[pdrm360]

IMO, the biggest weakness of the Alpha Dogs is lack of transparency. They don't quite meet my expectations with regard to transparency. Their sound stage is not bad for closed headphones.

 

[olegausany]

As per Doc B there should be no difference between speakers tsps and SE but I hear very noticeable difference when driving HD800 with 4 pin XLR over SE with the same cable but hear little but preferred difference driving AD with SE cable over 4 pin XLR

 

[LoveKnight]

As per Doc B there should be no difference between speakers tsps and SE but I hear very noticeable difference when driving HD800 with 4 pin XLR over SE with the same cable but hear little but preferred difference driving AD with SE cable over 4 pin XLR

 
I think I know the answer. In 50+ headphone comparison David said that Sen HD6xx to HD800 increase the performance well when pairing with balance systems and for the Alpha Dog WNBC just reviewed with Q Silk Cable couple days ago and found out that there was none sound improvement with high quality after market cable, so the original cables with Alpha Dogs that Dan includes are really good at performance. It could be the same with other orthos headphones, seem like they just need more power than balance systems if we just want to increase the performance without high investment and better performance for the price. This is just my thought not sure.

 

[sonitus mirus]

  IMO, the biggest weakness of the Alpha Dogs is lack of transparency. They don't quite meet my expectations with regard to transparency. Their sound stage is not bad for closed headphones.

 
Based off this site's glossary of terms, I'm not sure I understand what you are claiming is the biggest weakness of the Alpha Dogs.
 
Transparent - Does not alter the signal in any way.  While essentially impossible, the ideal of high-end audio gear is that it reproduces a music signal with as little alteration as possible. 
 
How would you describe the sound as being altered when listening with the Alphas? 

 

[miceblue]

If that's transparency, then what's "neutrality?" o.0
I thought transparent always meant it doesn't sound like you're listening to a pair of headphones.
http://www.stereophile.com/reference/50/index.html

transparency, transparent 1) A quality of sound reproduction that gives the impression of listening through the system to the original sounds, rather than to a pair of loudspeakers

 

[swspiers]

If that's transparency, then what's "neutrality?" o.0
I thought transparent always meant it doesn't sound like you're listening to a pair of headphones.
http://www.stereophile.com/reference/50/index.html

Agreed.
 
And I personally find the AD's amazingly transparent, especially for a closed can.

 

[kstuart]

 

If that's transparency, then what's "neutrality?" o.0
I thought transparent always meant it doesn't sound like you're listening to a pair of headphones.
http://www.stereophile.com/reference/50/index.html

Agreed.
 
And I personally find the AD's amazingly transparent, especially for a closed can.

Agreed !
 

 transparency, transparent 1) A quality of sound reproduction that gives the impression of listening through the system to the original sounds, rather than to a pair of loudspeakers

If you think of transparency as it relates to, say, a window, then you can see how this definition works.
 
If you go back to the basic meaning of the word "neutrality" it means right in the middle between two polarities, e.g. not favoring either side in a war.
 
So, headphones that are neutral, are ones that are not "bright" or "dark", not "forward" or "recessed", etc.  It can be not particularly "transparent" - due to a lack of detail, or some sort of distortion, while still being "neutral".

 

[spurxiii]

Now that I got a closed can (TH600) that IMO outperforms the Mad Dogs I'm thinking of either selling them or upgrading the them to Alphas. Is it worth having both the Alphas and the TH600s? Are the Alphas a major improvement over the Mad Dogs that they are on the same tier as the TH600s? Any help appreciated thanks.

 

[pdrm360]

Okay, maybe I’m wrong but to me more neutrality means more liner frequency response and more transparent means more feel of listening a live music than a recorded one. 

 

[skeptic]

Transparent is a term that should probably be excised from common audio parlance.  It is too much of a short cut to simply say headphone x sounds more "like live" than headphone y.  The question is why a particular listener has come to that conclusion.
 
Discussing FR/neutrality, impedance curves, timbre, dynamics, transient response and perceived sound stage, among other actual characteristics, is way more useful and informative from my perspective. 

 

[DigitalFreak]

Neutrality simply means the gear doesn't embellish any kind of coloration into the music unless the coloration is there. Transparent simply means the headphone sounds good enough to make the music it reproduces sound realistic. At least that's how I've always understood it.

 

[WNBC]

If you can keep both do it.  At least overlap them for a while.  Listen to the Alpha Dog for a month then decide on whether you want to keep both.  I enjoyed the TH-600 a lot.  The Alpha Dog with its mids can do a lot things justice like vocals and strings.  The TH-600 with its bass characteristics is fantastic for electronica, reggae, rock, etc.  Although both are closed headphones you'll find that their presentations are very different from each other and could in fact fulfill genres of music that one may do better than the other.  I might actually still have the TH-600 if it were not for the fact that it is easy to drive and my amp doesn't play well with efficient headphones.   
 
 
 
Quote:

Now that I got a closed can (TH600) that IMO outperforms the Mad Dogs I'm thinking of either selling them or upgrading the them to Alphas. Is it worth having both the Alphas and the TH600s? Are the Alphas a major improvement over the Mad Dogs that they are on the same tier as the TH600s? Any help appreciated thanks.

 

[mrspeakers]

I was  reading the tour comments and I noted a well written comment from one reviewer saying he didn't find the listen enjoyable. I thought something must be up, so I blew the  whistle to call the Dog home.
 
I left a screw out on the baffle assembly.  I built all the first units, so I own it.  The screw wasn't loose under the pad so this was my error in assembly.  The effect of that screw missing is to non-linearize and reduce the bass and harden the sound.  The hole was likely covered well by the pad but as the pad compressed from multiple shipping and uses (as should be expected) it probably allowed the hole to be exposed. 
 
I've fixed it up and will send it to the next reviewer, MLE.  If any of the earlier reviewers want to hear it again it's worth it. 

 

[spurxiii]

Thanks for the advice. I'll probably get the Alphas when I can

 

[olegausany]

  I was  reading the tour comments and I noted a well written comment from one reviewer saying he didn't find the listen enjoyable. I thought something must be up, so I blew the  whistle to call the Dog home.
 
I left a screw out on the baffle assembly.  I built all the first units, so I own it.  The screw wasn't loose under the pad so this was my error in assembly.  The effect of that screw missing is to non-linearize and reduce the bass and harden the sound.  The hole was likely covered well by the pad but as the pad compressed from multiple shipping and uses (as should be expected) it probably allowed the hole to be exposed. 
 
I've fixed it up and will send it to the next reviewer, MLE.  If any of the earlier reviewers want to hear it again it's worth it. 

Very interested to hear properly assembled pair