[SHAMuuu]

Dj Monaural Headphones Sony Mdr-Cd900St

Learn summat new everyday eh?

 

[Elegiac]

It's hilarious.

 

[SHAMuuu]

Looks like they were working on an open type studio monitor. This was from 2 years ago.

Wonder if it will ever come out?

 

[plmon]

With a touch more bass than the 880 or 240?

Based off memory, I'd say so. I don't have the DT880 (stock) and K240 anymore unfortunately. What I do recall strongly though is that I liked the mids more than either the DT880 or K240. I found the K240 to be a bit muddy sounding and the DT880 to sound overly dampened and blunted (while somehow sounding bright still).

I do also agree that the soundstage is quite closed-in. The layering of the CD900st is quite impressive though, somehow every part of the mix is discernible despite seeming all squashed in together.

 

[al13326]

First of all, thank you to @digitalreferee for 'loaning' me his MDR-CD900ST

I'll get straight to the point - this is an absolute monster of a studio monitor.
Detail is great. Staging is small and intimate. Texture is layered. Timbre is precise.



Also, a beautiful headphone.

BUT... I've heard this kind of sound before somewhere...
JVC HA-MX100-Z


Here is my measurement of the Sony using my miniDSP EARS

And here is my measurement of my HA-MX100-Z (with aftermarket Z1000 pads)


To be clear - I also measured the MDR-CD900ST with Z1000 pads - it improved the comfort and there was almost no deviation from the original frequency response curve.

These headphones sound like siblings.
There is no other way to describe it - they sound almost completely alike.
I've never heard two headphones sound so similar before from 2 different companies.

CD900ST is a bit smoother.
HA-MX100-Z is more 'snappy' with 'better' treble and sub-bass performance.
- so pick your poison.
Personally, I prefer the sound of the JVC, but I prefer the lightweight comfort of the Sony.

All measurements and more can be found here - https://itsgreq.gitbook.io/headphone-measurements/sony-mdr-cd900st
- including more pad rolls for the Sony.

I agree with your analysis on both headphones cause I also owned the MDR-CD900ST and the HA-MX100-Z's successor, the Victor HA-MX100V.

The stock pads of the CD900ST had started to hurt my earlobes for longer period , so I have to used an aftermarket earpads intended for audio-technica ATH-M40x minus the dampening foam. The downside for that was the CD900ST's sound signature gets a bit "airy" or "muddy" on mids to me, to compensate that I used crinacle's EARS-711 AutoEQ preset and the sound signature is almost the same as MX100V while using the stock pads for the latter.

 

[KingForKings]

needs more love! Great headphones. Cozy sound, no low bass, nor treble. Everything in a smooth frequency line, sounding all right.

 

[Tezzo]

But I agree with the others, I find the CD900st's midrange resolution and naturalness to be closest to the HD600 series. It's just the relaxed treble that keeps them from being a full-on closed back equivalent, they're slightly less clear-sounding. But definitely one of the best closed-backs I've heard in terms of tonality.

I do also agree that the soundstage is quite closed-in. The layering of the CD900st is quite impressive though, somehow every part of the mix is discernible despite seeming all squashed in together.

Long time HD600 user here. When I got my CD900st, I was really surprised how the tonal balance is reminiscent of HD600. CD900st has slightly less infamous HD600 shout, and the notes come out more gently and softly. Despite the graph showing similar sub-bass roll-off, I felt CD900st goes deeper, and the bass is more even and coherent than HD600. The treble does have more drop, but not extensively so. In some brightly mixed recordings(such as Wonder by Adoy), the sparkle(and sibilance) still come through. HD600 is still a couple notches above in sound quality, but it is great to have a familiar tonal curve in a closed-back when working on things or tracking.

I totally agree that the layering and imaging on CD900st is remarkable. It wasn't apparent to me at first, but when I switched to a more capable dac/amp setup, the separation and atmosphere coming from CD900st was very convincing and enjoyable.

I also found that CD900st performs quite well in low volume listening, without thinning out too much or losing the overall balance. This is honestly a great and rare characteristic, especially on a mid-centric headphone/iem.

 

[Tezzo]

The stock pads of the CD900ST had started to hurt my earlobes for longer period , so I have to used an aftermarket earpads intended for audio-technica ATH-M40x minus the dampening foam. The downside for that was the CD900ST's sound signature gets a bit "airy" or "muddy" on mids to me, to compensate that I used crinacle's EARS-711 AutoEQ preset and the sound signature is almost the same as MX100V while using the stock pads for the latter.

I have similar experience. With stock pads CD900st is not the most comfortable, and it accumulate heat rather quickly. Fortunately the clamping force isn't that strong. I tried a couple of aftermarket pads(Brainwavz, Yaxi) and they did change the sound quite a bit. Still looking for a better combination.

 

[realg]

I have similar experience. With stock pads CD900st is not the most comfortable, and it accumulate heat rather quickly. Fortunately the clamping force isn't that strong. I tried a couple of aftermarket pads(Brainwavz, Yaxi) and they did change the sound quite a bit. Still looking for a better combination.

For what it's worth I actually didn't mind the super thin stock pads on my CR900STs, they certainly have a unique character and I found them reasonably comfortable for a 2-3h session (agree that wearing them for 3+ hours they're not ideal). Had to switch to aftermarket pads after 1 year of heavy use once they started disintegrating in the typical flaky fashion. I went for the lambskin Brainwavz, fearing that it'll change the stock sound too much, but as far as I can tell all that's happened is that the bass response tightened up a small bit, and comfort certainly increased somewhat, so overall I'm super happy with the CR900ST/lambskin Brainwavz combo, still my go to pair of closed-backs.

 

[Tezzo]

I have the Brainwave Perforated. It's brighter, more upper/mid bass, and the lower-midrange recesses a bit. It somewhat leans to slight V-shape, probably favorable by some. I do prefer the sound with stock pads though.

Now considering CD900st is more of an on-ear fit, the comfort isn't bad at all. I agree that in a regular/shorter session, I will have no issue wearing it.

 

[donunus]

Has anyone done a velour pad shootout on the cd900st? Maybe a yaxi dxpad microfiber vs beyer dt250 velour vs something else?

 

[pintegral]

Got my CD900ST a couple weeks ago and did the folding mode using the extension strips from a pair of MDR-V6. There is that balance and rawness in it that's really unique to it.

I also tried the Yaxi pads 2, m-st pads. I think the stock pads sounds the best. Sometimes, it does sounds like it's coming from outside. With the Pads 2, initially, it sounded like more spacious, but then later, I found the sound boxed inside the cups. The m-st pads sound quite close to the stock and the padding does make it more comfortable. When they are worn out thin enough, they may sound as good as the stock and be more comfortable too.

 

[donunus]

My stPad2 was only used once to test. I do not like the sound at all. The stPad standard one is okay except it still has that boominess in the upperbass low mid that I dont like so much. I just pulled the trigger on the microfiber to see what that does.

 

[DrunkSaru]

I use velour pads. I don't remember the brand though. maybe it's Dekoni. I tried stpad but didn't like it. Mostly for comfort and getting a good seal.

 

[donunus]

I use velour pads. I don't remember the brand though. maybe it's Dekoni. I tried stpad but didn't like it. Mostly for comfort and getting a good seal.

Can you take a good picture of the pads as they are on your cans? Maybe I can identify it.