[bizkid]

Quote:

I'm quite disappointed that you've put the W5000s on the bottom of the list. The W series of ATH are designed to listen to Jpop, and generally doesn't sound any good outside of that. In fact the ones before W1kx and W3k were only used to listen to young female Jpop. 

 
No they are definately not designed for jpop. Japanese audiophiles (alteast the ones i know) which would spend so much on headphones listen to western music mostly (jazz, classical, blues etc). Just buy any japanese hifi magazine and you'll see what they're listening.

 

[MacedonianHero]

Quote:

If its designed for jpop only then its not a good headphone LOL. Good headphones should sound good with all music.

^ This!

 

[DavidMahler]

Quote:

Yes,& then ,comparing them with different amps..
Surprised it only took him 6 months.,would have taken most people 1 year,maybe longer.

Well, it did actually take a total of about 18 months if I were to consider everything (the complete writing took longer than six months).  The short hand notes I took were essentially the core of the comparative listening (this took six months as well).  I would usually go through a few phases. Obviously, you can't help but be more familiar with certain headphones than others by the nature that you own some longer than others.  I would always start with extremely casual listening just to allow my ears to ease into the sound.  This casual listening would involve just sitting in a chair, web-surfing. I'd do this for an hour, sometimes two (particularly if I was unfamiliar with the headphone).  I did this, because if I began with extreme focus my brain, I would probably be too aware of what I didn't like about the headphone, or conversely, if I favored the headphone too much coming into the listen, my opinions may be too abrupt.  (Brain burn-in essentially)

Following that I would put on a series of familiar songs and listen with complete attention.  This is where the short hand opinions would begin.  I kept a tower of CDs nearby at all times and several headphones nearby at all times for quick A/B listening.  As I switched between amps and headphones, I would return to the headphone for which was my focus at the time and then I'd assess which amplifier the headphone sounded best to me.  

Then using that amp (or sometimes 2 amps) I would go through a series of CDs (this would often take days) and attempt to put my findings into shorthand words.  This involved extreme focus and was tedious at times, especially many months into it.  In this time I would often find myself returning to several other headphones for reference purposes.  I came up with all these weird abbreviations for things writing in complete code by the end...

 

[zeinharis]

 

[Bocefuss4500]

Awesome review man !!! spent last 2 hours going over it ... gotta ask what the insurance value of headphones and all related gear  in your collection ???
 
p.s. now have me lusting over  SONY: MDR-R10 (bass-heavy) maybe one day i'll own a pair
 

 

[tamleo]

oh my god, in the"order by SQ" list, the Grado HP2s is a step-up above my belove LCD-2s

It really amazes me (of course besides the massive top tier headphones collection 

) 
Because of  oppotunities listening the Rs1s and some Grado's mid/low-end headphones in past. I have always kept in mind this brand is one of the worst audio manufactory in the world =.= To me, their headphones have a "wild",multi-flaws and cluttering sound, feels like the handmade products from a craft company lacking the modern or technical machines.

 

[elwappo99]

Quote:

oh my god, in the"order by SQ" list, the Grado HP2s is a step-up above my belove LCD-2s

It really amazes me (of course besides the massive top tier headphones collection 

) 
Because of  oppotunities listening the Rs1s and some Grado's mid/low-end headphones in past. I have always kept in mind this brand is one of the worst audio manufactory in the world =.= To me, their headphones have a "wild",multi-flaws and cluttering sound, feels like the handmade products from a craft company lacking the modern or technical machines.

 
The HP2s are so very different than the current grado line. They are really a neat headphone.

 

[alota]

Quote:

oh my god, in the"order by SQ" list, the Grado HP2s is a step-up above my belove LCD-2s

 

of course!!!

 

[kxanthop]

Excellent review. It has been a pleasure reading it, thank you!
May I ask for advice? I currently own a rather early (bought in 2006) AKG K701 and a Schiit Lyr (source is a Naim DAC and a Clearaudio analog rig). The plan was to upgrade to an LCD2 or an HE500. However after having heard a pair of HD650, having read your review and having found an almost new, used HD600 at a great price, question is if buying the 600s makes any sense. I liked the 650s a lot and I heard through a much worse amp and with a worse source, however do you think that these HD600s would be an upgrade over my K701s (I mostly listen to jazz). Many thanks!

 

[jerg]

Quote:

oh my god, in the"order by SQ" list, the Grado HP2s is a step-up above my belove LCD-2s

It really amazes me (of course besides the massive top tier headphones collection 

) 
Because of  oppotunities listening the Rs1s and some Grado's mid/low-end headphones in past. I have always kept in mind this brand is one of the worst audio manufactory in the world =.= To me, their headphones have a "wild",multi-flaws and cluttering sound, feels like the handmade products from a craft company lacking the modern or technical machines.

 
Because HP2

 
 
Is completely different from any "current" Grados e.g. RS1

 
 
The graphs tell the tale.

 

[madbull]

The only headphone I miss in this review is the JVC DX1000...
 

 

[kdaq]

I've been away from this wonderful hobby for a few years now. Partially, it's because I had my own "R10 moment". For me, it was the Grado HF-2. It makes music simply alive.
 
This monumental review was an absolute pleasure to read, and rekindled my interest in the current state of the market. In particular, I'm now intrigued by orthodynamic design, and the HE-500 in particular.
 
Thank you!

 

[Xtron2112]

You have used both Master of Puppets AND Close to the Edge(Quite possibly my all-time favorite albums, and the albums that define their subgenres IMHO) as test albums, and for that alone you have earned my eternal respect.

 

[alota]

Quote:

The only headphone I miss in this review is the JVC DX1000...
 

my beloved!!!

 

[Xymordos]

Quote:

 
No they are definately not designed for jpop. Japanese audiophiles (alteast the ones i know) which would spend so much on headphones listen to western music mostly (jazz, classical, blues etc). Just buy any japanese hifi magazine and you'll see what they're listening.

Well maybe not pop, but definitely vocals. All of the headphones before W5000 were skewed even more so towards vocals. 
 
And a lot of the female vocals tend to sound extremely thin and high pitched, some sounds like a kid's voice. I wouldn't call these songs hifi, but many people spend lots of money upgrading their systems listening to these songs, especially ACG music.