[Tbln]

Have been thinking about buying AT cans for a while already.

Would appreciate thoughts and recommendations from AT lovers out here to help narrow the list of suspects for a possible audition.

Considerations:

Suggestions up till W5000 considered.

Will be driven by either a MPX3 Slam or Raptor.

Best bang for the buck (sound vs $)

Some cans currently in rotation - 650 Zu, 600 Cardas, RS1, 701.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Asr]

Well do you need open or closed?

For open headphones, I strongly recommend the AD2000. An incredible headphone, very versatile.

 

[mateo05]

I have no direct experience (yet), but from what I can tell the best thing to do is skip the bottom and go straight to the W5000 / AD2000. Apparently the A series lacks midrange and the W1000 is incredibly thin. Many Headfiers have particularly good luck/synergy w/ the W5000 and tube amps like yours. Older woodies might also be worthy of consideration, but they can be rare and I'm not sure how they'd measure up.

 

[micaela]

I just made a switch from 650's to W100's. I fell in love with them when I heard them w/my Morgan Jones tube amp. They are incredibly smooth. I don't like them w/rock but w/smooth jazz & acoustic's they are amazing. From what I've read there are some of the W100's that weren't so good & then there are others, like the ones I must have, that are heavenly.

 

[vapman]

I like AD2000's.

 

[mulveling]

Go as high as you can afford...in both the Audio-Technica and SinglePower lines. I really prefer the Limited Edition AT's if you can track them down used (W11jpn, W2002, L3000 - though the latter is out of your price range). The SLAM versions of Singlepowers seems to be killer with low impedance headphones.

 

[crypt@]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tbln ... Suggestions up till W5000 considered...

ATs? Look no further (but if you can get your mitts on L3000...) you are already on the right track.
Quote:

Originally Posted by Tbln ... Best bang for the buck (sound vs $)...

AD900, in my opinion, out of the lineup of ATs, is the best balance between sound and $. AD2000 is skewed toward the $ side, but well worth considering for the extra change. W5000, absolutely terrible sound for $, but the wood, leather plus balanced sound does work together to "emotionally" redeem it

.

 

[ellover009]

How does the comfort of the AD models compared to the closed ones like the a900? man the L3000 is one badass headphone.

 

[skylinedo]

You're lucky you live in singapore as they do have places that carry Audio-Technica headphones unlike the US. Try to find a place that will let you audition. From the list of cans "in rotation" you seem to prefer open ... AD2K fo sho. What kind of music do you like?

 

[Vic]

The W5000 is my favourte headphone and pairs very well with Raptor and even better with any SP amp with the right tubes.
I have a pair of L3000 on the way, they should arrive very soon

 

[Mercuttio]

Will you be able to try out a W5000 somehow? I really liked them during short auditions, but found their odd midrange honkiness to really get in the way on an extended borrowing... it may or may not bother you.

 

[ken36]

At one time I had a beautiful collection of Woodys, but, for the most part the sound, was a little dark for my tastes. They sure were pretty though. I would say my favorite was the W1000, the least dark in my opinion.

 

[jpelg]

I found that every A-T headphone that I've ever heard/owned sounded different. These include the W100, W10VGT, W1000, W2002, L3000, & W5000. They all had peculiarities, but each in a different way. Although I think the W1000 & W5000 sounded the most similiar.

In brief:

W100 - Wooly. Way too rolled off for me. I understand there may be different driver versions out there, so ymmv.
W10VTG - Most even-keeled A-T I've heard - nice. Again, I understand there are different sounding versions out there, so be careful here too.
W1000 - Most recently owned. A bit thin, but not too bad. Nice soundstage width, but lacking in depth. OK for the money.
W2002 - Most gorgeous headphone ever, but that may not get you past the midrange...uh, 'strangeness' (not sure how to describe it otherwise). Very picky on matching amps.
L3000 - Probably the overall best, however the bass was too overwhelming for me. Maybe different amps help?
W5000 - Heard only at meets and they sounded pretty thin, kinda like the W1000's. Cheapest construction of all, imo. The older A-T models (above) look, feel, & fit much better.

Reportedly these cans work very well with A-T's matching headphone amps. Can't say, as I've never heard them. I think to be satisfied with them, you may need to be willing to EQ your system.

I've never heard the open models, such as the AD2000, either. Hope to someday.

 

[lator]

I suggest you give W5000 a try. I doubt that it will the best bang for the buck though.

 

[cosmopragma]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jpelg W5000 - Heard only at meets and they sounded pretty thin, kinda like the W1000's.

I guess you didn't get a decent seal.Most listeners have to mod them in order to get a good seal.It's a design flaw, but quite easy to fix.
I did have the opportunity to compare both directly, and the W5000s are clearly in another league, no doubt, and I wouldn't call them thin sounding at all.
OTOH clearly no plug-into-random upstream electronics-and play headphones.
They require some efforts to get matching gear, but they are worth it.
They are my favorite cans, and I prefer them over all the other headphones I did have the pleasure to listen to, some of them far more expensive. Quote:

Originally Posted by lator I suggest you give W5000 a try. I doubt that it will the best bang for the buck though.

That's a question of perspective.
For some the Koss might be the best bang for the buck, cheap and listenable.
YMMW, but what I've got is the big bang for lots of bucks.