[bizkid]

https://www.kopfhoerer.de/test/adam-audio-studio-pro-sp-5/

A german review with measurements. Scroll down to see them. They look fantastic, one of the flattest fr i have ever seen in a headphone.

 

[Blinxat]

I got them about a week ago. They share similarities with the Signature Studio I had from Ultrasone.

These have very good bass definition and resolution, excellent punch too. Extends deep as well.

Mids seem forward and sometimes shouty, they also have this weird bright background sheen to their mids. They are clear, but some other headphones create a more "Black background" I think this is the only real drawback. Some people might not even hear it. For me it helps to lower 1khz to 2khz by 2 or 3db, I think vocals then get meatier and fall in a more natural position of the mix.

Treble is crsip and clear. Separation is good. Soundstage is debatable. Maaaybe it enhances tracks with space effects already built in with electronic tracks, but overall this is a forward sounding headphones across the spectrum. Detailing in the music seems high.

But the sound is tight and snappy and not comsumer like, little warmth.

 

[Dobrescu George]

I made a video review about SP-5

Full in-depth review coming to Audiophile-Heaven

 

[Dobrescu George]

Man, the more I listen to SP-5, the more it feels like they somehow managed to make an open-back headphone inside a closed-back. I have a lot of flagships on my table, including Jade II from HIFIMAN, and other really nice flagships, and late at night I stell grab SP-5 pretty often, and I'm still very happy with the sound, I find them wonderfully detailed, clean and clear

 

[Dobrescu George]

I made an in-depth review for Adam PRO SP-5 Headphones

https://www.audiophile-heaven.com/2019/04/bleeding-edge-precision-adam-audio-pro-sp5-headphones.html

 

[Koei]

So what is the verdict on these? They don't seem to be a very popular model.

 

[Dobrescu George]

So what is the verdict on these? They don't seem to be a very popular model.

they are very good actually, but most closed back headphones are less popular than their open back counterparts

 

[menuki]

So what is the verdict on these? They don't seem to be a very popular model.

Well, I am happy for everyone who is enjoying them, but they were way too sharp up top for me. I ran some frequency sweeps and there was a sharp peak at arround 10khz, while the rest of the frequency was actually pretty even.

Maybe their special design (which is supposedly making them sound different to each ear) is also playing a role regarding whether or not you'll enjoy them. Why not try and send them back if you don't like em.

 

[Tomms]

I'm currently considering
-Adam Studio Pro SP-5
-Beyerdynamic DT 1990
-Austrian Audio Hi-X55
-Austrian Audio Hi-X65

Could anyone with direct experience describe differences between these ?

 

[Tomms]

if anyone needs replacement pads or cables, these are available at Adam website
https://shop.adam-audio.com/accessories/SP-5-accessories/#

 

[Mad Max]

Those Austrian Audio headphones have radically different tuning from the others, and are not meant for casual listening, going by what other people say about them here on head-fi and elsewhere. Terrific in the studio for fine tuning compressor settings and other stuff, uber resolving, but the weird tonal balance ruins them for casual listening, while the SP-5 and DT1990 are fine for hi-fi audio playback.


For anyone else reading the thread, having a 10kHz treble peak in a closed-back headphone is extremely common. It is incredibly rare not to have a 10kHz peak in a closed-back.

 

[Mark Up]

Those Austrian Audio headphones have radically different tuning from the others, and are not meant for casual listening

My 2 cents as an audio engineer. The perception that brutal honest equals pain seems to be the selling point. At first they weren't about that, but as reviews started to come in about their lumpy midrange, and fatiguing sound, they took that on. To me, a headphone that is accurate can sound good. I know of many examples. The Austrian Audio in my experience are even worse for "accurate listening" (vs. "casual") in how those midrange peaks might have the engineer radically cutting in places between 800 hz and 3 - 4 khz, resulting in uneven mixes when played in monitoring / headphones that are more accurate. Besides being painful to wear they're painful to listen to and a big disappointment.

 

[Tomms]

Returning pair right now; I've tested these plugged directly into motherboard. I guess there would be some sound difference with dedicated DAC and amp.

Won't be keeping them, because wearing and hearing comfort problems are obvious:
-Painful clamp around ears; headband seems fine.
-Feeling tired quite fast with music; I believe this is because 1) they are closed back, 2) there's big metal cover in front of the driver making things even more reflective.

some thoughts:
I consider these revealing.
Midrange sounds very thin, unrealistic, I could probably live with that though.
Wouldn't call these bright, for me 'bright' means boosted treble. There's just no body in midrange.
Sub bass is soft, clean with quick decay. Somewhat hard to perceive.
These sound like linear frequency response. Kopfhoerer.de measurement feels realistic.
Mid-side separation is very obvious. Useful for recognizing mono signals.
Sound feels somewhat distant. Perhaps because of S-logic indirect sound technology. Thin midrange, fast decay, serious mid-side separation might be some factors here as well.
I really like how long the warranty is, 5 years total. Would be nice to see more manufacturers doing so.
Had a 'problem' cleaning these. Could not find any sweat on pads and headband cushion. Cool material property.