Final Audio D8000 Planar Magnetic Headphone
Feb 11, 2023 at 11:28 AM Post #3,196 of 5,200
I like that EQ profile, instruments shine just the right amount and of course the bass, 10/10 amigo

I use this most of the time, just a bass increase which gives a nice impact without modifying much of its original tuning
1676131387191.png
Gracias compañero. Id be more than fine with just your bass boost, but I got used to a bit more upper mids and slightly reduced treble, althought I have no problem with the stock tuning.
 
Feb 11, 2023 at 2:07 PM Post #3,197 of 5,200
Was good to be able to compare Final D8000 Pro and D8000 Pro Limited Edition side by side again. Hadn't done that since Munich. There's definitely a difference and more pronounced than I remember. D8000 Limited is slightly more technically proficient than the D8000 Pro, whilst also being a little less analytical in the treble. It's a bit more natural overall.

It's sort of like if you took the D8000 Pro, added ~10% detail, and then nudged the tuning slightly toward the original D8000. It's definitely my favourite of the three. How much of it is the pads and how much is the headphone itself I'm not sure. One person found that the D8000 Limited goes louder without clipping so it does seem that there may have been some slight adjustments to the driver or damping but in any case, it's a gorgeous headphone.
(Photo of both headphones taken by Alan Yuen aka @MasterZen , D8000 Limited closeup taken by me)

330814581_591113202461805_6195353514981613960_n.jpg

1676142458943.png
 
Feb 11, 2023 at 3:03 PM Post #3,198 of 5,200
Was good to be able to compare Final D8000 Pro and D8000 Pro Limited Edition side by side again. Hadn't done that since Munich. There's definitely a difference and more pronounced than I remember. D8000 Limited is slightly more technically proficient than the D8000 Pro, whilst also being a little less analytical in the treble. It's a bit more natural overall.

It's sort of like if you took the D8000 Pro, added ~10% detail, and then nudged the tuning slightly toward the original D8000. It's definitely my favourite of the three. How much of it is the pads and how much is the headphone itself I'm not sure. One person found that the D8000 Limited goes louder without clipping so it does seem that there may have been some slight adjustments to the driver or damping but in any case, it's a gorgeous headphone.
(Photo of both headphones taken by Alan Yuen aka @MasterZen , D8000 Limited closeup taken by me)

330814581_591113202461805_6195353514981613960_n.jpg

1676142458943.png
Thanks for your comparison!
I feel the same. It sounds a bit more "natural" in the treble than the D8K Pro.
I didn't noticed anything about the clippint because Im a low volume listenet, but Im almost certain that they changed something in the damping. I swapped pads with my regular D8K pros and they didn't sound the same at all. So the pads aren't the only responsible of the differences.
 
Feb 11, 2023 at 3:57 PM Post #3,199 of 5,200
Thanks for your comparison!
I feel the same. It sounds a bit more "natural" in the treble than the D8K Pro.
I didn't noticed anything about the clippint because Im a low volume listenet, but Im almost certain that they changed something in the damping. I swapped pads with my regular D8K pros and they didn't sound the same at all. So the pads aren't the only responsible of the differences.
Yeah It's not something I can speak to firsthand as I don't listen that loud either, just something that someone mentioned at the meet. He said it was easily 6dB or more of a difference.
Very interesting regarding your findings with the pads. That'd definitely speak to the likelihood of the damping/driver being changed.

I'm not sure what they have done but the end result is that it's hands down my favourite of the three. Honestly it's just a shame that this version won't be widely available
 
Feb 11, 2023 at 4:10 PM Post #3,200 of 5,200
Yeah It's not something I can speak to firsthand as I don't listen that loud either, just something that someone mentioned at the meet. He said it was easily 6dB or more of a difference.
Very interesting regarding your findings with the pads. That'd definitely speak to the likelihood of the damping/driver being changed.

I'm not sure what they have done but the end result is that it's hands down my favourite of the three. Honestly it's just a shame that this version won't be widely available
Yeah, it's really great if they managed to reduce the clipping issue.
The LE with the regular Pro pads sounded bassier than both in their stock form, and the regular pro with the LE washi pads lost almost all the bass.

I think that they are gonna use the changes that they made to the LE in the future, either on a new model or the existing ones.
 
Feb 11, 2023 at 5:06 PM Post #3,201 of 5,200
20230211_163718.jpg


Just unboxed the D8K Pro LE 😎

 
Feb 11, 2023 at 6:42 PM Post #3,203 of 5,200
Congrats! Enjoy them and let us know your thoughts :)

So far, very satisfied.

D8000 OG was easily one of my favorite headphones ever; I don't have mine on-hand anymore, but going from memory (not a favorable thing to do with audio, but all I have here), the D8K Pro LE seems to give up a little low-end and warmth in favor of a little more resolution and balance. D8K OG was great with rock and pop music and D8K Pro LE certainly keeps up with that; seems to have everything I enjoy in a headphone (bass and slam [but not too much of it or too bloated of a response], a fairly neutral tuning, good detail and resolution, and noteworthy treble).

I plan on doing a direct comparison with Abyss 1266 Phi TC in the near future.
 
Feb 11, 2023 at 6:54 PM Post #3,204 of 5,200
So far, very satisfied.

D8000 OG was easily one of my favorite headphones ever; I don't have mine on-hand anymore, but going from memory (not a favorable thing to do with audio, but all I have here), the D8K Pro LE seems to give up a little low-end and warmth in favor of a little more resolution and balance. D8K OG was great with rock and pop music and D8K Pro LE certainly keeps up with that; seems to have everything I enjoy in a headphone (bass and slam [but not too much of it or too bloated of a response], a fairly neutral tuning, good detail and resolution, and noteworthy treble).

I plan on doing a direct comparison with Abyss 1266 Phi TC in the near future.
Nice! I've never tried the OG D8K, just the regular pro and the LE. I've tried a plethora of headphones and so far I think that the D8K Pro LE (also the regular) is the best all rounder. It might not be the best on each category, but it's great overall.
For a person like me, who listens to a wide variety of genres, is a perfect match.

The comparison with the Abyss should be really interesting. Looking forward to it :)
 
Last edited:
Feb 11, 2023 at 7:02 PM Post #3,205 of 5,200
So far, very satisfied.

D8000 OG was easily one of my favorite headphones ever; I don't have mine on-hand anymore, but going from memory (not a favorable thing to do with audio, but all I have here), the D8K Pro LE seems to give up a little low-end and warmth in favor of a little more resolution and balance. D8K OG was great with rock and pop music and D8K Pro LE certainly keeps up with that; seems to have everything I enjoy in a headphone (bass and slam [but not too much of it or too bloated of a response], a fairly neutral tuning, good detail and resolution, and noteworthy treble).

I plan on doing a direct comparison with Abyss 1266 Phi TC in the near future.
This is a comparison I want to read. When I had the AB-1266 Phi TC's and compared them to my D8K Pro's, I liked certain aspects of the D8K Pro's more.
 
Feb 11, 2023 at 7:26 PM Post #3,207 of 5,200
D8000 OG was easily one of my favorite headphones ever
Thanks for an excellent post.

I have the D8000 OG, which I upgraded with a leather understrap (thanks @puck!) and the Pro's "G" pads. With stock pads I thought the D8000 was at least competitive with any open-back planars I'd heard/owned up to that time (a fairly long list); with the "G" pads the bass got even better and now IMO this is easily the best all-rounder of any planars I've heard.*

I haven't heard the Pro or LE. But I like the sound of this D8000 very much and can't imagine selling it. I find it has a rare blend of high resolution, dynamic punch, terrific planar bass and above-average musicality.

*Not including the ZMF Caldera. I had a loaner here for review, but as burn-in finished my hearing cratered due to random medical issues. I couldn't review the headphone and sent it on its way. By then I'd only heard the Caldera for isolated moments, not enough to form an opinion on. If I had a Caldera loaner here now, comparing it to the D8000 would be my top priority
 
Feb 11, 2023 at 9:15 PM Post #3,208 of 5,200
Now you need to put some Obituary on them. By the way I just saw lately a movie with an american football team and understood your avatar. LOL

You know my comparison write-up will sure include Chopped in Half 🤣.

My avatar is from an american hockey team....but that's essentially football on ice, right? 😆

With stock pads I thought the D8000 was at least competitive with any open-back planars I'd heard/owned up to that time (a fairly long list); with the "G" pads the bass got even better and now IMO this is easily the best all-rounder of any planars I've heard.*

Sorry to hear about your medical issue, hopefully you're getting well and recovering from that! The Caldera is certainly one of the more intriguing options in the market right now and also something I'm excited to finally hear (CanJam NYC).

I echo your sentiments on the D8000 Original; the dynamism, clean bass, resolution yet musicality was something nothing else has quite matched for me. I also tried them with the G Type Pads and found, like you did, that it added some bass presence.

A dream of mine now is being able to directly compare the D8K OG, D8K Pro and D8K Pro LE in a single session lol. But that won't be easy to pull off, so I'll settle for comparing LE to 1266 TC for now lol.
 
Feb 11, 2023 at 10:24 PM Post #3,209 of 5,200
You know my comparison write-up will sure include Chopped in Half 🤣.

My avatar is from an american hockey team....but that's essentially football on ice, right? 😆



Sorry to hear about your medical issue, hopefully you're getting well and recovering from that! The Caldera is certainly one of the more intriguing options in the market right now and also something I'm excited to finally hear (CanJam NYC).

I echo your sentiments on the D8000 Original; the dynamism, clean bass, resolution yet musicality was something nothing else has quite matched for me. I also tried them with the G Type Pads and found, like you did, that it added some bass presence.

A dream of mine now is being able to directly compare the D8K OG, D8K Pro and D8K Pro LE in a single session lol. But that won't be easy to pull off, so I'll settle for comparing LE to 1266 TC for now lol.
I like your dream!

I'd settle for comparing my D8K to the Meze Elite (had the OG Empyrean & sold it; heard the Elite last year & liked it) and of course, the Caldara.

I'd put the T+A Solitaire on that list, but at least for me, it's not a real-world (the price is bonkers).
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top