[billbishere]

Interesting... Now I wanna try them... haha. Anyone got a link to a good place to purchase them from?

 

[MidSmoothness]

Interesting... Now I wanna try them... haha. Anyone got a link to a good place to purchase them from?

Hybrid pads? https://artsexcellence.com/audioque...MIl7Ob6IiR4AIVDc-yCh0ShAmwEAQYAiABEgK4-vD_BwE

 

[Redtigga]

Daft question but given the reduction in price I am considering one of these and wondered what the difference in sound was between the NH and NO. I get one is open and closed. I have a pair of B&W 7 wireless and find them a) uncomfortable for long listening 2) that the soundstage is quite tight. I figured a pair of open headphones would give me a little more of that ‘real speaker’ sound. Is that the case with these?

 

[mbwilson111]

Daft question but given the reduction in price I am considering one of these and wondered what the difference in sound was between the NH and NO. I get one is open and closed. I have a pair of B&W 7 wireless and find them a) uncomfortable for long listening 2) that the soundstage is quite tight. I figured a pair of open headphones would give me a little more of that ‘real speaker’ sound. Is that the case with these?

I, and many others, do feel a bit of that "speaker sound." I listened with speakers for many years and when I got my Nighthawks they just felt "right."

 

[Devodonaldson]

Daft question but given the reduction in price I am considering one of these and wondered what the difference in sound was between the NH and NO. I get one is open and closed. I have a pair of B&W 7 wireless and find them a) uncomfortable for long listening 2) that the soundstage is quite tight. I figured a pair of open headphones would give me a little more of that ‘real speaker’ sound. Is that the case with these?

Both NO and NH have a deer seakerlike presentation than p7. NH just a tad more airy. NO mids are more forward with a more present treble. NH the more calming laid back of the two. I have and love them both. My favorite often seems to be whichever one I have on at the time

 

[mbwilson111]

My favorite often seems to be whichever one I have on at the time

I don't have the NO, only the NH but this statement could apply to much of my gear

 

[Redtigga]

Thanks guys really helpful. I am drawn to the NH given i have Sony MX 1000 m2 for travel / noisy environments. Want a nice airy pair for listening to turntable or Roon through MojoPoly combination.

 

[mbwilson111]

Thanks guys really helpful. I am drawn to the NH given i have Sony MX 1000 m2 for travel / noisy environments. Want a nice airy pair for listening to turntable or Roon through MojoPoly combination.

That sounds like it would be really nice.

 

[volly]

Thanks guys really helpful. I am drawn to the NH given i have Sony MX 1000 m2 for travel / noisy environments. Want a nice airy pair for listening to turntable or Roon through MojoPoly combination.

The Nighthawks play very nicely with turn-tables/LP, there is plenty of detail coming out of the NH's but some find it 'muddy' sounding, if your taste align with most of us on this thread then you'll probably find the NH's have plenty of detailed and natural sounding but you 'may' not find them airy, it's just the top is tastefully (imho) smoothed out and isn't forced! What I love with the NH's is the low-low-end detail it can dig up, plenty of low end but it isn't overblown or lifted a great deal, it gives the music really good weight! The mid's along with sound-stage is well spaced out and never gets congested. If you like the Sony house-sound, you may feel the NH's might be a bit more controlled with less boosted treble and clearer mid-range. Comfort is arguable among the most comfortable out of my collection.

If you get a chance to listen to them then give them a good listen, some loved them for the get-go and others grew to love them, and some just sold them on! They are polarizing - Yes! But they are not as bad as some have made them out to be! Taste can vary, and these are very tasteful (to me!).

 

[Redtigga]

Thanks for the detailed reply Volly that is incredibly helpful. I have ordered a pair and will share my thoughts later next week. Thanks again.

 

[groucho69]

The Nighthawks play very nicely with turn-tables/LP, there is plenty of detail coming out of the NH's but some find it 'muddy' sounding, if your taste align with most of us on this thread then you'll probably find the NH's have plenty of detailed and natural sounding but you 'may' not find them airy, it's just the top is tastefully (imho) smoothed out and isn't forced! What I love with the NH's is the low-low-end detail it can dig up, plenty of low end but it isn't overblown or lifted a great deal, it gives the music really good weight! The mid's along with sound-stage is well spaced out and never gets congested. If you like the Sony house-sound, you may feel the NH's might be a bit more controlled with less boosted treble and clearer mid-range. Comfort is arguable among the most comfortable out of my collection.

If you get a chance to listen to them then give them a good listen, some loved them for the get-go and others grew to love them, and some just sold them on! They are polarizing - Yes! But they are not as bad as some have made them out to be! Taste can vary, and these are very tasteful (to me!).

Agreed

 

[Hi-Fi EDU]

I believe we were on about IEMs vs. the NHs a few pages back. Thought I'd add a bit from my experience:

Not BIG on IEMs but have owned/tried a few (NuForce HEM6, MassDrop Plus, Shure SE215, etc). I was lucky to pick up the Noble K10U, MassDrop edition recently. As with the NHs and full-sized HPs, I KNOW I've achieved IEM satisfaction with the K10U.

Overall, I'd describe the K10U as musically versatile, highly pleasant and well-balanced. Granted they are IEMs (tips/seal are critical), I hold them on equal footing with my NHs for those aforementioned traits, which is personally saying something. Where the NHs have an advantage would be slightly more "air" that I think is partly afforded by the physical distance of those biocellulose drivers from the ears; i.e. they're over-ears.

Easy, extended high ends for both, beautiful yet not overly forward mids (K10U's are slightly more forward with mids and might honestly take the cake from the NH's in this category), and low-ends are solid. I like to personally describe the NH sometimes as well-mixed, natural ear chocolate, and a certain touch of smoothness to the bass is what makes it so mesmerizing for me. That character is unique to the NHs but the K10U holds firm. It truly is amazing to think that there's ten drivers per ear and the execution from Noble deserves an applause. It shows with the ability of the K10U to bring its great bass seemingly out of nowhere and a level of detail retrieval that has to compete with some of the best around. It had me imagining a hypothetical NH HP/IEM with multiple biocellulose drivers per ear...a man can dream right?

Ran a little long-in-the-tooth with my comparison but I highly recommend giving the K10U a listen if you can. I think y'all already know how I feel about the NHs. (Enjoy the Super Bowl, if you watch!)

 

[xRaptorxPunisher]

Daft question but given the reduction in price I am considering one of these and wondered what the difference in sound was between the NH and NO. I get one is open and closed. I have a pair of B&W 7 wireless and find them a) uncomfortable for long listening 2) that the soundstage is quite tight. I figured a pair of open headphones would give me a little more of that ‘real speaker’ sound. Is that the case with these?

I find the Owls a little more aggressive. Both have a few peaks that can make the treble a bit edgy but the owls have it more obvious. The Owls remind me of a more narrow fostex while the hawks have a weird, almost echoey sound to them. I prefer the hawks as I find the slightly semi open design a little more breathable. Both are good value at the min if one likes a more dark, bassy presentation.

 

[wordfool]

Recently decided to take advantage of the $299 deals on the Nighthawk Carbon before they sold out forever and was glad I did. They are indeed a very different-sounding headphone, but as someone who is not averse to recessed mids or darker profiles (E-MU Teaks and AFOs also in my stable) I quite like them. Brain burn-in takes a while (sorry Audioquest, I consider the "150-hour" burn in suggestion just more of the same snake oil you slosh over some of your cables) and probably the biggest aspect to get used to for me is perhaps best described as the fact that my brain actually has to listen to hear their subtleties. If other headphones present everything right there, on a plate, the Nighthawks require me to go into the proverbial kitchen and prepare my own plate. Detail is there, just not obvious. At first you think so much is missing until you focus and realize that everything that should be there actually is there. With the hybrid pads (which I prefer over the pleather for their more even response) the bass is certainly powerful, but never sounds peaky. The mids are recessed yet vocals and instruments still manage to sound right, even if lacking a bit of overall presence in the mix. And the treble sparkle is there if you listen, but again not in your face.

At their original $699 price I'd perhaps have tried them and sent them back, but for $299 they're most definitely a very competent and unique headphone. I can see why they are so polarizing, but anyone who like a laid-back, darker sound might like them.

 

[bobo64]

Hi, I got a brand new Nighthawks a couple of days ago and they are in the process of break in right now. Out of the box, they sound very, very promising. There is one thing I do not understand. According to a lot of reviews, people find them dark, even too dark. I strongly disagree! They are certainly source dependent, but with good, even average recordings I can hear plenty of details in highs. There is not anything missing. Just to add - I am a 55 five year old music lover and my hearing is slowly but surely deteriorating. Still, no problems with highs that Nighthawks produce!. Not to forget, soft, deep bass and addictive mids. I expect a lot from them, very happy with my purchase!