[fureshi]

Just wondering if anyone other than Bangraman has had any experience with the Audio Technica ES5's. Hifi in Taipei has them in stock right now and I'm wondering if these would be a good replacement for the PX200 that I sold a while ago. I liked the PX200 sound but something that I couldn't figure out made them too fatiguing, to the point that I couldn't listen to them for more than 1 hour. I'm really tempted to try the ES5 anyways since there has been so little said about them on this board.

 

[bangraman]

Fatigue with the PX200... it could be a number of things:
Overpowering bass? It's slow but large on the PX200.
Too tight? Bend the stainless steel parts of the headband a bit.
It's not got a particularly pronounced midrange or highs, which is the other contributor to listening fatigue.


I'll have to do more listening on the ES5 with the NW3. But I suspect it will be a chore, not a pleasure. I really dont like the lack of isolation or the fit/folding ability.

 

[fureshi]

you might be right about the lack of mids and highs which caused the fatigue. the bass and the fit of the headphones didn't bother me at all.

as for the es5, i ended up passing up on them. i went back to the shop to give them another trial listen and found out how difficult it was to get a good seal and to have them sit properly on my head. i really don't understand what AT was thinking when they designed these cans. there is so little adjustability that it basically comes down to the clamping force to keep it on your head. for fitment reasons, i decided against purchasing them even though they seemed like they sounded better than the px200.

 

[bangraman]

That's more or less it. The sound is probably better than the PX200, but nowhere enough to make up for the engineering inadequacies compared to the PX. It's a shame as the ES5 is definitely a higher quality item.


Meanwhile I think it will probably take up permanent residence in my 'never / rarely used' boxes...