Meze 99 Classics Discussion + Impressions Thread
May 14, 2019 at 12:09 AM Post #5,656 of 7,677
I know the source of the varying measurements between the Classics and Noir you were talking about, PopZeus. It's located in Drop's Discussion page for the Noirs.

The poster (MLSensai) stated that the Noirs are an improvement over his Maple Classics though I wonder if the different wood on his Classics was the cause of the disparity. I wonder whether the Maple Classics sound different from those made from Walnut? They are different types of woods, after all.

The Maple Classics look divine by the way, so it's a shame they were discontinued.
 
May 14, 2019 at 2:29 PM Post #5,657 of 7,677
I know the source of the varying measurements between the Classics and Noir you were talking about, PopZeus. It's located in Drop's Discussion page for the Noirs.

The poster (MLSensai) stated that the Noirs are an improvement over his Maple Classics though I wonder if the different wood on his Classics was the cause of the disparity. I wonder whether the Maple Classics sound different from those made from Walnut? They are different types of woods, after all.

The Maple Classics look divine by the way, so it's a shame they were discontinued.

Ah yeah, that must've been what I was misremembering. Thanks for chiming in! I never would've recalled that correctly. All the online research done before buying the Noir is just a jumble of factoids now.

I tend to agree that any differences are probably due to the changes in wood material. QA on the walnut cups can't be THAT varied and MD says they the goal was to match the acoustics of the Classics. Joshua Valour reviewed both the regular Classics and the Noir and says they sound the same. (Though his take of the "new original" pads does not match with my own experiences.)
 
May 14, 2019 at 8:17 PM Post #5,658 of 7,677
Sad news, everyone. The $50 Meze balanced cable isn't available on Amazon from any US sellers at the moment, but rather is $150 from only Japanese sellers.

I changed my mind and was hoping to snag an extra cable again in case my cable breaks. I pray that it will be available again for $50 from a US-based seller in the near future.
 
May 15, 2019 at 8:40 PM Post #5,659 of 7,677
Just received my Noirs today, so here are my first impressions with it compared to the Classics I also own. Aesthetic-wise, it's beautiful. The dark cups with the black braces look simple yet also elegant at the same time.

One nagging con though is that the wood itself is WAY too easily to scratch. Mine has already several fine scratches on the cups where the cable connects to the cup themselves, and this is I absolutely hate, because I have OCD, so I hate scratches of ANY kind. I was surprised seeing the scratches actually because I only disconnected the cable ONLY once to switch the pads. There are fine scratches on both cups already within me owning the headphones for mere hours. The wood on the Classics is to my eyes, way more durable as there are no scratches even after months of owning it and numerous of cable removals and reattachments later.

Now sound-wise? With the stock pads, I find it bassier than the Classics I own (bought months ago new from Amazon) with the stock pads. With the smaller hole pads, they in my eyes sound more similar. This is strange to me because I'm guessing I own the most recent version of the Classics with the bigger pads that increases the bass response, so why don't they sound similar with the stock pads on both I wonder.

The stock pads really do increase the bass response compared to the smaller hole pads. My own experience mirrors others in that the treble and the mids are emphasized more with the new original pads compared to the stock.

I admit though, I'm a bit of an idiot and I spent countless minutes trying to replace the pads with the smaller pads until I gave up and asked my sister to do it instead. LMAO. Yeah, I'm a moron.

Anywho, these are my brief first impressions of the headphones. Other than the easily scratchable wood material as the only con, I enjoy it overall. Sound is bass and mid-centric which I prefer because I like a full-bodied sound myself with vocals on the forefront. Those dang scratches, fine as they are, are still scratches and are visible, so they do bother me though.

I'll be sure to photograph it once the nagging anxiety of my baby already having scratches on it wears off. God, how OCD sucks.
 
May 16, 2019 at 11:36 AM Post #5,660 of 7,677
Just received my Noirs today, so here are my first impressions with it compared to the Classics I also own. Aesthetic-wise, it's beautiful. The dark cups with the black braces look simple yet also elegant at the same time.

One nagging con though is that the wood itself is WAY too easily to scratch. Mine has already several fine scratches on the cups where the cable connects to the cup themselves, and this is I absolutely hate, because I have OCD, so I hate scratches of ANY kind. I was surprised seeing the scratches actually because I only disconnected the cable ONLY once to switch the pads. There are fine scratches on both cups already within me owning the headphones for mere hours. The wood on the Classics is to my eyes, way more durable as there are no scratches even after months of owning it and numerous of cable removals and reattachments later.

Now sound-wise? With the stock pads, I find it bassier than the Classics I own (bought months ago new from Amazon) with the stock pads. With the smaller hole pads, they in my eyes sound more similar. This is strange to me because I'm guessing I own the most recent version of the Classics with the bigger pads that increases the bass response, so why don't they sound similar with the stock pads on both I wonder.

The stock pads really do increase the bass response compared to the smaller hole pads. My own experience mirrors others in that the treble and the mids are emphasized more with the new original pads compared to the stock.

I admit though, I'm a bit of an idiot and I spent countless minutes trying to replace the pads with the smaller pads until I gave up and asked my sister to do it instead. LMAO. Yeah, I'm a moron.

Anywho, these are my brief first impressions of the headphones. Other than the easily scratchable wood material as the only con, I enjoy it overall. Sound is bass and mid-centric which I prefer because I like a full-bodied sound myself with vocals on the forefront. Those dang scratches, fine as they are, are still scratches and are visible, so they do bother me though.

I'll be sure to photograph it once the nagging anxiety of my baby already having scratches on it wears off. God, how OCD sucks.

Most reviews mention that they scratch really easily, so idk what you expected.

Also, OCD is a legitimate mental disorder. No one likes their posessions getting scratched, so that doesn't mean you have obsessive-compulsive disorder. Making light of it only makes you look like a fool. I've had OCD my whole life and it's about much more than visual imperfections.
 
May 16, 2019 at 7:42 PM Post #5,661 of 7,677
Most reviews mention that they scratch really easily, so idk what you expected.

Also, OCD is a legitimate mental disorder. No one likes their posessions getting scratched, so that doesn't mean you have obsessive-compulsive disorder. Making light of it only makes you look like a fool. I've had OCD my whole life and it's about much more than visual imperfections.


I do have OCD, mate. My OCD isn't just restricted to just hating scratches, believe me on that.
 
May 18, 2019 at 6:17 PM Post #5,662 of 7,677
I got Brainwavz velour in today and popped them on the Noir. Not impressed, sound signature was all kinds of messed up. There didn't seem to be a way to get them seated under the lip the way the stock pads fit, so I had to stretch them all the way over the outside of the cups which ruined the aesthetic as well. I've settled on the smaller pads that came with the Noir, they do a better job of taming the bass than the larger stock pads. I still bump the 125 htz band down by 3db with the eq on my LG V35, that gives me a truly fantastic sound quality for a $200 headphone.

The Brainwavz were extremely comfortable at least.
 
May 18, 2019 at 10:11 PM Post #5,663 of 7,677
Anyone use these on an airplane? Do they block enough noise for that?
If you're expecting isolation, I wouldn't recommend the 99c in this case. IEM's would be a much safer bet. I use a pair of Etymotic Hf3's w/ stock clear tri-flanges myself. :) Of course, they're a lot less fun but I like both for different reasons.
 
May 20, 2019 at 11:19 PM Post #5,669 of 7,677
Sad news, everyone. The $50 Meze balanced cable isn't available on Amazon from any US sellers at the moment, but rather is $150 from only Japanese sellers.

I changed my mind and was hoping to snag an extra cable again in case my cable breaks. I pray that it will be available again for $50 from a US-based seller in the near future.

On Meze's site, they have two balanced cables for the 99's, one is $50, plus $5 shipping to the US - https://www.mezeaudio.com/products/99-series-2-5-balanced-cable?variant=13139723616313 The other cable is a silver plated balanced cable for $199
 

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