[moedawg140]

Happy holidays!  Here is my take on the Massdrop x E-MU Purpleheart: http://www.head-fi.org/products/massdrop-x-e-mu-purpleheart-headphone/reviews/17653.
 
A very good headphone -- the gateway to the Massdrop x Fostex TH-X00 Purpleheart!
 

 

[2chinzz]

Hi can anyone tell me if I would need a portable amp to power these or can I use them straight out of my phone?

 

[fjrabon]

Hi can anyone tell me if I would need a portable amp to power these or can I use them straight out of my phone?

Straight out of your phone is fine. A higher damping factor amp will tighten the bass a little bit, but it's not that noticeable and your phone gets you 95% there with these unless you listen dangerously loud.

 

[2chinzz]

Straight out of your phone is fine. A higher damping factor amp will tighten the bass a little bit, but it's not that noticeable and your phone gets you 95% there with these unless you listen dangerously loud.

 
Awesome. I do not want to spend more on a portable dap even though it should probably sound better

 

[MattRG]

Massdrop has been shipping these out and quite a few of us have received them. I am listening to mine right now and am quite enjoying the experience. Do we have an official Head-fi thread for these?

 

[moedawg140]

Massdrop has been shipping these out and quite a few of us have received them. I am listening to mine right now and am quite enjoying the experience. Do we have an official Head-fi thread for these?

This thread is as official as you are going to get.

This thread is similar to this one: https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/fostex-x-massdrop-th-x00-review.788776/

Adore both the Massdrop x E-MU Purpleheart and TH-X00 (all variants).

 

[MattRG]

Got it, thank you. Well, the E-mu Purplehearts are quite nifty. They remind me of a portable version of the TH-X00 that has most of the same great sound quality but at less than a 1/4th of the price. If someone wanted a low cost introduction to the goodness of the Fostex Biocellulose driver then this is the headphone I would recommend.

 

[moedawg140]

Got it, thank you. Well, the E-mu Purplehearts are quite nifty. They remind me of a portable version of the TH-X00 that has most of the same great sound quality but at less than a 1/4th of the price. If someone wanted a low cost introduction to the goodness of the Fostex Biocellulose driver then this is the headphone I would recommend.

My pleasure!

The E-MU Purpleheart is great and is relatively low-priced compared to much higher-priced headphones, but the Purpleheart earcups can scratch easily, so owners should take care to keep the earcups as scratch-free as possible, if they want the earcups to remain looking as pristine as possible.

 

[igorpadrao]

There is any way I can put my hands in one of these? I love the sound signature of original CAL! (especially for games, but for music too) and I really want one of these purplehearts. But I missed the drop last year. Anyone has a clue if they will make it again or if there is any other way for me to buy it?

 

[Saoshyant]

I'll post if I see the drop happen again, as I've been keeping an eye on it as well.

 

[Saoshyant]

https://www.massdrop.com/buy/51050

 

[Saoshyant]

Well, they arrived quite quickly, alongside the Porta Pro X & Koss KPH30i, so I had quite the Massdrop bundle waiting. Of the three, these are certainly my favorite as far as sound, with the previously unknown to me KPH30i beating out the Porta Pro X for second place, although not for it's beige looks.

Initial listening so far has been done with Pink Floyd and Foo Fighters using iDSD BL, handling both of them excellently for the price. If there is any real similarity in sound between this and the X00/Teak headphones, I very well may end up with a new headphone, although I really don't need one with my current favorite.

 

[Starway]

These are truly fantastic 'fun' headphones. Listening to DeepChord I haven't heard bass so articulate from dynamic drivers before. Not for $75. For the budget-conscious, discerning basshead x audiophile whose after a good closed portable headphone.

 

[loplop]

I bought a pair of these during the first drop, about a year ago. Given that I have quite a few pairs of "better" headphones, I'm surprised how much I've used these; they simply have a nice sound signature that makes it easy to enjoy your tunes. Somewhat warm overall with a bit of softness on top, but still quite a lot of punch and detail. You get the sense the biocellulose drivers react quite quickly to the music signal, without overly edge-enhancing the presentation, which can lead to fatigue. These are not fatiguing at all, even over long listening sessions. Easy to drive, even from a portable device, but they do reveal differences in upstream amplification and "scale" as you change the setup in front of them. As mentioned ad nauseum, the isolation is poor, so don't buy these thinking they will replace your NC headphones. That said, I took these on a ~8 hour plane trip (because they are comfortable to wear, and I knew I'd be in some iffy spots during the trip and didn't want to care about $$) and I still enjoyed the experience. The design is somewhat odd for me, being a sort of combination of on-ear and over-ear; as such positioning can really impact the soundstage in odd ways. But staging is not the strength of this headphone, anyway; tonality, musicality, and enjoyment are. A steal at $75, IMO.

Now, I'd like this sound signature and biocellulose sound on a larger, more refined over-ear. I tried the Massdrop TH-X00 Purple's and was unimpressed with the V-shape sound. Anyone have ideas on what I could try next? Maybe the E-Mu Teak's (harder to get a hold of)?

 

[caenlenfromOCN]

I bought a pair of these during the first drop, about a year ago. Given that I have quite a few pairs of "better" headphones, I'm surprised how much I've used these; they simply have a nice sound signature that makes it easy to enjoy your tunes. Somewhat warm overall with a bit of softness on top, but still quite a lot of punch and detail. You get the sense the biocellulose drivers react quite quickly to the music signal, without overly edge-enhancing the presentation, which can lead to fatigue. These are not fatiguing at all, even over long listening sessions. Easy to drive, even from a portable device, but they do reveal differences in upstream amplification and "scale" as you change the setup in front of them. As mentioned ad nauseum, the isolation is poor, so don't buy these thinking they will replace your NC headphones. That said, I took these on a ~8 hour plane trip (because they are comfortable to wear, and I knew I'd be in some iffy spots during the trip and didn't want to care about $$) and I still enjoyed the experience. The design is somewhat odd for me, being a sort of combination of on-ear and over-ear; as such positioning can really impact the soundstage in odd ways. But staging is not the strength of this headphone, anyway; tonality, musicality, and enjoyment are. A steal at $75, IMO.

Now, I'd like this sound signature and biocellulose sound on a larger, more refined over-ear. I tried the Massdrop TH-X00 Purple's and was unimpressed with the V-shape sound. Anyone have ideas on what I could try next? Maybe the E-Mu Teak's (harder to get a hold of)?

ZMF Blackwood or ZMF Vibro MK2, personally, I found it to be lightyears better than the Fostex lineup.