[mscott58]

I would say if your main diet is metal the ether c is not the way to go. Ether c is very revealing and neutral, metal compressed music will sound like it was recorded - crappy. Also, ime metal does not need a super expensive headphone to get the best out of. Pm3 will fully be revealing metal to you, the upgrade to ether c not worth it.

That being said, for other genres (especially acoustic stuff) with well recorded music the ether c is great.

If you like the PM3 for metal then be sure to try the SINEs.

 

[Rocco Khan]

Not all planars are created equal. The ETHER C with it's 22 Ohm impedance has a sensitivity of 92 dB. To put that in to perspective the HE 400S has a 22 Ohm impedance with a sensitivity of 98 dB. The ETHER C is harder to drive. Synergy could be playing a factor here as well. I wonder if the bass boost helped much from the HA-2 and if the ETHER C had many hours on them.

I respect the decision to return the headphones, but I have heard the bass fill out over time and the highs smooth somewhat from more use. It's not a brain burn-in as I have been comparing with multiple IEMs and headphones along the way. When Dan says his V-Planar drivers need some time to settle in he really isn't blowing smoke up our a**. This comment brought you from a 'non-believer' of burn-in.

Edit: Also, was the returned ETHER C a 1.0 or 1.1? really, just curious is all.

 

  The Ether C I have right now had ~4 hours on them when I got them.  I didn't know it at first, but I listened to them for about 60 seconds before calling Warren and asking how many hours were on it.  The bass was just not what I remembered but I've seen it mentioned in this thread enough times that I had an inkling that it may have been the issue.  I've been burning them in 24-hours a day since last Wednesday and the bass has absolutely filled in noticeably.
 
If you believe Dan (who wouldn't trust that smile?) it still needs a few more days of burn-in to reach peak performance.

 

but you haven't burn them in enough yet mate, I wouldn't judge until am at 200 hours of burn in.

 

Been listening to the ether c out of my mojo for about an hour now. At this point it is a little light on mid bass for my tastes, but the subbass extension and texture is excellent. Using the white pad, top end is smooth and detail, very airy sound profile. Female voices are very rich and enticing. Soundstage is very good. If I get some more mid bass with burn in these might be the best headphone I have personally heard.

Comfort is outstanding. The primes were so hard for me to get sealed, and then felt awkward on my head. These things I just plot on and get comfort and a great seal, glasses and all!

Thanks relic, my wallet hates you but my heart adores you

 
I could not agree more with all the posters above.
 
Ether Cs have been burning in non-stop since I received them. I have then been listening to them intermittently at the same volume with reference to my other headphones playing songs that I know well where there are certain bass and sub-bass cues. I am at 50 hrs burn-in and bass has considerably filled out already - not brain burn-in either. When I first took them out of the box, the sound seemed slightly brittle and lacking in bass. This burn-in effect is not as evident on my other dynamic driver headphones but then again I have not been as religious about burning-in in a "scientific" way as I have with these Ether Cs.
 
Bavinck, I think we bought ours around the same time. If you trust Relic to buy them, then trust the man that the bass will fill out. All I can say right now is WOW and looking forward to the 200 hr mark. 

 

[bavinck]

I am burning them baby!

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Problem with Ether C and Rock is that lots of Rock needs mid bass kick, which the Ether C isn't the most proficient at highlighting. So perhaps a headphone with some added mid bass punch will be more enjoyable if that is the most important genre for you. Ether C isn't the punchiest headphone.

That, or just use the darker tuning pads, which DOES add a good amount of body.

Seriously, just play around with the tuning kit.

 

[bavinck]

Problem with Ether C and Rock is that lots of Rock needs mid bass kick, which the Ether C isn't the most proficient at highlighting. So perhaps a headphone with some added mid bass punch will be more enjoyable if that is the most important genre for you. Ether C isn't the punchiest headphone.

Yes, it just does not have any mid bass hump. Most western pop and rock requires the enhanced bid bass hump.

That being said, I have listened to lots of classic rock today and tried some metal. Ether c sure gives a wonderfully clean presentation of the music without the mid bass hump to muddy things up. Listening to daft punk it is plenty punchy, but they use sub bass as well as mid bass.

I will also say, without the muddy mid bass lots of headphones have the ether c sure allow a clear picture into what the drummer and bassist are doing. Just amazing actually.

 

[emptymt]

Problem with Ether C and Rock is that lots of Rock needs mid bass kick, which the Ether C isn't the most proficient at highlighting. So perhaps a headphone with some added mid bass punch will be more enjoyable if that is the most important genre for you. Ether C isn't the punchiest headphone.

That, or just use the darker tuning pads, which DOES add a good amount of body.

Seriously, just play around with the tuning kit.

 
I saw your post about the double black or white pads on ether C, I'm actually planning to play around with the pads, based on what I want now I think the double black will be perfect.
 
@bavinck
 
I'm actually looking for more clarity atm, don't know if this is good or bad, being more clear sometimes can be bad as we know. but I really like it when the music sounds clean.
btw metal is indeed my main diet atm, but this could change hahaha
 
I really think I need to give this an audition.

 

[bavinck]

I saw your post about the double black or white pads on ether C, I'm actually planning to play around with the pads, based on what I want now I think the double black will be perfect.

@bavinck

I'm actually looking for more clarity atm, don't know if this is good or bad, being more clear sometimes can be bad as we know. but I really like it when the music sounds clean.
btw metal is indeed my main diet atm, but this could change hahaha

I really think I need to give this an audition.

For sure audition.

 

[inthere]

On the train with my Ether C's out of an iCan Nano because I left my 6.35-3.5mm adaptor at home. Can't hear anything outside my headphone including train noise. Nobody complaining about the noise so leakage is good too.

 

[bavinck]

Got about 40 hrs on these now. Definitely seeing increase in bass presence, sub bass not just mid bass. Very surprised as I long though planars could not mechanically break in like dynamics. I guess they do.

Sub bass on these with electronic music is very satisfying. If it increases much more I might find it too much! They do go as deep as the music wants to, no hint of roll off. And yet, still a gentle and clear top end with no harshness or roll off I can hear. I can't believe these are not more popular on headfi!

 

[CFGamescape]

Got about 40 hrs on these now. Definitely seeing increase in bass presence, sub bass not just mid bass. Very surprised as I long though planars could not mechanically break in like dynamics. I guess they do.

Sub bass on these with electronic music is very satisfying. If it increases much more I might find it too much! They do go as deep as the music wants to, no hint of roll off. And yet, still a gentle and clear top end with no harshness or roll off I can hear. I can't believe these are not more popular on headfi!

Nice, I just received mine in the mail today. Looking forward to trying them out tonight.

 

[Stillhart]

I spent some good time with the Ether and Ether C over the last week and here's my thoughts on metal/rock:
 
Ether C vs Ether is no contest.  The Ether is WAY better for metal and rock than the Ether C.  The Ether C is WAY better than the Ether for EDM.
 
At one point this weekend, I was in a room with @Hansotek and we had both Ethers plugged into a Mojo listening to various songs.  We both agreed pretty unanimously to the statement above.  It's so unambiguous that I'm relatively certain that they were tuned that way on purpose.
 
Ether C vs PM-3 is no contest.  Ether C is superior in almost every way.
 
The Ether C is, as MLE said, a great at everything and amazing at much.  Metal and Rock isn't its strength, but that doesn't mean that it's weak at it.  It's certainly good enough to trounce the PM-3 soundly.  All IMO, obviously.

 

[CFGamescape]

I've listened to these for a little over one hour now. They are the best headphones I've heard, which isn't saying much, because I've only seriously been in this hobby for a few months. But man, these things represent music way better than anything else before. I like how they're so effortless. In your hands, on your head and the sounds it reproduces.
 
With acoustic, first thing I noticed was the timbre of the guitar and the reverberation of each pluck. It's very subtle, but noticeable without trying too hard.
 
As bavinck mentioned, the sub-bass in Daft Punk's Random Access Memories is felt, not just heard, but again, subtle.
 
I then listened to an album by Olafur Arnalds and Nils Frahm called Trance Frendz. It's not a demanding track or even spectacular, just interesting. It has a lot of ambient noises, like the floor creaking and the quiet press of piano keys, against a constant white background noise. Very intimate. The Ether C really complemented its intimacy and imperfectness. It's one of those albums having a closed-back headphone really helps.
 
I finished off with some Miles Davis' Kind of Blues, and my, oh my. The imaging, the imaging, the imaging. Very holographic and intimate, like sitting in the middle of or in front of the stage, which I think this album is trying to convey. The soft splash of cymbals in All Blues really caught my ears; super realistic and satisfying to listen to throughout the track.
 
PS, my wife told me to listen to Rihanna's Kiss it Better, so I did. Not my favorite artist or track, but I thoroughly enjoyed it

. Ether C made it fun.
 
Can't wait to hear these evolve over the next 150 hours or so.

 

[bavinck]

I spent some good time with the Ether and Ether C over the last week and here's my thoughts on metal/rock:

Ether C vs Ether is no contest.  The Ether is WAY better for metal and rock than the Ether C.  The Ether C is WAY better than the Ether for EDM.

At one point this weekend, I was in a room with @Hansotek
 and we had both Ethers plugged into a Mojo listening to various songs.  We both agreed pretty unanimously to the statement above.  It's so unambiguous that I'm relatively certain that they were tuned that way on purpose.

Ether C vs PM-3 is no contest.  Ether C is superior in almost every way.

The Ether C is, as MLE said, a great at everything and amazing at much.  Metal and Rock isn't its strength, but that doesn't mean that it's weak at it.  It's certainly good enough to trounce the PM-3 soundly.  All IMO, obviously.

Interesting. The ether c are growing on me with Rock. In your opinion, what makes the ether handle Rock better?

 

[bavinck]

I've listened to these for a little over one hour now. They are the best headphones I've heard, which isn't saying much, because I've only seriously been in this hobby for a few months. But man, these things represent music way better than anything else before. I like how they're so effortless. In your hands, on your head and the sounds it reproduces.

With acoustic, first thing I noticed was the timbre of the guitar and the reverberation of each pluck. It's very subtle, but noticeable without trying too hard.

As bavinck mentioned, the sub-bass in Daft Punk's Random Access Memories is felt, not just heard, but again, subtle.

I then listened to an album by Olafur Arnalds and Nils Frahm called Trance Frendz. It's not a demanding track or even spectacular, just interesting. It has a lot of ambient noises, like the floor creaking and the quiet press of piano keys, against a constant white background noise. Very intimate. The Ether C really complemented its intimacy and imperfectness. It's one of those albums having a closed-back headphone really helps.

I finished off with some Miles Davis' Kind of Blues, and my, oh my. The imaging, the imaging, the imaging. Very holographic and intimate, like sitting in the middle of or in front of the stage, which I think this album is trying to convey. The soft splash of cymbals in All Blues really caught my ears; super realistic and satisfying to listen to throughout the track.

PS, my wife told me to listen to Rihanna's Kiss it Better, so I did. Not my favorite artist or track, but I thoroughly enjoyed it . Ether C made it fun.

Can't wait to hear these evolve over the next 150 hours or so.

I am finding them to be holographic at times too. I am honestly not sure what quality about them brings this out, but on some tracks the music certainly envelopes me is a rare way.

 

[Stillhart]

Interesting. The ether c are growing on me with Rock. In your opinion, what makes the ether handle Rock better?

 
The Ether has a more emphasized mid-bass and mids, along with a more laid back treble.  The mid-bass gives those kicks drums punch.  The mids bring guitars and vocals to the front.  The laid back treble smooths out a lot of the harshness that can be present in metal.  It's just a perfect recipe for a visceral, fatigue-free rock and metal session.
 
On the flip side, the Ether C has a relatively neutral sounding FR all through the range except for lifted sub-bass and treble.  The balanced sound means it's a great all-arounder but it doesn't have the same level of engagement as the Ether for those genres.  But the sub-bass and treble are where most electronic and dance music lives.  For those genres, the Ether feels bloated and slow while the Ether C is punchy and energetic.
 
Hope this helps a little.  I really like both headphones and I have no idea which I'd pick at this point if I could only have one.