Well, I finally got a chance to try some modern metal on Grados. I didn’t like the SR80’s much, the 125’s on the other hand I very nearly bought in the spot... until I listened to some non-metal tracks and found them be generally quite unpleasant. For the genre though, the Grado 125s were really really good even straight out of my phone.
Best setup for alt/nu metal + folk
- Thread starter mattxo
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Wow...totally forgot about this thread. What headphone have you been using the last year?
Grados are quite polarizing,but at that price point theres not too much else out there that can pull double duty on folk and nu metal
Grados are quite polarizing,but at that price point theres not too much else out there that can pull double duty on folk and nu metal
Haha, so had I! Well, I’m back in Aus for a couple of months and got to try out some Sennheiser HD600’s, that was definitely a case of don’t meet your hero’s haha. I found them kinda boxed in, warm, natural and mellow but lacking any quality I was looking for.
Next up I tried some Hifiman 400S and my jaw pretty much dropped... thick, wide, gritty distorted guitars envelop super forward vocals that glisten with emotion and presence on the widest soundstage I’ve ever been blessed to hear.
I had a quick check on the HE400i’s just in case, they sounded more natural (as opposed to... mm, I dunno, kinda crystalline on the 400S) and balanced and had a slightly more mellow sound signature.
The 400S’s are *aggressive*, I loved them so much I walked out with them clutched to my chest after spending 2 hours in the shop playing track after track just to hear what they sounded like.
My only complaint is that they’re significantly lighter on bass/sub bass compared to my DT770’s and on a couple of tracks the treble makes my ears bleed a little, but they’re fairly minor flaws that bothers me on only very few tracks, eg. The intro to Gojira - Indians is a bit muddy and the sub bass drop at about 1:00 on FKA Twigs - Two Weeks is, mm, kinda pathetic compared to the DT770’s. The cymbals on Kittie - Mouthful of Poison stung like diamond shards before they burned in though they’re tame enough now I don’t wince hardly at all haha. Can’t have it all I guess.
I also asked to try some end-game phones because well, it’s a rare opportunity. In hindsight, that was a bad idea. The salesman pulled out some Audeze LCD 3’s so I threw on Pink Floyd’s Comfortably Numb and man, I nearly cried right there in the shop. Almost wish I didn’t give them a listen as it made my 400S purchase a little bitter-sweet because they weren’t *those*.
Regardless, I’m over the moon with these. Standout tracks on these phones of the heavy genre are
Evans Blue - Erase My Scars
Sick Puppies - So What I Lied
Godsmack - I Stand Alone
SOiL - Halo
Flyleaf - All Around Me
Kittie - What I Always Wanted
Jack Off Jill - Nazi Halo
Skillet - Monster
Korn - Another Brick In The Wall
Less heavy...
Puscifer - The Mission
Seether - Words As Weapons
Porcupine Tree - Trains
Avril Lavigne - Complicated
Nine Inch Nails - Something I Can Never Have
The pickings get a bit slim on the softer end of the spectrum, vocals that should be warm and smooth tend to sound a bit artificial, that said, all these still sound pretty damn good.
Dean Lewis - Waves
Rebecca Pidgeon - Spanish Harlem
The Dresden Dolls - Coin Operated Boy
Passenger - Let Her Go
Angus & Julia Stone - Big Jet Plane
John Williamson - Cootamundra Wattle
Pernice Brothers - Chicken Wire
Casey Chambers - The Captain
Dido - White Flag
Tracks they ruin compared to DT770’s
Garramul - Murwarrumburr
Jawhawks - Bird Never Flies
Kristin Hersh - Your Ghost
Pretty much everything by Elliot Smith, Iron & Wine, Simon & Garfunkel and the Beatles (the full left/right panning on Sgt Peppers is particularly disconcerting in a way I’d never found so strikingly unpleasant before).
Anyway, for pretty much anything aggressive I’m absolutely love with these, for anything a fairly aggressive or even straight up pop (eg. Ava Max - Sweet But Psycho) , they’re pretty bloody good. I wouldn’t really recommend them for anything that should sound warm, soft, natural or mellow though some stuff comes through I suppose it’s a matter of taste
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Ok, just received a Topping D10 DAC + JDS Labs Atom and everything that was sounding pretty rough straight bad out of the iPhone now sounds *amazeballs* 
I didn't think they'd need an amp/dac and was sorely mistaken, holey moley!
I didn't think they'd need an amp/dac and was sorely mistaken, holey moley!
so you got the Audeze or the DT770?Ok, just received a Topping D10 DAC + JDS Labs Atom and everything that was sounding pretty rough straight bad out of the iPhone now sounds *amazeballs*
I didn't think they'd need an amp/dac and was sorely mistaken, holey moley!
Regardless,now you know why we say here that an amp isnt necessary,but one will certainly help. Glad youre enjoying your setup.
Cheers!
I got the Hifiman HE-400S’s a couple of weeks ago and the D10 + Atom a few days ago.
I got the DT770 250ohms a few years back
I wish I could’ve got the Audezes but haha, but that’d have been a significant chunk of our house savings *grins*
And yeah, the amp isn’t... necessary exactly for the HE-400S, but.., I dunno, without it, a lotta tracks sound pretty lifeless and complicated sections of music are pretty darn messy out of my iPhone SE. I also tried it out of an iPhone 7, XR and an X and fascinatingly, there is a massive improvement in sound quality out of the iPhone X compared to all the others.
Not as nice as the D10+Atom, but night and day vs all the other iPhones I tried.
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So I added Grado 325x's to the collection and holy crap they're intense. Something like Korn - Ball Tongue is just incredible... at 3:04 I nearly died. They have far more energy and clarity and texture than the Hifiman 400S, the 325x's are so close to exactly what I wanted. Aggressive vocals will sizzle your face off while distorted guitars lay down a thick gritty backdrop.
The stock pads are not just uncomfortable but unwearable for me. They have a very rough texture which felt like it was scraping my ears raw, and put enough pressure on my ears that I couldn't listen to them for more than about 10 minutes at a time before the edges of my ears hurt. Some aftermarket bowl pads imo are required to make these usable, and even though the bowl pads tame them a little, they are still far, far more aggressive than the 400S and improve the soundstage.
Speaking of, the soundstage is quite different to the Hifiman 400S. The Grado's sound like the sound is coming from a speaker cone right next to your ear which I don't love, whilst with the HE400's it's like a smooth vertical wall of sound with no obvious direction. At first I thought the soundstage was much narrower in the Grados, but A/B'ing I don't think the width is actually very different it's just that they present it very differently. I definitely prefer the soundstage of the Hifiman's but they sound lifeless, muddy and dull in comparison to the Grado's, and I loved my HE400S to death but the Grado's kill them for aggressive tracks.
They do worse and worse job as music get's more chilled, vocals start to lack some lushness compared to the HE400S (and from what I gather, they are no star in that department either), so I'm spending this months toy budget on a hybrid tube amp (xDuoo MT-602) which I'm hoping will complement the gentle end of my playlists.
Chilled out vocals sound a little... crispy? Not crispy like an apple, dry and crispy like paper burnt until it's brown. It get worse and worse as music gets warmer and sweeter. That said, something like Nirvana - Come As You Are (MTV Unplugged) which is sort of middle of the road in terms of aggression on my playlist, which whilst on balance, sounds amazing, it's got hint of that unpleasant thin papery crispy quality to the vocals but since they're it's just dripping with emotion and detail it still sounds really, really good. Similar thing for Puscifier - The Mission though on that track especially, the sibilance is quite pronounced.
Very sweet gentle things like Rebecca Pidgeon - Spanish Harlem or Garramul - Murwarrumburr is, well... it's not as good on the Grado's. The clarity is superb but the vocals are have more of the papery, crispy quality. If tubes retain the clarity but add some warmth and thickness to vocals I'm gonna be one happy chappy.
That said, what I'm dreaming of now is the clarity and energy and the "I will **** you up" spirit of the 325x's but with a more nebulous soundstage and bass that's a little deeper, louder and better controlled.
The stock pads are not just uncomfortable but unwearable for me. They have a very rough texture which felt like it was scraping my ears raw, and put enough pressure on my ears that I couldn't listen to them for more than about 10 minutes at a time before the edges of my ears hurt. Some aftermarket bowl pads imo are required to make these usable, and even though the bowl pads tame them a little, they are still far, far more aggressive than the 400S and improve the soundstage.
Speaking of, the soundstage is quite different to the Hifiman 400S. The Grado's sound like the sound is coming from a speaker cone right next to your ear which I don't love, whilst with the HE400's it's like a smooth vertical wall of sound with no obvious direction. At first I thought the soundstage was much narrower in the Grados, but A/B'ing I don't think the width is actually very different it's just that they present it very differently. I definitely prefer the soundstage of the Hifiman's but they sound lifeless, muddy and dull in comparison to the Grado's, and I loved my HE400S to death but the Grado's kill them for aggressive tracks.
They do worse and worse job as music get's more chilled, vocals start to lack some lushness compared to the HE400S (and from what I gather, they are no star in that department either), so I'm spending this months toy budget on a hybrid tube amp (xDuoo MT-602) which I'm hoping will complement the gentle end of my playlists.
Chilled out vocals sound a little... crispy? Not crispy like an apple, dry and crispy like paper burnt until it's brown. It get worse and worse as music gets warmer and sweeter. That said, something like Nirvana - Come As You Are (MTV Unplugged) which is sort of middle of the road in terms of aggression on my playlist, which whilst on balance, sounds amazing, it's got hint of that unpleasant thin papery crispy quality to the vocals but since they're it's just dripping with emotion and detail it still sounds really, really good. Similar thing for Puscifier - The Mission though on that track especially, the sibilance is quite pronounced.
Very sweet gentle things like Rebecca Pidgeon - Spanish Harlem or Garramul - Murwarrumburr is, well... it's not as good on the Grado's. The clarity is superb but the vocals are have more of the papery, crispy quality. If tubes retain the clarity but add some warmth and thickness to vocals I'm gonna be one happy chappy.
That said, what I'm dreaming of now is the clarity and energy and the "I will **** you up" spirit of the 325x's but with a more nebulous soundstage and bass that's a little deeper, louder and better controlled.
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Right, so, I've added HarmonicDyne Zeus to the collection... and had to share some impressions with (likely no-one at all haha)
For reference my stack is Tidal -> Topping D10 -> JDS Labs Atom -> Zeus.
Foster The People - Pumped I'm Kicks, just played the first bar, I immediately recognized it, it's a song I love, and my first thought was no, skip, find a song that suits these better, then within a few quavers, like 2 two seconds in, I'm like, I must hear this, on these, right now.
Then I find myself oblivious to the outside world, literally singing along, hands, feet tapping, going, this is the best version of this song I have ever heard.
I threw on some old skool Korn, Ball Tongue, because I know, I know for a fact my Grado's are the best version of that I have ever heard. You know what? The Grado's still are.
If I want a visceral, emotional, **** this, **** you, **** everything it's Grados', Grados' all day, every day, what I didn't expect was that I liked the way the Zeus presented it. I thought it would be anti-thetical, and it is. And it doesn't matter. Sort of.
What I mean is that if I want to feel a piece of Jonathan Davis was feeling, it's Grado's. But if I want to hear this song and not feel drained, like I've just um, shot a load, er, and ah, am, I'm well, just done, done. I'm done. I'd pick the Zeus. I can listen to the track, and I still want more. It doesn't overwhelm, for this music it leaves something to be desired, but **** me if it doesn't do it in style. There's a fullness, richness, and layering to the vocals, that is ****ing exquisite, the guitar timbre, is so thick, the timbre is actually better than the Grado's and they're off the charts, but there's something important missing. The Grado's I hear this track and I'm like, faaaark.... my pain pales in comparison, it's put in perspective. The Zeus leaves you feeling like Jonathan Davis's pain is abstract, the Grado's make it real, visceral.
The percussion on the Zeus... it's there on this track but the impact isn't the counterpoint it should be, the eerie bass guitar, it's there, I can hear it, but it's not contributing enough to the team, it's just not performing it's role short of satisfactorily.
The attack of each note that should be getting up in your face and proving to you beyond a shadow of a doubt the intent, the motivation, the psychology, the experience of being mentally ****ing ill, and its... no... it's eloquent, it's refined, it's polite, and I'm technically impressed. I don't care. Not on this track. If I could marry the richness and timbre of the Zeus, with the attack and zeal of the Grado... that would be the best version of this track I've ever heard.
But if I had to choose... it's gonna depend on my mood. Do I want the full frontal attack that demands every nano-second of my attention, that will drain me emotionally? Usually. For this track. But if this came up in my playlist, would I skip? No. No **** no I wouldn't.
I will say this though, there are other imperfections. I love my Nirvana, I threw on MTV - Unplugged as the first album I played on the Zeus, because, dah.
The treble is hotter than I anticipated, it's not in the same ballpark as Grado, no no no, but I was expecting a darker, smoother sound, but how I'd describe it, is that it's warm, rich, full from, I dunno, not a musician, middle C and down? Then it flips a gear and unexpectedly it flings treble in your face in a manner that doesn't quite suit the mood.
In MTV Unplugged, a staple of mine, Kurt Cobain constantly switches between a harsh, distorted vocal and a smooth one... these flips are... disorienting on the Zeus. The smooth parts are arguably too smooth, then he likes to yodel in a to fry scream and its.. urgh, mm, this is not how Kurt intended it to sound. There's too much disparity between the tones.
I'll go so far and say neither the Grado nor the Zeus do Kurt justice. My cheaper, relatively more neutral HE-400S planers, whilst lacking the resolution, are what's called for, they deliver the best version of this album I've ever heard. And that's just fine with me. The Zeus doesn't have to be a one trick pony, I didn't think it would be and it isn't.
However, it does do shockingly, invigoratingly, additively well on tracks where I assumed it wouldn't. On some tracks it outclasses, thoroughly, and unexpectedly demolishes the competition I have at hand.
I thought these would present maybe 10% of my playlist into best version of it I'd ever heard before, just like the Grado's did. A one trick pony. No, no no no.
I won't go so far as to say these are a generalist headphone, I think that honour still goes to my HE-400S, whilst yes, they has less than natural timbre, and whilst it lacks well, any sub-bass and bass slam, it rarely offends my sensibilities. But I think it will be relegated to a much more niche use case because... Zeus. The Grado's will rip your face off, Kittie, Korn, Slipknot, Mudvayne, Trivium, Otep, you will die, and you will die well. The HE-400 can't touch it. But for female vocals, where said female isn't trying to strip skin from bone, HE-400S. Otherwise, Grados.
The Zeus... you can appreciate and admire aggressive music music from a nice safe emotional distance, but I suggest you either stop listening to these artists or get something less refined, less safe, less comfortable, less pleasing or you're missing the whole point.
That said, where the neither the Grado's nor the Zeus can impress is those female vocals. Now I know the the HE-400S is not the best version of any female vocal track I could experience, most noticablely, it's lacking clarity, to the point where switching back and forth it feels muddy compared to either the Grado or the Zeus. But it's still the best in my collection overall for female vocals.
Gonna just let Tidal play randomly play some tracks and write down some impressions.
Kirsten Hersh - Your Ghost, love this track, but the Zeus OMG... The Zeus. Best version of this track I've ever heard. However, bring the vocalist pitch up a few semi-tones and things start falling apart because next is...
Postmodern Jukebox - Thrift Shop, uhh.... no..., participation trophy at best. There's something about the treble of the vocalist that feels unpleasant. I don't know the audiophile terms... Is it treble glare? Is it treble peakiness? I don't know. It's highish pitched and it's unpleasant.
I'll describe it my way. It's like the treble frequencies of the vocalist hit a brick wall, and suddenly where there should be a sharp point, a point of focus at a particular frequency, it's like all the surrounding frequencies are squashed right up against that wall and smeared out at full volume, a bullet hitting a wall and the tip has spread out flat but the casing is still intact. The contact point between the circular splat and the wall is what overrides all else. All the frequencies splattered against that wall dominate and me no likies.
It also highlights some of the drawbacks of the soundstage, which for the most part I love. It's wide enough, It's wide enough to be very pleasing, wide as the Grado's? No... I don't think so. As wide as the HE-400S? Well no, not quite... but it's fuller, denser whilst my competitors absolutely improve on separation that comes at a cost... the Zeus fells like the auditorium is full, there is no space, there's separation, but it's a, very, very thin line.
It's not optimal for everything,, but it's pros and cons. The con is that it can be congested in an unpleasing way. Conversely, it can sound full and immersive. It has no sense of minimalism, a trait which can be quite welcome. I'm not sure the headphone overall would be improved by more spaciousness, more delineation, more silence between the elements... but it's a definite thing. Some tracks feel like more delineation is called for, some tracks I feel it's too congested. Maybe that's a good balance. Maybe it depends on your playlist.
What I will say is that vocals are almost always front and centre, and I ****ing love that. From descriptions from various reviewers I thought female vocals might sound recessed. They don't.
But they are lacking something, Where male vocals sound rich, organic, natural, full bodied, I'd go so far as to say sweet and lush, female vocals sound... how to describe this... focused on the wrong frequencies? Too much of the lower frequencies and higher frequencies hit the wall I alluded to earlier, an effect I've not observed in my other 'phones. Deal breaker? No... is it all female vocals? No. Is it the best I've heard on some female vocals? Yes.
But on gender specific vocals, I threw on some Nick Cave, my assumption being that a) I need hear Nick Cave on these and b) I thought they'd be insanely good, the nrdy version I'd ever heard, Nick Cave has a very low pitch, don't know the term but I assume baritone. And the Zeus so far as I can discern, puts it's focus on the lower midrange.
But no... no no no. I've heard reviewers talk about bass bleeding into the mids. Never had a clue What they were talking about. I do now.
I know exactly What they mean when they use those words. Or at least, if they say that, I know how I will interpret it.
Where I expect Nick Caves vocals to sit there, distinct in the mix, with space around them, his vocals and the instruments supporting it blend together in a, I won't say awful, but I will say in a sub-optimum manner.
Sub-optimum enough that if I had to pick a headphone to listen to his discography it wouldn't be the Zeus. Not that I'd be like, I can't listen to this, a phenomenon that happens often with the Grado's). That said, I'd take my HE-400S for NIck Cave all day every day.
Sure, I'm missing a good chunk of the resolution and clarity, but the essence of the song, the spirit is conveyed in the manner that I expect it to be, I can hear the technical deficiencies in the HE-400S but they don't detract from the experience as much as the Zeus or Grado. YMMV.
So I've covered (nu)metal, poppy jazz and I've already written more than anyone will ever read. But I'm persistent, obtuse, and drunk.
Let me throw some other thing on that I'm curious about with my new toy.
The Dresden Dolls - Self Titled, I bought this album, CD version, for no reason whatsoever except I needed physical copy. I don't need physical copies of anything. I've played the CD's it err, once. Otherwise I'll just play it on Tidal. Because it's uhm, better. Sonically. And in terms of convenience.
Impressions on the Zeus... congested. I appreciate the greater clarity, Amanda Palmer's vocals are fine, they gel well, they don't reach frequencies the Zeus brickwalls the dynamic range on, is that the recording? Maybe. I don't really care. I care if it makes music I love better, by comparison, to the other things I could hear it on.
I'm going to say no... this album calls for a wider and better delineated soundstage imo. Can I listen to this? Aw **** yeah I can listen to it. Best version? No. Maybe. No,. I like the clarity overall, I don't like the congestion of the soundstage. I like the richness and (as yet never experienced) slight huskiness of Amanda's vocals, it's revealing timbre element's I've never heard before, but... they're not essential. I'm not sure they're an added bonus. Different, but not better. A welcome diversion, but a staple diet? Mmm... no.
Will I feel different a week from now? I can imagine so. I really can. Will everything sound muddy on my HE-400S and outweigh the soundstage stuff? Yeah I can totally imagine that. But I think what I want now, not to replace the Zeus, but to complement it, is to upgrade the HE-400S. They have a metallic timbre, the clarity is garbage (within my collection, god-like within non-audiophile mainstream crap though). For reference, I gave my CEO a listen to the HE-400S, and he said they were the best headphone he'd ever heard, emphatically. I 100% agree'd, t'was in fact why I bought them.
Then I heard... other things. The HE-400S are no slouch. They're just outclassed in many areas at a similar price point these days. But I digress, I think I'll sell them.
Why? I'm pretty sure Ananda will give me everything HE-400S does and more. Where the Zeus is warm and rich, and the Grado's are cold and dry, the HE400S are metallic, inorganic. Tonally, I think the the Ananda, is reputed to be quite neutral and natural.
Not that I notice metallic when I listen to the HE-400S, it's not what I hear, it''s just by comparison to the Grado's, HE-400i (tried but passed on) and Zeus they are... just lick a tin can. No, lick a pair of scissors or something. I bought them over the 400i because of that, not in spite of it.
Why? That's the flavour that worked best with my playlist of the time which was almost exclusively hard, heavy, aggressive metal that benefitted from that extra treble energy.
That said, the Grado's scratch aggressive itch better, they're not as generalist, granted, but if I want to go full emo, I've got the right tool for the job. The Zeus, is almost as generalist, nothing I put on them sounds bad awful, same with HE-400S. But the Zeus I think I'd pick 6 times out of 10, maybe 7 times out of ten.
The flaw...nay, the two flaws... female vocal centric music... and if that comprises is most of your playlist, don't buy these. I don't think they'll do it justice YMMV. I love a wide soundstage, I hate, and I do mean hate Sennhesier HD-4x0. I had my heart set on them until I heard them. Why? 1 reason. Soundstage. Garbage. To the point where I'm like I would never ever recommend these to anyone. Matter of taste? Sure. I'm unrefined? Granted. People with more knowledge know better? Ok. Still wouldn't recommend them.
Am I going to buy them? Despite it being a significant budget hit? Yeah, yeah I am. I think there's a reason why they're recommended by people who by all rights should know better than I. The fact I didn't "get it" on first listen says more about me and my limited journey than it does about anything else. I'm willing to gamble a few hundred bucks that that's the case. I put them in the acquired taste box and there they'll stay until I possess them.
Back to the Zeus, as if I haven't rambled enough. Gonna flick around my playlist some more and give impressions.
Seether - Cigarettes (old skool seether, the best kind) - Congested soundstage, I want more width here, tonally, ****ing awesome. Guitars are deep, gritty, thick, Shaun Morgan's vocal are a bit recessed for my taste and there is a not especially pleasant effect, I'm not sure if the clarity is the issue or the tuning, but I can hear two layers of vocals I've never noticed, and I don't like it. I don't hate it, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't what the artiest intended to convey and more relevantly, being self-absorbed, it's not an interpretation I would pick. Would I pick one of my other headphones to listen to this track? Yeah, probably the HE-400S. If it came on on the Zeus would I turn it off? Nup, nah **** no.
Seether - Love Her (more old skool seether, love this to death). The sound staging suits these phones just fine, the vocals sound great, just a touch too finessed, a flaw a can absolutely overlook. Otherwise, thick, full, rich, gritty, solid AF.
Garrumul - Maruwurrumbur (an Aboriginal Australian, with a PhD, died of alcohol overdose on a beach, a track in his native tongue and one I'd recommend to any white Aussie). This is definitely the best version of this track from my small collection of 'phones. I can hear the production/tuning is not quite what I want from the track, and again, it's to do with vocal doubles.
I can hear them too clearly, where they should meld imo, but on the Zeus they're too clearly separated, but tonally... tonally these are great.
The theme I'm getting is that these 'phones are too resolving, they provide so much insight into the production and the mix that it can be harder to appreciate the emotion and the essence of the music.
If I specifically focus on the emotion, and how it's conveyed, my sense is that Zeus conveys in a polite and and refined manner. It's not antithetical to the music per se, but there's an ache in the man's soul something the Zeus glosses over but is essential to the track. I respect the technicality the Zeus brings, it's enjoyable, but it's too much science to do justice to the nuance of emotion in this track.
Haha, ok, Pennywise - Broken (old skool punk recording), so this is where the treble is surprisingly forward, and not in a laid back way. For the most part, the Zeus is warm and rich and chill, that doesn't mean a bright recording will sound dull. No, this is... an assault on your ears?
It's not a Grado assault, but the guitars... oof, whilst the timbre of them is the best I've heard, there is so much zing, so so much zing, which I could live with. What I can't live this is that this is the first track where the vocals feel way, way to recessed. I'd pick either of my other headphones for this track.
Shinedown - Fly From The Inside (pretty popular alt-rock/nu-metal-ish style track many folks are probably familiar with). First thoughts... oh ****... I've never heard this so good. There's a little congestion in the soundstage, minor, just pedantic on my part, then the chorus hits and I nearly hit the floor. It's ****ing superb. Best version of this track I have ever heard. Omg. So thick, so full, so rich, so detailed, so textured, so nuanced. If I had to criticise (and it doesn't take much to put me in zone... the percussion lacks oomph... it needs a more impact).
Ok, Crowbar - Planes Collide (fairly unknown, slow, nu-metal) - Oh ****... I can hear this song *wants* more emotion in the vocals, the emotion is hidden behind a technical veil, in this instance though, the Zeus knows better... I'll take the Zeus's interpretation of this over the artists, sorry Crowbar... oh, the chorus drop... Fark. Hands down, Zeus over anything else I own.
3 Doors Down - Loser (probably a track most have heard, alt/pop-rock). Hm, again, technical prowess drowning out the spirit and emotion of the track. It's technically impressive, there's all sorts of details I only get from my Grado, but what I get from the Grado and not from this a) bleeding ear drums and b) emotion. Too refined, too polite. Skip.
Savage Garden - To The Moon And Back (old skool teenie-pop). Aw **** yeah, no, 1 min in, this is the best, by far the best I have ever heard this track. Higher pitched male vocals seem to be the sweet spot for this headphone. The emotion is spot the **** on, all the technicality is saved for the instrumental where it absolutely shines. I don't want to skip... must skip, Zeus says no, listen, melt, be one with Savage ****ing Garden haha, ok chorus dropped, it's a disservice but I'm skipping. This track was never close to my heart except for sentimental and nostalgic reasons, the Zeus may have just changed that.
The Lumineers - Hey Ho (folk/indie) - Initial impressions after a minute or so, ok firstly, my foot is tapping of it's own accord, my more rational part of my brain is trying to convince me, the nuances of the production are detracting from the emotional of the main vocal, these vocal doubles are becoming are a bit of a sore point. Maybe I need better music, but when a vocal is doubled, I don't need or want to hear each individually, I don't like it, it's distracting, and it's too much detail.
Queen - We Will Rock You (needs no introduction) Oh **** me. The sense of scale is overwhelming, Freddie Mercury's vocals are spot the **** on, if I was the most unfair critic I can hear a little sibilance, but it's fine, holy crap, where I've complained about the soundstage before and alluded to the fact it's really track dependant as to what I like, I like this. Hold that thought, I ****ing love this. O. MFG. If I had to showcase what the Zeus does, I might just pick this track. It's a track I always though was kind of a cheap trick. No, no no no. Trick? Maybe. Cheap? Nope nope nope nope.
Kesha - We R Who We R (needs no introduction) Urgh... this is on my playlist as a guilty pleasure, one I'm generally ashamed to admit to. Moving on... the percussion is... a mixed bag. There's impact, but and I assume this a production thing, these a distortion to the kick drum that mm... not digging that. This shows off the sub-bass capabilities, not that I'd pick this for sub-bass prowess, my DT-770s destroy everything else I own, but... it makes it clear that yes, the Zeus does has sub-bass. Is it good? It's say it's, meh. It's there, it's better than the cheapish planar I own, but... frankly it adds so little in context I'm underwhelmed.
If it wasn't there I wouldn't miss it. The kick drums I think intentionally have some distortion which is unpleasant and the vocals suffer badly from not being the Zeus sweet spot. Taken so long to write about how I'm not impressed this track, next track has come on...
Blind Melon - No Rain (I hope this needs no introduction, erm, 90's pop/alt/indie?). This is hitting the spot. There's nothing offensive about what the Zeus is doing, and I'm pretty sure it's doing better than anything else in my collection. I want a touch more soundstage width. The vocal doubling is... not as distracting as some tracks, but its a factor. But pretty sure this is the best rendition of the track I have at my disposal not that it's not without some flaws.
Dean Lewis - Waves (folky, indie, fan-****ing-tastic). Oh fuuuck.... the Zeus is godlike... I'm not trying not to sing along, I can't... that beat! Those vocals! That soundstage! That percussion impact! All the flaws I've mentioned, soundstage congestion, too revealing of vocal doubles, lack of percussion impact, I don't know why, probably the recording, but oh ****.... if this is your favourite song, and you have mid-fi headphones, I'm willing to bet you've never heard this as good as the Zeus makes it. Faaark.
Live - The Dam At Otter Creek (old skool, alt...rock?) So I'm just going to say the second track I played on this was Live - Rattlesnake. T'was on the first album I paid money for (Secret Samadhi), love every second of every track of it 20 years later.
The Zeus was by far, by FAR the best version of Rattlesnake I've ever heard. Like, my nostalgic, teenage memories backed up by a discman and the cheapest earpads money could buy has finally been overshadowed by the several thousand bucks I've spend on audio thus far, my memories of the track was something my budget not compete with. Until Zeus.
This track though, Dam At Otter Creek? Ugghh... no. No. Waaay too bright. Waaay to congested. Great track. Would listen to this happily on most things. Not good on the Zeus. So much so I'm not even listening to the rest of it.
The Offspring - It'll Be A Long Time (old skool punk/pop-punk). Pretty good, pretty inoffensive, bright, to be sure, soundstage, mm, it's fine. The timbre of guitars is exceptional. Vocals a little too recessed. I think the brightness of the instruments can easily outshine vocals on Zeus, and if vocals are heavily processed, you're feel it, and I don't think you're gonna like it. At least I don't. Too revealing.
Ugly Kid Joe - Cats In The Cradle (needs no introduction). Ok, this is what the Zeus was made for, I literally can't stop moving and tapping body parts, the vocal timbre is perfect, the soundstage is perfect, the percussion is, I'ma say fine, I think some impact is missing but it's not missing in a way that has obviously detrimental effects. Could I do with more slam? Yeah, could. Can I live without it? Aw **** yeah. Errggh... chorus dropped... there is something missing here... the verses are *chefs kiss*, the chorus drop is missing some slam and impact in an obvious way. Can I have the verse on this and the chorus on something else?
Silverchair - Ana's Song (old skool rock) First impressions are this is so rich and clear, the guitar timbre is to die for, listening a little closer, there's a quality to the vocals that I think is better than everything else I've got but it's... how to describe it... there's a layer there where the vocals are doubled in the first verse and but the main vocal sounds ****ing fantastic, there's a richer, sweeter vocal double behind it which, um, I'd just get rid of it. Like, the main vocal is so good the double just detracts from it. That said, on a less technically able headphone, without that double, eh, you know what? I've easily heard this track 100 times on less capable headphones and it still doesn't need the vocal double imo. Too revealing I think.
John Williamson - Cootamundra Wattle (australian country) - So.. this is not the first track where the warmth of the Zeus is obvious... warmth is a term I've never been able to translate until I heard the Zeus but on this track, it's so warm it's (again, a term I've never understood) too bloated. So many people have talked about bloated mids, this is quite clearly "bloated". I definitely prefer this track on... uhm, anything else really. It sounds like a really cheap awful pair of IEMS albeit with better soundstage.
Eve 6 - Rescue (pop? punk? rock?) Hrm, this track suffers from... hrm, it's not a congested soundstage so much as a so full there is no breathing room soundstage, a blessing and curse, slightly recessed vocals and excessive brightness. It's not that individual elements are bad, they're not, they're impressive, but as a whole, this reminds of the Grado experience, it's such an assault on the senses you'd better be in the mood to be assaulted. I can absolutely see me being in the mood for this but it's not my mood tonight.
Trapt - Still Frame (alt-rock). So politically this band shouldn't be on my list anymore, that said, vocals are ****ing awesome, guitars are so thick, so full, so gritty, the timbre is spot the **** on. It's hard to notice because everything else else is so good, but the percussion should be a little more present and impactful.
Was gonna stop here, but "twenty one pilots - stressed out" just came on, faaaarkk..... what is this voodoo...
Haha editing, "Shelly Segal - Saved" just came on, farrrk! Often female vocals and Zeus don't play nice. Not so on this. When she occasionally get's into her lower register it's not quite right, same when she occasionally her higher register, but, oh.... best version of this track (and I love this track) that I've ever heard.
Seether - **** It (oh my.... oh my... what is this magic... I love my seether, and this is... this is... so thick, so gritty, so full, rich, the emotion doesn't take a backseat to the science except in a few flourishes, it's 95%, holy ****.
Overall... is this worth USD$350 if you've got a few other mid-fi 'phones? I can't speak for you, but if I had to I'd say OMG yes. Of all my headphone purchases this one had made me the 2nd happiest, most excited, most enthusiastic, and mind you, my first mid-fi purchase HE-400S, had a very, very low bar to rise to.
For reference my stack is Tidal -> Topping D10 -> JDS Labs Atom -> Zeus.
Foster The People - Pumped I'm Kicks, just played the first bar, I immediately recognized it, it's a song I love, and my first thought was no, skip, find a song that suits these better, then within a few quavers, like 2 two seconds in, I'm like, I must hear this, on these, right now.
Then I find myself oblivious to the outside world, literally singing along, hands, feet tapping, going, this is the best version of this song I have ever heard.
I threw on some old skool Korn, Ball Tongue, because I know, I know for a fact my Grado's are the best version of that I have ever heard. You know what? The Grado's still are.
If I want a visceral, emotional, **** this, **** you, **** everything it's Grados', Grados' all day, every day, what I didn't expect was that I liked the way the Zeus presented it. I thought it would be anti-thetical, and it is. And it doesn't matter. Sort of.
What I mean is that if I want to feel a piece of Jonathan Davis was feeling, it's Grado's. But if I want to hear this song and not feel drained, like I've just um, shot a load, er, and ah, am, I'm well, just done, done. I'm done. I'd pick the Zeus. I can listen to the track, and I still want more. It doesn't overwhelm, for this music it leaves something to be desired, but **** me if it doesn't do it in style. There's a fullness, richness, and layering to the vocals, that is ****ing exquisite, the guitar timbre, is so thick, the timbre is actually better than the Grado's and they're off the charts, but there's something important missing. The Grado's I hear this track and I'm like, faaaark.... my pain pales in comparison, it's put in perspective. The Zeus leaves you feeling like Jonathan Davis's pain is abstract, the Grado's make it real, visceral.
The percussion on the Zeus... it's there on this track but the impact isn't the counterpoint it should be, the eerie bass guitar, it's there, I can hear it, but it's not contributing enough to the team, it's just not performing it's role short of satisfactorily.
The attack of each note that should be getting up in your face and proving to you beyond a shadow of a doubt the intent, the motivation, the psychology, the experience of being mentally ****ing ill, and its... no... it's eloquent, it's refined, it's polite, and I'm technically impressed. I don't care. Not on this track. If I could marry the richness and timbre of the Zeus, with the attack and zeal of the Grado... that would be the best version of this track I've ever heard.
But if I had to choose... it's gonna depend on my mood. Do I want the full frontal attack that demands every nano-second of my attention, that will drain me emotionally? Usually. For this track. But if this came up in my playlist, would I skip? No. No **** no I wouldn't.
I will say this though, there are other imperfections. I love my Nirvana, I threw on MTV - Unplugged as the first album I played on the Zeus, because, dah.
The treble is hotter than I anticipated, it's not in the same ballpark as Grado, no no no, but I was expecting a darker, smoother sound, but how I'd describe it, is that it's warm, rich, full from, I dunno, not a musician, middle C and down? Then it flips a gear and unexpectedly it flings treble in your face in a manner that doesn't quite suit the mood.
In MTV Unplugged, a staple of mine, Kurt Cobain constantly switches between a harsh, distorted vocal and a smooth one... these flips are... disorienting on the Zeus. The smooth parts are arguably too smooth, then he likes to yodel in a to fry scream and its.. urgh, mm, this is not how Kurt intended it to sound. There's too much disparity between the tones.
I'll go so far and say neither the Grado nor the Zeus do Kurt justice. My cheaper, relatively more neutral HE-400S planers, whilst lacking the resolution, are what's called for, they deliver the best version of this album I've ever heard. And that's just fine with me. The Zeus doesn't have to be a one trick pony, I didn't think it would be and it isn't.
However, it does do shockingly, invigoratingly, additively well on tracks where I assumed it wouldn't. On some tracks it outclasses, thoroughly, and unexpectedly demolishes the competition I have at hand.
I thought these would present maybe 10% of my playlist into best version of it I'd ever heard before, just like the Grado's did. A one trick pony. No, no no no.
I won't go so far as to say these are a generalist headphone, I think that honour still goes to my HE-400S, whilst yes, they has less than natural timbre, and whilst it lacks well, any sub-bass and bass slam, it rarely offends my sensibilities. But I think it will be relegated to a much more niche use case because... Zeus. The Grado's will rip your face off, Kittie, Korn, Slipknot, Mudvayne, Trivium, Otep, you will die, and you will die well. The HE-400 can't touch it. But for female vocals, where said female isn't trying to strip skin from bone, HE-400S. Otherwise, Grados.
The Zeus... you can appreciate and admire aggressive music music from a nice safe emotional distance, but I suggest you either stop listening to these artists or get something less refined, less safe, less comfortable, less pleasing or you're missing the whole point.
That said, where the neither the Grado's nor the Zeus can impress is those female vocals. Now I know the the HE-400S is not the best version of any female vocal track I could experience, most noticablely, it's lacking clarity, to the point where switching back and forth it feels muddy compared to either the Grado or the Zeus. But it's still the best in my collection overall for female vocals.
Gonna just let Tidal play randomly play some tracks and write down some impressions.
Kirsten Hersh - Your Ghost, love this track, but the Zeus OMG... The Zeus. Best version of this track I've ever heard. However, bring the vocalist pitch up a few semi-tones and things start falling apart because next is...
Postmodern Jukebox - Thrift Shop, uhh.... no..., participation trophy at best. There's something about the treble of the vocalist that feels unpleasant. I don't know the audiophile terms... Is it treble glare? Is it treble peakiness? I don't know. It's highish pitched and it's unpleasant.
I'll describe it my way. It's like the treble frequencies of the vocalist hit a brick wall, and suddenly where there should be a sharp point, a point of focus at a particular frequency, it's like all the surrounding frequencies are squashed right up against that wall and smeared out at full volume, a bullet hitting a wall and the tip has spread out flat but the casing is still intact. The contact point between the circular splat and the wall is what overrides all else. All the frequencies splattered against that wall dominate and me no likies.
It also highlights some of the drawbacks of the soundstage, which for the most part I love. It's wide enough, It's wide enough to be very pleasing, wide as the Grado's? No... I don't think so. As wide as the HE-400S? Well no, not quite... but it's fuller, denser whilst my competitors absolutely improve on separation that comes at a cost... the Zeus fells like the auditorium is full, there is no space, there's separation, but it's a, very, very thin line.
It's not optimal for everything,, but it's pros and cons. The con is that it can be congested in an unpleasing way. Conversely, it can sound full and immersive. It has no sense of minimalism, a trait which can be quite welcome. I'm not sure the headphone overall would be improved by more spaciousness, more delineation, more silence between the elements... but it's a definite thing. Some tracks feel like more delineation is called for, some tracks I feel it's too congested. Maybe that's a good balance. Maybe it depends on your playlist.
What I will say is that vocals are almost always front and centre, and I ****ing love that. From descriptions from various reviewers I thought female vocals might sound recessed. They don't.
But they are lacking something, Where male vocals sound rich, organic, natural, full bodied, I'd go so far as to say sweet and lush, female vocals sound... how to describe this... focused on the wrong frequencies? Too much of the lower frequencies and higher frequencies hit the wall I alluded to earlier, an effect I've not observed in my other 'phones. Deal breaker? No... is it all female vocals? No. Is it the best I've heard on some female vocals? Yes.
But on gender specific vocals, I threw on some Nick Cave, my assumption being that a) I need hear Nick Cave on these and b) I thought they'd be insanely good, the nrdy version I'd ever heard, Nick Cave has a very low pitch, don't know the term but I assume baritone. And the Zeus so far as I can discern, puts it's focus on the lower midrange.
But no... no no no. I've heard reviewers talk about bass bleeding into the mids. Never had a clue What they were talking about. I do now.
I know exactly What they mean when they use those words. Or at least, if they say that, I know how I will interpret it.
Where I expect Nick Caves vocals to sit there, distinct in the mix, with space around them, his vocals and the instruments supporting it blend together in a, I won't say awful, but I will say in a sub-optimum manner.
Sub-optimum enough that if I had to pick a headphone to listen to his discography it wouldn't be the Zeus. Not that I'd be like, I can't listen to this, a phenomenon that happens often with the Grado's). That said, I'd take my HE-400S for NIck Cave all day every day.
Sure, I'm missing a good chunk of the resolution and clarity, but the essence of the song, the spirit is conveyed in the manner that I expect it to be, I can hear the technical deficiencies in the HE-400S but they don't detract from the experience as much as the Zeus or Grado. YMMV.
So I've covered (nu)metal, poppy jazz and I've already written more than anyone will ever read. But I'm persistent, obtuse, and drunk.
Let me throw some other thing on that I'm curious about with my new toy.
The Dresden Dolls - Self Titled, I bought this album, CD version, for no reason whatsoever except I needed physical copy. I don't need physical copies of anything. I've played the CD's it err, once. Otherwise I'll just play it on Tidal. Because it's uhm, better. Sonically. And in terms of convenience.
Impressions on the Zeus... congested. I appreciate the greater clarity, Amanda Palmer's vocals are fine, they gel well, they don't reach frequencies the Zeus brickwalls the dynamic range on, is that the recording? Maybe. I don't really care. I care if it makes music I love better, by comparison, to the other things I could hear it on.
I'm going to say no... this album calls for a wider and better delineated soundstage imo. Can I listen to this? Aw **** yeah I can listen to it. Best version? No. Maybe. No,. I like the clarity overall, I don't like the congestion of the soundstage. I like the richness and (as yet never experienced) slight huskiness of Amanda's vocals, it's revealing timbre element's I've never heard before, but... they're not essential. I'm not sure they're an added bonus. Different, but not better. A welcome diversion, but a staple diet? Mmm... no.
Will I feel different a week from now? I can imagine so. I really can. Will everything sound muddy on my HE-400S and outweigh the soundstage stuff? Yeah I can totally imagine that. But I think what I want now, not to replace the Zeus, but to complement it, is to upgrade the HE-400S. They have a metallic timbre, the clarity is garbage (within my collection, god-like within non-audiophile mainstream crap though). For reference, I gave my CEO a listen to the HE-400S, and he said they were the best headphone he'd ever heard, emphatically. I 100% agree'd, t'was in fact why I bought them.
Then I heard... other things. The HE-400S are no slouch. They're just outclassed in many areas at a similar price point these days. But I digress, I think I'll sell them.
Why? I'm pretty sure Ananda will give me everything HE-400S does and more. Where the Zeus is warm and rich, and the Grado's are cold and dry, the HE400S are metallic, inorganic. Tonally, I think the the Ananda, is reputed to be quite neutral and natural.
Not that I notice metallic when I listen to the HE-400S, it's not what I hear, it''s just by comparison to the Grado's, HE-400i (tried but passed on) and Zeus they are... just lick a tin can. No, lick a pair of scissors or something. I bought them over the 400i because of that, not in spite of it.
Why? That's the flavour that worked best with my playlist of the time which was almost exclusively hard, heavy, aggressive metal that benefitted from that extra treble energy.
That said, the Grado's scratch aggressive itch better, they're not as generalist, granted, but if I want to go full emo, I've got the right tool for the job. The Zeus, is almost as generalist, nothing I put on them sounds bad awful, same with HE-400S. But the Zeus I think I'd pick 6 times out of 10, maybe 7 times out of ten.
The flaw...nay, the two flaws... female vocal centric music... and if that comprises is most of your playlist, don't buy these. I don't think they'll do it justice YMMV. I love a wide soundstage, I hate, and I do mean hate Sennhesier HD-4x0. I had my heart set on them until I heard them. Why? 1 reason. Soundstage. Garbage. To the point where I'm like I would never ever recommend these to anyone. Matter of taste? Sure. I'm unrefined? Granted. People with more knowledge know better? Ok. Still wouldn't recommend them.
Am I going to buy them? Despite it being a significant budget hit? Yeah, yeah I am. I think there's a reason why they're recommended by people who by all rights should know better than I. The fact I didn't "get it" on first listen says more about me and my limited journey than it does about anything else. I'm willing to gamble a few hundred bucks that that's the case. I put them in the acquired taste box and there they'll stay until I possess them.
Back to the Zeus, as if I haven't rambled enough. Gonna flick around my playlist some more and give impressions.
Seether - Cigarettes (old skool seether, the best kind) - Congested soundstage, I want more width here, tonally, ****ing awesome. Guitars are deep, gritty, thick, Shaun Morgan's vocal are a bit recessed for my taste and there is a not especially pleasant effect, I'm not sure if the clarity is the issue or the tuning, but I can hear two layers of vocals I've never noticed, and I don't like it. I don't hate it, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't what the artiest intended to convey and more relevantly, being self-absorbed, it's not an interpretation I would pick. Would I pick one of my other headphones to listen to this track? Yeah, probably the HE-400S. If it came on on the Zeus would I turn it off? Nup, nah **** no.
Seether - Love Her (more old skool seether, love this to death). The sound staging suits these phones just fine, the vocals sound great, just a touch too finessed, a flaw a can absolutely overlook. Otherwise, thick, full, rich, gritty, solid AF.
Garrumul - Maruwurrumbur (an Aboriginal Australian, with a PhD, died of alcohol overdose on a beach, a track in his native tongue and one I'd recommend to any white Aussie). This is definitely the best version of this track from my small collection of 'phones. I can hear the production/tuning is not quite what I want from the track, and again, it's to do with vocal doubles.
I can hear them too clearly, where they should meld imo, but on the Zeus they're too clearly separated, but tonally... tonally these are great.
The theme I'm getting is that these 'phones are too resolving, they provide so much insight into the production and the mix that it can be harder to appreciate the emotion and the essence of the music.
If I specifically focus on the emotion, and how it's conveyed, my sense is that Zeus conveys in a polite and and refined manner. It's not antithetical to the music per se, but there's an ache in the man's soul something the Zeus glosses over but is essential to the track. I respect the technicality the Zeus brings, it's enjoyable, but it's too much science to do justice to the nuance of emotion in this track.
Haha, ok, Pennywise - Broken (old skool punk recording), so this is where the treble is surprisingly forward, and not in a laid back way. For the most part, the Zeus is warm and rich and chill, that doesn't mean a bright recording will sound dull. No, this is... an assault on your ears?
It's not a Grado assault, but the guitars... oof, whilst the timbre of them is the best I've heard, there is so much zing, so so much zing, which I could live with. What I can't live this is that this is the first track where the vocals feel way, way to recessed. I'd pick either of my other headphones for this track.
Shinedown - Fly From The Inside (pretty popular alt-rock/nu-metal-ish style track many folks are probably familiar with). First thoughts... oh ****... I've never heard this so good. There's a little congestion in the soundstage, minor, just pedantic on my part, then the chorus hits and I nearly hit the floor. It's ****ing superb. Best version of this track I have ever heard. Omg. So thick, so full, so rich, so detailed, so textured, so nuanced. If I had to criticise (and it doesn't take much to put me in zone... the percussion lacks oomph... it needs a more impact).
Ok, Crowbar - Planes Collide (fairly unknown, slow, nu-metal) - Oh ****... I can hear this song *wants* more emotion in the vocals, the emotion is hidden behind a technical veil, in this instance though, the Zeus knows better... I'll take the Zeus's interpretation of this over the artists, sorry Crowbar... oh, the chorus drop... Fark. Hands down, Zeus over anything else I own.
3 Doors Down - Loser (probably a track most have heard, alt/pop-rock). Hm, again, technical prowess drowning out the spirit and emotion of the track. It's technically impressive, there's all sorts of details I only get from my Grado, but what I get from the Grado and not from this a) bleeding ear drums and b) emotion. Too refined, too polite. Skip.
Savage Garden - To The Moon And Back (old skool teenie-pop). Aw **** yeah, no, 1 min in, this is the best, by far the best I have ever heard this track. Higher pitched male vocals seem to be the sweet spot for this headphone. The emotion is spot the **** on, all the technicality is saved for the instrumental where it absolutely shines. I don't want to skip... must skip, Zeus says no, listen, melt, be one with Savage ****ing Garden haha, ok chorus dropped, it's a disservice but I'm skipping. This track was never close to my heart except for sentimental and nostalgic reasons, the Zeus may have just changed that.
The Lumineers - Hey Ho (folk/indie) - Initial impressions after a minute or so, ok firstly, my foot is tapping of it's own accord, my more rational part of my brain is trying to convince me, the nuances of the production are detracting from the emotional of the main vocal, these vocal doubles are becoming are a bit of a sore point. Maybe I need better music, but when a vocal is doubled, I don't need or want to hear each individually, I don't like it, it's distracting, and it's too much detail.
Queen - We Will Rock You (needs no introduction) Oh **** me. The sense of scale is overwhelming, Freddie Mercury's vocals are spot the **** on, if I was the most unfair critic I can hear a little sibilance, but it's fine, holy crap, where I've complained about the soundstage before and alluded to the fact it's really track dependant as to what I like, I like this. Hold that thought, I ****ing love this. O. MFG. If I had to showcase what the Zeus does, I might just pick this track. It's a track I always though was kind of a cheap trick. No, no no no. Trick? Maybe. Cheap? Nope nope nope nope.
Kesha - We R Who We R (needs no introduction) Urgh... this is on my playlist as a guilty pleasure, one I'm generally ashamed to admit to. Moving on... the percussion is... a mixed bag. There's impact, but and I assume this a production thing, these a distortion to the kick drum that mm... not digging that. This shows off the sub-bass capabilities, not that I'd pick this for sub-bass prowess, my DT-770s destroy everything else I own, but... it makes it clear that yes, the Zeus does has sub-bass. Is it good? It's say it's, meh. It's there, it's better than the cheapish planar I own, but... frankly it adds so little in context I'm underwhelmed.
If it wasn't there I wouldn't miss it. The kick drums I think intentionally have some distortion which is unpleasant and the vocals suffer badly from not being the Zeus sweet spot. Taken so long to write about how I'm not impressed this track, next track has come on...
Blind Melon - No Rain (I hope this needs no introduction, erm, 90's pop/alt/indie?). This is hitting the spot. There's nothing offensive about what the Zeus is doing, and I'm pretty sure it's doing better than anything else in my collection. I want a touch more soundstage width. The vocal doubling is... not as distracting as some tracks, but its a factor. But pretty sure this is the best rendition of the track I have at my disposal not that it's not without some flaws.
Dean Lewis - Waves (folky, indie, fan-****ing-tastic). Oh fuuuck.... the Zeus is godlike... I'm not trying not to sing along, I can't... that beat! Those vocals! That soundstage! That percussion impact! All the flaws I've mentioned, soundstage congestion, too revealing of vocal doubles, lack of percussion impact, I don't know why, probably the recording, but oh ****.... if this is your favourite song, and you have mid-fi headphones, I'm willing to bet you've never heard this as good as the Zeus makes it. Faaark.
Live - The Dam At Otter Creek (old skool, alt...rock?) So I'm just going to say the second track I played on this was Live - Rattlesnake. T'was on the first album I paid money for (Secret Samadhi), love every second of every track of it 20 years later.
The Zeus was by far, by FAR the best version of Rattlesnake I've ever heard. Like, my nostalgic, teenage memories backed up by a discman and the cheapest earpads money could buy has finally been overshadowed by the several thousand bucks I've spend on audio thus far, my memories of the track was something my budget not compete with. Until Zeus.
This track though, Dam At Otter Creek? Ugghh... no. No. Waaay too bright. Waaay to congested. Great track. Would listen to this happily on most things. Not good on the Zeus. So much so I'm not even listening to the rest of it.
The Offspring - It'll Be A Long Time (old skool punk/pop-punk). Pretty good, pretty inoffensive, bright, to be sure, soundstage, mm, it's fine. The timbre of guitars is exceptional. Vocals a little too recessed. I think the brightness of the instruments can easily outshine vocals on Zeus, and if vocals are heavily processed, you're feel it, and I don't think you're gonna like it. At least I don't. Too revealing.
Ugly Kid Joe - Cats In The Cradle (needs no introduction). Ok, this is what the Zeus was made for, I literally can't stop moving and tapping body parts, the vocal timbre is perfect, the soundstage is perfect, the percussion is, I'ma say fine, I think some impact is missing but it's not missing in a way that has obviously detrimental effects. Could I do with more slam? Yeah, could. Can I live without it? Aw **** yeah. Errggh... chorus dropped... there is something missing here... the verses are *chefs kiss*, the chorus drop is missing some slam and impact in an obvious way. Can I have the verse on this and the chorus on something else?
Silverchair - Ana's Song (old skool rock) First impressions are this is so rich and clear, the guitar timbre is to die for, listening a little closer, there's a quality to the vocals that I think is better than everything else I've got but it's... how to describe it... there's a layer there where the vocals are doubled in the first verse and but the main vocal sounds ****ing fantastic, there's a richer, sweeter vocal double behind it which, um, I'd just get rid of it. Like, the main vocal is so good the double just detracts from it. That said, on a less technically able headphone, without that double, eh, you know what? I've easily heard this track 100 times on less capable headphones and it still doesn't need the vocal double imo. Too revealing I think.
John Williamson - Cootamundra Wattle (australian country) - So.. this is not the first track where the warmth of the Zeus is obvious... warmth is a term I've never been able to translate until I heard the Zeus but on this track, it's so warm it's (again, a term I've never understood) too bloated. So many people have talked about bloated mids, this is quite clearly "bloated". I definitely prefer this track on... uhm, anything else really. It sounds like a really cheap awful pair of IEMS albeit with better soundstage.
Eve 6 - Rescue (pop? punk? rock?) Hrm, this track suffers from... hrm, it's not a congested soundstage so much as a so full there is no breathing room soundstage, a blessing and curse, slightly recessed vocals and excessive brightness. It's not that individual elements are bad, they're not, they're impressive, but as a whole, this reminds of the Grado experience, it's such an assault on the senses you'd better be in the mood to be assaulted. I can absolutely see me being in the mood for this but it's not my mood tonight.
Trapt - Still Frame (alt-rock). So politically this band shouldn't be on my list anymore, that said, vocals are ****ing awesome, guitars are so thick, so full, so gritty, the timbre is spot the **** on. It's hard to notice because everything else else is so good, but the percussion should be a little more present and impactful.
Was gonna stop here, but "twenty one pilots - stressed out" just came on, faaaarkk..... what is this voodoo...
Haha editing, "Shelly Segal - Saved" just came on, farrrk! Often female vocals and Zeus don't play nice. Not so on this. When she occasionally get's into her lower register it's not quite right, same when she occasionally her higher register, but, oh.... best version of this track (and I love this track) that I've ever heard.
Seether - **** It (oh my.... oh my... what is this magic... I love my seether, and this is... this is... so thick, so gritty, so full, rich, the emotion doesn't take a backseat to the science except in a few flourishes, it's 95%, holy ****.
Overall... is this worth USD$350 if you've got a few other mid-fi 'phones? I can't speak for you, but if I had to I'd say OMG yes. Of all my headphone purchases this one had made me the 2nd happiest, most excited, most enthusiastic, and mind you, my first mid-fi purchase HE-400S, had a very, very low bar to rise to.
and on down the rabbit hole...but +1 on the Grados
Small update.. I have discovered EQ. And I think I can now happily recommend Zeus as very good choice for Metal + Folk (if you're willing to EQ) to the point where I'm like, the only technical deficiency I can perceive is that there is not quite enough definition in the bass and not quite enough extension. Literally every else is just... *chefs kiss*. I've not heard any hi-fi headphones so I'm assuming they would sound better, but with my limited knowledge, I just don't know how they could, I can find so few sonic or tonal flaws.
Anyway, EQ'd like so... (adapted from Resolves recommendation here https://forum.headphones.com/t/the-new-harmonicdyne-zeus-with-beryllium-drivers/8765/20)
...it cools everything down just enough to make metal sound right (to my ears), reduces the congestion of the soundstage and keeps enough of the rich, dense nature of the Zeus to make nu-metal sound like a brutal wall of sound in high def. I love it.
Everything Nirvana level aggressive up to say, Kittie level sounds just... so so so good. Just missing that little bit of bass texture, extension and definition but it's got enough punch/slam. Some basslines are a little underwhelming, and kick drums could use a titch more definition, but the guitars... the vocals... so so good.
Anything gentler than Nirvana, flick off the EQ and bam, The Beatles - Sgt. Peppers, is just paradise. Iron And Wine, magical. Anything in between is a bit of tossup and depends a lot on how warm the track is, how much it relies on having deep clear bass, and whether a warmer, rounded bass suits the song.
Eg, Ava Max - Sweet But Psycho. It's sounds very clean, very digital and club-like like with the EQ, presumably the way it's supposed to sound, vocals are fantastic, and very very good, but without the EQ, you lose the big clean bass drum, it mellows everything down, it sounds almost jazz-like, smokey, soft, warm and richer, which I love, like, I enjoy the song, enough to put it on my list, but on the Zeus... with no EQ it's not a song I like, it's a song I love. But throw on Billie Eilish - When We Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? I thought, this is gonna sound killer without EQ, but no, would not listen to this. With the EQ, oh man, the Zeus!
Anyway, EQ'd like so... (adapted from Resolves recommendation here https://forum.headphones.com/t/the-new-harmonicdyne-zeus-with-beryllium-drivers/8765/20)
...it cools everything down just enough to make metal sound right (to my ears), reduces the congestion of the soundstage and keeps enough of the rich, dense nature of the Zeus to make nu-metal sound like a brutal wall of sound in high def. I love it.
Everything Nirvana level aggressive up to say, Kittie level sounds just... so so so good. Just missing that little bit of bass texture, extension and definition but it's got enough punch/slam. Some basslines are a little underwhelming, and kick drums could use a titch more definition, but the guitars... the vocals... so so good.
Anything gentler than Nirvana, flick off the EQ and bam, The Beatles - Sgt. Peppers, is just paradise. Iron And Wine, magical. Anything in between is a bit of tossup and depends a lot on how warm the track is, how much it relies on having deep clear bass, and whether a warmer, rounded bass suits the song.
Eg, Ava Max - Sweet But Psycho. It's sounds very clean, very digital and club-like like with the EQ, presumably the way it's supposed to sound, vocals are fantastic, and very very good, but without the EQ, you lose the big clean bass drum, it mellows everything down, it sounds almost jazz-like, smokey, soft, warm and richer, which I love, like, I enjoy the song, enough to put it on my list, but on the Zeus... with no EQ it's not a song I like, it's a song I love. But throw on Billie Eilish - When We Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? I thought, this is gonna sound killer without EQ, but no, would not listen to this. With the EQ, oh man, the Zeus!
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