[manveru]

I'm going to be trying an impedance adapter when I get my AD2000s hopefully sometime this week. I can let you know how it goes. They haven't really done anything to any of my other headphones, just lowered any noise and gave me more range on the volume pot.

 

[Amarphael]

Asr thought the Auditor was better suited to the AD2K than the Luxman P-1u in the sense that it didn't slow them down as the Luxman did and the overall clarity was better iirc (read up on the P-1u loaner thread). When i had the Auditor and the W5000 that was the best i heard them short of the HA5000. IT was a very good result, technically speaking. Just a slight hum in the background but it was gone (=inaudible) with music paying. I believe if one wants to 'flatten' the AD2K's sound sig, in a positive sense, then the Auditor would be prime target to achieve that result.
 
Quote:

I plan on picking up the AD2000 very soon. I'm very interested in how it'll compare/contrast with my T1.
 
The only issue is that my amp is an SPL Auditor, and it is essentially ideally made for 300 - 600ohm headphones but should probably work fine with anything over 100ohm, I believe. Think a 100ohm impedance adapter for the AD2000 will bring it up to snuff? That'd bring it to about 140ohm. I've just never used an adapter like that before.

 

 

[a_recording]

Perhaps just buy an O2 and try a comparison? Its cheap enough and optimised enough for low impedance phones that its worth experimenting. The damping factor of the AD2000 + 100 ohm adapter > SPL will only be around 15.6 (140 / 9 ) whereas the O2 will give you a damping factor of 80 (40 / 0.5) with all the benefits that will bring. 
 
 

 

[mingamo]

Some people are writing that these are in your face...but i thought these were known to have a fantastic closed headphone soundstage?

 

[ac500]

AD2000 soundstage is a bit "wonky" IMO, although it's otherwise good except for its flaw. The flaw IMO is it has a sort of double imaging, as though objects sound to be two distances at once; close, and far.

 

[a_recording]

Quote:

Some people are writing that these are in your face...but i thought these were known to have a fantastic closed headphone soundstage?

The soundstage is okay, though not as wide as say the AD900's. There are no characteristic echoes, back reflections or resonances that would make the sound 'closed ' per se, however things sound nonetheless intimate. That is the 'in your face' character, and it sounds essentially as if vocals, and especially female vocals, are louder then any other part of the mix. It's not necessarily that vocals sound especially warm, only that they are definitely forward - pointing at a emphasis on a broad range of upper vocal frequencies, though high enough to extend into the sibilant 's' ranges.
 

 

[ZenErik]

Quote:

I'm going to be trying an impedance adapter when I get my AD2000s hopefully sometime this week. I can let you know how it goes. They haven't really done anything to any of my other headphones, just lowered any noise and gave me more range on the volume pot.

Thanks. Looking forward to the results. If it lowers the noise floor a bit that is more than enough for me. I'm not looking to change the AD2000 sound signature, just make it a better match with the odd specs of the Auditor.
 


Quote:

Asr thought the Auditor was better suited to the AD2K than the Luxman P-1u in the sense that it didn't slow them down as the Luxman did and the overall clarity was better iirc (read up on the P-1u loaner thread). When i had the Auditor and the W5000 that was the best i heard them short of the HA5000. IT was a very good result, technically speaking. Just a slight hum in the background but it was gone (=inaudible) with music paying. I believe if one wants to 'flatten' the AD2K's sound sig, in a positive sense, then the Auditor would be prime target to achieve that result.
 


 

Thank you. I will look for that thread. I am looking to eliminate that potential hum in the background, and I was thinking the adapter might help. Do you have any experience with that? The Auditor is a fine neutral amp, just worried about its' performance with low impedance cans.


Quote:

Perhaps just buy an O2 and try a comparison? Its cheap enough and optimised enough for low impedance phones that its worth experimenting. The damping factor of the AD2000 + 100 ohm adapter > SPL will only be around 15.6 (140 / 9 ) whereas the O2 will give you a damping factor of 80 (40 / 0.5) with all the benefits that will bring. 
 
 

It's a possibility. I'd rather stick with what I've got, but I will get a 2nd amp if absolutely necessary.
 

 

[Asr]

Quote:

I plan on picking up the AD2000 very soon. I'm very interested in how it'll compare/contrast with my T1.
 
The only issue is that my amp is an SPL Auditor, and it is essentially ideally made for 300 - 600ohm headphones but should probably work fine with anything over 100ohm, I believe. Think a 100ohm impedance adapter for the AD2000 will bring it up to snuff? That'd bring it to about 140ohm. I've just never used an adapter like that before.

 
Some previous reviews I've written that might help you:
- http://www.head-fi.org/t/574882/5-year-re-review-audio-technica-ath-ad2000 - retrospective review of the AD2K
- http://www.head-fi.org/t/511201/review-beyerdynamic-t1-vs-sennheiser-hd800 - HD800 vs T1 comparison but also including the AD2K (see that review's Notes file for detailed info on T1 vs AD2K)
- http://www.head-fi.org/t/501781/mini-reviews-luxman-p-1u-and-p-200 - Luxman P-1u/P-200 mini-reviews, with comments on AD2K & T1, and versus the SPL Auditor
 
An impedance adapter on the Auditor will only lower the amp noise heard via the AD2K. It won't fool the amp into outputting more current, which the AD2K needs at its 40 Ohm rating. I found the Auditor to be less than stellar with the AD2K compared to my Gilmore Lite - you need a high-current amp for low-impedance headphones in general. Either a Dynalo or M3 would be far better for the AD2K. If you want a single amp that can drive the AD2K and T1 equally well, the only thing I can think of is a B22, which incidentally is approximately the same cost as the SPL Auditor (on average). Or, for something cheaper, an M3 would work pretty well too.

 

[ZenErik]

Quote:

 
Some previous reviews I've written that might help you:
- http://www.head-fi.org/t/574882/5-year-re-review-audio-technica-ath-ad2000 - retrospective review of the AD2K
- http://www.head-fi.org/t/511201/review-beyerdynamic-t1-vs-sennheiser-hd800 - HD800 vs T1 comparison but also including the AD2K (see that review's Notes file for detailed info on T1 vs AD2K)
- http://www.head-fi.org/t/501781/mini-reviews-luxman-p-1u-and-p-200 - Luxman P-1u/P-200 mini-reviews, with comments on AD2K & T1, and versus the SPL Auditor
 
An impedance adapter on the Auditor will only lower the amp noise heard via the AD2K. It won't fool the amp into outputting more current, which the AD2K needs at its 40 Ohm rating. I found the Auditor to be less than stellar with the AD2K compared to my Gilmore Lite - you need a high-current amp for low-impedance headphones in general. Either a Dynalo or M3 would be far better for the AD2K. If you want a single amp that can drive the AD2K and T1 equally well, the only thing I can think of is a B22, which incidentally is approximately the same cost as the SPL Auditor (on average). Or, for something cheaper, an M3 would work pretty well too.

Thank you. I have already read through a few of those threads, but the Luxman one is new to me. It looks like my amp will not cut it for the AD2000.
 
Edit: The Sheer Audio HA-006+ or HA-006++ both seem to be a fairly cheap dynalo options. Has anyone here tried them with the AD2000? Thanks!
 
Also, the best new price I can find for these is at Yes-Asia. http://www.yesasia.com/us/audio-technica-ath-ad2000-headphones/1021566114-0-0-0-en/info.html
They're a trustworthy site for import movies, CDs, videogames, etc. Any reason I shouldn't trust them for the ATH-AD2000? Just want to make sure i don't get some sort of knock off, if they exist.

 

[zeroakuma]

I currently have the Audio Technica AD 700 as my open ended headphones which I use along my Denon AH-D7000 headphones. I would either like to buy the Sennheiser HD 800 or this headphone after reading a review done by a board member. The AD-2000 headphone will make me enjoy my techno, rap, and rock music, but I wonder if buying or waiting for the HD 800 is a better choice.
 
Thoughts?

 

[ac500]

Personal experience: The AD2000 does not even pretend it can hold a candle to the HD800, and for good reason. HD800 is objectively superior in literally every way, by a really really huge margin. Not even a question.
 
The HD800 is arguably the best dynamic headphone in the world, contending with just a very few others (typically based on listener frequency preference). The AD2000 is not a contender. Most people say, and I agree, that quality-wise the AD2000 is more on par with a well-amped HD650. Its street price reflects this precisely.
 
You may prefer its sound signature in much the same way that many people today prefer Beats, but that bears little to no relevance on its actual sound quality. But for informational purposes I will compare its sound signature: Sound signature-wise, the HD800 is similar to a AD2000 but with more sub-bass and more upper treble. The AD2000 is colored to push mids forward. In every area regarding quality of course (soundstage, separation, clarity, detail, resolution, bass punch, treble crispness, mid sweetness, liquidity, naturality, etc. etc. etc.) as I mentioned, the HD800 is in a league beyond the AD2000 by every metric.
 
Oh incidentally one thing the AD2000 wins on: It sounds pretty nice out of anything, and is ridiculously efficient to power. The HD800 sounds like mud out of a portable media device, yet contrary to popular belief it still sounds just jawdroppingly brilliant even out of a good $250 dac/amp like my NFB12. While you may need a $1000+ dac/amp for the HD800 to show its full potential, you certainly don't need much more than a good $250 one to reach a level of stunning quality that an HD650 or AD2000, no matter how excessively amped, will never approach.

 

[Ra97oR]

From my personal opinion, HD800 is the worst headphone I have ever heard. Mostly because of the treble presentation, where it is the only headphone that hurt my ears playing treble heavy pieces, a feat of it's own that not even DT48 can deliver.

For me, the HD800 is pretty much an emotionless headphone that makes you think it is really pumping out lots of details when it is barely different to other top tier dynamics. I am not going to agrue that the HD800 is a lot more detailed and relatively natural than the AD2000 but mids are anything but sweet and liquid. The heavenly soundstage for a dynamic didn't redeem it for me sadly. I didn't know anything about detail until I heard the SR-009 first hand and spent 2 hours comparing with other STAX and dynamic flagships, the way it effortlessly display extreme level of detail without bumping the treble is outright breathtaking.

AD2000 is not a neutral phone that retrieve the highest amount of details, if anything it is a pair of specialised headphone and does it very well. It is not a jack of all trade and for it being your primary headphone, you need to make sure it cover your favourite type of music or you can be sorely disappointed.

Techno and rock works very well on the AD2000 but rap is surely one of the genre it doesn't shine with it's lightning quick bass impulse.

 

[Amarphael]

X2
 
I'd take the AD2K anyday over the HD800 with those geners as it's sound sig is ridicilusly good in conveying beat and rythm that that makes the HD800 sound just strained and too clinical. the AD2K out of a neutral amp will simply outclass the HD800 in midrange musicality and engagement. Hell, even a Stax SR-202 was more musical for me with mainstream music.

 

[zeroakuma]

Haha. This is the reason why I'm so conflicted at this point. Btw, is thie AD2000 still at the price range of 700-800 dollars? Thanks!

 

[manveru]

 
Quote:

Haha. This is the reason why I'm so conflicted at this point. Btw, is thie AD2000 still at the price range of 700-800 dollars? Thanks!

It's $640 on AccessoryJack and YesAsia I believe.