The Fostex TH900 mods thread was born.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/763965/fostex-th900-mods
It applies perfectly to the TH600 as well. Perhaps with 3mm (instead of 2mm) damping in the cups.
Enjoy.

Well... just had a look at fostexinternational.com and the TH600 is nowhere to be seen anymore. Only TH900 and TH500. Or am I just blind?

plakat said:

Well... just had a look at fostexinternational.com and the TH600 is nowhere to be seen anymore. Only TH900 and TH500. Or am I just blind?

Click to expand...

It's still there http://www.fostexinternational.com/docs/products/TH-600.shtml

bb 808 said:

It's still there http://www.fostexinternational.com/docs/products/TH-600.shtml

Click to expand...

The direct link does work, I.e. The files are still there. But I can't find it via the menu, which may be a simple oversight but I don't see any other changes.

plakat said:

The direct link does work, I.e. The files are still there. But I can't find it via the menu, which may be a simple oversight but I don't see any other changes.

Click to expand...

You are right:
 

I've put an additional 20 hours or so on my Fostex TH600's and really enjoying them now.  They are now winning more comparison's with my HiFiman HE-400's than they are losing. (This was not the case at first)  Not sure if it's burn in, my ears getting used the Fostex or just I had inflated expectations for the TH600's.  The bass seems to have tightened up, allowing more detail to come through.  I'm definitely liking them a lot more than when I first got them.  

I too went from the HE-400 to the Fostex TH600.  I appreciate each for the sound and impact they each deliver.  My decision now is to admit that I underpower them and determine what headphone amp is more appropriate without breaking the bank.

narthex06 said:

  I too went from the HE-400 to the Fostex TH600.  I appreciate each for the sound and impact they each deliver.  My decision now is to admit that I underpower them and determine what headphone amp is more appropriate without breaking the bank.

Click to expand...

Try a Project Ember, I found it to pair well with both my TH-600 and HE-400.  You can adjust the output resistance/impedance to match your headphones and you can do some tube rolling if you don't like the sound of the stock tube.

I used to own the Ember and found it a tad bright and noisy with sensitive headphones. Never tried it with the TH600 though.

I suggest a Nuforce HA-200. It's solid state with a bit of warmth and smooth treble. Probably too polite sounding for some, but I really like it for removing harshness up top without losing resolution. Makes the TH600 so easy to listen to.

texasbuck said:

  I've put an additional 20 hours or so on my Fostex TH600's and really enjoying them now.  They are now winning more comparison's with my HiFiman HE-400's than they are losing. (This was not the case at first)  Not sure if it's burn in, my ears getting used the Fostex or just I had inflated expectations for the TH600's.  The bass seems to have tightened up, allowing more detail to come through.  I'm definitely liking them a lot more than when I first got them.  

Click to expand...

I love my TH600. I ended up selling my HE400 because there wasn't a single situation where I'd ever reach for the HE400 over the TH600. I ended up finding that the TH600 was just as exciting as the HE400 but with considerably better comfort, better soundstage, more detail, better imaging and much better high end.
 

narthex06 said:

  I too went from the HE-400 to the Fostex TH600.  I appreciate each for the sound and impact they each deliver.  My decision now is to admit that I underpower them and determine what headphone amp is more appropriate without breaking the bank.

Click to expand...

 
I'm using a Lake People G109S with my TH600. It's overkill power wise if you're only planning on amping the TH600 but it sounds great, is very neutral, gives me some headroom on the volume pot at low gain, and is absolutely silent. I found this headphone responds very well to a good source and amp.

Thats funny, Im a former HE-400 owner as well. Definitely like the TH600 more. I have a HE-400i as well which is a good complement to the Fostex when I want fuller mids.

roy munson said:

  I'm a believer. This is my first higher quality solid state amp (I've had a magni for a few years now). I read so many positive things about tube amps and then the lyr. Over time though I've noticed that I'm literally listening to the lyr + the "coloring" added by the tubes rather than a neutral delivery of sound to my headphones. I can't speak for what other tube amps sound like but I'm digging the solid state.

Click to expand...

 
Yes, I'm a solid state fan as well, especially with the TH600. I'm using mine with a Musical Fidelity M1 HPAP headphone amp and sonically it synergises beautifully with it considering the whole thing is really just a budget priced setup in terms of what is around these days. The typical warm but clear and detailed Musical Fidelity house sound works very well with the upper midrange and top end of the TH600 but at the slight cost of pace, rhythm and timing (something Musical Fidelity has never really been that good at to be honest). I've never really been a fan of tube amps because even the best of them all too often seem to add a sonic "dirt" and "hash" to the sound. And given just about all my source material was recorded in the days of tubes (and often re-mastered using them), adding even more tubes at final playback time is just too much. For me, solid state just reveals more of the original character of the source material, for better or worse (usually for the better).
 
These TH600 are probably the first headphones I have had that could justify an amp upgrade but I am not really sure where to go from here. Returns I think greatly diminish past a certain point though if I had to be pedantic, I suppose in the pursuit of near perfection I would want an amp that is "faster" and bit more clinical sounding (believe it or not). But in actual fact, there is not a whole lot out there these days in really nice upper midrange to low top end pure solid state amps. Manufacturers seem to favour tubes for headphone amps once you get into the really serious money.

texasbuck said:

  I've put an additional 20 hours or so on my Fostex TH600's and really enjoying them now.  They are now winning more comparison's with my HiFiman HE-400's than they are losing. (This was not the case at first)  Not sure if it's burn in, my ears getting used the Fostex or just I had inflated expectations for the TH600's.  The bass seems to have tightened up, allowing more detail to come through.  I'm definitely liking them a lot more than when I first got them.  

Click to expand...

 
I was actually disappointed when I first got my TH600 home. I had spent most of the day listening to the very pair I took home with me, but there was a definite drop in quality when I connected it to my home setup and listened to exactly the same material I had at the shop. It made me realise that this headphone really needs top notch amplification and preferably with output impedance and input sensitivity switching - the amp in the shop was about twice as expensive as my own. After adding attenuators between my CD player and my headphone amp, however, it reflected the same sort of subjective sensitivity as the amplifier used in the shop, and then became much closer to the sound I had heard. I know you can't go by the physical position of the volume knob, but the amp at the shop needed to be at the 12 o'clock position (Sennheiser HDVD 800) but with my Musical Fidelity M1 HPAP it was about 8.30! Adding 12 dB attenuators took it to around 12 o'clock and suddenly the sound was then subjectively 95% as good as the Sennheiser amp with a much smoother, less forced and more detailed delivery.

add said:

   
I was actually disappointed when I first got my TH600 home. I had spent most of the day listening to the very pair I took home with me, but there was a definite drop in quality when I connected it to my home setup and listened to exactly the same material I had at the shop. It made me realise that this headphone really needs top notch amplification and preferably with output impedance and input sensitivity switching - the amp in the shop was about twice as expensive as my own. After adding attenuators between my CD player and my headphone amp, however, it reflected the same sort of subjective sensitivity as the amplifier used in the shop, and then became much closer to the sound I had heard. I know you can't go by the physical position of the volume knob, but the amp at the shop needed to be at the 12 o'clock position (Sennheiser HDVD 800) but with my Musical Fidelity M1 HPAP it was about 8.30! Adding 12 dB attenuators took it to around 12 o'clock and suddenly the sound was then subjectively 95% as good as the Sennheiser amp with a much smoother, less forced and more detailed delivery.

Click to expand...

I wasn't able to preview the TH-600's in a store.  I've used the same amp/Dac each time I've heard my TH-600's at home, so it's not my set up.  I think my Amp/Dac combo is probably a really good fit for the TH-600's.  (Yulong A18/D18)  Not sure if it's burn or what but my TH-600's continue to sound better and better to me.  Now I'm debating selling my HE-400's.  Suddenly, the HE-400's seem way to heavy on my head and sound a little thin and unnatural.  I loved them for nearly 3 years, but now, they aren't cutting it.

I just thought I'd make a post semi-related to the TH600 / TH900. I only got into headphones back in 2007 because I simply had no room in my three bedroom house to setup a speaker based system devoid of significant compromises. It did not help that as a cat owner, I was worried about the cat swinging off the speaker / speaker grills / speaker stands, getting legs caught and injuring herself (or scratching my beautiful speakers or - even worse - vomiting into them - yes it has happened!!). And then there is that cat thing and power amplifiers. And more vomit. You know what I mean. So headphones it was and I will likely never go back unless I win lotto and buy a mansion
 
Anyway, I have always listened to headphones using my own remastered files designed specifically to emulate as much as I possibly can the experience of listening to monitors in a studio environment. I just can't personally do it any other way, though I appreciate most people can and are happy to do that (since they specifically want the "true" headphone experience). Each to their own. If we all liked the same sound and perspective it would be a very boring world with little to keep us all entertained and to cater for all tastes.
 
So I just thought I would give a link to 4 excerpts showing you guys how I like to listen to my TH600 headphones. I actually took these (and many other) files into the shop on a USB stick when I did my audition of the TH600 and TH900 and heard them through the top end Sennheiser amp (which was better than my Musical Fidelity M1 amp).
 
The idea with these files is you don't use any EQ and you don't use any DSP - you just play them 100% "flat". When I setup my process the idea was to sort of get the same feeling listening in a studio to high end B&W type speakers from the typical sort of distance you'd get in a classical re-mastering studio.
 
Obviously what you hear will likely not be your cup of tea and that is fine. I fully expect that. I only do these for my own personal listening pleasure, so they only have to satisfy me. But I do get a lot of pleasure listening to this way and it is 100% fatique free and I can listen into the wee small hours, take the headphones off and feel as fresh as when I started (and still wanting more!).
 
Most of my files begin life as vinyl records that I transcribe to 24 bit digital using my own self-built workstation. The workstation, though Windows 7 based is very heavily tweaked. I created a desktop icon, for example, that with a single click completely re-configures then re-boots the machine for audio use only. There is also 8 GB of high speed memory allocated for absolutely no other reason than to use as space to capture recordings in real time, as this gives superior result to recording to the actual hard drive (which is powered down during all processing). The process I then follow (after painstakingly editing the raw files - sometimes taking up to 4 hours per side if the vinyl is really dodgy - some brand new vinyl these days is surprisingly bad) is to then run that file through two soundcards integrated into the workstation - a modified Xonar ST into an X-Meridian via a Wireworld Reference SPDIF cable. The master file plays through XXHighend (very painstakingly configured) into Reaper and I use the hardware DSP on the Zonar ST to capture the effect in real-time. I then end up with a 24 bit output file which I can then convert to use in my loungeroom system for use with my Rega CD player (with Musical Fidelity M1 into the TH600). So for each vinyl record, I actually end up with three files - the "flat" 24 bit master (which apart from being the best copy I know how to make may eventually be used if, for example, I get that dream system with expensive electrostatics), the 24 bit file that has been real-time DSP'ed and the converted 16/44 master file that I use to create a CD. It is a lot of work but it is very rewarding as I really enjoy listening to the final result. 
 
https://www.sendspace.com/file/t6rt3d
 
The above is only around 61 MB - 4 excerpts of completely different genres in 16/44.1 PCM format.