Oct 13, 2024 at 12:32 AM Post #8,221 of 8,296
1. Tungsten DS
2. Atrium Open
3. Caldera Open
 
Oct 13, 2024 at 2:25 AM Post #8,222 of 8,296
I am always very surprised that people can own so much different headphones.
I bought 12 all in all.
They were all unsatisfactory to say the least.
I even modified all of them. Each time with success. But to no avail. Even after improvements they were defectuous by design anyway...
They were deficient on many acoustic counts. Each one of them on many counts...
Be it dynamic, planar or electrostatic.

No headphone compare to speakers well done in an acoustically tuned room anyway. I knowbecause i created my own acoustic room few years ago. I lost it then i was in the obligation to use an headphone and i disliked all my headphone.

The only headphone who gave me satisfaction, as i already stated here is the AKG K340 but it takes me 6 months of experiments and 6 modifications at the end to set it to my satisfaction .

I cannot fathom or dare to buy any other one. I pay it 100 bucks and i am pretty sure that almost no other headphone will compete.

Probably the Imanis at 10,000 dollars will do...
:)

The most important characteristics of a good headphone is ultra deep bass, good timbre characteristic for voice and any instrument ( naturalness ) an imaging and a sound-staging able to make the original recording distinctive and realistic but more important than all these basic acoustic factor, the ability to give an "out of the head" acoustic holographic impression when the original recording ask for it and make it possible.. ( the soundstage dimensions must be variable and not fixed once for all by design as it is the case in all headphone , the soundstage must be as in the recording, a small studio is not a church, an electronic session is not an acoustic Hall )

I have all that for 100 bucks...

I am even afraid to buy anything else...

Perhaps the Raal Imanis will rival and better mine, after all the cost means something i think...

But i will never know ...

An improvement over my AKG K340 is not enough to justify the 9,900 $ of price difference.

And if i read the cons associated with it in some review :

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/raal-1995-immanis.27277/

«Cons: - In the end too laid-back vocals for me
- Recessed voices and inability to sound truly intimate
- Neutral sounding, so it does not portrait a spicy rendition, can sound bland with bad recordings
- Price is extremely high »

my AKG created by the physicist and acoustician Dr. Gorike founder of AKG when improved ( vibration and resonance absorption and control and Removal of the grid protector etc) Has no defect at all for me...

I will never use 10 headphones again to compensate one defect by another different defect in a move to change the place of the acoustic pain changing headphone.. Or using different headphones for different styles of music.

Is the AKG K340 can be improved ?

Yes i proved that because i modified it myself...

Could this hybrid design with his dual acoustic chamber with 5 tuned resonators be improved?

Yes it can...

But no headphone company will use this basic genius acoustic set of designs from the start and invest big money in research to improve it using the same set of acoustic ideas...None...

Some headphone big player said to me that creating this hybrid design in the right way and improve on it ask for too much investment and then less profit...

I am too old to see this coming anyway.... I will die with my AKG K340...
Glad you found your “end game” in the headphones world. I don’t know too much about older phones as, like yourself, I was also into 2 channel stereo, and also have had dedicated and treated rooms for it.

In fact one of the best sounding and most transparent systems I had wasn’t my most expensive or exquisite. It was a Bel Canto Evo 2i, Cambridge Dacmagic, Quad 22L speakers…it was perfect. However, I’ve gone the easy route now as I don’t listen too often to 2ch stereo.. a set of KEF LSX is more than ample, excellent little speakers.

Anyway, going to look up the K340’s now, they sound interesting. Discontinued now? Is there a modern equivalent?
 
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Oct 13, 2024 at 5:07 AM Post #8,223 of 8,296
Anyway, going to look up the K340’s now, they sound interesting. Discontinued now? Is there a modern equivalent?
There is no modern equivalent.
Headphone design has improved since then ;)
 
Oct 13, 2024 at 8:28 AM Post #8,224 of 8,296
1. ZMF Caldera Closed
2. Hifiman HEKSE (sold)
3. Meze 109 Pro
4. Audio Texhnica ATH-R70X
 
Oct 13, 2024 at 8:42 AM Post #8,225 of 8,296
Glad you found your “end game” in the headphones world. I don’t know too much about older phones as, like yourself, I was also into 2 channel stereo, and also have had dedicated and treated rooms for it.

In fact one of the best sounding and most transparent systems I had wasn’t my most expensive or exquisite. It was a Bel Canto Evo 2i, Cambridge Dacmagic, Quad 22L speakers…it was perfect. However, I’ve gone the easy route now as I don’t listen too often to 2ch stereo.. a set of KEF LSX is more than ample, excellent little speakers.

Anyway, going to look up the K340’s now, they sound interesting. Discontinued now? Is there a modern equivalent?
The K340 need plenty of power to make them sing. They are at the top of my preferred choices also. 45 years old and they still sound better than most modern day designs.
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Oct 13, 2024 at 11:15 AM Post #8,226 of 8,296
Please my friend ,beware that my review is about my AKG K340 MODIFIED....

This headphone must be understood as for his design and how it work...

It took me 6 months of experiment BEFORE being happy...

When i bought them as it is, i prefered them to my 10 others headphone because i sensed their potential unmodified but i was not happy and satisfied at all ... Many things bothered me, which were described in some negative reviews on the net...

At the times i bought them i was in room acoustic for my speakers and very successful with that...

I sold my house and then was now in the obligation to focus on only headphone...

The only one i want to improve and listen to among my 10 others was the K340...

But if you are "a normal" person who use gear as it is , i do not recommend the K340 ... They are old and it takes me a very long time to understand them .... I even read the original patent of Dr. Gorike to understand this specific unique hybrid which resemble NO OTHERS headphone ...

No review i read on the internet do them justice for many reasons...

Ok i just want to warn you about the "task" to do....

Anyway they are sold low price then....

Glad you found your “end game” in the headphones world. I don’t know too much about older phones as, like yourself, I was also into 2 channel stereo, and also have had dedicated and treated rooms for it.

In fact one of the best sounding and most transparent systems I had wasn’t my most expensive or exquisite. It was a Bel Canto Evo 2i, Cambridge Dacmagic, Quad 22L speakers…it was perfect. However, I’ve gone the easy route now as I don’t listen too often to 2ch stereo.. a set of KEF LSX is more than ample, excellent little speakers.

Anyway, going to look up the K340’s now, they sound interesting. Discontinued now? Is there a modern equivalent?
 
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Oct 13, 2024 at 11:25 AM Post #8,227 of 8,296
Sorry but the fact that modern acoustic design technology had improved a great way for dynamic, planar and electroacoustic has nothing to do with a unique hybrid design as such...

There is many acoustics and psycho-acoustics concepts and aspects implicated in hearing and headphones. Then the way each design impact hearing and respond to hearing differ in each case...

And the ratio "sound quality " /price for the K340 is insane...

Especially when the user understand how and why improving it ...
There is no modern equivalent.
Headphone design has improved since then :wink:
 
Oct 13, 2024 at 11:34 AM Post #8,228 of 8,296
And no there is no modern equivalent, because there is no other true hybrid headphone (dynamic+electrostatic cell) with a dual acoustic chamber with 5 tuned passive Helmholtz resonators...

The Dharma is not a true hybrid as the K340 , but only a dynamic cell with a super tweeter and no passive tuned resonators and no dual acoustic chamber . The K340 two cells work one in the bass and the mid range and the electret work also in the mid and not only in the super high frequencies range ( it incorporate a crossover unlike the Dharma the electret is said to have the crossover set at 4000Hz with a 6dB/octave slope)

4,000 hertz as crossover point is the focus point for all musical instrument and vocals psychoacoustic perception of timbre and was not picked by chance by Dr. Gorike, the AKG founder who was not an engineer but a physicist specialized in acoustic with many patents as the AKG history testify... Then there was and there is no other hybrid in history i know of but there is certainly no other hybrid acoustically set as this one... The reason why he was the flagship for AKG and never been replaced or even improved upon ... Very costly complex design to improve facing new generation of headphone (the planar) and better refined technology on many membranes types design aspects ...Profit rule the headphone market, not acoustic research contest as such ....Dr. Gorike as AKG director could and can decide to realize his dream headphone... A complex one....Not a simpler single cell one as dynamic, planar or electrostatic...
 
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Oct 13, 2024 at 11:50 AM Post #8,229 of 8,296
Multiple drivers cool and all, but not always necessary
 
Oct 13, 2024 at 2:21 PM Post #8,230 of 8,296
To appreciate the uniqueness of the K340 read the owner patent explanation and remember that Gorike was a physicist by formation in acoustic ...

https://patents.google.com/patent/US4005278A/en?inventor=Rudolf+Gorike


Now i must apologise to all here because for sure this thread is not about the K340...

What i wanted to say is said...

My best to all ....
 
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Oct 13, 2024 at 8:20 PM Post #8,231 of 8,296
Really unsure how to rank the items I own as each gives a unique flavor and enjoyment factor in and of itself. I go ahead with one or two in heavy rotation, then switch to another and find a new and surprising joy, like finding a new beauty in your wife's smile or eyes all these years later....that said, at present the following represents my current rotational picks:

Open backed:
1. JM Audio XTC2
2. ZMF Auteur OG
3. JM Audio XTC
4. HD600

Closed:
1. ZMF Eikon
2. HD620S
3. LCD-XC 2021
4. ZMF Bokeh

IEMs
1. Hidizs MP145
2. Truthear Hexa
3. Duna SA6
4. Gizaudio × Binary Chopin
5. Moondrop Aria

...no idea of the rationale or reasoning- just a reflection of the mood that takes, and the groove that flows these days. Enjoy the musical journey all!
 
Oct 13, 2024 at 9:55 PM Post #8,232 of 8,296
Anyway, going to look up the K340’s now, they sound interesting. Discontinued now? Is there a modern equivalent?
The closest would be the Enigma Acoustics Dharma which also used an electret tweeter and a cone mid/bass driver. It wasn't well liked when it was released and I don't think it's still in production but here is a review for you to check out:

 
Oct 14, 2024 at 11:40 AM Post #8,234 of 8,296
entirely subjective list

Wow, ranking the SASH Tres SE open back 3rd overall, and ahead of some real heavy hitters...

I notice you don't list the SASH on your closed-back list at all. Is that because you don't have closed cups, or do you dislike what the closed cups do to the sound? I have the SASH Tres 45ohm (listening to them right now as a matter of fact) and find the closed cups to be surprisingly similar to open back.
 
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