Is this the 1st gen T5p or the 2nd gen T5p?
I presumed from the bass quantity that it was 2nd gen. The 1st gen was not that bad and I heard it - the bass was a bit underwhelming and the highs were a bit harsh but not unlistenable. The 2nd gen which I have is something of a masterpiece. I could be happy listening to nothing else but hiphop and rap on the 2nd gens they really have serious bass slam.
Elegia: better mid-range and detail retrieval, a bit more intimate in sound. Bass goes deep for a headphone in its league (definitely not bass lite like most reviewers said). Leaning on the bright side, but totally manageable (I am relatively treble sensitive).
T5p: More balance in sound. Good speed and clarity. Bass is more in quantity, but not sure it's that much better than that in Elegia. Definitely more open-sounding. A very comfortable can to wear, but not as comfortable as Elegia in my opinion.
I own both and am now happy with both. But if it comes to selling, I might let the T5p go in terms of personal preference.
I own the following headphones of the over-the-ear mid-to-HiFi "flavour":
Beyerdynamic T1 2nd Gen
Beyerdynamic T5p 2nd Gen
Sony MDR Z1R
Focal Elegia
For the most part, I second
@alexlevn0791 remarks having only minor difference of opinion that in my view falls well within the acceptable variance range of "individual preference and difference in perception" (we're all built physiologicaly different after all in terms of our ears-heads etc).
My auditory system i.e. ears-head-brain (I don't wear glasses and use both with stock pads) gives me the following "view":
T5p v2 has the same detail retrieval capability with the Elegia.
Same holds true for separation and clarity.
Soundstage is very comparable between them and depending on the individual track one slightly edges the other out but they constantly switch places.
In terms of their tuning and the "timbre" they present, my conclusion after many months of listening with both, distilled in as few words as possible is:
T5p v2 is a very VERY good (if not excellent) implementation of a closed-back V-shaped HiFi headphone that further more can be portable and be driven very easily.
Elegia is an equally exciting headphone albeit in a different manner that COMES ACROSS IN COMPARISON as "flatter"/more "neutral" with vocals that are slightly more forward, is a tad more comfortable to wear and is equally easy to drive and transparent in terms of DAC/AMP. In all other aspects I find them equally capable/amazing.
For all of us that at times might find ourselves trapped in the following dilemma (that is also an illusion) "if only headphone X had the Y single characteristic of headphone Z, I would own it and never look back again or search for anything else", here's my humble opinion:
In engineering there is no such thing as "the perfect, bullet proof solution". Engineering, by nature is an exercise in compromise and carefully weighted priorities that result in trade-offs.
Designing, developing and finally mass manufacturing a headphone SYSTEM is an engineering project constrained by numerous limitations therefore requiring many compromises.
That's exactly why there will never be THE ONE headphone for any of us (if we want to be realistic and honest).
The sooner we realise it the quicker we'll be happy with a "collection" of headphones (the size of which is purely dependent on our personal preferences) rather with the hunt/chase of THE ONE.
THE ONE is quite frankly, simply a Unicorn.
I consider each headphone in my collection as a knife designed to cut, spread, chop, slice or peel a different type of food depending on what I feel like eating that day (vegetables, potatoes, fish, meat, fruit, bread etc etc).
All of them delicious in a RECIPE if prepared with the right tools... and the knife is just ONE of the needed tools.
Lastly, I leave this with you to ponder about:
Doesn't listening to music with more than one "very good" to "almost excellent but still slightly flawed" headphone, allow us to enjoy even more their individual character and along with it all the different tracks we love to come back to and will keep discovering for as long as we love to open ourselves to MUSIC?
