Thanks, that was more of a hypothetical "if" situation. I'm in no rush to move on from my 4XXs which are still running strong.

Unfortunate, but I guess that's kind of a bit of the gamble you take with drop. I've been lucky enough to have mine since 2018 without issues. But they really didn't get heavy daily use until I started working from home more 2019. I'll consider myself lucky, as I already feel like I've gotten...

I'm surprised you had issues with the stock pads. I've been using mine daily for well over a year now, and they are still in excellent condition. Good luck getting the new pads sorted.

Has anyone compared the MP-D2 with the Doge 7?

I'm so glad you mentioned this. I was going to bring up how this happens from time to time in the speaker side of the audio hobby. The most extreme example I've seen personally is with the Polk LSiM 707 towers, but the original Elac Debut had a similar issue. The LSiM speaker would sound wildly...

I'm surprised to hear about these issues. I plugged mine in powering via USB from my plugged in laptop. Instant flawless performance and no issues with the cord moving slightly as my standing desk goes up and down. I'd send it back Schiit if I was having some of the issues described.

I saw that Drop already has a sale/price drop on these ($200 now). I wonder if that was planned, or reactionary due to a lackluster start. I'm still curious, but just not sure that these would really offer enough of a jump from the 4xx.

I was lucky enough to get a Modius for Christmas which will go in my headphone system in my office. I'm excited to hear how it does paired with my rHead amp and 4xx.

I wouldn't hold my breath on an MK4 just yet. I think there are a lot of production delays between covid and the AKM fire. MP is a small company, and likely falls very low on the totem pole for priority fulfillment from parts suppliers.

Removing all the Deva and HE500 talk, it sounds like these are generally (but not universally) considered an upgrade to the 4XX. That alone has me curious. Maybe if they're still around after Christmas. But the Elex has had my eye for awhile as well. Just thinking those might be overkill for my...

Does this mean any products with AKM 4499 are going to become scarce at some point? At least for some unknown amount of time? This obviously isn't the only device with these chips. I wonder if it will put a little pressure on the whole DAC segment. I wouldn't think it certainly doesn't give any...

I was ready to be annoyed with another review focused entirely on HE500/5XX element, but I did think this statement was helpful: That's productive real world input that I think buyers can use. I wish there was more details on what specifically in the sound stands out with the 400i 2020 or 6XX...

Excited to hear various real world reviews!

Sounds like a pretty strong endorsement for the new AK chips.

This certainly seems like you looked at a graph and have zero hands on experience with the headphones. Measurements rarely tell the whole story in my experience.

So this category seems to have a few good options, and reviews all seem very favorable and somewhat feel like the flavor of the week. Any strong opinions on these? I'll be using it in a desktop set up via USB in to balanced out only if that makes any difference. And please let me know if my...

A better example is one I gave previously, the Chevy Blazer. The new Blazer has zero resemblance or capability of the Blazers of old. But they've been selling. Not because people are hung up on the name or marketing, but because they feel it's a quality value proposition. Doesn't matter how...

This is the point I'm most interested in being a 4xx owner. If the 5xx was out back when I had purchased, I likely would have just skipped straight to the 5xx. But is it really a notable step up from the 4xx? I guess we'll find out as more users get their hands on them.

This conversation is killing me. Loads of industries do this all the time. No one is freaking out that the new mustang is called a mustang. And a million more examples. It's a name and marketing hype. I think everyone needs to just look past the name and focus on if the quality of the product...

I totally get that having both would be appealing to a lot of people. But I think the reviewer should always present why someone would want THIS one, and where to look if that doesn't sound appealing to them. I think you actually did that very well in your "Who it is for" section of your review...

So many people hung up on the naming and marketing. I personally don't care if this sounds like the original 500, I care how it sits compared to other options in the market place. So to me, I just want to know the following: 1 - is it worth $60 more than the 4xx 2 - why would someone prefer...

I appreciate that feedback! It sounds like the rHead has a long term place in my office and should hopefully scale up nicely if I ever decide to get some nicer headphones in here. I am looking for DACs right now, but I'm sticking with balanced designs because I already have some decent Zu...

That's exactly the type of reassurance I was hoping to hear! Now I just need to figure out what DAC to pair with it. The rHead gets zero use in my listening room, so I figured I should bring it into the office since I've just been running my 4XX off the computer out of convivence.

I should also add that I'm not really focused on the DAC at that point. I'm more curious if there are newer headphone amps, particularly ones that are part of stacks, that might beat out the rHead. My gut tells me to keep the rHead, but I'm not as up to speed on the headphone arena and I knew...

Just to be clear, the budget is only $400-500 for a combined stack, and that's because I could sell my rHead for $200-300. Out of pocket in that case is still $200-300 max. Dac budget would be $200ish, could possibly creep up to $300. That budget is lower because I would be keeping the rHead.