultrasones are the ones with aggressive, sharp sound. But if you are seeking for recommendation outside MDR-1R, I suggest starting your own thread.

Interesting. So it seems the Mic'd cable has a different sound to the non mic'd cable that was included in my box.  I have been using my non mic'd cable this whole time and I just tried the mic'd version..Less bass, a bit tighter on the sound actually.

I also found the mic cable to have a somewhat different sound,maybe a bit less warm/coloured,and very slightly airier,with the mids being very slightly hollow/reverb like,I'm not really sure,if it's better though.I found that the mic cable had a negative effect in imaging and depth of the soundstage too,in my case.Maybe it's burn in,because I've also been using the non mic cable from the start.

I found the Sony really scale far with a more powerful amp. I found the treble nearly harsh on some song with my portable amp, but everything is far more controlled on my home amp. I haven't tried it unamped but I would think this headphone really does take the benefit of a more detailed, powerful system.

 

Sometimes volume is not the only factor of amping, controlling the driver well is another one too IMO.

Edited by Ra97oR - 12/9/12 at 2:21pm

Hos is the build construction of the plastic parts? I heard they are kinda loose. Is that really the case? I mean, for the price that really doesn't seem right. 

 

get a used z1000 or something. or a grado if you want open headphone

 

resistor inside the mic or volume control is what it made changes to its sound.

Edited by Dyaems - 12/9/12 at 3:44pm

 

Remember it takes time to get used to anything. It's like a new pair of glasses. People usually do demos of about 30 mins on different tracks, to get a real feel for the sound. It really is a feely touchy sorta thing. There's lots of headphones I've hated at first which I grew to love, and vice versa.

Thats why I don't usually count auditions into whether im going to buy the headphone. Only a bit. I dont think I would want to stand in the Sony Store hogging the headphones for 30+ minutes..