[brat]

I have k701 and for years they have been my favourite dynamics but 10 minutes with HD800 on unknown amps and sources were enough. They are just better. In every way. I've felt almost the same when I first put the k701 years ago. They have been much better than my HD650s.

 

[mopps]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rogue /img/forum/go_quote.gif IMO, yes. I may not be the most neutral source for such a question (I hated the K701's when I owned them), but the HD800 is more transparent, has better soundstaging, better bass, and is not sibilant like the K701. More importantly, it is fun to listen to, whereas I have always found the K701 to be boring and lifeless, no matter the equipment used.

I'm wondering if the K701 was ever sibilant? I've never noticed that with my two K701's. The only headphones I owned with very annoying sibilance IME were the DT880, the D2000 and the DX1000 (yes, indeed). The K701, in comparison had nicely smoothed treble, IMO. Re boring and lifeless I agree with you.

 

[Beagle]

Quote:

Originally Posted by subtle /img/forum/go_quote.gif You can find it on his website, and it's absolutely pure comedic gold. Anyone that has heard them for themselves will immediately be able to see his hidden agenda after reading his "#1" point. Honestly, if he is really claiming to hear what he is hearing he either A) has a defective pair or B) has hearing far worse than I ever could of imagined.

Wow...

Speaking of hidden agendas..

Mark has been doing serious listening and reviewing for many years now. I don't always hear things exactly the same way he does but he is always on track and right in the ballpark IMO. I had the same experience he did with the K701. Didn't like it, liked it for a while then disliked it again. I had the Denon D2000, did the mods, liked the sound but opted out because I'm not comfortable with closed phones.

I do think some of the positive points come from people who have to justify their cash outlay and are need to convince themselves that they got proper value for their money. Unless the HD800 sounded totally awful to their ears, it's money well spent until the other phones "catch up" when the novelty wears off.

It takes time to fully come to grips with the sound of headphones and other audio equipment. But so many people are in a rush to be the first to hear and comment on them that if it sounds good right off the bat, it IS good. And that's not usually the case.

Keep in mind that the HD800 got more hype than anything ever did here before. Maybe Mark and others feel that it did not live up to the hype which would be impossible anyway, unless it was the reincarnation of the Orpeus.

But hell, I haven't heard the HD800 yet but I have heard (and own) the K701 which many (including Stereophile) claimed was the new king of dynamics when it came out. So you can understand why I'm treading cautiously.

 

[subtle]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beagle /img/forum/go_quote.gif Wow... Speaking of hidden agendas.. Mark has been doing serious listening and reviewing for many years now. I don't always hear things exactly the same way he does but he is always on track and right in the ballpark IMO. I had the same experience he did with the K701. Didn't like it, liked it for a while then disliked it again. I had the Denon D2000, did the mods, liked the sound but opted out because I'm not comfortable with closed phones. I do think some of the positive points come from people who have to justify their cash outlay and are need to convince themselves that they got proper value for their money. Unless the HD800 sounded totally awful to their ears, it's money well spent until the other phones "catch up" when the novelty wears off. It takes time to fully come to grips with the sound of headphones and other audio equipment. But so many people are in a rush to be the first to hear and comment on them that if it sounds good right off the bat, it IS good. And that's not usually the case. Keep in mind that the HD800 got more hype than anything ever did here before. Maybe Mark and others feel that it did not live up to the hype which would be impossible anyway, unless it was the reincarnation of the Orpeus. But hell, I haven't heard the HD800 yet but I have heard (and own) the K701 which many (including Stereophile) claimed was the new king of dynamics when it came out. So you can understand why I'm treading cautiously.

I have no hidden agenda, but I do own the HD800 and have spent many hours with it in the past week. I can speak from experience.

When you do finally hear it for yourself you will instantly see through the facade Mark is trying to create with his premature and absolutely ludicrous review. You will clearly see his "review" for what it really is, a pathetic sales pitch in order to drum up Jena recable jobs. Like I said, referring to his #1, anyone that calls the HD800s slow either has a defective pair or defective hearing.

 

[mbd2884]

Beagle did you read Markl's review? He flat out stated that the HD800's cable was not suitable and had a tinny sound. And then went on to give the most negative portrayal of the HD800 I've read so far on Head-Fi. At the end of the review, as Subtle stated, he shamelessly said he believed recabling the HD800 with his Jena wires would fix the problems he found. His review boiled down to, HD800 requires his Jena recabling service to sound good.

And for those who can't read it now, understand why his review was removed for violating MoT rules?

 

[Acix]

lol...it's really simple, The HD800 made to compare with the K-7XX.

 

[CDBacklash]

Wow, you couldnt have picked a worse time to ask if a headphone is an improvement over the K701.
Let me fill you in on the dynamics of this site at the moment.
Fanboy A: HD800 OMGOMGOMG
Fanboy B: K701 has no bass xD

If you read the thread concerning the HD800, you will see that almost no one was initially impressed with what the HD800 has to offer, meaning that there is no drastic improvement between the HD800 and other equipment (think back to when you first listenned to something above low-fi... it was IMPRESSIVE, no?).
I am sure its a fine headphone but it has been FOTM'd for way too long and people are just going to be mislead.
Chances are it is probably superior and will probably get the most use in the long run, but worth the price tag (7x as much as an HD600???)? Probably not.
Dare I say that there are setups that will give a sound just as fast, and just as neutral (probably more neutral and fast) for less than it would cost to amp and dac the HD800... and also setups for MUCH cheaper with a more euphonious sound from several headphones.
At its current price, the HD800 may be a better deal than the R10 (almost certainly given the huge price these fetch) and the L3000.
Whether it is a better deal than the K1000 probably comes down to preference.
just some logical thoughts

tl;dr it doesnt sound like a "nice sounding" headphone.
Its up to you what you want, and even then there are cheaper alternatives.

 

[sachu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bhanja_trinanjan /img/forum/go_quote.gif Is your Fostex also better than HD650/DT880?

In my opinion it is., I have owned 2 HD580s, a HD650 a, DT770 and DT990, an SR225 and RS-1s..and I am sure a bunch more would approve on the ortho thread.

 

[Acix]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sachu /img/forum/go_quote.gif In my opinion it is., I have owned 2 HD580s, a HD650 a, DT770 and DT990, an SR225 and RS-1s..and I am sure a bunch more would approve on the ortho thread.

I'm willing to trade with you, I will give you my new Fostex T20 v2. And I will be more than happy to get your RS-1.

 

[sachu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Acix /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm willing to trade with you, I will give you my new Fostex T20 v2. And I will be more than happy to get your RS-1.

hehe..I sold all my dynamics after I got into orthos..All I have is what I have in my sig..and I am getting 2 mabe 3 more new orthos

One caveat..

they need real good amplification..Don't even try to drive them with itty bitty amps. Orthos feed on power. The Fostex is rated at 3 Watts!!

It blew my mind as to how good these 74$ (shipped) headphones are when I plugged it into my EHHA. Bear in mind I did do mods on the headphone to get it sounding the way it is now.

For those who care and want to tweak, come over to the ortho thread where there is lots of info on how to get your T50RP mods going.

 

[Currawong]

I notice that the page on Markl's site which has his review doesn't say anything much now.

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDBacklash /img/forum/go_quote.gif If you read the thread concerning the HD800, you will see that almost no one was initially impressed with what the HD800 has to offer, meaning that there is no drastic improvement between the HD800 and other equipment (think back to when you first listenned to something above low-fi... it was IMPRESSIVE, no?).

Funny, almost all the reviews I've read had the listeners very impressed. However, when mine arrive, I'll decide for myself.

 

[CDBacklash]

Eh. There was a lot of talk about the "production models being different" because people were unimpressed.
Then there was a lot of "oh it must be my amp", and now there are a few people saying it Wow'ed them.
I'll be listening to them when they hit australian shores, although I cant say my hopes are high (as I am currently a non-believer).
@ the post below
You can get an HD600 for ~$200 if you are careful about your purchase.
Still, the HD800 is very interesting because of the new technology that exists in it.
I'm just a little disappointed that some reviews I was really looking forward to either sounding like an ad or just that they were underwhelmed.
Don't get me wrong, I am sure it is a fine phone, but coming from a company that I have only enjoyed a few headphones I have heard from (I have not had the privilege of hearing the big O) I have to be skeptical when it has such a huge price tag compared to the previous.
I'd say that the 800 is probably worth the price 3.5x more than the HD650, but I did not enjoy the 650.
Thanks for tuning in john.

@ipodPJ this is rather interesting. Although the thoughts of people saying its not initially impressive kind of makes me want to hold back a little...
I'm coming from a music enthusiast perspective, not a headphone enthusiasts perspective so euphony is pretty important. Still I cant actually lay down my own verdict until they arrive in australia... and it seems to be a long wait yet... i can only provide what I gather from others.
I must admit I'm not a huge believer in burn-in "changing" a headphone. They certainly improve notably, but I'm not entirely convinced a phone can go from "meh" to "WOW".
Then again, i've not really owned a headphone that is notorious for burn-in.

 

[John Willett]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDBacklash /img/forum/go_quote.gif (7x as much as an HD600???)?

Er ??? - x3.5 the HD 600, not x7.

 

[IPodPJ]

The HD800 will not impress you initially if you are not used to a top-tier headphone. I almost sent them back, and I would have had I not been able to try them on approx. 40 amps at CanJam; I was used to the Denon sound. But once you have these on your head for awhile, you won't be able to take them off. My beloved modded D5000 have now taken up residence in a shoebox. Only my HD800 and K702 (with Cryoparts custom cable, and yes it makes a big difference to the K702) are out for use. The D5000 will require a lot more modding before they are even a worthy little brother.

And yes, the HD800 is a huge improvement over the K702 (even with a good recable).

The HD800 also need about 30-50 hours of burn-in to open up.

 

[Acix]

And yes, the HD800 is a huge improvement over the K702 (even with a good recable).

Huge improvement, how so???