Monoprice Monolith M1060 and M560 Planar Headphones

[RojasTKD]

Thank you very much! I may just pick that one up.

Your welcome, glad to of been helpful.

 

[theangelboy]

Okay so I just did some paper rolling in my M1060 equipped with Audeze Vegan Pads. I tried the following under the grill but on top of the foam.

• No paper towel
  • I kinda liked it. It has a nice soft sound but the vocals are kind of muffled and unfocused sounding but if you want a relaxed sound, this would work very well.
• 3 inch circle of black party napkin
  • Not great. Strong bass but some serious treble sibilance makes itself very apparent on certain cymbal hits and other S sounds. I think this is due to how the party napkin is manufactured. Holding it up to the light it seems more akin to paper than paper towel.
• 3 inch circle of Wal-Mart made paper towels (called "Paper Towels" with no brand name and come in half sheets).
  • This isn't good either. Very similar to the party napkin it has some sibilance issues. I think it's due to the fact that it's a stiff/crunchy paper towel, unlike the Bounty paper towel that Cskippy has tried and measured.
• 3 inch circle of 2 ply toilet paper.
  • My favorite so far! Adds some treble and bass compared to no paper but no aggressive sibilance that the other options introduce. Now if only black toilet paper was more common and cheap.

I'm going to switch to toilet paper for now even though it looks silly. In my quest to find a black material that works I'm going to try cloth next. Various weights of cotton, felt, or speaker cloth might have interesting results. If I can't find anything black that works on the outside of the foam, I will start trying things under the foam or perhaps try dyeing my favorite non-black option black. I will keep everyone informed of my findings.

 

[nappiguan]

Okay so I just did some paper rolling in my M1060 equipped with Audeze Vegan Pads. I tried the following under the grill but on top of the foam.

• No paper towel
  • I kinda liked it. It has a nice soft sound but the vocals are kind of muffled and unfocused sounding but if you want a relaxed sound, this would work very well.
• 3 inch circle of black party napkin
  • Not great. Strong bass but some serious treble sibilance makes itself very apparent on certain cymbal hits and other S sounds. I think this is due to how the party napkin is manufactured. Holding it up to the light it seems more akin to paper than paper towel.
• 3 inch circle of Wal-Mart made paper towels (called "Paper Towels" with no brand name and come in half sheets).
  • This isn't good either. Very similar to the party napkin it has some sibilance issues. I think it's due to the fact that it's a stiff/crunchy paper towel, unlike the Bounty paper towel that Cskippy has tried and measured.
• 3 inch circle of 2 ply toilet paper.
  • My favorite so far! Adds some treble and bass compared to no paper but no aggressive sibilance that the other options introduce. Now if only black toilet paper was more common and cheap.

I'm going to switch to toilet paper for now even though it looks silly. In my quest to find a black material that works I'm going to try cloth next. Various weights of cotton, felt, or speaker cloth might have interesting results. If I can't find anything black that works on the outside of the foam, I will start trying things under the foam or perhaps try dyeing my favorite non-black option black. I will keep everyone informed of my findings.

Try black pantyhose. I used it on my grados and it helped with the sibilance. It is similar to speaker grill materials and can be doubled up if needed.

 

[denox]

I have a silly request, for the life of me I couldn't find paper towels in black color. If someone have spare, can I have some? More than happy to pay postage

 

[macky112]

On my bone stock m1060, I just compared w and w/o bounty paper towel, here's what I heard

With 3in paper towel, treble less harsh, voice more distant, more bass quantity

If I covered the entire back side with paper towel, sounds hollow echoy

Then I tried what's suggested a few post up, using a rectangular piece of the control top part of old pantyhose, in front of back foam and right behind driver, with no paper towel, is a half way point between wi and wow paper towel mod

Is this about right?

 

[Tullebukk]

For me, the paper towel mod was too bright, even with velour pads.

 

[Terja]

Another approach is to copy or adapt the Audeze LCD3 damping scheme; discussed earlier in the thread. Especially recommended if you're using stock pads.

 

[BuddhaBruce]

Can anyone compare to 1060s with HiFiman HE-560s?

 

[mandrake50]

Can anyone compare to 1060s with HiFiman HE-560s?

I own both, but if you can tell us what sort of comparison you want it would be helpful. Differences are many, especially the price.
What do you listen to? What is your source and amplification? What sound do you like?
I could write pages documenting the differences that I hear, but I won't. I may write a paragraph if I know what you are really looking for.

 

[pbui44]

This was from our meet in Houston, TX yesterday:

 

[cskippy]

Ahahahaha I love the white paper towel M1060s! Instant classic!

 

[BuddhaBruce]

I own both, but if you can tell us what sort of comparison you want it would be helpful. Differences are many, especially the price.
What do you listen to? What is your source and amplification? What sound do you like?
I could write pages documenting the differences that I hear, but I won't. I may write a paragraph if I know what you are really looking for.

I'm pretty new to all this so I'll try my test to explain what I'm looking for haha. I like the 560s, I love them but I feel the mids could be clearer and the bass a bit more present. I listen to everything from hip hop (old school beats), jazz, acoustic, R&B, and rock (chili peppers). But I'm not exactly sure what sound I'm looking for as I have much experience with hifi. Do you think the price difference is justified?

I'm using a Schiit Stack to power them (Magni 2u/ Modi 2u).

 

[VRacer-111]

Snellemin's rig is insane...the M1060's were vibrating on my head like a shaker trasducer and the screws in my TH-X00 PH left cup were loose when I got home... and I wasn't listening at super loud volume. M1060's are BASS MONSTER's on a rig with lots of power, ultra clean and clear BASS MONSTER'S! And even tried my modded SHP9500's...was rediculous especially when got the hair brained idea to use the same custom attenuator plates I made for spare pads on my TH-X00 ... BWWAAHHHAAA...the BASS from the SHP9500's with the attenuator plates was comically awesome...I giggled and laughed. The MrSpeakers Aeon had nothing on them! LOL

If you ever have a chance to, plug your headphones into snellemin's rig... it's an experience! Just don't let him control the volume! LOL

 

[mandrake50]

I'm pretty new to all this so I'll try my test to explain what I'm looking for haha. I like the 560s, I love them but I feel the mids could be clearer and the bass a bit more present. I listen to everything from hip hop (old school beats), jazz, acoustic, R&B, and rock (chili peppers). But I'm not exactly sure what sound I'm looking for as I have much experience with hifi. Do you think the price difference is justified?

I'm using a Schiit Stack to power them (Magni 2u/ Modi 2u).

1. TBH, I am not a huge fan of the 560. They do many things very very well, but I can't get past the tonality. They have a 5_6 K spike and a dip around 2 that just make them sound thin. I can't get past voices sounding thin and unnatural. I have modded the heck out of them (damping, grills and cables). With the judicious choice of all of that and the proper electronics (especially hybrid tube gear like the Ember with good tubes) and mostly AKM based DACs, I can listen to them and enjoy the speed other of the great qualities that they have. I should probably sell them, but then I rarely sell anything.
2. The 1060. Well I have listened but not extensively, at least not critically. First thoughts, stock, is that they are great sounding, especially for the price. They share some of the nice things about the 560, but don't have the tonal imbalance (to my ears) that makes listening to the 560 a chore. I think the bass is a bit more prominent on the 1060. The upper mids much more pleasant while still being detailed enough. I won't comment on the head stage or sound field part. I don't find any headphone that I have tried to be very good at this. Usually a matter of the perception of a few inches either way.

I think bass in planar headphones is something that has to be gotten used to. I find both headphones to have sufficient bass with good detail. It is not prominent in the mix, but it it there when called for and digs pretty deep when the program material is there. Neither will be bass monsters, but EQ can help. For quantity of bass, stock, the 1060 probably has the edge, but not by a huge amount.

If I had been able to A/B the headphones side by side when deciding to buy one or the other, stock, and considering the price, I would have bought the 1060.

Now a few caveats, before I get bet up for this opinion. A great deal of my enjoyment form and sound transducer, is based on what I want in the "naturalness of the FR. The 560s stock just don't do it for me.
There has been lots of talk in the forums here about there being considerable variability from unit to unit with the 560. Mine was a very early production model. I have really not been able to compare other 560s to mine.
Maybe mine are an aberration, though there are some out there that have expressed very similar impressions.

The Magni/Modi combo is that last system I would recommend for the 560 BTW. I had that setup for awhile. I found that it exacerbates the problem that I hear with the 560. It is a decent setup, especially for the cost, but by themselves I find them a bit thin/lean , bright and perhaps lacking bass drive. All just the opposite of what I would look for to drive the 560 or the 1060 for that matter. They did OK with the THX 600, PM-3, HP50 and other similar headphones. I even found them pretty decent with my HE 500. Just not 560.

BTW, it sounds like we listen to similar things. I do like vocals though. I would just a s soon listen to a solo performer with a guitar or piano as anything these days.

 

[BuddhaBruce]

1. TBH, I am not a huge fan of the 560. They do many things very very well, but I can't get past the tonality. They have a 5_6 K spike and a dip around 2 that just make them sound thin. I can't get past voices sounding thin and unnatural. I have modded the heck out of them (damping, grills and cables). With the judicious choice of all of that and the proper electronics (especially hybrid tube gear like the Ember with good tubes) and mostly AKM based DACs, I can listen to them and enjoy the speed other of the great qualities that they have. I should probably sell them, but then I rarely sell anything.
2. The 1060. Well I have listened but not extensively, at least not critically. First thoughts, stock, is that they are great sounding, especially for the price. They share some of the nice things about the 560, but don't have the tonal imbalance (to my ears) that makes listening to the 560 a chore. I think the bass is a bit more prominent on the 1060. The upper mids much more pleasant while still being detailed enough. I won't comment on the head stage or sound field part. I don't find any headphone that I have tried to be very good at this. Usually a matter of the perception of a few inches either way.

I think bass in planar headphones is something that has to be gotten used to. I find both headphones to have sufficient bass with good detail. It is not prominent in the mix, but it it there when called for and digs pretty deep when the program material is there. Neither will be bass monsters, but EQ can help. For quantity of bass, stock, the 1060 probably has the edge, but not by a huge amount.

If I had been able to A/B the headphones side by side when deciding to buy one or the other, stock, and considering the price, I would have bought the 1060.

Now a few caveats, before I get bet up for this opinion. A great deal of my enjoyment form and sound transducer, is based on what I want in the "naturalness of the FR. The 560s stock just don't do it for me.
There has been lots of talk in the forums here about there being considerable variability from unit to unit with the 560. Mine was a very early production model. I have really not been able to compare other 560s to mine.
Maybe mine are an aberration, though there are some out there that have expressed very similar impressions.

The Magni/Modi combo is that last system I would recommend for the 560 BTW. I had that setup for awhile. I found that it exacerbates the problem that I hear with the 560. It is a decent setup, especially for the cost, but by themselves I find them a bit thin/lean , bright and perhaps lacking bass drive. All just the opposite of what I would look for to drive the 560 or the 1060 for that matter. They did OK with the THX 600, PM-3, HP50 and other similar headphones. I even found them pretty decent with my HE 500. Just not 560.

BTW, it sounds like we listen to similar things. I do like vocals though. I would just a s soon listen to a solo performer with a guitar or piano as anything these days.

I feel like I've recently developed my love for music again. Yeah I bought the Schiit stack before the headphones and didn't think on upgrading that just yet. I know what you mean though, sometimes the highs are too bright and has a shrill to it. I'm just weighing my options to see what I can do. Ultimately, I just want to sample tons of headphones. I wanna hear the differences and the 560s are, at least to me, a great intro into the world of hifi cans.