[Law87]

I'm loving the T1...however. I want more bass, I've asked this all over the place, I almost got a Fostex TH900 but, for reasons beyond me I didn't see my self owning a TH900, call it silly, but maybe I don't like the color red on headphones...moving on. What I really like about my T1s is the treble, it's clear but just right, I like the mids, I love how it portrays vocals both male and female, the bass is all right, controlled, but timid I might add. I want to keep; as much as possible, the T1 clarity. I know it's their signature, so it won't be an exactly equal trade, however I don't want to sacrifice details for the sake of more bass. I've been seriously considering the Aeon Flow Closed, Focal Clear and the LCD-3.

I have no intention of retiring my T1, but I could sure use more darkness on top of the clarity. Anyone here that could point me in the right direction? I'm a couple of bad decisions away from pulling the trigger on a brand new Aeon Flow Closed, but if there are people that can spare my wallet; for a while a longer, I'm all ears.

HD800s or HD820. Aeon will just be dark.

I am somewhat in the same position, I was going to buy an HD800s again but after A/B, I felt thats its not enough to warrant the cost. Meze Emperyean is next for me, but I do have the HD820.

I have listen to Ether 2, the souund is 180 of Beyer T1 and HD800s

 

[J Mirra]

I used to EQ the T1.1 until I got the R2R11 and with the same EQ I was wooowa thats to much I set it to 0db and it was correct.

Bass light recordings are still bass light but if the recording has bass you hear / feel it punch keeping the lush mids and detailed highs.

Both my T1 and HD800 have quality bass with the 11, I would suggest trying to hear them on a R2R set up or a warmer amp that someone else can suggest.

 

[439598]

a planar will not deliver the same level of treble quality I dont think

 

[Darksoul]

I used to EQ the T1.1 until I got the R2R11 and with the same EQ I was wooowa thats to much I set it to 0db and it was correct.

Bass light recordings are still bass light but if the recording has bass you hear / feel it punch keeping the lush mids and detailed highs.

Both my T1 and HD800 have quality bass with the 11, I would suggest trying to hear them on a R2R set up or a warmer amp that someone else can suggest.

Same thing happened to me when I went from Topping A30 to Violectric V200, I used to heavily equalize for more bass as soon as I got more power equalizing was no longer needed.

I just want something darker and I know some trebble can be lost, looks like Aeon is going to fit the bill.

 

[sean-xenos]

I went to a Headphone Auditioning Studio in Berlin this afternoon and tried out the Beyerdynamic T1.2, the Sennheiser HD 800 S, the Audeze LCD-4, the Focal Utopia, the Meze Empyrean, the Hifiman Arya, HE 1000 SE, HE 1000 V2 and MrSpeakers Ether2 headphones all with balanced XLR plugs.
I was curious after reading so many reviews on head-fi lately to hear all those headphones with my own ears and not just reading the descriptions of hearing experiences (as valuable as these descriptions are...).
An improvement over my Beyerdynamic T1.1 (modded and balanced) .... how much would it cost me? What to expect as a real life difference in sound?

I am a fan of the Beyer T1 sound signature but everything can be improved .... and the T1 has some shortcomings (like other dynamic headphones), the qualities to be improved are: really low bass (sub bass), detailed treble but not harsh, sibilant or grainy.
The soundstage of the T1 is superb imho and I don't want to give that up .....

So after 4 hours of most intensive listening I found my own champion .... I'll write about it later....

For Darksoul I'd like to share some impressions .... Focal, Audeze, Hifiman, Meze Empyrean, MrSpeakers they all have a better low bass with more structure and quality as the T1, really all of them. The HD 800 S is the exception, low bass is still not sufficient, even in version S.
But to keep the soundstaging chracteristics of the T1 really was a challenge for most headphones, Focal and Mr Speakers felt too narrow and congested in soundstaging for me, the sound was too much inside my head and that felt fatiguing.
The Meze Empyrian and Audeze felt better in soundstaging but not on par with the T1, by far. Probably a result of a rolled off treble, there was no sparkle in the trebles. The Meze Empyrean reminded me of a luxury, high end version of the Sennheiser HD 650 (which many people like very much).
The Hifimans and the HD 800 S performed very well at soundstaging, as pleasant and wide as the T1 but the treble on the HD 800 S was a little harsh and grainy, female voices had a tendency for sibilance.

As I own a very, very powerful headphone amp, the SPL Phonitor 2 with balanced outputs, the Hifiman HE 1000 V2 made most sense for this amp ... the HE 1000 SE is optimized for weaker amps and mobile amps and sounded a bit too bright for my liking, the Arya sounded somewhat less refined and neutral, very vivid, but less balanced, a little turbulent. The amp in the headphone studio was a Violectric HPA V280 with balanced outputs/inputs and a Lakepeople DAC. I can have two headphones on loan over the weekend to test them at home with my own amp, so my impressions of the 3 Hifiman headphones could slightly change.

 

[Svatopluk]

I went to a Headphone Auditioning Studio in Berlin this afternoon and tried out the Beyerdynamic T1.2, the Sennheiser HD 800 S, the Audeze LCD-4, the Focal Utopia, the Meze Empyrean, the Hifiman Arya, HE 1000 SE, HE 1000 V2 and MrSpeakers Ether2 headphones all with balanced XLR plugs.
I was curious after reading so many reviews on head-fi lately to hear all those headphones with my own ears and not just reading the descriptions of hearing experiences (as valuable as these descriptions are...).
An improvement over my Beyerdynamic T1.1 (modded and balanced) .... how much would it cost me? What to expect as a real life difference in sound?

I am a fan of the Beyer T1 sound signature but everything can be improved .... and the T1 has some shortcomings (like other dynamic headphones), the qualities to be improved are: really low bass (sub bass), detailed treble but not harsh, sibilant or grainy.
The soundstage of the T1 is superb imho and I don't want to give that up .....

So after 4 hours of most intensive listening I found my own champion .... I'll write about it later....

For Darksoul I'd like to share some impressions .... Focal, Audeze, Hifiman, Meze Empyrean, MrSpeakers they all have a better low bass with more structure and quality as the T1, really all of them. The HD 800 S is the exception, low bass is still not sufficient, even in version S.
But to keep the soundstaging chracteristics of the T1 really was a challenge for most headphones, Focal and Mr Speakers felt too narrow and congested in soundstaging for me, the sound was too much inside my head and that felt fatiguing.
The Meze Empyrian and Audeze felt better in soundstaging but not on par with the T1, by far. Probably a result of a rolled off treble, there was no sparkle in the trebles. The Meze Empyrean reminded me of a luxury, high end version of the Sennheiser HD 650 (which many people like very much).
The Hifimans and the HD 800 S performed very well at soundstaging, as pleasant and wide as the T1 but the treble on the HD 800 S was a little harsh and grainy, female voices had a tendency for sibilance.

As I own a very, very powerful headphone amp, the SPL Phonitor 2 with balanced outputs, the Hifiman HE 1000 V2 made most sense for this amp ... the HE 1000 SE is optimized for weaker amps and mobile amps and sounded a bit too bright for my liking, the Arya sounded somewhat less refined and neutral, very vivid, but less balanced, a little turbulent. The amp in the headphone studio was a Violectric HPA V280 with balanced outputs/inputs and a Lakepeople DAC. I can have two headphones on loan over the weekend to test them at home with my own amp, so my impressions of the 3 Hifiman headphones could slightly change.

If you prefer your modified T1 over the Utopia, you may need to look no further. This is the first time I've heard someone describe the Utopia as being congested, perhaps the V280's impedance setting was too high or something. I do however agree with the aspect of the T1's superior soundstageing in comparison to the Utopia. On the subject of Violectric amplifiers. It's only my opinion but they may not be the best option when it comes to the T1.2 or the HD800S. The manufacturers did an excellent job dialing back the treble on both models, adding a slightly warm amp tends to push the effect a little too much. Being I'm 60, maybe that should be taken with a grain of salt.

You're definitely on the right track auditioning as much equipment as possible before buying.

 

[439598]

I would go further and say the V280 is not a very good amp which these HPs would expose to a keen ear. the V280s design and implementation will deliver low THD and good output power on paper, but I cant see it performing to satisfactory level for headphones like this.

 

[sean-xenos]

If you prefer your modified T1 over the Utopia, you may need to look no further. This is the first time I've heard someone describe the Utopia as being congested, perhaps the V280's impedance setting was too high or something. I do however agree with the aspect of the T1's superior soundstageing in comparison to the Utopia. On the subject of Violectric amplifiers. It's only my opinion but they may not be the best option when it comes to the T1.2 or the HD800S. The manufacturers did an excellent job dialing back the treble on both models, adding a slightly warm amp tends to push the effect a little too much. Being I'm 60, maybe that should be taken with a grain of salt.

You're definitely on the right track auditioning as much equipment as possible before buying.

My apologies, maybe I took the wrong expression to describe the soundstaging of the Utopia, English is not my native language. I don't think that the Utopia is inferior to the T1 in general, quite the contrary. The Utopia does many things very well, I just didn't like its narrow soundstage. Maybe the word "constricted" would have been more appropriate. I am probably very sensitive when I get the impression that the sound produced by a certain headphone is only in my head and and I can't feel the room where the music was recorded.

 

[Svatopluk]

My apologies, maybe I took the wrong expression to describe the soundstaging of the Utopia, English is not my native language. I don't think that the Utopia is inferior to the T1 in general, quite the contrary. The Utopia does many things very well, I just didn't like its narrow soundstage. Maybe the word "constricted" would have been more appropriate. I am probably very sensitive when I get the impression that the sound produced by a certain headphone is only in my head and and I can't feel the room where the music was recorded.

No apologies needed, I understand. We all have different tastes and expectations when it comes to audio equipment. I spend the majority of my listening time with speakers, headphones are used more for analyzing and detail retrieval plus I kind of like the way their not effected by acoustic environment factors. For many the Utopia's Achilles heel does seem to be it's in head presentation so you're definitely not alone. I agree, both Beyerdynamic and Sennheiser got the soundstageing right on their flagship headphones.

 

[sean-xenos]

I would go further and say the V280 is not a very good amp which these HPs would expose to a keen ear. the V280s design and implementation will deliver low THD and good output power on paper, but I cant see it performing to satisfactory level for headphones like this.

Yes, you are absolutely right. I had the chance to listen to the Hifiman HE-1000 V2 and some other headphones on my own equipment this afternoon and my impression was quite different this time. The V280 sounded rather coloured in comparison.
Strangely enough the V280 had a very good synergy with the HE-1000 V2 but wasn't really neutral or well matched with many other headphones. So my impressions from last Friday might have been biased. Another possibility to explain the differences would be that there was a problem with the 2x 3pin XLR to 1x 4pin XLR adapter I had to use for my own headphone amp. I need some more time to find that out exactly.... I am now on holidays in France. The SPL Phonitor 2 uses 2x 3pin XLR jacks for balanced headphones (the old fashioned studio standard) .

 

[erics75]

I would go further and say the V280 is not a very good amp which these HPs would expose to a keen ear. the V280s design and implementation will deliver low THD and good output power on paper, but I cant see it performing to satisfactory level for headphones like this.

i owned the v280 and t1.2 and thought the pairing quite nice when using balanced output. tons of power and dynamic range. i have yet to hear an amp wake up the t1.2's like the v280 did. the v280's slight warmth tempered the t1.2's treble nicely, while filling in the bottom end, adding some weight and heft to notes. it was a very musical pairing. where the v280 struggles a bit is in soundstage. it's not bad, but not large by totl standards.

 

[erics75]

I'm loving the T1...however. I want more bass, I've asked this all over the place, I almost got a Fostex TH900 but, for reasons beyond me I didn't see my self owning a TH900, call it silly, but maybe I don't like the color red on headphones...moving on. What I really like about my T1s is the treble, it's clear but just right, I like the mids, I love how it portrays vocals both male and female, the bass is all right, controlled, but timid I might add. I want to keep; as much as possible, the T1 clarity. I know it's their signature, so it won't be an exactly equal trade, however I don't want to sacrifice details for the sake of more bass. I've been seriously considering the Aeon Flow Closed, Focal Clear and the LCD-3.

I have no intention of retiring my T1, but I could sure use more darkness on top of the clarity. Anyone here that could point me in the right direction? I'm a couple of bad decisions away from pulling the trigger on a brand new Aeon Flow Closed, but if there are people that can spare my wallet; for a while a longer, I'm all ears.

if you like the t1's overall sound signature, but want more warmth, i'd suggest trying to audition a zmf auteur. it's very neutral overall, but with more warmth and musicality vs headphones like the hd800 and t1.

i owned the aeon closed and did not like it at all compared to my t1. it was more polite sounding, with less bass actually, and not nearly as detailed or holographic. imo it's inferior in every way. now the aeon OPEN is another story. that's a fun and warm headphone, with great musicality. it's not as detailed as the t1, but more engaging, imo. more mid bass punch, with similar sub bass rumble. treble is harsher on the aeon open, but not by much. that being said, it's a side-grade vs an upgrade, going from a t1 to an aeon open. different flavor, but similar overall quality. the auteur imo is a true upgrade, if you can get one, and have an amp that works well with it. it's super amp picky, whereas the t1 and aeon sound pretty good on most amps that have sufficient power.

 

[Slim1970]

if you like the t1's overall sound signature, but want more warmth, i'd suggest trying to audition a zmf auteur. it's very neutral overall, but with more warmth and musicality vs headphones like the hd800 and t1.

i owned the aeon closed and did not like it at all compared to my t1. it was more polite sounding, with less bass actually, and not nearly as detailed or holographic. imo it's inferior in every way. now the aeon OPEN is another story. that's a fun and warm headphone, with great musicality. it's not as detailed as the t1, but more engaging, imo. more mid bass punch, with similar sub bass rumble. treble is harsher on the aeon open, but not by much. that being said, it's a side-grade vs an upgrade, going from a t1 to an aeon open. different flavor, but similar overall quality. the auteur imo is a true upgrade, if you can get one, and have an amp that works well with it. it's super amp picky, whereas the t1 and aeon sound pretty good on most amps that have sufficient power.

I had the T1.2's, but sold them once I got the Auteur's. The Auteur's just did everything a little bit better than the T1.2's. You're right about it being a more musical headphone as well. I listened to mine through the Cavalli Liquid Carbon 2.0 and love it. But I like it a little more through the Burson Fun and Bang combo. I have the Bang hooked up to the Hifiman HE-Adapter and boy do the Auteur's deliver some serious bass thump while maintaining it balanced sound. The T1.2's also benefited from this setup but the Auteur's still outclassed them. So I second the Auteur's being a worthy upgrade to the T1.2's

 

[439598]

i owned the v280 and t1.2 and thought the pairing quite nice when using balanced output. tons of power and dynamic range. i have yet to hear an amp wake up the t1.2's like the v280 did. the v280's slight warmth tempered the t1.2's treble nicely, while filling in the bottom end, adding some weight and heft to notes. it was a very musical pairing. where the v280 struggles a bit is in soundstage. it's not bad, but not large by totl standards.

what other balanced amps did you use with it?

 

[erics75]

what other balanced amps did you use with it?

i also used it on the lake people rs-08 i own, which was very nice. it's a more neutral amp than the v280, but other than that doesnt give up that that much in technical ability. i preferred the v280 slightly due to it's warmer and smoother signature. i also used it on my friend's auralic taurus mkii, which sounds much like the rs-08, and his bryston bha-1, which was the brightest amp i've listed. i did not like it at all on the bryston, just too bright. the taurus and rs-08 were just fine. i really enjoyed the t1 but eventually tired of it's brightness and sold it (same story on hd800). i like darker headphones like the hd650 and atticus. the auteur is about as neutral as i'm comfortable with.