Quote:
Originally posted by jude
At AudioReview, the picture of the V6 is the V600. And it appears that there at least a couple of possible mixups:
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Submitted by: Rick , Audio Enthusiast from Florida
This product's model year is 1997 and Rick has used it More than 1 year
Date Reviewed: 9/4/00 9:07:38 AM
Strengths: Price
Weaknesses: Not as good as older models
Price Paid: $100
Purchased At: Circuit City
Review Summary: I had a pair of these for many years. They were vry comfortable, and sounded great. When the ear pads deteriorated, and the cord developed a short, I made the mistake of buying a new pair. For some reason, they are not nearly as comfortable, and do seem to have a "boomy" quality not present in the older V6. I logged on today to get some ideas on a good replacement.
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Submitted by: Gary Heller, an Audio Enthusiast
Date Reviewed: 12/25/96
Review Summary: I bought these headphones thinking that they would be as good as the original Sony headphone series that preceded the V6. I've also used the MDR-7506 and thought that it was reasonably good. The V6 is stuffy and flat. I can't seem to regulate the tones of my system enough to clean up the sound. A London fog is visually clearer than these headphones are aurally. Sony seems to have cut the quality out of these headphones just to keep the price point. Hershey tried to cut the weight of their famous chocolate bar until it couldn't ship to candy stores without breaking. Congratulations, Sony....how's your Hershey bar?
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There are also a string of one-star reviews in the V6 thread that must have been written by the hearing impaired, for they preferred -- yikes -- the V600's.
Again, I'd suggest that by looking at the MDR-7506 review, the likelihood of a mixup with the V600's is all but eliminated. |
I had already known long before Head-Fi even existed that those two reviews on AudioREVIEW were actually of the MDR-V600's! The upper review was rated only three stars; the lower one, one star.
The following is a review from Nawhead (that's right, Nawhead from HeadWize, and the same Nawhead who had registered as a member here on Head-Fi, but who hasn't yet posted in these forums) - and that opinion is what a
real MDR-V6 review on AudioREVIEW should be:
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Submitted by: David Shin, Audio Enthusiast from Jacksonville, Alabama
This product's model year is Pre 1995 and David has used it More than 1 year
Date Reviewed: 11/29/00 6:30:42 PM
Strengths: Flat frequency response, very clean sound
Weaknesses: Earcups are slightly on the small side
Similar Products Used: cheap Sony earbuds, Grado SR80, Sony MDR-V600, Koss A/200
Price Paid: $80
Purchased At:
www.djmart.com
Review Summary: First, that picture above isn't the Sony MDR-V6. I sent the webmaster an e-mail, so I guess we'll see if they ever change it. The real picture of the MDR-V6 can be seen at
http://www.djmart.com/noname5.html. If you're going to review these cans, know what you're reviewing at least. Some of the reviews on here are pure drivel and need to be thrown out. Didn't anybody read the review guidelines? Now on to the review:
Before these headphones, I mainly used cheap Sony earbuds around the $10-30 range when I couldn't listen to a speaker system. The higher end Sony earbuds have some very crisp, detailed mids and highs, and these MDR-V6 cans are the same. But in addition, they also have some of the cleanest, tightest bass of any headphones around. These studio monitor headphones have proven themselves time and time again, as the number of disc jockeys, sound engineers, and recording artists you'll notice wearing these will attest by example. [On a side note, the Sony MDR-7506 is built the same as the V6 except they have gold plugs and come with a parts replacement warranty.] These are the cans to get if you do a lot of sound editing and need to hear exactly what is on the mix and nothing more or less. Notice the name on the headband, "STUDIO MONITOR."
The other headphones around this price range I've used are the Grado SR80's, Koss A/200's and the Sony MDR-V600. None can match the V6 in neutrality and crispness. The Grados, you all probably know, while great headphones, are famous for coloring the sound, and the discontinued Koss A/200 has a depressed midrange and very harsh, washed out sounding treble. The MDR-V600 was obviously designed to cater to consumers who are always hankering for "BASS! BASS!" because they want their headphones to sound like speakers at a club. You feel low bass, not hear it. Headphones that put out a lot of 'bass' are exaggerating the low mids and nothing more. Also, if you want your headphones to hit hard in the low regions, a headphone amplifier is a must, even for low impedence cans like these. Anybody who thinks the V600 is better than the V6 or in the same vein probably drives around with 2 15" subs in the back of their car is not even remotely an audiophile, I'm sorry to say. If you fit this description, crank up your Mega Bass and blow your ears away and go on listening to distorted, boomy, "consumerized" sound. Great headphones like the V6 will never satisfy you, as they're not sell out cans.
Currently, I've mated the MDR-V6 to a Creek OBH-11 headphone amplifier connected with Monster Cable M550i RCA interconnects with a M Audio Audiophile 24-bit/96kHz sound card, and it sounds absolutely gorgeous. Don't understimate what an amplifier will do for your headphones, even with low impedence monitoring headphones like this Sony. The midrange really blossoms, and the bass hits wicked hard, but never bloats or goes out of control. The OBH-11 is a solid state amp, but is not harsh at all and sounds very smooth, as well, the M550i interconnects also are designed to not reveal the harshness of current digital recordings, so as a result, my chain of components sound very robust, full, and smooth for all musical recordings except for the worst POP music offenders or just badly mastered discs. Someone mentioned the V6 was designed for vinyl recordings and are out of date in the digital world; what a bunch of useless double talk. You choose your audio components based on what you want it to sound like. Some of the best (and most expensivie) audio interconnects made today reveal every single harsh mistake in digital recordings, and audiophiles savor that. You can have the most revealing system possible, but something like the V600 will still sound muddy and boomy. Headphones like it are designed to work with and more importantly to compsensate for flawed components, not work with other quality components.
The build quality on the "Made in Japan" Sony MDR-V6 is exceptional to the last. The leather headband is supple yet sturdy. The metal driver back is strong yet light. The coiled cord is heavy duty and can extend about 3 meters fully stretched. The screw on 1/4" adapter is just so obviously versatile, you wonder why all headphones don't have it. However, the one nag I have about them is that the ear cups are a bit on the small side, and your ears will get sore on the tips if you wear them for long periods of time (this is 3-4 hours or more for me), yet I still find myself coming back to these classic cans over and over again. It's truly a sweet agony!
I've gotten so used to them that I can go to sleep in them. But people who complain about their ears getting hot wearing the MDR-V6 should realize this is normal for *all* closed headphones. If you're so hot, turn up the air conditioning for pete's sake. In conclusion, the MDR-V6 is the best of class in everything it does and one of my most cherished audio purchases. Go to
www.djmart.com and buy yourself a pair of these or the MDR-7506 today.
Thanks for reading my review.
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But here are three more reviews that I think are those of the MDR-V600's and
not the V6's:
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Submitted by: Winston , an Audio Enthusiast
Date Reviewed: 4/18/98
Review Summary: Why all the positive reviews? I found the Sonys to be insanely bad. The sound is murky most of the time with a tendency towards over-brightness at the top end with certain material. I wouldn't wish these headphones on my worse enemy! For this price go with the Grado SR-60--lightyears ahead of the Sonys in sound quality. Too bad there are no negative ratings, so I give these headphones a...
Overall Rating: * (1 out of 5)
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Submitted by: Dylan , an Audiophile
Date Reviewed: 10/31/97
Review Summary: These headphones are OK but certainly not great. I bought a pair before I knew better. I can't imagine anyone preferring these over the comparably priced Grado SR-60 and SR-80 headphones. They Sony's are boomy and murky in the lower midrange and bass.
Overall Rating: *** (3 out of 5)
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Submitted by: Joshua W. Shaevitz, an Audiophile
Date Reviewed: 7/17/97
Review Summary: Well, reading all the reviews here I feel compelled to write. I think thesephones are horrible. I auditioned them last year when I was on a search for
affordable headphones. Not only did I find these to be uncomfortable, but the
sound was muddy and dull. Also, there were more spikes in the spectrum that I could count. I think some of the other Sony models (mainly the MDR-CD###)are much better sounding and much more comfortable. The V6's really gave me a
headache. Ugh!
Overall Rating: * (1 out of 5)
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Though that last listed review in this post states that the reviewer's headphones are the V6's, those headphones are actually the V600's! I knew all of those before Head-Fi even existed that those reviews are of the MDR-V600's, not the MDR-V6's!
