[SilverEars]

Thanks for opening this up. AT wasn't just crappy DJ headphones company (M40, M50, etc..). They actually tuned good sounding closed-backs are they were these wooden ones you point out.

 

[bizkid]

And those DJ/Studio headphones (which sell millions) probably fund the development of their higher end series. While i don't like them i can still appreciate them for that reason

 

[llysender]

Thanks for opening this up. AT wasn't just crappy DJ headphones company (M40, M50, etc..). They actually tuned good sounding closed-backs are they were these wooden ones you point out.

From what I understand the M series was never tuned for listening but for monitoring M40-mid focus instrument,M50-bass focus instrument,M60-vocals,M70-tracking and mixing.
It just so happened that the M40 was also good enough for general listening. Its also why the soundstage/imaging on the M series sucks. At lest that was what I was told by my local AT dealer.

Granted majority of the consumer line is also tuned pretty bad with the only kind of good line being the solid bass(the part about bass is a lie it just has tight bass but is generally bright) line imo.

Their audiophile stuff is pretty nice but they really like to experiment with different sound sig so unless you can try them its kind of hard to rec an intire line.

 

[SilverEars]

From what I understand the M series was never tuned for listening but for monitoring M40-mid focus instrument,M50-bass focus instrument,M60-vocals,M70-tracking and mixing.
It just so happened that the M40 was also good enough for general listening. Its also why the soundstage/imaging on the M series sucks. At lest that was what I was told by my local AT dealer.

Granted majority of the consumer line is also tuned pretty bad with the only kind of good line being the solid bass(the part about bass is a lie it just has tight bass but is generally bright) line imo.

Their audiophile stuff is pretty nice but they really like to experiment with different sound sig so unless you can try them its kind of hard to rec an intire line.

Monitoring is listening. M40 was a terribly tuned response. I don't see how it be used for accurrate monioring with such a wonky response. I tried several woodies, and they were much better balanced.

Thing about monitoring or DJ headphones is that they are used by singers, DJs, etc.. and they do not require accuracy. So, there is this 'monitoring' term. The engineer generally uses speakers.

 

[Arjestin]

In 2009 I traded my L3000 for a W5000 and a Denon amp. It was a good deal at the time, but I do miss the mid-range and leathery comfort of an L3000.

In 2019 Audio Technica woodies were sold on Drop for bargain prices, so I got in for a W1000Z and a 2nd W5000. My old W5000 was starting to squeak from age, so I was looking forward to replacing it with the new unit.

The W5000 that I received from Drop sounded darker, rolled off in the highs, and it had a weird peak around 5KHz. Female vocals sounded a bit off due to this peak. It wasn't much but I did notice a difference compared to my old W5000. Unfortunately, no amount of burn-in helped in smoothing this peak or extending the top end, and I ended up returning the W5000 to Drop.

Doing some research I discovered that Audio Technica marks exported ATH-W series headphones with -EX suffix on the cardboard and retail box. Headphones made for the Japanese domestic market are not labeled with the -EX designation.

My W5000 from 2009 was a Japanese domestic version. The 2019 AT woodies from Drop were Exported versions. Out of curiosity if nothing else, I purchased a Japanese domestic W1000Z to compare against the Exported version W1000Z from Drop.

Out of the box both units sounded identical. However, after a week of burn-in the Japanese unit did sound brighter and smoother in the mid-range. Again, this was not a night and day difference but it was significant enough for me to sell my W1000Z from Drop and kept the Japanese domestic one.

You may not believe in burn-in - that's OK But I am convinced that unit variations are real, at least between Exported and Japanese domestic woodies.

 

[llysender]

I've had a discusion with regurds to the W5000 on discord and I think there was a silent revision in between 2011 and 2014. It seems that the 2011 model and before were all bright sounding with AD like sound but with much better bass while the earliest person with a warm slightly dark sounding W5000 was from 2014. If anyone knows when the change happened please chip in. Of couse I'm still not rolling out amps affecting the sound significantly but I dont think that is the case.

 

[quintoben]

Which one is the best of the wood?
Is L5000 made of wood?

 

[protoss]

PART 3

Audio Technica Ath - W11JPN - Review

* Release date: December 1st, 1998
* Release price: ￥ 68,250 ($620USD)
* Limited 2000 units
* Discontinue

1998 ... ATH-W11JPN, japan

"This limited model was released when the W series using Wood was firmly established. It is a product using Asada cherry wood and Echizen urushi lacquer. Urushi lacquer is said to be a Japanese lacquer developer who visited his home to receive advice from Matsushida's advisers and found it coated on the torture's speakers. It is said that urushi is Japan in English, so he added JPN. After the model name."



Specifications:

Model closed dynamic type
Vibrator 53㎜ Super high-class OFC8N Bobbin wound voice coil
Impedance 48Ω
Reproduction frequency band 5-30,000Hz
Allowable input 2,000mW
Sensitivity 98dB / mW
Code 3.0m Silk 100% Sheath 6N-OFC stereo plug
Weight 330g (excluding cord)
Remarks Echizen lacquered Hokkaido Asada cherry tree heartwood is used for the housing
Left and right independent ground wire (4 core) structure

Build:

This model is the 3rd woodie release by Audio Technica. This headphone changes up a lot of things from the first two models. Not sure where to start, but let us give it a try.

This was the 2nd limited edition woodie model. Not like the W10LTD this headphone is not written in limited edition. It is the first to change the code name from W10 to W11. It is the first woodie to have an old Japanese traditional paint job, "Echizen urushi lacquer."

Because it is in lacquered, this headphone show cases the slightest scratch and bumps and dents and marks on the cups. This is unfortunate. You must baby these headphones. My pair is in absolute NOS condition. Thank you very much
Also these headphones are fingerprint magnet headphones. Just have a soft silk towel with you at all times. This model was the first to be more expensive than the other two models and probably the most expensive 1998 audio Technica headphone. This was the first pair to enlarge the Audio Technica logo on both cups. And the painted letters are in gold, and the letters are painted over with lacquer. Also the Japan logo is ink painted in neon red. A very nice touch. This makes the letters next to impossible to rub off.

This model also changes the jack to a permanent 1/4 jack instead of a 3.5mm screw-on jack. The cable material also changed. It is now a black braided 7 feet long cable with less microphonic. This is one of the worst cables so far.

The cable is yet again permanently attached to the left side of the earcups. It bends and molds into unnecessary shapes. Do not like this cable on this headphone. It is almost unbearable. If you ever wanted to cable mod a headphone. This is a great candidate.

The 3D wing earpad was also changed from the first two models. Now there is an open "V" opening on the pad-wing. And the material is fabric! The woodie gods blessed us and defeated the collagen monster.

The earpads are not leather anymore. A better suede soft fabric material is used here. It is also more comfortable and durable this time around. This is the best Audio Technica ear-pads for the woodies hands down. It is such a shame that these soft cushion suede ear-pads are discontinue . If I can i would replace all woodie ear-pads with W11JPN suede ear-pads.

2 L and R channel embedded plastic pieces. Nicely stylish design.

Driver:

The drivers are again angled towards your ears. This is the way to go, and this is the way. The woodies were the first Mandalorians.

Sound:

The sound is a departure from the underrated legendary W10LTD. And back to the similar sound of the W10VTG. This is an exciting move.

Another full-bodied midrange headphone. The sweet candy of euphoric non-bright headphones, but this time with the refinery in all the frequency compare to the W10VTG. The headphone is more natural than the unnatural exciting out of control W10VTG. I am not sure if this is a good thing or not? Because headphones should be fun, right? If not I know some $4000USD boring lackluster monitor headphones for you
The W10VTG is more exciting with spikes and extensions. Extension and impact are more pronounced. The W11JPN is even more laid back and tamed in all categories compared to the W10VTG.
Compare to the W10LTD, the W11JPN is thicker and has more bass impact. It sounds slower and dives deep into the bass. The W10LTD will sound cleaner. The W11JPN is more muddy, bassy, thick sounding but still containing detail retrieval. After listening to the W11JPN and switching over to the W10LTD, you get that relief of fresh air and cleanness from the W10LTD. It is very interesting. Because of that no way the W11JPN is better than the W10LTD or vice versa. These two or three headphones are completely different from each other.

In conclusion, W11jpn is a winner. Is it the best out of the three models? No, because each one was different. Do I prefer this one over the other 2? No, they are amazing in specific genres. Is the W11jpn an excellent addition to the woodie line? Yes, it is another top tier candidate as one of the best woodies to own.

Ranking 9.2/10
Beautiful woodie addition
Beautiful sound signature to love
Legacy continues
Legendary


"May the woodie be with you."

 

[protoss]

This is the L3000

As you can see , it's a wood house. The leather wraps around the wood. Inside is the driver with foam

 

[protoss]

I just want to chime in on revision. The investigation into this is too vast and spans a good 25 years.

The non-limited versions have 1 or 2 revisions.

Audio Technica ATH-W10VTG
Audio Technica ATH-W100
Audio Technica ATH-W1000
Audio Technica ATH-W5000

W10VTG - has two known revision,
One extremely lush and warm, thick mids, and bass
2nd is forward sounding, lower and upper mids, bright and fatiguing (not the one you want to own).

Audio Technica ATH-W100 - had a similar revision to the W10VTG.
One, warm and musical. Overall this pair is mostly known
2nd, bight and stale, and fatiguing (not the one you want to own).

Audio Technica ATH-W1000 pairs are supposed to be bright, but with a hint of warmness.
Unknown revisions. Maybe this is what they wanted? but all the limited editions were similar to the W10VTG and W100 in sound quality.

I also realize that the newer the pair is and with fewer burn-ins, they are more likely to be bight and the longer the burn-in the warmer it gets. I also notice that the condition of a pair could slightly impact the sound. For example, if a pair is placed in cold storage and the wood drys up, this can maybe impact the sound, and also if the pair is too moist with wax or oil, this can change the characteristics of the sound probably. There is not much evidence in this, cold storage, oil absorption, or wax changing the sound? I personally oil up to two of my favorite woodies once a month. For me, it is hard to tell if the sound had changed. But I do know that the two pairs that I selectively oil up are very warm and musical. Today I finished soaking it in oil. Drying up to be used in a couple of days. Down below are pics of a just oiled up pairs

All the limited editions are consistent and sound exactly the same.

Audio Technica ATH-W10LTD
Audio Technica ATH-W11JPN
Audio Technica ATH-W11R
Audio Technica ATH-W2002
Audio Technica ATH-W3000ANV
Audio Technica ATH-L3000
Audio Technica ATH-L5000

 

[quintoben]

L3000
W11R
W2002
W3000Anv
W10LTD
W11JPN
W10VTG
W100

how about L5000?

 

[DenverW]

W5000 back on drop for $550. Not sure if I’m going to pull the trigger.

https://drop.com/buy/audio-technica-w5000-wood-headphones

 

[protoss]

PART 4

Audio Technica Ath W100 - review

* Release date: December 1st, 1999
* Release price: ￥ 44,100 ($400USD)
* 3000 units
* Discontinue

1999 ... ATH-W100

"This product is made of magnesium frame, which is considered as an advanced model by providing a lighter but more improved sound.
The space behind the diaphragm was made wider, and the resonance frequency was reduced, resulting in better sound reproduction."


Specifications:

Model closed dynamic type
Vibrator 53㎜ Super high-class OFC8N bobbin wound voice coil
Impedance 48Ω
Reproduction frequency band 5-30,000Hz
Allowable input 2,000mW
Sensitivity 100dB / mW
Code 3.0m Silk 100% Sheath PCOC stereo plug
Weight 320g (excluding cord)
Remarks Hokkaido solid Asada cherry wood is used for the housing

Remarks:

This is the 4th Audio-Technica woodie headphone release in 1999. It was the last 90s woodie headphone. This model is a non-limited, mass-produced woodie. An estimate of around 3000 units created. Because it was mass-produced, do not underestimate this headphone. This headphone supposedly fixed everything that was wrong with the other 3. But did it?

Let us see what they have gotten right or wrong in 3+ years in the woodie business.

Build:

They changed up the build a bit. The outer wood frame ring is a magnesium alloy instead of a plastic fat frame from the first three headphones, but the hinges and wings are made out of plastic. That is a shame.

The wordings are blacked inked like the W10LTD headphones: the same ink and stylish lettering technique.

The wood shape is more oval, dome shape. Completely different from the first three models.

The headphone jack is again permanently a 1/4 jack. From now onwards the jack will always be a permanent 1/4 jack. The end is wooden with a scribe of the model number in black ink.

The earpads are made out of synthetic leather.

The 3D wing is similar to the W11JPN but uses a lower fabric quality.

The cables went back to the W10VTG and W10LTD style? Maybe they realize that the W11JPN is one of the worst cables. Or they went the cheap route for this mass-produced woodie? Most likely, the latter is the answer. I 100% prefer this cable over the nonsense of the W11JPN cable.

This is the first time the Left and Right is painted on the hinges of the headphone band.
They are painted on!
This means it can be rubbed off. They removed the beauty of the embedded left and right pieces. I do not like this

Drivers:

The drivers are again angle. This is the way of the woodies.

Sound:
So here we go again the W100 sounds the opposite of it last reiteration completely, but this sounds very close to the W10LTD.

This headphone can easily be described as balance, neutral, and bright on top with a bit of sparkle. Because of its sparkle, it can be upbeat, punchy sounding headphones. The mids, again, like all woodies are the highlight. This should not be to anyone's surprise. We on the 4th review, and its the same mid-story of being world-class. You know, full, rich, marvelous, Yada Yada....

This is more of a neutral headphone. But of course still a color headphone. The treble is still tame, the mids are boosted and very clear with warmth. There is bass. But not overwhelming, just enough. More of a controlled bass.

I notice that the treble on my W10LTD is tamer and more relax than W100. The W100 is more exciting and punchy and sparkly than the W10LTD. There is no thinness, I notice. The only way you can say this headphone is thin is to come from a W10VTG or W11JPN because those two headphones are thick and juicy like a Delicious Mango.

Compare to the laid back W11JPN. This headphone is fast, punchy, and more open than the W11JPN. The W100 can easily be said that it is a superior headphone to the rest of the pairs because it has that modern balance signature.

Now, do I prefer this over the other three? No way. The beautiful sound of the W11jpn is unmatched so far. The W10ltd is technically better than all the woodies, and the crazy unnatural W10VTG is Legendary. Because of this, the W100 is again another excellent addition to all things woodie!

In conclusion, this headphone was the hardest to rank because I think it is ranked the highest overall! But with a caveat, of course. I already wrote on another post on top that if you get the one with the crappy revision driver, then this is the worst headphones. However, guess I lucked out and got the best version out of the bunch, and because of this, I will rank it as such.



Ranking: 9.3 /10
Addictive
Balanced
The Legend continues....

"May the woodie be with you."

 

[White Lotus]

 

[DenverW]

@DenverW
Whats the difference between the drop version and the normal version? Im asuming its the same exact pair?

Offical site has it at $1200 and drop at $550. There must be a difference?
https://www.audio-technica.com/cms/headphones/5215eb84d110cad5/index.html

No idea, actually. I scanned through the discussions a bit, and the description and didn't see anything that stated they made changes.