[mulder01]

Hm, it doesn’t sound like a true portable phone in my eyes.

I think there are a number of high end portable players out there that will do the Diana justice. Their promo photos show it running off a Sony player. I was running mine off the old Lotoo PAW Gold (which has now been replaced by the touch). Maybe if you are looking at getting a Diana, you will need to spend more than $200 on a dac/amp dongle for your iphone to power it properly? Can't say I have tried dragonfly red though...
If you want it to be portable portable, it may not be the correct choice as it is open backed.

 

[Zhanming057]

Hm, it doesn’t sound like a true portable phone in my eyes.

It will work best with a strong portable amp - the Dragonfly will be okay but not great. It's not the Abyss 1266 phi, which sounds strained and thin on the WA11 and even the Mass Kobo 404. The WA11 is a pretty good choice and the WA8 as well, both amps and in particular the WA11 is fairly portable.

For some reason the sound signature that people are describing make it sound like a TH-900. Yay? Nay?

Not the same. The TH900 is boomy because of the closed back design. It's a Fostex can and as with nearly all Fostex OEM closed-backs, it's got lots of bass that could be better defined, nice midrange weight but thin treble that lacks finer control. The Diana/ Diana Phi doesn't have any of those problems. They are aggressive with bass and a tiny bit mid forward, but that's true for nearly all summit-fi planars. The Diana I felt was a little more bassy than the Diana Phi's, but it's been a long while since I've tried one.

 

[mulder01]

The Diana I felt was a little more bassy than the Diana Phi's, but it's been a long while since I've tried one.

Really? I thought everyone was saying the opposite...

 

[up late]

Not the same. The TH900 is boomy because of the closed back design. It's a Fostex can and as with nearly all Fostex OEM closed-backs, it's got lots of bass that could be better defined, nice midrange weight but thin treble that lacks finer control. The Diana/ Diana Phi doesn't have any of those problems. They are aggressive with bass and a tiny bit mid forward, but that's true for nearly all summit-fi planars. The Diana I felt was a little more bassy than the Diana Phi's, but it's been a long while since I've tried one.

i wouldn't describe the th900's bass as boomy but it is boosted. this isn't achieved at the expense of definition to my ears. i've always regarded the th900's bass presentation as exceptional. i hear the mid-range as somewhat recessed and the treble can be sharp, tho I've found that this can be recording dependant. i wouldn't describe the diana as slightly mid-forward either - i heard it as slightly u-shaped.

 

[chimney189]

Thanks for all the opinions guys.
I've never ventured in the $2000+ category of headphones, so this would be a big buy for me.
I'd have to agree that I found the TH-900's bass to be exceptional. What I'm worried most about the Diana (non-Phi) is that the treble is strident.

Does anyone know the inside dimensions of the pads by any chance?

 

[Maelob]

Treble is well balanced and not strident. It is a really well balanced headphone , I wished it had a tiny more warmth but overall great headphone. I wonder how it compares to the Ether 2

 

[up late]

Thanks for all the opinions guys.
I've never ventured in the $2000+ category of headphones, so this would be a big buy for me.
I'd have to agree that I found the TH-900's bass to be exceptional. What I'm worried most about the Diana (non-Phi) is that the treble is strident.

Does anyone know the inside dimensions of the pads by any chance?

i didn't hear the diana's treble as strident but i've heard more refined treble

Treble is well balanced and not strident. It is a really well balanced headphone , I wished it had a tiny more warmth but overall great headphone. I wonder how it compares to the Ether 2

agree that it's a great sounding headphone overall and without a hint of warmth

 

[chimney189]

i didn't hear the diana's treble as strident but i've heard more refined treble

agree that it's a great sounding headphone overall and without a hint of warmth

Thanks for that. So is the sound pretty aggressive?

 

[up late]

no, i wouldn't say that. are you able to audition it?

 

[chimney189]

no, i wouldn't say that. are you able to audition it?

Unfortunately I'm not able to do that, but I might be able to do a trade for it.
Is there another headphone that has a similar sound signature other than the Abyss headphones?

 

[up late]

sorry but nothing comes to mind

 

[chimney189]

Maybe that's a good thing

 

[up late]

could be

 

[chimney189]

Does anyone know the inner dimensions of the Diana ear-pads?
By the way, I measured my ear with a caliper and it's at 57.5mm.

 

[mulder01]

I did post the dimensions earlier in this thread when I had my pair... Was probably a fair while back if you could be bothered to go digging. Otherwise I am sure there are other owners on here...