[FortisFlyer75]

Your welcome ArchDragon 

 

[groovyd]

In my opinion the beyer pads look stock for this headphone, not at all funny looking.  a perfect fit and very comfortable.  they even improve the sound a bit.

 

[Schopenhauer]

  Let make it simple for you.
Used at the price they are sold, these are the best can you could ever get!
They are more than great with the genres of music you listen to.
 
They are not sterile cans (as it might be assumed because they are labeled "studio" cans). They are fun to listen, have great mids, treble is also good but lack the final zest of air to make them great in that area. But it allows you to listen to them for longer period without any fatigue or discomfort. I don't mean they are super dark but lets say they are less bright than Beyer but still bring you details without shrill.
Separation is top notch, but the soundstage is average in all direction. It still paints a great picture in which you can easily differentiate sounds.They have height and depth also not only width.
The bass is not shy, it have authority, impact, good extension (with a good seal), and have an enough mid bass bump to make music fun without making it sound bloated. The bass have detail and it is not a one note sounding bass. 
Mids have right tonality and are not recessed. bringing you a ton of detail, allowing you to easily hear the singer breathing and licking lips of it's your thing.
 
They don't leak sound too much, actually they are good in that area, at normal to slightly high listening volume people around you won't be hearing a thing.
They are easy to drive and sound great from anything.
 
They have a creaking problem that I personally solved by using silicone lube and it never appeared again (using them more than 2 years daily).
Your ears might be touching the inner grill and give you a slight discomfort. Personally I had a slight discomfort the few first days with them but I don't even notice it now. (I still use the stock pads)
They are comfortable, no hot spots on the head.
 
IMO these are more than great closed can.

You make a strong case. I'll keep my eye out for a used pair on the forums here. If I manage to sell my listed equipment, I'll probably just spring for a new one. Being less bright than a beyer can -- at least, less bright than the T90 -- is necessary. I tend to be sensitive to an excessively boosted or irregular treble. Soundstage has never been heavily weighted technicality for me. My all-time reference can is the LCD-2.2. And while I'm blown away by e.g. the HD800's soundstage, it still tends to sound a bit artificial to me. As a headphone's soundstage expands, my tendency to analyze music rather than (simply) to listen to it increases. For this reason, I like to strike a balance: a cohesive, natural soundstage with superior separation and imaging. The LCD-2.2 -- or my unit -- provides exactly that.

 

[Schopenhauer]

  In my opinion the beyer pads look stock for this headphone, not at all funny looking.  a perfect fit and very comfortable.  they even improve the sound a bit.

I think it was mentioned earlier in the thread that the velour pads tightened the bass response and perhaps smoothed out some treble irregularities. Is this right? I guess there's also a boost in comfort. Has anyone done some measurements with these pads?

 

[groovyd]

  I think it was mentioned earlier in the thread that the velour pads tightened the bass response and perhaps smoothed out some treble irregularities. Is this right? I guess there's also a boost in comfort. Has anyone done some measurements with these pads?

Yes, in addition to being ultimately comfortable they also smooth the treble and tighten the bass.  Win-win all around.

 

[Schopenhauer]

Had a chance to audition the MDR-7520. Alas, I don't think it's the headphone for me.
 
I can see why people like these headphones. The bass response is strong. The signature is unique. There's good separation. It's a fast-sounding headphone. I'm not sure how I feel about the imaging: It seems sometimes to image behind my head. That is, the image seems to be behind my head on occasion, which is weird. It's possible that could be chalked up to positioning. The comfort is excellent. Fits around my ears without irritation. The killer, however, is the upper frequencies. I'm not sure whether the upper frequencies are too boosted or too sharp or both, but the headphone is almost immediately fatiguing. So the tonality of this can is a no go for me. Again, I'm not crapting on anyone's d*ick here. I can see why people like this headphone.
 
It's possible the beyer pads would improve things, but the fundamental signature of the headphone makes me think that pad rolling won't solve my issue. It's also possible that my opinion would change if I spent more time with the 7520. But initial impressions can be very telling, especially if they indicate a deep (perhaps subjective) problem with a headphone. Tonality is relatively straightforward. Perhaps there are technical strengths that would recommend this headphone to others. For my purposes, a problematic tonality is a dealbreaker. 
 
So given that I was looking for a Z7 with more bite, the 7520 is too much correction. The 7520 is too biting. I'm not talking T90-level bite, but too much bite nonetheless. For these ears. 

 

[ForceMajeure]

  Had a chance to audition the MDR-7520. Alas, I don't think it's the headphone for me.
 
I can see why people like these headphones. The bass response is strong. The signature is unique. There's good separation. It's a fast-sounding headphone. I'm not sure how I feel about the imaging: It seems sometimes to image behind my head. That is, the image seems to be behind my head on occasion, which is weird. It's possible that could be chalked up to positioning. The comfort is excellent. Fits around my ears without irritation. The killer, however, is the upper frequencies. I'm not sure whether the upper frequencies are too boosted or too sharp or both, but the headphone is almost immediately fatiguing. So the tonality of this can is a no go for me. Again, I'm not crapting on anyone's d*ick here. I can see why people like this headphone.
 
It's possible the beyer pads would improve things, but the fundamental signature of the headphone makes me think that pad rolling won't solve my issue. It's also possible that my opinion would change if I spent more time with the 7520. But initial impressions can be very telling, especially if they indicate a deep (perhaps subjective) problem with a headphone. Tonality is relatively straightforward. Perhaps there are technical strengths that would recommend this headphone to others. For my purposes, a problematic tonality is a dealbreaker. 
 
So given that I was looking for a Z7 with more bite, the 7520 is too much correction. The 7520 is too biting. I'm not talking T90-level bite, but too much bite nonetheless. For these ears. 

 
Nice to hear your opinion.
Regarding the behind your head effect that's what depth mean in sounsdtage, Yes they have treble, now maybe you are listening at loud volumes (not dismissing your impressions of them), but high SPL usually accentuates things like upper mids and treble.
But yes they are not rolled of and bring details in mids and treble, they have a bit of spike in the 10khz region, that might be the thing that caused you discomfort,  overall not too extreme mids an treble-wise IMO.
Regarding the contrast you seemed to experience between the Z7 and the 7520 only confirm too me how much" laid back" are the Z7 is, lacking extension a bit too much to be reference.
 
An alternative headphones you could try is the Oppo PM3 that are less hot in the treble but still have bite though the bass might not satisfy your needs. 
Also the Fostex TH00, they might be your best alternative.

 

[groovyd]

  Had a chance to audition the MDR-7520. Alas, I don't think it's the headphone for me.
 
I can see why people like these headphones. The bass response is strong. The signature is unique. There's good separation. It's a fast-sounding headphone. I'm not sure how I feel about the imaging: It seems sometimes to image behind my head. That is, the image seems to be behind my head on occasion, which is weird. It's possible that could be chalked up to positioning. The comfort is excellent. Fits around my ears without irritation. The killer, however, is the upper frequencies. I'm not sure whether the upper frequencies are too boosted or too sharp or both, but the headphone is almost immediately fatiguing. So the tonality of this can is a no go for me. Again, I'm not crapting on anyone's d*ick here. I can see why people like this headphone.
 
It's possible the beyer pads would improve things, but the fundamental signature of the headphone makes me think that pad rolling won't solve my issue. It's also possible that my opinion would change if I spent more time with the 7520. But initial impressions can be very telling, especially if they indicate a deep (perhaps subjective) problem with a headphone. Tonality is relatively straightforward. Perhaps there are technical strengths that would recommend this headphone to others. For my purposes, a problematic tonality is a dealbreaker. 
 
So given that I was looking for a Z7 with more bite, the 7520 is too much correction. The 7520 is too biting. I'm not talking T90-level bite, but too much bite nonetheless. For these ears. 

Really think you should try them with the Beyer pads before jumping to conclusions...

 

[Schopenhauer]

 
Nice to hear your opinion.
Regarding the behind your head effect that's what depth mean in sounsdtage, Yes they have treble, now maybe you are listening at loud volumes (not dismissing your impressions of them), but high SPL usually accentuates things like upper mids and treble.
But yes they are not rolled of and bring details in mids and treble, they have a bit of spike in the 10khz region, that might be the thing that caused you discomfort,  overall not too extreme mids an treble-wise IMO.
Regarding the contrast you seemed to experience between the Z7 and the 7520 only confirm too me how much" laid back" are the Z7 is, lacking extension a bit too much to be reference.
 
An alternative headphones you could try is the Oppo PM3 that are less hot in the treble but still have bite though the bass might not satisfy your needs. 
Also the Fostex TH00, they might be your best alternative.

Sorry, I should have been clearer. I'm familiar with soundstage depth. I meant that sometimes the whole image appeared to be coming from behind my head, or that some sounds appeared to come from behind my head in an unnatural way. In other words, the 7520 seemed to image weirdly to me. 
 
I typically listen in the 80dB-range. If I'm listening while working, I might drop it down a bit. So I never had them at earbleeding SPLs. Nonetheless, the upper mids and treble came in too hot. I think the 10khz spike might've contributed to the fatigue.
 
I'll look into the PM3 and the Fostex. I'd originally considered the PM3, but then read a number of impressions saying the headphone was a bit too rolled off to be exciting. Out of curiosity, what are people's thoughts on the MDR-1A in comparison to the 7520 and the Z7? 

 

[Schopenhauer]

Really think you should try them with the Beyer pads before jumping to conclusions...

I'll see if I can work out a listen with the Beyer pads.

 

[FortisFlyer75]

Shame your not at the London Canjam over the weekend, I could of brought them along for you to have a listen with the Beyer pads on.

 

[groovyd]

  I'll see if I can work out a listen with the Beyer pads.

also recognize they change sound drastically with burnin so something else to keep in mind if they are not already well worn.

 

[ForceMajeure]

  Sorry, I should have been clearer. I'm familiar with soundstage depth. I meant that sometimes the whole image appeared to be coming from behind my head, or that some sounds appeared to come from behind my head in an unnatural way. In other words, the 7520 seemed to image weirdly to me. 
 
I typically listen in the 80dB-range. If I'm listening while working, I might drop it down a bit. So I never had them at earbleeding SPLs. Nonetheless, the upper mids and treble came in too hot. I think the 10khz spike might've contributed to the fatigue.
 
I'll look into the PM3 and the Fostex. I'd originally considered the PM3, but then read a number of impressions saying the headphone was a bit too rolled off to be exciting. Out of curiosity, what are people's thoughts on the MDR-1A in comparison to the 7520 and the Z7? 

Just curious on what track did you had the feeling of the sound coming from behind?
 
MDR-1A are good, bass is not bloated but a bit untextured, overall they sound balanced with a bit of bite in the treble though so you need to see if it bothers you.
Great on the go cans but not for critical listening. Worth the try.

 

[Schopenhauer]

  Shame your not at the London Canjam over the weekend, I could of brought them along for you to have a listen with the Beyer pads on.

That's too bad! I'd love to give them a listen with the Beyer pads. While I worry that my issue with the headphone could be with its fundamental signature, I'd still love to see how much that signature is changed by padrolling and...
 

Originally Posted by groovyd /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
also recognize they change sound drastically with burnin so something else to keep in mind if they are not already well worn.

...by burn in. I'm relatively sure the headphones I heard were still within the burn in window, so the signature wouldn't have changed very much from out of the box. I'll continue to keep my eye out for a used pair in the forums. A properly used pair should show the headphones's mature signature. 
 

Originally Posted by ForceMajeure /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Just curious on what track did you had the feeling of the sound coming from behind?
 
MDR-1A are good, bass is not bloated but a bit untextured, overall they sound balanced with a bit of bite in the treble though so you need to see if it bothers you.
Great on the go cans but not for critical listening. Worth the try.

Sadly, I'm not a person who typically who uses reference tracks. I use whatever music is hot for me at the moment. I mean, I have some standards. But the music in question wasn't one of those standards. I think -- and I'm not certain -- that the relevant track is "Always Like This" by HVOB on the eponymous album HVOB. 

Some of the click noises (specifically, the one that corresponds in the video to the old man tapping the cane held in his left hand) sounded like they were coming from behind me. Listening now, I realize this could be marginally an artifact of the track. Assuming this is the track in question, I'm ready to suspend my comment about imaging. It's probably the 7520 images fine.
 
Re: the MDR-1A. I'm not necessarily in the market for a headphone I can use for critical listening. Mostly, I'm looking for a headphone I can use while working and for casual around the house listening -- a headphone I could wear for hours without physical or aural fatigue. What attracted me originally to the 7520 was the thought that I could get all of that plus a headphone useful for critical listening. The comfort was spot on; only the sound seemed fatiguing.
 
The moral of all this is that Sony really needs to gen 2 the Z7.

 

[starfly]

@Schopenhauer , I can second the sentiment on burn-in.  Mine were initially a bit harsh in the upper regions, but mellowed out with time, somewhere between the 50hr - 100hr mark.