[Sparith]

I've been staring at them on amazon a lot lately.  Mainly as an upgrade to the ad700's.  So the amazon add is not actually sending out ad900's, but a900's?  
 
Do these things creak like the ad700's do?  
 
That is my main annoyance with the ad700's.  Personally I find the bass quantity on the ad700's to be perfect for my tastes so I'm guessing I will love the ad900's for their more prominent midrange because I'm into rock music.  

There are 2 sellers on amazon selling them for $210 (including s+h) Adorama and Beach Camera. When I ordered from Adorama I received the A900 and was told by their customer service amazon made a mistake they were actually selling A900's for $200, when I checked Adorama's own website they had the A900 listed at $200 and the AD900 at $250. Afterwards a second seller for the AD900@210 showed up (Beach Camera) so I ordered from them and got AD900's as advertised, minus the warranty card >.>

PS: At the moment the AD900's page on Amazon shows "In Stock. Ships from and sold by Adorama Camera. Only 8 left in stock--order soon." I don't know if they are actually selling them now because Amazon made them or because someone else is selling them for $200, or maybe its just another mistake. Also Beach Camera has raised their price to $220.

 

[keanex]

Quote:

I've been staring at them on amazon a lot lately.  Mainly as an upgrade to the ad700's.  So the amazon add is not actually sending out ad900's, but a900's?  
 
Do these things creak like the ad700's do?  
 
That is my main annoyance with the ad700's.  Personally I find the bass quantity on the ad700's to be perfect for my tastes so I'm guessing I will love the ad900's for their more prominent midrange because I'm into rock music.  

The Ad900 are a bit better quality built. Basically if you like your Ad700s, imagine them getting better in every aspect overnight by 25% (just how much better I place them). These are definitely more engaging, slightly more aggressive, than the Ad700s.

 

[deadlylover]

They don't creak as much as the AD700's, and I think they were actually a little lighter as well. The plastic they used to build it certainly felt more solid.
I actually preferred the comfort of the AD700's, because my ears kept touching the damn drivers.
The fit on the AD900's were more tight, so they stay on your head a little better.
I felt that the bass was a little more controlled in bass heavy songs, that was just about it really, I didn't notice any other significant changes.

 

[dollarindex]

Cant beat these bad boys. If shrillness is doing your head in then get some tube amp and mess around with interchanging. Havn't tried that but It will certainly be your best option. 
 
As for the drivers hurting your ears there is a very simple solution for most people. Move the cans as far forward and/or up as you can so the pads are pushing  your flappy ears a little. This solves the problem and makes them sound exponentially better. Bass is way better. Infact everything is better. 
 
Try some parametric equalization. There is a great guide on here somewhere. Oh yeah and What are you bass heads talking about. Bass quality over thump any day and these cans excel at that. 
 
 

 

[keanex]

Shrillness? Excelling at bass? Are you posting in the right thread? Ad900s are hardly fatiguing, I mean unless you have your treble EQd all the way up I guess. These also don't excel at bass. They have quality bass, but to say they excel at it is the overstatement of the year.

 

[Katun]

I'm going to be doing a "AD700 vs AD900 | Comparison & Review" eventually.
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by deadlylover /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
They don't creak as much as the AD700's, and I think they were actually a little lighter as well. The plastic they used to build it certainly felt more solid.

The AD700 is 280 grams, and the AD900 is only 250 grams. It's very light, in fact, I believe the only reference headphone I know of that is lighter is the K701.
 
The AD900's frame is magnesium, and the AD700's is plastic. When I took my AD900 out of the package for the first time, I noticed the frame was extremely cold (it's still winter here). Plastic simply doesn't get very cold, but magnesium and metal does. Build quality is overall better, with more attention to small details.

 

[sysfail]

I just received my AD900 from Katun here and I must say this is the kind of headphone I love! Amazing airy sound with an immersive soundstage. Very crisp and bright, but nothing that will be too sharp for the ear. The mids are forward (not as forward as the Grados) and detailed. Bass is present, but definitely stays in the background and isn't emphasized. It's still good quality bass without a lot of quantity and that is fine with me because I am not a basshead. Also, it is a very light and well built headphone that is comfortable to wear for long periods of time. The only thing that might annoy people is that pads are a little weird and flat so your ears might touch the pad/driver like me, but it doesn't bother me. Overall, it's an excellent headphone and I bet it's perfect for gaming, but I haven't used it for that yet.

 

[Katun]

Awesome, it's good to here from you! I'm glad you are liking those, and you described them perfectly.
 
About the comfort. I have experimented with my AD700 quite a bit, and you can stretch it if the clamp is too much, or push it together if it's too loose. Believe me when I say the AT's steel wires are so strong, I can literally bend my AD700 so the wires are completely flat. So if you decide to even stretch them just a bit, it may improve the driver to ear comfort.  Heh, it's funny, because my AD700 is so loose, I can barely turn my head and they will go out of position! But, I wanted "some" clamp, so I pushed the left and right cup "past" each other to reverse the stretch effects. Same can be said about the AD900, but I left it alone for *future user* to experiment with it, if they decide to do so.
 
And yes, these are fabulous for gaming! And they do rock music extremely well due to their speed and energy.

 

[sysfail]

Thanks for the tip Katun! I might experiment with the head band to find a perfect fit, but for now they don't bother me too much at all. They are definitely awesome!

 

 

[keanex]

I would suggest pushing them more together and letting them potentially clamp a little, which I doubt they will, to let them naturally extend to your head so they aren't too loose.

 

[Aruna]

I just got my ad900's. They are amazing, if you like natural sound (not a basshead).

 

[Bengt77]

I've done the phat pad mod some years ago and hated it. Sure, it made the bass more prominent, but it also reduced the mids and made the highs way too shrill. Awful mod. But I've tried it again with a thinner tube a couple of weeks ago and haven't removed them since. It turns out the tube I used back then had a diameter that was too big. Now I'm using tubing that has a diameter of 6mm (about 0,24").  This diameter does not alter the sound as far as I can tell, yet distances the drivers from my ears sufficiently so they barely touch them anymore.
 
Give it a try! And if you do, post your results and opinions here.

 

[sysfail]

Quote:

I've done the phat pad mod some years ago and hated it. Sure, it made the bass more prominent, but it also reduced the mids and made the highs way too shrill. Awful mod. But I've tried it again with a thinner tube a couple of weeks ago and haven't removed them since. It turns out the tube I used back then had a diameter that was too big. Now I'm using tubing that has a diameter of 6mm (about 0,24").  This diameter does not alter the sound as far as I can tell, yet distances the drivers from my ears sufficiently so they barely touch them anymore.
 
Give it a try! And if you do, post your results and opinions here.

I stuck tissue paper under my pads and they worked great!
 

 

[Bengt77]

Ha ha! Cheapskate. Awesome that such a thing actually works!
 
EDIT 1: Oooh, I just saw in your profile that you have the W5000 pads on the AD900! I'd love to know your opinion on how these pads change the AD900's sound signature. And I'd also like to know if it makes the AD900 more or less comfortable. Can you wear them as long as you could with the original velours pads?
 
EDIT 2: I just found this post on the Headphonic Forums. Do you agree with Kernmac's opinion?

 

[sysfail]

Quote:

Ha ha! Cheapskate. Awesome that such a thing actually works!
 
EDIT 1: Oooh, I just saw in your profile that you have the W5000 pads on the AD900! I'd love to know your opinion on how these pads change the AD900's sound signature. And I'd also like to know if it makes the AD900 more or less comfortable. Can you wear them as long as you could with the original velours pads?
 
EDIT 2: I just found this post on the Headphonic Forums. Do you agree with Kernmac's opinion?

Kernmac pretty much has it spot on about the sound change with the W5000 pads. The W5000 are MUCH more comfortable compared to the stock AD900 pads for me because the stock pads made my face itch very quickly. I could wear the AD900 + W5000 pads forever with no comfort problems at all. It would make your ears a little warm, but it won't get hot and sweaty or anything. Without the tissues, my ears would press against the drivers and it would start to get annoying overtime, but with the tissues, my ears have a perfect distance away from the drivers and they become extremely comfortable. It was necessary for me to get the W5000 pads for my AD900, but if the stock pads don't irritate you or anything, then you should just stick with it because those W5000 pads aren't cheap at all lol.