[HardstyleLoco96]

I've heard the closed Sine, very nice sounding. Especially for being so small. I think the headphone that really catches my attention is the Mod House Argon MK2/MK3. I have beyond enough juice for portable and at home use. All reviews and impressions are beyond positive and the price is great.

 

[Heldaeus]

Are you talking about the honeycomb structure on the back of the earcups? I'm not sure how it could improve bass, the holes look already very large don't you think? To me the Avantone sounds super open already.

Yes though you can't think about the size of the holes, you have to think about them all as one big hole and its total volume. The biggest hole you could have would be no rear grill at all, which would give the diaphragm the most control of the air around it (well, relatively). Remember, low frequencies tend to be the most omnidirectional meaning that the diaphragm needs the ability to control all of the air around it. Changing the size of the backport is what tunes the amount of bass.

So I'm gonna find a way to test around with this.

 

[Heldaeus]

Yes though you can't think about the size of the holes, you have to think about them all as one big hole and its total volume. The biggest hole you could have would be no rear grill at all, which would give the diaphragm the most control of the air around it (well, relatively). Remember, low frequencies tend to be the most omnidirectional meaning that the diaphragm needs the ability to control all of the air around it. Changing the size of the backport is what tunes the amount of bass.

So I'm gonna find a way to test around with this.

I did a *very* rough calculation and have determined that the honeycomb grill (two-dimensionally) occupies about 40 percent of the surface area of the grill not including the rounded solid edges. That is significant.

I made this calculation by taking a picture of the grill on a white piece of paper so that I could clearly capture the shape of the honeycomb pattern. Then I edited this photo in Photoshop using a threshold adjustment layer to clearly distinguish the holes from the grill. Using the histogram I found the number of black pixels (the grill) and divided that by the total number of all pixels.

Here is that edited image:

I understand that this isn't perfect but I'd say it's just close enough to prove my point.

 

[mobbaddict]

I've heard the closed Sine, very nice sounding. Especially for being so small. I think the headphone that really catches my attention is the Mod House Argon MK2/MK3. I have beyond enough juice for portable and at home use. All reviews and impressions are beyond positive and the price is great.

Oh I see, that could be nice. I owned a mod version of the T50RP years ago, that was my first planar, I don't think I was powering them properly though lol.

Yes though you can't think about the size of the holes, you have to think about them all as one big hole and its total volume. The biggest hole you could have would be no rear grill at all, which would give the diaphragm the most control of the air around it (well, relatively). Remember, low frequencies tend to be the most omnidirectional meaning that the diaphragm needs the ability to control all of the air around it. Changing the size of the backport is what tunes the amount of bass.

So I'm gonna find a way to test around with this.

That makes sense yes especially if your calculation above is true. How does bass work in completely closed-back headphones though?

 

[africanus]

I understand that this isn't perfect but I'd say it's just close enough to prove my point.

Just for fun. I measured your picture and got this:

Grille width: 21 pixels
Open area (white hexagon) width: 60 pixels

Now:

Open space hexagon's apothem: 30 pixels
Full (open + half the width of the grille) hexagon's apothem: 40.5 pixels

Using any online calculator we get that open space accounts for 54% of total space.

So, yes, your calculations are pretty accurate. The grille takes up about 46% of total space (neglecting the boundaries)

 

[Heldaeus]

Just for fun. I measured your picture and got this:

Grille width: 21 pixels
Open area (white hexagon) width: 60 pixels

Now:

Open space hexagon's apothem: 30 pixels
Full (open + half the width of the grille) hexagon's apothem: 40.5 pixels

Using any online calculator we get that open space accounts for 54% of total space.

So, yes, your calculations are pretty accurate. The grille takes up about 46% of total space (neglecting the boundaries)

For reference the numbers I extracted from the image were:

456,192 total pixels
193,034 black pixels

 

[Heldaeus]

That makes sense yes especially if your calculation above is true. How does bass work in completely closed-back headphones though?

Because of the way that the drivers are voiced. Also, closed designs often times use a helmholtz resonator integrated into the driver cassette which gives a natural bass boost to specific frequencies.

 

[smorgar]

Hey guys!
I am looking to sell my pair of Avantone Planar.
I have open up the headband and replaced the elastic band to a better one and I have changed the plastic parts attached to the elastic band to a 3D-printed version in soft and slick rubber type of material. I also removed the plastic strands that sleeved the cable, its now more slick and supple.
I have installed a Sennheiser HD555 head strap with double sided tape to increase comfort about 1000%
I live in Sweden and I can send within EU. The condition is very good am in looking for €300+shipping. Feel free to PM for discussion if your interested.

 

[Heldaeus]

Hey guys!
I am looking to sell my pair of Avantone Planar.

What's the reason for selling if you don't mind me asking?

 

[smorgar]

What's the reason for selling if you don't mind me asking?

Need for some money in my wallet

 

[Zufalle]

Would you guys say these headphones have bad QC? I can't get warranty so this is a one shot purchase for me.

What about the flimsy plastic that breaks in the headband, will it break with normal usage or do I have to intentionally try to stress it?

Are they worth it at 400$ or is there something better at a similar price?

 

[Heldaeus]

Would you guys say these headphones have bad QC? I can't get warranty so this is a one shot purchase for me.

What about the flimsy plastic that breaks in the headband, will it break with normal usage or do I have to intentionally try to stress it?

Are they worth it at 400$ or is there something better at a similar price?

Quality control is generally fine. Whatever problems exist seem to be relatively consistent between all the units that different buyers own, which would mean that QC is actually consistent and not the issue.

The issue is a few of the design choices. For example, the headstrap collars which are those flimsy plastic pieces. As long as you never put direct stress on those pieces you’ll likely never run into any issues. Put your finger in the wrong place though and POP, the thing will break.

The choice of padding (lack thereof) in the headstrap and the fact that the elastic band is stitched together in such a way that it forms a lump are also examples of poor design choices.

The gimmick of Velcro pads is also a poor design choice. For one, I can’t imagine what the functional utility is of Velcro for a sound engineer in a studio setting. Secondly, the Velcro inherently creates not only an inferior seal against the baffles but also an inconsistent one.

There are other gripes that I have but I digress.

Are these headphones worth it?

I don’t know, I honestly can’t answer that question for you. That’s up for you to decide.

 

[Cardiaction]

Would you guys say these headphones have bad QC? I can't get warranty so this is a one shot purchase for me.

What about the flimsy plastic that breaks in the headband, will it break with normal usage or do I have to intentionally try to stress it?

Are they worth it at 400$ or is there something better at a similar price?

I got my pair from B&H, no issues, and I do agree with Heldaeus, there are some poor design choices.
But as long as you can have a good pair, then you are fine.
In terms of value, to me, the sound is what matters the most, so I have tried Sundara, HD660s, Grado, Shure 1840, DT1990, my favorite is still the Avantone Planar.
That is why after sending back my Avantone due to financial reason, I cannot listen to any other headphones.

 

[mobbaddict]

Would you guys say these headphones have bad QC? I can't get warranty so this is a one shot purchase for me.

What about the flimsy plastic that breaks in the headband, will it break with normal usage or do I have to intentionally try to stress it?

Are they worth it at 400$ or is there something better at a similar price?

If you find something similar at the same price, please let us know I mean that in a serious way, I'm always curious about bargain headphones. I haven't tried many planars but I think this one is very competitive. Let's put it this way, if you think the HD600 is worth $400, then just get the Avantone instead, it's the better headphone if you like this type of balanced sound signature.

For me the construction is okay, as Heldaeus said you just need to be careful with the headband. The rest is fine after 5 months of use. Changing the earpads is also a must for me though, the stock pads are the bottleneck.

Personally I'm debating whether I should keep fullsize headphones or just sell everything and keep the Audeze Sine which does almost everything as good in a portable form factor. I might just keep those two as I got both for a very reasonable price.

 

[Cardiaction]

If you find something similar at the same price, please let us know I mean that in a serious way, I'm always curious about bargain headphones. I haven't tried many planars but I think this one is very competitive. Let's put it this way, if you think the HD600 is worth $400, then just get the Avantone instead, it's the better headphone if you like this type of balanced sound signature.

For me the construction is okay, as Heldaeus said you just need to be careful with the headband. The rest is fine after 5 months of use. Personally I'm debating whether I should keep fullsize headphones or just sell everything and keep the Audeze Sine which does almost everything as good in a portable form factor. I might just keep those two as I got both for a very reasonable price.

I was trying the same, I would say the closest I tried is the Shure 1840, it crossed basically all the boxes for me, neutral sound, carrying case, good build quality. But it is 100$ more and the Avantone still has a better sound but the Shure is very close.