XB700 owner since they first came out.
I cannot say enough good thing about them from the position of Basshead Yashu, now, from Audiophile Yashu, I can honestly say, that off just an E-MU 0202, they offer a relaxed full specrum of sound, where the bass never ends, and so relative to that, the mids and HF are going to seem recesssed at first, but not after about 20 minutes. You must understand what it means to be able to go flat freq. response curve with LF beyond the limits of "the head" that headroom uses to measure cans. YOu must also understand your ears do not touch the driver grille, and there is a cavety of air that pulsates like a crazy bass chamber of madness, but all the while somehow delivering midrange and high freq. sound, without distortion. That is the key point. 20hz and below flat, while not causing distortion on midrange and HF. The HF are rolled off a bit, but done deliberately, probably, because it is too clean... you would imagine listening fatigue, but there isnt any. Sony obviously did nt want harsh midrange or HF to cause fatigue, resulting in removing these guys from your dome.
I have DT770s, I have M50s, I have had v700DJs, and nothing has approached this level of depth. The thing is, it is worthy of your money because this is acurate bass, not muddy, sludgy crap bose bass, not fake electric motor vibrator skullcandy "bass", this is one of Sony's best large drivers mounted with a very unique set of earpads, which are not just slip on, hey are screwed on with a retention ring. The phones themselves are well built for the money, they look interesting, and the only "flaky" type sony paddding (To Sony: you know what I am talking about, foam that peels off after a few years, stop using that stuff!) is on the inside diameter, as all outside surfaces on the padding, as well as the part that rests against the head is made with non flaking stuff. If you ever owned a pair of Sony pro 'phones you, may have replaced earpads a few times already.
The V700s use s similar driver, but they peak at a freq. to make DJ queuing easier, and it seems like a large quantity of bass, but it drops off fast after ~30hz-40hz
As of yet, there is nothing like the XB700s, could they be better? Sure! Most Sony products need something improved, the R10 may be excluded, and why it is worth so much, Sony only gets it right every time the stars align just right, but do they go beyond their price point? Yes. Are they able to accurately control this massive amount of bass? Yes. Do they take care and pay respect to the midrange and HF, yes yes yes... I actualy like the HF natural rolloff. Redbook digital, and of course, MP3s, I have my ears shreaded by most audiophile oriented cans without first running them through some EQ. Giant headphones, will my tiny portable drive them? Yes! To my best of knowledge, these are ble to offer more from portable than almost any "headphone". IEMs might to something more with regards to this, but I can't turn my Sansa Fuse up all the way, no wau no how, entirely too loud. Despite what some say, actually owning these and having a wife, I can confirm their isolation to be quite good. Disturbingly good. You can be truly in bassland walking around in a grocery store or book shop and it is hard to shake that paranoia that you are forcing your music onto others, but it is not the case. Walk, smile, enjoy.
The cord is interesting in that it is a flat design to not get tangled, but it is short. I am always using an extension, so get a nice 3ft extension, or more if you think, and these are 1/8" plug without the usual screw on 1/4", Keep that in mind as well. With the right stuff, and some kind of amping, you will be in bassland heaven where the clouds go boom, but are clearly defined, and not so sharp as to hurt your thundering feet as you walk.
The Sony XB700s are my guilty pleasure, and as an audiophile first, headphile close second, I am not ashamed to say these are on the shelf with the DT880s, M50s, SR325s, DT770s, HD555(w/ mods)s, AKG Austrian Made K271Ss (non MKII), CAL!(w/ mods)s, v700(still zip tying and gluing the hinges&forks while I can, but getting harder)DJs, even Porta Pro 25th anniversary Ed. headphones known for their big bottom end. I have other headphones, another AKG set and another Beyer set, Sony somethings..., but I put down what I generallly would use.
Plenty of pro and consumer equpment, tubed and SS, and one Sansa Fuse.
The bass on the DT770s is way overstated, I think people just dislike the recessed mids, so they will sound sight boom tizzy, but overall, esp. with leather earpads, they are very good phones, but not designed to take you into bassland. The m50s are all about being accurate, efficient, and not fatiguing. They are wonderful headphones and the bass is tight, but I mean tight as in punchy, though, they they merely follow the source material. If you play boom car demo tracks on well amped m50s they can also blow your skull up scanners style. The XB700s will just be able to do it with a much less expensive setup, and the volume knob turned down farther, and the flying parts of your skull when it blows will certainly reach a greater radius. It's like a A-Bomb vs. an H-Bomb. for what it is worth, the job will be done by either, but one is going to leave a much larger crater where you once stood.
So.... you up for bass like that? Whomever said i was sloppy needs to check his source material, associated gear, and such... these control their quaking ability as well, and oten better than other highly regarded "basshead" cans. I can honestly say this because I have compared them to all sorts of 'phones. With an amp, I don't see where the bass could get sloppy unless it is in the music itself, which is often the case. Many artists forget what they cannot hear in their studios leading to an odd LF profile. Normally never problem because we can't hear it either, but enter these headphones...
so I bought the hfi-780 thinking they will have the same bass with better sound quality, they did have better sound quality but I was a bit disappointed with the bass, but I still love the sound and I'm willing to buy an amplifier to drive them to their full potential. to the OP, the hfi-780 is about 70% of hfi-580's bass if driven by the same device. although from my experience, if you're using a normal player not an amplifier you better go for an iem, headphones need a lot of power to deliver the kind of bass you crave.
