Monolith M1570C (and M1070C) - Closed Back Planar Headphones

[povidlo]

Does anyone have any experience running these on a portable source like the Qudelix 5K? It seems technically possible. Any recommendations for aftermarket balanced cables? Thanks!

You'd need something beefier. With go blu, that has more vrms than 5k, they sound decent when eq presets are turned on. Something like gryphon is more suitable for them, they sound pretty good together.

This is the exact cable I am using with them now. Various termination and length options are available. Matches well.

https://a.aliexpress.com/_m0KYkgw

 

[CopperFox]

I've now had the M1070C for about 3 months and after some (extensive) modding they've taken over the spot as my #1 headphones from the (extensively) modded M1060C.

These are quite hard to drive with 60 ohms impedance and 90db sensitivity, roughly the same as Abyss AB1266 but less so than HE6(se) or LCD4. So these will benefit from a more powerful amplifier. Conversely, with the higher impedance (than M1060C) these can have better impedance matching with tube amps if they're powerful enough current-wise.

EDIT: It seems that the manufacturer's specs have changed and are now 60 ohms and 97db. However, those are the same as for the M1570C and ASR measured M1570C at 64 ohms.

I'm happy to report that the same kinds of mods that work with the M1060C work well with these too. However, the M1070C's overall structure is clearly less modding-friendly and the mods can be more diffcult and risky to implement than with the M1060C.

Here are some measurements from my MiniDSP EARS:

(The 4,5kHz spikes may not be real as the EARS sees nearly all of my headphones as having one)



M1070C stock vs HE6se



M1070C stock vs M1070C modded



HE6se vs M1070c modded.

As you can see from the last graph, the difference between the modded M1070C and HE6se is close to how you would EQ HE6se to make them Harman correct.

Compared to the stock M1070C the mods gave more bass, more treble, more warmth and more accurate mids. What the graphs don't show is that soundstage was vastly improved and any harshness/roughness removed. I suppose there are still some things that could be done to further fine tune them but at the moment I'm too happy with them to be bothered.

The mods I did included the following:
-Remove front fazors and their plate
-Remove rear fazors and install some of my own design ( for this the stock fazors needed to be bent and broke off their plate, as the plate itself is needed there for many reasons)
-Remove all of the thick stock damping material and replace it with better material in better shapes
-Use these pads in 110mm size

So in the end with the mods the HP's are fairly harman correct, have good soundstage and detail and the kind of bass that comes with the Audeze-style wide and flat magnet structure. They do need a powerful amplifier though as was stated a few posts back.

 

[xSDMx]

I'm surprised how quiet it is in here with presumably all the new M1570C owners from the monoprice blowout.

 

[theangelboy]

I'm surprised how quiet it is in here with presumably all the new M1570C owners from the monoprice blowout.

Well, I'm an "owner" but I can't really post about it. I bought one the morning it went on sale and it hasn't shipped yet. I suspect those of us that cheaped out and did free shipping are getting put at the bottom of the priority list.

 

[OldDude04]

I'm surprised how quiet it is in here with presumably all the new M1570C owners from the monoprice blowout.

I just got mine in today but haven't had a chance to give them a listen yet. I know that some of the others we're still waiting on theirs so it'll probably be next week before the thread perks up.

Well, I'm an "owner" but I can't really post about it. I bought one the morning it went on sale and it hasn't shipped yet. I suspect those of us that cheaped out and did free shipping are getting put at the bottom of the priority list.

I did the free shipping as well and mine came today. I'm not sure what criteria they're using to be honest, lol.

 

[dstarr3]

Same, no shipping yet

 

[dstarr3]

I remember when I had the open 1570, the oratory EQ absolutely made the headphone. However, oratory hasn't made a 1570C EQ yet. Has anyone tried his open EQ on the C?

 

[OldDude04]

I've spent about an hour and a half listening to my new 1570C today. I think it's just ok without EQ, it's lacking the low end grunt of other Monolith headphones. I will say that it has a great wide sound stage for a closed back. With EQ however, the 1570C really shines. It's very receptive to the changes. I will probably open them up at some point and play around with different damping materials to further tweak the sound. I'm not 100% sure that I would be as excited about them at the full $600 MSRP, but at $185 this is the steal of the year for sure.

 

[pbui44]

I've spent about an hour and a half listening to my new 1570C today. I think it's just ok without EQ, it's lacking the low end grunt of other Monolith headphones. I will say that it has a great wide sound stage for a closed back. With EQ however, the 1570C really shines. It's very receptive to the changes. I will probably open them up at some point and play around with different damping materials to further tweak the sound. I'm not 100% sure that I would be as excited about them at the full $600 MSRP, but at $185 this is the steal of the year for sure.

Unless you do not care about that $185 you spent for that great deal, I would leave that M1570C alone and just play it as much as you want in stock form, until the warranty finally finishes. Then, you can mod all you want.

 

[OldDude04]

Unless you do not care about that $185 you spent for that great deal, I would leave that M1570C alone and just play it as much as you want in stock form, until the warranty finally finishes. Then, you can mod all you want.

Great advice for sure, but I'm a modder at heart. I've modded every Monolith headphone I've owned so far, plus a few from other brands as well. HERE are some pics of when I modded my 2 pairs of M1060C's. I definitely voided their warranties, lol. The 1570C will probably not be as in depth as I don't feel the need to change the headband, but they could definitely use some color on the cups or something.

 

[pbui44]

Great advice for sure, but I'm a modder at heart. I've modded every Monolith headphone I've owned so far, plus a few from other brands as well. HERE are some pics of when I modded my 2 pairs of M1060C's. I definitely voided their warranties, lol. The 1570C will probably not be as in depth as I don't feel the need to change the headband, but they could definitely use some color on the cups or something.

I forgot all about those modded M1060Cs. I guess the warranty advice was for everyone else, then.

 

[OldDude04]

I've decided the M1570C's are definitely keepers. I knew I liked them alot when I started planning their aesthetic changes. I've requested a quote from Hart Audio for a custom cable for them and I'm pretty sure I'm going to do a custom paint color on the cups. I also went through my giant bag of ear pads and tried a bunch. The Audeze Vegans were really good but I ended up using THESE 120mm sheepskin pads from Aliexpress because they added some good low end.

 

[OldDude04]

Color me impressed. Monoprice has included fazors on both the ear pad side and the cup side. I've always had to add them or do the fuzzor mod on previous Monolith headphones.





And now it's time to play with the damping and see what can be done.

 

[disagree]

Just got these from fedex today and I got to say, they are heavy but comfortable. Some headphones I have used were light but the shape of them made it feel like my head is being grabbed. I definitely got used to the weight and only notice how heavy it is when I lean down to look at my phone. Don't know what to say about sound but they sound great in my ears and for 180ish usd I do not regret buying them one bit.

 

[dstarr3]

Yeah, back when I had the open M1570, I didn't mind the weight itself, it was the weight in addition to its almost-zero clamp. If I leaned forward just a bit, they'd fall off my head. Wearing them was like balancing a big pillow on my head. Didn't hurt or anything, but if I sat or moved wrong, down it went.

But I paid $400 for that headphone. Since I got the closed for less than half that, I'll be happy to just cope. lol