[ksb643]

Thanks to you guys and this thread, i decided to take a chance on these. Playing now through my cell, they sound pretty good. Won't get a chance to listen to them through my Modius- Jot stack till tomorrow.

 

[Heldaeus]

Check this new review out!

 

[WyldRage]

Well guys, last one. I'm sending them back Thursday. I've made one change on chain: the Soncoz LA-QXD1 has replaced my hand-soldered Gamma2 DAC, and it's a very strong improvement for my high-resolution files!

Avantone Planar vs Koss ESP/95x (with Vesper hybrid pads)

- SOUNDSTAGE and IMAGING: Despite how good the Planar is here against other headphones, the 'stats has it beaten. Those ultrawide earcups really serve the Koss well.
- MIDRANGE: The Koss midrange sounds extremely clean and precise. Guitars and vocals actually sound fantastic on these, very natural. In comparison, the Planar midrange sounds warm and a bit cavernous.
- INSTRUMENT SEPARATION: The Koss ESP/95x never sounds congested. It makes sense, since the moving part is so light.
- COMFORT : The Koss is extremely light, which makes it my favorite headphone in the summer.

+ BASS: Even with the Vesper pads, there is just more bass presence in the Planar.
+ ATTACK and SLAM: The Planar dominates here, of course. You HEAR everything on the electrostats, but you never FEEL the impact of the drums and the bass.

Conclusion: Despite the balance of +/-, the Planar actually sound like the better headphone for my genres (Metal and Rock): the lack of slam and rumble really hurt the electrostats for these genres. That said, I really prefer the Koss ESP/95x for pretty much everything else, and their lightness allows me to wear them comfortably for far longer than any other pair of headphones I own.

 

[WyldRage]

The Sundara, KOSS ESP/95x, the Avantone Planar and my good old Gamma 2 DAC

 

[Mink]

Check this new review out!

Yes I know everyone hears differently, but when he started talking about the soundstage being "borderline mono, incredibly narrow" I was convinced about two options: either he has a faulty pair or his ears are poop. This is ridiculous LOL
The Planar's soundstage at least has a similar width as my HD650s, but more 3D and evenly spread out. I own the Fidelio X2HR and X3s, both of which are considered to have a wide soundstage, I never heard anyone say otherwise. Compared to them the Planars don't sound cramped or narrow, not even in a direct comparison. They have enough width and depth in their soundstage to be satisfying with big orchestral works, something I cannot say about the HD650s with confidence.

 

[WyldRage]

And the rest of the gang: the Mr Speakers Aeon Flow Closed Re-tuned, my good old Audez'e LCD-2, and my new chain: the Soncoz LA-QXD1 driving my Topping A90.

 

[Heldaeus]

Yes I know everyone hears differently, but when he started talking about the soundstage being "borderline mono, incredibly narrow" I was convinced about two options: either he has a faulty pair or his ears are poop. This is ridiculous LOL
The Planar's soundstage at least has a similar width as my HD650s, but more 3D and evenly spread out. I own the Fidelio X2HR and X3s, both of which are considered to have a wide soundstage, I never heard anyone say otherwise. Compared to them the Planars don't sound cramped or narrow, not even in a direct comparison. They have enough width and depth in their soundstage to be satisfying with big orchestral works, something I cannot say about the HD650s with confidence.

Man, I was so offended by his review not gonna lie hahha

 

[trellus]

Yes I know everyone hears differently, but when he started talking about the soundstage being "borderline mono, incredibly narrow" I was convinced about two options: either he has a faulty pair or his ears are poop. This is ridiculous LOL
The Planar's soundstage at least has a similar width as my HD650s, but more 3D and evenly spread out. I own the Fidelio X2HR and X3s, both of which are considered to have a wide soundstage, I never heard anyone say otherwise. Compared to them the Planars don't sound cramped or narrow, not even in a direct comparison. They have enough width and depth in their soundstage to be satisfying with big orchestral works, something I cannot say about the HD650s with confidence.

I love Max Settings' reviews, highly respect him (I bought my iBasso SR-1 from him, coincidentally), but yeah, @Heldaeus told me that he had said that in that review, and we were both puzzled by that, lol, having heard @Heldaeus's set, I definitely agree that it is not anything like that at all, NOT incredibly narrow, a little bigger than the 6XX.

The only cans that I have sometimes thought, "borderline mono" are my Fostex TH-500RP, but even those aren't that bad, lol. But the Avantone is nowhere near "borderline mono, incredibly narrow."

 

[Heldaeus]

Yes I know everyone hears differently, but when he started talking about the soundstage being "borderline mono, incredibly narrow" I was convinced about two options: either he has a faulty pair or his ears are poop. This is ridiculous LOL
The Planar's soundstage at least has a similar width as my HD650s, but more 3D and evenly spread out. I own the Fidelio X2HR and X3s, both of which are considered to have a wide soundstage, I never heard anyone say otherwise. Compared to them the Planars don't sound cramped or narrow, not even in a direct comparison. They have enough width and depth in their soundstage to be satisfying with big orchestral works, something I cannot say about the HD650s with confidence.

I was talking to @trellus about this, to me the planar plays sounds where they’re supposed to be. Real, recorded reverberations through the planar give me a good sense of the room size.

 

[Mink]

Here are some EQs generated via AutoEQ

The 2018 Parametric Harman EQ is acually very nice.

 

[Heldaeus]

The 2018 Parametric Harman EQ is acually very nice.

Can you try this one out? If its too sibilant then turn off the filter at 10,229 Hz

 

[Mink]

Hey y’all. Right now I’m designing

Can you try this one out? If its too sibilant then turn off the filter at 10,229 Hz

The best one I tried yet. Good one!

 

[Heldaeus]

The best one I tried yet. Good one!

I'm flattered. I've made a tweak. Well, a whole new EQ but, based on the same idea of the last one.

This EQ is supposed to sound like the Planar itself but more refined.

 

[Heldaeus]

UPDATE:

I was able to calculate a more accurate target using exponential smoothing in Excel and this EQ is the result.

(So far I like this preset more than the other two)

 

[HardstyleLoco96]

UPDATE:

I was able to calculate a more accurate target using exponential smoothing in Excel and this EQ is the result.

(So far I like this preset more than the other two)

I'll give this a go right now and compare to my EQ