Clash of the Titans: Sony R10 vs. Audio Technica ATH W2002 at chez markl...

[markl]

...coming soon to this thread. They should arrive in 4-5 days. Watch this space for a review. (Curse you again, MRael!)

*Sigh*

I said I was out, and I really meant it. Really.

But then MRael posts that *gasp*, there are no more W2002s left. Suddenly my conscious mind realized that my subconscious had been hatching a plan to get hold of a pair... eventually. Now that chance seemed to be gone.

Then we find out that there are actually five left. Well, I couldn't take it so I claimed one. I just HAD to know.

Additionally, my living situation is going to change soon, which will require me to raise some cash. Honestly, I don't expect the ATH W2002 to be as good as the R10's, but I am hoping that they are good enough to live with. I will likely sell my R10's, so if you're interested (and you should be, these are very hard to get), watch this space.

I'm actually not that thrilled to be doing this comparison, and extremely reluctant to part with my R10's, but life changes and some things are more important than headphones. So, it is with a bit of a heavy heart that I sent away for my ATH W2002s.

If I don't like the W2002's at all, I will likely sell those, too, and switch back to the tried-and-true Sony CD3000.

markl

(2-4-02: The actual review can be found here: http://www.head-fi.org/forums/showth...&threadid=7402)

 

[M Rael]

I feel like borrowing dhwilkins post about fainting and reviving several times as I read that post markl. Wow!! I didnt see that one coming at all.

Ok, well you shall see for yourself what I was trying to get at in my comparison of the R10 and the W2002. I'm glad you are not expecting the W2002 to be instantly better than your R10; I mean, in some ways they are better, but the R10 is a top shelf product-- theres no way I would ever downplay how good it is overall. I tend to be less aggressive than say, Tom (the other owner of the W2002) who told me he now has a distinct distaste for his HP1000's after owning his W2002's for a month. What else can I say right now buddy.. I'm really glad you decided to try them! This is great. I'll post your review of them on my W2002 website when the time comes.

 

[dhwilkin]

Awesome! Now this should be very interesting, especially w/ the modded 333ES and Melos as source and amp. I guess I can put my smelling salts away for this review. Ah well, I'm glad that others have benefitted from my poor, fragile sensibilites.

I've also gotta go ahead and put my name on markl's "potential R10 and/or W2002 buyer" list. Sorry to hear you're going to have to part w/ your R10s, markl.

 

[joelongwood]

Quote:

...life changes and some things are more important than headphones.

Very true, markl. Whichever headphone you wind up with, I'm sure you'll continue to enjoy the music. And BTW.....as you know, the CD3000s are not too shabby.

 

[M Rael]

Quote:

Originally posted by joelongwood ....as you know, the CD3000s are not too shabby.

The guy here in town with the R10's has two pairs of CD3000's. He really likes them a lot. His original pair has a ton of wear on them. The headphone I had before the W2002 was the CD3000. If I hadnt seen the picture of the W2002 at Headwize on that fatefull day, I might still be listening to the Sony. But the audio-technica line needed to be investigated sooner or later, so I'm glad to have been the one. BTW: me and the person in the UK with the R10's have been exchanging emails a lot lately about the W2002 and the W100. If I'm not mistaken he's going to try one of them. Maybe when Tomcat comes to the US this summer he'll bring his W100's with him and let me listen to them.

 

[Ross]

Who sells these Audio-Technicas?

I've just realised I need a new pair of headphones. I only have 7 or 8 others ....

Ross

 

[M Rael]

Vincent Chan works for audio-technica Singapore. He is willing and able to help (tell him I sent you.) His email is:
vin@audio-technica.com.sg

 

[Ross]

Thanks, Mark.

 

[markl]

Just assembling some of the more interesting links to ATH W2002 that I found on the web. Most of this is in Japanese.

This one talks about the CD3000 and R10 as well:
http://www.hatakeda.com/dp/shopping/buy/ath-w2002.htm

This site seems to carry all AT woodies at discount prices:
http://www.cho-onpa.com/headphones/technica_set.html

Lots of great pics on this site (many brands including the new Stax!)
http://www.dynamicaudio.co.jp/audio/...f/test_hp.html

http://www.21hifi.com/revhifi/20011217/07.htm

markl

 

[Ross]

I'm just in the process of ordering some W2002s.

What amps do you think are appropriate for these headphones, given their low impedance? I have a Headroom Maxed Home and Earmax Pro, both of which I would have thought would be okay.

There is also the ATH-HA2002, which looks like it is designed for the W2002. Any info on this?

Ross

 

[kelly]

Sorry about your falling on hard times, Mark. I have to say that I'm really looking forward to your review, though.

That one link had them listed at Y78000 which is about $588 by today's rate. That's just almost reasonable.

Kelly

 

[jatinder]

Hi all,

I really enjoyed MRaels review and comparisons of the W2002 and the R10 - and I certainly agree with him on some aspects of the R10s sound.

Anyway, I thought I'd better get myself a pair of W2002s as well and see what all the fuss was about. If they are indeed way better than the CD3000 then I shall be more than happy with them.

Look forward to a review in a few weeks.
--Jatinder

 

[Tomcat]

Sorry to hear about your trouble, markl. I guess all of us what have preferred it, if it had been pure headphone fever that had brought you out of retirement. Still: I am looking forward to your review and I hope you'll find a less expensive route to headphone heaven.

Quote:

Maybe when Tomcat comes to the US this summer he'll bring his W100's with him and let me listen to them.

That's an excellent idea, M Rael. But I am not sure it will happen. I guess neither my time nor budget allow it. I'd love to listen to the W2002, though. So, what about you? Do you know Germany?

I guess I have to rely on other people's comments about them. Thanks to markl, Ross and jatinder, there seems to be a veritable avalanche of W2002 reviews coming. Nice.

Ross, I don't know how my W100 compares to the W2002 sonically. But my Earmax Pro seems to handle the W100's impedance of 48 Ohms quite well. The W2002 has an impedance of 40 Ohms, though. I guess a stronger tube amp or a solid state amp might provide more solidity in the bass than the Earmax, but I am truly smitten by the liquidity of the Earmax/W100 combination so far. To me, this combo works great. But, hey, I am addicted to tube sound.

 

[M Rael]

Quote:

Originally posted by Ross There is also the ATH-HA2002, which looks like it is designed for the W2002. Any info on this?

Ross, the HA2002 amp uses the Japanese wall current and it won't work (at least in the US) and Vincent is discouraging people from trying to make it work. But you are correct- the HA2002 was made specifically for the 2002 headphone and it runs in Class A, etc. etc.

 

[RickG]

Quote:

Originally posted by M Rael Ross, the HA2002 amp uses the Japanese wall current and it won't work (at least in the US) and Vincent is discouraging people from trying to make it work. But you are correct- the HA2002 was made specifically for the 2002 headphone and it runs in Class A, etc. etc.

All you would need is a power converter, right?

http://www.dvdoverseas.com/store/ind...atalog6_0.html