Scytus
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Aug 5, 2009
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As you go higher in the chain of high-end headphones, bass becomes a less prominent quality. Completely understandable, as high-end headphones are expected to generate a neutral sound (Interestingly 2 out of the 3 HP's in this thread are modded).. Though many of us would prefer the fuller, more engaging presence of bass.
Also to take in consideration, bass has a different meaning to most of us. When most head-fi users go from an (for example) HD650 to a DT990, they claim monstrous bass, which isn't the same as others' definition of monstrous bass. We are speaking of the bass you can feel, that vibrates your inner soul (not..literal)
The headphones we're wanting to compare:
(These are all impressions, not my own thoughts)
Thunderpants: The T50rp shocked some with it's orthodynamic qualities of their mid/highs, but many felt it was lacking in bass. The thunderpants mod comes in, and provides enormous amounts of bass to the spectrum, and a wider soundstage, to the already perfect mid/highs.
Darth Beyers(V4?): The original DT770 Pro-80 had great sub-bass & soundstage, but lacked in mid/punchy bass, and veiled mid/highs. If the Darth Beyers bring out the mid/highs and make the bass punchy, then they're definitely a worthy competitor in this comparison
Ultrasone PRO900: The PRO900 has been said to have monstrous bass (there's even a review thread labeled as such), both punchy and sub-bass, whilst preserving the mid/highs and putting together a euphoria of sound. The one attribute of the PRO900's that may be a debatable negative/positive is that they can very unforgiving, and expose the flaws of a bad recording/quality. They're also said to slightly lose bass quantity over time.
So how would these three compare to one another? All bass enthusiasts I know of on this board crave for such information x]
EDIT: We have comparison reviews!
Courtesy of sysfail, post #48
"I took some time to compare the PRO 900 and Thunderpants today. These were both run out of a FiiO E9 with a 5th generation iPod and Apple Lossless/320kbps music files. I listened to music from a wide range of genres like indie, hardcore, metalcore, alternative, electronica, pop, hip-hop/rap, dubstep, etc.
I'll start with the PRO 900. These have "big" and "deep" bass. Bigger, more prominent, and deeper sounding bass compared to the TPs, almost like subwoofers. The bass is excellent for hip-hop/rap, trance, dubstep, etc. The thing about the bass though is that it's so much that it doesn't sound natural and sounds "fake". For example, the bass drum from a drum set doesn't sound like bass from a bass drum, but more like bass from some trance/dubstep song. At times, almost all the bass sounds the same, just "bigger" or "smaller". The mids are definitely recessed, even though people say the bass does not interfere with the other spectrums, I really think they do, but it isn't too bad. The highs of the PRO 900 are very "metallic" sounding, and people say the highs can be too "sharp" and I can see why, but it doesn't bother me too much personally. Again, the highs also sound really "fake" and unnatural. This wouldn't make much of a difference for genres like trance/hip-hop/rap/dubstep/etc. but for rock and such, the cymbals do not sound natural at all, they are way too fake like hitting a hybrid of thin aluminum and glass or something.
Guitars don't sound like guitars as well. For soundstage, when compared to the TP's, they sound quite narrow to me. The sounds are really closed in and there's no spacious feeling to it, but it does image the music well. Comfort-wise, they are quite heavy and the narrow padding on the top of the headband actually makes the top of my head numb after a while of use. The ear-pads are comfortable, but just a little bit too small because the top and bottom of my ear touches the pads and it kind of irritates my ears overtime. Like I said, these headphones are great for music like dubstep, d&b, hip-hop/rap, trance, electronica, etc. but they aren't so great for everything else IMO.
On to the Thunderpants. These definitely have strong bass as well, but different compared to the PRO 900. It has much more of a "bang" to it rather than a "boom". It is very tight, controlled and fast. It won't give you that very "deep" lasting bass that the PRO 900 has, but it is really detailed and natural. Bass drums sound like bass drums. It reminds me of the Grado's bass but more prominent. The mids are also very natural, detailed, and smooth. They don't get recessed at all from the bass. The highs are again, very natural, smooth, and detailed, and they are never sharp or sibilant. The soundstage is actually pretty impressive considering it is a closed headphone. Although there's no airy feel like open headphones, they definitely feel spacious, and has great imaging and separation. Comfort-wise, the TP's are hands down more comfortable than the PRO 900s for me. They are also quite heavy, I think even heavier than the PRO 900s, but they have an extra leather headband underneath the actual stock headbands which balances out the weight quite well. The pads on my TP's are Beyer pads which I actually prefer because they are comfortable, won't irritate, and won't get hot with my ears. Leather pads are comfortable most of the time, and definitely won't irritate, but get hot with my ears fairly quickly. The Beyer pads are very spacious, my ears won't touch anything, and they feel great. All in all, the Thunderpants produces a more balanced and natural sound, but still with good emphasis on the bass along with the mids and highs being prominent as well. Everything blends together very nicely and sound wonderfully musical. There's also very fast attack due to the orthodynamic drivers.
I can see why people love the PRO 900 for music like dubstep and trance as I would also choose the PRO 900 for music like dubstep and trance because its bass fits perfectly for those kinds of music. Otherwise, I'd choose the Thunderpants for everything else as it's a great all-rounder even for dubstep and trance, but just not as good as how the PRO 900 does it. I definitely prefer the Thunderpant's sound compared to the PRO 900, and that's why I'm letting my Thunderpants take the place of my PRO 900. Did I also mention the TP's are MUCH more sexier looking than the PRO 900s? Just look at it!
It's one with nature.
Thanks for reading! These are just my view on them, don't take it too seriously.
"
Courtesy of Mochan, post#66
"Have the Thunderpants on my head right now. I'll be honest. I'm severely disappointed. These don't sound like $500 headphones to me, and the build quality to be honest is a bit dodgy.
The first thing that I notice is that these aren't bass monsters by any stretch. Bass is nice and full, and goes down very deep, but quantity is woefully inadequate and impact is too minimal for these to be considered bass monsters. They have a huge mid hump which is probably why the bass sounds so recessed. Despite having that hump, these sound fairly laidback. They also need to be powered by a powerful amp, they are not exactly easy to drive, but I can feed them with my Tung Sol MP5 or the E9.
The second thing I notice is just how congested these things are. I haven't heard a headphone this congested in like, ever. The sound is so nice, rich and warm, but it's a little too much even for me and combined with the vented closed enclosure, you get a thick soup of sound that is extremely fatiguing. These are even more fatiguing than the XB700, at lower volumes! I can pump the volume of the XB700 louder than I listen to these, and I get fatigued by these faster.
All in all I am quite disappointed with these. I was mulling them over while at work and I wrote this:
[size=small][size=11pt]The Thunderpants: for a $500 headphone I was expecting a lot more. Much, much more. But these honestly do not sound anywhere as good as the HD650s, which go for a lot less these days.[/size][/size]
[size=small][size=11pt]About the Thunderpants: they have very nice, creamy mids. Very, very good mids actually. The Thunderpants are without a doubt a mids-centric phone. But what's the problem then? Bass is nice and tight, but quite recessed honestly. People keep going on about how these are bass monsters. I can assure you, they most certainly are not. Bass is good, probably enough to make people who are less experienced with bass-oriented cans happy. But as a basshead, I am far more demanding when it comes to evaluating bass, and these are not bass monsters by any stretch. These are mids monsters, not bass monsters. Highs are quite rolled off. All in all, it's a pleasing, euphonic sound sig, reminds me a lot of the M50 actually or the Monster Turbine Golds. So what's the problem? They also share the same problem the M50s have: Congestion.[/size][/size]
[size=small][size=11pt]These are the most congested headphones I have listened to in like the past two years. And I've been going to tons of meets and hearing tons of cans. Perhaps the problem with the Thunderpants is thus: the sound is so rich and creamy, but all of that is mixed and condensed into a closed can that pings the sound around over and over inside those luscious wooden shells. Listening to the Thunderpants, I imagine a smooth creamy mids cocktail made of milk, irish cream, and thick thick chocolate liquer and sloshed around a fine wooden goblet. Very rich and tasty, but ultimately blended together perfectly into a thick soup that has no separation and which can overwhelm you with its thick consistency. If anything, they are even more congested than the M50s, a can whose only substantial fault was how congested they sounded.[/size][/size]
[size=small][size=11pt]Separation is virtually nil on the Thunderpants, which is a bit of a shame because the sound is quite nice. Just not $500 nice. This is something I expected from a $100 can like the M50, but certainly not from a $500 custom-made can. Case to point, I would like to bring your attention to the Beyer DT150, which is a closed can just like the Thunderpants, and what's more it isn't vented. Despite that, the DT150 sounds far, far more spacious than the Thunderpants, and has far better instrument separation. It sounds a lot more natural, and there is a much better balance in the frequency spectrum as opposed to the TPs which have a humungous bump in the mids.[/size][/size]
[size=small][size=11pt]I would also like to take to task the build quailty of the Thunderpants. The wood work is awesome. Kudos to Smeggy on the fantastic work there. But I can't really praise any other part of the build. There's tons of glue seeping out of cracks everywhere, and in fact when I got these there was glue crusted over the pads, the cups, the headband, you name it. Easily removed, but man what a horrible initial impression. And a lot of dried glue is still stuck and visible at the seams, very unsightly and a horrid contrast to the beautiful lacquered wooden cups. The wires that come out of the headphones are thin and do not inspire any confidence whatsoever, joining in a shrink-wrapped Y into a nicely sheated nylon cable terminating into a 6.3mm neutrik. It's a shame, the Thunderpants are like a proverbial chimera of parts: They can be absolutely stunning to behold at some points, then you run into the almost patchwork-like quality of the build and shake your head in disgust.[/size][/size]
[size=small][size=11pt]With all this taken into consideration, if these Thunderpants were $200 they would be a good buy. A good buy, mind you, not a great buy. It has maybe $150 sound quality in a sometimes-premium, sometimes-ugly shell that I could grant say a $200 value. But at $500 my face is twitching uncontrollably and I cannot stop from wincing in disappointment. This is especially true when you consider that the Beyer DT150 can be had for about $200 and it has superior sound quality.[/size][/size]
As for comparing the Pro 900 and the Thunderpants, from a bass point of view, no contest. Pro900 utterly demolishes the TPs in bass. It's a pure massacre. The two should not even be compared. The strength of the Pro 900s is in its bass; the Thunderpants is in its mids. That said, I prefer the sound of the Thunderpants overall by far over the Pro 900s. Like said by sysfail, I've often described the sound of the Pro900 as "metallic." There is definitely a tinge of metal to the overall tone of the sound that I do not like. It's very abrasive and alien to my ear. It doesn't help that the highs are sharp as a razor and hurt about as much. The Thunderpants are much smoother and creamier, and far more friendly, but still fatigue and smother me too much. But at least with the TPs I get the impression that I'm dying under a deluge of chocolate instead of an avalanche of metal and debris with the Pro900s.
This is listening to the TPs via the E7/E9. I will try routing them to my MP5 with Tung Sol tubes, which I find have a very pleasant airy sound to them. I'll see if these can save the Thunderpants. Hold on...."
Impressions - but no direct comparison to the Pro900s - of the Darth Beyers, courtesy of Curly21029, post#106
"
Quote:
Hugely different. The stock DT770 is both less pronounced and controlled in the bass and has recessed mids. The V3 (and under) Darth Beyers have absolutely monstrous, head-shaking bass. Soundstaging seemed slightly larger than stock to my ears. Mids remain recessed, but a bit more thick sounding. The V4 Terminator (the Darth Beyer successor) has less bass quantity (still monstrous, but more ear-shaking than whole head-shaking) but is more controlled and brings out the mids. Both modded versions present smoother treble than stock to my ears. I've never heard the deep cup version, but they're supposed to be less bassy and more expansive sounding than the standard cups."
Also to take in consideration, bass has a different meaning to most of us. When most head-fi users go from an (for example) HD650 to a DT990, they claim monstrous bass, which isn't the same as others' definition of monstrous bass. We are speaking of the bass you can feel, that vibrates your inner soul (not..literal)
The headphones we're wanting to compare:
(These are all impressions, not my own thoughts)
Thunderpants: The T50rp shocked some with it's orthodynamic qualities of their mid/highs, but many felt it was lacking in bass. The thunderpants mod comes in, and provides enormous amounts of bass to the spectrum, and a wider soundstage, to the already perfect mid/highs.
Darth Beyers(V4?): The original DT770 Pro-80 had great sub-bass & soundstage, but lacked in mid/punchy bass, and veiled mid/highs. If the Darth Beyers bring out the mid/highs and make the bass punchy, then they're definitely a worthy competitor in this comparison
Ultrasone PRO900: The PRO900 has been said to have monstrous bass (there's even a review thread labeled as such), both punchy and sub-bass, whilst preserving the mid/highs and putting together a euphoria of sound. The one attribute of the PRO900's that may be a debatable negative/positive is that they can very unforgiving, and expose the flaws of a bad recording/quality. They're also said to slightly lose bass quantity over time.
So how would these three compare to one another? All bass enthusiasts I know of on this board crave for such information x]
EDIT: We have comparison reviews!
Courtesy of sysfail, post #48
"I took some time to compare the PRO 900 and Thunderpants today. These were both run out of a FiiO E9 with a 5th generation iPod and Apple Lossless/320kbps music files. I listened to music from a wide range of genres like indie, hardcore, metalcore, alternative, electronica, pop, hip-hop/rap, dubstep, etc.
I'll start with the PRO 900. These have "big" and "deep" bass. Bigger, more prominent, and deeper sounding bass compared to the TPs, almost like subwoofers. The bass is excellent for hip-hop/rap, trance, dubstep, etc. The thing about the bass though is that it's so much that it doesn't sound natural and sounds "fake". For example, the bass drum from a drum set doesn't sound like bass from a bass drum, but more like bass from some trance/dubstep song. At times, almost all the bass sounds the same, just "bigger" or "smaller". The mids are definitely recessed, even though people say the bass does not interfere with the other spectrums, I really think they do, but it isn't too bad. The highs of the PRO 900 are very "metallic" sounding, and people say the highs can be too "sharp" and I can see why, but it doesn't bother me too much personally. Again, the highs also sound really "fake" and unnatural. This wouldn't make much of a difference for genres like trance/hip-hop/rap/dubstep/etc. but for rock and such, the cymbals do not sound natural at all, they are way too fake like hitting a hybrid of thin aluminum and glass or something.
On to the Thunderpants. These definitely have strong bass as well, but different compared to the PRO 900. It has much more of a "bang" to it rather than a "boom". It is very tight, controlled and fast. It won't give you that very "deep" lasting bass that the PRO 900 has, but it is really detailed and natural. Bass drums sound like bass drums. It reminds me of the Grado's bass but more prominent. The mids are also very natural, detailed, and smooth. They don't get recessed at all from the bass. The highs are again, very natural, smooth, and detailed, and they are never sharp or sibilant. The soundstage is actually pretty impressive considering it is a closed headphone. Although there's no airy feel like open headphones, they definitely feel spacious, and has great imaging and separation. Comfort-wise, the TP's are hands down more comfortable than the PRO 900s for me. They are also quite heavy, I think even heavier than the PRO 900s, but they have an extra leather headband underneath the actual stock headbands which balances out the weight quite well. The pads on my TP's are Beyer pads which I actually prefer because they are comfortable, won't irritate, and won't get hot with my ears. Leather pads are comfortable most of the time, and definitely won't irritate, but get hot with my ears fairly quickly. The Beyer pads are very spacious, my ears won't touch anything, and they feel great. All in all, the Thunderpants produces a more balanced and natural sound, but still with good emphasis on the bass along with the mids and highs being prominent as well. Everything blends together very nicely and sound wonderfully musical. There's also very fast attack due to the orthodynamic drivers.
I can see why people love the PRO 900 for music like dubstep and trance as I would also choose the PRO 900 for music like dubstep and trance because its bass fits perfectly for those kinds of music. Otherwise, I'd choose the Thunderpants for everything else as it's a great all-rounder even for dubstep and trance, but just not as good as how the PRO 900 does it. I definitely prefer the Thunderpant's sound compared to the PRO 900, and that's why I'm letting my Thunderpants take the place of my PRO 900. Did I also mention the TP's are MUCH more sexier looking than the PRO 900s? Just look at it!
It's one with nature.
Thanks for reading! These are just my view on them, don't take it too seriously.
Courtesy of Mochan, post#66
"Have the Thunderpants on my head right now. I'll be honest. I'm severely disappointed. These don't sound like $500 headphones to me, and the build quality to be honest is a bit dodgy.
The first thing that I notice is that these aren't bass monsters by any stretch. Bass is nice and full, and goes down very deep, but quantity is woefully inadequate and impact is too minimal for these to be considered bass monsters. They have a huge mid hump which is probably why the bass sounds so recessed. Despite having that hump, these sound fairly laidback. They also need to be powered by a powerful amp, they are not exactly easy to drive, but I can feed them with my Tung Sol MP5 or the E9.
The second thing I notice is just how congested these things are. I haven't heard a headphone this congested in like, ever. The sound is so nice, rich and warm, but it's a little too much even for me and combined with the vented closed enclosure, you get a thick soup of sound that is extremely fatiguing. These are even more fatiguing than the XB700, at lower volumes! I can pump the volume of the XB700 louder than I listen to these, and I get fatigued by these faster.
All in all I am quite disappointed with these. I was mulling them over while at work and I wrote this:
[size=small][size=11pt]The Thunderpants: for a $500 headphone I was expecting a lot more. Much, much more. But these honestly do not sound anywhere as good as the HD650s, which go for a lot less these days.[/size][/size]
[size=small][size=11pt]About the Thunderpants: they have very nice, creamy mids. Very, very good mids actually. The Thunderpants are without a doubt a mids-centric phone. But what's the problem then? Bass is nice and tight, but quite recessed honestly. People keep going on about how these are bass monsters. I can assure you, they most certainly are not. Bass is good, probably enough to make people who are less experienced with bass-oriented cans happy. But as a basshead, I am far more demanding when it comes to evaluating bass, and these are not bass monsters by any stretch. These are mids monsters, not bass monsters. Highs are quite rolled off. All in all, it's a pleasing, euphonic sound sig, reminds me a lot of the M50 actually or the Monster Turbine Golds. So what's the problem? They also share the same problem the M50s have: Congestion.[/size][/size]
[size=small][size=11pt]These are the most congested headphones I have listened to in like the past two years. And I've been going to tons of meets and hearing tons of cans. Perhaps the problem with the Thunderpants is thus: the sound is so rich and creamy, but all of that is mixed and condensed into a closed can that pings the sound around over and over inside those luscious wooden shells. Listening to the Thunderpants, I imagine a smooth creamy mids cocktail made of milk, irish cream, and thick thick chocolate liquer and sloshed around a fine wooden goblet. Very rich and tasty, but ultimately blended together perfectly into a thick soup that has no separation and which can overwhelm you with its thick consistency. If anything, they are even more congested than the M50s, a can whose only substantial fault was how congested they sounded.[/size][/size]
[size=small][size=11pt]Separation is virtually nil on the Thunderpants, which is a bit of a shame because the sound is quite nice. Just not $500 nice. This is something I expected from a $100 can like the M50, but certainly not from a $500 custom-made can. Case to point, I would like to bring your attention to the Beyer DT150, which is a closed can just like the Thunderpants, and what's more it isn't vented. Despite that, the DT150 sounds far, far more spacious than the Thunderpants, and has far better instrument separation. It sounds a lot more natural, and there is a much better balance in the frequency spectrum as opposed to the TPs which have a humungous bump in the mids.[/size][/size]
[size=small][size=11pt]I would also like to take to task the build quailty of the Thunderpants. The wood work is awesome. Kudos to Smeggy on the fantastic work there. But I can't really praise any other part of the build. There's tons of glue seeping out of cracks everywhere, and in fact when I got these there was glue crusted over the pads, the cups, the headband, you name it. Easily removed, but man what a horrible initial impression. And a lot of dried glue is still stuck and visible at the seams, very unsightly and a horrid contrast to the beautiful lacquered wooden cups. The wires that come out of the headphones are thin and do not inspire any confidence whatsoever, joining in a shrink-wrapped Y into a nicely sheated nylon cable terminating into a 6.3mm neutrik. It's a shame, the Thunderpants are like a proverbial chimera of parts: They can be absolutely stunning to behold at some points, then you run into the almost patchwork-like quality of the build and shake your head in disgust.[/size][/size]
[size=small][size=11pt]With all this taken into consideration, if these Thunderpants were $200 they would be a good buy. A good buy, mind you, not a great buy. It has maybe $150 sound quality in a sometimes-premium, sometimes-ugly shell that I could grant say a $200 value. But at $500 my face is twitching uncontrollably and I cannot stop from wincing in disappointment. This is especially true when you consider that the Beyer DT150 can be had for about $200 and it has superior sound quality.[/size][/size]
As for comparing the Pro 900 and the Thunderpants, from a bass point of view, no contest. Pro900 utterly demolishes the TPs in bass. It's a pure massacre. The two should not even be compared. The strength of the Pro 900s is in its bass; the Thunderpants is in its mids. That said, I prefer the sound of the Thunderpants overall by far over the Pro 900s. Like said by sysfail, I've often described the sound of the Pro900 as "metallic." There is definitely a tinge of metal to the overall tone of the sound that I do not like. It's very abrasive and alien to my ear. It doesn't help that the highs are sharp as a razor and hurt about as much. The Thunderpants are much smoother and creamier, and far more friendly, but still fatigue and smother me too much. But at least with the TPs I get the impression that I'm dying under a deluge of chocolate instead of an avalanche of metal and debris with the Pro900s.
This is listening to the TPs via the E7/E9. I will try routing them to my MP5 with Tung Sol tubes, which I find have a very pleasant airy sound to them. I'll see if these can save the Thunderpants. Hold on...."
Impressions - but no direct comparison to the Pro900s - of the Darth Beyers, courtesy of Curly21029, post#106
"
Quote:
RPGWiZaRD said:
I wonder if the Darth Beyers sounds a lot different compared to stock DT770 Pro? I didn't like DT770 Pro that much myself so.
Hugely different. The stock DT770 is both less pronounced and controlled in the bass and has recessed mids. The V3 (and under) Darth Beyers have absolutely monstrous, head-shaking bass. Soundstaging seemed slightly larger than stock to my ears. Mids remain recessed, but a bit more thick sounding. The V4 Terminator (the Darth Beyer successor) has less bass quantity (still monstrous, but more ear-shaking than whole head-shaking) but is more controlled and brings out the mids. Both modded versions present smoother treble than stock to my ears. I've never heard the deep cup version, but they're supposed to be less bassy and more expansive sounding than the standard cups."
