I'll probably be put in the Tower of London for saying this, but when I finally heard sub-bass on headphones (my TX-00s, since sold; and the Eikon, which has plenty)--I actually cared less about it than I'd expected:
- It's certainly nice to have that little subsonic shimmer when all hell is breaking loose in entire bass range and other frequencies (ie, sub-bass is part of big music of some kind--and the headphone is capable of giveing all of it to you).
- But when sub-bass is the star of the show (some electronic music, other demo stuff bassheads love/trade to each other), it does less for me. Sure, it's kind of exhilarating to have headphones vibrate my head like a big melon--but the sub-bass experience by itself isn't that important to me.
I'll trade a little sub-bass for full-bass range quality any day. For example, the E-Mu Teaks (on the right amp) have spectacular bass--which doesn't happen to contain very much sub-bass (yet it sounds extremely wonderful). Same w/the ZMF Ori. The ZMF Eikon is one of those headphones that really does give you ALL of...sub-bass and everything else. It's a very special headphone in that sense.
Last year I purchased one of the true basshead-approved headphones of recent years (JVC HA-SZ1000). With the right amplification, it did sub-bass to an insane degree, shaking my head like a bell. But it didn't do other things that were more important to me, namely: comfort, predictable/pleasing repro of other frequencies; even, balanced nature; and sounding "musical," so reluctantly I sold them.
BTW, I met a lot of very nice and interesting folks on the JVC & basshead threads. But I eventually realized that I need something a little different.
That is very nice of you to include some of your history/ experience jumping into the "basshead" threads and participating, so you get a feel for the pros/cons.
The dream of the head-fi basshead is to have a few audiophile grade level cans that can play basshead genre music.
For example Metal571 in his review praised the sub bass extention and slam. The word slam does something to bassheads, and then ofc breeds curiosity into
the capability of the driver. Tyll gave a somewhat less favorable impression on the lower end extension tightness, but to be fair he listens at low volume. He's still
a bad-a$$ though, and gets into the thick of things with his measurement rig, though it may not be perfect, he's not shy to get into the heated areas.
Hawaiibadboy when EQ'ing doesn't "boost" like some think. He "cuts" which isolates the sub-bass frequencies to test the driver;s
capabilities. Without such work, no one would really have known how much of a HAMMER the th-900 is. It was ranked #2 for so long. I'll keep the tactile transducer KANNON
out of this, or some purists would probably blow a valve
Multi-driver talk (things like Bluedio UFO PRO PLUS, SZ2000) seems to go in and out of audiophile ears.
But knowing how much a driver can take (power) and stability at high volume (no sub-bass rattles). This is to show how far it can go, and where to stop. This information
is so valuable. So so valuable, and makes heros like the gentleman
@DonChuy with his Z1R. He is a hero to many bassheads. The sad thing, was people were saying the Z1R when challenged
wasn't a "bassheaD" level can. The hero stepped up and showed them yes, it is TOTL Audiophile level, and BASSHEAD. Huzzah for the shopkeep!
(...finally found this one ^)
But to know a 50mm Biocellulose driver, audiophile grade can, beat out a BASS HEAVY 70mm xb1000 for example, should excite both audiophiles/bassheads.
Now, the th900 ranked #2 (taking into account KANNON not included). th-X00 was 4 or 5, can't remember. Now if they're both 50mm biocellulose, then why would one be
#2, and one #4/5. Well, I would imagine the magnet strength, and stiffness (what do the acoustic engineers call it Young's Modulus or w/e... elastic modulus...) of diaphragm has something to do with it.
In the r10 threads, it was mentioned something like 18+ kN/mm2 or 18GPA+, and the cd3000 ("baby r10" with less, in the r10 threads posted 8-10 KN/mm2 or GPa). These figures are in the r10 owners thread,
and when posted, undisputed, and i would imagine correct. Surely, the th900 would probably have higher elastic modulus than the th-X00. I am not playing Mr. Acoustic Engineer, Material R&D scientist. I am
encouraging more specifications related research so the confusion is lessened. E.g with the r10/baby r10 example, there are possiby some reasons why the bass is
tighter/ accurate (due to increased stiffness in diaphragm). When the controversy on the cd3000 drivers being same was brought up, people had to dig and go
into trenches to see they were not same even though both were biocellulose. And this is probably same with the th-900, th-600, th-X00/ e-mu TEAK etc. I'm not making
statements, but encouragment into comparing other specifications/ details about the magnetic power, composition of the diaphragm. To keep saying all biocell perform
at the same level is nonsensical. Its like the cans trying to ride the Utopia Beryllium train. But slowly, its been stated many of those drivers were coated with Beryllium.
So i encourage the reviewers (professional and non-professionals) to get into the nitty gritty and dig deeper into the differences of how the different materials
are playing a role, the magnetic strength, housings etc so we can learn more, and not just stick to superlatives. Many do, and i bet it takes ages to compile that info.
If you speak of superior pistonic movement in a review, or stiff diaphragm, or materials that damp, ... then get into the nitty gritty and explain why and how they work. Some points are relative, so they require spec comparisons on stiffness, magnets etc. Keep safe and have fun, and look forward to more interesting points on audio/headphones etc
@zach915m obviously has won the
praise of guys like Tyll, Steve Guttenburgh, Metal571, Z Reviews, etc etc all reviewers I enjoy so for bassheads its not challenging whether its a good headphone. Its clear the Eikon/Atticus
is a winner, and the Auteur looks fabulous. This is a cry from bassheads hungry for another TOTL biocellulose that can survive and squeeze into HBB Basshead list. He should definitely get a set
to test, and have analyze like the bass scientist he is. Thank you
Peace and Blessings
