[kman1211]

 They honestly sounded like dynamic drivers that were pretending to be planar drivers. I felt the overall distortion was very low and they had a nice sound that was balanced. I need more listening time but I was impressed off of the first listen
 
oh yeah, would have loved to hear the Nighthawk + Vinni Rossi's AMP/DAC thing that delivered some HUGE bass out of the HD650. It almost didn't sound like an HD650 anymore. HE-560 was nice on his setup too but I preferred Bill P's modified HE-560 which wasn't as strident in the highs and more linear
 
another takeaway I had was that the Audeze LCD-XC was one of the most overrated headphones I have ever heard.. the LCD-3 and LCD-2F are way better I don't care what some people that payed too much say
 
BTW song I heard was Otis Redding "The Dock of the Bay." A classic song with well recorded vocals and I didn't hear anything at all that I didn't like about the Nighthawk especially at $599 that is a come up. Another important thing to note is that I recall Skylar mentioning he didn't want them to give off really any tonal characteristic but rather be a window into the music. Well they are very neutral in an enjoyable way much so like the HD650 but a lot better in my opinion.

Sounds like a headphone right up my alley, I realized I have to focus on dark headphones. I have the HD 650, HD 600, and K712 and I love the three headphones. Though the K712 wasn't the most pleasant and didn't show it's smooth and balanced nature until you beat the thing into submission with a lot of power and a good dac; a little extra dampening helps as well.
 
Agreed the LCD-XC wasn't a pleasant headphone to my ears, I felt it was an extremely overrated closed-back. The best closed-back to me will likely forever be the bass-heavy R10, which I found on the dark side unlike the brightish bass-light R10. I'm just surprised no closed-back flagship seems to of gotten it right since at least of what I've heard.
 
Some reason I've been having very mixed feelings about a lot of orhtodynamics I heard, the ones I liked are either too expensive and/or uncomfortable. I haven't tried the Oppo and MrSpeaker orthos yet so I am hopeful about them.  
 
I have been interested about the Nighthawk since it was announced. A better HD 650 is exactly what I want for my go-to casual listening(which constitutes the majority of my listening) headphone. I was thinking about trying the Z7 but it seems the Nighthawk is likely going to be more to my liking. I'll likely grab these things in August or September. Waiting for more impressions especially compared to the HD 650 and HD 600. 

 

[Beagle]

 

 

 
I agree.

 

[sm31]

Is it my imagination, or are early impressions of this headphone quite divergent; more so than is typical?

 

[kman1211]

  Is it my imagination, or are early impressions of this headphone quite divergent; more so than is typical?

They are quite divergent impressions, but the impressions personally interest me. I get the feeling this headphone is going have a small niche of fans like the K812 does. 
 
 

   
I agree.

I realized my tastes are a bit different than the norm, I don't like a lot of the popular new releases of headphones. I was interested in the EL-8 but my excitement about them quickly died down some reason. You seem to have a lot of headphones. What would you say is your current favorite pair(s)? 

 

[Beagle]

  They are quite divergent impressions, but the impressions personally interest me. I get the feeling this headphone is going have a small niche of fans like the K812 does. 
 
 
I realized my tastes are a bit different than the norm, I don't like a lot of the popular new releases of headphones. I was interested in the EL-8 but my excitement about them quickly died down some reason. You seem to have a lot of headphones. What would you say is your current favorite pair(s)? 

 
Probably the McIntosh....that's probably my best, but like children, I love 'em all!
 
However, I am currently selling off a lot of my headphones, realizing that I only want dark headphones now. I want something that begins a gradual roll-off around 6kHz..
 
BTW the McIntosh is not dark

 

[kman1211]

   
Probably the McIntosh....that's probably my best, but like children, I love 'em all!
 
However, I am currently selling off a lot of my headphones, realizing that I only want dark headphones now. I want something that begins a gradual roll-off around 6kHz..
 
BTW the McIntosh is not dark

I haven't even heard of that headphone, didn't realize it was such a pricey headphone. What's your opinion of the K812? I personally found it one of the few flagships I actually really enjoyed despite the hate it gets.
 
I understand that. I am quite happy with my headphones as none really bother me sonically. It's not necessarily really about dark or bright with me, but rather more about low listening fatigue, refinement, and musicality. It's just dark and sometimes neutral headphones usually fit my preferences. Too much emphasis in the upper midrange and any part of the treble are problem spots for me, though it also depends on the headphone as some with less emphasis bother me more than others that may have more emphasis.
 
I haven't really come across any high-quality headphones I thought were too dark for enjoyment before. I get the feeling many audiophiles are used to more treble-tilted and drier phones. Darker phones often sound more like my experiences with high-end speakers. What I have heard about the HE-1000 has disheartened me a bit about it, I would like to try it, but from what I've been reading it's not my type of sound. 
 
What does the McIntosh sound like? 

 

[dpump]

I calld Music Direct last week and preordered the NightHawk. The salesman told me they should be receiving their order around the middle of April. However, I received an email yesterday from TTVJ (Todd the Vinyl Junkie) to preorder the NightHawk from him. TTVJ said they expect to receive their order in mid May to early June. Wonder who is correct? Or maybe Music Direct, being a much larger Audioquest dealer, will receive their order sooner? We shall see.

 

[eimis]

Everyone please post your impressions here after you get them.

 

[Beagle]

 
What does the McIntosh sound like? 

 
Open, clear, nicely balanced, great inner detail without brightness. If I had a magic wand, I would bestow just a tiny bit of darkness anyway.
 

 
I calld Music Direct last week and preordered the NightHawk. The salesman told me they should be receiving their order around the middle of April. However, I received an email yesterday from TTVJ (Todd the Vinyl Junkie) to preorder the NightHawk from him. TTVJ said they expect to receive their order in mid May to early June. Wonder who is correct? Or maybe Music Direct, being a much larger Audioquest dealer, will receive their order sooner? We shall see.

 
Great. I can almost taste it. Which is silly, it's only another headphone

 

[wahsmoh]

   
Probably the McIntosh....that's probably my best, but like children, I love 'em all!
 
However, I am currently selling off a lot of my headphones, realizing that I only want dark headphones now. I want something that begins a gradual roll-off around 6kHz..
 
BTW the McIntosh is not dark

It shares some Beyer DNA so it shouldn't be dark sounding

 

[wnmnkh]

 
I calld Music Direct last week and preordered the NightHawk. The salesman told me they should be receiving their order around the middle of April. However, I received an email yesterday from TTVJ (Todd the Vinyl Junkie) to preorder the NightHawk from him. TTVJ said they expect to receive their order in mid May to early June. Wonder who is correct? Or maybe Music Direct, being a much larger Audioquest dealer, will receive their order sooner? We shall see.

 
From information I've heard, it is safe to assume it is delayed (which is good thing based on my impressions and others)

 

[XERO1]

  Everyone please post your impressions here after you get them.

 
I heard these at the SoCal CanJam and was very disappointed.  They sounded soft, muddy and just downright bad.
 
Some people have been comparing them to the HD 650's (my current references).  IMHO, the HD 650's sound significantly better in every way!!  And for half the price!!!

 
I really wanted to love them, and I really like their comfort and build quality, but they just completely fall short in the SQ dept.
 
I hate to knock a headphone from any company that has obviously put a ton of time and money into them, but I gotta call it like I hear it.  
 
Unless some dramatic improvements are made before launch, which seems unlikely this close to their release, the NightHawk is a unfortunate misfire.
 
Sorry guys, maybe next time.

 

[grizzlybeast]

^Everyone says that about these. Maybe they should do some retuning before releasing them

 

[Beagle]

Not everyone. Some were very impressed with them at the recent Montreal show.

 

[grizzlybeast]

Everyone isnt a fair word. Its just that of all the CES and Can Jam reports I read this seemed to have the most negative feedback. I'm not counting it out. That just seems like the consensus.