Fostex TH900 Impressions & Discussion Thread
Nov 24, 2018 at 7:08 PM Post #16,321 of 18,737
All pads change something, also no concensus has been reached on a "best" pad for your exact request as to many variables factor into an individuals perceived level of comfort. The most popular choices seem to be Dekoni, ZMF, Lawton, or Fostex angled pads. I personally liked the Voce pads from Mr. Speakers. Get out their & start buying pads to see what works best for you.


So which pads are known to add more sounstage and enhancethe bass? These pads are too expensive to just try out. Ill just take you guys word on it and get whichever
 
Nov 24, 2018 at 9:51 PM Post #16,322 of 18,737
1. Correct
2. Correct, no minor differences
3. IFi Micro Black Label gets my big reccomendation. A lot of people like Chord Mojo but i found it boring and analytical which really doesn't match the sound signature of the th900

I'm currently running the TH900 out of Chord Mojo and it good but not great. Previously I was running them out of a Burson Soloist (w/ Resonessence Concero DAC) which had a great soundstage and bass control but was a bit fatiguing and sterile for prolonged listening. The Chord Mojo isn't fatiguing at all and has great inner detail and instrument separation but it definitely lacks the "fun factor" and gripping bass.

Can you, or anyone else, recommend an amp that I would be able to pair with the Mojo's DAC that fits under a $1,000 budget used that could possibly correct this matter? Also open to selling the Mojo and going with an all-in-one amp/dac.

Thanks!
 
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Nov 24, 2018 at 10:00 PM Post #16,323 of 18,737
I'm currently running the TH900 out of Chord Mojo and it good but not great. Previously I was running them out of a Burson (w/ Resonessence Concero DAC) which had a great soundstage and bass control but was a bit fatiguing and sterile for prolonged listening. The Chord Mojo isn't fatiguing at all and has great inner detail and instrument separation but it definitely lacks the "fun factor" and gripping bass.

Can you, or anyone else, recommend an amp that I would be able to pair with the Mojo's DAC that fits under a $1,000 budget used that could possibly correct this matter? Also open to selling the Mojo and going with an all-in-one amp/dac.

Thanks!
Easy, I had seven th900s. A ifi Black is a lot better than the Mojo and the Soloist. If you want to sell your th900 Ill buy it.
 
Nov 24, 2018 at 10:11 PM Post #16,325 of 18,737
I'll look into the ifi Black. Thanks for the suggestion.

My TH900 is not for sale. I'll never sell it.
I jave three th900s now, but need a back up for in the go. The full Lawon th900 for home. Had Hugo 1 and 2 they eere nice but ifi did pusg it better.
 
Nov 24, 2018 at 10:56 PM Post #16,326 of 18,737
I'm currently running the TH900 out of Chord Mojo and it good but not great. Previously I was running them out of a Burson Soloist (w/ Resonessence Concero DAC) which had a great soundstage and bass control but was a bit fatiguing and sterile for prolonged listening. The Chord Mojo isn't fatiguing at all and has great inner detail and instrument separation but it definitely lacks the "fun factor" and gripping bass.

Can you, or anyone else, recommend an amp that I would be able to pair with the Mojo's DAC that fits under a $1,000 budget used that could possibly correct this matter? Also open to selling the Mojo and going with an all-in-one amp/dac.

Thanks!
I recommend a good tube amp for it. I notice TH900 loves tubes. It has a clean but rather dry midrange. Tubes can help. Plus TH900 has a great soundstage quality that tube amp can exploit. It felt a little flat out of my solid state.

Schiit Lyr 3 should work fine.
 
Nov 24, 2018 at 11:49 PM Post #16,327 of 18,737
I recommend a good tube amp for it. I notice TH900 loves tubes. It has a clean but rather dry midrange. Tubes can help. Plus TH900 has a great soundstage quality that tube amp can exploit. It felt a little flat out of my solid state.

Schiit Lyr 3 should work fine.
I recommend a good tube amp for it. I notice TH900 loves tubes. It has a clean but rather dry midrange. Tubes can help. Plus TH900 has a great soundstage quality that tube amp can exploit. It felt a little flat out of my solid state.

Schiit Lyr 3 should work fine.
Tube ? Im using the portable tube from the Cayin N8.
20181106_194123.jpg
 
Nov 25, 2018 at 2:14 AM Post #16,330 of 18,737
Do you need to modify the headphones to reduce treble harshness
Really no need to modify anything. Just buy the Loki. It is made for the TH900. Increase the 400hz and reduce the 8khz. It is so simple to fix TH900 problem, since it is due to quantity, not quality. Remember, TH900 has really good treble, just too much.

Add some tube flavor to enrich that dry mid.
 
Nov 25, 2018 at 7:19 AM Post #16,331 of 18,737
I recommend a good tube amp for it. I notice TH900 loves tubes. It has a clean but rather dry midrange. Tubes can help. Plus TH900 has a great soundstage quality that tube amp can exploit. It felt a little flat out of my solid state.

Schiit Lyr 3 should work fine.
i've also found that the th900 has a dryness to its presentation which can be ameliorated by pairing it with tube amps
 
Nov 25, 2018 at 10:39 AM Post #16,332 of 18,737
Anyone here know how the Denon headphones compare? I've been considering purchasing the TH-900 again, since the it seems the 909 is getting mixed impressions, but I noticed the new Denon uses 3.5mm connectors. I can reuse my existing aftermarket cables (mainly 4.4mm) for my Z1R and Elegia with them.
 
Nov 25, 2018 at 10:47 AM Post #16,333 of 18,737
Okay....nix that. What amp/dac combo would you guys recommend within a $1500 used budget? Non-fatiguing yet retaining that "fun factor" and bass grip.

I'll just sell the Mojo.

If you're not interested in tube amps, but still want a smooth amp, I wholly recommend a R2R amp/dac. I love my R2R 11 by Audio-GD, but with that budget you, I would suggest their R-28 instead. I plan to upgrade to that eventually, but haven't found a need since I mainly run music through my DX200 (AMP8).
 
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Nov 25, 2018 at 11:28 AM Post #16,334 of 18,737
Thank you! I'll look into the Audio-GD r-28 for sure.

I'm also running music from my computer through my main system from a Resonessence Concero as a bridge from my Cambridge Audio Azur 840C, utilizing it's DAC. A bit much and am thinking of streamlining it to just a very high end Headphone amp/DAC to be in it's place. So I can sell the CA Azur 840C, Resonessence Concero, and Chord Mojo, and replace it all with an all-in-one that I can utilize in both my HP and main stereo setup listening.

It would just have to be an end-all (for the time being) amp/dac that pairs very synergistically with the TH900 because I will own these cans for life.
 
Nov 25, 2018 at 10:21 PM Post #16,335 of 18,737
What shorter replacement cables do you all recommend for the original th900?

I just bought a pair from ebay and they have these jump rope size moon audio silver dragon cables with xlr outs. I need

1. A much shorter cable. Maybe 2-3 feet max.
2. A normal 3.5mm end so i can simply use it with my phone.
 

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