So its been about a week since I first received the AP2000ti. I've been doing at least 3 hours of music listening daily, and some gaming sessions roughly every other day. At the beginning of the week, nothing really seemed special to me, and comfort is good for the initial three hours but then I do have an issue with the small ear area and the clamp can be a bit much past 5 hours. And the cable is very microphonic, so I plan to get an aftermarket cable. But past the issues, I realized as the week went that, because it wasn't necessarily exciting, it didn't mean it was a mediocre headphone. Just that sound signature wise it was very similar to the Ananda, my main headphone, that it was shocking. I started to pick out specific things I liked, such as the airiness of vocals and stringed instruments, and the detail / clarity that rivaled my Anandas, along with width that wasn't as wide but still quite good. I still stand by my belief that this is the closest (so far) I can find to a closed back version of the hifiman sound, but with the pros of a dynamic driver.
And for the past five hours, I finally allowed myself to A/B/C test the 2000ti against the Ananda and Nightowl Carbon. I ran the Ananda and 2000ti through the Audient iD14 and SMSL SP200, while the Nightowl went through the iD14 and the Loxjie P20 tube amp. A lot of song comparisons below, mostly pop-ish, ambient, instrumental, different types of electronic, and japanese music.
Story - Gill Chang, Cimo Frankel
My favorite song of the past few years, and Gill Chang is my favorite artist. Not the best song in terms of mastering, but I know this song more than any other. Between the Ananda and 2000ti, the song plays very similarly, with the driver specialties being the main differences. Frankel's voice has more airiness with the 2000ti, as well as snappy, sharp snares. Toms are muted and further in the mix. Whereas with the Ananda, the vocals are a bit more front and centered, and the Trumpet trades off a bit of Airiness for body. Instruments entering and exiting the mix is also more defined on the Ananda. And lastly for the Nightowl, vocals have much less detail compared to the other two, but has intimate snares, toms and sub-bass. The sub-bass is the most prominent of the three, but the lack of detail makes it the least enjoyable listen. I liked this song equally between the 2000ti and the Ananda.
Your Eyes - Neovaii
I listened to this song first with the Nightowl, and it brought thick piano chords, and intimate violins and vocals. Soundstaging, detail and clarity were the smallest, but it had a noticeably warm sound, compared to the other two. Moving onto the Anandas, the piano isn't front and center but like a globe around you, with more air and detail. I particularly love the power of the violins here, how the planars handle their attack. Kick drums don't slam as much as the other two, and the snaps have that planar feeling of appearing and disappearing just as quickly. Then the 2000ti - the vocals are a slight step up from the Anandas. There is more air and detail - the breaths are effortless to hear, but you trade off the violin's intimacy on the ti. It also isn't as spacious as the Ananda, but once again it is an open back versus a closed back, and it is still very close, which is impressive. The 2000ti had very fun and energetic drums; The violin doesn't have quite the emotion that the Anandas bring, but the vocals and drums more than make up for it.
喜新戀舊 - Jony J
I started this song with the 2000ti first, and right off the bat the 2000ti has this extra crunch and air on the guitar that is amazing. The snare rims have that nice snappiness that is a distinct part of the 2000ti sound, with good impact but less slam. Good detail and easy to tell instruments apart. The riser moving left and right also stuck out to me more than the other two headphones with the 2000ti, and the second verse was very nice. At the end of the second verse you can even hear a tiny voice around the bottom right of the mix, and the clock-sounding effect is the cleanest on the ti. After that was the Nightowl, and immediately the crunchiness and airiness just isn't there, but the guitar is
very intimate and warm here. Intimacy was the name of the game for the carbons - bass was the most intimate and had the most rumble, along with the least decay. However, the guitar riffs are placed very far back in the carbon. Finally the Anandas: the guitar has a similar crunchy feeling to the 2000ti, but doesn't have the airiness. The airiness is exchanged for clearer instrumental separation. The bass has the planar rumble and the siren effect is most prevalent at the back of the mix in this phone'. And I'm not sure why, but vocals in the second verse aren't as noticeable compared to the other two. I preferred the 2000ti for this song.
Wind Turns Cold - SAENS
Starting this off with the Ananda, the cello(?) immediately has a spacious sound, and the planar driver really pulls its weight on this song with the effortless and clean effect. The male vocals are especially amazing, as well as the instrumental separation. In the last part of the song, there is an intimacy that is detailed yet addicting. Moving onto the 2000ti, the vocal's once again add the airiness that the 2000ti is so good at. Instrumental separation isn't as large here - there is still the clarity and you can tell the images of the instruments just as well as the Ananda, if not better, but the mix is more intimate. And once again the song feels snappiest on the 2000ti. And in the last part the violins even come across as a bit overbearing, in a good way. Then onto the Nightowl - chords are front and center, snares are right in the middle of the mix, and the vocals replace the airiness for warmth and intimacy again. The water-bubble effect is the best on these headphones, and the cello has a different but equally good sound. However the finale of the song doesn't have the grand feeling of the other two headphones - the instruments are too claustrophobic and the lack of air is apparent.
I stop using the Nightowl Carbon in comparisons from here on, because at least for these song, the detail retrieval and especially imaging doesn't compare. And the warmth and thickness is good, but not enough to trade shots with the other two.
Artemis - Lindsey Stirling
Here, the Ananda shines with the sub bass, spaciousness and the speed of the ringing sounds. The background vocals right before the second chorus also stand out. On the 2000ti, it's a tiny bit smaller in soundstage, but the intimacy and airiness lends a positive effect to the song. The violin can even overpower the other parts of the mix, but is extremely detailed compared to the Ananda. And of course, the dynamic snap has a fun impact on the ti.
Backbone - DROELOE, Nevve
On this song, I think its another case of similar sound signature, with the main difference just being a preference of driver: planar vs dynamic. The 2000ti really makes Nevve's voice stand out over the Ananda, and the ticking sound at the beginning was better too. The snappiness of the dynamic driver really helps with the parts before the drop, and the bells are easily noticeable as well. I loved this song on both headphones, maybe a tiny bit more on the ti.
All I have (feat. Aviella) - QUIX
Vocals are actually a bit closer on the Anandas than on the 2000ti here, which surprised me. However, the ti still gives a more intimate feeling on this song. The ti felt more energetic and fun, but the Ananda had a fullness and openness that I loved. The 2000ti shines specifically with the drums and mid synths though.
First Snow - Emancipator
This song is well detailed, wide and with plenty of emotion on both headphones. The guitars in the second half of the song are easy to tell apart on the 2000ti and was probably my favorite part of the song for that phone'. I still liked the song more on the Ananda though, because throughout the whole song, the Ananda does a better job of letting you hear each instrument equally.
Next up I went into a bunch of Japanese songs, because I was hoping to see more of how the 2000ti would shine with the midrange, especially female vocals which are so prevalent in japanese music.
ダリ - Reol
Both headphones offered a fun, aggressive experience with this song. The Ananda played a more balanced playing ground between everything in the mix, and the saws and drum risers moving left to right was especially nice. The vertical soundstage of the Ananda also shined with the horn-ish synth sounds. on the 2000ti, the first word that came to my mind when listening to this song was
visceral. The Audio Technica female vocals really started kicking off here, and the drums just added an intense feeling to the song. The 2000ti had a better vocal-focused feeling for the song with a fun drum, while the Ananda pushed back the vocals to let the synths shine just as well.
Perfect Blue - DJ Okawari
On the 2000ti, the rain beating was the first thing that stood out to me, with how intimate it was. Then the piano comes with amazing detail, natural sounding drums but the snappy feeling is still there. Strings have the airiness and detail, but you can easily tell them apart from the rest of the mix. Lastly, you can feel the strings move around the bottom left of your head to the bottom right, and its great. Moving to the Ananda, the rain is further out and you can feel that also move across your head. The piano is front and center of the mix, but once again the forte of the Ananda is its instrumental separation. The tallness of its soundstage is nice too.
アンドロイドガール - DECO*27
Starting with the Ananda, the guitars are separated widely but lack the detail and air of the 2000ti. There is more impact at the final part of the song, however I preferred the 2000ti for this song, hands down. The intimacy and airier guitars just made this song more fun on the ti, and the latter part of the song is just really engaging.
輪絵の転生 - Mafumafu
The treble really shines on the 2000ti here, with impactful drums, and guitars that may be a tad too detailed but very exciting. On the Ananda the guitars are placed further back, and Mafumafu's voice is a bit more clear. Its another case of trading that visceral feeling for better separation. The male vocals are a tiny bit better here, but I think the 2000ti is slightly better - it is just too fun and engaging.
ミユキ - Milkoi, Miraie
For the Ananda, the layering and Violin are the key highlights. Also the way the separate pianos are represented is quite interesting on each headphone. On the Ananda, the piano chords are very distinct, while you can hear the single piano notes layered just slightly on top, with neither taking the other over. Whereas on the 2000ti, the piano as a whole is more detailed, and subsequently the static that you hear sometimes. The single piano notes are closer and more intimate, but unlike the Ananda, the center chords take more of a focus. And the airiness for the violin really shines. They both offer a different experience, moreso than the other songs prior, but I think I'd give it to the 2000ti.
Sawano Hiroyuki (three songs) - REMEMBER, &z, aLIEz
The 2000ti really does shine with japanese music. The female vocals in each of these songs is so smooth. The vocals are front and center in all three songs, and while the instruments on the Ananda are great, the vocals on the 2000ti are just too good - I think I love the ti more for Hiroyuki's songs.
Skyreach - Sora Amamiya
The Ananda makes this song quite wide, but its too wide here. There is a bit of an empty area between the vocals and the guitars / bass, which makes the song somewhat unexciting on the Ananda. Whereas the 2000ti adds more detail to the guitar, brings them closer, and of course the female vocals are uncontestable here.
Aimer (two songs) - 春はゆく, marie
Can't have a comparison of japanese songs with female vocals without Aimer. The Ananda gives you the feeling of being in an orchestral hall - everything stands out equally and the sound is vast and full. In terms of position, its like you're standing next to Aimer as she sings, with the orchestra playing all around you. Then with the 2000ti... the airiness and vocals are the best I've heard of any song on this headphone. Whereas the Ananda has every part of the mix equally pulling their weight, it is like Aimer is singing directly into your ear and the rest of the orchestra is still there, and even more detailed, just not as emphasized. I loved it on both, but I'd recommend anyone to take a listen to Aimer on the newer Audio-Technica headphones, regardless of your genre preferences.
Moving away from the japanese stuff now, two more songs left.
Time Machine - Heuse
Another song where both play the track very similarly - the heartbeat effect feels virtually identical on both headphones, and the 2000ti has a tad more microdetail and the Ananda's flute stands out. The Ananda is slightly more spacious and I think I'd give it the edge, albeit its close.
First Love - Snail's House
And the final song is a future bass song. With the Ananda, the synths have nice body and overall the planar drivers make this sound great. With the 2000ti, I'm not sure how, but virtually everything in this song sounds airy, even the bass and high pitched synths. The speed is equal to the Ananda with more thump. I was surprised to find I'd like future bass / future core just as much as on the Ananda.
To wrap this up, I will be keeping the AP2000ti, as the sound signature is very similar to the Anandas, yet that extra air and detail on some tracks really is nice. This is my first Audio Technica headphone so I honestly wasn't expecting much when I got it, but it has proven to be the closed back alternative, which doesn't even sound closed, that I am absolutely enjoying.
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