[Terriero]

Well, you can understand this: "ménage à trois"



I love both of them and love to see fellowship between famous musicians

 

[farits]

Hi Eric. I'm now hooked on binaural recording. Venus reproduces the sound very naturally, as if in my room, her voice came to life and the rustling of objects.

 

[eric65]

Wow, the VENUS used for therapeutic purposes, with this binaural sound, for virtual massage and relaxation of the ears; amazing.

I knew that music softens the soul, but using VENUS to calm stress and migraines, for example, well, it would be a shame to deprive yourself of it.

 

[wmedrz]

As for the respective FR of the two headphones (here Abyss DIANA V2 versus Moondrop VENUS); well, there's a similarity of FR here in the bass (sealed pads), between 20 and 200 Hz, and perhaps also, pads slightly unsealed (broken seal)?
Is this a characteristic of the Abyss DIANA and Moondrop VENUS drivers?
Who knows?

Spoiler

The VENUS truly is a special headphone in a class of its own.

That is indeed similar in the lower frequencies! Thanks for providing all the graphs, including your previous posts showing how the Venus FR stacks up against some popular cans. I've reviewed those quite a few times now.

And I can confirm, there are special "ported" pads Abyss makes for the Diana. They essentially have small openings between the plastic that connects the pad to the headphone, and they indeed make a difference in the lower frequencies.

Moondrop can make something similar for the Venus. They could make a earpad with a plastic circle that goes between the part that slips onto the headphone and the inner part of the earpad. It would be like a 3 piece earpad so not sure how economical for the company... but I think owners of the Venus would appreciate it. I know I would, and not many headphones seem to have this special..."feature" (superpower?) As you mentioned I agree, it is probably somehow based on the driver design.

And yes a class of their own...I agree

Ports in the "porto" pad

 

[wmedrz]

I still can't get over how beautiful the Venus is

 

[eric65]

That is indeed similar in the lower frequencies! Thanks for providing all the graphs, including your previous posts showing how the Venus FR stacks up against some popular cans. I've reviewed those quite a few times now.

And I can confirm, there are special "ported" pads Abyss makes for the Diana. They essentially have small openings between the plastic that connects the pad to the headphone, and they indeed make a difference in the lower frequencies.

Moondrop can make something similar for the Venus. They could make a earpad with a plastic circle that goes between the part that slips onto the headphone and the inner part of the earpad. It would be like a 3 piece earpad so not sure how economical for the company... but I think owners of the Venus would appreciate it. I know I would, and not many headphones seem to have this special..."feature" (superpower?) As you mentioned I agree, it is probably somehow based on the driver design.

And yes a class of their own...I agree

Ports in the "porto" pad

I still can't get over how beautiful the Venus is

Hello everyone.

Tonight (in France) I went back to listening to three of my headphones, the ones I consider to have the best mids (for tonality) : the Massdrop x Sennheiser HD-58X Jubilee, the Moondrop PARA and Moondrop VENUS, listened to on my main hi-fi system, with the high-end AUDIOMAT CD player and the Viva 2A3 tube amplifier.

I listened to a 1994 CD with the Cranberries and the then-famous track "Zombie".



This music is not always easy to listen to and can become sometime unpleasant to listen to or confusing if the sound quality of the system is poorly adapted.

You'll find below a brief acoustic "analysis" of these 3 headphones listened on this audio system, with this CD and the track "Zombie".

With the Sennheiser HD-58X headphones, the electric guitar at the beginning of the track, well saturated, sounds quite warm (with a little warm coloration, not unpleasant to hear, but not neutral).
The female singer's voice is not overly emphasized (less than with the PARA, but a little more than with the VENUS); it also sounds slightly warm (compared with neutral); the separation of the voice from the instruments is the least clear of the three headphones with these HD-58X headphones; it is also with these headphones that the bass guitar (at the play time 4-minute of the song) is the least precise, the least incisive and the least impactful of the three headphones.

With the Moondrop PARA headphones, the listening experience is quite different from that of the HD-58X: the electric guitar at the beginning of the track, still well saturated, appears here less warm, brighter, with a "colder" timbre than that provided by the HD-58X.
The voice is much more emphasized , more mid-centric than the other two headphones; this female singer's voiceis very present and stands out from the instruments by its prominent tonality, rather than by a separation in space. The separation of the voice from the instruments is better than with the HD-58X, but less clear (with less black "background" separating the instruments from the voices) than with the VENUS.
With these headphones, the bass guitar (at the play-time 4-minute of the track) is a little more precise, more incisive and percussive than with the HD-58X.

With the Moondrop VENUS, you get the best listening of the three headphones, the most pleasant to hear, the most resolute, the most credible, the most natural, with the best balanced between vocals and instruments, and with the best soundstage.
To begin with, the electric guitar at the beginning of the track, well saturated, sounds like the best of the three headphones, neither too warm nor too cold, neither too bright nor too dull: just right.
The female singer's voice, along with the VENUS, is the least emphasized (note; it's the PARA that brings the voice most to the fore), with a very good balance between the voice (not too prominent) and the accompanying instruments, not too recessed.
The overall tonal balance (vocals and instruments) seems the right one.
It's with the VENUS that the voice stands out best from the instruments (on a "black background"), not because it's brought to the fore (as with the PARA), but because it's better focused, more precise, more resolute, with the best "black background" giving contrast and a certain relief to the soundstage.
Finally, with the VENUS headphones, the bass guitar (at time 4 minutes) is the best of the three headphones, more precise, more detailed, more incisive and more impactful.

Otherwise, concerning the adjustment of the VENUS pads to get the best bass (slightly raised in level (by +2 to +3 dB) and also more impacting (percussive).
I rotated the pads so that the front seam of the pads was slightly raised to the 13:30 position (instead of 15:00), so that this front seam was exactly at the same level as my glasses' temples, once in place.
As for the anterior-posterior pivot of the pads, well, it's set to neutral (the pads are not pinched either forwards or backwards, they're at the neutral point).
With this pad arrangement, there's a small gap of a few mm at the front of the pads, breaking the perfect seal of the pads to boost bass (both in level and impact).
However, unsealing must be fine-tuned: the daylight (spacing) thus created on the front of the pads (breaking the seal) must be sufficient, but not too much, to obtain what we're looking for: more bass and more impact.
This seal break modifies the bass but not the midrange (unmodified vocals and guitars sound).
I encourage you to experiment in this way.

 

[marekm]

Any chance of comparison with Fiio FT5 ?

 

[eric65]

Any chance of comparison with Fiio FT5 ?

Hi.

This is the only comparison I could find between these two headphones : FiiO FT5 and Moondrop VENUS.

Spoiler

Note; the measurement platform is not the same as Crinacle's, and the neutral target curve is not the same either; Harman Combined Over-Ear Target raises the bass level of approximately +3 dB.

Note bis: You can also enhance the bass of the VENUS by +2 to +3 dB SPL between 30 and 60-70 Hz, without modifying the FR in the midrange and the treble, without changing the pads, just by very slightly breaking the seal of the pads, as indicated in my previous posts.
See measurements also here : https://www.head-fi.org/threads/moo...-still-reasonable-price.970569/#post-17824148

Edit: I also found this:

- 90mm diameter planar driver; 6 micrometer thick diaphragm ; non-profiled N52 Neodymium magnets (square) for the FiiO FT5.

- 100mm diameter planar driver; 2 micrometer thick diaphragm ; N52 profiled Neodymium magnets (round) for the Moondrop VENUS.

 

[farits]

Hi Eric. It seemed to me that the recording was done better here. Better surround sound and resolution. Although the vocals are a little better on your link. Listen please.

 

[wmedrz]

Hi.

This is the only comparison I could find between these two headphones : FiiO FT5 and Moondrop VENUS.

Spoiler

Note; the measurement platform is not the same as Crinacle's, and the neutral target curve is not the same either; Harman Combined Over-Ear Target raises the bass level of approximately +3 dB.

Note bis: You can also enhance the bass of the VENUS by +2 to +3 dB SPL between 30 and 60-70 Hz, without modifying the FR in the midrange and the treble, without changing the pads, just by very slightly breaking the seal of the pads, as indicated in my previous posts.
See measurements also here : https://www.head-fi.org/threads/moo...-still-reasonable-price.970569/#post-17824148

Edit: I also found this:

- 90mm diameter planar driver; 6 micrometer thick diaphragm ; non-profiled N52 Neodymium magnets (square) for the FiiO FT5.

- 100mm diameter planar driver; 2 micrometer thick diaphragm ; N52 profiled Neodymium magnets (round) for the Moondrop VENUS.

The fact both channels on the Venus balance so perfectly speaks to the controls that went into producing this headphone.

 

[eric65]

The fact both channels on the Venus balance so perfectly speaks to the controls that went into producing this headphone.

Hi.

The guys at Moondrop (designer, sound engineer) seem ultra-serious; the Venus is a planar headphone with no concessions when it comes to sound quality.

Indeed, the excellent match (less than 1 dB) between the right and left channels of the VENUS' very large planar drivers bodes well for the seemingly uncompromising driver manufacturing process.

Spoiler

As a supplement, here's an extract (very detailed) of the Moondrop VENUS presentation by TechPowerUp's reviewer, where we also find the FR graph in question from the planar headphone VENUS.

"MOONDROP talked a good deal about the challenges necessary in making a uniformly driven diaphragm when it comes to making its own e-stat set, that's not yet released at the time of this review. This included the company purchasing proper scientific equipment for both manufacturing and characterization/QA testing, and some of this has been put to good use in the VENUS too. In particular, the diaphragm in the planar magnetic drivers here are 100 mm in diameter with a thickness of 2 µm—which is not sub-nanometer, MOONDROP! This is still amazingly thin for a new driver that is fully in-house developed as opposed to the collaboration effort that went into making the MOONDROP STELLARIS planar IEMs, in conjunction with Tuoyin Electronics Co., Ltd.. There is then a uniform coating of silver that we saw before, with this layer being another 1 µm thick. This large diaphragm combined with the slimmer ear cups/pads means your ears are closer to a larger body of air being pushed back and forth to create sound, thus minimizing any damping issues for eyeglass-wearers, while also promising more dynamics and detail retrieval. Helping move the diaphragm is a dual-sided set of 36 neodymium N52-class magnets (18 per side), that are rounded and placed based on finite element analysis to allow for linear, ultra-low distortion.

Given the extra load on the thin diaphragm from the magnets, it's sandwiched between CNC-machined aluminium alloy frames that further keep it tensioned tightly. There is also a high-frequency wave guide to help minimize phase interference from that ridiculously high number of magnets used here—especially for the higher frequencies. Once again I am reminded of HIFIMAN, with its stealth magnets tech that's used in a similar manner. Regardless, what you really need to know is the VENUS is a current-hungry set that will be pretty demanding on your amplifier. This isn't surprising given the highly tensed diaphragm and that excessive magnet count, and ends up with a low rated sensitivity of just 100 dB/Vrms paired with an equally low impedance of 18 Ω. Those numbers translate to 82.6 dB/mW which makes the MOONDROP VENUS ask for more current than even the notorious HIFIMAN Susvara/HE6se"

Source: https://www.techpowerup.com/review/...ck-over-ear-planar-magnetic-headphones/4.html

 

[psy472]

@eric65 Hello again, i'm looking for an all rounder heaphone since as a student i've got not much money to invest on hobbies, therefore, do you think that either Venus or Para could be an all rounder? Im leaning towards Para cause obviously half of the price but Venus is still on my mind.

I just got the PARA and tried out using the BTR7 to amp it. The amp did ran warm over time and you do need more energy to run the planar. Sound wise the bass on it is impressive, but if you want the hifi experience you will need a desktop amp.

That said, the Para is heavy. My neck became sore after half an hour from listening to it lying down. Much easier on the neck if you listen sitting up instead.

 

[eric65]

Otherwise, concerning the adjustment of the VENUS pads to get the best bass (slightly raised in level (by +2 to +3 dB) and also more impacting (percussive).
I rotated the pads so that the front seam of the pads was slightly raised to the 13:30 position (instead of 15:00), so that this front seam was exactly at the same level as my glasses' temples, once in place.
As for the anterior-posterior pivot of the pads, well, it's set to neutral (the pads are not pinched either forwards or backwards, they're at the neutral point).
With this pad arrangement, there's a small gap of a few mm at the front of the pads, breaking the perfect seal of the pads to boost bass (both in level and impact).
However, unsealing must be fine-tuned: the daylight (spacing) thus created on the front of the pads (breaking the seal) must be sufficient, but not too much, to obtain what we're looking for: more bass and more impact.
This seal break modifies the bass but not the midrange (unmodified vocals and guitars sound).
I encourage you to experiment in this way.

Hello everyone.

A simple way to find out if the VENUS earpads seal is broken or not.

Headphones VENUS on the head, tap lightly with a finger on the outer face of each earphone (directly on the top of the outer grille): if you hear a very muffled noise with a feeling of pressure (suction cup effect) on your eardrum, the seal is intact (the seal is complete) ; on the other hand, if when you tap lightly on the top of the outer grille of the earphone you hear a much less muffled noise, with no sensation of pressure (suction cup effect) on your eardrum, then the pad seal has been broken.
It is necessary to gradually break the seal of the earpieces just at the limit where the muffled sound of the lightly tapping the top of the outer grille is significantly reduced, and this, for both sides of the headphones.
It's just at this position, where you break the seal (by a few mm on the front of the pads), that the VENUS's bass becomes stronger, with more impact.

 

[eric65]

I just got the PARA and tried out using the BTR7 to amp it. The amp did ran warm over time and you do need more energy to run the planar. Sound wise the bass on it is impressive, but if you want the hifi experience you will need a desktop amp.

That said, the Para is heavy. My neck became sore after half an hour from listening to it lying down. Much easier on the neck if you listen sitting up instead.

Hi.

I find the wearing comfort of the PARA very acceptable, for me real slippers on the ears ; but it is true that I always listen in a seated position, or semi-lying on my sofa, my head supported by the top of the backrest from the sofa.

It's interesting to note that the PARA's clamping force is less than that of Sennheiser headphones, especially the HD-600 and HD-58X (which is too strong for clamping); for big heads like mine (or my eldest son's), this is appreciable.

Otherwise, I'm happy for you that you like the PARA in bass: for me, the PARA sounds like a Sennheiser HD-600, but with more bass, more treble too, and with a more open soundstage. PARA planar headphone resolution is also slightly better than that of Sennheiser 5 and 6 series headphones (HD-600, HD-58X and HD-560S), especially in the bass; it is finer (and more resolved) in the treble than the HD-560S.

To conclude, it's true that a desktop amplifier seems necessary to make the PARA work optimally; A PC's basic sound card will not be enough to correctly drive the PARA.

 

[farits]

Venus, with its three-dimensional scene and sound resolution, made me completely re-listen to the songs of my youth. They seem like simple songs, but the way they sound on Venus is amazing. Amazing effect, it’s not even possible to describe it, wow scene.