[AudioCats]

I have been thinking about getting some MB Quarts, ever since reading facelvega's post European headphones…..
Then EricJ informed me that ElectronicsBonanza has both QP55x and QP45x on clearance, price is very low ($25 for 45x and $32 for 55x). So after drinking so much ice tea, I finally broke down and pulled the trigger…..

(since the price is so low, will these MB Quarts become the FOTM of August 2007?)

The package arrived this afternoon........

The MB's came in simple cardboard boxes, containing the phones (in bubble wrap), a small paper work booklet, and....nothing else. There is no 1/4"-> 1/8" adaptor. So I guess in the 80's nobody cared about the 1/8" mini jacks…..the boxes are very very similar

Spec's are also basically the same for both, the only differences are the 55x being open and use velour pads, while the 45x being semi-open with pleather pads. All other technical data are the identical according to prints on the back of the box.

The headband and housing are pretty much the same too. (apparently 55x has red foam inside, and 45x... black foam):

But the velour pads of 55x are bigger than the 45x's pleather earpads, the screen pads (in front of the drivers for protection) are also bigger (55x's > 45x's). 55x’s on the left, 45x’s on the right.

Why? because the baffles are of different size and configuration. Again, 55x on the left and 45x on the right:

The 55x velour pads are very similar to the Beyer's..... the 55x pads can go on to my Beyer 990 with no problem, but Beyer pads are a little small for the 55x. Picture showing 55x pad on Beyer housing (fits well) and Beyer pad on 55x housing (might come off during use). So, do NOT buy $30 Beyer pads to put on $32 QP55x! (but do buy the QP55x so you get spare pads for your Beyer

)

MB and Beyer plugs are basically identical. The left one is 990's, 55x's in the middle, 45x's on the right.

Coiled cable...... Beyer990's cable (bottom) is softer and has a "high quality" feel. While the 55x/45x cables are harder and...... well, "not so high quality" feel.

How do the 55x/45x compare to the Beyer990, build quality wise? well, A/B ing the Beyer housing/headband vs. 55x/45x's, the QP's look so... Cheap L (but they are indeed so much cheaper price-wise....

) . The left one is Beyer990's adjuster, right one 55x's:

 

[ericj]

The QP55x pads are essentially indistinguishable from the pads that came stock with my 90's version DT990. Beyerdynamic and MBQuart probably bought them from the same factory.

But what i really came here to say is, you'd think there would need to be more than 27 of them for sale for a real FoTM!

 

[AudioCats]

The comfort:
Both QP’s are very light, about the same as my Beyer 990. Very little clamping pressure, again about the same as the Beyers. I guess I can wear them all day without any problem. Both the 55x and 45x feel about the same, the 45x’s might be a little hotter due to the pleather pads, but the difference is not very noticeable, at least for now……


The sound:
Both 55x and 45x are still being cooked (burning-in). They will be reviewed after 70 hours of Rock music. I will probably have somebody else do the SQ review since I am not very articulated in commending sound stuff. By the way, I ordered 3 pairs all together, one 55x + one 45x for me and one pair of 55x for Alex (aka “Footemp”)…… Bigger order= cheaper shipping per pair

So maybe Alex can do the auditions when he pick up his pair and write the SQ reviews.

The 55x/45x will be compared with the KSC75’s, Accura SR-660’s, and Senn 555’s.

The initial impressions: the 55x’s are bright and don’t have as much bass as I like (on the other hand my main phones are the Beyer 990/600’s

), while the 45x seem to have better bass and not as bright (Jazz anyone?), but a little echoy(?? anyway, more close phone like). Somehow I felt the 55x has slightly better details though…..

 

[fraseyboy]

Mmm they look yummy. Looking forward for teh review!!!!

 

[AudioCats]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ericj /img/forum/go_quote.gif The QP55x pads are essentially indistinguishable from the pads that came stock with my 90's version DT990. Beyerdynamic and MBQuart probably bought them from the same factory. But what i really came here to say is, you'd think there would need to be more than 27 of them for sale for a real FoTM!

Ericj, there are (or were) also 13 pairs of 45x, and somehow I like the 45x better

stronger bass, not as bright, and comfort being about the same as long as you don't sweat too much....

So I guess the 45x's will go dry first

 

[Fitz]

Hmm, comfortable, cheap, and decent sounding. Maybe I'll grab a couple of these to use as test phones when working on amps, so I don't break anymore non-cheap phones (I could've bought a few pairs of these for what it cost to replace my DT931 drivers

).

 

[AudioCats]

Now I don't want anyone to have the impression that these QP's are Beyer quality with Grado sound at a super bargain price. The sound is good, the comfort is great, no doubt, but these were kind of cheaply built per today's standards. The Beyer 990's are at least a few notches above the QP's build quality wise.

after 6 hours:

Efficiency: Senn555 > 45x >55x. My 555's are the old 150 ohm version, still it is quite a bit louder than the 45x. The 55x is really "quiet" in comparison. While my 555's can get adaquate sound from a ipod, the 45x "may" get loud enough if you max the ipod's volumn. You definitly need an amp to drive the 55x.

Openess: 55x (airy and speaker like) >= Beyer 990 > 45x > 555 (more up-front, closed-in).

Both QP's are smoother than the Senn555, somehow the Senn555 always sound kind of grainy to me

.

Frequency Response: do 555's have a mid-range hump? if so then the QP's are more flat....or maybe the 555's are flat while the QP's have recessed mids. I am used to the Beyer990 so natually I prefer the QP sound

Brightness: 55x (bright) > 555 > 45x (not so bright, but still alot brighter than my Beyer990/600)

Bass quantity:45x> Senn555 >55x.
Bass quality: to me QP's bass is better than the Senn's, I really don't like the 555's bass due to the reflector. The QP's bass is more natural sounding.
I kind of feel if you take out the 555's bass reflector you will get the 55x kind of bass......

Details: I have to say the 55x sound "finer", easier to notice those tiny details; 45x and 555 are a little less in that area.

So did the QP's kick 555's axx? not really. I enjoy the QP sound and comfort better, probably due to my ears are more uesed to the Beyers. But the Senn's 1)are built to higher quality (a couple notches above the QP's), and 2)has less requirement on amplification. My main complain on the 555's is the reflector cup, it really messed everything up....

 

[AudioCats]

at this stage I'd recommand the 45x for Rocks, and 55x for Classical. 45x has good bass, but I still prefer a 6db bass bump so they can really rock (yes I am spoiled by the Beyers).

Give the 55x a 12db bass bump and they will rock really well too.....

And you can take out the screen pads in front of the 45x drivers, that will improve details slightly (still not quite the 55x level though).

 

[swt61]

I decided to try a pair of 55's. At this price I'll have Black velour pads for my DT990's at the very least. UPS ground shipping, so it'll be several days before they arrive to comment on them. Thanks for the heads up on these.

 

[ericj]

Quote:

Originally Posted by swt61 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I decided to try a pair of 55's. At this price I'll have Black velour pads for my DT990's at the very least. UPS ground shipping, so it'll be several days before they arrive to comment on them. Thanks for the heads up on these.

I have to tell you, the black on black w/ the oldschool plastic grille 990's is dead sexy. Really brings out the color of the fabric lining the grille (which is cream, not white).

 

[AudioCats]

swt, only one pair? I thought every Beyer owner should buy at least a couple, even if only for pads

Took about 10 days for my order to arrive.

 

[AudioCats]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ericj /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have to tell you, the black on black w/ the oldschool plastic grille 990's is dead sexy.

Yes! the plastic band Beyers are the best.... looks great on ones head too!

swt, are you gonna install three spikes on your new 55x?

 

[AudioCats]

Warning! The 55x are so in-efficient I have to almost max out my amp's volume..... and this amp has a gain of 10x.

These MB's are truly power hungry..... both voltage and current.

for a soundcard to drive the 55x, by the time you get enough loudness there will be noticable distortion.....

I'd recommand the 45x more, unless if you plan to use the 55x with a high gain high voltage amp or a stereo receiver's headphone jack.
The 45x's sound better to my ears too, the sound is closer to the Beyer990 (without as much bass of course). You can only EQ the 55x's bass so much before the drivers start to distort

 

[holland]

Hmm, it *sounds* like a man sized amp might be able to alter the sound some (flesh out the bottom)? What amp are you using?

 

[AudioCats]

there really isn't too much hope for the 55x's bass. 55x's are too hard to drive, a soundcard output simply can not provide enough voltage AND current at the same time. Receiver output is the best bet for the 55x.

I think the 55x is at least as hard to drive as my 600 ohm Beyer990, needing both a lot of voltage and a lot of current.

I made the amp I am using:
* +/- 12v regulated (7812/7912, 1000mA/15V trans), with 1200uF extra-low ESR caps plus 2000uF Nichicom per channel. So there should be enough current reserve for bass pumping;
* each channel has one AD843 controlling 2x Buf634 (so, in theory, 500mA output capability per channel, enough to drive small speakers);
* gain set to 10x...... should be high enough.
Performence should be adaquate for most headphones.

Maybe the 55x's need to be connected directly to a speaker amp like the K1000's do.......

I like the 55x for classics though, great with strings