[AsciiJC]

Ada:
Mid/upper mid centric headphone. Fun bass, but feels a tad rolled off at times. Its definitely enjoyable and not distorted. There's a rumble to it thats usually seen in bio dynamics and I love that part. Mids are nice, vocals are definitely present in the 1-2k region. They can be a little over the top at times and a small amount of fatigue. Treble is pretty good, I dont hear anything overbearing and harsh, but its also a bit rolled off. Instrumentals like guitars are very good but drums feel a little too distant at times.

To get the right level of sound, it can be a bit finnicky for fit. Upper ear pressure that causes a bit of discomfort. Detailing and so is ok? I wouldnt call it critical listening, its ok. It feels like theres a bit of a grain to the sound, nothing that I would consider too much or bad.

I absolutely prefer my o2 over these, but they certainly have their place for a more fun solution. I dont think this is a bad headphone, I will see people liking it as an introduction of ETA's really cool designs. Definitely favourite looking ETA by far.

 

[Philimon]

Ada:
Mid/upper mid centric headphone. Fun bass, but feels a tad rolled off at times. Its definitely enjoyable and not distorted. There's a rumble to it thats usually seen in bio dynamics and I love that part. Mids are nice, vocals are definitely present in the 1-2k region. They can be a little over the top at times and a small amount of fatigue. Treble is pretty good, I dont hear anything overbearing and harsh, but its also a bit rolled off. Instrumentals like guitars are very good but drums feel a little too distant at times.

To get the right level of sound, it can be a bit finnicky for fit. Upper ear pressure that causes a bit of discomfort. Detailing and so is ok? I wouldnt call it critical listening, its ok. It feels like theres a bit of a grain to the sound, nothing that I would consider too much or bad.

I absolutely prefer my o2 over these, but they certainly have their place for a more fun solution. I dont think this is a bad headphone, I will see people liking it as an introduction of ETA's really cool designs. Definitely favourite looking ETA by far.

I think I agree with most of your impressions. Im trying to be extra careful before posting any less than positive comments at least in regards to sonics, so limited myself in my first impressions but will be more succint in next / final impressions.

I wanted to mention that “Biodynamic” comparisons are a little wrong because past headphones featuring biocellulose diaphragm drivers would also utilize a flexible surround which allowed greater excursion and bass dynamics. Ada does not have this most distinctive Bio feature. My $24 Creative Aurvana Live has typical Bio-style driver and bass dynamics are greater from memory. Probably trade-offs though…

The pad ergos perhaps need some adjustment to get comfy. I typically wear headphones slightly forward + down from ear-center so that may help counter Ada’s tendencies that youre experiencing. Still, I wonder if ETA couldnt utilize pads with more surface area around baffle edges to improve comfort.

Pad positioning, clamp / compression, and wear has such effect on sonic and ergo impressions. From Grado to Sennheiser. Much individual experience. Makes me want to retry O2 since only had short loaner so couldnt experiment much with pads + fit.

 

[Philimon]

Grado 325x first impression:
From memory, preferable to my RS2x (F-pads). Curious how this compares to my PS500e (F-pads) but my initial reaction is 325x has slightly better tonal balance (more neutral, reminding me of 325e also F-pads) which is more valuable than “small” “technical” abilities. Also prefer 325x to Ada due to tone, will compare in detail in next/final impressions.

I like sharing first impressions because I like seeing the progression of change to final impressions with time and careful comparisons. Final impressions take awhile so first impressions usually provide some indication in mean time.

 

[Philimon]

Been rotating back and forth between Ada and 325x past couple days. Decided it was time to start taking notes but wanted to investigate why Ada pad(s) are more susceptible to falling off. Seems the pads are custom-shaped by hand leading to some variation in shape and elasticity. While investigating I noticed that the drivers are designed to be off-center of baffle and are actually skewed towards top.

^ Off-center (not lens distortion). The 3DP construction looks great. Cool stuff! Still think O2 is the better looking design, but the new headband support is a huge upgrade style-wise. ETA’s 3DP construction material is so much nicer than their genesis headphone while being far cheaper, thanks! Much appreciate the look and feel of this material over thin plasticky cups like Hifiman HE6se. Ada and O2 cups/baffle look very thoughtful in function while styling is subjective.

^ Can see pads are partly shaped with what seems like cuts by hand. Pad ear-side hole appears to be off-center as well (forward) so must be careful to install correctly. Due to hand-shaping can see where pad varies in thickness and some edges are too thin leading to some tears and possibly explaining comfort issues for others. Not sure if those tears were there from beginning but would think not.

^ Hand-cut leading to some asymmetry in foam thickness. Very doubtful has audible effect on channel balance. Must be expensive for ETA to source custom shaped pads so not mad but seems like it would be more practical to try and make pad design simpler by avoid hand-cutting at slight cost of sound if necessary.

Pretty much all my headphones are modded so difficult/impossible to provide reference comparisons but will share some thoughts anyway eventually since not short-term loaner (im slow, lazy, dont care that much). For now plan to mostly focus Ada vs 325x.

 

[Philimon]

Equipment: Mac > Eitr > ModiMBv1.2 > Magni+ (negative gain)

Grado 325x ($300) vs ETA Ada ($350)

Both are neutral with some slight divergence (read details below). Both are similarly detailed and dynamic. The biggest difference between them will come down to personal fit and preferred tonal compromise. Both are similarly sensitive (325x slightly moreso) and sound good from iPhone dongle whereas Ada's lighter and suppler cable edges out 325x for increased portability.

325x:
- very tad dark or uneven which is not a big deal but does result in very slightly less information in cymbals relative to Ada
- Grado cables are the worst (big and heavy and stiff), however I think the metal cupped Grado at least transmit less noise relative to other Grado (x-series)

Ada:
- very small upper mid peak
- lacks some sub-bass content but music dependent to be even noticeable
- slightly less comfortable on ears than 325x due to I think less headband articulation combined with slightly thinner pads
- pads fall off easier and mine already has tears that are increasing in size from frequency of reapplying such variably thin pads. fyi the pads first fell off when attempting to carefully remove headphone from packaging.

As far as "grain" that @ValSuki mentioned, I didn't notice but I may be less sensitive.
Very small upper mid peak is a problem for me as I find peaks intrusive / annoying much moreso than dips. I am very sensitive to upper mids in particular which makes Ada a pass for me but to be fair I would pass on most headphones including most in my collection when stock. @Tom Lu can Ada be tweaked to reduce 2-3kHz?

My priorities in headphones in order:
1. convenience
2. tone
3. bass quality
The rest is much less important but still appreciated just less so.

325x and Ada both have relatively squashed sound stages which is no surprise considering the pads. I found both very similar in their ability to delineate images and resolve finer detail and how they produce micro+macro dynamics. Further headphone comparisons will be made against 325x but that will be for another thread but will update this one with links later. I dont expect to keep Ada around much longer as prefer 325x.

 

[Philimon]

I am looking forward to Ada. Just waiting on shipping notice.:
1. Is performance constrained to meet some marketing strategy price point relative to O2?
2. Is it as ugly irl as in photos? I think O2 is much better looking.
3. Out of the many drivers ETA sampled, why this one?
4. How does it compare to Grado? Is it more 325e or more PS500e? I very much like both but the latter is more technically adept.

1. I dont know. I feel Ada is slightly over priced considering 325x. I feel O2 justifies its price because nothing else in that form factor makes that kind of bass. From memory, O2 bass is seductive and prob the best headphone bass Ive ever heard and would be the major reason to add to my collection. Though O2 uses the same driver as ETA Mini-c and Mini-s, the O2 uses open-cell foam pads which allows venting and reduced reverb which is perceived as a more open and faster sound. I heard Mini-s and it didnt really move me and vaguely recollect as sounding like an AQ Nighthawk.

2. No, it is not as ugly irl as in photos. Still think O2 is much better looking. Like I mentioned earlier, the 3DP material actually looks really cool and nicer to me than many other headphones including some much more expensive ones. The foam pads on Ada and O2 are both kind of funky looking but O2's look a little better constructed.

3. I dont know. From memory, Grado RS2x is still more resolving of fine detail. I dont know what couldve been the appeal of the Ada driver over the many others they tested. I dont know if upper mid-peak is attribute of driver or ETA's desired tuning. If not for upper-mid peak, then Ada would be preferable to 325x sonically.

4. I dont know. Small nuances and I still have to compare side-by-side. Previously* I put RS2x ahead of PS500e for resolution, but PS500e ahead of RS2x for preferred tone. Between RS2x and PS500e, I prefer PS500e. I might prefer 325e to PS500e because slightly preferable tone. 325e resolves less than RS2x and PS500e and Im guessing 325x is similar to 325e.

 

[Philimon]

F-pads look and feel good. More contact surface area to spread the weight. F-pads arent thicker than stock but are seemingly denser (less porous) foam than stock so maybe slightly warmer sound. And F-ad wider ear cavity might mean more highs as well which all combined might mean less upper mids. idunno, ill update with some comparisons later. Also, these hold onto baffle much tighter so no more loose pads.

 

[imackler]

Come on Yaxi, do your magic.

 

[Philimon]

Come on Yaxi, do your magic.

I dont have Yaxi but I did try a couple Geekria Grado style pads but none of those were good matches (less bass). F-pads sound much more like stock but better comfort and fit. Super comfy.

Spoiler: F-pad update

Im into my third album with Ada + F-pads. So far really like but may just be riding my own hype.:
- no fatigue
- increased treble and soundstage
- 2kHz peak seemingly gone
- unsure if bass or warmth increased but I feel it slightly did
Will re-compare to 325x.

F-pad update 2:
- nah, 2kHz less apparent because now more even with treble, but warmth+bass seems to have stayed the same as stock. So, slightly “treble-centric or lean” instead of slightly “mid-centric”. I wish I had tried F-pads with O2 because may have been a good match for me.

 

[AsciiJC]

Gave some suggestions on the comfort factor to ETA, they suggested I try bending the headband to adjust the pressure on my ears so that it doesnt cause the discomfort I was having. IT WORKED!

All those comfort complaints? None anymore. Its probably the most comfy headphone I have now haha!

Sounds wise, I take back the grain comment, its not grainy at all and actually quite resolving. Not as much staging as an o2 of course, but it really competes with it. The rest of the words I had with Ada I still need to work on, but the comfort changes is genuinely game changing for this.

 

[smodtactical]

Anyone with ada and o2 that might compare them? Just curious.

 

[smodtactical]

Ada:
Mid/upper mid centric headphone. Fun bass, but feels a tad rolled off at times. Its definitely enjoyable and not distorted. There's a rumble to it thats usually seen in bio dynamics and I love that part. Mids are nice, vocals are definitely present in the 1-2k region. They can be a little over the top at times and a small amount of fatigue. Treble is pretty good, I dont hear anything overbearing and harsh, but its also a bit rolled off. Instrumentals like guitars are very good but drums feel a little too distant at times.

To get the right level of sound, it can be a bit finnicky for fit. Upper ear pressure that causes a bit of discomfort. Detailing and so is ok? I wouldnt call it critical listening, its ok. It feels like theres a bit of a grain to the sound, nothing that I would consider too much or bad.

I absolutely prefer my o2 over these, but they certainly have their place for a more fun solution. I dont think this is a bad headphone, I will see people liking it as an introduction of ETA's really cool designs. Definitely favourite looking ETA by far.

Are you using OG pads or e+ pads on o2 ?

 

[AsciiJC]

Are you using OG pads or e+ pads on o2 ?

e+ pads.

Ive used the Ada a lot more lately and honestly, I just love them. There is something about their sound I keep coming back to.

 

[smodtactical]

I think calling Ada a grado competitor is an insult to ETA. At least o2 sounds WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY better than every grado I've heard.

 

[Philimon]

I think calling Ada a grado competitor is an insult to ETA. At least o2 sounds WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY better than every grado I've heard.

If the Grado didnt have F-pads installed then your opinion is easily agreeable for the Grados Ive tried. Grado sans F-pads are overall not good ime. Only a few Grado come with F-pads in stock configuration such as 325x which is partly why I chose for this review so wouldnt get massacred like when I compared stock RS2x (L-pad) vs O2. Im guessing that 325x is Grado’s best headphone currently when stock and it’s great…

imo Ada is most different from O2 in terms of bass quantity and quality. O2 is slightly bassy, and Ada is slightly mid-centric. O2’s bass quality is supreme while Ada is worse than 325x due to higher roll off.

Ada and typical Grado both have some 2kHz peakiness which seems to be partly key to why they each can sound punchy and fun (colored) adding definition to snare drum and vocal presence. The other key being their open-cell foam pads which allows (naturally) quick bass decay. Grado’s tend to have 2kHz and ~5kHz peaks (guitar presence) but can be narrow or low enough in amplitude as to be tolerable while adding a bit of character. Ada’s 2kHz peak seems to be a tad too wide or loud causing sense of overall mid-centric tone.

Some Grado (F-pads) Ive tried that bother me: RS2e (too much ~5kHz), SR60/80 (slightly too much ~5kHz), RS2x (very slightly too much 2kHz like Ada but RS2x not as bad plus more resolving, I plan to sell my RS2x or would trade for O2).

325x and Ada have a lot in common and are both produced in Staten Island, NY (correct me if im wrong).

edit: I returned my Ada which should incur 15% restocking fee which I am fine with because it’s worth trying ETA products because ETA’s R&D and skillful tuning with the latter not jiving with me but we all perceive differently so no single headphone can suit them all…

edit2: correction