[instantdeath01]

My music genres of choice, in order: Drum n Bass, Techno, Electro, House.

I have a pair of 900i and they're a completely different thing than the Signature models, imo. I think you'll find any Signature will be a compliment to your 900, even the Pulse - which I haven't heard, but I do have pair of Signature DJ, the predecessor of the Pulse.

Thanks for responding!

You say "completely different" and "compliment". Can you elaborate? Think of it like this, to me the 900i's ARE what Ultrasone's sound like as a whole, in my brain, because its all i have ever heard from the brand.

Are the masters better in all aspects and on a whole other level beyond the 900i's, or are they way different all together, maybe better is some regards and worse in others?

The more details you give the better don't be shy with the info hehe!!

 

[e-dub]

Masters don't have the swollen bass the 900i does, the mids are present and the highs are much more accurate. Not to mention the soundstaging is worlds better. They're much better headphones, and truth be told, I don't user my 900i nearly as much as I used to. That said, if the 900i is the definition of Ultrasone to you, the others may leave you wating something else. I don't think the bass of any of their current offerings will be what you want.

 

[Dramlin]

I'm curious if any of you guys have listened to the 900i's as much as i have, and now have also heard this new signature series, specifically the masters and pulse, and how they compare. Since the 900i's are the only Ultrasone's i have ever heard i have nothing to compare them too. I see some comparison's being made to the signature pro's, and some other series of Utrasone's but i haven't heard those.

Something i didn't see talked about too much is that the Pulse have 50mm drivers vs 40 and being a basshead that sounds amazing to me,

Welcome to the party!

I haven't listened to the 900i's as much as everyone else, but I did compare them to the Masters and Pulse. I've heard that the 900i's sound can vary from user to user, but in my case the overall sound leans out the mids and lower treble considerably, has a boosted bass, and with the velour pads the overall sound is somewhat airy. Since there's sound leakage through the pads that forces you to turn the volume up to get to a normal listening level. That also turns the bass up as well, and you end up with what sounds almost like a small subwoofer next to your ear. That everywhere bass rumble is what makes the 900i's special IMO, and the effect is a direct result of the airy & lean tuning of the headphone. With that just about any other more balanced headphone will have a different sounding bass.

The closest to the 900i will be the Pulse. From the 900i the Pulse will have less lower bass but more midbass. Otherwise the bass on the Pulse will have more weight to it, it feels fuller. The mids are mostly filled in where voices will sound much closer to correct, instruments across the entire range will be much closer to reality, the treble will hit all the high notes without going into sharp territory. Detail goes way up. The stage becomes different, a more defined bubble with more accurate placement and better separation with the instruments. Aside from the loss of that subwoofer feel, the Pulse is an upgrade across the board.

From the Pulse, the Masters up the detail further, tighten up the bass, get a deeper and wider stage, are more tonally correct, and offer around the same amount of subbass with reduced mid bass. The Pulse excels at electronic music, the Masters do everything very well.

 

[AreTur]

the Masters do everything very well.

Agree in 100%, I'm addicted to Masters these are great headphones that, due to their alignment, have no right to get bored. If you listen to electronic music and you want to listen to jazz with elements of hip-hop, fusion,electronic, rock or any kind of music this is not a problem. These headphones are great for all types of music. What definitely speaks for them, the sound is balanced and I do not feel that something is missing. I have enough amount of bass, well controlled, which does not flood other sounds, great mids and highs. For me, these headphones are the discovery of the year. I used to be a fan of the Grado sound (I had the Grado RS2 model), great but super uncomfortable at least for me. Masters are refined in every respect. I'm just curious how they sound with a tube amp. My current Questyle M15 DAC is excellent, but the tube could be interesting. I highly recommend the Masters, even if the Pulse are more bassy, the Masters are safer for the future and will work well with any type of music.

 

[VinMAC]

I find it interesting that users who love Ultrasone also have a preference for the Grado sound and vice versa. I've read that several times now, even over in the Grado forum. And honestly, it's the same for me, because I love my Ultrasones and my Grado GS1000i.

 

[AreTur]

There is something about it,
I loved the Grado madly but the pads were terribly uncomfortable. They sounded beautifully open and bright, very detailed. I was looking for closed headphones (this time) that would give the same sound feeling as Grado or similar. USM are close to that, they play in their own way, but I like it very much and in a way it fills the need I described. Funny but I advised on one of the forums to look at the USM and test it - the girl just chose USM and Mojo 2 as a DAC to work with headphones. She was very impressed with the detail, beautiful sound and punctual bass. She considered Fostex TH610 and HiFiMAN HE-R10D.

 

[VinMAC]

I also had some Grados with the smaller L-pads like the RS2 or GH2. But it's true, they become quite uncomfortable over time. Too bad, because they have a unique explosive sound. Actually, only the big Grados with the G-pads like GS1000 or GS1000i are permanently comfortable. The PS series was again too heavy because of the heavy aluminum housings and pressed on the ears. Ultrasone Edition 9 and Grado GS1000 were my favorite pair for a long time.

 

[Teebs]

I'm waiting on a pair of Sig Pulse to be delivered this week. Sonovente currently has a discount on them at €345. Seemed like the right opportunity to try these out, especially after reading some positive feedback on here recently from a couple of people.... my interest was certainly piqued.

Any info on comparison of the pulse and master versus the 900i's i have had for so long and love, would be so helpful for me!

I'll be able to chime in once I've given them a good listen. Like you, I've been using the pro 900i's religiously for the past 3 years and I absolutely love them.

I'm a little bummed out that I missed out on the sig X over on drop, although owning both the Pulse and X may be a little redundant? Regardless, very excited to hear the Pulse!

 

[Dramlin]

I'm waiting on a pair of Sig Pulse to be delivered this week.

Welcome to the party as well, and Congrats on the Pulse! I too am interested to hear your thoughts on the Pulse vs 900i's, if you feel like sharing them of course.

I'm a little bummed out that I missed out on the sig X over on drop, although owning both the Pulse and X may be a little redundant? Regardless, very excited to hear the Pulse!

The X is interesting. It is bass over everything, more bass than the Pulse and so much bass that the overall tone & detail gets permanently dragged down. The build is considerably cheaper feeling than any other Signature. With the stock pads it also sounds quite a bit cheaper, frankly worse in my opinion, than the rest of the Signature line. With aftermarket pads the technical quality goes up about the level of the Pulses, just lacking the balance that the Pulses have. What the X does do well is extreme bass - rumbling, pervasive, highlight of the music bass. The Pulse still has the same bass emphasis, but is toned down (comparably) so that there is some balance while still being over the top. Anyways, long story short the X is good for those looking at bass over everything else, where you are ok with letting other aspects of the sound fall to the wayside in the name of getting more bass. The Pulse is more refined and balanced where it can be good with all music, and still has major bass quantity. I'll take the Pulse over the X since I value a balanced sound, but it wouldn't be necessarily redundant to have both if extreme bass is what you are looking for.

 

[plakat]

Welcome to the party as well, and Congrats on the Pulse! I too am interested to hear your thoughts on the Pulse vs 900i's, if you feel like sharing them of course.


The X is interesting. It is bass over everything, more bass than the Pulse and so much bass that the overall tone & detail gets permanently dragged down. The build is considerably cheaper feeling than any other Signature. With the stock pads it also sounds quite a bit cheaper, frankly worse in my opinion, than the rest of the Signature line. With aftermarket pads the technical quality goes up about the level of the Pulses, just lacking the balance that the Pulses have. What the X does do well is extreme bass - rumbling, pervasive, highlight of the music bass. The Pulse still has the same bass emphasis, but is toned down (comparably) so that there is some balance while still being over the top. Anyways, long story short the X is good for those looking at bass over everything else, where you are ok with letting other aspects of the sound fall to the wayside in the name of getting more bass. The Pulse is more refined and balanced where it can be good with all music, and still has major bass quantity. I'll take the Pulse over the X since I value a balanced sound, but it wouldn't be necessarily redundant to have both if extreme bass is what you are looking for.

Very helpful, thanks! I was tempted by the X, even put in my order but cancelled soon after. Going by your judgment that was a good decision for my tastes.

 

[TWerk]

Yes, I think a lot of us here who end up getting in the hobby are not into the overly outrageously bass boosted headphones where it comes to be to the detriment of other parts of the frequency response. I know when I first started I was very much about huge bass, but then you come to hear better headphones and the really boosted ones no longer do it for you. And I think that's why the mass popular headphones like beats boost the bass so much - it has more general appeal but you see less of that in the audiophile community where folks tend to like things more balanced. I do like impactful and extended bass that is punchy, but also for it to stay in control where it doesn't effect other things or muddy up the sound.

You also come to see stuff like EDM is already very boosted in the low end by default. The artist typically is making the track that way, already. Therefore, a balanced headphone or one with a little bass boost will lead to an enjoyable sound. One with hugely boosted bass may not be the best match on an already bass heavy track. It can be fun - it depends but the bass boost must be done in a way where it works with the rest of the sig and that's why I think V shape tends to work with the bass boost - so you keep the sparkle in tact and the signature doesn't come off muddy.

 

[Dramlin]

Agreed, if only my brain wasn't so picky. I'm jealous of the non-audiophiles who can just sit back and enjoy the sound. My brain seems to want things to be "correct", otherwise the incorrect parts become a distraction as they stand out compared to the rest of the music. I loved the Signature DJ's but eventually stopped using them since the mids were too far off. Over time I find that I continue to just want a bass boosted balanced sound where too much of something isn't missing.

I was planning on returning the Signature X's but gave them one last listen to an EDM playlist. The absolute rumble finally got to me and I decided to keep them. The X's have more bass than any other Ultrasone I've ever tried. They are good as a specialized headphone if their faults can be accepted.

 

[TWerk]

That makes total sense. I have a Sivga SV021 that has a ton of bass and I enjoy them for that same reason. They do though have enough treble sparkle to balance it out, too.

Anyone who is a bass head, I would totally toss that one out there as a recommendation. It is a very fun sounding headphone that just isn't shy about bass.

The Ultrasone 780 is a perfect example of a V shape headphone to me. It really scoops the mids out but have super punchy bass and sparkly treble and to my ears, it works. It works very well with EDM. It punches very well, doesn't have the lower rumble like the SV021 but instead has that upper bass punch to it.

They represent two different types of bassy signatures to me and I like them both.

There is an appeal with that stuff at times, and I totally get your point.

 

[e-dub]

FYI: Thomann has some "B Stock" Pulse and Masters in, and some older Signature Studios, as well.

 

[e-dub]

My Masters were B Stock purchased from Thomann and they're great, for whatever that's worth.