discoprince
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Sep 19, 2011
- Posts
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*I am not a reviewer, in fact, This is the first review I have ever done of anything; I am just that smitten with these headphones.
First impressions!
Out of the box, first thing I noticed was that they were light. This is a plus when they are on your head but sometimes it is nice to have some solidity and weightier materials. Not because I want heavier headphones, but because premium materials that offer durability are often heavier by default (unless we are talking carbon fiber or magnesium; both of which are spendy). The headphones are predominately plastic with the exception of the internals, and the headband strap. The housings and hinges are plastic. The construction is fine however, they likely used materials to keep the cost down. If these were constructed from genuine leather and magnesium or aluminum, while sounding the way they do, they would be $400 - $500 headphones. These were $275 for me from Japan and they can be had on eBay for around the 275 – 300 mark from a couple of sellers. Worth it.
I thought I may use this as a new pair of DJ headphones but they won’t be good headphones for Djing partly because of the build quality (which again, is fine, just not extra durable). The other reason I can’t use these as DJ headphones is the cable. The cable is thin and short (designed of course for easy portable use). Oh well. I have replaced it with an aftermarket mediabridge cable and it’s a better length for me and feels much sturdier. Both cables sound the same because I don’t think cables make a difference in sound quality to my ears, but I still like upgraded cables because of the feel and look (yes, that’s right, I want a good looking cable!).
Disclaimer: My ear may not be as nuanced as yours. Many ultra high-end headphones sound the same to me, I don’t feel cables make a difference and I don’t use music to listen to my gear (which is totally fine, I love new shiny things as much as the next person); I use my gear to listen to music. I like old cassette tapes and electronic music that sounds like it was produced in a dirty basement in 1989. However, I also love Jazz and classical and can listen critically when I want to. Anyways, On with it…
As for the sound, they sound sensational. I like AT headphones, I have an
M-50, PRO-700MK2ANV and an MSR7, which sadly is not here right now for direct comparison. I expected a pronounced V-shape and was prepared for boomy BASS but this is not so. The bass extension is exceptional and the mid-bass is controlled. They sound, to me, like a better-tuned M-50 with better bass and cleaner mids and highs. I listened first to some rap and house music on spotify directly out of my phone as I thought this is where they would shine and they sounded pretty good. They really surprised me however, once I fed them some higher quality music files through my Audioquest dragonfly 1.2. Herbie Hancock’s Maiden Voyage (FLAC) played through Fidelia music player sounded really sensational. So did Herbie’s “Death Wish” soundtrack. The album I listened to twice fully already? Steely Dan’s Aja. Aja is a masterpiece from a production standpoint and the WS-1100 captured most of its impact, but many higher-priced and open-back cans will provide a predictably better soundstage. The soundstage is totally good here, just not jaw-dropping.
This brings me to my next point: these are BARELY closed headphones. There are vents in the housing that leak sound, so they can be considered semi-open, but according to AT they are closed. There is considerable sound leakage at moderate volumes. The girlfriend test resulted in bae hearing the music at medium volume sitting on the other side of my dining room table. I would not want to use these on a busy train or bus. Plus they are big and they don’t fold up.
In summary: The WS-1100 is pretty darn good and worth a couple hundred bucks no problem. If you are looking for wide-open soundstage at this price maybe get a Fidelio X2, but surprisingly, the WS-1100 shines with all types of music while giving you that deep bass some of us crave.
-Corry
