[Bubblejuice]

Two questions:

 

1) How can I tell the difference between a 1st Gen and 2nd Gen model without the box?

 

I inspected a pair of H7 and couldn't find any model or serial number anywhere on the headphone (Although I didn't check under the ear pads).

 

2) Where the heck can you get replacement ear pads?

 

The only ones I've seen are black and pink, and retail for $100... That's more than the ear pads for my LCD-2s..

 
Thanks!

 

[Bubblejuice]

  no it does not require an amp, from a power perspective, even the hd800 can be driven by my phone.... so it's the furthest from the truth. It sounds plenty good and the difference between using your phone and a dedicated amp is minuscule at best. I'm sure you will enjoy them without an amp

Oh ok, awesome! Thank you. If it doesn't sound as great. Investing in a Fio A3 is not out of the question. Something like that would come in handy anyways.

 

[akg fanboy]

  Oh ok, awesome! Thank you. If it doesn't sound as great. Investing in a Fio A3 is not out of the question. Something like that would come in handy anyways.

Sure, it could work and you might need it later down the road if you ever get more power hungry headphones. But most portable headphones are designed to work best with portable devices, they wouldn't be marketed in the portable category otherwise

 

[k4syx]

How would the Gen 2 or Gen 1 compare to the H7s wired?

I went to the Apple store today and bought a 3.5mm cable. Hooked them up to my phone. They were about 30% louder, and 100% clearer. Still had that wireless fuzz, but the sound signature was pretty good. The vocals in front, everything else decently behind. Though the Bass, was very present and thumpy, it did cover the mids quite a bit. 

I like thunderous, just not in my face. (In other words, I like to feel and hear the rumble, but it not bleed into the details).

Such a shame there's no place with H6s in AZ.

Sorry, I didnt try H7 - as I am using Astell&Kern XB10 to make all my headphones wireless there was no real point in trying them as I wouldnt buy them anyway.

As for driving H6 with an amp: they are extremely easy to drive even with pure phone output and this is one of the reasons that Marco claims them kings of the mobile.
However if you'll use some external amp youll notice that they are getting even better. Thats one of the reasons for my XB10 - it has really nice dac/amp so it is always better to listen through it with aptx than wired straight from the phone.

As for other amps I've tried them with Mojo (great pairing) and with DragonFly Red (good, but obviously not Mojo level good).

Anyway: when comparing gear driven straight from the phone these are really the best sounding open/closed headphones that I've heard. And I've heard/had f.e. Momentums, K545, K550, MD1R, and those ATHs with 70 in name that I can never remember.

And they get even better with amp or driven from a good phone output (like LG G3, the old HTC One S).

 

[Bloodflowerz]

 
I mean, is the bass lacking on the 1st gen? Or does it just need a small amp to bring it forward?
 
The comparisons made make it seem like the 1st gen has no bass and is really quiet un-amped. 

 
Not at all. It's perfect with the DX50. Plenty bass, really strong, when called for, that's the key.

 

[Bubblejuice]

   
Not at all. It's perfect with the DX50. Plenty bass, really strong, when called for, that's the key.

How about when just plugged in to the mobile source?

 

[Bloodflowerz]

  How about when just plugged in to the mobile source?

 
If you are talking about a mobile phone then I guess the bass will sound not so strong and the overall sound quality would suffer. But that would apply to any headphone run through a mobile which lacks a quality amp.
 
Just bite the bullet man and don't look back.

 

[Bubblejuice]

   
If you are talking about a mobile phone then I guess the bass will sound not so strong and the overall sound quality would suffer. But that would apply to any headphone run through a mobile which lacks a quality amp.
 
Just bite the bullet man and don't look back.

Haha I definitely will. One either pops up in my price range ill snag it.
 
But I understand, either one will probably be more than great. 
 
Thank you

 

[plsvn]

  1) How can I tell the difference between a 1st Gen and 2nd Gen model without the box?

 
Look inside the earpads:
green -> Gen 1
black -> Gen 2

 

[Bubblejuice]

   
Look inside the earpads:
green -> Gen 1
black -> Gen 2

That's only with the black model haha. If it has the original pads.

 

[plsvn]

 
That's only with the black model haha. If it has the original pads.

 
“A customer can have a car his headphones painted in any color he wants as long as it’s black”
(Henry Ford)
 

 

[Bubblejuice]

   
“A customer can have a car his headphones painted in any color he wants as long as it’s black”
(Henry Ford)
 

Lol, I bit the bullet and got my car in grey and salmon pink

 

[Dickies]

 

1) How can I tell the difference between a 1st Gen and 2nd Gen model without the box?

 

I inspected a pair of H7 and couldn't find any model or serial number anywhere on the headphone (Although I didn't check under the ear pads).

 
 
take the left ear pad off on the inner ring of the left cup this sticker tells you.
I assume thats where the h7's SN would be also
 

 
EDIT: to be clear not the ring inside the pad, the ring of the cup

 

[Bubblejuice]

   
 
take the left ear pad off on the inner ring of the left cup this sticker tells you.
I assume thats where the h7's SN would be also
 

 
EDIT: to be clear not the ring inside the pad, the ring of the cup

Oh ok! Awesome. Thank you very much! I just ordered a pair (Gen 1 SE) BNIB from eBay. I'll make sure to inspect this when I get them. I appreciate it!

 

[Bubblejuice]

So, how does the increased bass with the Gen 2 work?
 
Did they just boost the bass through a bit of EQ in the headphone tech?
 
or
 
Did they actually change something in the driver/design of the headphone to give it stronger bass?
 
If so, wouldn't you be able to achieve the same sound on the Gen 1 with a "Bass Boost" switch on most portable amps?