THE COMPOSER OPEN BACK FLAGSHIP by AUSTRIAN AUDIO

[Nomax]

I'm not really an expert on this genre of music
I asked @xxx1313 what tracks they were when I was with him, which amazed me with the Composer






NOMAX

PS.lol

 

[xxx1313]

I'm not really an expert on this genre of music
I asked @xxx1313 what tracks they were when I was with him, which amazed me with the Composer






NOMAX

PS.lol

Yes, the remastered hi-res versions from HDTracks (full disclosure). They sounded truly incredible with the Composer & Full Score one. I would not have believed this without my own experience.

Cheers,
Bernie

 

[dpeterfy32]

Yes because the X65 has not real body in the low end/to lean

NOMAX

if these ex akg engineers are so good, why couldn't they make a normal sub range for their current top product? (x65)

 

[Nomax]

Oratory1990 about the Composer
(https://www.reddit.com/r/oratory199...eadphone_amp_austrianaudio_the_composer_full/ )


I heard a prototype about a year ago, and I heard the final version at Canjam last weekend.
It was designed by a new engineer who didn‘t work on the previous Austrian Audio headphones - he used to work at the same company I work at up until last year. I can vouch for his competence.
I‘ll be getting a unit to measure soon. As you know I generally don‘t do reviews but I‘ll say this - you should be checking this one out for yourself. It‘s unlike their previous ones.

NOMAX

Yes, you have to hear it yourself to believe it

PS.lol

 

[Rob80b]

Justv to clarify a few things.....

it's hard to believe that something is more accurate and natural and calmer than the Neumann ndh 30, which also has 0 full bass tones and is 5x cheaper than this one.

The Neumann is a studio monitor, nothing more nothing less IMHO, I've the AKG K872, HD800S and the NDH30 on hand here and sadly with all the hype I personally found the NDH30 in the bass department to perform rather poorly or more pedestrian....the AKG and Senn having much better definition and clarity in the bass, especially as things got more complicated and louder. The Neumann in comparison is all rather flat and way overly polite, a trait some will embrace but not for me and sorry to say not quite worth its current retail.

Head-amps for testing: Bryston BHA1 and Sennheiser HDVD800

Can’t talk about the Neumann models since I never heard them (or they are based upon that illfated closed back from Sennheiser that looks quite similar,

The headband and cups originated with Sennheiser HD630VB closed back portable from 2015, so yes they look similar, they even kept the cable on the right for no other reason than that's where the control wheel of the 630 was.

NDH30 and HD630VB

Though for what it's worth I'm not sure of the NDH30 development but it's possibly a Sennheiser design considering that Sennheiser is Neumann Berlin's parent company?

I've been given a lot flack for this, the Neumann is made in China (shouldn't make a difference) but there is no long gestation period, nothing special, the drivers are Sennheiser 560 drivers, modded or not and unlike the AKG K812, HD800S and the Composer which have been designed from the ground up for audio performance starting with the drivers the Neumann have been encapsulated in a housing that had no bearing on flat acoustic delivery for an opened back and corrected in some way with some strips of foam.
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/neumann-ndh-30.963439/page-2#post-17004201
And sad to say while I had some hope for NDH30, as I really appreciated the work gone into the HD630VB, the Neumann IMHO comes across more as an afterthought to offer their customers a headphone to match their monitor system.

From one positive review...
"After my first tests with the NDH 30 I am pleasantly surprised: the sound is certainly comparable to that of my MA-1
system, which consists of KH120 and KH750 monitors.....
.......... If you set the same volume on both, you might almost think that you are using your listening station, when in reality, you’re
using your headphones. Fascinating!"

In that light it works quite well but not something I can enjoy and get lost listening to music on, works great with movies though.
The AKG812/872 are also targeted toward professional audio but unlike the Neumann they give me the sensation of having a live mic feed, (sometimes the hairs go up the back of my neck. ) and not sitting in front of two monitor speakers.

My gut feeling is the Composer is another well designed and sounding audio product, if it has pulled back slightly from the more analytical K812s is should be quite something.
Can't remember if I asked this previously but will the Composer be distributed through audio or pro audio channels.

 

[Nomax]

Audiotunning (Heinz Lichtenegger Mr.Pro-Ject famous for his turntables) makes the distribution for AA
https://www.audiotuning.com/brand/austrian-audio/

NOMAX

 

[plakat]

The headband and cups originated with Sennheiser HD630VB closed back portable from 2015, so yes they look similar.

NDH30 and HD630VB



My gut feeling is the Composer is another well designed and sounding audio product, if it has pulled back slightly from the more analytical K812s is should be quite something.
Can't remember if I asked this previously but will the Composer be distributed through audio or pro audio channels.

That was the Sennheiser model I was thinking of, thanks.

AA did not offer "consumer" models so far, but as I understand matters, the Composer is more of a consumer-oriented addition to their portfolio. And at least in Austria the distributor chosen is more associated with consumer products than professional. I think its also the first time they presented a model at a consumer show first.

 

[ThanatosVI]

Oratory1990 about the Composer
(https://www.reddit.com/r/oratory199...eadphone_amp_austrianaudio_the_composer_full/ )


I heard a prototype about a year ago, and I heard the final version at Canjam last weekend.
It was designed by a new engineer who didn‘t work on the previous Austrian Audio headphones - he used to work at the same company I work at up until last year. I can vouch for his competence.
I‘ll be getting a unit to measure soon. As you know I generally don‘t do reviews but I‘ll say this - you should be checking this one out for yourself. It‘s unlike their previous ones.

NOMAX

Yes, you have to hear it yourself to believe it

PS.lol

Looking forward to his measurements

 

[dpeterfy32]

I'm also curious about the response of the first normally measured composer frequency, but if I don't see + 5DB emphasis between 15 hz-150 hz, which means a normal low range to the ear, then I can't even buy these headphones anymore, because they are thin and boring.

 

[trellus]

@plakat

With the Composer




NOMAX

I like the shape -- it does look comfortable.

That was the Sennheiser model I was thinking of, thanks.

AA did not offer "consumer" models so far, but as I understand matters, the Composer is more of a consumer-oriented addition to their portfolio. And at least in Austria the distributor chosen is more associated with consumer products than professional. I think its also the first time they presented a model at a consumer show first.

Yeah, the target market for their headphones so far seems to be audio professionals -- not audiophiles as much, but it does look like the Composer is more targeted towards audiophiles -- high-end consumers, I suppose.

 

[greyforest]

wish the headphone is bit harder to drive.... 22omh is overkill for my amps

 

[Chris Kaoss]

wish the headphone is bit harder to drive.... 22omh is overkill for my amps

Simple solution.
Get a decent one.

Which amps do u've in your arsenal?

 

[XERO1]

 

[HiFiGuy528]

Is there a thread for Full Score one? I could not find it in search. Pls. move if there is one.

I arrived home from CanJam SoCal and The Composer + Full Score one arrived shortly. I set up the amp on my work desk and gave it a brief listen with Diana MR which I am very familiar with. Right out of the box Full Score one sounded impressive. Plenty of power to drive Diana MR to its full performance potentials, volume know was a little past 12 o'clock. The DAC is $400 Woo Audio PHANTOM DAC cable (XLR) so nothing fancy.

initial impressions: incredible soundstage imagining, great clarity, no hint of harshness, thunder bass and well defined. The build quality is exceptional. All-metal and volume knob is silky smooth. The amp has some weight so it doesn't move when you push in the headphone jack. I love that is has no wireless features or EQs to mess with. It's simple to set up and start enjoying your music.

I also tested with Sennheiser IE900 in-ear headphones, no noise. Same sound traits as what I heard from Diana MR. Music comes through very engaging. Does not sound dry or analytical, many solid state does.

For further testing / review with The Composer headphones, I will use McIntosh D150 DAC. stay subscribed!

 

[FritzS]

That was the Sennheiser model I was thinking of, thanks.

I was once interested in the NDH30 and compared its frequency response with the common Sennheiser 6xx models, no serious differences. As far as I know, NDH30 (also NDH20) is produced in China, why not in Europe by Neumann self? Of course, it is currently difficult to get by without suppliers from China, be it the neodymium for the powerful magnets.
I also know that Apple has production in China.