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MX4 - DAVE/ DAVE-WA5LE short thoughts:
Naked DAVE:
Cleaner presentation than the WA33 I listened to before, but it still had a veil in its presentation. Notes still seemed truncated and blurred. It was less clear than a modded HD600/HD650 and the X that I have owned. Dynamics were more or less then same, soft, will little swing. Bruckner's symphony No 9 sounded immdeiately dull as well as conjested. It did not capture the grand acoustics of the concert hall, especially apparent when the low rumble of horns do not reverberate.
Bach cello suite 4 sounded alright in a small venue, however I did not hear the vibrations in the cello strings that were obvious with the ZMF Eikon, another warm headphone. Trios and small works sounded great if you could dismiss the veil/lack or clarity. MX4 fell flat on its face for classical compared to the likes of HE1000.
Bass was extended well and clean. Massive Attack's splitting the atom had defined bassline, but impact was lacking, it did not make me tap my feet unlike the punchy nature of the ZMF Auteur. clarity was not a big issue for electronic as the music is processed anyway, though i could hear the veil to a small extent. These are somewhat basshead headphones that can be an electronic music lover's dream. Highly satisfying sub bass and mid bass hump, slightly recessed highs that take off the edge of poorly recorded pieces.
Imaging of Yosi Horikawa- Bubbles and Bump was blurry. Transients like the sound of ping pong balls in the tracks were ill-defined/mashed together at complex sections. Overall Stax 007 was a beast at electronic music, the best I have heard with Yosi's albums.
Piano sounds outright electronic, stripped of its natural timbre with Thelonius Monk. Saxes were very pleasant though, euphonic and intimate. The shrill,honky nature of some sax recordings are smoothed out tastefully. Once again, acoustic space representation was poor, the MX4 does not take advantage of reverb/decay of good recordings, quartets sound better. Bucky Pizzarelli's trio Three For All was a relaxing listen.
Dire Strait's Sultans of Swing had a very blunt treble, poor extention. Ting of cymbals followed by silence. Transients were far too quick, which I dislike planars and electrostats for, the shimmer of cymbals/triangles decay almost immediately. Guitar crunches of Rodrigo y Gabriela was done decently, but without texture and visceral impact.
Overall, better DAVE solo than with the WA33 I would like to admit. The woo amp made the MX4 even more claustrophobic and blurry than it already is. The MX4 is good but not great for a laid back listening session, though it tires me because of its forward bass/mid presentation and me cranking up volume to hear detail. Forget about good recordings, the headphone cannot take advantage of minute details and volume swings. The more processed the music is, the better the MX4 will excel. For this price range, the MX4 is a no go. The lack of engagement with its dull (literally), blunted presentation killed it. If you like music smooth as a babies arse, this may interest you.
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With WA5LE:
First thing: tube noise. The 20ohm impedence does not play well with tube amps, even ones with output transformers.
Immediately More spacious sounding. This tube amp is magic for me,there is something about 300B tubes.Improvements all across the board, dynamics, soundscape, tonal balance, and to a smaller degree, clarity.
Instrument imaging is still not up to snuff here, unclear. Dynamics are improved but still not where I want it to be, I still hear dynamic range compression.
Impact is improved definitely, punchy, similar to LCDX levels, still not enough however.
Vocals were surprising for me, its nasal tonality was toned down quite a bit, to just slightly noticeable. Beautiful rendering of vocals, silky and refined. A touch more refined than I would like, lacking abit of texture.
The problem inherent in planar drivers is still apparant even on the WA5LE. The amp has pushed the MX4 to boarderline acceptable for me. The lack of dynamics, detail and its nasal tonality may bother some, like myself. The $4000 tube amp with a DAVE still did not do enough to 'Fix' it for me to recommend the MX4.
Anyone else with similar sentiments please try the headphone with different amps. You may find the unicorn pairing that brings you audio nirvana.
*short note: WA5LE/Schiit Gungnir MB with the HD800S/Auteur/Atticus was orgasmic for me, for anyone who wants more context for my preferences.
MX4 - DAVE/ DAVE-WA5LE short thoughts:
Naked DAVE:
Cleaner presentation than the WA33 I listened to before, but it still had a veil in its presentation. Notes still seemed truncated and blurred. It was less clear than a modded HD600/HD650 and the X that I have owned. Dynamics were more or less then same, soft, will little swing. Bruckner's symphony No 9 sounded immdeiately dull as well as conjested. It did not capture the grand acoustics of the concert hall, especially apparent when the low rumble of horns do not reverberate.
Bach cello suite 4 sounded alright in a small venue, however I did not hear the vibrations in the cello strings that were obvious with the ZMF Eikon, another warm headphone. Trios and small works sounded great if you could dismiss the veil/lack or clarity. MX4 fell flat on its face for classical compared to the likes of HE1000.
Bass was extended well and clean. Massive Attack's splitting the atom had defined bassline, but impact was lacking, it did not make me tap my feet unlike the punchy nature of the ZMF Auteur. clarity was not a big issue for electronic as the music is processed anyway, though i could hear the veil to a small extent. These are somewhat basshead headphones that can be an electronic music lover's dream. Highly satisfying sub bass and mid bass hump, slightly recessed highs that take off the edge of poorly recorded pieces.
Imaging of Yosi Horikawa- Bubbles and Bump was blurry. Transients like the sound of ping pong balls in the tracks were ill-defined/mashed together at complex sections. Overall Stax 007 was a beast at electronic music, the best I have heard with Yosi's albums.
Piano sounds outright electronic, stripped of its natural timbre with Thelonius Monk. Saxes were very pleasant though, euphonic and intimate. The shrill,honky nature of some sax recordings are smoothed out tastefully. Once again, acoustic space representation was poor, the MX4 does not take advantage of reverb/decay of good recordings, quartets sound better. Bucky Pizzarelli's trio Three For All was a relaxing listen.
Dire Strait's Sultans of Swing had a very blunt treble, poor extention. Ting of cymbals followed by silence. Transients were far too quick, which I dislike planars and electrostats for, the shimmer of cymbals/triangles decay almost immediately. Guitar crunches of Rodrigo y Gabriela was done decently, but without texture and visceral impact.
Overall, better DAVE solo than with the WA33 I would like to admit. The woo amp made the MX4 even more claustrophobic and blurry than it already is. The MX4 is good but not great for a laid back listening session, though it tires me because of its forward bass/mid presentation and me cranking up volume to hear detail. Forget about good recordings, the headphone cannot take advantage of minute details and volume swings. The more processed the music is, the better the MX4 will excel. For this price range, the MX4 is a no go. The lack of engagement with its dull (literally), blunted presentation killed it. If you like music smooth as a babies arse, this may interest you.
--------------
With WA5LE:
First thing: tube noise. The 20ohm impedence does not play well with tube amps, even ones with output transformers.
Immediately More spacious sounding. This tube amp is magic for me,there is something about 300B tubes.Improvements all across the board, dynamics, soundscape, tonal balance, and to a smaller degree, clarity.
Instrument imaging is still not up to snuff here, unclear. Dynamics are improved but still not where I want it to be, I still hear dynamic range compression.
Impact is improved definitely, punchy, similar to LCDX levels, still not enough however.
Vocals were surprising for me, its nasal tonality was toned down quite a bit, to just slightly noticeable. Beautiful rendering of vocals, silky and refined. A touch more refined than I would like, lacking abit of texture.
The problem inherent in planar drivers is still apparant even on the WA5LE. The amp has pushed the MX4 to boarderline acceptable for me. The lack of dynamics, detail and its nasal tonality may bother some, like myself. The $4000 tube amp with a DAVE still did not do enough to 'Fix' it for me to recommend the MX4.
Anyone else with similar sentiments please try the headphone with different amps. You may find the unicorn pairing that brings you audio nirvana.
*short note: WA5LE/Schiit Gungnir MB with the HD800S/Auteur/Atticus was orgasmic for me, for anyone who wants more context for my preferences.
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