[ken_loo]

So what is it about the r10s? Zanth was nice enough to have me over to give a bunch of things a listen.

The r10 were a massive disappointment especially with all the hype around them. There was almost no bass to speak of, and they sounded bright to the point of being piercing. Mids were alright I suppose.

We used two amps at Zanth's place too.
Ear hp4
Stealth (OW

)

So once again, what is it about the r10?

 

[NotoriousBIG_PJ]

I dunno but I'd really like to try out that ear hp4 hehe.

Biggie.

 

[GoRedwings19]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken_loo So what is it about the r10s? Zanth was nice enough to have me over to give a bunch of things a listen. The r10 were a massive disappointment especially with all the hype around them. There was almost no bass to speak of, and they sounded bright to the point of being piercing. Mids were alright I suppose. We used two amps at Zanth's place too. Ear hp4 Stealth (OW ) So once again, what is it about the r10?

Are you deaf or something. How could you miss that devestating impact? Were you lot smoking crack or something?

So how did you like the Ear Hp4? So what else did you listen to? The Omega's? The he60's?

 

[Sovkiller]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken_loo So what is it about the r10s? Zanth was nice enough to have me over to give a bunch of things a listen. The r10 were a massive disappointment especially with all the hype around them. There was almost no bass to speak of, and they sounded bright to the point of being piercing. Mids were alright I suppose. We used two amps at Zanth's place too. Ear hp4 Stealth (OW ) So once again, what is it about the r10?

If you find the R-10 that way, definitely something was wrong there, the amps are fine for it, not the best for the R-10 according to some R-10 owners, but very good amps, and they should sounded good, maybe you do notl ike them anyway, preference issue, but to sound bad is another thing...

 

[ken_loo]

The hp4 handled anything we threw at it and sounded just amazing. It's on my short list to buy but things are getting hard to justify.

The HE60 really did not impress me either. If this is supposed to be 80 to 90% of the HE90s, I will not be chasing either of them down. There is no doubt they sound good, however, the hd650 do not seem to be that much behind.

I really enjoyed the Omega IIs though. I though they sounded really great out of the stax amp. Didn't have a chance to try it on the KGSS.

I also liked the PS-1. It's the only grado that seems to mesh well with the bowls IMO. I used to like bowls but am a flats convert. I don't know how you can listen to the PS-1s with flats, Mike. Damn near bowel shaking

 

[ken_loo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sovkiller If you find the R-10 that way, definitely something was wrong there, the amps are fine for it, not the best for the R-10 according to some R-10 owners, but very good amps, and they should sounded good, maybe you do notl ike them anyway, preference issue, but to sound bad is another thing...

It was painful out of the stealth. The highs were like daggers on the ears. They are definitely not my cup of tea. I came into this worried that I would be chasing r10s down. Thank goodness I won't have a huge void in my wallet now.

 

[GoRedwings19]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken_loo The hp4 handled anything we threw at it and sounded just amazing. It's on my short list to buy but things are getting hard to justify. The HE60 really did not impress me either. If this is supposed to be 80 to 90% of the HE90s, I will not be chasing either of them down. There is no doubt they sound good, however, the hd650 do not seem to be that much behind. I really enjoyed the Omega IIs though. I though they sounded really great out of the stax amp. Didn't have a chance to try it on the KGSS. I also liked the PS-1. It's the only grado that seems to mesh well with the bowls IMO. I used to like bowls but am a flats convert. I don't know how you can listen to the PS-1s with flats, Mike. Damn near bowel shaking

Bowls?? with Ps-1's. Right you gotta stop this bowl nonesense with Ps-1's. Well what's the point of being a basshead if you are not going to use the flats?

If I had an equaliser i would get them to go lower....

In reality I partner it with an amp with doesn't have the bottom end slam. What happens is the bass aspect of the Ps-1 synergises with slam shy amp and it balances out. That way the mids of Ps-1's are not overwhelmed. It then gives a more balanced sound across the range. Partner it wrong and the mids of the Ps-1's sound univolving. Why? Because the bass overwhelms the mids. This gives the impressions of the mids and highs being recessed.

But when I need the bass lovin fun then I partner it with an amp which has the low end slam. Then that's when the fun really begins. Leftfield, orbital, U2, RATM, Metallica (I prefer their old stuff). Alot of headfiers claim to be a basshead whore. Only a few will go the whole way with Ps-1's+flats.

Ps-1's+bowls=Basshead wannabe's. Bass for girls.
Ps-1+flats=Doing it hardcore style.

 

[lan]

hmm if you like HD650, Omega II, and PS1s, the trend seems to be you like more bass

and less treble. It could that your hearing and/or preferences are different than other here. Nothing wrong with that. I think R10s are just okay. But I don't like HD650, Omega II, or PS1s though. Goes to show how we're all different.

 

[solvexyz]

R10, Can not sound that bad. Something must go wrong. By the way, R10 looks like that, maybe you were mistaken.

 

[Canman]

I am a fan of the R10. For me only the R10 and the HE-90 are transparent as to completely get out of the way of the music. My primary headphone is the Omega 2, which is really good but I don't hold it in the same level as the above two cans.

The R10 should match up just fine with the EAR HP-4. It could just be that the R10 doesn't float your boat. Nothing wrong with that, there are plenty of other great cans to choose from. Also, it can take some time to adjust to different tonal balances (coming from the Omega 2 anything will sound bright).

Did you listen to the HE-60 out of the Stax amp? That's a really nice combo. Not for bassheads though

 

[Hirsch]

If that's the R10 I think it is, I know it pretty well. Should be serial number 13. I got it from Vertigo-1 and owned it for a few years. I sold when I wanted one of my R10's to be newer production (now have 308, which sounds identical to 13, and 1173, which does not). Getting the HP4 and that R10 to work well together was an experience. Tubes, interconnects, source, power cords, phase of the moon, etc. are all critical. If the stock tubes were in the HP4, that's where the brightness is coming from. Those are Sovteks, and can be painful with the R10. There should be a thread about with some of the tube variations I went through. Interconnects were Virtual Dynamic Nite series, as were power cords. The older R10 will sound good out of HP4, but only if everything else is right. The newer ones are much less critical, and don't require anywhere near the amount of tweaking to get a good sound out of them.

 

[hawky]

I think he is lucky to not like them, wait, no, his wallet is lucky.

 

[Canman]

That number 13 always sounded anemic and bright to me. I felt the same way when I recently heard #308. I felt like ken-loo did for a long time until I got a good listen to a more recent production R10. That's when the R10 took ahold of me and won me over.

I recently owned 1186 for a couple of months which I sold purely for financial reasons. I hold it in the highest regard.


Quote:

Originally Posted by Hirsch If that's the R10 I think it is, I know it pretty well. Should be serial number 13. I got it from Vertigo-1 and owned it for a few years. I sold when I wanted one of my R10's to be newer production (now have 308, which sounds identical to 13, and 1173, which does not). Getting the HP4 and that R10 to work well together was an experience. Tubes, interconnects, source, power cords, phase of the moon, etc. are all critical. If the stock tubes were in the HP4, that's where the brightness is coming from. Those are Sovteks, and can be painful with the R10. There should be a thread about with some of the tube variations I went through. Interconnects were Virtual Dynamic Nite series, as were power cords. The older R10 will sound good out of HP4, but only if everything else is right. The newer ones are much less critical, and don't require anywhere near the amount of tweaking to get a good sound out of them.

 

[Kameleon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GoRedwings19 Ps-1's+bowls=Basshead wannabe's. Bass for girls. Ps-1+flats=Doing it hardcore style.

Have you tried unported Beta C-pads?

 

[fr4c]

the R10's are very picky headphones, and requires dedication and time to source out the right amps, source, and interconnects. the cost factor is obvious, but it is a very interesting experience nonetheless.