[3Putter]

Ok. I got me Air Pod Max and two days in I love them. My hearing is not-so-good But I believe the sound is much better than the Bose 700 and the Sony WH1000-XM4. However I can quantify that statement. I also have a significant short term memory impairment so thinking back and comparing a music passage isn't going to happen. Here's what I can comment on:

Incredible build quality.
Comfortable
Operationally superior. They Pair between my iPhone, iPad, and MacBook effortlessly. I did nothing. Zero setup. They work.
Strange but True. I really like the case. Fast and effective. This means I'll use it more.

Here's some drivel.....Love Apple or Hate Apple there isn't another headphone company with the manufacturing capabilities or manpower that Apple has. Flip side It's true some companies don't need that and have sonic geniuses that make products that probably crush the APM sonically. Kinda like the two guys that started Apple in a garage. Aint America great!

"there isn't another headphone company with the manufacturing capabilities or manpower that Apple has"...Well, that would be incorrect. China is open for any subcontracted manufacturing...

 

[cpang100]

Hello everyone,
I’ve been thinking about getting the AirPod Max but at that price, I’m starting to wonder if I should look for something even more premium like a DAC and Open back headphones. (Fiio BTR5 and used Focal Clear)
I currently own V-Moda Crossfade Wireless 2, Sony XM1000M3, Beats Solo Pro and AirPods.
If I bought the APM, would my headsets be redundant to it? I do like the sound of my Beats Solo Pro with the equalizer in spotify set to a V shape.
I love music and love hearing all the small nuances as well as nice deep and clear bass that is decent but not mushy.
I appreciate everyone's help!

 

[tkddans]

Hello everyone,
I’ve been thinking about getting the AirPod Max but at that price, I’m starting to wonder if I should look for something even more premium like a DAC and Open back headphones. (Fiio BTR5 and used Focal Clear)
I currently own V-Moda Crossfade Wireless 2, Sony XM1000M3, Beats Solo Pro and AirPods.
If I bought the APM, would my headsets be redundant to it? I do like the sound of my Beats Solo Pro with the equalizer in spotify set to a V shape.
I love music and love hearing all the small nuances as well as nice deep and clear bass that is decent but not mushy.
I appreciate everyone's help!

If sound quality is the only consideration, and you’re willing to go a bit further in budget and inconvenience of wires and ear fitting, I would recommend the ThieAudio Clairvoyance ($700) or the ThieAudio Monarch ($730).

Then, to make it portable, get the Qudelix 5K (~$110).

With tax or shipping and all that you’re looking at maybe $850+. But they’re fantastic and can compete with desktop full sized rigs and cans in terms of fidelity in a way that the APM aren’t necessarily.

But the tuning of the APM are still very good, with decent enough resolution to be quite enjoyable for the price and convenience that other things can’t do.

I have the Clairvoyance and preferred them over the APM for sound, but not so much ahead that I can’t find opportunities to enjoy the APM for their own quality + convenience. Still, if you choose only one, I would recommend the Clairvoyance and Qudelix pairing. Or try the Monarch if you can get them but they’re sold out. I’ve been meaning to try them to compare and return whichever of the two IEM’s I like less.

Headphones.com has a 365-day return policy though, so there’s little risk in ordering the Clairvoyance and trying them for yourself, along with a qudelix from Amazon that you could also return. Same honestly with APM. See what works for you for sound quality as well as lifestyle. Live with them and see what happens.

EDIT:: oh and my favorite tips to put on the IEM’s, after trying many kinds, is the Campfire Marshmellow tips (medium sized for my ears). You can also find them in blue and red colors.

These IEM’s really are arguably the most affordable for the tech inside and critical acclaim garnered by them and still managing to compete with the $1k+ highest end IEM’s out there. Truly end game for many people.

 

[tinyman392]

Hello everyone,
I’ve been thinking about getting the AirPod Max but at that price, I’m starting to wonder if I should look for something even more premium like a DAC and Open back headphones. (Fiio BTR5 and used Focal Clear)
I currently own V-Moda Crossfade Wireless 2, Sony XM1000M3, Beats Solo Pro and AirPods.
If I bought the APM, would my headsets be redundant to it? I do like the sound of my Beats Solo Pro with the equalizer in spotify set to a V shape.
I love music and love hearing all the small nuances as well as nice deep and clear bass that is decent but not mushy.
I appreciate everyone's help!

The Crossfade Wireless 2 have a similar signature to the M-100, which is V-shaped. The APM isn't V-shaped, so it will need EQing if you want to hit that preferred signature; it's more of a alight U-shape but from like 100 to 7k it's really just a downward, linear slope. So the treble and bass emphasis come < 100 Hz and > 7kHz. EQing to get your preferred signature would be required for sure.

That said, in terms of technical ability, I'd probably put the APM slightly above the CW2. Most agree that the ANC functionality is about on par with the XM4. In reality, with EQ, you could replace both the CW2 and XM3 with this one headphone. If you like it better than the Solo Pro, it could in theory replace that too. However, it's a headphone that kind of fills the void of those 3 headphones.

You will not get the best sounding setup around with just the APM. I'm not sure how easy the Focal Clear is to drive. But if it does need a little bit of power to get going, then you may want to invest in an amplifier or go towards a different setup from the Fiio. I run my HE-560 through the Topping DX3 Pro (supports BT) for example which is a DAC/amp combo. Note that the Focal Clear is a different form factor from the APM as well; one designed for quiet areas while the other doesn't necessitate it.

 

[sceleratus]

"there isn't another headphone company with the manufacturing capabilities or manpower that Apple has"...Well, that would be incorrect. China is open for any subcontracted manufacturing...

I do not believe they can make their own processors.
There are very few that can do this:

 

[huangbong]

Finally received my AirPods Max after seeing it hyped up so much on this forum. Initial thoughts compared to my HD 6XX + M9XX DAC are that overall, the 6XX is better tuned for mid+treble whereas APM is punchier in bass+subbass. But APM is worse in that regard compared to something like a Fostex TH-X00. Noise cancellation is very good. Overall comfort is good. Is it worth $550 in pure sound quality? No. 6XX at $220 beats it overall in my opinion. I think some posters in this thread are hyping it up too much. I'd put the fair price around $399, including BT+NoiseCancellation+AppleTax. I'll probably keep my set though since I am very invested into the Apple ecosystem and can't bring my 6XX onto a plane/WeWork/Starbucks comfortably.

 

[tkddans]

Finally received my AirPods Max after seeing it hyped up so much on this forum. Initial thoughts compared to my HD 6XX + M9XX DAC are that overall, the 6XX is better tuned for mid+treble whereas APM is punchier in bass+subbass. But APM is worse in that regard compared to something like a Fostex TH-X00. Noise cancellation is very good. Overall comfort is good. Is it worth $550 in pure sound quality? No. 6XX at $220 beats it overall in my opinion. I think some posters in this thread are hyping it up too much. I'd put the fair price around $399, including BT+NoiseCancellation+AppleTax. I'll probably keep my set though since I am very invested into the Apple ecosystem and can't bring my 6XX onto a plane/WeWork/Starbucks comfortably.

I feel it has a lot of weight with some people’s preferences leaning toward the brighter and punchier side (v shape). And many people will find something like the 6xx/650 more appealing due to a warmer tuning with a flatter or more neutral response.

I still own the 650 since buying it on entry into this hobby years ago, and I really don’t enjoy their “veil,” or relative warmth, compared to other tunings out there. On tonality, the APM are worth more to their taste than the 6xx, but the reverse is true as well.

As for the sounds technical qualities, like resolution, soundstage, coherence, blah blah etc., it’s not like the APM are terrible. I think they’re worse in resolution and driver speed compared to something like the HD800, for example, but the price is right overall for my sonic tastes and technical requirements to enjoy headphones well enough.

 

[tinyman392]

Finally received my AirPods Max after seeing it hyped up so much on this forum. Initial thoughts compared to my HD 6XX + M9XX DAC are that overall, the 6XX is better tuned for mid+treble whereas APM is punchier in bass+subbass. But APM is worse in that regard compared to something like a Fostex TH-X00. Noise cancellation is very good. Overall comfort is good. Is it worth $550 in pure sound quality? No. 6XX at $220 beats it overall in my opinion. I think some posters in this thread are hyping it up too much. I'd put the fair price around $399, including BT+NoiseCancellation+AppleTax. I'll probably keep my set though since I am very invested into the Apple ecosystem and can't bring my 6XX onto a plane/WeWork/Starbucks comfortably.

I'd probably argue that you should factor in at least part of the price of the DAC/amp as well unless you were driving completely out of the source. Granted the DAC/amp is usable on multiple headphones, it's something that isn't necessary when using a portable setup (or a BT one in general since those headphones tend to need to include a DAC and amp). By the same token, plugging in an external DAC/amp to the APM might not be as fruitful for gains either.

 

[sceleratus]

Hello everyone,
I’ve been thinking about getting the AirPod Max but at that price, I’m starting to wonder if I should look for something even more premium like a DAC and Open back headphones. (Fiio BTR5 and used Focal Clear)
I currently own V-Moda Crossfade Wireless 2, Sony XM1000M3, Beats Solo Pro and AirPods.
If I bought the APM, would my headsets be redundant to it? I do like the sound of my Beats Solo Pro with the equalizer in spotify set to a V shape.
I love music and love hearing all the small nuances as well as nice deep and clear bass that is decent but not mushy.
I appreciate everyone's help!

Totally honest .... and you'll be surprised at this. I'm not getting a big soundstage from my APM's. The voice is good but not great. Way way back when I built my 300B tube amp (and a multibit gungnir) "I had me some" LCD II. Those had a Voice. If I can get some help getting my 300B cooking again I'd love to get the two together. But my suspicions are that the APM's will fall short.
All that said they are a very good fit for me and where I am now. I can fall asleep with them on and they won't get damaged.

 

[tinyman392]

Totally honest .... and you'll be surprised at this. I'm not getting a big soundstage from my APM's. The voice is good but not great. Way way back when I built my 300B tube amp (and a multibit gungnir) "I had me some" LCD II. Those had a Voice. If I can get some help getting my 300B cooking again I'd love to get the two together. But my suspicions are that the APM's will fall short.
All that said they are a very good fit for me and where I am now. I can fall asleep with them on and they won't get damaged.

The sound stage on the APM isn't huge or large, but separation is good enough IMO. I've heard better, but it's not bad I guess. Though keep in mind the APM is closed back.

 

[huangbong]

I feel it has a lot of weight with some people’s preferences leaning toward the brighter and punchier side (v shape). And many people will find something like the 6xx/650 more appealing due to a warmer tuning with a flatter or more neutral response.

I still own the 650 since buying it on entry into this hobby years ago, and I really don’t enjoy their “veil,” or relative warmth, compared to other tunings out there. On tonality, the APM are worth more to their taste than the 6xx, but the reverse is true as well.

As for the sounds technical qualities, like resolution, soundstage, coherence, blah blah etc., it’s not like the APM are terrible. I think they’re worse in resolution and driver speed compared to something like the HD800, for example, but the price is right overall for my sonic tastes and technical requirements to enjoy headphones well enough.

Well said. I'm definitely in the "HD 650 is the greatest of all time" camp. I agree - APM definitely gets the job done. I think 2nd gen will be a big hit, hopefully lower price to $399, no more bra, and a power button.

I'd probably argue that you should factor in at least part of the price of the DAC/amp as well unless you were driving completely out of the source. Granted the DAC/amp is usable on multiple headphones, it's something that isn't necessary when using a portable setup (or a BT one in general since those headphones tend to need to include a DAC and amp). By the same token, plugging in an external DAC/amp to the APM might not be as fruitful for gains either.

Great point. I've had my M9XX for so long and got a nice employee discount on it (former Massdrop employee) I didn't consider factoring it into the price

 

[sceleratus]

The sound stage on the APM isn't huge or large, but separation is good enough IMO. I've heard better, but it's not bad I guess. Though keep in mind the APM is closed back.

Thanks tiny
I will listen for separation. I don't know much about what I should hear, I took the Mimi hearing test today (thanks to Author) and I'm actually in good shape. I'm also ignorant to open/closed back. Normally I'd look into it but I've got other priorities and I'm sticking to these APM's anyway.

Luke

 

[3Putter]

I do not believe they can make their own processors.
There are very few that can do this:

Seriously? All the gear that comes from China and they can't make their own processors? I don't know one way or the other but I would be surprised if they cannot.

 

[sceleratus]

https://www.notebookcheck.net/New-C...or-desktop-and-embedded-markets.482800.0.html

 

[sceleratus]

PROBABLY SHOULD HAVE LOOKED BEFORE I POSTED.