Yes, the COSMO and the PARA share the same magnetic plate for attaching pads, of the same dimensions and cutout.
Moondrop PARA, PARA-II, VENUS and COSMO (fitted with the Brainwavz Memory Foam Hybrid Earpads XL Size and ZMF Universe Lambskin perforated pads or ZMF BE2 Lambskin perforated pads or ZMF Caldera Lambskin Thick (top and side perf) pads) Discussion.
Yes, the COSMO and the PARA share the same magnetic plate for attaching pads, of the same dimensions and cutout.
Hello everyone.
I've just given my Moondrop PARA headphones (8 Ohm impedance) requipped with the EP-100A upgrade pads, to a musician friend; I've made him a cable extension with an adapter for connecting the headphones directly to the speaker terminals of a small Onkyo A-9211 integrated amplifier for speakers that my friend owns; the headphones work great with this integrated speaker amplifier (of only 2 x 40 W on 8 Ohm) (see photo of the amp found on the internet, in spoiler).
As the volume potentiometer on this modestly-powered speaker amplifier is very progressive, listening to this headphones, directly connected to the speaker outputs, is done with a volume potentiometer position between 9 and 10 H (for medium to loud listening). No murmur is heard on the speaker connection with these headphones.
As the integrated loudspeaker amplifier is equipped with two tone knobs (bass and treble), the bass potentiometer is boosted by around +2 to +3 dB; the treble potentiometer is in neutral position.
The usual precaution is, of course, to reset this amplifier's volume potentiometer to zero before each use of headphones.
PS: the ONKYO A-9211 integrated amplifier features two selectable speaker outputs (A and B).
If you find this vintage integrated loudspeaker amplifier (or its equivalent) second-hand, or if you already have an equivalent integrated loudspeaker amplifier at home, it's both an economical and very effective option for driving Moondrop PARA headphones correctly; headphone amplifiers are often not powerful enough to properly drive these headphones of low sensitivity with only 8 Ohm impedance, with enough gain and power; headphones very demanding in amplification power (allow at least 2 to 3 Watt on 8 Ohm).
I've just given my Moondrop PARA headphones (8 Ohm impedance) requipped with the EP-100A upgrade pads, to a musician friend; I've made him a cable extension with an adapter for connecting the headphones directly to the speaker terminals of a small Onkyo A-9211 integrated amplifier for speakers that my friend owns; the headphones work great with this integrated speaker amplifier (of only 2 x 40 W on 8 Ohm) (see photo of the amp found on the internet, in spoiler).
As the volume potentiometer on this modestly-powered speaker amplifier is very progressive, listening to this headphones, directly connected to the speaker outputs, is done with a volume potentiometer position between 9 and 10 H (for medium to loud listening). No murmur is heard on the speaker connection with these headphones.
As the integrated loudspeaker amplifier is equipped with two tone knobs (bass and treble), the bass potentiometer is boosted by around +2 to +3 dB; the treble potentiometer is in neutral position.
The usual precaution is, of course, to reset this amplifier's volume potentiometer to zero before each use of headphones.
PS: the ONKYO A-9211 integrated amplifier features two selectable speaker outputs (A and B).
If you find this vintage integrated loudspeaker amplifier (or its equivalent) second-hand, or if you already have an equivalent integrated loudspeaker amplifier at home, it's both an economical and very effective option for driving Moondrop PARA headphones correctly; headphone amplifiers are often not powerful enough to properly drive these headphones of low sensitivity with only 8 Ohm impedance, with enough gain and power; headphones very demanding in amplification power (allow at least 2 to 3 Watt on 8 Ohm).
Hello everyone.
I've just given my Moondrop PARA headphones (8 Ohm impedance) requipped with the EP-100A upgrade pads, to a musician friend; I've made him a cable extension with an adapter for connecting the headphones directly to the speaker terminals of a small Onkyo A-9211 integrated amplifier for speakers that my friend owns; the headphones work great with this integrated speaker amplifier (of only 2 x 40 W on 8 Ohm) (see photo of the amp found on the internet, in spoiler).
As the volume potentiometer on this modestly-powered speaker amplifier is very progressive, listening to this headphones, directly connected to the speaker outputs, is done with a volume potentiometer position between 9 and 10 H (for medium to loud listening). No murmur is heard on the speaker connection with these headphones.
As the integrated loudspeaker amplifier is equipped with two tone knobs (bass and treble), the bass potentiometer is boosted by around +2 to +3 dB; the treble potentiometer is in neutral position.
The usual precaution is, of course, to reset this amplifier's volume potentiometer to zero before each use of headphones.
PS: the ONKYO A-9211 integrated amplifier features two selectable speaker outputs (A and B).
If you find this vintage integrated loudspeaker amplifier (or its equivalent) second-hand, or if you already have an equivalent integrated loudspeaker amplifier at home, it's both an economical and very effective option for driving Moondrop PARA headphones correctly; headphone amplifiers are often not powerful enough to properly drive these headphones of low sensitivity with only 8 Ohm impedance, with enough gain and power; headphones very demanding in amplification power (allow at least 2 to 3 Watt on 8 Ohm).
What does the "adapter for connecting the headphones directly to the speaker terminals" look like / consist of? Thanks. I want to try and do the same.
It's quite simple to make: buy/use a basic stereo 3.5 mm jack extension cable (male/female) as shown below (e.g. 1.5 m long).
Connect the female plug of this basic stereo 3.5 mm jack extension cable to the male 3.5 mm jack of the PARA's stock cable; cut the male plug of this basic stereo 3.5 mm jack extension cable and strip the 4 copper wires coming out of it to connect/solder them to 4 larger copper wires (of the speaker cable type you can buy by the meter) that you'll connect to the speaker terminals of the integrated amplifier.
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Thanks for that. This would only work on Para or another headphone that is about 8Ohm impedance right? Venus is 18Ohm, so it might destroy the speaker amplifier.It's quite simple to make: buy/use a basic stereo 3.5 mm jack extension cable (male/female) as shown below (e.g. 1.5 m long).
Connect the female plug of this basic stereo 3.5 mm jack extension cable to the male 3.5 mm jack of the PARA's stock cable; cut the male plug of this basic stereo 3.5 mm jack extension cable and strip the 4 copper wires coming out of it to connect/solder them to 4 larger copper wires (of the speaker cable type you can buy by the meter) that you'll connect to the speaker terminals of the integrated amplifier.
It will work just as well with the VENUS (and COSMO); a load of 18 Ohm (that of the VENUS), or 15 Ohm (that of the COSMO) and of course 8 Ohm (that of the PARA) are no problem for a loudspeaker amplifier designed for an 8 Ohm load (or even for an 4 Ohm load).
On the other hand, avoid short-circuits when connecting cables; personally, I use a multimeter that beeps when two wires are in electrical continuity to check the connections and polarities (+/-) for the end-to-end connection of the cable and its extension, i.e. from the 3.5 mm x 2 jack male connectors of the headphone stock cable (on the headphone side), to the 4 speaker wires that will be connected to the integrated amplifier's terminal block.
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Hello everyone.
I've updated the long list of well-known headphones which you can view in the spoilers at the link below and can be compared for tone (and the FR) to my current tone reference, the Moondrop COSMO re-equipped with the PARA's hybrid pads.
Note the base line (= 0 dB relative) is that of the USOUND3V0 Optimum HIFI Target.
Link: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/moo...-pads-discussion.970569/page-30#post-18180291
In addition to most of the high-end Hifiman planar headphones (including the original Susvara), the Audeze LCD-5, the Focal Utopia (2022), you'll also find the Stax SR-009 and the brand-new Stax flagship, the SR-X9000.
Both high-end Stax electostatic headphones unfortunately share the same level hump of around + 5dB SPL at 1-1.5 KHz making the upper midrange shouty (especially for female vocals), as explained here : https://www.head-fi.org/threads/moo...-pads-discussion.970569/page-30#post-18182535
I've updated the long list of well-known headphones which you can view in the spoilers at the link below and can be compared for tone (and the FR) to my current tone reference, the Moondrop COSMO re-equipped with the PARA's hybrid pads.
Note the base line (= 0 dB relative) is that of the USOUND3V0 Optimum HIFI Target.
Link: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/moo...-pads-discussion.970569/page-30#post-18180291
In addition to most of the high-end Hifiman planar headphones (including the original Susvara), the Audeze LCD-5, the Focal Utopia (2022), you'll also find the Stax SR-009 and the brand-new Stax flagship, the SR-X9000.
Both high-end Stax electostatic headphones unfortunately share the same level hump of around + 5dB SPL at 1-1.5 KHz making the upper midrange shouty (especially for female vocals), as explained here : https://www.head-fi.org/threads/moo...-pads-discussion.970569/page-30#post-18182535
Hifiman Susvara unveiled or Hifiman Susvara original or Moondrop COSMO requipped with the PARA's hybrid pads. Which to choose?
A few answers here ( https://www.head-fi.org/threads/moo...al-alternative-to-the-hifiman-susvara.973271/ ), on the specific Moondrop COSMO thread; a thread I had initially opened in the head-fi "High-end Audio Forum" section but which was curiously moved this morning, without explanation, to the head-fi "Headphones (full-size)" section, as if the COSMO (Moondrop's new flagship headphone) was not ultimately a high-end headphone (which it is, however)...
A few answers here ( https://www.head-fi.org/threads/moo...al-alternative-to-the-hifiman-susvara.973271/ ), on the specific Moondrop COSMO thread; a thread I had initially opened in the head-fi "High-end Audio Forum" section but which was curiously moved this morning, without explanation, to the head-fi "Headphones (full-size)" section, as if the COSMO (Moondrop's new flagship headphone) was not ultimately a high-end headphone (which it is, however)...
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Hellow every one.
As the high-tech Moondrop COSMO headphone, the brand's current flagship, is a direct competitor to the Hifiman Susvara (at least in it original version (OG)), both for technical performance and tone (*) (but not for price), it's worth reading the retrospective of the famous Hifiman Susvara headphone (original version) as written by the excellent headphone magazine unheardlab.com: link : https://unheardlab.com/2024/07/04/review-of-hifiman-susvara-the-flagship-in-retrospect/
Knowing that the same headphone magazine will soon be releasing a review of the Moondrop COSMO (after this Hifiman Susvara retrospective). Upcoming article soon ...
(*) For the version of COSMO re-equipped with the PARA's hybrid pads
As the high-tech Moondrop COSMO headphone, the brand's current flagship, is a direct competitor to the Hifiman Susvara (at least in it original version (OG)), both for technical performance and tone (*) (but not for price), it's worth reading the retrospective of the famous Hifiman Susvara headphone (original version) as written by the excellent headphone magazine unheardlab.com: link : https://unheardlab.com/2024/07/04/review-of-hifiman-susvara-the-flagship-in-retrospect/
Knowing that the same headphone magazine will soon be releasing a review of the Moondrop COSMO (after this Hifiman Susvara retrospective). Upcoming article soon ...
(*) For the version of COSMO re-equipped with the PARA's hybrid pads
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Moondrop got quite a supporter in you eric65. 
Hello everyone.
High-end DAC/AMP recommended by Moondrop for its new flagship, the Moondrop COSMO.
Output power:
2 x 10 W (2 x 10.000 mW) on 16 Ohm (balanced output).
2 x 3.3 W (2 x 3300 mW) on 16 Ohm (unbalanced output).
High-end DAC/AMP recommended by Moondrop for its new flagship, the Moondrop COSMO.
TOPPING DX9 DAC AK4499EQ Headphone Amplifier NFCA Bluetooth 5.1 AptX LDAC 32bit 768kHz DSD512 Silver
https://www.audiophonics.fr/en/dac-...-ldac-32bit-768khz-dsd512-silver-p-18396.htmlOutput power:
2 x 10 W (2 x 10.000 mW) on 16 Ohm (balanced output).
2 x 3.3 W (2 x 3300 mW) on 16 Ohm (unbalanced output).
Good evening.
It's been a while since I last reported on listening to my COSMO headphones (re-equipped with the PARA's hybrid pads that never leave it, such is the success of the marriage).
Tonight (in France) I'll be talking about Jim Morrison, the late singer of The Doors (late 1960s - early 1970s).
Like all mythical singers (who left their mark on their era), I love the idea of being able to "resurrect" the singer's voice thanks to live recordings of the period, with headphones that reproduce the voice as faithfully as possible.
Tonight I used two sets of headphones to make sure, on this live concert entitled "The Doors Live At The Hollywood Bowl, Jully 5, 1968" (just 56 years ago).
The Kennerton Thror (SN THR-001) and the Moondrop COSMO (re-eqquiped with the PARA's hybrid pads); YouTube video of this live concert on my high-end main audio system (Audiomat Maestro Reférence Dac and Viva 2A3 tube amp).
It is amusing to note that the price of the Kennerton Thror (3150 Euros in France) alone costs more than, for example, the sum represented by the price of the Moondrop COSMO (999 Euros) + the price of the Moondrop PARA (300 Euros) + the price of the fairly high-end DAC/AMP TOPPING DX9 (1300 Euros) presented in my previous post.
Well, when it comes to the natural, credible and pleasant rendering of the late Jim Morrison's male voice, there's no photo finish between the Thror and the COSMO (re-equipped with the PARA's hybrid pads): while the COSMO has everything you'd expect from exceptional headphones (resolution, tonal accuracy, finesse, fluidity, nuances ..), the Thror sounds comparatively unnatural and bizarre, bordering on the unpleasant, with marked accents in mids that are out of place for a fair tonality.
The recording quality of this live concert (from 1968) is a little dated, especially for the rendering of the Doors drums, which lack a little dynamic on this live show, so I gave myself a treat by watching (and listening to) again the two videos of the drums cover by the talented young percussionist Sina Drums, just for the pep (energy) and finesse of the playing (and rendering) of this drums on the music of the Doors ;I love the rendering of the COSMO, which I'm ecstatic about; the Thror, well, the Thror thrills me a lot less (lack of bass, lack of treble; lack of finesse; not to mention the weirdness of the midrange on both male and female vocals).
Kennerton Thror versus Moondrop COSMO.
In the end, the COSMO is the great winner, at least on Doors music.
It's been a while since I last reported on listening to my COSMO headphones (re-equipped with the PARA's hybrid pads that never leave it, such is the success of the marriage).
Tonight (in France) I'll be talking about Jim Morrison, the late singer of The Doors (late 1960s - early 1970s).
Like all mythical singers (who left their mark on their era), I love the idea of being able to "resurrect" the singer's voice thanks to live recordings of the period, with headphones that reproduce the voice as faithfully as possible.
Tonight I used two sets of headphones to make sure, on this live concert entitled "The Doors Live At The Hollywood Bowl, Jully 5, 1968" (just 56 years ago).
The Kennerton Thror (SN THR-001) and the Moondrop COSMO (re-eqquiped with the PARA's hybrid pads); YouTube video of this live concert on my high-end main audio system (Audiomat Maestro Reférence Dac and Viva 2A3 tube amp).
It is amusing to note that the price of the Kennerton Thror (3150 Euros in France) alone costs more than, for example, the sum represented by the price of the Moondrop COSMO (999 Euros) + the price of the Moondrop PARA (300 Euros) + the price of the fairly high-end DAC/AMP TOPPING DX9 (1300 Euros) presented in my previous post.
Well, when it comes to the natural, credible and pleasant rendering of the late Jim Morrison's male voice, there's no photo finish between the Thror and the COSMO (re-equipped with the PARA's hybrid pads): while the COSMO has everything you'd expect from exceptional headphones (resolution, tonal accuracy, finesse, fluidity, nuances ..), the Thror sounds comparatively unnatural and bizarre, bordering on the unpleasant, with marked accents in mids that are out of place for a fair tonality.
The recording quality of this live concert (from 1968) is a little dated, especially for the rendering of the Doors drums, which lack a little dynamic on this live show, so I gave myself a treat by watching (and listening to) again the two videos of the drums cover by the talented young percussionist Sina Drums, just for the pep (energy) and finesse of the playing (and rendering) of this drums on the music of the Doors ;I love the rendering of the COSMO, which I'm ecstatic about; the Thror, well, the Thror thrills me a lot less (lack of bass, lack of treble; lack of finesse; not to mention the weirdness of the midrange on both male and female vocals).
Kennerton Thror versus Moondrop COSMO.
In the end, the COSMO is the great winner, at least on Doors music.
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Hello everyone.
Finally, here is a first review of the Moondrop Cosmo by headfonics.com : link : https://headfonics.com/moondrop-cosmo-review/
waiting for the one to come by https://unheardlab.com/measurements/, which will be soon ...
Enjoy your reading.
Finally, here is a first review of the Moondrop Cosmo by headfonics.com : link : https://headfonics.com/moondrop-cosmo-review/
waiting for the one to come by https://unheardlab.com/measurements/, which will be soon ...
Enjoy your reading.
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PROSHello everyone.
Finally, here is a first review of the Moondrop Cosmo by headfonics.com : link : https://headfonics.com/moondrop-cosmo-review/
waiting for the one to come by https://unheardlab.com/measurements/, which will be soon ...
Enjoy your reading.
Defined, rounded vocal performances
Great midrange resolution
Low levels of distortion
CONS
Slightly veiled performance from the stock pads.
Ideal synergy is more source dependent than other headphones tested.
https://headfonics.com/moondrop-cosmo-review/
Cosmo "veiled" or Cosmo "unveiled", make your choice!
Cosmo "veiled" for the soundstage and treble extension (confined), with an emphasised midrange (from 800 Hz to 1.5 KHz) and recessive treble, with voices that can become shouty, but without sibilance.
= Cosmo with the stock pads providing a (deliberate?) colouring sound, by distorting the voices that appear prominant and "special" (less natural).
Moondrop Cosmo "veiled" equipped with its stock pads.
See also : https://www.head-fi.org/threads/moo...-pads-discussion.970569/page-30#post-18182535
Cosmo "unveiled" for the soundstage and treble extension (liberated), with a balanced midrange and an ultra-linear frequency response between 20 Hz and 9 KHz, with the exception of a small level SPL rise of +2.5 dB at 3 KHz, which (slightly) reinforces clarity of the headphones (as for the snare drum) and intelligibility for voices, without making them shouty for all that (with natural, clear, resolute, precise (for tone) and credible voices). COSMO headphones with exemplary neutrality, not to mention very high resolution, fluidity and finesse across the entire audio spectrum, the black background and the holographic precision of the spatial scene.
= Cosmo requipped with the excellent PARA's hybrid pads, which are also more comfortable to wear than the Cosmo's stock pads due to their design.
Moondrop COSMO "unveiled" equipped with the excellent PARA's hybrid pads (microperforated on the inside) which are more comfortable to wear and also much better (less colourful) for tone than stock pads.
Ultra-linear frequency response between 20 Hz and 9 KHz, with the exception of a small level SPL rise of +2.5 dB at 3 KHz, which (slightly) reinforces clarity of the headphones (as for the snare drum) and intelligibility for voices, without making them shouty for all (with natural, clear, resolute, precise (for tone) and credible voices).
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Hello everyone.
Further to my previous posts, you're probably wondering how to get a COSMO "unveiled", and at what price ?, given that the price of the COSMO "veiled" (with its stock pads) is $899.00 USD (999.00 €TTC in France).
While we wait (and strongly hope) that Moondrop will have the intelligence and the excellent idea to deliver, at a later date, their flagship COSMO with alternative pads to the stock pads (using, for example, the PARA's excellent hybrid pads) (do we ever know?), well, I see no other solution than to buy the Moondrop PARA ($299. 00 USD) in addition to the Moondrop COSMO, to be able to recover the PARA's excellent hybrid pads and install them on the COSMO (same magnetic attachment), replacing the stock pads (very average for tone, and also average wearing comfort).
The extra cost of switching from COSMO “veiled” to “unveiled” will therefore be $299.00 USD; much cheaper than switching, for example, from the original Susvara to the “unveilled” Susvara ($2000. 00 USD) knowing that, technically speaking, the COSMO is as good as the original Susvara, and that its “unveiled” version of the COSMO (re-equipped with the PARA's excellent hybrid pads) is slightly better tonally than the original Susvara (with more clarity and intellgibility of the voices than the original Susvara, which has the voices a little recessed).
You should also know that the $899.00 USD + $299.00 USD required to get a COSMO "unveiled" (re-equipped with the PARA's hybrid pads) is much less expensive than, for example, the purchase of Kennerton's former flagship planar (the THROR), which cost €3,150.00 inc VAT in Europe, and is technically and tonally far inferior to the Moondrop COSMO re-equipped with the excellent PARA's hybrid pads.
As for the Moondrop PARA stripped of its excellent hybrid pads (in favor of the COSMO), you can buy, for $25.49 USD, the Moondrop upgrade pads for the PARA headphone (part number EP-100A), which are perfectly suited to the PARA (because they attenuating the PARA's excess high-frequency brightness observed with the PARA's stock hybrid pads).
You can then keep these upgraded PARA headphones, or possibly resell them...
(Note: the upgrade pads for PARA, Moondrop EP-100A pads (which are not internally microperforated, unlike the PARA's stock hybrid pads), are less suitable for COSMO, because they attenuating the treble too much compared with the same PARA's hybrid pads used on COSMO).
Further to my previous posts, you're probably wondering how to get a COSMO "unveiled", and at what price ?, given that the price of the COSMO "veiled" (with its stock pads) is $899.00 USD (999.00 €TTC in France).
While we wait (and strongly hope) that Moondrop will have the intelligence and the excellent idea to deliver, at a later date, their flagship COSMO with alternative pads to the stock pads (using, for example, the PARA's excellent hybrid pads) (do we ever know?), well, I see no other solution than to buy the Moondrop PARA ($299. 00 USD) in addition to the Moondrop COSMO, to be able to recover the PARA's excellent hybrid pads and install them on the COSMO (same magnetic attachment), replacing the stock pads (very average for tone, and also average wearing comfort).
The extra cost of switching from COSMO “veiled” to “unveiled” will therefore be $299.00 USD; much cheaper than switching, for example, from the original Susvara to the “unveilled” Susvara ($2000. 00 USD) knowing that, technically speaking, the COSMO is as good as the original Susvara, and that its “unveiled” version of the COSMO (re-equipped with the PARA's excellent hybrid pads) is slightly better tonally than the original Susvara (with more clarity and intellgibility of the voices than the original Susvara, which has the voices a little recessed).
You should also know that the $899.00 USD + $299.00 USD required to get a COSMO "unveiled" (re-equipped with the PARA's hybrid pads) is much less expensive than, for example, the purchase of Kennerton's former flagship planar (the THROR), which cost €3,150.00 inc VAT in Europe, and is technically and tonally far inferior to the Moondrop COSMO re-equipped with the excellent PARA's hybrid pads.
As for the Moondrop PARA stripped of its excellent hybrid pads (in favor of the COSMO), you can buy, for $25.49 USD, the Moondrop upgrade pads for the PARA headphone (part number EP-100A), which are perfectly suited to the PARA (because they attenuating the PARA's excess high-frequency brightness observed with the PARA's stock hybrid pads).
You can then keep these upgraded PARA headphones, or possibly resell them...
(Note: the upgrade pads for PARA, Moondrop EP-100A pads (which are not internally microperforated, unlike the PARA's stock hybrid pads), are less suitable for COSMO, because they attenuating the treble too much compared with the same PARA's hybrid pads used on COSMO).
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