Philips Fidelio X2?!
Jul 17, 2019 at 3:57 PM Post #13,531 of 15,268
Got some new Philips X2HR from the amazon prime sale and found them to be no longer made by Gibson.
Did notice some minor differences in sound, the X2HR are overall more quiet and the vocals seem more recessed.
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New X2HR is made by MMD HK HOLDING LTD
Old X2 made by
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Anyone else tried the new X2HR?
Your headband makes the same noise as mine?
 
Jul 17, 2019 at 4:02 PM Post #13,533 of 15,268
Pretty disappointed with the X2HR. I was hoping for an upgrade from a bose soundlink 2 but the x2hr was underwhelming. The vocals and highs pop more on the bose. X2HR vocals are quite recessed. When comparing to gaming, movies, music, the bose are just overall brighter than the x2hr. Both are plugged straight into the headphone port on the computer running off the stock motherboard (no soundcard). Now I am thinking I should have went with a pair of dt990 since from what Ive read around the internet, is more in line of what i'm looking for.

FWIW...My DT990s (250 ohm) need an amp to shine. If you go with the Beyers, you might want to go with the 32 Ohm version if you're just using the sound card from your PC.

Even then, I'm thinking a more efficient headphone may be what's needed for running through a PC motherboard. For instance, my PC doesn't really drive the X2's to the levels I'd like it to be able to; also, believe they're a little more efficient than the Beyers.

If it were me, I'd spend $60-100 to get a nice entry level dac/amp and see if that makes a difference (most likely will)...a sampling below:

https://www.amazon.com/AudioQuest-DragonFly-Black-Preamp-Headphone/dp/B01DP5JHHI
https://www.amazon.com/FiiO-E10K-Headphone-Amplifier-Black/dp/B00LP3AMC2
https://www.amazon.com/BlasterX-External-Headphone-Surround-Sidetone/dp/B018JUPY3A
https://www.schiit.com/products/fulla-1

Other open cans worth looking at in the $150-200 range might be the Senn 58X or the AKG KXX
https://drop.com/buy/massdrop-x-sennheiser-hd-58x-jubilee-headphones
https://drop.com/buy/akg-k7xx-massdrop-first-edition-headphones
Would guess the k7XX's are good for gaming since the k701's are considered to be very good. The Q701s sound very clear in the mids/highs.

FWIW...FR graphs below; the treble on the DT990s is definitely more emphasized.

BEYER DT990

frequency-response-graph.png



Philips X2

upload_2019-7-17_14-0-19.png
 
Jul 17, 2019 at 4:37 PM Post #13,534 of 15,268
That's normal mate, even my old X2 makes those sounds.

I hope they didn't mess with the drivers on the new X2HR, how are you liking them so far?
i am not convinced yet Comprared to dt990 600 ohm
They have wider sounstage. They have a peak on treble thats bothering me. Also the mids seems recessed but at the same time shouty (the dt990 sounds more relaxed, the presentation on the fidelio seems to forward).The dt990 sounds thin and bright compare to the x2hr. The dt 990 seems to have more impact and quality on the bass, the X2HR have more quantity but lacks the impact ,sounds loose. The X2HR sounds more warm and musical.
The fidelio X2HR is fatiguing me to fast i am trying to figure out ( hd58x also fatigue me and hifiman sundara, I can use the dt880 and dt990 without a problem).
 
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Jul 17, 2019 at 4:56 PM Post #13,535 of 15,268
My new liquid spark arrived. i am testing it right now. the sound of the fidelio x2hr seems the same but o god the amount of detail separation is a night difference with my micca origen g2. the Treble was reduced a little, the bass became more tight and sounds more controlled. Soundstage and instrument separation also improved a lot.
 
Jul 17, 2019 at 6:14 PM Post #13,536 of 15,268
My new liquid spark arrived. i am testing it right now. the sound of the fidelio x2hr seems the same but o god the amount of detail separation is a night difference with my micca origen g2. the Treble was reduced a little, the bass became more tight and sounds more controlled. Soundstage and instrument separation also improved a lot.

Yup, If you pair it with the correct device, these things shine like you wouldn't believe! But, run it from something random and you will quickly want to throw them in a box of lost hopes and dreams. Which is what I did. The bass was muddy the whole thing sounded muffled and was loose among other grips I found with it. Plugged it years later into my RME ADI 2 and I'm just there like, is this the same headphone? Sounds nothing like I remember. And now it is my daily combo. now the things sitting in my box of lost hopes and dreams is LCD2C, HD660S, DT1990 among other headphones.

BTW, it's not made by gibson anymore cause they went bankrupt.
 
Jul 17, 2019 at 7:48 PM Post #13,537 of 15,268
it's ok , it's the material from the headband that makes the noise

Is this what people are referring to when they say their X2 has a “creaking headband”? Because I’ve seen people (in this thread even) return multiple units because of that “problem” that may not even be a problem at all.
 
Jul 18, 2019 at 6:16 PM Post #13,538 of 15,268
Is this what people are referring to when they say their X2 has a “creaking headband”? Because I’ve seen people (in this thread even) return multiple units because of that “problem” that may not even be a problem at all.

Mine make a slight squeaking type noise, nothing like in the video posted. I eventually traced it down to the vinyl of the headband rubbing against the plastic the elastic is attached to. I found a drop or 2 of treadmill belt lubricant quieted things down.
Funny thing, just now when I was checking the headband, I noticed mine are Woox manufactured. All this time I was thinking they were Gibson…
 
Jul 20, 2019 at 3:09 AM Post #13,540 of 15,268
I also got the X2HR on the Amazon Prime sale. I found that the ear-pads were glued on despite the manual saying they're replaceable. I've looked into it (on these forums actually), and found it's a known issue.

However, I've decided not to do anything about it because, A). I like the sound quality and I got them at a bargain price, so I feel I got my money's worth, B). even if I went through the hassle of returning them and swapping them for a new pair there's still a high chance that new pair would also have glued-on ear-pads, C). Philips don't even sell replacement pads so I'm not sure it matters that much whether the pads are glued on or not (you can buy pads on eBay at the moment, but who knows how long they'll be available for - so what am I going to do, spend hundreds of pounds now to hoard about 12 pairs of replacement ear pads just to guarantee I'll never run out of them in my lifetime?)

My questions about this situation are;

1). Would you do what I've done in my situation and not bother returning them?
2). If I take good care of the ear-pads, how long can I expect them to last before significant degrades in sound quality? 5 years? 10 years? Indefinately?
3). If, some 5-10 years down the road I still use this as a primary headphone and the ear-pads are completely knackered, would it be possible to yank out/cut off the glued-on ear-pads and glue on some fresh pairs without damaging the actual headphone unit?

Thaks guys.
 
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Jul 21, 2019 at 9:23 AM Post #13,541 of 15,268
I also got the X2HR on the Amazon Prime sale. I found that the ear-pads were glued on despite the manual saying they're replaceable. I've looked into it (on these forums actually), and found it's a known issue.

However, I've decided not to do anything about it because, A). I like the sound quality and I got them at a bargain price, so I feel I got my money's worth, B). even if I went through the hassle of returning them and swapping them for a new pair there's still a high chance that new pair would also have glued-on ear-pads, C). Philips don't even sell replacement pads so I'm not sure it matters that much whether the pads are glued on or not (you can buy pads on eBay at the moment, but who knows how long they'll be available for - so what am I going to do, spend hundreds of pounds now to hoard about 12 pairs of replacement ear pads just to guarantee I'll never run out of them in my lifetime?)

My questions about this situation are;

1). Would you do what I've done in my situation and not bother returning them?
2). If I take good care of the ear-pads, how long can I expect them to last before significant degrades in sound quality? 5 years? 10 years? Indefinately?
3). If, some 5-10 years down the road I still use this as a primary headphone and the ear-pads are completely knackered, would it be possible to yank out/cut off the glued-on ear-pads and glue on some fresh pairs without damaging the actual headphone unit?

Thaks guys.

Are your X2HR produced by Gibson? Check the markings on the left side of the hammock / suspension band.
 
Jul 21, 2019 at 11:10 AM Post #13,542 of 15,268
I just checked mine now, and mine have removable earpads and have MMD Holdings printed on the inside of the inner headband on the left. I presume that this is the name of the manufacturer after Gibson sold them on.

Just to be sure cactus_farmer, you are simply pulling the earpad off from the cup and not twisting? They just have push fit posts and a guide hole to secure them on mine.
 
Jul 21, 2019 at 12:21 PM Post #13,543 of 15,268
Also, you folks talking about being glued - make sure you understand that “glued pads” refers to the pads being glued down to the cups themselves.

Because ALL of the actual pads are “glued” to the plastic backing plate (the thing with the guide posts on it). But only some of the pads are also glued to the cups.
 
Jul 21, 2019 at 2:26 PM Post #13,544 of 15,268
Damn, you guys were right, I was trying to pull the foam off the earplate instead of pulling the earplate off the headphone. So I've pulled the earplate off the headphone now and no, it was not glued after all.

I wonder how many people were making this mistake when claiming to have 'glued on' earpads?

Or, more likely, I'm just an idiot.
 
Jul 21, 2019 at 2:33 PM Post #13,545 of 15,268
Damn, you guys were right, I was trying to pull the foam off the earplate instead of pulling the earplate off the headphone. So I've pulled the earplate off the headphone now and no, it was not glued after all.

I wonder how many people were making this mistake when claiming to have 'glued on' earpads?

I wouldn’t feel too bad.

I can see how this could be an mistake is easy to make, and I’m willing to bet it’s probably responsible for half of the claims people have made over the years that their pads were “glued on”.
 

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