[Maxx134]

Im really looking forward to buy these..im worried about the size tho

I have semi large head..will the headpand stretch easily?

Don't wanna break it day one

The headband for me is ridiculously strong. I might not be as strong as other members though. Ive bent the plastic headband many times and it's very flexible.

No it's not,
It is only strong flexing open or outward.
If you attempt to flex it, to close it inward,
It is possible you may snap the plastic band in center like I did mine.

I was very upset at this choice of plastic for the headband, and so decided to put my own headband.
Edit:
On my New white unit, the headband definitely seems more stiff than I remember for sure.


I love the sound so I caved in and bought the white edition as well.
It seems nicer than my black and I will compare if any sonic differences.
Edit:
Newer Version has a bit more recessed mids than my old unit and I assume it is due to need of break in,
But my old unit is black version.

What is dis?

Wow I love those but would be nice also to have pictures on the metal grills under as well.

 

[Nightf0xx]

Can anyone compare this to the Ath-msr7 and sony Mdr-1a?

 

[akg fanboy]

  Can anyone compare this to the Ath-msr7 and sony Mdr-1a?

msr7 is my preference, but none are perfect. The msr7 is very bright and has forward mids, the bass is kinda thin. The edition s is kinda v shaped and the bass gets uncontrolled when you open the cups. The mdr 1 is a dark headphone

 

[DavidA]

  msr7 is my preference, but none are perfect. The msr7 is very bright and has forward mids, the bass is kinda thin. The edition s is kinda v shaped and the bass gets uncontrolled when you open the cups. The mdr 1 is a dark headphone

The MDR-1A is not a dark headphone, more u shaped sound signature, bass is muddy if left stock, dynamat in the cups does wonder for the bass.

 

[akg fanboy]

  The MDR-1A is not a dark headphone, more u shaped sound signature, bass is muddy if left stock, dynamat in the cups does wonder for the bass.

oh yeah, 1a not the r.... you might be right, the only thing sony got right was the comfort

 

[Ceteru]

So is there any type of agreed-on burn-in time?
 
I just got these on Saturday; I'm loving the versatility of them and how if you want a specific type of sound you merely have to remove or add the cup covers. However, for right now, they're not sounding so good for metal.
 
Does the sound signature change later on in this regard, and if so, after how long?

 

[DavidA]

  So is there any type of agreed-on burn-in time?
 
I just got these on Saturday; I'm loving the versatility of them and how if you want a specific type of sound you merely have to remove or add the cup covers. However, for right now, they're not sounding so good for metal.
 
Does the sound signature change later on in this regard, and if so, after how long?

Some believe in burn-in some don't, some manufactures give a number of hours, I've seen it any where from 20 to 150 hours, others say its brain burn-in, so no agreement.

 

[Ceteru]

  Some believe in burn-in some don't, some manufactures give a number of hours, I've seen it any where from 20 to 150 hours, others say its brain burn-in, so no agreement.

Oh, I'm aware of that (I'm a conditional believer - that is, I think it works for some but not for others). I was actually asking specifically about these cans.

 

[DavidA]

  Oh, I'm aware of that (I'm a conditional believer - that is, I think it works for some but not for others). I was actually asking specifically about these cans.

I didn't see anything from the manufactures side so I don't think Hifiman believes there is any burn-in and with all my other Hifiman headphones I never noticed any changes with use.

 

[Ceteru]

  I didn't see anything from the manufactures side so I don't think Hifiman believes there is any burn-in and with all my other Hifiman headphones I never noticed any changes with use.

Gotcha.
 
I was asking because of some of the user experiences I'd seen written here, and I was trying to get a general view on it.
 
Thanks.

 

[Ceteru]

Okay, so I think that they're starting to burn in already actually.
 
I didn't listen to them all day while at school (actually I listened to my M40x), and then when I came home and listened to the same song that sounded rather bad two nights ago, it sounded quite a bit better.
 
Also, regarding my comment about metal, I think what I was hearing as "not that good for metal" was both due to the treble spike that seems to occur for me with the cups closed and the particular album I was listening to. The cymbals were very sharp and the guitars seemed somewhat distant (the latter being the mids of course). However, now with further listening (and perhaps a bit of burn-in), it's more tolerable, and with the cups open, the treble relaxes somewhat and the sound becomes more full (naturally). 

That's what I love about these, they're so versatile (although in some ways this is limited to your location). The metal song I was just listening to sounded good with the cups closed, but better with the cups open. But the rap song I was listening to earlier sounded okay with the cups open but better with the cups closed. And since I'm at home, I'm free to switch modes as often as I want to get the best sound I want at the moment. However, I would probably be more constrained were I at school.
 
Regardless, these are a great pair of cans and part of me wants this design to catch on so that more companies can create similar models.

 

[Ceteru]

 
This is a really early work in progress, but I wanted to showoff the wood cups idea I was talking about a couple of pages back. These are made from Redwood that I was able to reclaim from my parents house after some repairs. I have never worked with wood before so this has been and is a bit of a learning process. I plan to remake these, once this set is done and proven true, in a few different woods. As soon as I finish sanding the inside, and I get some sheet metal to stick on a small portion of the inside for the magnet, I will give'em a listen. I'm pretty excited about the entire process!  

Did you ever finish these man? I had the same idea and tested placing blocks of wood over the open cups; the result was that the headphones sounded more open even though they were technically closed. That has me really excited about what a finished product would sound like.

 

[Maxx134]

 
I didn't see anything from the manufactures side so I don't think Hifiman believes there is any burn-in and with all my other Hifiman headphones I never noticed any changes with use.

Gotcha.

I was asking because of some of the user experiences I'd seen written here, and I was trying to get a general view on it.

Thanks.

I was a bit surprised myself when I purchased the white pair for my daughter and it came across as sounding a bit brighter and not as focused.
So I believe it really does need burn in.

I myself broke my pair in the headband..
I squeezed it closed a bit with two fingers and it snapped dead center.
I assume the plastic band cannot take too much stress to be closed..
Opening it flexes well.

Not the case with my Audeze Sine.
It's band has opposite problem of snapping if you stretch open too many times.
For example to take off your head and place over your coat, if stretched too much it disconnects inside.

So I am now back to using my Edition S...

I did not want to return my pair to worry about any driver variation or having to burn in all over again,
So I just redid them how I believe they should have been, because the sound really is superior to most.


I consider the Edition S and the Audeze Sine the two best portables.

 


This is a really early work in progress, but I wanted to showoff the wood cups idea I was talking about a couple of pages back. These are made from Redwood that I was able to reclaim from my parents house after some repairs. I have never worked with wood before so this has been and is a bit of a learning process. I plan to remake these, once this set is done and proven true, in a few different woods. As soon as I finish sanding the inside, and I get some sheet metal to stick on a small portion of the inside for the magnet, I will give'em a listen. I'm pretty excited about the entire process!  

Did you ever finish these man? I had the same idea and tested placing blocks of wood over the open cups; the result was that the headphones sounded more open even though they were technically closed. That has me really excited about what a finished product would sound like.

That is good news as a wood cover you can add more depth and just have a small center magnet the width size of the back of the driver.

 

[Ceteru]

That is good news as a wood cover you can add more depth and just have a small center magnet the width size of the back of the driver.

Actually, I was going to wait to mention this until things got further along, but I'm in contact with someone right now who was really interested in making wood covers for the Edition S. I sent him my headphones so he can get the exact measurements and fit, and he estimates 2-4 weeks for completion.
 
I told him if they sound/look good, I'd mention it on here and start pointing people in his direction. 
 
So give me some time and hopefully I will have some impressions for you guys.
 
I had the same thought about wood covers changing the sound signature, so I (you're going to laugh, as you should because it's funny) took two hairbrushes and placed them flat-backed against the open grills while I was listening to my music.
 
The sound was changed in an..interesting way. Obviously I don't have them here right now to reevaluate, but from memory, the sound expanded to sound closer to how it sounds with the covers off.
 
In other words, from what I could hear, having "wood covers" (aka hairbrushes) on made the Edition S sound more open, as if the covers WEREN'T on. It wasn't exactly the same, but it was closer. And I'm not talking a "cupped hands" effect either, this was smoother and clearer, similar to the "open-mode".
 
Perhaps the way the sound was bouncing off of wood (with its imperfections and grains) vs off of flat, maybe less porous, plastic was the cause of the difference? I'm not sure. 
 
Either way, I'm excited to see the results, and to let you guys know about it too!

 

[Maxx134]

Get a slight concave wood cover with a layer of felt in the wood and there you go, a better headphone lol.

Definitely a good idea.