[Chris19]

Indeed, Headcrusher is an awesome song. Chris Broderick's tremolo picking is fast enough during the ending solo to use as a new test piece for my headphone trials, I think!

The Stax Lambdas are awesome so far. I think everyone reading this thread owes it to themselves to find a way to audition some electrostats, at the very least. No, they don't have to be Omegas or Omega 2's; the Jade electrostats are great as well, and I'm willing to guess the cheaper Stax 404 / 303 or even the Koss ESP-950 would impress.

On top of that, I'm running in some Ultrasone Pro 900's. Awesome to have them, but I might have to sell my beloved SA5000's to keep them! Gasp.

 

[YtseJamer]

I have tried a couple of fast metal albums with my JH13s and they are flawless so far. Easily one of the best "metal" headphones that I have tried in my life.

I am currently listening to the new Old Mans Child (Slaves Of The World) and it's a pure audio bliss.

I will post more impressions later.

 

[nhancakes]

this has to be like my favorite thread on head-fi. I'm glad to see the budget Ultrasone got some good marks considering everything else is vastly out of my price range lol

 

[Chris19]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nhancakes /img/forum/go_quote.gif this has to be like my favorite thread on head-fi.

Sweet! Thanks for that! And yes, I really did like those Ultrasone cans. Pretty fast, good bass, and easy to listen to. The guitars just sounded a little bit thin, but what the hell, I guess you can't have everything for "cheap."

Tomorrow (today now?) I am planning on doing some modifications to my DAC so that I can make some better impressions of these Ultrasone Pro 900's and my Stax Lambda's. Right now, I have a ton of crosstalk between channels -- I'd guess between 40% to 60% of the signal bleeds over -- and it's just not a fair testing condition.

On another note, a local record store had one of those new Capitol Records "From The Vault" versions of Megadeth's "So Far, So Good... So What!" album. I picked it up hoping that it was the same as "Peace Sells" and "R.I.P.," meaning the ORIGINAL 1988 mix. Instead, it's a vinyl version of Mustaine's 2004 remix of the album, but with all of the original artwork and credits, and without the bonus tracks. Has anyone heard the original mix? I know it has a reputation for sounding horrible, but I bought it more out of curiosity than for a sound quality.

Lastly, pfillion, we look forward to more impressions! Someone needs to make us a metal-head smiley.

 

[MaxK]

I'm so glad I found this thread. I'm in the process of figuring out a headphone system (my first), and I'm a big metal head. I was thinking of the HD650s, but I'm concerned about the "slowness" that I'm reading about here. What do you think is a good "Metal" happy headphone in the $350 or so price range the 650s tend to go for? The Stax or the HD800s sound awesome, but I don't have that kind of cash!

 

[Bullseye]

Hey Chris, have read your posts regarding thrash cans and I am an avid metal listener. So as I saw you were looking for other headphones, how about the ATH M50 for thrash? I will be getting mine next week, but would like to know what you think about them in your search. I have read great reviews on them (amazon, gearslutz and more).

Looking for your impressions.

 

[Bojamijams]

I too have to echo what pfillion has said, the JH-13 is the ultimate headphone for thrash metal, but then again really, for everything. Its just unbelievable how fast it is.. as fast or even faster then electrostats, with WAY better bass and not as boring sounding (to me)

However, they're nowhere near cheap but hey.. can't have it all. They're also amazing in the way that you can stomp around the house, air guitaring, headbanging for as long as you damn well want \m/

 

[Brighten]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bojamijams /img/forum/go_quote.gif I too have to echo what pfillion has said, the JH-13 is the ultimate headphone for thrash metal, but then again really, for everything. Its just unbelievable how fast it is.. as fast or even faster then electrostats, with WAY better bass and not as boring sounding (to me) However, they're nowhere near cheap but hey.. can't have it all. They're also amazing in the way that you can stomp around the house, air guitaring, headbanging for as long as you damn well want \m/

Did you go to CanJam?

 

[Bojamijams]

Nope. I ordered the JH-13 without ever hearing it purely based on the people who were more impressed with it then the HD800. And these people had some real cred around here

 

[Chris19]

MaxK, it depends what kind of metal you listen to. I'm mainly listening to thrash, so speed is a big issue. I only heard the 650's briefly at CanJam, but from what I heard from the 600's, the Sennheisers have too much decay to really portray the music. They sound great with slower music, so maybe doom metal or funeral metal or something; I don't know much about those genres though.

So, let me assume you listen to thrash/speed metal, and your price range is about $350. If you want an open headphone, the SA5000s are good, with a few caveats. First, they are best when balanced. They get a bit more oomph in the bass and things sound a bit clearer overall. Second, you need to dampen the inside of the earcups yourself, where Sony left the plastic exposed. I used two strips of soft foam and some double-sided tape. Other than that, they are comfortable, and have an especially great, powerful guitar sound. The guitars are more forward than in other headphones I've heard.

For closed headphones, I'm loving the Ultrasone Pro 900s. They're actually faster than the Sony SA5000s by a significant amount, have more powerful bass, clearer highs, and the advantage of some noise isolation. Disadvantages vs. the Sony's are a less forward guitar sound, a finicky fit due to S-Logic, and I suppose less comfort. I just took a listen back to back, though, and I prefer the Ultrasone's. If you can find the Pro 900 used for around $350, or maybe on a sale price somewhere, I'd have to vote for those.

I can't say anything about the open-air Ultrasones, like the PRO 2500 or HFI-2200, because I haven't heard them. But, if anyone can confirm that they have speed and clarity in the mids, then I'd give those a shot too. They should be cheaper as well.

 

[Chris19]

Hey Bullseye, I haven't heard the ATH M50s, nor have I seen any around here. When you get them, put them through their paces and let us know if they survive metal's gauntlet!

 

[Bullseye]

Sure Chris,

I recently listen to Dark Tranquility - The Gallery album that has very fast riffs, and also some Mastodon -Blood Mountain or Crack The Skye. I also have another songs I like to test, which are Wintersun's Winter Madness, with one of the most amazing guitar riffs I have heard recently.

I will try to set some kind of testing condition in order to say something which I find valid for me and others to read. But for that I will be needing a SS amp. Even so if you don't mind I can also share my completely subjective opinions once I get them and how I feel they sound using "sound memory". However I don't like to spit my impressions like that so much, but if it works for you in order to try them, I will do so.

Keep up the search!

 

[MaxK]

Thanks Chris! I'll do some research on the Ultrasones. I listen to a pretty big mix of metal, from thrash to doom to black metal, so the speed issue will likely be key.

 

[katanka]

Hey Chris

I know you had a brief listen to the HFI-780, and you did not like them, but you rated the HFI-450 quite nicely. I see you are now test driving the pro 900's. Would you say the pro 900's are way better than the HFI-780's ?

Reason is i want to get a nice closed pair of cans that dont leak like my other ones do, and i listen to a lot of metal too.

 

[Azathoth]

Wow, I like the way this thread has gone! My recently purchased LD MKII has been a great match for my Grado SR325is, trims down some of the bleeding edge treble without compromising speed and detail. The warm tubey coloration is definitely a welcome addition. I've been on a steady diet of Demolition Hammer, Exodus, Morbid Saint and Anthrax this past week...thrash win on the LD MKII + SR325is!

Echoing katanka's sentiment, also looking for a closed can (budget is around $200-250) that performs well with thrash and death metal. Currently eyeing the Shure SRH840, can anyone comment on their SQ?