[phase0]

  The Rupert Neve Headphone Amp is a fantastic match with eMu teaks.  Anyone else here tried it?

 
I heard the RNHA + Denon D5000 at a meet up. The combo blew me away. I thought it had amazing synergy and sum was greater than its parts. I enjoyed it more than anything else at the meet besides my setup and another guy's higher end tube setup. It was using a modi 2 for a DAC and I don't even think it was an Uber nor MB. I know it's not the same as an Emu Teak which I've never heard but they're at least cousins. If I was looking to build a nice little desktop the RNHA would be #1 on my list of amps I want.

 

[SoundTown]

To revisit a topic of discussion that was brought up a few months ago, I decided to try the Teak headphones with the wood cups off – only the headphone frame, drivers, and stock pads on.
Surprisingly, it doesn’t sound as bad as I expected. I suspected the headphone would sound harsh, splashy, and thin with little bass. What I got was the complete opposite.
Naked with the cups off, the Fostex drivers with stock pads sound very warm and thick in the bass, incredibly even in the mid-range, and unsurprisingly a fair bit blunted in the treble. On hindsight, I think the felt in the pads helped tame the sound , which explains the wooly and liquid quality of the entire sound as a whole, not thin and harsh as I thought it’d be.
The bass, quite simply, was almost overwhelming in quantity. I think both the squishy foam around the grill and the protein leather pads helped trap the low-end, i.e. removing the foam and using a set of velour pads would’ve almost certainly decreased bass drastically.
Finally, the imaging was surprisingly still very solid, though the right-most and left-most edges of the sound had a noticeable fall-off, due to the obvious fact that there was nothing there to trap the sound in.
Really, aside from the very diffused, wooly, and exaggerated bass, it wasn’t bad at all, all things considered.
Overall, I’d say that while the wood definitely does have an affect on the sound and a role to play, the Fostex drivers in the Teak (and by proxy, the TH-X00) are simply very very good – as you’d expect out of a US$400+ headphone.
I’d be very curious if a mod with vented cups were to be made some day. Even if the cups were made of metal or a dense plastic, I think the results would probably be quite interesting.

 

[Silent Xaxal]

How do these compare to the Audio Technica Wood Series and Metal Closed Backs? How do these compare to the Blackwoods?

 

[fjrabon]

I’d be very curious if a mod with vented cups were to be made some day. Even if the cups were made of metal or a dense plastic, I think the results would probably be quite interesting.

the cups are already vented

 

[boostergold90]

  I put in an order for the teaks with both teak and ebony cups about 3 weeks ago, but they're still not expected to ship until the 25th-ish because Emu is pretty busy with massdrop orders.

I got mine in around the same time, right before the end of the year. Have you gotten any updates recently? I've tried reaching out to Chan over the last couple weeks but haven't heard anything back.

 

[MyElectricCity]

No

  I got mine in around the same time, right before the end of the year. Have you gotten any updates recently? I've tried reaching out to Chan over the last couple weeks but haven't heard anything back.

No updates after initial contact, just sent an email three days ago asking if I could get an updated expected ship date, and haven't heard anything yet.
I know Chan is usually very responsive (no joke, my first reply came in 4 minutes after my initial message) but according to some post way back in this thread, occasionally he is traveling and unresponsive. 

A couple weeks of reaching out and no reply seems pretty irregular, I wonder what's up..

 

[boostergold90]

  No
No updates after initial contact, just sent an email three days ago asking if I could get an updated expected ship date, and haven't heard anything yet.

Will be interested to hear what response you get. It was about a week from my first email to when he got back to me about the order initially, and I know there was CES and a couple drops in there to manage. Just curious.

 

[SoundTown]

 
the cups are already vented

 

That’s true, though I was thinking of something more along the lines of more vents on the sides of the cups themselves, even if the material is different. It’s just an interesting thought, what the headphones would sound like then. As far as I understand, the vents on the Teak/TH-X00 are present with the gap between the wood and the plastic, and the gap between the frame and the pads, none directly carved into the cups themselves (not that I'm going to do such a thing to my headphones).
Bass would probably be a bit overwhelming, but it was just something I thought of when trying the Teaks cup-less.

 

[Change is Good]

If anyone here has and no longer needs their rosewood cups, please send me a PM. I'm interested in buying a pair. Thanks.

 

[PopZeus]

Random question: Would a Sol Republic V8-style replacement cable work with the E-MUs?

 

[MyElectricCity]

  Will be interested to hear what response you get. It was about a week from my first email to when he got back to me about the order initially, and I know there was CES and a couple drops in there to manage. Just curious.

Update from Chan,
Should ship out this week!
I requested cross cut grain (I like the look, sonically the difference shouldn't be noticeable) on the cups, which he said they would do if they have any at the moment.

I also inquired about if it was possible to get the wooden box shown in a few pictures, and you can for an extra $60 including shipping to Seattle. 
It's usually not included due to shipping cost. Not worth it for me, but good to know for others probably, especially if shipping to their locale is reasonable! 

Can't wait to get them, I hope they arrive before the meet up on Feb 5th in Seattle!
Will post pics whenever they make it.

  Random question: Would a Sol Republic V8-style replacement cable work with the E-MUs?

I just ordered the $10 V8 Sol replacement I linked to on amazon a page back. Will let you know when it (and my headphones) arrive if they work together.

 

[boostergold90]

  Update from Chan,
Should ship out this week!
I requested cross cut grain (I like the look, sonically the difference shouldn't be noticeable) on the cups, which he said they would do if they have any at the moment.

I also inquired about if it was possible to get the wooden box shown in a few pictures, and you can for an extra $60 including shipping to Seattle. 
It's usually not included due to shipping cost. Not worth it for me, but good to know for others probably, especially if shipping to their locale is reasonable! 

Can't wait to get them, I hope they arrive before the meet up on Feb 5th in Seattle!

Thanks, I got the same update today. Looking forward to getting them. The wood box is tempting but doesn't seem like it's worth the extra cash at this point, especially since I'd bought an extra pair of cups as well. Will post pics when they come in. Can't wait to join the club.

 

[andrejc]

How did you contact Chan? I have sent him couple of emails but have not heard from him.
How much the emu teak and the other cups go for? Do these come with a removable cable?
I decided to skip the recent thx00 drop in favor of the emu.

 

[MyElectricCity]

"EMU Teak us$450 fixed cable or $500 for removable cable
Freight by Fedex to US is $30

Additonal wooden cups is available upon request .....
$120 for Ebony, Pola Santo
$100 for Rose, Mahogany, Purple Heart, Sabili, Zebra"
Obviously double check shipping and cup availability...
Enquiry@emu.com

 

[andrejc]

Thank you very much for the reply.
Yes, that's the email address I have used.
Which of the additional cups would compliment the teak?
Which ones would bring out more bass?