[Eddy Flycatcher]

Quote:

When do the k267's drop?

In about 4 hours 

 

[mrbigsby]

Hey all,
 
Only joined this forum as i was looking up reviews for new cans. I produce some music, and like most here i listen to a LOT. 
 
I was about to pull the pin on the m100's, but then i found this thread. 
 
So i went out today and bought a few new toys. Initially i was just going to grab the phones (K167), but then I thought id grab an e17 too, and then i thought id grab a microkorg (on sale) vocoder and synth, then i thought id buy some more maschine patches.... i got a little out of hand but ive honestly been working with the same tools for 3-4 years now. Native instruments Maschine, Audio Kontrol 1, macbook pro, a turntable, and some fostex pm05's... oh and an array of cans (mainly sennheiser because their easy to get and are usually revealing enough for me anywho).
 
Soooo, its been maybe 10-11 hours. Like others here i wasnt sure what all the fuss was about out of the box unamped, i even thought of taking them back and getting the m100's or hanging out till mid-late Jan for the 267 (Im in Australia). I thought id give them a crack after a quick burn in and see if all this is BS or if they were at least worth $185aud and would be an on the go workhorse for digital jams or iphone use. 
 
I did 4-5 hours of my own version of pink noise: rock, lounge, latin, classical, any thing from my samples files that isnt bass heavy or non organic (electronica)- full songs at pretty low volumes.
I then opted to pump it up a notch or two (still off iphone 4s no amp) every hour or two. After 7-8 hours i got bored and started testing bassier waters. Sub bass was there but not overwhelming, mid bass was ok but not awesome, detail and vocal was there but not as "revealing" or analytical as id been led to believe....So i thrashed them before I gave in and reboxed. Very glad i did!
 
So it wasnt night n day just yet, but i threw on some mildly amusing roots manuva, and kept chasing my richest tunes from there. after an hour with this thing maxed out on the iphone i found myself suddenly interested again. I was listening to a trentemoller track from last resort... no it was sunstroke- one sec....
 
Trentemoller- digital fox, sunstroke vinyl lp
 
I highly recommend this tune after 7, 8, 9, 10 hours of burn in, every hour or so i go back to it and more n more detail is revealed. It started to awaken the cans. I then went through the whole trentemoller catalogue. This isnt normally something i do, but i do test headphones out with it a lot. 
 
So now (last hour and currently) i have these things on my e17... Big difference. Also worth noting they will sound different through the e17 via iphone 4s AND itunes on my macbook pro. I found using itunes "sound enhancer" in the preferances at 70% wakes the phones up greatly detail wise. More similar to my production rig and mainstay home audio valve amp.
 
So the e17 sped up the break in 100 fold. In fact im wondering if im doing this all too fast, which is possible, but at this point im having too much of a journey to care. Everytime i hear a track that makes them sound better, i go back to my reference tunes on both the iphone and itunes to check im not imagining things. Im sure im not, its too drastic.
 
If you have these phones broken in, or are breaking them in now, I HIGHLY recommend you download yourself a nice quality copy of Dabrye- prefuse 73.3 
Regardless of style of music you like, to my ears this rough yet clean digital classic shows off both detail and depth in these cans very nicely. Its both lofi, and highly engineered. Every click and crackle is intentional and his mid and subbasses have the perfect balance of compression and grit. 
 
After this please humor me and download trentemoller vamp- for sub bass reference, and trentemoller- the forest for detail, soundscape, and epic mastering.
 
These days i produce hiphop beats for local artists, however i tune all my gear to the tastes of these songs to get everything sounding tight. I must say with the e17 on ful gain (12), bass boost on 6, and the cans not yet even fully broken in, i am more than impressed. Im delighted.
 
Many thanks for baring with my drivel, and many thanks for your fantastic forum. Ive become somewhat of an addict and chose both my amp and phones based on your words.
 
Kindest Of Regards,
Adrian

 

[PFULMTL]

Doode, What?  Are you talking about the K167, M100, or just the E17?

 

[mrbigsby]

ooh yeah sorry man, just thought everything here is k167 related. Yep im refering to the 167's. And an e17 amp.

 

[dweaver]

Good post mrbigsby it was rambling but fun to read. I will be testing the heck out of my pair when I get them starting with early impressions pre burnin up through hours of burnin.

 

[miow]

Quote:

The K167 does sound interesting, but I couldn't see buying them knowing that the K267 is around the corner with larger drivers, aluminum build and variable bass.
 

 
Thats true. I totally agree with that, If you got the $$$ go for it. I will.
 
Quote:

Not as harsh today as it was last night.  These just have a very revealing treble.  I can't pin these as better sounding over any of the other portable cans but it has a different flavor just like the rest of them.  I would still say these punch above its price and Tiesto must be an audiophile.

 
lol. Indeed

 

[viralcow]

The sound has gotten much better overnight. Great bass and treble extension, and good detail across the board. The lower-mids are a bit recessed, though, and I think I would've preferred a slightly warmer sound. 
 
Comfort and isolation are also top notch. I just wish these had better build quality. For $200 you shouldn't be running into creaking and cracking noises and afraid they'll snap in two whenever you put them on.

 

[miow]

I've just passed from the JDS Labs C421 to my wife's FiiO E11 and I got to teel you, these phones deserve a better amp than the E11. The difference on highs is night and day, the FiiO shows 50% of what these phones sound like. Highs are definitely not FiiO's strength. Not only they sound rolled off, as they're not as natural and real as with the C421, where they're simply the best highs I have ever heard. So, my friends, if you are getting these phones, get the best amp your money can buy. The C421 w/ AD2227 OPamp IMO has the best ratio sound quality/price on the market. It's just $180. And it's not only the resolution of the highs I'm talking about, it's clarity, transparency, micro-detail (and even bass quantity). The E11 is a good performer for the price, but not for phones of this high level.

 

[Minarets]

Quote:

I've just passed from the JDS Labs C421 to my wife's FiiO E11 and I got to teel you, these phones deserve a better amp than the E11. The difference on highs is night and day, the FiiO shows 50% of what these phones sound like. Highs are definitely not FiiO's strength. Not only they sound rolled off, as they're not as natural and real as with the C421, where they're simply the best highs I have ever heard. So, my friends, if you are getting these phones, get the best amp your money can buy. The C421 w/ AD2227 OPamp IMO has the best ratio sound quality/price on the market. It's just $180. And it's not only the resolution of the highs I'm talking about, it's clarity, transparency, micro-detail (and even bass quantity). The E11 is a good performer for the price, but not for phones of this high level.

E11 was all i was willing to shell out for now...

 

[miow]

Quote:

E11 was all i was willing to shell out for now...

 
It's a fine amp, but you lose on treble's realism/resolution, transparency, micro-detail, etc, compared to a JDSLabs C421 AD2227, as I told.

 

[nicholars]

Can you EQ the midbass/lower midrange to sound fuller? Or do these always sound a bit thin in that respect?
 
Maybe the K267 will have a thicker mid bass / lower midrange...
 
Personally I don't like thin midbass/lower midrange at all.

 

[miow]

Quote:

Can you EQ the midbass/lower midrange to sound fuller? Or do these always sound a bit thin in that respect?

 
Of course and bass boost from the amp.

 

[automaton]

Just bit on these, will be comparing to the Beyer DT990, driving both with an e17.  Will report back on the results.  Thanks to mrlazybums, was able to get them for $140 shipping using best offer on ebay.  

 

[miow]

To give you newcomers an idea of the bass quantity of the K167s with a JDSLabs C421 AD2227 amp (bass boost), with R&B (Toni Braxton - I Wanna Be) I'm getting a great ear massage (both sub and mid bass). I feel the drivers shaking as low as 10Hz. They're not the bassiest phones, naturally, as they're analytical as well, but are NOT bass light/thiin sounding AT ALL, when amped. They're full-bodied with this combo (Sony A865 with Clear Bass enabled as well, and of course, LOD - LOD gives more bass than headphone out too).

 

[tdubthatsme]

Just got mine in. I am quite pleased, and very glad I returned the Denon D1100s I got last week. These definitely seem more durable, and are good if you have a smaller/average-sized head. I wear a 7 3/8 hat, and these fit perfectly. The headband is quite stiff, and I can see why anyone with a much larger head having issues.
 
My only complaint in terms that the tips of my ears touch the inside of the earpad, and its a bit itchy. Hopefully that will go away. 
 
These headphones are really balanced. With all the talk about bass, I was somewhat expecting a bit more (though I do not have an amp on hand to run it through...). 
 
I am very impressed. After some burn in and the itching goes away, I will love them. 
 
I only listened for 20 or so minutes, so it definitely isn't complete, but Swedish House Mafia, Michael Jackson, Macklemore, Billy Joel, and Finger Eleven all impressed me. So much clearer than my m50s. Less bass, less muddiness, just clear sound. 
 
I will be using these for rough mixing and other studio work, as well as my portable cans.