I was really impressed with Dans Mad Dog T50RP. Never having heard them before and I haven't been following up on the various impression/mod threads, I was expecting these to have a deep "U" curve. Far from it. Very balanced across the frequency spectrum, midrange warmth and overall presentation is very nicely done. Warm resonant mids with a smooth "dusting" of treble on top. Midrange/treble cohesion is smooth and VERY nicely done. I had a great time chatting with Dan and turns out hes a flute player, and he uses the sound of the live instrument in person as his tonal reference. Solo flute to me (as a fan of Jethro Tull) is an outstanding test of midrange-treble character. Its a very midrange-metal-resonant and "breathy" sounding instrument... depending on how its played. I think because its resonant air flowing through metal, it benefits from a headphone that can "dry-out" a little bit. So wood-resonant Grados that I am familiar with, miss the boat in this regard as they add their own distortions and harmonic resonances to the fundamental tones. I was going to add a DT800-600 to my collection, to do Ian Andersons progressive flute-rock justice... but now I think one of Dans Ortho-creations would be better.
Bass was plentiful, good impact and extension s you'd expect from a nearly-closed headphone. Admittedly I did not spend as much time in this part of the spectrum, but bass seemed to be more airy + ambient than most closed cans i have heard, which tend to sound heavy-thumpy and weighty.
Done post anymore pictures of the DNA Stratus guys! I loved it to death, but its too much money for me.
