[Mercuttio]

I just picked up a pair of my own today for my work / transit headphones. Absolutely adore the sound already, it's an excellent headphone.
 
Been nervously looking over the "breakage" thread from a while ago... is this really happening much anymore? Seems like it happened mostly in 2008 when they were introduced. I plan on exercising extreme care, and storing them in the ATH hard case I've ordered when they're not in use. 

 

[Szadzik]

Quote:

I just picked up a pair of my own today for my work / transit headphones. Absolutely adore the sound already, it's an excellent headphone.
 
Been nervously looking over the "breakage" thread from a while ago... is this really happening much anymore? Seems like it happened mostly in 2008 when they were introduced. I plan on exercising extreme care, and storing them in the ATH hard case I've ordered when they're not in use. 

 
 
I had them for almost a year and had never thought they were THAT fragile.
 
Good choice of cans.

 

[Mercuttio]

Near as I can tell, the parts that could break are all user-serviceable as well. My wife has also had an ES7 for several years that has been through hell and back with no issues, so I'm not TOO worried.
Quote:

 
 
I had them for almost a year and had never thought they were THAT fragile.
 
Good choice of cans.

 

 

[audionewbi]

I have found two different websites with two different prices, one is at headphones.com which sell it for 239 not including delivery and ofcourse headphone.com which sell it for 299 not including delivery. For me this is a huge price margin, do you guys know why there is such a huge margin? I email them both non replied me why they have such a different pricing!

 

[Szadzik]

 
Quote:

I have found two different websites with two different prices, one is at headphones.com which sell it for 239 not including delivery and ofcourse headphone.com which sell it for 299 not including delivery. For me this is a huge price margin, do you guys know why there is such a huge margin? I email them both non replied me why they have such a different pricing!

Look at the For Sale forum here on Head-Fi and you can find them used for as low as $180.

 

[audionewbi]

I am not sure if those are fake or not
Quote:

 


Look at the For Sale forum here on Head-Fi and you can find them used for as low as $180.

 

 

[dallan]

If you are worried about breakage, don't pull on the earcups. It puts pressure up by the screw and cracks the surrounding plastic. Both sides of mine are superglued.

 

[Mercuttio]

I'm actually working on something a little more... severe as a preventative method.
 

 

 
Talking to a few folks about having these made out of extruded aluminum for me. The washers will be a nylon, as you'd find in a locking nut. 
 
EDIT: Unfortunately it looks like these won't be made unless I can find someone who has a direct interest. Such small parts are apparently very time-consuming to make. Alas. 
Quote:

If you are worried about breakage, don't pull on the earcups. It puts pressure up by the screw and cracks the surrounding plastic. Both sides of mine are superglued.

 

 

[dallan]

Just be careful and have superglue on hand.

 
Personally these are my throw arounds now, for real portable i use Ed8 LE but things like camping the esw9s go instead.  That's what i took on the trip this week at least.  At the local espresso bakery i found the closed sign positioned in an interesting way and had to do a double take/was it just me?........only in Big Sur, CA.

 

[Mercuttio]

Two updates.
 
1. In my research on the breakage issue, I've discovered that those who returned their ESW9 to AT-USA have had BOTH plastic connectors replaced. Not just the broken one. This, and the sticker on the back of my box denoting it as a model made in 2011, lead me to believe that the issue has been corrected in construction. That's good news, though I'm still very interested in an aluminum headband if anyone's got the materials to build one (with my CAD designs). The warranty is also two years; if something breaks, it's probably going to do it within that time so I'm not too concerned. Hell, even if they stop making them, they'll probably still have parts; you can still get L3000 pads for heck's sake.
 
2. These have absolutely no business sounding as good as they do. They're like the KSC75 of the $200 price range; I can totally see using these as a counter-point to my W1000X on some songs (when I want a more intimate presentation) which I did not expect at all. 

 

[dallan]

To bad mine were the first batch from Japan so no warranty coverage, don't think they would honor at this late date anyway.  SG has worked but good news for you that the issue has been resolved.

 

[Marximus]

Just pulled the trigger on these.  Ordered them from Amazon for $220 shipped.  Sounds like a good deal to me.

 

[Butler]

I think the breakage problem has been addressed, I haven't heard much from recent batches. You can pick up a pair for 200 from Beach Camera. If you're paying any less than that from a less reputable source, and you're getting a knock off. I got a knock off once, and trust me, you'll know. Your stomach will just drop and you'll feel a sickness come over you. It's not fun. 
 
These headphones are amazing. Easy to drive and sounds great even without a amp. Great for when I'm on the go. I purchased a hard case, imported from Japan that fits this formfactor perfectly. It works with the 9's and 10's. Its almost like a lunchbox I can throw in my backpack.
 
I'm curious about pad mods, and even recabling- But I'm honestly not brave enough to try it. Some day perhaps. From what I've heard, AT's have a better stock cable than a lot of companies, with many people saying higher ended cans like the W5000 should be left the way they are. 
 
So here's my love for these porta-woodies!
 
ps im a huge AT fan boy.

 

[AnAnalogSpirit]

@Butler,
 
I have a pair of genuine ATH-ESW9A (yay no fakes here!) and while the stock sound IS on the immensely good side, I opted to have my pair recabled.
 
Sent them to Double Helix Cables, because I like the SQ of the Nucleotide UP-OCC single crystal copper cable, it just sounds good to me.
 
I noticed a difference in audio SQ between stock and the recable enough to make me happy with my decision to recable them. I much prefer the new cable to the stock one. BTW the conductor wire diameter in the stock ESW9 is dinky. Looks like IEM diameter cable. I believe the larger diameter aftermarket cable with its 24AWG size allows for better signal transmission.
 
Not trying to ruffle anyone's feathers here, I KNOW the aftermarket cable debate is a heated one, with believers and non-believers alike; I'm simply sharing my opinion and experience here.
 
Peace.

 

[Butler]

Quote:

@Butler,
 
I have a pair of genuine ATH-ESW9A (yay no fakes here!) and while the stock sound IS on the immensely good side, I opted to have my pair recabled.
 
Sent them to Double Helix Cables, because I like the SQ of the Nucleotide UP-OCC single crystal copper cable, it just sounds good to me.
 
I noticed a difference in audio SQ between stock and the recable enough to make me happy with my decision to recable them. I much prefer the new cable to the stock one. BTW the conductor wire diameter in the stock ESW9 is dinky. Looks like IEM diameter cable. I believe the larger diameter aftermarket cable with its 24AWG size allows for better signal transmission.
 
Not trying to ruffle anyone's feathers here, I KNOW the aftermarket cable debate is a heated one, with believers and non-believers alike; I'm simply sharing my opinion and experience here.
 
Peace.

 
Despite half of that going over my head, I'm sure there are benefits, no doubting that. However how much did you spend? From what it sounds like the price was justified, so I'm curious.
The stock cable is very dinky…comparable to a IEM... for now, I'm considering buying up some shoelaces to sleeve the stock cable in.
I'm having an issue where for some reason part of the cable is just perpetually tangled. I'll straighten it out, and then it'll just spring back into a spiral mess for a portion of the cable. Any suggestions as to how to get this "ironed" out? I considered using heat but again, this is a dinky cable, so I'm looking for suggestions.
 
EDIT:
 
Figured out how to untangle it. It was over the headphones again and again in a strange manner.