[Andrea Agostini]

Hi all,

As the title says, I am looking for a suggestion for a pair of closed back headphones, between neutral and slightly warm.

Some introduction first. I wouldn't say I am an audiophile, rather I enjoy listening to music... many hours a day I listen to almost every kind of music: classical in all its variants, jazz, rock, funk, metal, country, prog, noise, hip hop, avantgarde, folk... anything! On my desktop I have an O2/ODAC. Headphones I currently use are: AKG 551 (when I am on the go), beyerdynamic DT 880 (the 600 Ohm version) and fostex TH-X00 (the purple heart edition). I love my beyers, I am not bothered by their highs, I actually find them exciting, but I feel like a touch more bass would make them more enjoyable at times (I am thinking of upgrading them to DT 1990s, as I've read that one of their pads does this). On the other hand, after one year of love and hate I'm selling the purplehearts: despite how much I like the color of their sound, they have just too much bass for me (you could say I am bass sensitive). Now I am looking for another set of closed or almost closed (~fostex, for office use), neutral or slightly warm (not V-shaped though).

I was looking at the t60rp, but I read it has no sub-bass, and if that's the case (is it?) then it's a no-go. I am also considering the Fostex TH-610s, they are a bit pricey for me but I could maybe get a used pair.

Do you have other suggestions for me?

Thanks to anyone who will take the time to contribute

 

[PurpleAngel]

What is your budget?
Fostex T50RP headphones? with a good ear pad upgrade.
Classic ZMF or Argon MK3

 

[Andrea Agostini]

Thanks for the quick reply!
Sorry, I should have been more explicit about my budget in the first post. I don't want to spend more than 500€ (~500$ I guess).
I will look into the ZMFs. I thought the Argon MK3 had the same kind of bass as the TH-X00, am I wrong?

 

[PurpleAngel]

Thanks for the quick reply!
Sorry, I should have been more explicit about my budget in the first post. I don't want to spend more than 500€ (~500$ I guess).
I will look into the ZMFs. I thought the Argon MK3 had the same kind of bass as the TH-X00, am I wrong?

I have the Massdrop/Fostex T-X0, never listened to the TH-X00

 

[buke9]

Have not heard the Argons so can’t say but the T-X0 or even the Dekoni Blue don’t have the bass of the TH-X00’s and the Argons and ZMF are based on the T50RP some MK3 and the T-X0 MK2 don’t know about the Argon or Blues or ZMF for sure but none have the bass of the TH-X00’s.

 

[kukkurovaca]

Thanks for the quick reply!
Sorry, I should have been more explicit about my budget in the first post. I don't want to spend more than 500€ (~500$ I guess).
I will look into the ZMFs. I thought the Argon MK3 had the same kind of bass as the TH-X00, am I wrong?

I haven't heard the TH-X00, but I don't think the Argon is quite on that level in terms of bass. It definitely does have better bass/subbass extension than a stock T50 though.

With the recommended ZMF Oval pads, bass is somewhat emphasized. But with fenestrated Ori pads or Brainwavz hybrid pads, it's no bass cannon. (Grain of salt: I'm in no way bass-sensitive or bass-averse.)

However, lead time on Argon is long, and I don't know what shipping to Europe would look like, so it might not be an overall appealing value proposition. Argons are a fantastic pair of headphones, though.

 

[Andrea Agostini]

Thanks all for chiming in. I will take in consideration the Argons with Ori pads. Considering shipping and customs the price would get to ~380$ I think, against for example the ~330$ of t60rp (available in Europe). Still, the t60rp might be a little shy in bass, just like the dt880... Damn, the Argons are tempting me now