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Originally Posted by Inkmo
I have ATH-2s. They are currently awful, though apparently mod-able.
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[evil cartoon frog chortle] Heh heh. Will trade ATH-2 modding for artwork.
The ATH-8 is visually identical to the US-market Signet TK33. According to Audio Circuit it's the same unit, but I've never seen an ATH-8 in the flesh, much less heard one. I'm glad my memory didn't deceive me-- 2 microns was what I remembered for the TK33's diaphragm.
Carl, I too wondered if the 8/33 used the inside-out type of arrangement with the electrets on the stators. I still haven't found evidence for this. Maybe our friend Swarkestone can find the info we need to verify.
They're interesting 'phones, the TK33s, but very much lacking in what I can only call "modern" bass. Back in the LP era, when the TK33 was introduced, real bass was something you only got from your own reel-to-reel recordings and direct-to-disc LPs or live FM broadcasts. Normal program material was routinely rolled off below 80 Hz to gain more real estate, and thus playing time, on the normal LP surface. So it didn't matter that killer 'phones like the SR-X Mk 3 and the Signet didn't have much bass. Having said that, if you have the EQ to do it, the TK33 will take bass boost cleanly and give up the funk. They're also a bit midrangey-- A-T made a deliberate choice between damping and soundstage-- but there are cures for that.
So maybe they're not for everybody. Still, since good working examples go on eBay, even these days, for $30 plus shipping, it's not worth it to spend 100 Euros for an NIB unit unless you're a collector, just as FacelVega says, though they are definitely worth up to $50.
If they have some A-T condenser mics, scream out.
And yes, the A-T dynamic 'phones of the same era (ATH-3/4/5) are very blah. Pleasant, reasonably smooth, but no treble and no bass and not particularly flat. Still, they're very stylish and might make decent foster 'phones for donor drivers.
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