[nephilim32]

After more than a week listening to the D8000 Pro, I'm sold. Love them.

But.

I encountered the 'bass problem' that some have described in this thread. With bass heavy mixes, there's contact between the membrane and the perforated metal plates in front of the magnets.

The whole purpose of the AFDS seems to be defeated when reaching a certain volume. Unfortunately, in my case scenario, a Lotoo PAW Gold on high gain at 60 (75 is the max) is enough to generate the issue. Not a weakling, the LPG. But not a powerplant either.

An example of tracks triggering the issue is the first one of Blade Runner 2049 OST. I captured the sonic result for those of you owning the Pros and not keen on pushing them.

click here to view (won't play with some vpn active)​

I used a Yamaha PR7 with a 45/60 REC level @ 24bit/96kHz. Saturation is not due to the recording. Here's the waveform to demonstrate.



What puzzles me is that after reading the whole thread, whether D8000 or D8000 Pros, some have the problem and some don't. But some of those who don't clearly specify that they listen to bass heavy music such as dub at loud volumes and even EQ adding 4dB to the lower end, which is huge.

Another incoherency is that the Pros are advertised by the makers likeso :


There's no way a redbook mastering of a movie soundtrack played straight (no EQ, ATE...) with an LPG should make a set of pro headphones go bonkers.

The problem occurs at a volume that is by no means ear-splitting. It is loud, but below my usual max level. The D8000 Pro I tested is a first hand set, low usage, carefully handled by a good friend who listens at low volume and was thus unaware of the problem.

The headphones are going back to Japan for inspection. It would be very useful to have as much feedback from you guys as possible for @Final Audio to be aware of a potential malfunction of these otherwise fantastic cans.

Please contact me if you need samples to test yours. Thank you all.

LINKS to previous posts addressing this issue (still updating)
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/final-audio-d8000-planar-magnetic-headphone.845567/post-14857363 (and following)
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/final-audio-d8000-planar-magnetic-headphone.845567/post-14858863 (and following)
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/final-audio-d8000-planar-magnetic-headphone.845567/post-15959691 (and following)
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/final-audio-d8000-planar-magnetic-headphone.845567/post-15970596

This is a really great post and finding. Also a huge fundamental reason why I am not completely sold on buying either the pros or originals. What was the exact DB you had the Blade Runner 2049 track set at?
Thanks again for your research.

 

[nephilim32]

Ha ha, I'm not surprised they're surprised, having Japanese friends and relatives. They are way more sensitive than me about volume. I have to say that I can take high SPL only when sound reproduction is clean. IEMs are formidable for that, compared to most concert venues where I usually have to dampen my ears.

That's why it's so frustrating with the D8000 Pro. It's so pristine and engaging I want to knock my socks off ! I'm just surprised the issue occurs at a level I don't consider 'blasting'.

sidenote \ Clipping due to poor amplification is not likely in my case : my set is PC -> Eitr -> AudioGD NFB20.2 -> ifi Pro iCan.

I am the same way. If the recording is well mastered and my sources present an ultra clean signal I can blast away up to 90 DB for hrs.
I have no hearing issues whatsoever either. Go figure. Lol.

 

[Barone Birra]

G-pads (left) and F-pads (stock, right) on two D8000.... the sound imho is exactly the same. Feeded by a Benchmark HPA4, a great choice for them. Heavenly combo.

 

[OctavianH]

G-pads (left) and F-pads (stock, right) on two D8000.... the sound imho is exactly the same. Feeded by a Benchmark HPA4, a great choice for them. Heavenly combo.

Interesting that you hear no difference using the stock and a custom cable. When I played with my D8000 Pro and former D8000 a cable switch had a quite big impact.

 

[lafeuill]

This is a really great post and finding. Also a huge fundamental reason why I am not completely sold on buying either the pros or originals. What was the exact DB you had the Blade Runner 2049 track set at?
Thanks again for your research.

I don't have an SPL meter unfortunately, the only indications available are the ones I specified in the post.

 

[Pharmaboy]

G-pads (left) and F-pads (stock, right) on two D8000.... the sound imho is exactly the same. Feeded by a Benchmark HPA4, a great choice for them. Heavenly combo.

I heard subtle but meaningful differences in my D8000 when I changed to the "G" pads. IMO it was well worth doing...

 

[Barone Birra]

I heard subtle but meaningful differences in my D8000 when I changed to the "G" pads. IMO it was well worth doing...

The two D8000s were playing simultaneously feeded by the Benchmark, the two connections (jack & XLR4) are absolutely equivalent on that amp, same quality, same volume. It took me about 5 seconds to go from one D8000 to the other, and they seemed completely indentical, sound wise.
The pad feeling, however, it was certainly different: softer and more comfortable the g-pad, denser and stiffer the f-pad (I prefer it in summer, it's cooler than average). Maybe their construction can affect the seal and alter the bass response, I am bald and have no problems (LOL), for other hairy people maybe the g-pads (softer) fit better on the face and can seal the chamber in best way.

 

[Barone Birra]

Interesting that you hear no difference using the stock and a custom cable. When I played with my D8000 Pro and former D8000 a cable switch had a quite big impact.

Yes, they are quite similar. I didn't use both stocks because I needed an XLR and a jack. Of course, I also alternated them between the two headphones.

 

[Tano]

Hi guys! Just got my Finals D8K Pro. Still need to make a proper listening session to judge the sound. Before that, I wanna ask a question. I noticed that the pads moves quite a bit if I dont apply the correct clamp, I mean move up and down, not rotate. They move up a few mm when I put them on my head. Took off one pad to see if there was any problem, but all seems to be fine.
Thanks!

 

[Delta9K]

Congratulations on the D8K Pro, and yes the pads do float a little bit on the cups.

 

[Tano]

Congratulations on the D8K Pro, and yes the pads do float a little bit on the cups.

Thank you! Nice to hear that it is not any problem. Never had any headphone with similar pads, so I need to get used to it.

 

[Pharmaboy]

Hi guys! Just got my Finals D8K Pro. Still need to make a proper listening session to judge the sound. Before that, I wanna ask a question. I noticed that the pads moves quite a bit if I dont apply the correct clamp, I mean move up and down, not rotate. They move up a few mm when I put them on my head. Took off one pad to see if there was any problem, but all seems to be fine.
Thanks!

IMHO the Final's headband design leaves much to be desired. The underband padding is just so-so. But the worst aspect of this design is the roller-coaster vertical adjustment of each earcup. Each earcup changes vertical position every time you put this headphone on and take it off.

A friend of mine sent me 2 magical little rubber bands that he'd found somewhere and adapted for his Final D8000K. See the picture below; there is one on each bottom/side of the headband (left & right).

• These little bands are tight, not easy to stretch over the black circular discs that indicate "R" and "L"
• But once I got the bands on and adjusted each for ideal distance of each earcup from the top of the headband, I've never needed to adjust them again

I'm sure you could do exactly the same thing w/any small rubber bands, though it might mean looping them once or twice to get the fit right.

 

[Tano]

IMHO the Final's headband design leaves much to be desired. The underband padding is just so-so. But the worst aspect of this design is the roller-coaster vertical adjustment of each earcup. Each earcup changes vertical position every time you put this headphone on and take it off.

A friend of mine sent me 2 magical little rubber bands that he'd found somewhere and adapted for his Final D8000K. See the picture below; there is one on each bottom/side of the headband (left & right).

• These little bands are tight, not easy to stretch over the black circular discs that indicate "R" and "L"
• But once I got the bands on and adjusted each for ideal distance of each earcup from the top of the headband, I've never needed to adjust them again

I'm sure you could do exactly the same thing w/any small rubber bands, though it might mean looping them once or twice to get the fit right.

Yeah, the fit is good, but could be improved for sure. My biggest concern was the floaty pads, but they seem to be ok now.
That's a really clever solution, might give it a try. Thanks!

 

[Pharmaboy]

Yeah, the fit is good, but could be improved for sure. My biggest concern was the floaty pads, but they seem to be ok now.
That's a really clever solution, might give it a try. Thanks!

If you have the D8K Pro, you already have the (IMHO) better feeling & sounding "G" pads w/the velour facings.

But nothing stops any of us from putting on any circular pads that are large enough & strike our fancy.

I just measured the earpads: 110 mm diameter X ~33 mm thick. Closest to that are Brainwavz. You can get them in microsuede (relatively close to the part of the Final "G" pads that touches the skin);

https://www.brainwavzaudio.com/prod...v4SgNaV_XKQFUcQp0oFOiF1mSytg8DLBoCgosQAvD_BwE

You can also try Dekoni, though if you can figure out how to buy the right pad for this headphone, you're way ahead of me...

 

[Tano]

If you have the D8K Pro, you already have the (IMHO) better feeling & sounding "G" pads w/the velour facings.

But nothing stops any of us from putting on any circular pads that are large enough & strike our fancy.

I just measured the earpads: 110 mm diameter X ~33 mm thick. Closest to that are Brainwavz. You can get them in microsuede (relatively close to the part of the Final "G" pads that touches the skin);

https://www.brainwavzaudio.com/prod...v4SgNaV_XKQFUcQp0oFOiF1mSytg8DLBoCgosQAvD_BwE

You can also try Dekoni, though if you can figure out how to buy the right pad for this headphone, you're way ahead of me...

Thanks for the advice again. The pads feel quite good actually, but Im defo trying some pad rolling in the near future. Would love to find any perforated leather that fits and don't change the sound too much. Will see if my kennerton pads fit tomorrow.