[HalidePisces]

Okay its been a while since this thread got updates, but I thought it was worth a mention.

Just attended a little meet between friends and the MA900 was the surprise star of the night. I had a chance to compare the MA900 against the HD650 and we were all somewhat surprised to find that the MA900 actually sounded quite similar to the Sennys. They had essentially the same character, with the biggest difference being a more forward mid section on the MA900. On some tracks the HD650 sounded better with richer vocals, on some tracks the MA900 seemed clearer and the HD650 congested. Overall though the MA900 just sounded like a HD650 with less of a veil. (I happen to love the HD650 as well).

Everyone was pretty impressed especially given the current Amazon Japan pricing of about $170 USD. This is coming from a HD650 owner, a Shure 840 owner and a HE-6 owner. (Obviously it wasn't better than the HE-6, he was just impressed for the price.)

I have a loaner pair of modded HD580's which I'll do some comparison with, and then update my MA900 / AD900X review thread.

Hope this helps anyone interested in the MA900. I swear the MA900 deserves way more love than it currently gets.

http://www.head-fi.org/t/654161/review-comparison-ath-ad900x-vs-ath-ad1000x-vs-mdr-ma900-its-still-over-900
You might want to fix the MA900/AD900X review link... though I did enjoy reading your earphone review.

Anyway, I got a MA900 to play with at the moment. One thing I want to ask to people who own the MA900, is it just me or are these headphones much harder to drive than their specs would imply? The MA900 seems significantly quieter than my other headphones (closed HD669, semi-open MDR-XD200, open ATH-AD900) at the same player volume level. I had expected them to be the other way around given its high sensitivity and ludicrously low impedance. Is this normal or is there something wrong with the one I have?

 

[RMiller]

I don't think it's just you. I have Asgard 2 and first tried it with the switch on low gain, but they were pretty quiet and I had to crank up the volume to a half almost. Now I'm always using them with the switch on high gain
 

 

[giraffe]

Quote:

http://www.head-fi.org/t/654161/review-comparison-ath-ad900x-vs-ath-ad1000x-vs-mdr-ma900-its-still-over-900
You might want to fix the MA900/AD900X review link... though I did enjoy reading your earphone review.

Anyway, I got a MA900 to play with at the moment. One thing I want to ask to people who own the MA900, is it just me or are these headphones much harder to drive than their specs would imply? The MA900 seems significantly quieter than my other headphones (closed HD669, semi-open MDR-XD200, open ATH-AD900) at the same player volume level. I had expected them to be the other way around given its high sensitivity and ludicrously low impedance. Is this normal or is there something wrong with the one I have?

 
I think this is because the MA900 has a resistor in line before the driver. At least one person has removed it: http://www.head-fi.org/t/637168/sony-ma900-resistor-mod
I personally haven't done this, and would hesitate to do so, since unless the headphones had a completely flat impedance by frequency curve, this would certainly alter the sound signature, and I like them too much already!

 

[MrTechAgent]

I am ordering these in a month after my first semester.
I have heard the the bass for being a open headphone is quite unmatched , of course thanks to the 70mm driver

 

[eyal1983]

I just got them
the bass is not overpowering, while is not anemic.
the mids are forward somehow, vocals sound amazing.
the treble is not fatiguing at all, probably because they are not bright (more like neutral-dark)
the comfort is amazing...
SQ-wise, I'm using them out of my 42$ HiFiMeDIY USB DAC/AMP (ES9023 + 2.2v output voltage)
there's absolutely no need for a stronger amp. than that !
 
In summary,
I utterly and completely fell in love with them (especially, their mid-range )

 

[DrikTheTroll]

Quote:

http://www.head-fi.org/t/654161/review-comparison-ath-ad900x-vs-ath-ad1000x-vs-mdr-ma900-its-still-over-900
You might want to fix the MA900/AD900X review link... though I did enjoy reading your earphone review.

Anyway, I got a MA900 to play with at the moment. One thing I want to ask to people who own the MA900, is it just me or are these headphones much harder to drive than their specs would imply? The MA900 seems significantly quieter than my other headphones (closed HD669, semi-open MDR-XD200, open ATH-AD900) at the same player volume level. I had expected them to be the other way around given its high sensitivity and ludicrously low impedance. Is this normal or is there something wrong with the one I have?

 
Certainly, they are no easier to drive than ATHM50s (38 Ohm). The 12 Ohm impedance listed for the MA900s does not seem to mean much.

 

[DrikTheTroll]

Quote:

I am ordering these in a month after my first semester.
I have heard the the bass for being a open headphone is quite unmatched , of course thanks to the 70mm driver

 
The bass is on the MA900s is certainly present, but it lacks impact unless EQed.
 
Put a bit of a bass boost on it, and they do quite well across a wide variety of music styles - include bass-heavy styles like EDM.
 
That said - these aren't basshead headphones, they aren't closed, they aren't LCD-2s.
 
They are: a fantastically comfortable headphone that you can listen to for 8 hours+ with zero comfort or fatigue issues.

 

[MrTechAgent]

Of course I was not expecting the bass being even close to a closed set of cans or PM's but still.
Cannot wait 2 months to go

 

[DrikTheTroll]

Quote:

Of course I was not expecting the bass being even close to a closed set of cans or PM's but still.
Cannot wait 2 months to go

 
I think you are going to really like them - in my view the whole package that the MA900 brings is seriously underrated - they get 90%+ of my headphone time.

 

[MrTechAgent]

Oh.
You did a good job of reminding me that I still have to wait for 2 months

 

[astroid]

Just picked up a pair for a great price, pretty excited tbh , do these need an amp? I have one but sometimes like to just use my mp3 player on the porch.

 

[mgunin]

Quote:

Just picked up a pair for a great price, pretty excited tbh , do these need an amp? I have one but sometimes like to just use my mp3 player on the porch.

 
It's good that they can play from almost any player. However, they will definitely benefit from the proper amplification. I've read a number of good opinions regarding their pairing with FIIO E17, so this is the budget option that comes in mind.

 

[DrikTheTroll]

Quote:

Just picked up a pair for a great price, pretty excited tbh , do these need an amp? I have one but sometimes like to just use my mp3 player on the porch.

 
Mine sound significantly better running off a JDS Labs CMoyBB than my laptop.

 

[kman1211]

I keep wondering why these things are said to have poor build quality, they obviously have a fair amount of metal in their construction and are well made, the arms, yokes, and grills are metal. They fee; quite solid in my hands, sure it flops around a bit due to thin construction, but it is well built, it's a mixture of metal and plastic and the plastic is of a better quality. They are like my K240, a bit flimsy feeling and flop around a bit, but well built. The only thing I wish that it had is a removable or a thicker cable on the MA900, but regardless I feel very confident about their build quality.

 

[DrikTheTroll]

I agree - but I do see why people could assume the build quality is poor.
 
The headband and support arms are extremely minimal in comparison to the drivers, and they are made of plastic. It reminds of a large-breed puppy dog - some things just look out of proportion.
 
This is all part of their inherent design which focuses on light weight and comfort.
 
Love the MA900s.