[Dubstep Girl]

Quote:

The soundstage "probably" not as good? You haven't heard HD800 from the right system that is for sure.

 
+1
 
W5000 vs. HD 800, not sure if citadel's trolling, but they're not even remotely close. i tried the W5000 and they didn't even compare to any of my mid-fi's at the time (K701, HD 650, DT 990, SR325, RS1, D2000).
 
the W5000s where extremely grainy sounding for me, that along with the tonality (i dunno if it was nasal, just didn't sound very natural or right to me, it was just very off). and no bass really where the biggest turn off for me. they did not have a very good soundstage or imaging either. overall, i was quite disappointed in them and sold them rather quickly, barely listened to them in the week or 2 i owned them.
 
i tried to like them, i really did, but they're pretty bad. the W1000 was better IMO

 

[remilio]

Quote:

 
W5000 vs. HD 800, not sure if citadel's trolling, but they're not even remotely close. i tried the W5000 and they didn't even compare to any of my mid-fi's at the time (K701, HD 650, DT 990, SR325, RS1, D2000).

I didn't hear W5000, but I can't imagine how it can be worse than D2000, these denons are WAAAY hyped and actually bad.

 

[RustA]

Quote:

I didn't hear W5000, but I can't imagine how it can be worse than D2000, these denons are WAAAY hyped and actually bad.

 
Definitely must agree with that...

 

[Dubstep Girl]

oh the W5000 is still worse. basically a denon with more grain in the trebles, and alot of grain in the mids,  a more congested sound, and no bass. the d2k is actually pretty well rounded and has nice details and mids considering its a bass head headphone. 
 
also look at the price. the D2k is a bargain at 200-300$, huge bang for the buck, especially for someone who enjoys a bassy presentation, its great for movies and gaming and all around bass heavy music. the W5000 however, won't go for less than 500-550 used, new is anywhere from 700$ to over 1000$

 

[930Blue]

Fatastic review.  IMO the best reviews are the ones where headphones and amps are compared side by side.  From this perspective this review is epic.  Seems like the Manley 300b amp is preferred slightly over the Woo WA5 when using hte HD 800s.  Does nay one else have this preference of the Manley over the Woo?

 

[Andrew_WOT]

Quote:

 
+1
 
W5000 vs. HD 800, not sure if citadel's trolling, but they're not even remotely close. i tried the W5000 and they didn't even compare to any of my mid-fi's at the time (K701, HD 650, DT 990, SR325, RS1, D2000).
 

LOL, they are extremely close, so close that at times I prefer W5000.
And no, I didn't "hear" but have owned one for many years and now have HD800 hanging next to them on dual headphone stand. It all boils down to achieving proper seal and finding matching amp. Technically they are definitely piers, whether you like ATH in house coloration is up to individual taste, HD800 are more neutral but also brighter at the same time. W5000 with the same level of details and comparable soundstage and bass reproduction have less fatiguing treble and lush, euphonic, emphasized mids, a killer for female vocals.

 

[dan.gheorghe]

Quote:

LOL, they are extremely close, so close that at times I prefer W5000.
And no, I didn't "hear" but have owned one for many years and now have HD800 hanging next to them on dual headphone stand. It all boils down to achieving proper seal and finding matching amp. Technically they are definitely piers, whether you like ATH in house coloration is up to individual taste, HD800 are more neutral but also brighter at the same time. W5000 with the same level of details and comparable soundstage and bass reproduction have less fatiguing treble and lush, euphonic, emphasized mids, a killer for female vocals.

Well this hobby is very subjective and people have different tastes, can't argue with that. For example I still use Audeze LCD2 eventhough I found that HD800 is technically superior in most aspects. They sound very different and that is why I still keep the LCD2. But I can't understand how you think that W5000 are close to HD800. Maybe they are so different and you love what is specific to the differences brought by W5000 to the sound. I personally did not hear any other headphone to compare to the soundstage of HD800, especially compared to any closed headphones out there. 

How would you compare the detail levels in Audeze LCD2 vs W5000? I personally think HD800 has a lot more details than LCD2 for example. I sometimes got scared in movies/music as I thought that I heard something in my room and  prepared to defend myself ) :

 

[Dubstep Girl]

Quote:

Spoiler: Warning%3A%20Spoiler!

 
Well this hobby is very subjective and people have different tastes, can't argue with that. For example I still use Audeze LCD2 eventhough I found that HD800 is technically superior in most aspects. They sound very different and that is why I still keep the LCD2. But I can't understand how you think that W5000 are close to HD800. Maybe they are so different and you love what is specific to the differences brought by W5000 to the sound. I personally did not hear any other headphone to compare to the soundstage of HD800, especially compared to any closed headphones out there. 

How would you compare the detail levels in Audeze LCD2 vs W5000? I personally think HD800 has a lot more details than LCD2 for example. I sometimes got scared in movies/music as I thought that I heard something in my room and  prepared to defend myself ) :
 

 

Quote:

 

Spoiler: Warning%3A%20Spoiler!

 
LOL, they are extremely close, so close that at times I prefer W5000.
And no, I didn't "hear" but have owned one for many years and now have HD800 hanging next to them on dual headphone stand. It all boils down to achieving proper seal and finding matching amp. Technically they are definitely piers, whether you like ATH in house coloration is up to individual taste, HD800 are more neutral but also brighter at the same time. W5000 with the same level of details and comparable soundstage and bass reproduction have less fatiguing treble and lush, euphonic, emphasized mids, a killer for female vocals.
 

 

 
IMO. HD 800 and LCD-2 are both many times better than W5000 in just about everything. no comparison at all. even the HD 650 blows the W5000 out of the water. 
 
though i know there are fans of the W5000 out there. they might be an acquired taste, or you guys got a special pair of them or something. i've also heard the W1000 before and while its not my taste, it did sound better to me than the W5000. now those headphones where very airy and detailed with a cold but pleasing sound, though it could a little brittle at times.

 

[DavidMahler]

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I don't agree with his view on the audio technicas W5000.!!!!
 
They are not naisal at all! The outperform the HD 800s for classical and jazz music IMO, specially for tracks with prominent high and upper mid sounds. Although, the soundstage is probably not as good. I power them through a DACPort FYI.

I've had two pairs of the W5000 and they sounded relatively the same (based on memory) and the sound for me was just "wrong" to my ears.  At the very least, the sound is colored to the point of extreme, and to my ears, it is nasal, but its also possible your pair sounds different.  The pair that I have is actually so fatiguing in the mids that I can only listen at exceptionally low volume levels.  At low volume levels, it starts to sound better because the mids don't feel as awkward.
 
Quote:

Fatastic review.  IMO the best reviews are the ones where headphones and amps are compared side by side.  From this perspective this review is epic.  Seems like the Manley 300b amp is preferred slightly over the Woo WA5 when using hte HD 800s.  Does nay one else have this preference of the Manley over the Woo?

Thank you! I do like the HD800 most with the Manley.  It is one of my favorite pairings!

 

[citadel]

I certainly am not not trolling...I felt that the hd800 had a very slight advantage on sound stage over the W5000..I may have written my post in an unclear manner. My apologies. However, I feel that string instruments like violins and classic flamenco guitars sound slightly more 'sharp' and detailed with the W5000. Again, this is only on a DACport class A portable amp. I will be receiving a more powerful audio-dg 5.32 soon and will reassess these headphones again.

Would an Audeze lcd2 sound good with such dacs/amps? I am an audio noob who loves guitar music like Tony Macalpine, Marty Friedman, Tommy Emmanuel, Jason Becker
and some new age flamenco like Ottmar Liebert + Govi. I also love my symphonies and piano concertos...and finally..BACH!!

 

[RustA]

Quote:

I certainly am not not trolling...I felt that the hd800 had a very slight advantage on sound stage over the W5000..I may have written my post in an unclear manner. My apologies. However, I feel that string instruments like violins and classic flamenco guitars sound slightly more 'sharp' and detailed with the W5000. Again, this is only on a DACport class A portable amp. I will be receiving a more powerful audio-dg 5.32 soon and will reassess these headphones again.

Would an Audeze lcd2 sound good with such dacs/amps? I am an audio noob who loves guitar music like Tony Macalpine, Marty Friedman, Tommy Emmanuel, Jason Becker
and some new age flamenco like Ottmar Liebert + Govi. I also love my symphonies and piano concertos...and finally..BACH!!

 
Then the soundstage of W5000 must be great because I've had quite a few headphones and HD800 are just several leagues above all in soundstaging... Haven't heard K1000 though (would like to!).

 

[rgs9200m]

I went to the NY Audio show and heard the headphones I own (Senns, Audezes, Grados) and I'm more and more convinced that the amp is critical in making
the phone come alive and be immersing, especially with the HD800s.

 

[Andrew_WOT]

Quote:

Well this hobby is very subjective and people have different tastes, can't argue with that. For example I still use Audeze LCD2 eventhough I found that HD800 is technically superior in most aspects. They sound very different and that is why I still keep the LCD2. But I can't understand how you think that W5000 are close to HD800. Maybe they are so different and you love what is specific to the differences brought by W5000 to the sound. I personally did not hear any other headphone to compare to the soundstage of HD800, especially compared to any closed headphones out there. 

How would you compare the detail levels in Audeze LCD2 vs W5000? I personally think HD800 has a lot more details than LCD2 for example. I sometimes got scared in movies/music as I thought that I heard something in my room and  prepared to defend myself ) :
 

If you find HD800 more detailed and spacious than LCD2 you'll definitely find the same about W5000 as in that regard (details and soundstage) they are extremely close. LCD2 have juicy and lush signature but definitely lacking in these two areas. If they had better ergonomic I'll probably still own them due to their quite unique, relaxing presentation, but on the other hand HD650 gives me almost 90% of that already.
 
Quote:

I've had two pairs of the W5000 and they sounded relatively the same (based on memory) and the sound for me was just "wrong" to my ears.  At the very least, the sound is colored to the point of extreme, and to my ears, it is nasal, but its also possible your pair sounds different.  The pair that I have is actually so fatiguing in the mids that I can only listen at exceptionally low volume levels.  At low volume levels, it starts to sound better because the mids don't feel as awkward.

Thanks David, as was mentioned if you don't like the timbre there is very little you can do no matter how technical the phones are. This is like discussing art, there is no right or wrong opinion, just different. And coloration and individual likings aside, W5000 to my ears are technically the same level as HD800, there is very little I am missing switching between the two.

 

[rgs9200m]

I had the AT W5000s and just plain didn't like them and sold them. 
The W3000ANVs are a different story, and really like them, especially the mids, vocals, bass and tonality in general. They are not an imaging champ,
but the tonality is so nice I just really like them for what they are. (That wing system is still weird to me though...)

 

[DavidMahler]

Quote:

This is like discussing art, there is no right or wrong opinion, just different.

True, or there would likely be no hobby to be had!