[roma101]

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No problem! I'd hate to see another head-fier get fleeced...especially when it comes to something as vital as this.

 
The cheapest I've seen the HDJ-2000s going for from an authorized dealer is $250 from Beach Camera / BuyDig (and a few bucks more from B&H and Amazon)...As you may have pieced together, I've developed an interest in the HDJ-2000s as well...

Vital is the word indeed! Hope these will be my end-all, be-all perfect headphones. Time to start savin' up!

 

[ArcKade]

They will always be my go to can for DJing.... rugged and ultra comfy. They do benefit from an amp quite a bit though...

 

[priest]

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As you may have pieced together, I've developed an interest in the HDJ-2000s as well.

You and me both. People who buy them seem to love them. I also like that they are on the Head-Fi "fringe." Gives them shock value. Very punk rock.
 
 

 

[roma101]

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You and me both. People who buy them seem to love them. I also like that they are on the Head-Fi "fringe." Gives them shock value. Very punk rock.
 
 

Agreed.

 

[Armaegis]

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I hear you, I can't imagine spending a grand on a pair of headphones. At this point I have a lot of headphones and want to start winding down. I'll probably keep most of the ones I have but now I'm just really after finding that one close to perfect headphone and stopping at that for a while. 
 
How would you say these headphones are for rock and how do you find vocals on them btw? I'm trying to find some more in depth impressions on these but as you said, they're not as popular on headfi. 
 

I had a huge pile of headphones that I was narrowing down, and I still have a few I want to sell/trade, but now the DIY bug has gotten me so any pair I come across I start wondering if I can tinker with it. I've already transplanted some orthos, and those Grados (which is probably the 4th or 5th pair I've gone through) are just begging to be taken apart.
 


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I'd be wary of ebay sales myself, since there are evidently HDJ-2000 knock-offs in circulation...as this auction would attest. The seller states:

Wow, I had no idea there were fakes, though I guess it makes sense seeing how expensive they are.
 

 
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Do the M50s really fare that bad against the 840s, Q40s and HDJ-2000?

I'm just not a fan of the M50. I can see why people like it... but I simply prefer the others more. The M50 is in a vicious cycle of fotm due to sheer volume. It's a good performer that plays well to modern genres, it gets easy recommendations, then newcomers buy it and have nothing else to compare to except ibuds, then parrot the recommendations as the best thing ever. It's like the popular kids in high school who are only popular because someone told you they're popular, and so you tell other people to because you want to fit in.

 
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A mix of things... I have a bunch of selected tracks that I typically cycle through when comparing headphones to make sure I get a fairly good representation across the spectrum. Some classical, various electronic, female vocal, metal, various incarnations of jazz, acoustic, early big band and R&B, indie, percussion/drums, etc.

Just what I was hoping to see. A few questions, revolving around the Pioneers:

Are they even OK for metal?(fast-paced?)
If you were to boost the bass, would it overpower everything else?(I know this might require some testing, but it's something I have to look out for when looking for headphones, as I have to boost the bass for it to even be audible to my ears, unless I want my music volume at 90%, which I don't)
What amp did you use when testing?
Source?

The sound is clean, but not "edgy" if you want that strong aggressive sound. Bass boost is fine though, as the HDJ-2000 lacks the deep rumble/resonance which makes it feel bass-light compared to the other bass cannons, but at the same time makes it cleaner if you boost it.
 
Amps I've used... iBasso D10, Sansui and HK receivers, KICAS Caliente (bass boost), HotAudio DacDestroyer, various PA sound boards and mixers, etc.

 

[epithetless]

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The sound is clean, but not "edgy" if you want that strong aggressive sound. Bass boost is fine though, as the HDJ-2000 lacks the deep rumble/resonance which makes it feel bass-light compared to the other bass cannons, but at the same time makes it cleaner if you boost it.

Hm...This "bass-light" statement is one of the only things to give me pause about the HDJ-2000s. I didn't get the impression from your earlier comments that it lacked rumble; when you say that's in comparison to "other bass cannons," I assume you mean the Q40 and ATH-M50? I personally find the ATH-M50's bass presentation just about right -- impactful and not so quick/polite that all resonance and decay are missing -- and I find the SRH840's bass sorely lacking in impact. Where do the HDJ2000's fall on that spectrum? I suppose they're much less bassy than the Phaiton MS400 (which I also enjoy)?

 

[Armaegis]

I would put the MS400 bass around the same ballpark as the 840. Deep and rich/mellow sounding. The Q40 is heavier and slurs a bit, response feels slower but you get an awesome rumble that quakes your ears. The M50 goes the other way being less rumble and more attack, which felt a bit sharp at times. In terms of pure volume, I would say the HDJ-2000 is the lightest of the group, and less attack than the M50 but better than the 840, and overall cleanliness of the bass is the best of the group.
 

 

[epithetless]

All right, thanks, Armaegis. I suppose it's something I'll have to hear for myself to really gauge against my tastes. In fact, I'm about a millimeter away from placing the order now...As long as I choose a retailer with an acceptable return policy, what's the harm?

 

[Pianist]

Nice review. I must disagree about the Q40 highs though. I didn't find them all that smooth. They were fine, but grainy and metallic sounding compared to SRH840. The M50 also has metallic highs, but they are smoother than those of Q40 IMO. The Q40 has a peak in the lower treble than causes some annoying sibilance at times. M50 doesn't suffer from this issue, although it has other problems. SRH840 also has the smoothest mids and overall sound of the 3 to my ears and the best micro detail retrieval with the cleanest, clearest presentation. M50 is a bit muddy and lacks focus/definition by comparison, while Q40 is too edgy and lacks smoothness in the treble.

 

[roma101]

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All right, thanks, Armaegis. I suppose it's something I'll have to hear for myself to really gauge against my tastes. In fact, I'm about a millimeter away from placing the order now...As long as I choose a retailer with an acceptable return policy, what's the harm?

Please post impressions if you get them! 

 

[Armaegis]

I agree about the 840 mids and it having the smoothest overall sound of the three.
 
Highs are a hard thing to compare. Everyone's ears hear things differently (duh), and I usually attribute part of the differing opinions to differences in people's hearing sensitivy curves, in particular the natural high peak which typically rides somewhere around 3000-5000Hz. As this is where most headphones start to get wobbly frequency response as well, it's not hard to see how perceptions in this area can change so wildly from person to person.

 

[roma101]

Does this look legit to you? Is that what the box looks like?
 
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170646485590&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT#ht_500wt_1057

 

[Armaegis]

The pads look a little different, though it's hard to tell from just that picture. Also, mine has a different outer box, but I don't remember if the inner box looks like the one in the auction.
 
I dunno, considering those factors plus the price is too good to be true... I would be wary.

 

[roma101]

Yeah the pictures are pretty bad. Apparently that is what the inner box looks like when I googled it. But I'm pretty wary. I contacted the seller to see if he/she could post another photo of the R and L on the headband/closeup of the headphone overall because I came across a website comparing real/fake models. Thanks for your input. I'm really dying to snag a pair but I may just end up getting them from an authorized dealer at some point.

 

[Armaegis]

They're around $250 in the US right now which is a decent price. Certainly better than Canadian prices