[Tiemen]

I'm tempted to try these headphones, but still a bit uncertain if my large ears will fit in the ear pads. I had that problem before with other phones, like the Kenwood KH-K1000.
Can some owner measure the diameter of the inside of the ear pads? By that I mean the width, from one side to the other, without the pleather. So only the opening for the ear.
Thanks a lot in advance

 

[Pianist]

 
Quote:

I'm tempted to try these headphones, but still a bit uncertain if my large ears will fit in the ear pads. I had that problem before with other phones, like the Kenwood KH-K1000.
Can some owner measure the diameter of the inside of the ear pads? By that I mean the with, from one side to the other, without the pleather. So only the opening for the ear.
Thanks a lot in advance

Approximately 4.5 cm.

 
Update: After 80 or so hours of burn in, these have really opened up! The sound is truly excellent now, in every way. Any bloat in the bass that was there before is pretty much non existent now and the bass quality became so good that I now rank it above that of my SM3s in this aspect - very impressive! Also, the treble became so much nicer - it lost all harshness, but also became more refined. The mids are totally flat and sound wonderfully natural without being too in your face or too laid back. I think the overall sound also became smoother after more burn in and these are now the smoothest sounding headphones in my collection.
 
Now I understand why these are being compared to DT880 and HD650 - yes they are really that good.. Definitely took me some time to realize that though - burn in seems to improve these a lot.

 

[luffy92]

I just ordered a pair of FA-003's. I should be able to post my thoughts on the headphones once I get them. I'm new to this so not sure if my review will be really helpful...

 

[Tiemen]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pianist /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Approximately 4.5 cm.

 

Thanks Pianist. So these are not for me. I need at least 6 cm space.
With 4,5 cm, they will be supra aural, resting on my earlobs.

 

[Pariah1]

Quote:

I just ordered a pair of FA-003's. I should be able to post my thoughts on the headphones once I get them. I'm new to this so not sure if my review will be really helpful...

Sure it would. The more reviews, especially the more that consent or affirm that these are nice cans, the better.
 
I would of already bought these but I just bought a new pair of speakers so...

 

[Pianist]

WOW! After about 90 hours of burn in something happened and these cans completely transformed! Amazing - I couldn't stop listening to them last night. The bass that was already really good after 80 hours is now just stellar - it is without a doubt the best low end I've ever heard in a headphone. It has a unique blend of power, dynamics, detail and neutrality that no other headphone I've tried has. The mids are now even more transparent - as transparent as the mids on my SM3. The highs are right up there with the best headphones I've tried - Ety ER4, Hifiman RE0, Beyer DT880 and the likes. They are wonderfully refined, ultra smooth and super detailed and never harsh when not supposed to be.

:drool:

 

[Pariah1]

Thanks for all the great detailed updates/reviews Pianist!  These things keep sounding better or better. New speakers or not, I think I have to get these soon.

 

[Pianist]

Quote:

Thanks for all the great detailed updates/reviews Pianist!  These things keep sounding better or better. New speakers or not, I think I have to get these soon.

Yeah, you have to!

 

[Pariah1]

Quote:

Yeah, you have to!

Hehe, you're bad.
 
But don't worry, I think I might order them early next week. I was wanting to listen to some music last night but the gf was asleep and my sound bleeding cans just wouldn't do. I was thinking, here I am again needing a good closed can and I don't have one!
 
I'm just going to check out a few others I have been looking at over this weekend and make up my mind.
 
One thing: How are they with rock? Aggressive enough? Or enough speed and energy? I can usually get by with listening to my 702's when my gf is asleep if I listen to more mellow stuff, but I also like to listen to rock/metal late at night. I use my Grado 225i's or 702's for that, but only when she is awake, otherwise they bleed too much noisy sound.

 

[zippy2001]

The FA-003 do not leak sound, which is great for some late night listening and not bothering your partner.

 

[rhymer2k]

Any sources in the Uk? i do not want to have to order from America

 

[Pianist]

 
Quote:

Hehe, you're bad.
 
But don't worry, I think I might order them early next week. I was wanting to listen to some music last night but the gf was asleep and my sound bleeding cans just wouldn't do. I was thinking, here I am again needing a good closed can and I don't have one!
 
I'm just going to check out a few others I have been looking at over this weekend and make up my mind.
 
One thing: How are they with rock? Aggressive enough? Or enough speed and energy? I can usually get by with listening to my 702's when my gf is asleep if I listen to more mellow stuff, but I also like to listen to rock/metal late at night. I use my Grado 225i's or 702's for that, but only when she is awake, otherwise they bleed too much noisy sound.

Well, they are plenty fast and have a tight, punchy bass that suits rock well. They are no Grado of course, but they are sharp and articulate and really do all music genres well IMO. Everything just sound right through these cans. If you prefer emphasis on a certain part of the spectrum for some music like rock, you may need some time for your ears to adjust to the more neutral sound of the FA-003, but eventually you should realize that their presentation is the right one in the sense that they represent the source and the recording very accurately. Personally, I like them with rock and pretty much with all other types of music I listen to.

 

[Pariah1]

Quote:

The FA-003 do not leak sound, which is great for some late night listening and not bothering your partner.

I know that...I think you misread my post. Thanks though.

 
Quote:

 

Well, they are plenty fast and have a tight, punchy bass that suits rock well. They are no Grado of course, but they are sharp and articulate and really do all music genres well IMO. Everything just sound right through these cans. If you prefer emphasis on a certain part of the spectrum for some music like rock, you may need some time for your ears to adjust to the more neutral sound of the FA-003, but eventually you should realize that their presentation is the right one in the sense that they represent the source and the recording very accurately. Personally, I like them with rock and pretty much with all other types of music I listen to.

Sounds great.

 
Trust me, I prefer a more neutral and uncolored sound, but I just don't want cans that are too laid back or veiled or distant in the mids for heavier material (colored in that way iow). The Grados are of course colored, but they are fun, but only in small doses, then their coloration gets annoying. The 702's are pretty neutral, just somewhat cold or clinical so not the best for rock/metal, especially because they are so revealing of badly recorded/produced material (they are great for everything else, especially well recorded material). And of course both of these are open so not good for "quiet time".
 
I'm pretty much sold on these...just have to review my list and make up my mind.

 

[ethan961]

.

 

[Pianist]

 
Quote:

I'm glad to hear you like these now Pianist, I was puzzled as to how you could not like them since you're a fan of the RE0 and other uncoloured equipment. It must be because I didn't listen to these until they had a good 200 hours of burn-in, so I don't know how they sound in the process.
The reason for that was that I listened to the FA-002 right out of the box and for a couple weeks while the 003s just burned in, waiting their turn.
 
What surprised me the most about what you said are the parts comparing them to the SM3s. I knew these were good, but I didn't expect that. Nor did I expect you to become a complete fan! It seems burn-in really does help them. I'd love to keep hearing your updates with even more time, so we know when the magic number is and when they level out. It seems 90 is a significant one where it starts to resemble its true form from your posts.
 
I've tossed mine around for a few weeks now and they've held up well. I'm not a huge fan of the build either but I don't feel the need to be careful with them anymore like I did at first.

Yeah, well SM3 is still better. FA-003 is transparent in the sense that it is very neutral, while SM3 is both very neutral and also more detialed. When switching deirctly from FA-003, to the SM3, I notice right away why SM3 costs more. It clearly has superior mids and treble performance. But the FA-003 does have a slight edge in the bass I think mainly due to better impact. In the mids and highs, SM3 provides better micro detail and is also more refined sounding. With the FA-003 I often find that I need to concentrate on my music to feel like I am there with the musicians. With SM3, I often don't need to.

With most other cans I tried so far, I couldn't even feel like I am there at all - no matter how hard I tried. lol So the FA-003 is definitely more real sounding than most, although not quite up there with the immersive realism of the SM3.
 
I would miss the SM3 very much if I was forced to only stay with my FA-003, but if the Fischers were my only cans, I would be still perfectly satisfied in the end.