[IgorRomaovsky]

Disagree with the common opinion about the good build quality. My pair creaks a lot. Every time I put them on or slightly move my head. It is much more annoying than microphonics from tha cable. Tried to tighten or loosen the screws, that did not help. Sooo many friction points in the construction.

If it don’t get better after some time in use, i want to get rid of these phones. When something so basic is annoying me, the sound quality does not matter.

Any ideas how to fix my problem?

 

[PaganDL]

Uh @IgorRomaovsky,

Potential issue with creaking happens with any headphone, not just NDH 20, can be due to temperature, especially if there are constant variances, among other things, so any material is going to do that regardless...

Or the next best suggestion is don't move your head so much.

Also, tightening or loosening the screws isn't going to help a whole lot & likely make things worse.

So real solution would be use machine oil & douse it till the thing is completely saturated at the joints & hope that works, if not, then nothing is going to help.

Also, my NDH 20 does creak a little in the right cup at the connector plug but only does so when I turn my head in that direction but not every time.

PS. Anything with lots of joints creak to some degree, just depends whether it falls under normal use, above or 'below daily' tolerance.

Hope you have a great day !

 

[Beagle]

'm curious about the Neumann. Is it among the most natural sounding of headphones? Although I worry about a dip in the 2k range, often indicates a lack of spark and dynamics. Also, one-sided cable, and they put it on the wrong side (right instead of the standard left).

 

[PaganDL]

Hi @Beagle,

'm curious about the Neumann. Is it among the most natural sounding of headphones?

Depends what you mean by natural as everyone has a highly personal & highly subjective view on natural.
The NDH 20 is a pro monitoring headphone so if you understand what that means & you like that sort of sound which is 'balanced' by having no emphasis in any part of the frequency range then the NDH 20 may be for you...
Just to be clear, this is DEFINITELY NOT A CONSUMER AUDIO headphone nor does it have consumer bass response either.
Though your mileage will certainly vary as such headphones are usually more dependant on source & source qualty. (no, I do not mean format but actual recording quality)

Although I worry about a dip in the 2k range, often indicates a lack of spark and dynamics.

A lot of measurements for this headphone are not very accurate, even Jude himself has said so.
I would suggest a demo to see whether it is for you & not necessarily believe a chart but your own hearing.

NDH 20 has plenty of detail & dynamics for a professional monitoring headphone.
Though once again, source dependant but as said regarding balanced sound, if you like lots of Highs to potentially the point of High Frequency Murder then this headphone is definitely not for you.

Also, one-sided cable, and they put it on the wrong side (right instead of the standard left)

Not sure what you're implying here but a headphone doesn't necessarily have to be dual sided nor does it really add anything overall where sound is concerned.
As aside from specs, Sound Tuning in this case is perhaps a more significant factor than cable entry or cable number used to connect said headphone to source.
There could be various reasons why Neumann chose right entry instead of standard left as you call it, there is nothing really odd about that. I have seen, use & own headphones which have either single or dual entry, even choice for either entry & even one side as a pass through.
So really all depends, anyway, speculation aside, for all we know, they could have done so just to be different.

Hope you have a great day !

 

[IgorRomaovsky]

Uh @IgorRomaovsky,

Potential issue with creaking happens with any headphone, not just NDH 20, can be due to temperature, especially if there are constant variances, among other things, so any material is going to do that regardless...

Or the next best suggestion is don't move your head so much.

Also, tightening or loosening the screws isn't going to help a whole lot & likely make things worse.

So real solution would be use machine oil & douse it till the thing is completely saturated at the joints & hope that works, if not, then nothing is going to help.

Also, my NDH 20 does creak a little in the right cup at the connector plug but only does so when I turn my head in that direction but not every time.

Thanks for comments. I also have 8 more headphones from different price ranges and none of them has creaks like NDH. So it is not my head moving, something is wrong with NDH. I had previously some other headphones with creaks -- i got rid of them, since looks like i'm sensitive to this.

Bad thing is the fabric covering the access inside the cup is glues to the cup, so i don't know how to lubricate the friction point inside the cup without damage.

PS. Anything with lots of joints creak to some degree, just depends whether it falls under normal use, above or 'below daily' tolerance.

I think lots of joints is not the best design for the headphone. Neumann should learn from Sennheiser Momentum more

Also, one-sided cable, and they put it on the wrong side (right instead of the standard left).

Also the phone stays flat on the table only when you put it with cable on the left (you need to turn around the phone). When the cable is on the right, the phone cups are not rotating to the flat position, so if somebody sit on it, it will be a disaster.

I have other headphones, AKG K550 MK3 and had Adam SP-5, and they did not have this problem.

 

[Beagle]

Hi @Beagle,

....this is DEFINITELY NOT A CONSUMER AUDIO headphone

.....NDH 20 has plenty of detail & dynamics for a professional monitoring headphone.

I've always been intrigued by the designation and classification of "professional". One would assume that "professional" would be designed to be "accurate", a reference tool to hear exactly what is being (or was) recorded, and isn't "accuracy" what EVERYONE is striving for? Except those who like coloration and bad sound?

Hope you have a great day !

You as well!
Thank you for your input here!

 

[FullBright1]

Hi @FullBright1,

Don't worry, I figured there was more but as my time on headfi is inconsistent, especially in the last week, sometimes I see actual responses in full, sometimes I don't, so not surprised someone whined which seems to be the norm more & more these days but that's another discussion to be had at a later date...
I think various members on headfi, especially the more helpful ones, have been 'edited for content' one time or another for various reasons as people will get offended or up in arms about anything these days, particularly if helpful information is being imparted, albeit maybe through less restraint as said helpful person gets aggravated potential helpee doesn't really want to be helped but has an opinion & the internet to express said opinion...which is sad & depressing but that's also a whole other story...

Anyway, yes, I know of Brian as I've had discussions with him before about various things & he is agreeable though as a Mod, he has to abide by the 'dreaded TOS' which is not necessarily a bad thing either.
So subjectively & personally, as I can't & don't speak for anyone else, see what happens after a year then ask again but yes, sadly for now, two times is more than enough so hang in there.

I kind of figured the Neumanns are making others happy besides the two of us as we both said a few times already.
There are people who do enjoy the sound of good headphones, any headphones, for that matter, as is & don't compare for the sake of or just because...
Might be reaching but at least it is a positive reflection on the human condition where one doesn't shove a certain perspective over another's just because...

So just keep being you with awesome insights with worthwhile things to say, listen to & will chat to you soon.
Maybe one day, one can always hope PM

Hope you have a great day !

Sorry for the late reply.
But you'll understand why.....
and yes, the Neumans do cause some to smile.
this gear is probably just the tip of the Neuman iceberg.
no doubt many more Neuman headphone models are just over the Horizon.

 

[PaganDL]

Sorry for the late reply.
But you'll understand why.....
and yes, the Neumans do cause some to smile.
this gear is probably just the tip of the Neuman iceberg.
no doubt many more Neuman headphone models are just over the Horizon.

Hi @FullBright1,

No problem, got the reasons why...just keep being the best you can be...

We'll see what happens, not going to be surprised in any way if they release something by next NAMM or earlier.

Hope you have a great day !

 

[PaganDL]

I've always been intrigued by the designation and classification of "professional". One would assume that "professional" would be designed to be "accurate", a reference tool to hear exactly what is being (or was) recorded, and isn't "accuracy" what EVERYONE is striving for? Except those who like coloration and bad sound?


You as well!
Thank you for your input here!

Hi @Beagle,

Certainly in a real world setting, accuracy is only a small but nevertheless important part for listening, especially in a 'Professional' environment, however, a balanced frequency response with no real emphasis in any part of said frequency response plays a bigger part in ensuring a recording sounds as close to that 'real world' as possible.
That is generally what is considered Professional, within a certain margin in frequency response as every company has their own definition which adds to possible likely confusion.

As full @FullBright1 has stated a few times, there is no bad sound per say, just more often than not, dislike or a sound signature which doesn't sit well with a listener for various reasons, usually the whole retail cost vs sound quality debate.

Hope you have a great day !

 

[FullBright1]

Hi @FullBright1,

No problem, got the reasons why...just keep being the best you can be...

We'll see what happens, not going to be surprised in any way if they release something by next NAMM or earlier.

Hope you have a great day !

Of course i will.

And yes, Neumann has something coming........
Should be interesting.

 

[PaganDL]

Of course i will.

And yes, Neumann has something coming........
Should be interesting.

Hi @FullBright1,

Don't suppose you have Neumman Contacts though I'm sure it's not that hard to find or figure out, just haven't looked myself but then when it comes to good gear, never in a rush to get, budget permitting, of course...

Chat to you soon !

Hope you have a great day !

 

[FullBright1]

Hi @FullBright1,

Don't suppose you have Neumman Contacts though I'm sure it's not that hard to find or figure out, just haven't looked myself but then when it comes to good gear, never in a rush to get, budget permitting, of course...

Chat to you soon !

Hope you have a great day !

https://en-de.neumann.com/ndh-20

 

[PaganDL]

https://en-de.neumann.com/ndh-20

Uh @FullBright1,

Isn't this the product page fpr the NDH 20 or am I missing something ?

Hope you have a great day !

 

[dskelto]

Picked up a pair of NDH 20 used at Guitar center for a reasonable discount. I find them to to be very balanced throughout the frequency range. Very deep bass extension, but not dark. No mid-range honkiness which can present in closed back phones. The mids come across as very true to the recording. The treble is well balanced against the mids and lows. Imaging is really good, pinpoint. I have not yet used them for mixing so I can not comment on how they translate to a mix, but they are my best closed back for listening compared to HD280 and Oppo PM-3. Listening to Tidal Lossless through Micro iDSD BL and JDS Labs Atom. I am a bit surprised they are not getting much attention from any of the usual headphone reviewers.

 

[jude]

As I've said before about a particular neutral-reference-type IEM: Given differences in preferences, subjectivity, and our own unique personal responses with different headphones and earphones, there is not a singular target that represents perfectly what neutral is for everyone. Instead, there is a sort of range within which neutral'ish exists. To my ears, the Neumann NDH20 is within that range, but only just. If it had even a hair's breadth more bass, if it was a whisker more smooth sounding up top, then (in my opinion) the NDH20 would be outside the range of neutral'ish.



Neumann says they intended the NDH20 to be used for critical listening and mixing in the studio, at home, or on the road, specifically mentioning that many other closed-back headphones are marred by nasty midrange resonances. With respect to that, one of the most important things for me with a closed-back headphone is curtailing the sound of the closed cups -- minimizing the resonances and colorations that encircling the ears with a solid bowl of hard material will inevitably cause. In this, Neumann (and I would imagine also Sennheiser, which owns Neumann) did an excellent job. I'm not hearing cup colorations or resonance. Can I see the Neumann NDH20 being used in studios? Absolutely.



Does the NDH20 image wide? To my ears, not really; but it does have very nice image object placement and is not at all claustrophobic. In other words, strictly in terms of imaging, think more like the Focal Elegia than the imaging-standard-setting-for-a-closed-back Sennheiser HD820.

For me, the Neumann NDH20 is a closed-back full-size headphone that offers excellent passive isolation and a nicely balanced sound signature that favors my predilection for a nicely balanced overall presentation with a richer-than-completely-flat bass presence. Even with its slight bass-tilt and its smooth treble, the Neumann is resolving for a closed-back headphone. And (big bonus) the NDH20's all-metal chassis is super-durable and quite portable -- it's foldable -- so it fits easily into most of my backpacks, though it is rather heavy at 13.75 ounces (390 grams).



For these reasons -- if the sound signature described is the type that suits you -- I think the Neumann NDH20 is an easy recommendation for a closed-back headphone at its price, whether as a studio monitor or for general listening pleasure.

I'll post the Neumann NDH20 measurements shortly.