Chinese / Asian Brand Info Thread (On or Over Ear Headphones)
Sep 24, 2020 at 11:27 AM Post #6,303 of 7,153
So, I wasn't content with my modding adventures with the Okcsc ZX-1 so I decided to experiment some more.

I now have a calibrated Headphone measuring station so I can finally make comparable Graphs with other sites (Though my measurements are best compared to https://diyaudioheaven.wordpress.com )

Here is the stock Okcsc zx1 Frequency response:
zx1 original.png

(Note that this plot IS Harman compensated in the bass ( https://diyaudioheaven.wordpress.com/tutorials/how-to-interpret-graphs/smoothing-compensation/ ) )
As can be seen is the bass somewhat overblown but the low to mid treble is where the real issues are. The stock sound signature is well described earlier in this forum.

My mod that I did was super janky and used the pads from a pair of broken philips sbc hp890 with the foam of a pair of AKG k550 jamed into the back and was loosely held in place by the petruding driver part of the bare headphone.
As such:
IMG_20200924_170236_5.jpg

Stock on left, modded on right.

The result was a completely different headphone.
compare zx1.png


The result was a warmer and a tad dark headphone that has almost the same amount of soundstage. (Warmer sound often make a more intimate headphone)
The bass is more prominent (Even with Harman compensation) and can be too much at times, but that can be fixed by blocking more of the holes on the rear of the driver.
Midrange quality is better being not peaky in the high mids.

I may have a bias for this kind of sennheiser HD700-esque sound but I can tell you that I am no longer genre dependant with this headphone.

Let's see how long this mod lasts, I like experimenting :)
 
Sep 24, 2020 at 3:28 PM Post #6,304 of 7,153
Unfortunately, I’ve never heard any Grados

Make that "fortunately" -- I heard a couple Grados & didn't like that sound.

In all fairness, though, headphones never were Grado's prime game. I still own their beautiful-looking, long discontinued tonearm; and their cartridges have been far and away the best I've heard.
 
Sep 28, 2020 at 9:55 AM Post #6,305 of 7,153
I have a set in order, but I haven’t received them yet. As soon as I do, I’ll be sure to share my impressions.
I'm looking forward to your comparison between Xiaomi and Openheart :) The Openheart looks like a nice open back companion to the Mi :)
 
Sep 28, 2020 at 10:35 AM Post #6,306 of 7,153
I'm looking forward to your comparison between Xiaomi and Openheart :) The Openheart looks like a nice open back companion to the Mi :)

Yes they look very nice. I ordered one too. The xiaomi came a few days ago and I am in love with the size, build quality and comfort. They also look better in person imo.
The sound quality is not really that good to me. Maybe because I came from the Grado sr60 and KZ ZS10 pro so I am missing the hihg end. Maybe Iwould benefit from the triple driver with the ceramic tweeter?
My pocophone F1 has like a correction profile for them built in and I must say I like them alot more with it turned on.
I really hope the openheart gives me a signature I like more. They should be the same price for me beacuse I had to pay customs for the xiaomi.
 
Sep 28, 2020 at 12:54 PM Post #6,307 of 7,153
Yes they look very nice. I ordered one too. The xiaomi came a few days ago and I am in love with the size, build quality and comfort. They also look better in person imo.
The sound quality is not really that good to me. Maybe because I came from the Grado sr60 and KZ ZS10 pro so I am missing the hihg end. Maybe Iwould benefit from the triple driver with the ceramic tweeter?
My pocophone F1 has like a correction profile for them built in and I must say I like them alot more with it turned on.
I really hope the openheart gives me a signature I like more. They should be the same price for me beacuse I had to pay customs for the xiaomi.
The xiaomi does sound a bit muffled in the upper mids and the high end (especially with generic or darker sources), but it improves a lot with a dac that has strong performance in treble like my sabre es9018k2m. Of course it won't compete with something like a Pro80 in this regard. It lacks a bit air on top and sometimes the low treble sounds a bit echoey. I think it's still quite nice for a small on-ear closed headphone. I guess changing the pads would help further.

I bought it as as secondary/portable headphone so I'm satisfied with it for my usage, the overall sound is well balanced and has a nice warm non-fatiguing character. I had a couple of headphones in this price range (soundmagic p21s, akg k514 gen1, Oneodio) and the xiaomi wins for me. For me the comfort is not that awesome, I'm still figuring out how to wear it. have curly hair and the headband pushes it quite strongly, the top of my head starts to hurt under an hour.

Anyways, you have a point, I'm also interested in getting an open-back phone for getting a wider, airier, more relaxed sound. I'm not planning to buy now, maybe I'll collect more and buy something more expensive but this openheart does seem to be a nice deal, maybe I can even get it below customs limit (40usd to my country) with a good sale.
 
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Sep 29, 2020 at 12:45 AM Post #6,308 of 7,153
Someone bought these and posted their impressions in the discovery thread:

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the-discovery-thread.586909/page-3323#post-15850956
Based on those comments, looking forward to @Damikiller37 and @Apputty's full reviews for the OpenHeart open backs, but I have a coupon that expires tomorrow...

I already have the:
- Takstar Pro 82
- OKCSC ZX-1 (with pads to mod it on the way)
- Koss trio (KPH30i, Porta Pro with Yaxi Pads & KSC75)

With an eye to buy one of these in the next 6 months:
- Sennheiser HD 6XX
- Sennheiser HD 560S
- HIFIMAN Sundara
- AKG K371
- Takstar HF-580

While I'm not expecting Fidelio X2HR performance, is this worth me bothering about for $30 USD versus getting a decent IEM cable or some pads for other headphones for free?
 
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Oct 1, 2020 at 6:57 AM Post #6,311 of 7,153
Ended up getting the carbon nanotube since I was able to get them for 50% off. They barely fit on my big head. From my early impression, these have everything I wished my SRH1840 did. Much better bass extension and smoother treble.
20200930_104047.jpg
Do you have a link for these beauts?
 
Oct 4, 2020 at 6:05 PM Post #6,313 of 7,153
https://es.aliexpress.com/item/4001...3.0&pvid=8b48e7c6-04f7-434b-aa05-3626c59eb3bc
this one loooks like a grado, but with a better construction, metalic and replaceable cable. I am really interested in triying the grado sr80e, but this is half the price. Any comment about this Oneheart model?.
I wonder if their drivers and cups are the same size as Grado's, I'm thinking about buying these and then swapping the drivers.

Edit: how do you guys get coupons for aliexpress?
 
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Oct 4, 2020 at 8:13 PM Post #6,314 of 7,153
I wonder if their drivers and cups are the same size as Grado's, I'm thinking about buying these and then swapping the drivers.

Edit: how do you guys get coupons for aliexpress?
The coupons appear in full force leading up to and during major sales.

There's another one this month, but typically the biggest periods are 11.11 and Black Friday.

There are also cashback services, so look into those for your region, or perhaps ones that offer payment via PayPal, but each will have their own terms and conditions regarding eligibility.
 
Oct 7, 2020 at 11:42 PM Post #6,315 of 7,153
Small update on the ribbon headphones. I was previously running them on a tiny class D amp that claimed 50wpc (a very dubious claim, after some testing), and found the sound quality to be lacking in certain areas. Annoying static, clipping and amp shutdown at high volume or during songs with lots of bass, etc.
Recently got a massive JLH 1969 class A 15wpc amp, and things sound much better. Even with this 15wpc amp, it easily reaches deafeningly loud levels, so I'm not worried about headroom.

I previously typed in detail about weird observations I had with the bass response in complex songs - those still remain, but every other issue I had with the headphones are now fixed. I can definitely say they now sound really good, outstanding even, far better than my beyer t1, and better than my, admittedly unreliable, memory of the focal clears.

I'm meeting up with a friend soon, dragging the huge amp with me, to show off these ribbons and compare them to his 95X try his focal clears again. Will post additional details after.

I'll probably relegate the tiny class D amp to use as the 'portable mode' for these ribbons, once the hardware I need to run it off a power delivery battery pack arrives.
 
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