[Sonido]

Just swap ears-pads, and the foam rings. The TH900 responds to mods very well. Perhap, th900 owners can just buy MKII pads and foam rings of that is the case

I mean there is speculation that they modified the drivers themselves in the TH-X00 aside from pad and foam changes and the wording of "newly developed" drivers in the article falls in line with applying similar changes to the TH900 driver for the MK2

 

[Whitigir]

I mean there is speculation that they modified the drivers themselves in the TH-X00 aside from pad and foam changes and the wording of "newly developed" drivers in the article falls in line with applying similar changes to the TH900 driver for the MK2

Got ya! Well, let's see ...

 

[obsidyen]

If the Japanese press release claimed a different tuning I would trust Anak to have mentioned it! Besides it is same model number with a mk2 designation. Axel Grell says the HD800S is very close to the original. Even if the TH900 mk2 sound is tuned differently - and reminding no one has said that is the case at all - I do not anticipate how that will assist anyone who finds the TH900 mk1 too clean, or too bassy, or too hot. Look elsewhere instead of throwing money at it?

I understand current TH900 owners want the sound to stay the same, I would do the same if I were in your shoes. Everybody wants the latest and the greatest. But Germans and the Japanese don't call something MK2 for just removable cables. They're not the Chinese who make similar stuff but charge a thousand more (HE560 -> HEX). If they call it MK2, and if they mention "newly developed driver unit", it's more than likely that there's some changes to the sound, even if the sound signature is not too different. Like Beyer T1 V2, there will probably be refinement in the sound.

 

[fuzzybaffy]

I wouldn't mind if they tweaked the sound signature a bit, because I wouldn't mind owning both the Mk1 and Mk2. 

 

[Whazzzup]

If the Japanese press release claimed a different tuning I would trust Anak to have mentioned it! Besides it is same model number with a mk2 designation. Axel Grell says the HD800S is very close to the original. Even if the TH900 mk2 sound is tuned differently - and reminding no one has said that is the case at all - I do not anticipate how that will assist anyone who finds the TH900 mk1 too clean, or too bassy, or too hot. Look elsewhere instead of throwing money at it?

I understand current TH900 owners want the sound to stay the same, I would do the same if I were in your shoes. Everybody wants the latest and the greatest. But Germans and the Japanese don't call something MK2 for just removable cables. They're not the Chinese who make similar stuff but charge a thousand more (HE560 -> HEX). If they call it MK2, and if they mention "newly developed driver unit", it's more than likely that there's some changes to the sound, even if the sound signature is not too different. Like Beyer T1 V2, there will probably be refinement in the sound.

I was not aware that current th900 owners want the sound to stay the same? New one on me at least.
I am merely interested in what exactly has changed and what this has done technically to the sound signature. I have no issues with folks speculating and drawing conclusions about something they have not heard.

 

[obsidyen]

I was not aware that current th900 owners want the sound to stay the same? New one on me at least.
I am merely interested in what exactly has changed and what this has done technically to the sound signature. I have no issues with folks speculating and drawing conclusions about something they have not heard.

 
I kind of got that impression but it doesn't matter. We won't know if there are changes to the sound unless some people hear and/or measure it. However the term "newly developed driver unit" increases that possibility. Maybe it'll be just basic mods, I don't know.

 

[Sonido]

New isn't always better. Stax SR-007 MK1 is known to be better than the current version

 

[MacedonianHero]

New isn't always better. Stax SR-007 MK1 is known to be better than the current version

 
Very good point. But the Gen 2 T1s and as it turns out, the HD800S are both better than the originals. We will have to see how things bare out. The RS1e was a major let down over the predecessor RS1i. If they can tame the treble down, I might be tempted to revisit the TH-900s again.

 

[Whitigir]

Oh man, I definitely do not want trebles to be toned down at all lol...

 

[LFC_SL]

I was not aware that current th900 owners want the sound to stay the same? New one on me at least.
I am merely interested in what exactly has changed and what this has done technically to the sound signature. I have no issues with folks speculating and drawing conclusions about something they have not heard.

Fair comment, most of this kind of chatter seems to be ex-owners or others on the sideline who retain an interest in the TH900. No different when any other headphone manufacturer releases a variant of an existing model

The previous post about local purchases may be onto something. TH900 plays great with J-Pop and K-Pop, which may be unexpected given the excessive tuning and manufactured nature of the treble. Based on Audeze I think American head-fiers either prefer or are more accustomed with a darker sound

 

[obsidyen]

New isn't always better. Stax SR-007 MK1 is known to be better than the current version

Never said it is. But more to my liking in the treble department, perhaps. Not necessarily better for everyone.
 
 

Fair comment, most of this kind of chatter seems to be ex-owners or others on the sideline who retain an interest in the TH900. No different when any other headphone manufacturer releases a variant of an existing model

The previous post about local purchases may be onto something. TH900 plays great with J-Pop and K-Pop, which may be unexpected given the excessive tuning and manufactured nature of the treble. Based on Audeze I think American head-fiers either prefer or are more accustomed with a darker sound

 
It's the Beats curse. Beats made Americans addicted to dark sound. Personally I prefer a U-shaped sound signature with energetic but smooth highs, kick-ass sub-bass and slightly recessed mids. Earsonics Velvet has the best sound I've ever heard, and I've been chasing that sound in full size headphones but it's not easy. If Fostex smooths the highs a bit in MK2, it'll be close, close enough to be endgame for me.

 

[Whitigir]

I think it is more to the nature of American culture being tended toward hip-hop the most. They are virtually everywhere, shopping centers, malls, radios...etc...etc. therefore, it seems American folks love darker sounding gears ?

 

[Kyle 491]

Any toning down of the treble has to preserve the dynamics this headphone is capable of producing in this region, which can be electrifying with the right music (e.g electro-orchestral music). Reducing the 7k treble spike while extending the actual treble closer to what the HD800 can produce would be ideal. But if taming the treble means turning it into TH-X00 treble, then nope, keep the original.

 

[Whitigir]

Any toning down of the treble has to preserve the dynamics this headphone is capable of producing in this region, which can be electrifying with the right music (e.g electro-orchestral music). Reducing the 7k treble spike while extending the actual treble closer to what the HD800 can produce would be ideal. But if taming the treble means turning it into TH-X00 treble, then nope, keep the original.

So hd800 has even better trebles ? Wow...and I thought hd800 was cheaper than th900

 

[fuzzybaffy]

 TH900 plays great with J-Pop and K-Pop, which may be unexpected given the excessive tuning and manufactured nature of the treble.

 
I say that's a very accurate, and good observation. I find it paradoxical, how the TH-900 and modern pop play so well together, given the TH-900 obviously being strong in treble, while pop music definitely contributes a fair share to the "loudness wars". There's something very unique in the way Fostex tuned the TH-900, and it's what drew me to them. 
 

 So hd800 has even better trebles ? Wow...and I thought hd800 was cheaper than th900

 
While the HD-800 might be cheaper in a lot of online retailers, the HD-800 is considered more "reference" in its frequency response, than the TH-900. You'll see more HD-800's in professional recording studios than the TH-900, that's for sure. 
 
This is why it perplexed me when people kept insisting that the TH-900 is "more neutral" than the HD-800 in previous arguments here. It's as if people automatically assume that having some subjective tuning or "coloration" is a bad thing, and therefore blindly deny that the TH-900 has a bit of color. Color isn't necessarily a bad thing - you just buy what you need/want. Some people like ruler flat "neutrality", while others like a bit of pizzazz in their phones, and they buy accordingly. It just doesn't make sense to blindly argue that the TH-900 is a neutral headphone.