ATH-AD**** users unite!

[shigzeo]

well, how can I say? i find these headphones which I borrowed for a few days from a friend to be very detail oriented and fun, but I miss the bass from my DT880... overall, AD900 are great headphones and fun even for acoustic music which I find is a bit more fun with a warmer sound, but they sound great. They slip from my head a bit, but still very comfortable... great headphones that are underrated here at headfi... AT team!

 

[syyuen]

I just bought the AD2000 one week ago, although it has not yet run-in,
I like it very much. Compare with my A900Ltd, AD2000 is much balance,
natural and "airy".
Currently, I am using ATH-HA20 to drive the AD2000, I want to upgrade,
I like SS amp, do you have any suggestion? Is GS-1 a good choice?

 

[fuzydice]

AD500 owner here. Have had them about two weeks now, and they're about the best $75 I ever spent in regards to headphones

Coming from HD580's, these lack some bass (but I'm more about moderation when it comes to bass, so this isn't a huge issue for me) and they definitely lack in the size of the sound-stage. But they sound great, and have become my primary headphones until I decide on an amp for the 580's. Wouldn't mind checking out a higher end AT headphone in the future.

 

[Asr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by syyuen /img/forum/go_quote.gif I just bought the AD2000 one week ago, although it has not yet run-in, I like it very much. Compare with my A900Ltd, AD2000 is much balance, natural and "airy". Currently, I am using ATH-HA20 to drive the AD2000, I want to upgrade, I like SS amp, do you have any suggestion? Is GS-1 a good choice?

The GS-1 is an excellent amp for the AD2K. It makes me wonder how much of an upgrade the HA5000 would really be. For the AD2K, I set it to Low Gain and crank it up, boom! Although I should state that my preferential sound is lots of precision and a warm mid-range. Introspective spatials too. Bass is one of the things I think about least.

 

[syyuen]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Asr /img/forum/go_quote.gif The GS-1 is an excellent amp for the AD2K. It makes me wonder how much of an upgrade the HA5000 would really be. For the AD2K, I set it to Low Gain and crank it up, boom! Although I should state that my preferential sound is lots of precision and a warm mid-range. Introspective spatials too. Bass is one of the things I think about least.

Asr, thanks your comment, there is not much information talk about which amp is a good match with the AD2K, what I saw is suggesting tube amp, but I like SS more. So I get my direction now.

 

[Elephas]

Not much talk about which amp is a good match with the AD2K? This must be corrected immediately, how can this unacceptable situation exist on a headphone forum?

I think the AD2000 sounds good with most amps; it shouldn't be difficult to find a good match, although better-matches makes it even more able to disappear and leave you with just the music.

It sounds good with SS amps such as the RSA Hornet, Corda amps, Lehmann BCL, CEC HD53R, Sugden HeadMaster and AT-HA5000.

I like the AD2000+HA5000 pairing most. The AD2000's already excellent air and spaciousness is improved and soundstage is larger. Tonality is better balanced, with a detailed, crisp and crystal-clear treble, a creamy smooth midrange that is irresistibly lush with female vocals, and a deep, textured, extended bass.

 

[syyuen]

Elephas, I had read several review on AD2000, including yours.

what I mean "not much" is compare with other popular headphone,
sorry to confusing you.

Can I ask you one question? Have you try HD-1L (a Japanese Headamp)?
I heard it is quite good to pair with W5000.

 

[Gradofan2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elephas /img/forum/go_quote.gif Not much talk about which amp is a good match with the AD2K? This must be corrected immediately, how can this unacceptable situation exist on a headphone forum? I think the AD2000 sounds good with most amps; it shouldn't be difficult to find a good match, although better-matches makes it even more able to disappear and leave you with just the music. It sounds good with SS amps such as the RSA Hornet, Corda amps, Lehmann BCL, CEC HD53R, Sugden HeadMaster and AT-HA5000. I like the AD2000+HA5000 pairing most. The AD2000's already excellent air and spaciousness is improved and soundstage is larger. Tonality is better balanced, with a detailed, crisp and crystal-clear treble, a creamy smooth midrange that is irresistibly lush with female vocals, and a deep, textured, extended bass.

The AD2000's may be one of the 2 or 3 best headphones out there - there certainly can't be a significant improvement available (more than 10%). The detail, clarity, balance, impact and dynamics are simply awesome. It's certainly much better than the Senns on most types of music (moreso than the HD650's, the HD600's are close).

But... what is the best way to warm the sound just a bit... particularly in the upper mids... to take just a bit of the edge off those piercing tones of some very loud / intense passages... and to provide just a wee bit more of the Senn tone body / weight, without the infamous Senn veil / fog (which is very noticeable in comparison to the clarity / detail of the AD2000's)???

Is it a matter of better impedence matching (do I need a Moon Audio adapter with a 70+ ohm resister)... do I need a tube amp (like the EAR+ HD - which is special with low impedence phones)... or what. I'm afraid an all SS amp that's not designed specifically for the AD2000's (40 ohm load), such as the HA5000, may make their sound to strident / bright - and, I'm not going to spend $1,000+ for a SS amp (maybe a for a good tube amp, but not a SS amp).

Any thoughts???

 

[Transit]

All right... they arrived just before Christmas

. Man, they're huge but surprisingly very light. Took a while finding a proper way to put them on the head else it either slips off or bunches my hair up like a rooster.

Initial impressions was, the phones lacked bass. It was fast, tight but didn't really impress (I'm used to the bass coming from a Koss Portapro and the PX100) and these being my first real pair of cans, I wasn't that 100% happy. However, the clarity and its ability to handle the mids and highs were wonderful!!!

I can hear instruments and the background music/instruments which I've never heard before. Wow! It's a pair of headphones which gives great details, only downside is (to me) the bass.

I'm wondering if any AD900 owners out there could tell me if the headphone does improve in the bass department over time? I haven't been using them long so I can't really tell but it seems to be improving slightly (or is it a placebo effect since I really want to like them, haha)

I know it's an easy to drive headphone but does amplication improve it? Does anyone know of amps that has synergy with it? I'm thinking of getting a portable porta corda in the future.

Any help is appreciated guys... My wallet's hurting but it's worth it...

 

[ironbut]

.

But... what is the best way to warm the sound just a bit... particularly in the upper mids... to take just a bit of the edge off those piercing tones of some very loud / intense passages... and to provide just a wee bit more of the Senn tone body / weight, without the infamous Senn veil / fog (which is very noticeable in comparison to the clarity / detail of the AD2000's)???

I'm with you Gradofan2. I find it hard to see how a dynamic phone can sound a whole lot better than these! Of course, that won't keep me from looking. As far as an amp goes, the items on your wish list are just the kinds of things that can be done with tube rolling. I don't know if the EAR+ is the right amp because I've never heard one. But from what I've tried so far, the 2K's don't seem real picky amp wise. I think one of the reasons it sounds so dynamic and fast is because it is very efficient. I hear a lot of the things that are so nice with SE triodes and single, high efficiency, driver speakers. When a transducer is easy to drive, there is a lack of lag between the high and low frequencies. This results in a lack of smearing and inaccuracies in time domains. I think this leads to the clarity and transparency the 2K's have. Oh shoot! Sorry. Back to the amp thing.
Even amps that don't have a whole ton of tube rolling options can make subtile changes to the frequencies that are pronounced. I don't agree with the folks that want to totally change the character of an amps sound with tube rolling. I mean, it's fun and all but, if an amp doesn't have the characteristics that you like, you have the wrong amp. You can tune a great sounding tube amp to work better with a particular headphone or speaker though. Reducing or increasing high frequency, too forward mids or midrange suckout reduction, increasing or reducing edge, all can be accomplished to one degree or another with tube rolling. You do need to start with the right amp. If the Ear+ is good for the 2K maybe. But I wouldn't draw to many parallels to the way it drives other low z phones because the 2K's are very efficient and it may be an ideal match.

 

[Elephas]

Quote:

Originally Posted by syyuen /img/forum/go_quote.gif Elephas, I had read several review on AD2000, including yours. what I mean "not much" is compare with other popular headphone, sorry to confusing you. Can I ask you one question? Have you try HD-1L (a Japanese Headamp)? I heard it is quite good to pair with W5000.

Please, ask more than one question.

I agree there isn't much talk about amplification for the AD Series compared to the amount of threads about amping the K701, HD650, etc. The AD Series has become more popular on Head-Fi since 2005, but the number of relevant threads is still low.

A quick Google search indicates the AID (Intercity) HD-1L comes in Advance and Limited versions as well as the standard one. It is not inexpensive; the Advance is listed at over US$1400, which is more than the AT-HA5000. It doesn't seem to be available outside of Japan.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gradofan2 Any thoughts???

It's possible a warm SS amp could provide a fuller, Senn-type body in the upper midrange, but might sacrifice some speed and air. The same might apply for warm tube amps.

There are trade-offs with every amp I've tried with the AD2000, including the AT-HA5000. One could have more crystal-clear highs and air, but lack some bass impact. Another could have more bass quantity and smoother mids, but lack detail and have less precise imaging.

I think that there are some imperfections in any one headphone; even an arguably superior headphone, such as the AD2000 compared to the Koss KSC-75, might lose in certain categories. To me, amping is one way to tune a headphone's sound to one's liking. Every amp I've heard with the AD2000 sounds different, and it is impossible to know which one is the most neutral or most like a wire with gain, or even if that is more desireable; one can only go by one's preferences.

If source material/recording quality is not an issue, other things I can think of include the source, cabling and power conditioning. In my system, power conditioning made a significant improvement: blacker background, clearer notes separation, better imaging, and increased sense of realism. The music became more lifelike and free-flowing while retaining details and crispness. The shape and progression of notes suspended and traveling through air towards the ears became more coherent; it's almost as if time slowed down slightly, allowing one to better hear the attack and decay of notes.

System synergy, a combination of source, amp, headphones and related components that produce the least objectionable sound, is most important.

 

[Gradofan2]

Obviously, all that makes sense - but, its all "jes too damn complicated."

I'm the impatient sort... and just want a quick solution.

I'm going to try the Aphex Aural Exciter SP to "tune" the sound of my AD2000's to have more warmth, and the sound of my Senns to have less warmth - and see what it can do for me.

I'll let you know how it turns out.

 

[Inkmo]

still pimping my AD900 here. I've been learning to enjoy these cans more and more. little details and all. I met up with another headfi member in my town who had some AT cans, and I can really hear the differences between the A and AD lines now. I thought the A500 was a very pleasing can, and the added helping of bass was welcome, but I really learned what all the air the A900 has sounds like after that.

 

[ironbut]

I don't know if you guys saw the thread "Ad2000 in Denver" but there was mention of Guitar Ctr. having them in stock for $700. I found that hard to believe so I went there and sure enough, $700. What was even more jaw dropping to me was that they showed the list price to be over $1100. Can that be right? I bought mine used for $420 in perfect condition. I really feel that they are in a different class from the rest of my phones sound wise, but I didn't know they were in a totally different price class.

 

[Snaques]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Inkmo /img/forum/go_quote.gif I met up with another headfi member in my town who had some AT cans, and I can really hear the differences between the A and AD lines now. I thought the A500 was a very pleasing can, and the added helping of bass was welcome, but I really learned what all the air the A900 has sounds like after that.

I'm getting interested in these AT's. The A900/AD900 seems like a good starting point. Could someone clear me with the difference/similarities of A & AD models. Is AD just a newer revision or are they completly different cans?