I prefer the Wolfson DAC for my HE4 and sounded great with the he500. Both phones are brighter than the MD. Maybe I needed more brain burn in with the MD and the 10SE when I had them (no longer have both) but the MD definitely sounds better to me from the bright D100.
To each his own. I am fairly sensitive to emphasized or rough, uneven, or peaky treble, and I found the MD3.2 to be a bit too emphasized and rough at the top end. It was a bit grating to my ears and had sort of a hot, sizzling quality to it (this was also true of the Paradox). This was not good for me, especially with a Sabre DAC. I have since modified my MD3.2 to somewhat smooth out the treble using similar tweaks Dan now applies to the Alpha Dog (front damping "dots" and various acoustic damping disks). It makes a world of difference, but I still don't care for how it sounds with a Sabre DAC. I don't find the MD3.2 as dark or laid-back as many others do, so there's that as well. Really just comes down to personal sensitivities and tastes in the end, and it seems most prefer to pair the MD3.2 with brighter sources anyway.
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[edit]If I'm unclear on anything: don't hesitate to point it out. I'm sorry. English is not my first language and I'm very very tired at the moment.[/edit]
Nope, all good! Though am I correct in assuming this is a new pair/latest revision of the MD? I think I might see where you're coming from. In terms of separation, imaging, soundstage, etc. the MD does well for a closed headphone but won't match a good open headphone there, usually. The AD does a better job here and presents a more cohesive, 3D sound (especially when stuff should sound like it's in front of you), but it still doesn't quite match a good open headphone. The MD can be a bit more limited to a 2D/stereo sound. Even then, I've heard other closed headphones that have more open and airier qualities than the T50RP-based headphones. There are also open headphones that do not sound as such. It is what it is.
One thing I will say is that the MD does not have a perfectly balanced response, and this too could play into what you're hearing. In particular, the mids can be a bit scooped (can affect clarity/details depending on music), the bass isn't the cleanest (T50RP driver does have some limitations), and the treble has some peaks and dips that can do some weird, but generally not too offensive, stuff to the sound. It can give a sense of aggressiveness and clarity while still sounding a bit muffled, and the soundstage just won't always put everything where it needs to be (some things too up front, some things too far back, etc.). For me, the stock MD is on the warmer, slightly bass heavier side with a condensed, slightly aggressive-yet-laid-back, somewhat confusing sound. For the price, it doesn't do a whole lot wrong, but it's as though all the pieces aren't quite in place like they need to be.
I found they do a much better job with imaging, soundstaging, etc. after some tweaks to smooth out the upper mids and treble response. An uneven response can directly affect these aspects of sound. Some of the other tweaks I applied ended up affecting how the bass/mid-bass is presented, and more subtly the overall response, and this gave them a cleaner, less muffled sound subjectively. Even after all this, my pair still has an audible dip in the treble response centered around 8KHz, and that does affect detail retrieval and overall clarity. But, still, the response overall is smoother and more even than stock. It has a bit less of a dark tilt, less bass bloom, and has a better soundstage and sense of details/clarity while yet still being more on the laid-back side (not crazily so...maybe not too far off from a Sennheiser?).
In general, the T50RP driver is never going to be the clearest, cleanest, most technically competent driver around. The relatively small size is one limitation, and its harmonic distortion characteristics generally don't match that of high-end planar headphones or good dynamic headphones. That said, it's a very good do-it-all driver with a lot of potential. In particular, it has very good time-domain characteristics, which is an excellent trait to have for genres like progressive metal (I'm a big Opeth guy).
I will say that it is common to listen to headphones like the MD, AD, or Paradox and first think they are a bit dull or lacking something. Compared to the vast majority of headphones, they do little wrong. Fairly even response, clean decay response, good distortion qualities, etc., but rarely are they truly "the best" at any one category (others may disagree). I have found part of it is just giving it time to warm up to them and appreciate their qualities.
. I had the same problem with my FiiO E11, although at lower volumes.
