I just wrote up a comparison of the TOTL Denon and Fostex cans if anyone is interested in checking it out. Hopefully it's alright to copy and paste it. If not I'll just link the original post directly. Anyways, here goes:
Alright.. I picked up the D7100's today and here are my comparisons to the TH600, TH900 and even the THX00.
Mostly I'm posting this for people who come across this thread looking for more info regarding these headphones in comparison. These are my opinions and will likely differ from others. All I ask is you respect mine as I respect others.
TH-600
- Soundstage:These compare fairly similar to the TH900 with a few minor differences in sound. The TH600's to me sound slightly larger in the soundstage but that's likely due to the TH900 sounding slightly more boosted in a mid range area that makes it sound slightly closer and focused. If I had to describe it another way it'd be hollow but not in a bad way.
- Sound: To me these sound slightly more boomy in the lowest end. The bass doesn't bleed into the mid bass which I absolutely love. I love clean (almost sterile) but a boosted deep bass. Compared to the bass on the TH900 I think the 900 tends to be slightly warmer into the mid bass but not by a lot.. A lot of people say the TH600 is more neutral and the TH900 is more V/U shaped but I think it's the other way to my ears. To me the TH600 is more boosted on the upper highs and lower lows and is more spiked in those areas which results in sibilance in the treble region that isn't quite as bad on the TH900 even tho the 900's are considered brighter.. I guess I could say to my ears the TH900's are smoother. Mids seem to be slightly less forward than the TH900 which gives the TH600 a wider and more hollow sound.
- Value: To me the TH600 is the sweet spot right now in price. If you're not afraid of EQ to tweak down some of the sibilance and adjust the bass some to your liking then these will cover most every single genre you can throw at it with ease and even handle gaming!
- Resolution/Clarity: To me the TH600's are just a step down from the TH900's in resolution. The TH900 just feels like it's transmitting more recording information to my ears than the TH600's do. If you've never heard the difference then you'd not be missing a single damn thing at all. Not that ignorance is bliss but that it's not enough to warrant the double price but there is a difference if it matters.
vs
TH900
- Soundstage: These do (to my ears) sound slightly closer to my ears than the TH600 but I think that's due to the mid range being more balanced than the TH600. To my ears a good wide open soundstage is a mix of how the bass warmth is handled leading into the mids and also how the mids are handled. I've been able to squeeze some extra soundstage in some headphones by simply adjusting warm bass around 200-500hz down a few dB and also adjusting mids around 1-4Khz a little. To me those region either makes or breaks a soundstage and in my opinion with the TH900 being a little more boosted and flat than the TH600 from top to bottom it makes those frequencies sound closer to my ears which reduces the depth by a little bit.
- Sound: I think I've covered how I feel about the sound of the 900 vs the 600. I do think I could live with the sound of the TH900 more easily than the TH600 due to a spike at around 8kHz on the TH600 that just murders my ears. That said a simple -3dB @ 8kHz fixed all issues I've ever had with the TH600 and the similar (but not as bad) sibilance on the TH900.
- Value: To my ears the TH900 beats out all headphones I'm talking about. They are more balanced, higher resolution, more beautiful than the X00's, 600, and D7100.
- Resolution/Clarity: As I said they just a step above the TH600 in clarity but at quick comparison it might not even stand out to most ears.
THX00
These are some absolutely incredible headphones that blow me away at the price. For $400 these are the best you can get under $500 period new. If the TH600's were $500 I'd likely put them over the THX00 if you take into the consideration the sibilance and don't mind it or aren't afraid of EQing. That said out of the box from a straight overall sound quality goes I think the THX00's appeal to more people by quite a bit.
- Soundstage: Compared to the TH600 and TH900 these unfortunately I best describe as sound more like a closed can than either the TH600, TH900 and D7100. The soundstage is smaller but not small, just average. As I say if you want to say the TH600/900's sound like open cans these sound closer to closed cans. When I was looking up info on these I saw that these were being tested with dampening kits so this leads me to believe that obviously these have dampening behind the driver. In my past experience with using mods and dampening materials inside the cup it tends to hurt the soundstage by reducing the sound bouncing off the walls of the cups and creating an atmosphere of space and size. I have a feeling that that is what is causing the feeling of being smaller. That and the fact that the ear pads are more dense and creates a slightly more insulated sound. Isolation and leakage is identical to the TH600 and TH900 tho if only a touch less sound in and out but they are still considered semi-open by every means. For gaming I'd say that the X00's are just slightly too intimate for my tastes unlike the TH600 and TH900 which are perfect.
- Sound: A few people have said that these sound less bassy and less sibilant and offer a more flat and neutral sound than their older brothers. I'll unfortunately have to disagree with the bass but agree with the sibilance.
- Bass: I'll start with the bass, to me it's warmer and extends further into the mids than the TH600/TH900's. The bass isn't just sub bass bump with a more sterile mid bass, these offer more of a full sound and as I mentioned above with increased mid bass tends to make the soundstage shrink some. I love the bass and think that it's more even bass will appeal to considerably more people. The bass however does sound boosted overall in quantity to my ears compared to the TH600/TH900 as a result. Not that that's a bad thing, I just prefer a slightly more neutral/sterile bass to maintain a wide open soundstage and EQ if need be by a little.
- Mids: As for mids the THX00 wins in every single category by a lot. The mids here are sweet, thick, lush and all of those terms I can't think of. If you ever had a problem with the TH600/TH900's mids then these fix it hands down no questions asked.
- Treble: The THx00 fixes every complaint I have about the TH600/TH900 when it comes to sibilance. There is no sibilance here. There is however, as to be expected a loss of airiness and spacious depth that's killer on the TH600/TH900. All of the spikes are gone and the treble is very pleasant and will appeal to much more people.
- Resolution/Clarity: I do feel that due to the lowered highs that resolution suffers some as a result. I don't feel like I'm missing anything unless I switch back and forth.
- Value: For the price these are the best bang for the buck I've ever known. If you take into consideration that the HE400's $300 and the HE500's are $500ish then these are a hell of a deal and to my ears more appealing and more comfortable. If someone had $200 and said they wanted great headphones I'd say don't waist your money but save up another $200. If someone said they had $500-600, I'd say save it and get these.
- Overall: If I had to describe the THX00 quickly and easily, I'd just say that if you take the TH600 make a mold of them, these would be the negative imprint of what's missing. There's not as much sub bass boom and not as sparkly up in the upper highs that is (to me) a bonus to the TH600 and to some extend the TH900. The THX00 doesn't seem to go as deep or as high which is likely to due to being more balanced sounding but as a result you get a warmer headphone that is more intimate.
D7100
I just got these today so my impressions will be limited and will likely change.
So far with about an hour on the head and about an hour burned in before I got to play with them. Once I put them on my head I was pretty impressed. First thing to take note is these are closed cans and not semi open like the TH series or even the old DX000 series. These are closed off and isolate well.
For starters when it comes to closed headphones I find that in almost every single case the mid bass is bloated and just messy. The upper mids tend to be honky as well and resonate and create a bad sibilance. Luckily the neither of the TH series of headphones have that issue at all but then again they aren't closed and plagued with this curse. That said, the D7100 does unfortunately have some of the mid bass bloatiness and boost BUT it doesn't seem to affected by the honky mids.
- Soundstage: Soundstage is pretty close to the THX00 but in my opinion it's slightly larger but still smaller than the TH600/TH900. I'd put it somewhere in the middle but right at the sweet spot of not being too small but still being closed. In fact I'd say for closed these sound absolutely incredible when it comes to soundstage.
- Sound: Listening at low and normal volumes these things sound fun and great. If I turn it up loud at all these things all apart which isn't really an issue because it's considerably louder than I'd ever listen to them at.
- Treble: I'd say these are bright and detailed but lesser than the TH600 and TH900. They have just a touch less sibilance to my ears and so far haven't been too bothersome on my ears and hasn't needed any EQ to compensate. I feel like I might end up needing about a -2dB @ 2kHz and -3dB @4kHz adjustment to make them pretty darn close to tame to my ears. To my ears the spike seems to be slightly lower than where the TH600 seems to hit my ears. I also find the very highest of highs aren't as sparkly as the TH600/TH900's. Although looking at the graphs the TH600/900's, those headphones measure higher than most graphs even measure and keep on going. The D7100 does seem to roll off in the upper most registers. To the average middle age person that might not matter at all but I have done some testing myself and find that I can hear up to around 17.5kHz so those upper treble sparkles are downright fine with me. The D7100 seems to be missing it a little compared to the others.
- Mids: The mids I haven't figured out but they seem to be right where they need to be for a fun sounding headphone. Nothing sounds spikey or out of place in the mids. They aren't milky or super smooth but they aren't offensive either. They do have plenty of resolution and maintain all the details you'd want which is nice.
- Bass: This is where it is a double edged sword compared to the TH600/TH900. Sub bass appears to be impactful and just where it needs to be but not overpowered by the mid bass which is awesome in my book. These seem to register clear as a whistle all the way down to 30hz and lower without even trying. Mid bass is pretty thick and boomy and in most of the songs I've put it threw it was overly [COLOR=222222]exaggerated [/COLOR]but it always seemed to keep it under control and didn't lose it's pacing. In the upper bass I find it doesn't bleed over into the mids at all. Overall in I find the mid bass bump not ideal but it's easily EQed out and made to sound smooth.
- Resolution/Clarity: These things are detailed. I'd say they are above the THX00 in resolution in both the mids and treble but below the TH600 and TH900 by some. I notice the same details I do with the TH600/900 but the D7100's don't scream them quite as well.
- Overall: I think the D7100 is probably as good as you're going to get for closed cans if you don't mind a more basshead tuned bass that keeps the bass together and has just the right amount of details in the mids and treble. If you're not offended or afraid of EQ then every single complaint people have about the D7100 can be fixed very simply and easily except for comfort (obviously). The only thing the EQ can't fix will likely be the upper treble airiness that seems to only be possible with open/semi-open cans.
I tested all of these with the Hugo and Lyr 2 independently. I much more prefer the Lyr 2 due to it's ability to handle bass better than any other amp I have tried. I don't know if it's the tubes or the ability to dump raw power into a pair of headphones that makes them handle better than using other amps but it works for me.
My gear:
Hugo Chord
Schiit Lyr 2 (Amperex 7308 1960's gold pin)
Tidal HiFi streaming
PS: As I said these are my opinions. Please by all means disagree but respect that they are opinions.
