[Crackerman]

This has probably been asked a million times by now, but this is a long thread. Which out of the RX700 and RX900 would be good for someone who has a real problem with harshness/sibilance? If either of them would be any good that is.

I mean a real problem, I'm selling my D1001's because I find them too sibilant. The only headphones whose sound signature I've really really loved are the triple.fi 10's. I don't have an amp either, just a budget hotaudio usb dac.

 

[spacemanspliff]

Neither of the RX are really sharp sounding. Depends on what you want to use them for too. What types of music? Gaming? Movies? Etc. More data please.

So cool to see these cans being enjoyed by so many. Great to have an entry level can that doesn't suck.

 

[Crackerman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by spacemanspliff /img/forum/go_quote.gif Neither of the RX are really sharp sounding. Depends on what you want to use them for too. What types of music? Gaming? Movies? Etc. More data please. So cool to see these cans being enjoyed by so many. Great to have an entry level can that doesn't suck.

Music and movies mainly. Stuff like Black Sabbath, Zeppelin, Clutch, Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age, a lot of grunge and hard rock but also quite a lot of 80s pop (embarrassing as that is), some classical/orchestral, some electronic. I like quite a warm, bassy sound but without sacrificing other frequencies.

I had a pair of Denon D5000s that I loved (again except for occasional sibilance) that I had to sell for the money if thats any help.

 

[RallyMaster]

The RX900 seems to be more prone to sibilance than the RX700. With both coming out of my Little Dot MKII, the RX900 straightaway has more hissing. Generally speaking though, the sound signatures of both are on the extra warm side and don't sound bright. However, the RX900 does go through a period when it will sound shrill and drag out the S's (prior to felt removal).

 

[Napilopez]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crackerman /img/forum/go_quote.gif Music and movies mainly. Stuff like Black Sabbath, Zeppelin, Clutch, Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age, a lot of grunge and hard rock but also quite a lot of 80s pop (embarrassing as that is), some classical/orchestral, some electronic. I like quite a warm, bassy sound but without sacrificing other frequencies. I had a pair of Denon D5000s that I loved (again except for occasional sibilance) that I had to sell for the money if thats any help.

It sounds to me like the 700s would fit the bill perfectly to me, warm,fast and joy harsh while having clean highs. They have quite a smooth sound and enjoy them plenty for the music you described.

 

[TimPrice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mangamonster /img/forum/go_quote.gif I just got my rx900's in today! I have pink noise running through them from my laptop..will leave them on for the weekend. Also, if anyone is interested, I made a video unboxing and first impressions review on my account here : YouTube - JVC HA-RX900 Headphones Unboxing

well done

 

[kite7]

I've been burning with pink noise for a few days now, doesn't sound like they changed from my initial impression. I was never disappointed with them in the first place. There's no harshness or sibilance at all. The highs are non-fatiguing and there's enough details, though not as detailed as my HD580.They're fun cans to listen to mainly because of the big sound from the bass. I think they're good cans that are hard to beat for less than $100 but not giant killers. The bass presence can make it seem as if the midrange is recessed.

 

[Napilopez]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kite7 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I've been burning with pink noise for a few days now, doesn't sound like they changed from my initial impression. I was never disappointed with them in the first place. There's no harshness or sibilance at all. The highs are non-fatiguing and there's enough details, though not as detailed as my HD580.They're fun cans to listen to mainly because of the big sound from the bass. I think they're good cans that are hard to beat for less than $100 but not giant killers. The bass presence can make it seem as if the midrange is recessed.

Interesting, are they modded? You're one of the first people I've read that hasn't noted a change(and I read this entire thread and all the other RX700 threads when researching... XD) I never got a mids-recessed feeling after the felt mod, actually quite prominent mids, and very detailed. Different ears and different sources though, and I don't have those Senn's to compare to of course XD.

The felt mod is pretty essential imo, especially since you feel the mids are recessed. Very easy to do if you haven't already; you don't even need any tools other than your hands. It really brings out the mids and highs(without adding sibilance). It's simply removing the pads, sticking a nail under the felt covering the driver holes, and pulling all the felt off so that there is only a very thin layer left from where the felt was glued(which some people choose to remove as well, though usually to a much lesser effect). Very noticeable difference imo. They sounded quite muddy to me before.

I didn't see your earlier post about dampening: yes there are mods for that, I'll go look for the link.

 

[mangamonster]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TimPrice /img/forum/go_quote.gif well done

Thanks!

 

[Napilopez]

Here is the link for the Felt mod. The number one and most essential mod for the RX700s imo, as they truly bring out the mids (and highs to a lesser extent) without adding harshness, eliminating their muddy or veiled or recessed feeling. The link is for the RX900, but applies for the 700s as well, except that you don't have to remove the acoustic lens because there is none on the RX700. The pictures aren't there atm, but it's fairly straightforward. http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f4/jvc...-about-381303/

Heres the link for the dampening mod to tame the bass boominess. Also included here is the foam stuffing mod which I've got to try because the pads look extremely comfortable after that XD: http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f4/jvc...0-mods-435809/

 

[mangamonster]

Sweet! That dampening mod looks interesting. I think that there's a cabinet shelf that's lined with the same material in my condo...must sever a piece off without the fiance noticing

 

[kite7]

The felt mod and foam mod to make the pads pop up more were done in early stages within 10 hours usage. The impressions above are from the felt removed and the pads raised by foam. I'll try to listen to them with only the felt mod and remove the foam put under the pads. Compared to sennheiser's HD series and especially any grado, the mids definitely sounds more laid back. I'll report back tomorrow.

 

[timmyGCSE]

too much bass on the RX700's? wow..erm..I find the bass pretty damn tight and no where near overpowering..well I won't be recommending K518DJ's to you then

one thing I find about the RX700's..they're heavy and my neck aches after a while

 

[kite7]

So I removed the foam mod and left the felt removed, the mids sound more forward but everything else sounds congested. The treble detail disappeared too. I prefer the sound with the foam to raise the pads by far, I'd say it's a pretty essential mod. The mod also adds sound stage depth as well

 

[mangamonster]

Ohhhh Myyyyy Garsh!!!!!!

So I've been burning in my rx900's for almost 48 hrs now. I fetched my leftover acoustic foam out from the closet and cut out a couple square pieces and fashioned them into donuts with my scissors. Was much easier than I thought, no re-do's.

Let me tell you...these no longer have the $55 sound that came out of the box. They are easily a $150 pair of cans now. It's as if they mutated from being fed pink noise in two nights. If anyone is doubtful about burn in 'myths', do a blind test with these, truly. I would venture to say it would be an inexpensive test

Everything has opened up, mostly for the better. Music is a little bit more airy now and there is separation now where it was completely absent before...literally. The 1 dimensional muddy sound that came out of the box is completely absent. Bass definitely is the weakness though. It's not yet controlled as much as I would like. Everything else is good. Very nice mids and highs. Cool thing was while listening to Norah Jones' "Young Blood", I was able to pick up the mic feed when it was turned on in the beginning of the song. Pretty bad ass.

There are a few cons though.

- After the foam mod, it is a bit tighter around my melon. More so than I'd like. But, I'll suffer through it as I'd rather take the better SQ any day of the week.

- The bass....fart cannon comes to mind. A lot of the low end is drowned out bigtime by cavernous fart projectiles. That's all there is to it. BUT...there's a dampening mod here on the forums that I'm going to do to try and tame that wicked beast. We'll see how that goes.

-Oddly enough, they don't sound too good on a standard DAP (ipod, iriver, Macbook pro) or any source that wasn't amped properly. They shined ONLY when I hooked them up to my s:flo2, nuforce and my NAD. Actually, they sound best on my sflo2 by a noticeable amount. Really controlled, good detail/separation, and the drowny bass is a bit tighter. So a good/decent amp is a must if you want to suck out the best from these phones.

Compared to my d2000's, they are airy and spacious where the d2000's are not (much). This should be no surprise though, considering that the d2000 is closed while the rx900's are semi open. Cool thing about the 900's are that they have a bit of a closed headphone feel too.

I think after the burn in and modding, these cans would be great for leisurely listening, gaming and watching movies. They are not up to par for critical listening, but I think they are an amazing beginner purchase for anyone wanting to get into audiophile territory.

I'm gonna go burn them in for another 40 hrs or so...we'll see what happens