[audio_dude]

You're right, it is a 3,5mm socket. So I'll just change the cable.

I let the cable hang overnight with a weight and it is considerably better now. Still want to coil a bit, but not annoying anymore.

Doing a little more in-depth testing with the new set against the old (with flipped driver panel) and they're pretty close. Just to satiate some curiosity, I ran some sine wave sweeps through them clamped against my Blue Snowball and recorded into audacity. Looks like the crossover between the drivers is around 200Hz, and there's a pretty notable dip there. Giving it a little EQ boost at that spot seems to help round out the mids a lot better. Also popped a little dip at 8khz which pretty much completely resolves the sibiliance I was getting.

I've found these also respond in very different ways to various types of pads. Only tried a few, but some very thick angled pleather pads seem to both clean up and yet intensify the bass (bassheads dream at that point). Velours similar in thickness to the stock pads remove some of the boominess without getting things too intense. I'm thinking of picking up a set of thick angled hybrids or fenestrated leather pads to try out. Get the cleaning up benefits of getting the drivers a little farther away from the ear, plus a little plushness/venting to let a bit of that bass pressure out.

 

[4syth]

So how these cans sounds comparing to other phones, in one rewiev i have read that sound is very close to planar lcd 2, is it true? Can these cans compete with more expensive lcd 2?

 

[audio_dude]

So, interesting experience being able to A/B/X blind test two sets of these. Turns out the break in was totally placebo. New set sounds identical to the old set.

So far the biggest improvement I've seen is from switching the stock pads out for the very thick angled pads. These provide a much tighter seal versus stock, in addition to giving the driver assembly a little bit of breathing room instead of sitting directly against my ears.

I'm don't really know how to describe what's happening, but for whatever reason these are doing something magical and I find myself craving a listen on these over everything else sometimes. Maybe it has something to do with how the oak cups resonate combined with the added air space with the thicker cups.

The sweet and rich sound really shines on classical (orchestral and chamber in particular) and jazz. And oddly enough it's really nice with electronic stuff that has deep clean bass lines.

 

[nefilim]

Agreed on the break in, no surprise. However, the difference between the original sets they sold and the tuned sets are very significant, ie, it's immediately noticeable within seconds switching back and forth between the pairs.

 

[blackstef]

Hello, I have just received my 422 yesterday and this is my opinion out of the box:
They sound dark, bass is too loud, not airy enough , in fact it doesn´t sound like airmotion at all!
It certainly doesn´t sound like the airmotion on the speakers that I have.........
The airmotion is on the top on the 422 so it cannot be the reason that they sound very dark.
I know that they need a lot of hours to break in, but I´m very skeptical about how much better they will sound after 200 hours, I think that you just get used to the sound, but I´ll update after 200 hours
Does anybody know what changes that ESS made when they retuned the 422?
Wandering if ESS have send me a pair that not are retuned?

What is your impression now about the 422 now?

P.S. I just love the ESS speakers so maybe that´s why I´m so dissapointed.

Have a nice day
Best regards Stefan from Copenhagen, Denmark

 

[nefilim]

very much sounds like the original version - did you email and ask them?

break in doesn't change much if anything, changing from old to retuned was instant and very noticeable.

 

[elira]

How do you differentiate the original from the retuned version?

 

[blackstef]

I have emailed ESS, waiting for answer.

 

[NoisyNeighbour]

Liked the look of these headphones and decided to give them a try. I mostly use he-400i and th-x00 Mahogany. They sound absolutely terrible compared to both those headphones! Worst thing is the vocals are very, very recessed and sound like it's coming from a hole through a layer of mashed potatoes... Don't know how to describe it any better but it hit me as soon as I put them on and listened for 10 seconds of a random song. Did A/B/C testing between the three and it only made things worse!
On top of it the clamp of these headphones is like a new type of torture!!! Cannot bear them on my head for longer than a few minutes, my jaw is killing me! And I don't have a particularly large head by any stretch of the imagination!
Built feels meh... Looks like decent materials were used, but the execution seems rather unpolished! I actually prefer the built of the (don't shoot me!!!) he-400i overall, with all the plastic (and I freaking hate plastic!!)
Instant return!

 

[elira]

They sound absolutely terrible compared to both those headphones!

The AMT driver needs some burn in, my pair is very clear, a little bass heavy but I’ve no problems with vocals.

 

[NoisyNeighbour]

The AMT driver needs some burn in, my pair is very clear, a little bass heavy but I’ve no problems with vocals.

Whether or not burn in would help, I cannot stand them on my head because of the clamp force. And yes, they are bass heavy, as in cheap headphones boomy, they have more bass than the he-400i, but still I prefer the bass of the 400i. But than again I have the th-xoo precisely for that reason.
I stand by the statement you quoted even when an instrumental track is used to compare the three! Subjectively, without burn in (whatever that may do), I think they sound terrible compared to both he-400i and th-x00. I listened just now to Deadmau5 - HR 8938 Cephei on all three and the 422s sound the worst by a long way!

 

[nefilim]

Liked the look of these headphones and decided to give them a try. I mostly use he-400i and th-x00 Mahogany. They sound absolutely terrible compared to both those headphones! Worst thing is the vocals are very, very recessed and sound like it's coming from a hole through a layer of mashed potatoes... Don't know how to describe it any better but it hit me as soon as I put them on and listened for 10 seconds of a random song. Did A/B/C testing between the three and it only made things worse!
On top of it the clamp of these headphones is like a new type of torture!!! Cannot bear them on my head for longer than a few minutes, my jaw is killing me! And I don't have a particularly large head by any stretch of the imagination!
Built feels meh... Looks like decent materials were used, but the execution seems rather unpolished! I actually prefer the built of the (don't shoot me!!!) he-400i overall, with all the plastic (and I freaking hate plastic!!)
Instant return!

Bass settles down after a bit, otherwise doesn't change much with break in ... but what you describe sounds exactly how I felt about the original pair I received, the retuned pair is much better.

 

[audio_dude]

Having had both my original and the second set to A/B with for a while now, I think honestly I'm just going to see if I can send both back. If they've got some magic sets without the boominess and recessed mids I'd give those a try, but at this point I dont think I'll ever really love these and there are many other things that money could go to. Worst part is I'll be out ~$100 in import fees anyway!

 

[NoisyNeighbour]

~$100 in import fees anyway!

Ouch!!!! Gotta give it to you, I would not have risked 100$ import fees on 200$ headphones.
I bought them a couple of days before they went on Amazon Prime with one day free shipping, had to wait a week to get them. Now my return request is "pending seller approval" and I hope they're not gonna give me s#1t about it.

 

[audio_dude]

Ouch!!!! Gotta give it to you, I would not have risked 100$ import fees on 200$ headphones.
I bought them a couple of days before they went on Amazon Prime with one day free shipping, had to wait a week to get them. Now my return request is "pending seller approval" and I hope they're not gonna give me s#1t about it.

It's not as bad as it sounds. That's pretty much just Canadian sales tax and the brokerage fee for each set that was sent. Unfortunately the replacement set was also listed at full price, instead of as a warranty replacement or otherwise.