[hifinoob005]

Years ago I had a Klipsch ProMedia GMX A-2.1. The GMX is the downgraded version. It sounded great. Deep punchy bass, fun/lively, very dynamic, but also a smoothness to it. There was no separation between the speakers and woffer, the sound was very wholesome. It also gave the impression the sound was "coming" at you. Could do a lot of genres, liked to listen to NIN, alternative rock, industrial metal, some bass heavy trance/techno, rap.

Never listened to a pair of headphones that sounded like that. I understand that there are certain things that headphones can't do. Currently I have the HD380Pro's, B&O H9i's, Ultrasone DJ1 and 580i's, Panasonic HTF600, and owned others. They each get close from a certain point of view, but never reach it. The closest that come to it are the H9i's, but they are a bit too raw and in your head. And a bit too lively.

Source is PC, Xonar DGX, Chord Mojo.

Tried the Meze 99 Classics with a 3rd gen pads I think, did not like them. Did not sound fun/dynamic, sounded kind of tame and distant. Recessed mids.

The 580I's are close to the bass I'd like, but it's got recessed mids and don't sound wholesome. Only works with some genres.

I'd like not to spend more than I have to though. I hope I don't have to change the amp/dac.

Ideally they'd be closed circumaural.

1MORE Triple Driver.
Audeze Mobius.
Fostex TH-X00/TH900.
Audioquest.
Beyerdynamic T1 (in the T5 body).
LCD-2 Closed.
Denon AH-D7000.
Ultrasone Signature Pro?

What else should I be looking at?

 

[hifinoob005]

Any idea what direction I should go? I can only test some of the models mentioned above (2 actually). It would not be easy to buy and return items.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Fostex and Denon are all going to have recessed mids some more some less depending on which one. I consider the TH-X00/TR-X00 unlistenable without EQ in general.

LCD-2C (classic, not closed) is a huge value at the price point. I have not heard the closed version. They're warm but still very lively. The bass slams. Super nice pair of cans. but heavy and hot to wear in the summer. Not everybody is comfortable with them. To me they're very comfortable though.

 

[hifinoob005]

Fostex and Denon are all going to have recessed mids some more some less depending on which one. I consider the TH-X00/TR-X00 unlistenable without EQ in general.

LCD-2C (classic, not closed) is a huge value at the price point. I have not heard the closed version. They're warm but still very lively. The bass slams. Super nice pair of cans. but heavy and hot to wear in the summer. Not everybody is comfortable with them. To me they're very comfortable though.

Source is a PC so I have access to a EQ.

Haven't listened to any other Klipsch speaker other than the GMX.

But is this possible to simulate the Klipsch GMX sound, or any speaker with headphones?

 

[gimmeheadroom]

You can not simulate any headphone or speaker with EQ. If you could, all the headphone and speakers companies would be out of business after the first day of production.

 

[hifinoob005]

You can not simulate any headphone or speaker with EQ. If you could, all the headphone and speakers companies would be out of business after the first day of production.

I'm not saying that, i.e. simulate any headphone/speaker with EQ.

I was asking if any headpnone had the klipsch GMX sound signature, or the sound of a speaker system.

 

[DenverW]

Open back headphones, especially ones with a wider soundstage are going to sound more "speaker" like. You'll never get the full speaker sounds, however, a headphone is a headphone.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

Years ago I had a Klipsch ProMedia GMX A-2.1. The GMX is the downgraded version. It sounded great. Deep punchy bass, fun/lively, very dynamic, but also a smoothness to it. There was no separation between the speakers and woffer, the sound was very wholesome. It also gave the impression the sound was "coming" at you. Could do a lot of genres, liked to listen to NIN, alternative rock, industrial metal, some bass heavy trance/techno, rap.

Never listened to a pair of headphones that sounded like that. I understand that there are certain things that headphones can't do. Currently I have the HD380Pro's, B&O H9i's, Ultrasone DJ1 and 580i's, Panasonic HTF600, and owned others. They each get close from a certain point of view, but never reach it. The closest that come to it are the H9i's, but they are a bit too raw and in your head. And a bit too lively.

Your main problem there is that since headphones have to be right outside your ear canals and feeding sound one driver into one ear, making it sound like it's "coming at you" will exacerbate the "too raw and in your head" and "too lively" bit. You can EQ out the latter depending on where the peak is, as well as wearing them a little bit forward of your ear canals to reduce the dead-on into the ear canal issue (I mean, you have speakers out front, not have them at your flanks like you're facing Army Gruppe Center and Army Gruppe North and Army Gruppe South are coming at you from either side). Anything more and if you try to reduce the "in your head" feeling you'll have the tendency to lose the "coming at you" bit, even if you didn't have any problem providing power.

For example it's either a Grado or a K701/2. Even if you put the AKGs on something like a Burson Soloist and apply EQ the mere fact that they will image the drums farther to the back makes them sound less "coming at you" than the Grado.

By contrast you can just put a pair of Focal Chorus 726 in front of you driven by something like a Unison Research Secondo, and you'll hear it "coming at you" without havinga hopelessly two dimensional soundstage (unless you have acoustic issues in that room).

Source is PC, Xonar DGX, Chord Mojo.

Tried the Meze 99 Classics with a 3rd gen pads I think, did not like them. Did not sound fun/dynamic, sounded kind of tame and distant. Recessed mids.

The 580I's are close to the bass I'd like, but it's got recessed mids and don't sound wholesome. Only works with some genres.

I'd like not to spend more than I have to though. I hope I don't have to change the amp/dac.

Ideally they'd be closed circumaural.

1MORE Triple Driver.
Audeze Mobius.
Fostex TH-X00/TH900.
Audioquest.
Beyerdynamic T1 (in the T5 body).
LCD-2 Closed.
Denon AH-D7000.
Ultrasone Signature Pro?

What else should I be looking at?

Not anything with a closed cup, or probably even circumaural.

 

[hifinoob005]

Your main problem there is that since headphones have to be right outside your ear canals and feeding sound one driver into one ear, making it sound like it's "coming at you" will exacerbate the "too raw and in your head" and "too lively" bit. You can EQ out the latter depending on where the peak is, as well as wearing them a little bit forward of your ear canals to reduce the dead-on into the ear canal issue (I mean, you have speakers out front, not have them at your flanks like you're facing Army Gruppe Center and Army Gruppe North and Army Gruppe South are coming at you from either side). Anything more and if you try to reduce the "in your head" feeling you'll have the tendency to lose the "coming at you" bit, even if you didn't have any problem providing power.

For example it's either a Grado or a K701/2. Even if you put the AKGs on something like a Burson Soloist and apply EQ the mere fact that they will image the drums farther to the back makes them sound less "coming at you" than the Grado.

By contrast you can just put a pair of Focal Chorus 726 in front of you driven by something like a Unison Research Secondo, and you'll hear it "coming at you" without havinga hopelessly two dimensional soundstage (unless you have acoustic issues in that room).




Not anything with a closed cup, or probably even circumaural.

But aren't closed required for good bass response?

 

[DenverW]

But aren't closed required for good bass response?

No, there are plenty of open back headphones with excellent bass response.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

But aren't closed required for good bass response?

If you're dealing with a little ambient noise, yes. Because the ambient noise primarily prevents you from perceiving bass that is actually there. Like the difference between a guy in a Jaguar with a B&W sound system listening to jazz vs some guy in an Escalade with the windows down or just slightly down so a MAC10 barrel can peek through that has to crank it up despite already having a 2000watt amplifier driving an Audiobahn subwoofer.

Alternately you could have a tiny chamber like a headphone earcup and depending on the driver response and TS parameters as well as how well you dampen reflections, you can have the equivalent of an Escalade waking up the 'hood except you're the only one listening to the THWWOOOOOOOOOOOOOM THWOOOOOOOOOOOOM EYAH YEAH YEAH THWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM THWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM THWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM YEAH YEAH THWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM THWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM bass; while an open headphone that does not have to have the bass and the rest of the soundwaves bouncing off the earcup can give you clean "thud, thud, thud!" or "dududududu dummm dwuummm, du du dududududududu dwwwuummm" bass.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

But aren't closed required for good bass response?

It might be that people believe this for two reasons. One, a lot of cheap, overboosted (lo-fi) cans are closed. They're crap but impactful.

The other reason is Fostex. The quality of bass on those is incredible. They're mostly closed although there is a new open model.

 

[visualmath]

I recommend Hifiman headphones.