[MalVeauX]

Quote:

 

mmm, that wine looks tasty
 
how do those fa-003's fare towards the fa-011 in your fischer collection?
 

Heya,
 
The FA-003 has great isolation. The mids are generous. The treble has a touch of brightness, a sparkle, incredible detail, but not sibilant. The bass is neutral, and extends deep, all the way to 30hz. It scales with amplification too, so the more juice you feed, the more rounded it gets. The sub bass really picked up omph when I put more power into it. Lots of impact. And by more, I mean, it doesn't take much, push half a watt or more and you're good. Good sound stage. Very comfortable, and comes with leather & velour pads (deep cups too, mind, helps with sound stage), detachable cable, carry case with foam insert for carrying around, and the build quality is durable and sturdy; very nice overall headphone for a modest $150ish. Blows away other $150 offerings that are closed as far as I'm concerned--bests the SRH840, M50, Ultrasone series of equivalent price, for a neutral headphone that has extension, detail, comfort and a price that doesn't match it's quality. This headphone really stands out in my mind considering it's cost, as I look it over and expect it really to have been more of something closer to $300. The FA-011 is open air, has a nice sound stage. It's treble is bright, and can be down right sibilant on a bright amplifier, but warms up easily with different amps that I've tested (Matrix Cube was really warm with it for example, no sibilance; it was very bright and hot on my Asgard; warmish on the Lyr). The bass is slamming good, it's mostly mid-bass and lower mid-bass. The sub-bass is there, but it's not at the same level as it's mid-bass, which is to be expected of an open-air headphone at this price range. The mids are great, very detailed and they are not held back by the bass. Overall, the bass is not quite what I've read about from others, I don't consider this a really bassy headphone, it's more of a warmer neutral headphone when it comes to bass, with some sparkly treble. Quite like the DT990, and quite like the Goldring DR150. But at a price that is more attractive to some. And with a woodback retro Victorian finish that is just lovely to behold. The build quality is a little lacking. It's pretty light weight, but there's a lot of movable parts that are just bands or bending rods that, while holding tons of pressure, just seem flimsy (much like the AudioTechnica art series). The pads are good though, and the headphone stays together regardless. The cups are not that deep, this is a flaw to many, I didn't mind as much, but I do feel that takes a bit away from the comfort. The wood is the other flaw, it's not quite real wood I don't think, in the sense of something carved. I think the wood is molded and stained. It's a very soft wood actually. Not sure what it truly is. And I've seen different woods that looked different from other folk with them, so I wonder if they have been changing things up. The grill & name plate are awesome though, I love the victorian look. The cable is not detachable, is short, and coiled. It comes with a long extension and an adapter. The headphone doesn't come with a carry case or anything, it just comes in a cardboard box. I guess you have to get the FA-002 to get the neat package deal along with it. That said, at $118, it's a mighty good headphone and excellent for music, movies and even games. It's got a good sound stage, and at this price point, I would get it over the overhyped audiotechnica AD700 for someone looking for a sound stage headphone around $100, since it has the sound stage and the bass, so isn't crippled. Overall, I like the FA-003 more. Soon I'll get the FA-002W (woodback version of the FA-002, which is just the FA-003 but with open air grills, so a re-closed-FA-003 with wood of your choice, real wood this time). But I'm biased as I much prefer closed headphones in general (I'm big on isolation, so I don't hear computers, fans, AC, house noise, outside noise at the window, etc).
 
Very best,
 

 

[Stevesebastianb]

 
Quote:

If it wasn't for the shallow non-pleather pads, I would have bought these too.

 Changing pads is not an issue!

 

[MalVeauX]

Heya,
 
Here's two things too, I forgot to really get into but found interesting.
 
1) I really want to experiment with changing the pads to something with more depth. Maybe an Ultrasone velour pad or a Beyer velour pad will fit. Will have to do some measuring and hunt around. If the cups could be made deeper, it would probably help the treble to get your ear right off the driver. Also help fill out everything. We'll see.
 
2) The interesting thing about the FA-011, if you cover up the grills with your hands, most open-air cans die immediately and lose their weight. The FA-011 doesn't. It changes a little, but it doesn't lose a lot like other headphones do. It's interesting. Not sure what to do with that. But it makes me wonder what some creative people could do with a full woodback housing re-make could do with these drivers. Granted one could just get the FA-002W and avoid all that for a bit more. But still interesting.
 
Very best,

 

[kingpage]

 
Quote:

 Changing pads is not an issue!

There are pleather pads available for 011, but none as deep as 003's.

 

[Vonx]

Quote:

Heya,
 
The FA-003 has great isolation. The mids are generous. The treble has a touch of brightness, a sparkle, incredible detail, but not sibilant. The bass is neutral, and extends deep, all the way to 30hz. It scales with amplification too, so the more juice you feed, the more rounded it gets. The sub bass really picked up omph when I put more power into it. Lots of impact. And by more, I mean, it doesn't take much, push half a watt or more and you're good. Good sound stage. Very comfortable, and comes with leather & velour pads (deep cups too, mind, helps with sound stage), detachable cable, carry case with foam insert for carrying around, and the build quality is durable and sturdy; very nice overall headphone for a modest $150ish. Blows away other $150 offerings that are closed as far as I'm concerned--bests the SRH840, M50, Ultrasone series of equivalent price, for a neutral headphone that has extension, detail, comfort and a price that doesn't match it's quality. This headphone really stands out in my mind considering it's cost, as I look it over and expect it really to have been more of something closer to $300. The FA-011 is open air, has a nice sound stage. It's treble is bright, and can be down right sibilant on a bright amplifier, but warms up easily with different amps that I've tested (Matrix Cube was really warm with it for example, no sibilance; it was very bright and hot on my Asgard; warmish on the Lyr). The bass is slamming good, it's mostly mid-bass and lower mid-bass. The sub-bass is there, but it's not at the same level as it's mid-bass, which is to be expected of an open-air headphone at this price range. The mids are great, very detailed and they are not held back by the bass. Overall, the bass is not quite what I've read about from others, I don't consider this a really bassy headphone, it's more of a warmer neutral headphone when it comes to bass, with some sparkly treble. Quite like the DT990, and quite like the Goldring DR150. But at a price that is more attractive to some. And with a woodback retro Victorian finish that is just lovely to behold. The build quality is a little lacking. It's pretty light weight, but there's a lot of movable parts that are just bands or bending rods that, while holding tons of pressure, just seem flimsy (much like the AudioTechnica art series). The pads are good though, and the headphone stays together regardless. The cups are not that deep, this is a flaw to many, I didn't mind as much, but I do feel that takes a bit away from the comfort. The wood is the other flaw, it's not quite real wood I don't think, in the sense of something carved. I think the wood is molded and stained. It's a very soft wood actually. Not sure what it truly is. And I've seen different woods that looked different from other folk with them, so I wonder if they have been changing things up. The grill & name plate are awesome though, I love the victorian look. The cable is not detachable, is short, and coiled. It comes with a long extension and an adapter. The headphone doesn't come with a carry case or anything, it just comes in a cardboard box. I guess you have to get the FA-002 to get the neat package deal along with it. That said, at $118, it's a mighty good headphone and excellent for music, movies and even games. It's got a good sound stage, and at this price point, I would get it over the overhyped audiotechnica AD700 for someone looking for a sound stage headphone around $100, since it has the sound stage and the bass, so isn't crippled. Overall, I like the FA-003 more. Soon I'll get the FA-002W (woodback version of the FA-002, which is just the FA-003 but with open air grills, so a re-closed-FA-003 with wood of your choice, real wood this time). But I'm biased as I much prefer closed headphones in general (I'm big on isolation, so I don't hear computers, fans, AC, house noise, outside noise at the window, etc).
 
Very best,
 

You are the best Head-Fi user EVER!!!
 
Like, if they ever made a reputation or point system, i would give you a million awesome points!
 
I agree with all of that, although I think I am biased to open headphones for the increased sound stage and realism but of course thats subjective and sometimes not always the case

 

[kingpage]

MalVeauX, how would you compare FA-003 and KNS6400? (sorry for a little off-topic)

 

[MalVeauX]

Quote:

MalVeauX, how would you compare FA-003 and KNS6400? (sorry for a little off-topic)

Heya,
 
In short, the FA-003 was the more musical headphone simply put. The KNS6400 to my ears was pretty boring, it was overly detailed to the point of listening to hiss at some points because of some spikes in treble I can only assume (or some weird impedance miss match or what not, I don't know). I felt like it lacked a lot of bass and really was just not an enjoyable listen for me at all. I've had folk tell me that it was due to sourcing, but I have a lot of headphones and some of them are bass shy (oddly enough) yet don't have this issue on my sources, but the KNS6400 was just so weak in the warmth and bass department that I was pretty much scowling the whole time. It was awesome for detail, and absolutely unforgiving of source audio, but again, just wasn't fun to listen to. It was comfortable enough to wear, but I like the big pads of the FA-003 quite a bit more, and the depth of the FA-003 cup is also another big aspect that I prefer. The FA-003 had a larger perceived sound arena for me, likely due to cup depth. The KNS6400 reminded me a lot of the SRH940, but less comfortable, and less musical. The FA-003 is a different from both of them in that it's what I would say is more flat, it's bass is in line with it's mids & treble, instead of it's bass falling off the map after 100hz or so. Build quality of the KNS6400 was good, it's a detachable cord system, and built like a tank. Good headphone in general. Just not a musical headphone and not even neutral bass, so not enough for me to listen to as a casual headphone. It really does strike me as a studio device for picking apart tracks.
 
Full review.
 
I need to get my hands on the 8400 to do a comparison at this point.
 
Very best,

 

[kingpage]

Based on innerfidelity's graph, the raw measurements indicate KNS6400's bass is extremely sensitive to fit. If you still have a pair, you can try moving the cups slightly like Tyll did with all the headphones in different directions.

 

[Vonx]

Quote:

Heya,
 
In short, the FA-003 was the more musical headphone simply put. The KNS6400 to my ears was pretty boring, it was overly detailed to the point of listening to hiss at some points because of some spikes in treble I can only assume (or some weird impedance miss match or what not, I don't know). I felt like it lacked a lot of bass and really was just not an enjoyable listen for me at all. I've had folk tell me that it was due to sourcing, but I have a lot of headphones and some of them are bass shy (oddly enough) yet don't have this issue on my sources, but the KNS6400 was just so weak in the warmth and bass department that I was pretty much scowling the whole time. It was awesome for detail, and absolutely unforgiving of source audio, but again, just wasn't fun to listen to. It was comfortable enough to wear, but I like the big pads of the FA-003 quite a bit more, and the depth of the FA-003 cup is also another big aspect that I prefer. The FA-003 had a larger perceived sound arena for me, likely due to cup depth. The KNS6400 reminded me a lot of the SRH940, but less comfortable, and less musical. The FA-003 is a different from both of them in that it's what I would say is more flat, it's bass is in line with it's mids & treble, instead of it's bass falling off the map after 100hz or so. Build quality of the KNS6400 was good, it's a detachable cord system, and built like a tank. Good headphone in general. Just not a musical headphone and not even neutral bass, so not enough for me to listen to as a casual headphone. It really does strike me as a studio device for picking apart tracks.
 
Full review.
 
I need to get my hands on the 8400 to do a comparison at this point.
 
Very best,

I'd be curious to see that, too.
 
Anyone else have words on their Fischer Audio FA-011?
 

 

[Stevesebastianb]

Quote:

I'd be curious to see that, too.
 
Anyone else have words on their Fischer Audio FA-011?
 

 I am considering to order a set of Thunderpants and would like to compare the two when the TP arrives.

 

[Vonx]

Quote:

 I am considering to order a set of Thunderpants and would like to compare the two when the TP arrives.

That would be awesome. 
 
I have yet to hear the Fostex T50rP, and would be curious to how they compare. 
 
I have found my ideal sound signature, now just to see if i can find its big brother

 

[SanjiWatsuki]

There's more in play here than just seal, though. I greatly suspect the KRK KNS6400 is also overdamped. What happens when a headphone is overdamped is that the driver is too tightly controlled and struggles to move the amount of air to make the same impact that one would expect out of bass. You can equalize it as much as you want, but it won't feel as impactful. I believe someone in the orthodynamic thread said something like (not an exact quote, going off memory) "You know you have overdamped a headphone when the bass goes away and even seismic EQ won't bring it back." Another good quote about overdamped bass is "Overdamped systems have bass that dips early but ultimately goes lower, and hold little energy" -- a quote that perfectly describes the KRK KNS 6400 with its well extended, but low impact, bass. In the home audio world, overdamped is almost a synonym with thin when talking about bass. 
Quote:

Based on innerfidelity's graph, the raw measurements indicate KNS6400's bass is extremely sensitive to fit. If you still have a pair, you can try moving the cups slightly like Tyll did with all the headphones in different directions.

 

 

[Vonx]

Quote:

 

Back to topic, any more thoughts on the Fischer Audio FA-011's?

 

[schof]

I recently received my 011's, which are my first "serious" set of over ears. I am very impressed, but I would like to know more about changing the pads.

 

[andychen]

FA-011 sound very bad with my NFB12.
 
Quote:

Heya,
 
I find the FA-011 pretty sensitive to amplification. I've tried it on a few different amps and it definitely has some "synergy" so to speak with some of them. With my little Matrix CUBE, there is very little sibilance and the treble is not fatiguing. However, on my Asgard, it's quite sibilant and the treble is very hot. Both are solid state amps. I've tried it from my Lyr too, warms up there a bit. From a few of my AVR's, it also sounds anywhere from warmed up to straight up hot in the treble. So anyone having treble issues, the headphone is capable of that, yes, but what you're amplifying with also seems to make a noticeable difference. If you have other sources to use, test it out for yourself and see what you think.
 

 

 
Very best,