Hi all.
I've just listened again my COSMO equipped with PARA's pads this evening (in France).
My first impressions are confirmed.
The sound is very pure, clear, transparent, but not insipid; it's extremely fine, with a remarkable soundstage, both spacious (like that of the VENUS, or even a little more so) and above all extremely precise in space, with a marked 3D effect and a separation of instruments and voices that stand out against a black background, even blacker than that of the VENUS.
Spatial precision is much better than that of the VENUS, which is blurrier in comparison.
The COSMO thus equipped (from the PARA pads) reminds me of my old e-stat STAX SR-009 headphones, but much better in the upper midrange (less shouty than the Stax) and in the treble, better balanced, less emphasized; the bass level is similar to that of a Stax SR-009, i.e., not high SPL, but with very good extension in the sub-bass and remarkable texture; bass precision and definition are excellent.
I think the COSMO's technicality easily equals that of the Stax 009, both in finesse, resolution, spatialization and detachment of sound against a black background.
Tone is better, with a high midrange and treble less emphasized than the Stax, at the right level, with bass that's admittedly light, but deep and remarkably textured.
In comparison, the VENUS is less fine and precise than the COSMO equipped with the PARA's pads; its soundstage is just as spacious, but less precise, fuzzier; the bass level is higher, but also coarser in texture and definition; ditto for the treble, more prominent, but less fine.
The COSMO's delicacy in the treble (with the PARA's pads) is remarkable, whether on cymbals or in the upper harmonics of voices and musical instruments.
The VENUS, with its more prominent low midrange, gives more warmth and thickness to the sound, but a certain lack of precision in this frequency range means that the sound (and voices) appear more colored and less pure, as if tainted; spatially speaking, they are also less separated and detached on a black, grayer background, making them less sharp, less contrasted, less "3D".
As an example of "pure" sound, clear and transparent, well-focused and spatially separated, this vocal duet (love song) from Purcel's King Arthur highlights all the qualities listed above of the COSMO re-equipped with PARA's pads.
To conclude this post, a word of advice to Moondrop about the COSMO: if the COSMO's stock pads displease most people (like @acclimatise and myself at the moment), I think that the COSMO's offer should be completed with a second pair of pads (in addition to the stock pads), and why not those of the PARA (or the PARA's replacement pad reference, the EP-100A pads at $28); the PARA (which is worth $600 less than the COSMO) is nevertheless well equipped with two pairs of pads ; so why not the COSMO as well; this can only appeal to potential future buyers of the COSMO, which I really think has enormous potential, at least equal to that of a very good pair of electrostatic headphones, but with better tonality (for the COSMO equipped with the PARA pads ; not with the stock pads which didn't convince me at all), at least from what I'm hearing again tonight.
Nice to meet you!
I would like to ask you about moondrop venus.
I often get hair caught in the joint between the headband and the housing, causing hair to fall out.
I would like to do something about it. Do you have any suggestions?
Thank you in advance. (Sorry if my English is not good enough)