[mbwilson111]

do people still like h6 2nd generation?

I do...no reason to stop liking it. It is a good headphone. It sounds great, is easy to drive and is very comfortable, in my opinion. I have others... my list is in my profile. There are things that I like about all of them but I have to say that the H6 is one of my favorites.

 

[aertus]

I do...no reason to stop liking it. It is a good headphone. It sounds great, is easy to drive and is very comfortable, in my opinion. I have others... my list is in my profile. There are things that I like about all of them but I have to say that the H6 is one of my favorites.

its a great headphone its the top of my list in terms of what audiphile grade headphone to buy. I dont think i can go wrong. my other top is AKG 550 or Sennheiser 598cs

what are your favorite from the list?

 

[aertus]

https://www.massdrop.com/buy/e-mu-t...nfluencer&utm_term=15345&utm_content=zreviews

this is a fashion can that prob sounds great thoughts?

 

[RockStar2005]

https://www.massdrop.com/buy/e-mu-t...nfluencer&utm_term=15345&utm_content=zreviews

this is a fashion can that prob sounds great thoughts?

Yeah I was checkin' those out too months ago. I think I asked around about it and was told it's good but not great. Or that it was overpriced. Not sure now. It does look nice. I'm really starting to like the wooden ear cups look, which kinda started with the Denon ones.

 

[aertus]

Yeah I was checkin' those out too months ago. I think I asked around about it and was told it's good but not great. Or that it was overpriced. Not sure now. It does look nice. I'm really starting to like the wooden ear cups look, which kinda started with the Denon ones.

they look like fostex headphones. Which i heard are good.

 

[MixMasterMan]

Been awhile. I have aquired PM-3's & H6 2nd gens.

I'm torn on the PM-3's. Why? Because I love everything about them except for the small soundstage, treble dip, and air roll off. Vocals sound amazing on them, and the full bodied midrange is amongst the best in closed back cans. I just cant get on with them because of the treble problems. Otherwise, I love them. It would be nice if the bass was more extended, but these cans are as close to neutral as you are gonna get up to the treble.

I love the H6 2nd gens. They are pretty much perfect, sound wise. They are like m50x/1A/MSR7/etc headphones, only refined and sophisticated. Best balance out of all of the whole lot.

Right now, Im fighting with my soul on whether I should keep or return the PM-3s. They have heavenly midrange, but are boring compared to the cans with better treble extention and soundstage.

 

[RockStar2005]

Been awhile. I have aquired PM-3's & H6 2nd gens.

I'm torn on the PM-3's. Why? Because I love everything about them except for the small soundstage, treble dip, and air roll off. Vocals sound amazing on them, and the full bodied midrange is amongst the best in closed back cans. I just cant get on with them because of the treble problems. Otherwise, I love them. It would be nice if the bass was more extended, but these cans are as close to neutral as you are gonna get up to the treble.

I love the H6 2nd gens. They are pretty much perfect, sound wise. They are like m50x/1A/MSR7/etc headphones, only refined and sophisticated. Best balance out of all of the whole lot.

Right now, Im fighting with my soul on whether I should keep or return the PM-3s. They have heavenly midrange, but are boring compared to the cans with better treble extention and soundstage.

Hey Mix,

How ya been?

Yeah.........the PM-3s were VERY highly-rated, but I did not agree that they were as great as a lot of those reviews said they were. I too noticed a decent/not great soundstage, treble dip, etc. They did not stick around long, but maybe 2-3 months? lol

I've also owned the 2nd Gen H6s as you recall. But I had to return or sell them off after about 2 mos b/c I started to realize how uncomfortable they could be. Over-ear my ahss! lol They are ON-ear IMHO. Too small, which is a shame b/c IMO they outdo even the mighty AKG K55X series (I currently have the K551). Even a buddy of mine who bought them loved them too but said he noticed the same issue with comfort, and he also did not keep them.

My solution for you is this, and I think you're gonna love it. lol JUST recently, I got wind of a new and highly-rated set of headphones by a Romanian company called Meze (pronounced "Mez-zah"). I was told by a very reliable source on here as well that he thought they sounded even better than the K55X series too, just like the 2nd Gen H6 did. But these headphones, the Meze 99 Classics, are superior to both the H6s and the K551s IMHO b/c they offer the best of both worlds, and THEN some! I'm gonna try to write up a review soon, but here are the reasons why you should SERIOUSLY consider these headphones. I just decided last night that I would keep them and sell off my K551s soon.

1) They sound better and offer EVEN MORE DETAIL than the K551s do (in every way honestly), and at least as much if not more than the H6s. Better tighter bass, mids, highs, wider soundstage (yes, wider), better instrument separation and texture, etc. On at least one song, in the intro, I heard a cool background echo on the 99s that I couldn't hear at all on the K551s, which is crazy cuz they usually offer more detail than other headphones.
2) They come with OVAL not CIRCULAR-shaped ear pads, which serve to give you not only better comfort (b/c our ears are oval not circular! lol), but also better isolation too, which is part of the reason why the bass sounds so great. The headband comes with an adjustable design as well that fits your head perfectly no matter what. Until about 6-9 mos ago, the 99's original ear pads were SMALLER, but people fortunately complained and so Meze listened and put bigger ones on the 99s instead. I love the new ones, but prob would've passed on the original ones. (Note: So MAKE SURE to only buy new ones!!)
4) The ear cups are made from walnut wood. I've read about how wood ear cups offer better/improved acoustics over metal and plastic.
5) What's very odd is that they should be a bit lower in max volume than the K551s, yet they sound louder to me and more engaging.
6) It's pretty much all premium parts. Just metal and wood on the exterior. Inside, everything is bolted and/or screwed together. NO plastic and NO glue either. Ear pads are synthetic leather, but still very cool. The 99s even come with a nice "balanced" cable and a SWEET hard case. So.......all in one package!
7) Meze is SUPER customer friendly. I e-mailed them for help on coming up with a quality EQ to use with the 99s on Poweramp, and they got back to me saying they were already working with a sound guy on that! He's on here too (named George), and both he and akg fanboy have given me some great tips that helped a lot!
8) As you can see from the link above, the 99s have won several sound and design awards as well.

What made me hesitate was trying to find the right custom EQ to make these shine, b/c initially I felt they were too bassy and not clear enough overall to outdo the K551s. But then I came up with an EQ that I'm still perfecting (see review soon), but at this point I think it's pretty much done. And with this custom EQ I came up with, the 99s now clearly outdo my K551s.

You can buy the 99s on their site, or like me off Amazon. I preferred the silver version (which JUST went down in price I see), but gold one is really nice too (it's big in Asia I guess). (They also have a "maple silver" version as well, but 1) They seem hard to find 2) I think they stopped production on these and 3) Not sure if these got the larger ear pads or the original ones?) They sound better than the K551s and at least equal to or better than the 2nd Gen H6s, and they cost a bit more than either of those two (esp AKG), but to me they're WELL worth it if you are open to spending around $300, which I think you are, given the price of the PM-3 and the 2nd Gen H6.

Hope this helps man. Let me know what you do. I will have that EQ posted in my review (which will go up very soon), but you or anyone is welcome to PM me or post a request on here as well if you can't wait. I don't think these are worth it unless you have a solid EQ, and the "Rock" EQ preset doesn't cut it, though it comes "somewhat" close. lol

 

[MixMasterMan]

I had the K553 for a few weeks. It sounded to weird to me. Had very little bass. Smooth mids and treble, but details were not discernible. Almost a metallic sheen to the sound. Hollow in a sense. Very weird sound. I couldn't EQ it to sound good to me. Not my thing.

If there is one thing that is worrisome about the H6, is that the comfort IS questionable. The headband is stiff and doesn't conform to my head in a cushion/pillow like way. The ear cups are a little small, and getting a good sitting fit takes some adjusting. That's all I can think of, as far as comfort negatives. Oh, and the cord it comes with feels cheap. The tight fit in the plug socket, and required effort to extract it, doesn't give me confidence that it will last long. I will get an aftermarket cable, and see how that works.

While I appreciate the recomendation of the Meze, I'm a bit headphoned out at this point. I have several cans that all work for whatever purpose needed. I just needed to compare the PM-3 and H6, to round out the over-ear category for me. There are probably another 3-5 cans I have yet to listen to that would make my adventure about as comprehensive as it can get (P7, M4U, HP50, E-Mu Teak, etc) - However, after the PM-3 & H6, I understood that I could be happy with just an m50x for 80% of my music listening. I recently got the sonarworks headphone calibration plugin, and out of all my closed headphones that are profiled in the plugin (including the PM-3), the Shure SRH-840's are the best after calibration. Basically, all of the headphones get EQ corrected by the plugin for total neutral/flat EQ response, and all that's left to judge is soundstage/depth/dynamics.

My next headphone adventure, will likely be open back style cans. I already have SHP-9500's, DT880's, & HD580's. In a few years hopefully, after I have about $10k to play around with, I'll get some amps, dacs, hi-end Focal's, Audesze's, etc and go to town.

 

[RockStar2005]

I had the K553 for a few weeks. It sounded to weird to me. Had very little bass. Smooth mids and treble, but details were not discernible. Almost a metallic sheen to the sound. Hollow in a sense. Very weird sound. I couldn't EQ it to sound good to me. Not my thing.

If there is one thing that is worrisome about the H6, is that the comfort IS questionable. The headband is stiff and doesn't conform to my head in a cushion/pillow like way. The ear cups are a little small, and getting a good sitting fit takes some adjusting. That's all I can think of, as far as comfort negatives. Oh, and the cord it comes with feels cheap. The tight fit in the plug socket, and required effort to extract it, doesn't give me confidence that it will last long. I will get an aftermarket cable, and see how that works.

While I appreciate the recomendation of the Meze, I'm a bit headphoned out at this point. I have several cans that all work for whatever purpose needed. I just needed to compare the PM-3 and H6, to round out the over-ear category for me. There are probably another 3-5 cans I have yet to listen to that would make my adventure about as comprehensive as it can get (P7, M4U, HP50, E-Mu Teak, etc) - However, after the PM-3 & H6, I understood that I could be happy with just an m50x for 80% of my music listening. I recently got the sonarworks headphone calibration plugin, and out of all my closed headphones that are profiled in the plugin (including the PM-3), the Shure SRH-840's are the best after calibration. Basically, all of the headphones get EQ corrected by the plugin for total neutral/flat EQ response, and all that's left to judge is soundstage/depth/dynamics.

My next headphone adventure, will likely be open back style cans. I already have SHP-9500's, DT880's, & HD580's. In a few years hopefully, after I have about $10k to play around with, I'll get some amps, dacs, hi-end Focal's, Audesze's, etc and go to town.

The K553s also have that headband with the lower amount of padding, so F those. lol Well to each his own brotha, but I'm tellin' you, forget about ALL your other cans, esp the PM-3 and H6. At least any of the ones below $1000. The 99s are superior in every way to the PM-3 and the H6 (at least equal to H6s in sound, but might be better in some respects). The headband as I said is adjustable, ear pads are large and oval-shaped and awesome, etc. The cord is kevlar and awesome. It goes in and out of the headphones very easily IMO. No need for an aftermarket cable with their headphones. So I guess do what you will, but you've BEEN warned son. lol The 99s are a freak of nature!

I've talked to others including akg fanboy about ALL those other cans, and this guy knows more than most people on here IMO, and he/they all said 1) P7s......too bassy 2) M4U - breaks easily 3) HP50..... very good but there are better 4) E-Mu Teak..........overrated, overpriced. I've tried the P7s myself a few times (including the time I purchased them and tried them out at home) and I can vouch for the "too bassy" comment.

M50x? I'm biting my tongue. LOL That Shure model I don't know much about, but it does seem highly-rated.

I asked him about Sonarworks too about 3-4 weeks ago, and he said "No, sonarworks is just a pre calibrated EQ assuming they already measured the headphones you have, it is not the best, all it does it make the headphones neutral." If you want neutral that's fine, but I've found neutral doesn't always equate to best sound, which is the case with the Meze. But it is a challenge to customize your own EQs manually. The one I came up with for the 99s was not created easily. lol

Well if you change your mind, you know how to find me. lol With my custom 10-band EQ + the 99s, I honestly don't think you'll even want to use any other headphones. I'm selling my K551s as a matter of fact b/c I don't see the point of keeping them (hint hint). lol

 

[aertus]

Audeze are really weird looking. But i hear they have NASA like technology and materials on them maybe worth it. the E-mu teak are highly rated by Z review. MEze99 seem nice too as well as Fostex. For open back arent the hd650 one of the best?Boh6 second generation are the holy grail of headphones. it's too bad they lack in comfort its a real shame. Were they trying to cut down on costs or something. They can definitely improve these headphones with the next itiration.

I've been doing some research in speakers and it definitely seems like Focals are the holy grail of speakers. they are so ahead of what most mainstream people will have and even among audiphiles its one of the best if not the best.

From what I research i've done these are the best brands : JBL, YAMAHA(hs8?),Wharfedale Diamond speakers, KEF, bowels and wilkins, Dynaudio, ELAC, FOCALS (ofc), Klipch, minotir audio.

it seems like Britain has the highest number of high end audio companies. America has like JBL and Klipch are the only good ones I know. USA is so much bigger than the UK but UK still has more audio companies and better ones. Focals being french though seem to be at the very top.

 

[RockStar2005]

Audeze are really weird looking. But i hear they have NASA like technology and materials on them maybe worth it. the E-mu teak are highly rated by Z review. MEze99 seem nice too as well as Fostex. For open back arent the hd650 one of the best?Boh6 second generation are the holy grail of headphones. it's too bad they lack in comfort its a real shame. Were they trying to cut down on costs or something. They can definitely improve these headphones with the next itiration.

I've been doing some research in speakers and it definitely seems like Focals are the holy grail of speakers. they are so ahead of what most mainstream people will have and even among audiphiles its one of the best if not the best.

From what I research i've done these are the best brands : JBL, YAMAHA(hs8?),Wharfedale Diamond speakers, KEF, bowels and wilkins, Dynaudio, ELAC, FOCALS (ofc), Klipch, minotir audio.

it seems like Britain has the highest number of high end audio companies. America has like JBL and Klipch are the only good ones I know. USA is so much bigger than the UK but UK still has more audio companies and better ones. Focals being french though seem to be at the very top.

Yeah E-mu TEACs are the same as Fostex, so not that good. And maybe "$1000" was too high a number, but still..........only a few headphones I would say are better than the 99s..........but they cost more. Beyer DT1770 are better but are $100 more and have a 250 ohm impedance.......aka, NOT for mobile. lol Mr. Speakers AEONs are amazing and I believe better than 99s, but cost $800! I would say the 99s are better than Fostex.

I only concentrate on closed-backs, so I can't say much on open-backs. I've only tried two open backs, which were supposed to sound the same.............the Sennheiser HD 598 and 598SE.

2nd Gen H6s WERE the holy grail. I believe the 99s have taken over that throne. lol You're right it is a shame b/c the 2nd Gen H6s WERE great, but yeah comfort on headband but really more ears was not so great. I find it hilarious that B&O actually tries to pass them off as over-ears.

I think Bowers (now Bowels lol) & Wilkins is best for their awesome speakers, not AS much on headphones. Klipsch too.

 

[aertus]

Yeah E-mu TEACs are the same as Fostex, so not that good. And maybe "$1000" was too high a number, but still..........only a few headphones I would say are better than the 99s..........but they cost more. Beyer DT1770 are better but are $100 more and have a 250 ohm impedance.......aka, NOT for mobile. lol Mr. Speakers AEONs are amazing and I believe better than 99s, but cost $800! I would say the 99s are better than Fostex.

I only concentrate on closed-backs, so I can't say much on open-backs. I've only tried two open backs, which were supposed to sound the same.............the Sennheiser HD 598 and 598SE.

2nd Gen H6s WERE the holy grail. I believe the 99s have taken over that throne. lol You're right it is a shame b/c the 2nd Gen H6s WERE great, but yeah comfort on headband but really more ears was not so great. I find it hilarious that B&O actually tries to pass them off as over-ears.

I think Bowers (now Bowels lol) & Wilkins is best for their awesome speakers, not AS much on headphones. Klipsch too.

agreed on everything you said. Out of all the similar looking wood shaped headphones I think I would trust you and your friend and go for the meze99 too. Shame that fostex is not that good always sounded like a japenese premium brand.

arent there lower impedence headphones from beyerdamics? Im not keen on open back either due to the sound leakage. Im never really alone to have use for open back.

Honestly what were they thinking? B&O are premium brand why go down that route. If sony could collaborate with B&O and combine the materials/comfort of the MDR1a and the sound of h6 2nd generation we would truly reach the holy grail of headphones.

Yeah thats true for both companies. They are kind of mostly focused on speakers and are really good for those two. I think the brits seem better at audio tech than the americans though. would pick Wilkins over klipch.

 

[RockStar2005]

agreed on everything you said. Out of all the similar looking wood shaped headphones I think I would trust you and your friend and go for the meze99 too. Shame that fostex is not that good always sounded like a japenese premium brand.

arent there lower impedence headphones from beyerdamics? Im not keen on open back either due to the sound leakage. Im never really alone to have use for open back.

Honestly what were they thinking? B&O are premium brand why go down that route. If sony could collaborate with B&O and combine the materials/comfort of the MDR1a and the sound of h6 2nd generation we would truly reach the holy grail of headphones.

Yeah thats true for both companies. They are kind of mostly focused on speakers and are really good for those two. I think the brits seem better at audio tech than the americans though. would pick Wilkins over klipch.

Yeah Beyer has other lower impedance headphones, but akg fanboy indicated the DT1770 was the best BEYER for at least under $500. I trust his opinion above pretty much everyone else's on here because he's consistently been right about everything, INCLUDING AKG (and the K551 EQ he created), and now with Meze, which I never even really heard of until he mentioned them. I was shocked to NOT see AKG on there in the first (top) half, but to be honest I'd prob still take the K55X series over the HM5s b/c the HM5s are HUGE. lol

He listed it like this for me:

Spoiler

Here are the closed backs I would recommend for each price point:
$100- brainwavz hm5
$200- b&o h6
$300- meze 99 classics
$400 beyer dt1770
$500 second hand Beyer t5p
----------------------------
and if you feel like wasting money, even under the knowledge that anything over $500 only offers 20% better sound at the BEST, everything below offers bad value and the more expensive ones are not necessarily superior sounding
$800 mrspeakers aeon
$1300 mrspeakers ether c
$1500 AKG K872
$1900 Sony Z1R
$2000 STAX 4070 (closed back electrostatic)
$5000-10,000 Sony MDR-R10

Yeah I take my headphones on the train into the city a lot, so open-backs won't fly there. lol

Yeah, a Sony and B&O joint effort would be quite interesting indeed. The 1A WAS dahmn comfortable, I recall.

I dunno if the Brits are better at audio than the U.S. The headphones I love the most now are AKG, Meze, and B&O. None of those are American, or British. lol Even Sennheiser is German, as is Beyer. Maybe for speakers, but for headphones I would not agree.

I would consider a used T5P but no warranty and the used ones I've seen on Amazon and eBay that are under $600 have some "signs of wear". So I think the 99s are best then for under $600 (or higher).

 

[MixMasterMan]

I asked him about Sonarworks too about 3-4 weeks ago, and he said "No, sonarworks is just a pre calibrated EQ assuming they already measured the headphones you have, it is not the best, all it does it make the headphones neutral." If you want neutral that's fine, but I've found neutral doesn't always equate to best sound, which is the case with the Meze. But it is a challenge to customize your own EQs manually. The one I came up with for the 99s was not created easily. lol

That's correct. Neutral doesn't mean the best sound for music or whatever. However, when it comes to judging multiple cans on an equal playing field, being able to even out their individual EQ responses is a godsend. For studio monitoring purposes, you want the flattest EQ response. So that was awesome and important to me. Once you get all the headphones flattened out, you can judge them equally, based on other sonic traits. I NEVER listen to music without my personal EQ settings/curves. They are tailored for each individual headphone I have, and in many cases are adjusted depending on what album, song, or genre I'm listening to. I NEVER listen to music for enjoyment with NO/FLAT EQ. The only times I don't is when I'm streaming from the internet (Youtube, etc), and playing video games.

If sony could collaborate with B&O and combine the materials/comfort of the MDR1a and the sound of h6 2nd generation we would truly reach the holy grail of headphones.

^This.

---

I'm very tempted to try the 99's.

 

[RockStar2005]

That's correct. Neutral doesn't mean the best sound for music or whatever. However, when it comes to judging multiple cans on an equal playing field, being able to even out their individual EQ responses is a godsend. For studio monitoring purposes, you want the flattest EQ response. So that was awesome and important to me. Once you get all the headphones flattened out, you can judge them equally, based on other sonic traits. I NEVER listen to music without my personal EQ settings/curves. They are tailored for each individual headphone I have, and in many cases are adjusted depending on what album, song, or genre I'm listening to. I NEVER listen to music for enjoyment with NO/FLAT EQ. The only times I don't is when I'm streaming from the internet (Youtube, etc), and playing video games.



^This.

---

I'm very tempted to try the 99's.

Making them all neutral is a great approach to comparing headphones. I think that it would be even better to EQ them to sound their BEST though b/c that's how you're going to be listening to them anyway, not (necessarily) neutrally. I guess neutral gives you a good "baseline" to compare from though too.

Yeah for studio monitoring I would say AKG prob, since the K550s for example ARE "Reference Headphones". But for listening to and enjoying music, I no longer feel straight neutral is best (thanks to Meze). I too only listen with the best custom EQs I can get my hands on. In my car though I just leave it on "Rock" b/c it's a different environment entirely when the speakers aren't PRESSED UP against your ears. lol

You should man. lol Look over my other post from yesterday again on it and use the links if interested. My EQ is available at your request, though I'm still waiting on akg fanboy for a final "tweaking discussion" about it. If anyone can make it better, he can, but honestly if I didn't tweak anymore, I'm already at the point where I am MORE than pleased with it. You just have to make sure to have Poweramp ready (or any player with a TEN-band EQ).