I want to start this thread for the old timers and even folks that are curious about older earphones that paved the way to the greatness we have today. Sometimes old is new and sometimes discontinued earphones are classics. This thread is dedicated for the discontinued.
Gonna start out of 3 of my old time faves. It has to start with some of the best of the best of Audio Technica. Gonna go back 5 years or so and we had theses gems making a splash in the scene.
Classic and by far the most musical Audio Technica earphones. The stage of these earphones alone will make you wonder why more earphones don't use a 2ndary chamber for that stage. These things are not only balanced well but one of the most musical wide deep stages you will ever hear in an earphone. I can't believe I almost came close to selling these off. Nope. I just discovered Xelastec tips works awesome on these. The ATH-CKS1000 coined the phrase audiophile bass. I will never part ways with this classic.
ATH-CKR9 The first of the dual dynamic classics. These earphones garnered a large following for good reason. CKR9s has the classic Audio Technica sweet mid range punchy extended bass and a lovely detailed treble end. Some of the very best tuning from Audio Technica and for guys that have never heard these. These will hold up to any good sounding dynamic earphone in your collection. And probably end up sounding better. Great tone, sweet mids, excellent detail and was one of the best balanced Audio Technica earphones ever produced. If you ever see a set of these for sale. A legit one. Go for it. You will be very surprised how good these sound.
Last but not least. These spurred on a few follow ups but to be honest I started to loose interest after these not because these weren't awesome The ATH-CKR10. Was the highest end dual dynamic push pull earphones at the time. Audio Technica was good at using higher end metals for their housings which had an influence on the tone of the earphones. These had big bass with excellent midrange and the treble end to go with it. Staging for AT earphones are always excellent and these were exemplary with a very immersive full bodied sound and yes had that audiophile bass. I consider these classics. So much authority.
retro thread!! i saw those FX40's from JVC on that page. i think i bought three of those with various colors when they came out. $20.00 at Fred Meyer and those where the first commercial carbon nanotube drivers. the problem with those was the very hot treble and the scooped mids. otherwise the bass some some of the best, if not best budget bass earphones on the market at that time. that's why i ended up selling all those pairs. @Dsnuts was the guy who recommended them, so i picked them up at my local FM.
I know you guys have old has been earphones. That is what this thread is about. Lets post about it. Dig em out. Listen to them for the first time in years. You know you got a few underneath your sock drawer. Do it!
LZ A2. An early DD / 2 BA hybrid. So old by our standards that the cables are hardwired and not upgradable. So old that my pair could be ordered with a microphone. Funny thing is they are only 4 or 5 years old and by now are considered ancient.
Recently sold my Carbo Tenores....bought around the same time as the LZ.
https://monsterstore.com/collections/headphones
Still around, not sure who buys them though. I assume the clueless at Best Buy, etc
edit: every single one they make now is wireless, figures
If you can find them (with the proper fit and tips), the KEF M200 still has some of the most stunning bass and mids you can hear in an earphone. Some found a better fit by cutting off the flexible/bending thick rubber ear clips. I have gotten that bold yet, but with some patience, I can get a nice firm fit with these thick earphones. I use some Unique Melody ME 1 silicone tips on the KEFs, or the medium stock tips.
I remember how much i loved my KEF M200, until the QC problem with the bass driver going dead. i had no problem with fit. Oh and i still love my Ultimate Ears, both then and now. i loved the UtE TF10 and i still have the UE700 and UE900s. Bomb diggity!
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