[jamato8]

May be its my English , I don’t mean to expecting a very prominent mids on ether 2, my daily traveling headphone is night owl from audio quest, which is know for its very dark sound signature . I am only suspecting the mids on my pair is some what impaired and results in a lower-mids that is under performed compare to other ether2. Hard to believe that ether 2 is rooting for that kind of tunning for a very important range of sound spectrum . Tbh I don’t like any of focal headphones, th900mk2 is much more pleasing to my ears compare to utopia.

So much depends upon the upstream feed. I enjoy the Ether II on the DX220 with AMP8 but also enjoy the combination with the Utopia and Stellia. There are some things that are too flat the the Ether II and too bright for the Focal. So it is, as usual, the right audio stream for the headphones being used.

 

[greyforest]

So much depends upon the upstream feed. I enjoy the Ether II on the DX220 with AMP8 but also enjoy the combination with the Utopia and Stellia. There are some things that are too flat the the Ether II and too bright for the Focal. So it is, as usual, the right audio stream for the headphones being used.

Thank you for point out the importance of the source. Just to be clear I tried all 3 of my headphones with same file and same dB level(tried my best to match the loudness) from the same balenced output, and therefore I rise my concerns.
Btw dx220 is wonderful, i was tempting to get it for a while.

 

[Law87]

I believe 660s use other driver than the one hd700 had, they sounded so different. I like ether2 very much just I suspect the lower-mids on my pair is not performing properly. Ps do you hear crackling on your ether2 when you try to move your head?

its been stated that HD660s is using HD700, its not an assumption or a opinionated statement.

Never heard any crackling when I owned it. speaker drivers might be on its way out if thats what you are getting.

 

[greyforest]

its been stated that HD660s is using HD700, its not an assumption or a opinionated statement.

Never heard any crackling when I owned it. speaker drivers might be on its way out if thats what you are getting.

well good know than, thank you

 

[greyforest]

just checking if any one hear the planner driver crackling(when you move your head slightly) while you had ether on your head but not playing anything through it？ similar things usually occurr with certain IEMs

 

[Law87]

just checking if any one hear the planner driver crackling(when you move your head slightly) while you had ether on your head but not playing anything through it？ similar things usually occurr with certain IEMs

yes My Alpha Prime, send it in to Dan and he fixed it, its either your Speaker driver or your xlr port, just send it in.

 

[freemason]

That’s my feeling as well, contacted the local dealer they seems willing to investigate the problem for me, if its not too much to ask do you have any corespondents from mrspeaker regarding the issue (screenshot )so i can use it as evidence to negotiat with the dealer? Thank you

I returned mine directly through Addicted To Audio here in Australia.

 

[LCMusicLover]

May be its my English , I don’t mean to expecting a very prominent mids on ether 2, my daily traveling headphone is night owl from audio quest, which is know for its very dark sound signature...

Your English is fine ... way better than my ~any other language~. I just mis-read your enquiry.

Yep, if you like Nightowl nothing from Focal is gonna fit (except Elear maybe?)

A poster on the other site described a similar problem to yours which was diagnosed as a defective pair.

BTW, ZMF cans might be the thing for you. Probably Unobtanium for you though.

 

[greyforest]

yes My Alpha Prime, send it in to Dan and he fixed it, its either your Speaker driver or your xlr port, just send it in.

Thank you for sharing your experience, may i ask why defective Xlr port can result in crackling sound? (There is no music or anything Playing) i ve called mrspeaker customers services and they told me it’s normal to have this crackling something to do with air pushing the driver when i move my head. But....my aeon closed don’t do that.

 

[greyforest]

Your English is fine ... way better than my ~any other language~. I just mis-read your enquiry.

Yep, if you like Nightowl nothing from Focal is gonna fit (except Elear maybe?)

A poster on the other site described a similar problem to yours which was diagnosed as a defective pair.

BTW, ZMF cans might be the thing for you. Probably Unobtanium for you though.

Would you please provide the link to that post? Thank you !

I ve never tried zmf headphones I don’t think there is any dealer for that brand where i live.

 

[Law87]

Thank you for sharing your experience, may i ask why defective Xlr port can result in crackling sound? (There is no music or anything Playing) i ve called mrspeaker customers services and they told me it’s normal to have this crackling something to do with air pushing the driver when i move my head. But....my aeon closed don’t do that.

I dont recall having a crackling or poping sound when there is no music playing, if there is no sound how do you know its crackling and popping? I never had this problem the 1-2 weeks I own the Ether 2.

My Ether prime right xlr port wears out, music start cutting in and out and eventually stop working one day, I dont know the reason behind it, it just happen. Similarly, why do car with good maintenance record break down? it just happen. Again, if you are worry send it in, or return the headphone.

 

[greyforest]

I dont recall having a crackling or poping sound when there is no music playing, if there is no sound how do you know its crackling and popping? I never had this problem the 1-2 weeks I own the Ether 2.

My Ether prime right xlr port wears out, music start cutting in and out and eventually stop working one day, I dont know the reason behind it, it just happen. Similarly, why do car with good maintenance record break down? it just happen. Again, if you are worry send it in, or return the headphone.

the crackling i am talking about is similiar to somebody twisting aluminum foils around your ears, feels like the diaphragm inside the driver is pushed around by the air. It is noticeable when music is being played as well. I am afraid return is no longer an option for me

 

[Empyah]

Hi guys,

so... my DAC choices to pair with my Ether 2 and V281 came down to a RME ADI 2 DAC for 820€ and a Violectric DAC V850 for 800€.
Thank you in advance for your opinions on these two DACS and why i should choose one over the other.

Edit: plus i can get a Bifrost Multibit for 350€. Or an IFI Pro iDSD for 1800€.

 

[bryceu]

the crackling i am talking about is similiar to somebody twisting aluminum foils around your ears, feels like the diaphragm inside the driver is pushed around by the air. It is noticeable when music is being played as well. I am afraid return is no longer an option for me

I think the sound you are referring to is "planar crinkle" and it is not indicative of (from) a bad unit, it's a result of the design of the headphone. This review describes the problem as it affects him:

However it sounds like you are having a second issue as well, if your sound is cracking and cutting out, I would assume a loose connection in the ear cups.

Hi guys,

so... my DAC choices to pair with my Ether 2 and V281 came down to a RME ADI 2 DAC for 820€ and a Violectric DAC V850 for 800€.
Thank you in advance for your opinions on these two DACS and why i should choose one over the other.

Edit: plus i can get a Bifrost Multibit for 350€. Or an IFI Pro iDSD for 1800€.

I own the RME ADI-2 DAC and can say that it's an all around fantastic DAC/AMP combo. But I have found the amp portion of it to under-perform when powering the Ether2. It gets loud enough but the sound stage and separation is not meeting the full potential of the Ether2.

I've listened to the Bifrost Multibit and think it's a good DAC, but I didn't find the "sound-improvement" worth the upgrade over the Modi Multibit which I owned and is quite a bit cheaper. If you're in the market for a Bifrost, Schiit just released the Bifrost 2 which looks like a fantastic piece that now features XLR output, out-of-house USB upgrade-ability, and a basic remote: https://www.schiit.com/products/bifrost-1 (ignore hyperlink saying Bifrost-1)

I can't comment on any of the other gear you mentioned.

Overall, I really enjoy the ADI-2 DAC and would purchase it again in a heartbeat.

 

[greyforest]

funny thing is i watch this review before i bought ether 2 week ago, was hoping not to get any of those. Well....