[GoldfishX]

Got to try out a Soloist today with the 2000x and came away totally unimpressed. Music just sounded tinny and fake, poorly layered and just plain uninteresting. They slightly improved the soundstage on the 2000x, but the resulting sound was worse than the headphones unamped. Very surprising, very disappointing.
 
Similar results with a Teac HA-501, except in reverse...puny soundstage, but slightly warmer, more intimate sound (like a puny room with fun acoustics). I liked it slightly more than the Soloist, but it is not worth the price tag. Simply put, it's not a $1000 piece of gear. If it were $200...maybe.
 
I did have some luck with this little guy though. Huge soundstage (almost 3d sounding), tons of detail and a warm, rich sound. Was excellent with female vocals (one of the things I'm not in love with for the 2000x unamped...this gave Celine Dion her full vocal range again) It was a little boomy with electric guitar-heavy tracks, but it feels like a nitpick than a complaint and can probably be cleaned up with different tubes. I'm keeping this one on my radar for now.
 
http://www.questforsound.com/amps/amps_sq84-V2.htm

 

[iGREASE]

So after a couple months I finally decided to try on the AD900x's again before I sell and for some reason they don't hurt my ear anymore. Which was the only reason I was planning on selling them in the first place. I have been using the DT880s for about two months now and like the sound they produce but on the other hand the ad900xs sound great too. Could it be muh placebo kicking in? I'm not sure if I want to sell them anymore. I like the sound of both of them.

 

[GoldfishX]

Quote:

So after a couple months I finally decided to try on the AD900x's again before I sell and for some reason they don't hurt my ear anymore. Which was the only reason I was planning on selling them in the first place. I have been using the DT880s for about two months now and like the sound they produce but on the other hand the ad900xs sound great too. Could it be muh placebo kicking in? I'm not sure if I want to sell them anymore. I like the sound of both of them.

 


Heh, I have been going through the same dillemma with by Denon AHD2000's. Never really liked them before, but at least now after becoming more familiar with different headphones, I am more understanding their sound signature. I don't think they compare to my open-back headphones, but I don't outright dislike them the way I do most Sennheisers either.

 

[Asr]

I finally ordered an AD2KX today. Sort of nervous about how it might compare to the AD2K - will it still have the same sound that I know & love? Will it fix my few sonic complaints? Or will it be something else entirely and send me running back to the original? Those are the need-to-know questions that must be answered! I've bought many headphones before but none have made as nervous as the AD2KX! Will it finally be The One that will unseat my #1 favorite headphone of all time? It remains to be seen!

 

[Edouard]

Looking forward to hear your impressions on ad-2000x

 

[a_recording]

Quote:

I finally ordered an AD2KX today. Sort of nervous about how it might compare to the AD2K - will it still have the same sound that I know & love? Will it fix my few sonic complaints? Or will it be something else entirely and send me running back to the original? Those are the need-to-know questions that must be answered! I've bought many headphones before but none have made as nervous as the AD2KX! Will it finally be The One that will unseat my #1 favorite headphone of all time? It remains to be seen!

 
I'm looking forward to your comments.. it was partly your posts that got me excited about the AD2000 so may moons ago!

 

[Jodet]

I've had three very good amps.   First was a custom Blue Circle with a big power supply.   Sounded very good on my Denon D5k's. 
 
But then I tried the Sound Quest SQ84-V2 and it was a whole other world.   I was shocked at the improvement.   The Sound Quest makes everything sound very 'real'.   Like when you're listening to voices they sound like real voices instead of reproductions of voices. 
 
I've had that amp (the Sound Quest) about two years now (or maybe three) and it's just a real solid performer.   I bought one of the Violectric amps used on a lark just to try it.   I really liked it a lot.   Had the best volume knob (great tracking, great feel) I've ever used. 
 
But again, after a month of listening to it I put on the Sound Quest and it was another world.    I've been using Sennheiser HD800's for maybe two years now, they really like a big tube amp like the SQ84-V2.  
 
 
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/0909/sound_quest_sq_84_v2.htm
 
PS:  Oh, and I did try it on my Quad 57's.   Not the ultimate on them, but very good, and certainly the best I've found for the price.  

 

[rexirius]

Quote:

But then I tried the Sound Quest SQ84-V2 and it was a whole other world.

 
Thanks for the info. But this is on topic because...?

 

[bizkid]

Just stumbled upon this:
 
http://www.thomann.de/gb/audio_technica_ath_ad2000_x.htm
 
Sorry Audio Technica, but this is ridicilous. If you'll ever wonder in a few years why you have failed in the european market and your sales never took off more than that of a tiny niche offering; Doubling the price is why. This is not even a >100.000 Yen article in japan, far from it. A big fail from me.

 

[3X0]

Audio Technica has a VERY bizarre and inconsistent pricing schematic. I'm not particularly inclined to purchase most of their non-limited products at the prices they go for.

 

[roguegeek]

Are we sure that's AT's doing or could it possibly be the reseller?

 

[bizkid]

Quote:

Are we sure that's AT's doing or could it possibly be the reseller?

 
https://www.audiopalace.de/product_info.php/info/p65490_Audio-Technica-ATH-AD2000X-Open-backed-Hi-Fi-headphones.html
 
Nope, all other headphones are priced accordingly too. The ATH-AD1000x is 620€. This doesn't make any sense. On the japanese market the AD1000x is THE model that competes directly with the DT880,K701 and HD650 with it's street price of ~27.000Yen (220 Euro). Sold at 620€ the AD1000x has a completely different competition over here. But Audio Technica EU see's that people pay $$$$ now for highend headphones and they want a piece of that without really having the matching products. So they double the price and print some nice shiny brochures. Great thinking! All Audio-Technica PRO products (microphones etc) are still reasonably priced. They just screw with the pricing of their hifi-headphones. Good luck with that Audio Technica.

 

[aeolushu]

I guess no one will buy AT headphones and amps for that price. The ones who really love the AT signature will try to import from Japan or HK, or just buy products from competitors.

 

[rexirius]

Yes, quite a few of us here bought directly from amazon.jp and used Tenso shipping service. Isn't this an option for you?

 

[bizkid]

Quote:

Yes, quite a few of us here bought directly from amazon.jp and used Tenso shipping service. Isn't this an option for you?

 
I imported my first AT 6-7 years ago. I just stumbled upon this while browsing for another headphone