[Nada190]

Anyone have a measurement of the inner diameter of the pads? Any chance of the Z having different pads from the X? 

 

[zorin]

   
Well, the best wood back and also portable headphone title goes to my uber-modded ATH-ES10 IMO.
 
It doesn't even sound anything like the stock headphone. It sounds like a completely different headphone.
 
One of these days, if you would like to give it a listen, I can lend it to you for a while. I'm sure the HE-560 and Z7 would hold me over during that period anyway.
 
I've gotta warn you though... just today, one of the students I know in college gave it a go, and he was able to hear the difference between the headphone output of a 2011 MacBook vs a 2012 MacBook with a death metal song on Youtube. So... it is kinda revealing of the source material.
 
But then that's just the whole point. Audio Technica's drivers are good. Very very good. They just haven't toned them toward technicality yet.
 
 
Hm... I have heard the W3000ANV on many occasions, and while I think it is quite a good and euphoric headphone, it is also kind of piercing in the upper midrange/lower treble region for me. That's why I don't have one.
 
But I know the last time someone heard my W1000 compared to his stock W1000 and his W3000ANV, he kinda preferred mine.
 
In fact, he offered to help me set up a headphone-modding business, and I'm still considering it. Haha...
 
Not to sound conceited, of course, but I do think there are improvements that can be done to Audio Technica's lower-end headphones... and the W1000 and W1000X are just perfect examples of that.

...euphonic headphones...[ 'euphoric' is a common error on head-fi]
 
It is quite incredible that you find W3000ANV having "piercing upper midrange/lower treble". It shows what variations in hearing exist among people. The consensus is that W3000ANV has soft treble, I've seen W3000ANV's higher frequencies described as "magical', as "like spun gold", as "just right", as "fantastic"... I hear the same and I agree but I wish there were more of them, I wish there was like at least 10% more treble in volume. When I bought W3000ANV my hearing, that means my inner ear apparatus and my auditory brain cells, was used to a neutral sound signature. I prefer to listen to a balanced sound and so W3000ANV, which are neutral headphones, sounded right and normal to me right from the beginning.
If one is used to more bassy unbalanced sound with weaker treble then he would find W3000ANV "bright" with "piercing treble". Human brain is described as having adaptive "plasticity", that means the brain has the ability and capacity to adapt to new stimuli and information so that it can process and store this information. If a brain regularly hears treble muted music then it adapts to this sound and takes it as a norm. It even tries to compensate for the lack of treble by modulating audio signal, by adding its own brain created treble impression so that the music sounds more right. When suddenly confronted with normal balanced sound this previously 'tweaked' brain then perceives the balanced normal music as unbalanced and as having piercing treble. I've done some readings on this phenomenon and I found a research paper on hearing experiments. According to this study it takes between 30 to 90 days for an 'influenced' or 'modded' brain to return to normal hearing mode.
Ideally when one wants to evaluate headphones with a balanced sound then he or she should not be regularly using headphones with dark sound signature for at least a month, otherwise the sound impressions and evaluation of tested headphones would be 'skewed', distorted, inaccurate.
Another possibility is that you have a treble sensitive hearing due to either an ear illness at childhood or you have a congenital slight abnormality. Your 'cochlea' or part of it might be of atypical shape or you have abnormally high count of 'cillia' hair-cells in the entrance to cochlea where the high frequency sound is 'heard' and 'processed'. - http://scienceblogs.com/startswithabang/2010/05/10/dont-you-hear-that/
 

           

 
We 'hear' high frequencies right at the back of the ear canal where it meets the beginning of the 'cochlea' tube - starts at 20 000 Hz and then it gets to lower ones as the sound travels into the centre spiral - 200 Hz and lower. Some people have undeveloped the very end of the spiral and so they cannot hear sub-bass and low bass. For some people the bass starts at 65 hz, they cannot hear 20-65 Hz sound. Damage to 'cillia' within the whole 'bass' region of 'cochlea' means an individual hears weak, rolled off whole bass.
 
Nobody likes shrill treble but you might be one of those whose hearing shifts parts of normal treble into shrill resonances. If that is not case then listen for some 40 days to only balanced headphones that have a full treble, and then try W3000ANV. You'll hear different.
 
- http://www.cns.nyu.edu/~david/courses/perception/lecturenotes/pitch/pitch.html
- http://oto2.wustl.edu/cochlea/romesalt.pdf
- http://www.simonheather.co.uk/pages/articles/science_hearing.pdf
- http://www.noiseaddicts.com/2009/03/can-you-hear-this-hearing-test/
- http://www.businessinsider.com/image-of-our-brain-listening-to-music-2013-6
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auditory_cortex
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auditory_system

 

[Bill-P]

There are bright headphones that I am totally fine with, though.
 
For instance, I am okay with the W1000, and it's not as piercing as the W3000ANV to me.
 
I am also okay with the AD2000.
 
And beyond that, I can take the HE-560, HE-6, and SR-009.
 
And still the W3000ANV sounds "piercing" to me. I also experience this "piercing" sound with the W1000X.
 
It'll be interesting when I get to hear the W3000ANV again after owning the HE-560 for another while. I think I'll still find it piercing, but it'll be worth a try.

 

[Nada190]

So must buy this, was going to get a AKG K550 for closed but I like this more. Wood on headphones gives me wood. 

 

[Makiah S]

  So must buy this, was going to get a AKG K550 for closed but I like this more. Wood on headphones gives me wood. 

... welcome to the fold brother... 

 

[vlenbo]

Hey guys.
 
 
Guess what?!
 
Someone's brief comparison of the W3000ANV against the W1000Z.
 
W3000ANV to go out while portable with nano iDSD modification of ifi, was viewing comparison. Frankly speaking, is staging a little away from the W3000, it becomes so-called normal position, of feeling that bass was also refrain, it is crisp unit. Tightening of the lateral pressure becomes quite soft, came out the distance from the driver unit to ear. That amount, because the sound pressure is lowered, there was a need that little volume increase. The number of sounds a lot, easily for eye sound way, it is a good game per HD800 which is a good amplifier. Or say, because quite a high resolution for the price, you buy without thinking anything.
 
 
and extra impressions.
 
"
You'll want pursued single-mindedly the "sound", it is such a headphone. Bass as sinks in massive rich, high-frequency to light and delicate, and beautiful "sounds" over above all the entire band, it is the best feature. Sound field will feel a little narrow, but I want to actively listening to classic. Fine depiction of high-resolution sound source also has sounded divide capability. Or such as Ako stick live sound source would be the best choice. I will in a trance Kikihore to voice will likely extends also to anywhere. Together with the amplifier of the vacuum tube, and begin to believe what we should listen, you have been terribly excited. Do you next try also listened to jazz. Trumpet Why do not. Are either divided listen to fine subtleties of the hi-hat. It is a really fun headphones. And wearing feeling a little heavy, become a likely shift is that the charm. 
[Review Date: 2014/10/22]



Despite what the big change and without existing Oteku headphone design, housing glossy clear coat was applied on top of the natural teak has further enhanced the texture. But it also a good idea to put in ornamental, high-quality sound you want embezzlement every day If you listen. Or movement of the diaphragm is good, even in the Wood series of headphones, it is a good sound of the response to line up to ATH-W5000. Low frequency also has a moderate profound feeling, and then you have finished in the sound that listening Gotae, by Wood material unique sound way and high resolution, and has realized the sound field of a three-dimensional appearance. Hi-Res live sound source is compatibility looks good. It is a high degree of perfection that sound of the stringed instrument feel is headphones. 
[Review Date: 2014/10/23]



"

 

[cky8]

Thanks for the post.
 
However such direct translations are hard to read in the proper context. Hopefully someone with time who understands Japanese can do a proper translation for us.
 

 

[wateryakcat]

Cdjapan.co.jp will sell these for $605 including shipping.

 

[Makiah S]

Cdjapan.co.jp will sell these for $605 including shipping.

Not bad
 
Ima wait till some used pairs wind up here on 

 

[Nada190]

Man I have to break my own rules to buy this. Hope it retails for less here in the US otherwise I'll just break my rule even more. 

 

[nicolasete]

So, guessing onnly by the price and the lack of hype, I guess these are not the "King" everyone was talking about in the Z7 thread, right?

 

[Makiah S]

  So, guessing onnly by the price and the lack of hype, I guess these are not the "King" everyone was talking about in the Z7 thread, right?

sadly no,
 
the W1000Z is yet another revision of the W1000 [Letter] or {lack there of} headphones, I've heard the X, and I'ma going to get the W1000Z and MDR Z7 to see which I like my self 

 

[Maxx134]

Thanks for the post.

However such direct translations are hard to read in the proper context. Hopefully someone with time who understands Japanese can do a proper translation for us.

What I got out of that translation is what I expected to be the stong point, and that is superior details retrieval.
Mainly I asssumed so because of the new coil winding..

So, guessing onnly by the price and the lack of hype, I guess these are not the "King" everyone was talking about in the Z7 thread, right?

my bet is easily this one over that one because of possible handicap the larger 70mm driver has compared to this one.

I probably would pick the Sony only on looks but my bet is this unit will be superior.
Audio Technica was always a leader in cans so hopefully it will prove another step up for them..

 

[zorin]

What I got out of that translation is what I expected to be the stong point, and that is superior details retrieval.
Mainly I asssumed so because of the new coil winding..
my bet is easily this one over that one because of possible handicap the larger 70mm driver has compared to this one.

I probably would pick the Sony only on looks but my bet is this unit will be superior.
Audio Technica was always a leader in cans so hopefully it will prove another step up for them..

Sony Z7 has got to have a relatively weak treble compared to W1000Z. 70mm driver has a problem of generating full treble frequencies. As a size of a driver increases so the volume of the treble decreases.There are preliminary assessments of Z7 and they confirm that indeed Z7 has "forward bass and mids", that means the treble is a bit recessed. The sizes of 50mm and 53mm are about the optimal ones to present balanced three frequency bands - bass, mids and treble. The drivers of sizes below 50mm generate weaker bass and drivers of sizes above around 56mm have problems with treble. When Sennheiser's audio-technical engineers were developing HD800 with 56mm driver they found out that a driver of this size produces uncontrollable high frequencies resonances in the middle of the driver's diaphragm. They did not want to tone down treble because it would have meant having the Sennheiser's flagship headphones with unbalanced presentation of the three FR bands, and thus not belonging to 'the reference class'. Somebody had an idea to cut out the middle of the diaphragm and thus create a 'ring' shaped driver, instead of a circular one, in order to eliminate the center where high frequencies distortions were generated.. As a result of this HD800 has a ring shaped driver and the problem was solved but at a price. Because the diaphragm of HD800 is missing a part that would have generated its share of sound so HD800 sounds as if the treble is missing the width, the treble does not sound 'full' and one can still hear some distortion of the treble. People also comment that relative to Beyerdynamic T1 HD800 sounds thinner.
Sony's engineers had to have a similar problem, their solution was to tone down the treble. Those who do not want headphones that play treble muted music Z7 will not be to their satisfaction. A technical breakthrough is needed to make a one driver design, of drivers bigger than 53mm, to work.
For bass and thump oriented music genres Z7 will do their job well. For the majority of music where extended treble presentation is essential I'd pick W1000Z.

 

[Nada190]

Been having dreams about this headphone lately.