[innaterebel]

I have been following this thread since the drop settled, reading all the contradicting impressions whether this headphone is bassy or not. I can't help but speculate there was unevenness in production letting people get more or less bass than others. Then finally mine arrived and I found myself joined the dark side, I mean I got a bassy one, too.
 
In fact everything felt wrong out of box. Bass bloated, mids thin, and highs hollow, each band just could not balance and come together. While not in the same manner I would have yelled as a member lamented a few pages ago: a very artificial sounding. Fortunate for me I have confidence in Fostex (or to be particular in bio-cellulose

), knowing myself have been a neutralhead these years that some adaption required is expected, and most importantly it was simply no way the sound would stay this to got positive reviews around or I got a failed unit. So I just went on burning it and listening.
 
Not surprisingly, within 10 hours I had completely got rid (or got used) of that artificial feeling, only bass was yet a problem... a problem? Hey no, I like it! In spite of appeared overwhelming it didn't really cloud mids and highs. Like many are feeling it, it added body and weight to music, creating kind of virtual spaciousness, as if there's a band in my head rather than listening a recording. A very fun experience no my other phones ever remotely offered. It did make those anime songs that tend to have plenty of mid-bass but lacks for real impactful sub-bass constantly "humming" in background which is annoying to be honest.
 
Unfortunately and fortunately both the fun and annoyance didn't last long. Something magical happened the night my pair was passing its 30th hours. The night I was playing some that has most scalable bass in my movie score collection. It was godly, I never knew they have so much shy sub-bass here and there. Then the next day I heedlessly picked those anime songs again (I listen a set of them everyday so I'm super familiar with) trying to decide what's for today's main dish... and shockingly found that all the "humming" was completely gone! Did I say COMPLETELY!? I quickly checked everything only to confirm that sub-bass still rumbled, mids still clear and highs still crispy, nothing but that elevated mid-bass left me forever, without saying goodbye.
 
I would say I don't believe in burn-in in the sense that most phones need it to be done. I had never perceived convincing changes in all my headphones, the only exception being a portable speaker which sounded broken out of box (and by broken I mean broken, it even spoke noise). However TH-X00 looks to be the high-blooded wild horse. Either it truthfully needs time or something extreme to feed to induce it to be champion. The mid-bass drop was too drastic to be my brain, like a subwoofer had been turned off, unless I have actually destroyed my hearing for mid-bass in the process

As before it was beyond preference too elevated for anyone has experiences with so-called reference sound to not call it bassy, no, really. Now I can see why there is someone even said X00 sounds neutral to him, it now does sound... sort of neutral to me as well, in the sense nothing but sub-bass prominent, and not everyday you notice something obviously recessed.
 
So I kind of undergone through three major type of impressions, artificial/a mess/not my cup of tea under one hour, bassy/bloated/muddy, and well balanced/somehow neutral/basshead's reference, at least proven to myself that they are all X00 can be. This still makes me wonder there is unevenness in production for someone got a cooked-like one and someone got a raw one. I cannot tell all currently unsatisfied owners to wait and see. How burn-in could be this dramatic and sudden I just don't understand, can't say it would be many X00's case. But if you are not eager to take your money back, maybe it is indeed worth further trying for this headphone. @Soundsgoodtome also mentioned in his review some aggressive burn-in method, I'm not so doubtful about the special milk now

 (nevertheless I listen in moderate volume only and did not purposely burn it when it was not on my head)

 

[CCXR594]

innaterebel I got the same dramatic subbass change after playing really bass heavy music through them, specifically Wiz Khalifa's "On My Level" (the bass head thread's preferred testing track). This was well after the artificialness was gone, and everything else was ok. I'd say even a minimal amount of time- 30min of solid, constant, low frequencies is necessary to remove the subbass that is omnipresent at the start.

 

[Makiah S]

Has anyone compared the TH-X00 with Alpha pads vs. the Alpha Dog? More and more, I'm wanting the TH-X00 to be a bit more reference (they are my primary headphones at the office) and currently, they just don't cover enough music genres for me.

Either I will try the Alpha pads or sell and get the Alpha Dog.

oooooooh, the Alpha Dog is $499 CRAP OLA an you can get it with a FREAKING Balanced 4PIN Cable Dx whoa snap... I'm going to pay around... $570 for a TH X00 with an unpgraded 4Pin Cable an Alpha Pads so... yea I am VERY curious about thow the Alpha Dog Compares to the TH X00... LIKE REALLY curious... yes on one hand it's a Limited Edition Wood Back Fostex... on the other hand it's the Mad Dog, a custom made, hand crafted headphone by Dan. While it's not a "limited" edition release it is still... well very special in it's own right
 
I would really be curious about how these two compare 

 

[CFGamescape]

  oooooooh, the Alpha Dog is $499 CRAP OLA an you can get it with a FREAKING Balanced 4PIN Cable Dx whoa snap... I'm going to pay around... $570 for a TH X00 with an unpgraded 4Pin Cable an Alpha Pads so... yea I am VERY curious about thow the Alpha Dog Compares to the TH X00... LIKE REALLY curious... yes on one hand it's a Limited Edition Wood Back Fostex... on the other hand it's the Mad Dog, a custom made, hand crafted headphone by Dan. While it's not a "limited" edition release it is still... well very special in it's own right
 
I would really be curious about how these two compare 

Yeah, I'm even considering the Alpha Prime at this point. I just want some good all-around closed headphones for work. The TH-X00 almost fits the bill. I think the novelty is wearing off for me where "wood" and "limited" are not enough to convince me these are worth $400 (plus additional for mods) for my use.
 
Willing to be patient, though. I listen to them as much as possible (although, the HE-560 makes it difficult at home).

 

[Asr]

so what is the next step you plan to do? keep or sell?

 
Definitely selling, but not just yet. I'm going to be sending my set to Phoenix AZ for the Head-Fi meet coming up there on 1/30: http://www.head-fi.org/t/792239/arizona-head-fi-meet-winter-2015-2016-january-30th
 
Would definitely be open to selling to a Phoenix-area Head-Fier that would like to try 'em at the meet before plunking down.

 

[wahsmoh]

Has anyone compared the TH-X00 with Alpha pads vs. the Alpha Dog? More and more, I'm wanting the TH-X00 to be a bit more reference (they are my primary headphones at the office) and currently, they just don't cover enough music genres for me.

Either I will try the Alpha pads or sell and get the Alpha Dog.

I own both headphones. Surprisingly, I have found the TH-X00 w/ Alpha pads to suit my tastes even more than the Alpha Dogs now.
 
To be fair, my Alpha Dogs have very squished down pads, I mean like to the point where they definitely need to be replaced. But the TH-X00 is definitely the more "airy" headphone and I feel much better treble extension even if it can be a little more fatiguing with some songs. The Alpha Dogs are honestly darker than neutral headphones but they make up for it with a more romantic midrange that doesn't intrude the sound signature. The TH-X00 midrange has greatly improved and I think it is almost on par with the Alpha Dogs. The TH-X00 also has slightly more extended and voluptuous bass. The Alpha Dogs with the squished down pads have good bass but I wouldn't say it is quite as satisfying as the TH-X00, but they definitely aren't slouches at all. I'll give them a fair comparison once I replace the pads to brand new fresh ones on the Alpha Dogs.
 
However, consider the TH-X00 with Alpha pads a complete game killer. These are probably a better value than the original MSRP $599 Alpha Dogs. At $500 what it comes down to is preference in sound signature, isolation versus less isolation (of TH-X00), and of course semi-open versus sealed closed headphones. The TH-X00 are definitely going to have a bigger soundstage with more perceived air in the treble frequencies so I would recommend them over the Alpha Dogs once you add Alpha pads to them. I preferred my Alpha Dogs though before I swapped pads, now I am leaning for the TH-X00 more of the time with the Alpha pads attached.

 

[CFGamescape]

I own both headphones. Surprisingly, I have found the TH-X00 w/ Alpha pads to suit my tastes even more than the Alpha Dogs now.

To be fair, my Alpha Dogs have very squished down pads, I mean like to the point where they definitely need to be replaced. But the TH-X00 is definitely the more "airy" headphone and I feel much better treble extension even if it can be a little more fatiguing with some songs. The Alpha Dogs are honestly darker than neutral headphones but they make up for it with a more romantic midrange that doesn't intrude the sound signature. The TH-X00 midrange has greatly improved and I think it is almost on par with the Alpha Dogs. The TH-X00 also has slightly more extended and voluptuous bass. The Alpha Dogs with the squished down pads have good bass but I wouldn't say it is quite as satisfying as the TH-X00, but they definitely aren't slouches at all. I'll give them a fair comparison once I replace the pads to brand new fresh ones on the Alpha Dogs.

However, consider the TH-X00 with Alpha pads a complete game killer. These are probably a better value than the original MSRP $599 Alpha Dogs. At $500 what it comes down to is preference in sound signature, isolation versus less isolation (of TH-X00), and of course semi-open versus sealed closed headphones. The TH-X00 are definitely going to have a bigger soundstage with more perceived air in the treble frequencies so I would recommend them over the Alpha Dogs once you add Alpha pads to them. I preferred my Alpha Dogs though before I swapped pads, now I am leaning for the TH-X00 more of the time with the Alpha pads attached.

Wow, awesome! This is the feedback I was looking for. Thank you! This probably rules out the Alpha Dog but the Alpha Prime intrigues me. However, I think I need to do myself a solid and get the Alpha pads for the TH-X00 before letting them go. I don't mind the treble on these; it's the recessed mids on certain tracks that really disappoint me. I'm willing, and actually prefer, to compromise some bass to bring the mids forward.

Thanks again for taking the time to respond!

 

[wahsmoh]

Wow, awesome! This is the feedback I was looking for. Thank you! This probably rules out the Alpha Dog but the Alpha Prime intrigues me. However, I think I need to do myself a solid and get the Alpha pads for the TH-X00 before letting them go. I don't mind the treble on these; it's the recessed mids on certain tracks that really disappoint me. I'm willing, and actually prefer, to compromise some bass to bring the mids forward.

Thanks again for taking the time to respond!

No problem. The TH-X00 fixed the biggest qualm I had with the TH900/600 series and that was the uninspiring mid-range that makes vocals sound slightly recessed or boring. The TH-X00 really fixed that and it's like what the HD600 was to the open-backed headphone world with some bass extension. I feel like the HD600 are a reference open headphone with the only downside to them being their lack of sub bass extension. The TH-X00 are even better all around headphones than the HD600 (keep in mind I am comparing them with Alpha pads).
 
For me it was totally worth it to swap pads. I'm sure other people feel comfortable with the stock pads, but there is no debate about it that the angled Alpha pads will add better comfort and larger soundstage depth than the smaller stock pads which also have a slightly smaller opening I believe than the Alpha pads and make the TH-X00 sit comfortably at an angle on your head, and put the drivers at an angle shaped towards your ears much like HD800s. No doubt you will lose some of the bass bloom, but in return you get tighter and faster bass with less in your face treble presentation. They sound slightly less bright also after the pad swap. Putting the driver closer to your ear will definitely make these headphones sound brighter with less depth.

 

[CFGamescape]

No problem. The TH-X00 fixed the biggest qualm I had with the TH900/600 series and that was the uninspiring mid-range that makes vocals sound slightly recessed or boring. The TH-X00 really fixed that and it's like what the HD600 was to the open-backed headphone world with some bass extension. I feel like the HD600 are a reference open headphone with the only downside to them being their lack of sub bass extension. The TH-X00 are even better all around headphones than the HD600 (keep in mind I am comparing them with Alpha pads).

For me it was totally worth it to swap pads. I'm sure other people feel comfortable with the stock pads, but there is no debate about it that the angled Alpha pads will add better comfort and larger soundstage depth than the smaller stock pads which also have a slightly smaller opening I believe than the Alpha pads and make the TH-X00 sit comfortably at an angle on your head, and put the drivers at an angle shaped towards your ears much like HD800s. No doubt you will lose some of the bass bloom, but in return you get tighter and faster bass with less in your face treble presentation. They sound slightly less bright also after the pad swap. Putting the driver closer to your ear will definitely make these headphones sound brighter with less depth.

What you describe is exactly what I'm hoping to get from the TH-X00. Gonna order some Alpha pads.

Now I'm curious how the Alpha Prime performs against the TH-X00 with Alpha pads.

 

[wahsmoh]

What you describe is exactly what I'm hoping to get from the TH-X00. Gonna order some Alpha pads.

Now I'm curious how the Alpha Prime performs against the TH-X00 with Alpha pads.

 
Same. I seriously bet these could give the Alpha Primes a run for their money. I do remember the Alpha Primes having a more extended treble than the Alpha Dogs with a larger soundstage from the V-planar modding so I'm sure they'd fair better than Alpha Dogs in that department.

 

[oqvist]

What you describe is exactly what I'm hoping to get from the TH-X00. Gonna order some Alpha pads.

Now I'm curious how the Alpha Prime performs against the TH-X00 with Alpha pads.

Yeah though there is nothing bright about the X00 with stock that I can hear so maybe the darkness would get to me. Charts with alpha pads suggest more bass but there is less?

 

[CFGamescape]

Yeah though there is nothing bright about the X00 with stock that I can hear so maybe the darkness would get to me. Charts with alpha pads suggest more bass but there is less?

I don't know until I try for myself. However, I do find that the treble with stock pads seem to get close to clipping on certain tracks (but my ears could be deceiving me; treble doesn't clip but it's not pleasant when this happens). Because I listen to a little bit of everything, I'm looking for more consistency / balance out of these headphones. We'll see with the Alpha pads.

 

[iMusicLover]

Finally i got my headphones, I unbox and wow, very gorgeous headphones. I plug into my Samsung galaxy S5 and it's sounds quiet good. I hear what this headphones changes drastically after burn-in. I have a question how to burn-in these beauties correctly?

 

[Meremoth]

Has anyone tried aftermarket ear pads and decided they preferred the originals?  

 

[mysticstryk]

Finally i got my headphones, I unbox and wow, very gorgeous headphones. I plug into my Samsung galaxy S5 and it's sounds quiet good. I hear what this headphones changes drastically after burn-in. I have a question how to burn-in these beauties correctly?

 
Flip on some tunes and listen to them change while on your head.  (brain burn-in)
 
Otherwise you could just play slightly louder than normal music through them and throw them in a closet for 48 hours.  (you can run pink noise but that's kind of on the extreme side of burn-in and completely unnecessary IMO)