[BenF]

1st batch first please!

You can count on it - first batch is coming up!

 

[elkosith]

Snake oil mostly.

The concept of a balanced headphone is both left and right channel are design for their own ground. The idea is that by using a common ground, there is a chance for cross talk and additional resistance from the ground. Which may lead to feedback and audio degradation. For badly done single ended setups or with very long cables this may happen.

Then there is the other side of the equation. Most consumer balanced amps don't really do balanced internally right either. Lots of discussions on this subject around here.

Balanced connection has more advantages on input stage and dealing with long interconnects that are prone to interferences.

Output stage, I don't understand how it can be done since speakers has only two poles while balanced connection requires three poles.

If having dedicated ground for each channel is called balanced, then it's not the same balanced configuration like the XLR, and it's a new concept to me.

That kind of balanced cable for headphone using 4 poles jack, I don't think will make any differences since each channel still share the same ground, just connected with different cable.

 

[BenF]

@BenF, I’m not sure, what did you mean by this? Did they recheck the quality of the remaining Pro 82?

Sometimes it may take weeks/months from the production date until the product is tested.
Takstar likely had some untested Pro 82s from before, and tested them.

 

[OscarPaz]

Sometimes it may take weeks/months from the production date until the product is tested.
Takstar likely had some untested Pro 82s from before, and tested them.

Got it. Thanks for the clarification.

 

[Humblepie]

Balanced connection has more advantages on input stage and dealing with long interconnects that are prone to interferences.

Output stage, I don't understand how it can be done since speakers has only two poles while balanced connection requires three poles.

If having dedicated ground for each channel is called balanced, then it's not the same balanced configuration like the XLR, and it's a new concept to me.

That kind of balanced cable for headphone using 4 poles jack, I don't think will make any differences since each channel still share the same ground, just connected with different cable.

I was simplifying things, but you can read a bunch more if you care to along with the ideas behind the reasoning for balanced.

https://www.headphone.com/pages/balanced-headphones-guide

While I linked the page above, take the assertions about there being cross talk on a single ground with a headphone with a grain of salt. Mainly linked it for the diagrams.

Basically "balanced" headphones have independent grounds going to each side. That's it really. The amount of power going through headphones and the likely amount of cross talk or feed back happening from a single ground is next to nothing unless the cable for the headphone is jacked up completely. Then the amp's have to be done right as well. Most of them aren't. There are tons of technical specs out there to look up on consumer headphone balanced amps, but not going to go into it here beyond pointing out that in the diagram of the balanced setup on the page above, everything still terminates into a single ground inside the amp itself in a few of the diagrams. Which tend to be how most of the consumer amps are done.

So I said "snake oil mostly" because you are basically paying a crap ton more for a "balanced" amp more often than not for no real measurable difference in audio quality most of the time. Although there is more than likely going to be a lot of placebo affect.

 

[BenF]

Here are measurements of Silver #1 - unburned, unused since the purchase (10 minutes tops) - one of the last first batch Pro 82s sold.

Channel matching isn't great under 70Hz and between 7-9.5kHz, otherwise pretty good.
Here is the comparison with the other 2 Pro 82s I have measured:

The Silver #1 has a couple more DBs the second batch, but hat may be because it's unused - its pads are in the original condition, and seal better than used ones.
This extra bass makes Silver #1 look even more linear in the 20Hz - 4kHz, but then the treble spike appear - so overall it's far less linear.
It is now closer to the official FR Takstar published:

Silver #1 is still more linear than this, so maybe the first batch was actually 2 different batches (1a and 1b), and the latter one was re-tuned to improve linearity (just like the second batch later).
We'll know more, once I'll measure Black #1 - the headphone that started it all, and one of the first Pro 82s sold.

 

[elkosith]

I was simplifying things, but you can read a bunch more if you care to along with the ideas behind the reasoning for balanced.

https://www.headphone.com/pages/balanced-headphones-guide

While I linked the page above, take the assertions about there being cross talk on a single ground with a headphone with a grain of salt. Mainly linked it for the diagrams.

Basically "balanced" headphones have independent grounds going to each side. That's it really. The amount of power going through headphones and the likely amount of cross talk or feed back happening from a single ground is next to nothing unless the cable for the headphone is jacked up completely. Then the amp's have to be done right as well. Most of them aren't. There are tons of technical specs out there to look up on consumer headphone balanced amps, but not going to go into it here beyond pointing out that in the diagram of the balanced setup on the page above, everything still terminates into a single ground inside the amp itself in a few of the diagrams. Which tend to be how most of the consumer amps are done.

So I said "snake oil mostly" because you are basically paying a crap ton more for a "balanced" amp more often than not for no real measurable difference in audio quality most of the time. Although there is more than likely going to be a lot of placebo affect.

Thanks for the article, now I understand the concept of balanced headphones. It's not only independent ground for each side.

In balanced connection there are 3 wires: signal +, signal -, and ground. So they use the signal + and signal - to drive the headphones and the ground as shielding. This will double the voltage entering the drivers.

It's almost the same with a transformer that has a center tap, but not using the center tap to double the voltage.

This balanced headphones only can be done using balanced input stage and amplifier. Regular input and amp will not make balanced headphones

 

[BenF]

Look what I've got:

 

[Saus@ge]

I have the old pro 82 with the sharp treble. Am I missing the experience or is the old pro 82 still ok?

 

[OscarPaz]

Look what I've got:

How does that IQ sound with the Pro 82?
Does the new Sabre 9018Q2C chipset or any of the internal components make that much of a difference?

 

[OscarPaz]

Channel matching isn't great under 70Hz and between 7-9.5kHz, otherwise pretty good.

Goes up to 10dB difference, not good at all! May it be related somehow to the rattling noise on the left driver reported by some users before?

Here is the comparison with the other 2 Pro 82s I have measured:

The Silver #1 has a couple more DBs the second batch, but hat may be because it's unused - its pads are in the original condition, and seal better than used ones.
This extra bass makes Silver #1 look even more linear in the 20Hz - 4kHz, but then the treble spike appear - so overall it's far less linear.

This agrees with impressions from people here. New batch has less bass and it doesn't behave so bright at higher frequencies.

It is now closer to the official FR Takstar published:

Silver #1 is still more linear than this, so maybe the first batch was actually 2 different batches (1a and 1b), and the latter one was re-tuned to improve linearity (just like the second batch later).

Who knows what they measured there...

We'll know more, once I'll measure Black #1 - the headphone that started it all, and one of the first Pro 82s sold.

Yes, please!!

 

[LordZero]

How do I know if I Have the first or second batch? Also what are the differences between both?

 

[OscarPaz]

How do I know if I Have the first or second batch? Also what are the differences between both?

Easy way:
1st batch - White cardboard box & 2.2m cable length,
2nd batch - Black cardboard box & 1.6m cable length.

Hard way:
Remove the pads and compare your driver to this image:

(Credit: https://diyaudioheaven.wordpress.com/headphones/measurements/takstar-pro-82).

 

[trellus]

That might explain why I've experienced my Pro 82 as "bass light", and why others have noted that opening up the bass port all makes it boomy (they have the newer models?) while for me it makes it just right.

 

[BenF]

I have the old pro 82 with the sharp treble. Am I missing the experience or is the old pro 82 still ok?

You are not missing the experience, the first version of Pro 82 is why this thread exists, and most impressions/comparisons in the 2nd and 3rd posts are for the first version.
The second version measures better, but I enjoy both of them equally.

You can get a silver v2 Pro 82 at TakstarAudio for just 65$ (see first post for the Head-Fi discount) - so may wanna take a chance on it and see yourself.
However, you should make sure you have a great chain first - there is no point in owning two Pro 82s if you can't get them properly driven.
You should invest in getting one of the synergy combos first: Comparison of DACs/Amps