[vikinguy]

Awesome, much appreciated!

Armored Saint - Can you deliver
Judas Priest - You've got another thing comin
Accept - Too high to get it right
Heavens Edge - Play Dirty
Thanks!
Have you heard or owned any Kennerton headphones by any chance?

Sure! I’ve had Magni v3 and gh40

 

[Mhog55]

Sure! I’ve had Magni v3 and gh40

How would you say the Magni compares? That was one of my favorites for rock and metal, but upper mids and lower treble were a bit too hot and spicy for me. I currently own the Vali Neo and Gjallarhorn Mk1. I don't feel the need to try anything else at this point... Except these haha.

 

[Mhog55]

I own a pair of Kennerton Rognir Planar Magnetic and previously owned a pair of Kennerton Gjallarhorn JM Edition Mark 2 phones.

I may have asked you this before, so excuse me if I have. Can you talk about any differences with the Gjallarhorn? Is there enough difference to own both?

 

[rlawry]

I may have asked you this before, so excuse me if I have. Can you talk about any differences with the Gjallarhorn? Is there enough difference to own both?

If I understand your question correctly, the Gjallarhorn GH50 JM Edition and especially the GH50 JM Mark 2, and the Rognir Planar have radically different sounds. You might expect this in light of the vastly different drivers used, a horn-loaded graphene-laminated Mylar dynamic driver for the JME2 and a planar magnetic driver for the Rognir Planar. The JME and JME2 have a liquid, dark, smooth, full, weighty presentation with a robust midrange with a lot of body and a titanic bass presentation with a lot of bass weight and bass dynamics. The JME2 especially exhibits this type of dark and liquid sound. The RP, in stark contrast, has a much faster and more detailed sound with more spaciousness and transparency. Its bass is somewhat of an enigma--extended and fast with great pitch definition but missing in action on bass-light recordings and glorious on bass-prominent recordings. This is opposed to my RAAL SR-1bs whose bass goes missing on virtually all but the most weighty recordings but whose bass quality is perhaps the best I have heard. If you get the Rognirs I would recommend using a healthy amount of low bass EQ like that on Roon for those bass-light recordings. Frankly, my personal tastes lean toward the fast, detailed, spacious sound of the RAAL and I don't miss the bass much in light of how alive the music sounds.

Let me know if I misunderstood your question.

 

[Mhog55]

If I understand your question correctly, the Gjallarhorn GH50 JM Edition and especially the GH50 JM Mark 2, and the Rognir Planar have radically different sounds. You might expect this in light of the vastly different drivers used, a horn-loaded graphene-laminated Mylar dynamic driver for the JME2 and a planar magnetic driver for the Rognir Planar. The JME and JME2 have a liquid, dark, smooth, full, weighty presentation with a robust midrange with a lot of body and a titanic bass presentation with a lot of bass weight and bass dynamics. The JME2 especially exhibits this type of dark and liquid sound. The RP, in stark contrast, has a much faster and more detailed sound with more spaciousness and transparency. Its bass is somewhat of an enigma--extended and fast with great pitch definition but missing in action on bass-light recordings and glorious on bass-prominent recordings. This is opposed to my RAAL SR-1bs whose bass goes missing on virtually all but the most weighty recordings but whose bass quality is perhaps the best I have heard. If you get the Rognirs I would recommend using a healthy amount of low bass EQ like that on Roon for those bass-light recordings. Frankly, my personal tastes lean toward the fast, detailed, spacious sound of the RAAL and I don't miss the bass much in light of how alive the music sounds.

Let me know if I misunderstood your question.

Right on. Yes, I was referring to the Gjallarhorn and XTC, open or closed. I own the Gjallarhorn Mk1, and it's my favorite headphone. Being that John tunes Gjallarhorns, and created the XTC, I'm wanting to know if there is enough of a difference in overall sonic performance to own both. I also own the Vali Neo, tuned by John, so I don't want 3 similar headphones in my stable. Sorry for the confusion.

 

[rlawry]

Right on. Yes, I was referring to the Gjallarhorn and XTC, open or closed. I own the Gjallarhorn Mk1, and it's my favorite headphone. Being that John tunes Gjallarhorns, and created the XTC, I'm wanting to know if there is enough of a difference in overall sonic performance to own both. I also own the Vali Neo, tuned by John, so I don't want 3 similar headphones in my stable. Sorry for the confusion.

OK, let's try this again. Let me say that I am not that much of a fan of dark, warm, smooth, bass-prominent phones so I sold my Gjallarhorn JME2 phones. I would say that the XTC-Closed "nearly scapel" version has some of that sonic signature but both phones are somewhat tunable so I closed off half of one of the bass ports on the XTC-C to reduce its bass output somewhat. With wide open ports the signature is close enough to the JME2 in my book that I would not necessarily be looking for two phones with that type of sound. The XTC-C is a little lighter in tone, a little faster, has a larger soundstage, and doesn't have the bass weight or bass dynamics of the JME2 which for me is a good thing. I think I will keep my XTC-C as the bass is a little tighter and less prominent which sounds good on certain recordings where the minimal bass of the RAAL or Kennerton Rognir Planar just doesn't do it. Maybe a good example is Mark Knopfler's El Macho from Sailing to Philadelphia. This song just rocks with the type of bass found on the JME2 or XTC-C. On most music I don't really need this type of bass but here it is.

 

[Mhog55]

OK, let's try this again. Let me say that I am not that much of a fan of dark, warm, smooth, bass-prominent phones so I sold my Gjallarhorn JME2 phones. I would say that the XTC-Closed "nearly scapel" version has some of that sonic signature but both phones are somewhat tunable so I closed off half of one of the bass ports on the XTC-C to reduce its bass output somewhat. With wide open ports the signature is close enough to the JME2 in my book that I would not necessarily be looking for two phones with that type of sound. The XTC-C is a little lighter in tone, a little faster, has a larger soundstage, and doesn't have the bass weight or bass dynamics of the JME2 which for me is a good thing. I think I will keep my XTC-C as the bass is a little tighter and less prominent which sounds good on certain recordings where the minimal bass of the RAAL or Kennerton Rognir Planar just doesn't do it. Maybe a good example is Mark Knopfler's El Macho from Sailing to Philadelphia. This song just rocks with the type of bass found on the JME2 or XTC-C. On most music I don't really need this type of bass but here it is.

Awesome. I have the Gjallarhorn Mk1, and my understanding is that the low end isn't as prominent as the 2nd edition. Both my old Magni and Ibasso SR2 have more sub bass, and the Magni had quite the quite the kick in the upper bass and lower mids. From what you said, it sounds like the XTC may not have as much note weight or meat on the bone as Kennerton
Not quite as forward in nature, which is fine by me so long as it doesn't sound thin or dry. The Gjallarhorn I own has one of the best out of the head experiences I've heard from any headphone, open or closed. I'm curious how the XTC open compares.

 

[vikinguy]

How would you say the Magni compares? That was one of my favorites for rock and metal, but upper mids and lower treble were a bit too hot and spicy for me. I currently own the Vali Neo and Gjallarhorn Mk1. I don't feel the need to try anything else at this point... Except these haha.

The magni is a pretty great closed back headphone that sounds very open and spacious. It's not on or close to the same level as either XTC imo.

 

[Mhog55]

The magni is a pretty great closed back headphone that sounds very open and spacious. It's not on or close to the same level as either XTC imo.

Great!

 

[vikinguy]

Awesome, much appreciated!

Armored Saint - Can you deliver
Judas Priest - You've got another thing comin
Accept - Too high to get it right
Heavens Edge - Play Dirty
Thanks!
Have you heard or owned any Kennerton headphones by any chance?

I'm getting to it!

 

[vikinguy]

Few pics of my XTC's.



So JM can tune your set in three different ways. The Beryllium: "Scalpel", "near scalpel" and "warm yet detailed".

As for the Biowool there's two, "warm" and "warm and detailed".

I personally did warm and detailed for both of mine.

There was a tad too much bass on the biowool. I emailed him, sent them back on Monday and he tweaked the tuning and I had them back Friday. Pretty great experience.

These grills are a new limited release and are called Legend series.They're made of porous carbon. I think he's going to use them in concert with a new amp he and Coffman labs are collaborating on.

I just thought they looked badass! :0)


Woah! Here's the Legend Amp!

 

[rieku321]

These are called XTC's for a reason, they are completely addicting.

John Massaria has been modding headphones for a while and recently created his own pair, as far as I know.

I literally can't stop listening. I got my pair of Berylium open-backs tuned to Harmon 2018 (the safe play I know, but it works so well with every genre I listen to) and they are amazing. My original tune was a bit too bass-heavy (I really emphasised bass when describing the tuning, not knowing what these XTCs are capable of, or what I really wanted out of a headphone after much previous disappointment with other brands), and John re-tuned them with no problem, it's nice to know that you will have the actual maker of your headphone as after-purchase support.

Dynamic, yet not fatiguing. Smooth, but detailed. The literal best bass I've heard in any headphone (and I have tried a couple of closed-backs known for their bass, including the original TH900 and the sapphire edition of it, pad-rolled with ZMF pads, on some of the world's most expensive gear. The XTC's literally make the Fostex's sound like a joke, no offence to any Fostex fans). A powerful bass that immerses you in the music, without losing detail in the mids; how this is achieved? I have no idea. Beautifully balanced mids and treble that sparkles but isn't sibilant. But of course, every pair is custom tuned so you get to choose what you want. I listen to Electropop, EDM and Rap for anyone curious and thinking about getting them tuned a specific way based on this mini-review. I can say with certainty that if the music you listen to has an electronic foundation, you will 100% love it.

John sends each pair with a bunch of different pads, each with unique sound signatures, to give you a direct part of the customisation process. I know that the XTC Closed also have bass ports, to allow the user to control the amount of bass, so you can dial it in just right.

Customer service is also an experience you will not get with any other headphone maker, direct fast contact with him via. email to address any problems you may have with your pair, and John's entire brand is built on the foundation of making sure you are completely satisfied with your order, and he will go the extra mile to achieve this. What company allows you to ask for a custom tune, let alone a re-tune free of charge? I really don't want to sound like this review is doing John a favour, but I have to emphasise how much John cares about his customer satisfaction, he's just a good guy.

Did I mention how easy these are to run? I'm running them off a Topping L50 with a -1dB preamp and I'm still on low gain mode.

All this praise in this thread isn't some shilling scheme because John is our buddy or something (I hadn't heard about him or his work before my purchase). I haven't used end-game headphones yet, but compared to the ones I have used (Focal Clear OG and MG, LCD-X 2021, MM-500, Denon D9200, Denon D7200, Fostex TH900 (original and sapphire edition with ZMF pad swap), HIfiman Edition XS, HE6V2 to name a few), these are by far the best, the most enjoyable. I will write a full review when I have the time.

I'm saving up for the XTC Squared, pricey, but I know they'll be worth it.

 

[rlawry]

In this day and age of absolutely wretched customer service, a lost art probably never to return, it is great dealing with John who is definitely old-school in his dedication to stellar customer service. There aren't many like him out there.

 

[WiredGhost]

I recently bought a great pair of open-back headphones from him.
We have exchanged more than 50 e-mails. Is there anyone in the industry who works as closely with his customers as he does?
And the headphones arrived and they are amazing.
I have never experienced such high quality headphones with such beautiful bass.

 

[kadinh]

I am leaning on getting the beryllium because.......beryllium. is there any benefit to getting the biowool?