keanex
Keeper of The All-New Headphone Buyer's Guide
- Joined
- Feb 17, 2010
- Posts
- 2,169
- Likes
- 727
Introduction
It was over a year ago, maybe two at this point, when /u/mad_economist sent me the first ever v1.0 of the Talos. Minor changes were made, especially to the aesthetics, but I was informed that the sound was locked in. I immediately fell in love and asked him for his PayPal to buy the first ever Talos. I found myself reminiscent of the HiFiMan HE-560 sound and needed them in my life.
About two months ago he told me that v2.0 was ready to go and I begged him repeatedly to hear. Unfortunately around this time I felt that something was wrong with my v1.0, therefore direct comparisons are tough and possibly inconsistent with what current users may experience, but they can be found here. The short of it is that I feel the Talos v2.0 are an improvement over a sound that I loved immediately.
With that said, I apologize to /u/mad_economist for the delay in the review - it’s been hectic with college, work, and life in general, but I thank him for sending me one of the first Talos v2.0 to ever be heard.
Source: Matrix HPA-3U
Sound Signature: Hard hitting bass, mildly recessed vocals, emphasized treble.
Pros: Comfort, price to quality ratio, build quality, bass reproduction, musicality.
Cons: Requires a powerful amplifier, aesthetics, treble could be too prominent.
Cost: $325 with a launch sale of $260 while supplies last.
Comfort
The Talos v2.0 use a custom designed pad, similar to the Brainvz Hybrids, but improved to use real leather, softer velour, firmer memory foam, and fully velour lined interior to improve comfort and avoid hot spots. The new pads are plush and an absolute joy to wear. They fully surround my ears with room to spare between my ears and the driver. The headband has seen an upgrade as well, using a leather suspension strap which alleviates any downward force of the Talos v2.0. I find the Talos v2.0 to be exceptionally comfortable, more than capable of being worn for hours on end.
Build Quality
T50 mods have been reviewed a million times over and the build quality has been talked of ad nauseum. The short of it is that they’re built well, they’re not going to break without a fluke or mistreatment.
Sound Quality
Disclaimer
The Talos v2.0 require a significantly powerful amplifier, I recommend something pushing at least 2 watts into 50 ohms for appropriate knob headroom. That doesn’t mean expensive, but you will need something like a Schiit Magni 3 - especially if you enjoy listening to higher dynamic range recordings.
Furthermore I will not be doing a direct comparison to the Talos v1.0 as my pair was in need of service, so I will only have brief comparisons mentioned through the review.
Bass
I feel that it’s impossible to put the Talos v2.0 on your head and crave more sub-bass. Seriously, the Talos v2.0 dig incredibly deep with audible rumblings down at 10hz when tested using Audio Check’s headphone test. It’s not just some paltry hints of sub-bass, it rumbles. The Talos v2.0 aren’t necessarily basshead headphones, though I’d struggle to find a basshead who would be underwhelmed by the quantity of bass that the Talos v2.0 are capable of producing. Most impressively is that while the sub-bass packs quite a wallop, they do so with the control to avoid bleeding into frequency ranges.
The sub-bass feels contained, while simultaneously authoritative and dynamic. It’s one of the characteristics that I immediately found reminiscent of the HE-560. Quick, punchy, deep, and authoritative - the sub-bass is addictive in the Talos v2.0.
The mid bass is punchy, controlled, and quick, much like the sub-bass. Perfectly suited to shake your head when listening to something like Jay-Z & Kanye’s *Ni**as in Paris* while adding an energetic low-end presence to the bass guitars Steely Dan’s *Kid Charlemagne*. The low-end quantity is inauthentic for the latter, though tastefully executed for those who prefer a warmer consumer sound.
The low-end is exceptional and quite frankly the most satisfying low-end I’ve experience other than my memories of time with the HE-560. It suits bass heavy genres exceptionally well, while being perfectly fine for reference recordings under the assumption that the bass is going to be exaggerated.
Midrange & Treble
The midrange is recessed, but not egregiously so. That’s simply the nature of a v-shaped headphone, which is a fair description of the Talos v2.0. The midrange extracts details rather well, though some grain is noted. The midrange has little coloring to my ears, but there’s a dry, almost sterile, quality to it that pulls back some energy making them potentially a less than ideal candidate for those who primarily listen to guitar or vocal forward music.
The upper midrange has a peak where the snare drum tends to occupy. This creates an unpleasant, almost painful, experience when snare hits occur at listening volumes I tend to listen at. This is mostly centered on hip-hop oriented snare hits though, I haven’t experienced this with other genres as of now.
The treble carries on with some dips and peaks, but overall I find that the treble is bright, with a bit of sparkle to it and a touch of hotness. From memory the treble is perhaps toned down just a touch from the original v1.0, though I can not verify for aforementioned reasons. The treble also suffers from distortion, cymbal have a grainy splash to them while other treble notes can suffer from a bit of a hot tizz to them. The treble will border on unacceptably bright for some, while perfectly acceptable for others. If you’re sensitive to treble than the Talos v2.0 are likely not for you.
Soundstage
The sound is presented with a center focus that has potential for congestion. Left and right width is good for a closed headphone, though I find that it’s largely recording dependent. The Talos v2.0 do nothing to enhance the perceived width of the soundstage, but they don’t seem to inhibit it much. Soundstage depth is just adequate as well. The potential for a cramped soundstage is saved by above average instrument separation.
Conclusion
The Talos v2.0 are the perfect headphone for someone who has a powerful amplifier and wants to upgrade from their DT770 or add a highly musical headphone to their collection. Comfort is astonishingly good, the bass has a near visceral impact and great control, and the sound is dynamic and exciting. The Talos v2.0 are not reference headphones, nor were they tuned to be so look elsewhere if you want a neutral sound. They’re tuned to have be exciting and dynamic, and the Talos v2.0 accomplishes that tenfold.
They’re an incredible value if you have an amplifier to power them, making for an excellent purchase for fans of electronic music and hip-hop, or for someone who already has a reference set that’s looking for a v-shaped complimentary headphones.
PS: I apologize for lack of photos!
It was over a year ago, maybe two at this point, when /u/mad_economist sent me the first ever v1.0 of the Talos. Minor changes were made, especially to the aesthetics, but I was informed that the sound was locked in. I immediately fell in love and asked him for his PayPal to buy the first ever Talos. I found myself reminiscent of the HiFiMan HE-560 sound and needed them in my life.
About two months ago he told me that v2.0 was ready to go and I begged him repeatedly to hear. Unfortunately around this time I felt that something was wrong with my v1.0, therefore direct comparisons are tough and possibly inconsistent with what current users may experience, but they can be found here. The short of it is that I feel the Talos v2.0 are an improvement over a sound that I loved immediately.
With that said, I apologize to /u/mad_economist for the delay in the review - it’s been hectic with college, work, and life in general, but I thank him for sending me one of the first Talos v2.0 to ever be heard.
Source: Matrix HPA-3U
Sound Signature: Hard hitting bass, mildly recessed vocals, emphasized treble.
Pros: Comfort, price to quality ratio, build quality, bass reproduction, musicality.
Cons: Requires a powerful amplifier, aesthetics, treble could be too prominent.
Cost: $325 with a launch sale of $260 while supplies last.
Comfort
The Talos v2.0 use a custom designed pad, similar to the Brainvz Hybrids, but improved to use real leather, softer velour, firmer memory foam, and fully velour lined interior to improve comfort and avoid hot spots. The new pads are plush and an absolute joy to wear. They fully surround my ears with room to spare between my ears and the driver. The headband has seen an upgrade as well, using a leather suspension strap which alleviates any downward force of the Talos v2.0. I find the Talos v2.0 to be exceptionally comfortable, more than capable of being worn for hours on end.
Build Quality
T50 mods have been reviewed a million times over and the build quality has been talked of ad nauseum. The short of it is that they’re built well, they’re not going to break without a fluke or mistreatment.
Sound Quality
Disclaimer
The Talos v2.0 require a significantly powerful amplifier, I recommend something pushing at least 2 watts into 50 ohms for appropriate knob headroom. That doesn’t mean expensive, but you will need something like a Schiit Magni 3 - especially if you enjoy listening to higher dynamic range recordings.
Furthermore I will not be doing a direct comparison to the Talos v1.0 as my pair was in need of service, so I will only have brief comparisons mentioned through the review.
Bass
I feel that it’s impossible to put the Talos v2.0 on your head and crave more sub-bass. Seriously, the Talos v2.0 dig incredibly deep with audible rumblings down at 10hz when tested using Audio Check’s headphone test. It’s not just some paltry hints of sub-bass, it rumbles. The Talos v2.0 aren’t necessarily basshead headphones, though I’d struggle to find a basshead who would be underwhelmed by the quantity of bass that the Talos v2.0 are capable of producing. Most impressively is that while the sub-bass packs quite a wallop, they do so with the control to avoid bleeding into frequency ranges.
The sub-bass feels contained, while simultaneously authoritative and dynamic. It’s one of the characteristics that I immediately found reminiscent of the HE-560. Quick, punchy, deep, and authoritative - the sub-bass is addictive in the Talos v2.0.
The mid bass is punchy, controlled, and quick, much like the sub-bass. Perfectly suited to shake your head when listening to something like Jay-Z & Kanye’s *Ni**as in Paris* while adding an energetic low-end presence to the bass guitars Steely Dan’s *Kid Charlemagne*. The low-end quantity is inauthentic for the latter, though tastefully executed for those who prefer a warmer consumer sound.
The low-end is exceptional and quite frankly the most satisfying low-end I’ve experience other than my memories of time with the HE-560. It suits bass heavy genres exceptionally well, while being perfectly fine for reference recordings under the assumption that the bass is going to be exaggerated.
Midrange & Treble
The midrange is recessed, but not egregiously so. That’s simply the nature of a v-shaped headphone, which is a fair description of the Talos v2.0. The midrange extracts details rather well, though some grain is noted. The midrange has little coloring to my ears, but there’s a dry, almost sterile, quality to it that pulls back some energy making them potentially a less than ideal candidate for those who primarily listen to guitar or vocal forward music.
The upper midrange has a peak where the snare drum tends to occupy. This creates an unpleasant, almost painful, experience when snare hits occur at listening volumes I tend to listen at. This is mostly centered on hip-hop oriented snare hits though, I haven’t experienced this with other genres as of now.
The treble carries on with some dips and peaks, but overall I find that the treble is bright, with a bit of sparkle to it and a touch of hotness. From memory the treble is perhaps toned down just a touch from the original v1.0, though I can not verify for aforementioned reasons. The treble also suffers from distortion, cymbal have a grainy splash to them while other treble notes can suffer from a bit of a hot tizz to them. The treble will border on unacceptably bright for some, while perfectly acceptable for others. If you’re sensitive to treble than the Talos v2.0 are likely not for you.
Soundstage
The sound is presented with a center focus that has potential for congestion. Left and right width is good for a closed headphone, though I find that it’s largely recording dependent. The Talos v2.0 do nothing to enhance the perceived width of the soundstage, but they don’t seem to inhibit it much. Soundstage depth is just adequate as well. The potential for a cramped soundstage is saved by above average instrument separation.
Conclusion
The Talos v2.0 are the perfect headphone for someone who has a powerful amplifier and wants to upgrade from their DT770 or add a highly musical headphone to their collection. Comfort is astonishingly good, the bass has a near visceral impact and great control, and the sound is dynamic and exciting. The Talos v2.0 are not reference headphones, nor were they tuned to be so look elsewhere if you want a neutral sound. They’re tuned to have be exciting and dynamic, and the Talos v2.0 accomplishes that tenfold.
They’re an incredible value if you have an amplifier to power them, making for an excellent purchase for fans of electronic music and hip-hop, or for someone who already has a reference set that’s looking for a v-shaped complimentary headphones.
PS: I apologize for lack of photos!
