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The ATH-AD700 Discussion Thread
Apr 15, 2013 at 2:08 AM Post #631 of 827
Quote:
bigcabdaddy said:
First off, excuse me because I am drunk at the moment: Drunk on Evan Williams... my kid's rot gut bourbon at that.
 
But I'm listening to my AD700s EQ'd to where I like them... wish I could post the curve easily. Anyway, I'm in 7th heaven on what is nearly one of my cheapest headphones. Even when I'm not drunk they are amongst the most comfortable I own since doing the comfort mod. Is there a reason for my 4x$$ HE400? I can't think of one. I love these things!
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I'm with you here, brother. I have had quite the journey through mid-fi headphones and have always kept coming back to my sub-$100 AD700. Yeah, the quality isn't the best in the world. Yeah, they couldn't fit my head without some major modding (something I hope to post up soon). Doesn't matter, though, because I can't get away from that sparkly and detailed sound.
 
I hope that as I enter the high-fi world (probably starting with the HE-500), I wont get too distracted by the AD700.
 
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Apr 15, 2013 at 6:04 AM Post #632 of 827
Well part of it I think is knowing when enough is enough. You mention mid-fi and hi-fi. While I know you didn't mean it this way, the term "mid-fi" to my brain sounds derogatory... Like cheap, low brow, white trash, classless... That sort of term. So I feel like I'm missing out... That I should go for the top shelf... At least within my own financial limits. But like I have a daughter who is quite the foodie and a wine snob... Can go on and on about the differences. But to me, anything beyond maybe a $20 bottle is kind of lost on me. Truth be told, I'm usually fine with the $12 sale stuff. So I tell her to keep her $100 a bottle stuff for herself and her friends. I'm not saying the more expensive wine or the more expensive headphone is kind of lost on me

Part of the reason I gravitated to headphones is for personal experience... I got tired of people telling me to turn my music down or making snarky comments about my musical tastes. So headphones are largely a private thing for me. I don't need to have headphones that impress someone else like I maybe do with a motorcycle or car or something. In fact, that does come into play with my ESW9s as they are what I take out in public... Not because of how they sound but because of how they look.

Now maybe with time my ear will improve. That could be. But until then, I'm pretty happy with mid-fi in general and my AD700s specifically once I tweak the EQ a little.
 
Apr 15, 2013 at 6:04 AM Post #633 of 827
Well part of it I think is knowing when enough is enough. You mention mid-fi and hi-fi. While I know you didn't mean it this way, the term "mid-fi" to my brain sounds derogatory... Like cheap, low brow, white trash, classless... That sort of term. So I feel like I'm missing out... That I should go for the top shelf... At least within my own financial limits. But like I have a daughter who is quite the foodie and a wine snob... Can go on and on about the differences. But to me, anything beyond maybe a $20 bottle is kind of lost on me. Truth be told, I'm usually fine with the $12 sale stuff. So I tell her to keep her $100 a bottle stuff for herself and her friends. The more expensive wine or the more expensive headphone is kind of lost on me at this point.

Part of the reason I gravitated to headphones is for a personal experience... I got tired of people telling me to turn my music down or making snarky comments about my musical tastes. So headphones are largely a private thing for me. I don't need to have headphones that impress someone else like I maybe do with a motorcycle or car or something. In fact, that does come into play with my ESW9s as they are what I take out in public... Not because of how they sound but because of how they look.

Now maybe with time my ear will improve. That could be. But until then, I'm pretty happy with mid-fi in general and my AD700s specifically once I tweak the EQ a little.
 
Apr 15, 2013 at 6:08 AM Post #634 of 827
Quote:
bigcabdaddy said:
While I know you didn't mean it this way, the term "mid-fi" to my brain sounds derogatory... Like cheap, low brow, white trash, classless... 
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No, that's exactly what I meant. 
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Apr 15, 2013 at 6:18 AM Post #636 of 827
I understand what you're saying with knowing when enough is enough. I'm sure I could be perfectly happy with an AD700 on my head all of the time. The problem for me right now is that I'm still in the infancy of my journey with this hobby and don't know what I don't know. Can a $700 can actually be 7 times better than a $100 can? I have no idea, but I'm sure ill have fun figuring it out.
 
Apr 30, 2013 at 9:19 AM Post #637 of 827
Well...just ordered a pair and am looking forward to the experience.I won't go into a long diatribe about why, the bazzlion positive impressions that I read was enough to get my attention.  That and comfort being the biggest selling points for me...My ears are just too damn big to enjoy anything that I have tried other than on ear designs. So yeah, really looking forward to these...
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May 9, 2013 at 5:48 PM Post #640 of 827
Quote:
bigcabdaddy said:
If what you listen to fits with the signature of the AD700, I haven't run across a better bargain yet. Enjoy!
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I'm so completely with you here. I'd even argue the things that you think might not sound so great on them are still really enjoyable.
 
May 10, 2013 at 3:51 AM Post #643 of 827
Have had the Audio Technica ATH-AD700 for about a year now and have to admit that I really appreciate its sound signature and its crystal clarity, as well as its sound stage and open, not in the head sound, and sound stage are great. One of the headphones I love listening to and one of my frequent picks when listening to music from mp3 players. Often remarked by many that is low on bass, but I have found out that when driven by a portable headphone amp, and with songs well recorded, the bass is sufficient for me personally, and on some songs (such as in the album "Harvest" by Neil Young) there is quite a bit of punch in the bass. As you might have noted I really love these headphones! Also have to note that they are really comfortable on your head, as they just sit lightly, and in spite of their large earcups they may be worn for long periods of time without getting tired or making your ears sweat.
 
May 10, 2013 at 10:52 AM Post #644 of 827
rosario said:
Have had the Audio Technica ATH-AD700 for about a year now and have to admit that I really appreciate its sound signature and its crystal clarity, as well as its sound stage and open, not in the head sound, and sound stage are great. One of the headphones I love listening to and one of my frequent picks when listening to music from mp3 players. Often remarked by many that is low on bass, but I have found out that when driven by a portable headphone amp, and with songs well recorded, the bass is sufficient for me personally, and on some songs (such as in the album "Harvest" by Neil Young) there is quite a bit of punch in the bass. As you might have noted I really love these headphones! Also have to note that they are really comfortable on your head, as they just sit lightly, and in spite of their large earcups they may be worn for long periods of time without getting tired or making your ears sweat.
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I think this bass thing is almost as subjective as anything else in head-fi. It's person specific, genre specific, recording specific, ancillary equipment specific... Just too complex to quantify simply. I had one creep up the other day: I'm a bass player and wanted to hear specifically to what James Jamerson was doing on a Four Tops recording. The only headphone in my arsenal, with my equipment, with this particular recording that would give it to me was my HD598... Not exactly known as a bass beast.

Also, a little EQ can go a long ways. My AD700 positively come alive with just a tad of loudness dialed up on the Denon receiver in my office.
 
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