[chzplz]

I thought I saw this thread before, but I can't seem to find it... if this is a rehash (which I know it is), feel free to point me in the right direction.

My question is how close the ALO Modded Ultrasone HFI 780's come to the Edition 9's. I was just poking around with my old HFI 700's (which I thought were the greatest thing I ever heard until I really broke open the piggy bank

) and I realized that I LOVE the Ultrasone sound signature. The HFI 700's certainly don't sound great anymore since I've heard Darths, Denons, Senns, and whatnot, but there is something about the sound of the Ultrasones that I still love.

So, assuming that the Edition 9's carry that sound signature forward with much greater fidelity, and assuming that there's no way I can afford Edition 9's right now, I am curious to know whether the modded 780's really are just a hair off the Ed 9's in terms of SQ as some have claimed, or whether I'm better off saving up for the Ed 9's. (I'd rather not get the 780's only to trade up in the future.)

Thoughts?

Thanks

Ira

 

[iQEM]

ALO hfi780 is about 90% of Ed9, offcourse...

 

[scott_d_m]

With a little bit of digging I found this post http://www.head-fi.org/forums/3852673-post7.html.

I believe this is what you're looking for.

 

[chzplz]

Awesome! Thanks. The reviewer was obviously quite impressed and found the "ALO-780's" to be "closer to the Ed 9's than to the stock HFI-780's." (Paraphrase, not an actual quote.

Anyone else able to clarify how close the ALO-modded 780's come to Ed 9's? After reading the review, I am particularly interested in whether the bass is less up-front as the reviewer suggests, and whether this does in fact give the impression of less bass in the ALO-modded pair.

Thanks again, Scott

Ira

Quote:

Originally Posted by scott_d_m /img/forum/go_quote.gif With a little bit of digging I found this post http://www.head-fi.org/forums/3852673-post7.html. I believe this is what you're looking for.

 

[FallenAngel]

I wasn't overly impressed with them, but did enjoy the Ed9. For me, it's just about the price of that recable, I mean DAMN! What a price markup.

 

[genclaymore]

Yea really, i'd have to take up a loan if I ever want that done to my HFI-780s.

 

[FallenAngel]

Quote:

Originally Posted by genclaymore /img/forum/go_quote.gif Yea really, i'd have to take up a loan if I ever want that done to my HFI-780s.

Do it yourself at 1/3 of the price

 

[G-man]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FallenAngel /img/forum/go_quote.gif Do it yourself at 1/3 of the price

I swear its a mod, not just a recable. and the cable itself is pretty expensive isn't it? i haven't seen just that cable for sale anywhere.

 

[Covenant]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gautam /img/forum/go_quote.gif I swear its a mod, not just a recable. and the cable itself is pretty expensive isn't it? i haven't seen just that cable for sale anywhere.

ALO uses Jena labs cryo cable, and I understand that it is very expensive. Whether the expense is justified or not is another story.

I'm not sure what the 'mod' entails though.

 

[scott_d_m]

This was taken from the ALO website concerning modifications of the HFI-780

Quote:

The new HFI-780 (formerly the HFI-700) was created to be one of the all-around best headphones ever made. Now fully modified by Audiolineout to maximize the full potential of these wonderful headphones. The modification consists of internal dampening and structural vibration control. Then we re cable the headphone directly to each cup using the ultimate in audio wire (6 foot cable length), The JeneLabs Ultra Wire. The larger 18G JenaLabs Cryo wire. 18 gauge JenaLabs Cryo Ultra Wire. Each UW strand is an ultra high purity 99.9999%, linear crystal, stress-free, super annealed, micro-polished, ultra fine stranded copper conductor. It is jacked in modified PE dielectric which offers dissipation and dielectric constant figures similar to Teflon, but without its mechanical resonance problems. Moreover a special extrusion process allows the insulation to exert and tremendous inward redial force on the wire strands, thus reducing audio smearing micro-vibrations. UW is Immersion CRYO treated by JenaLabs proprietary process.

 

[G-man]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Covenant /img/forum/go_quote.gif ALO uses Jena labs cryo cable, and I understand that it is very expensive. Whether the expense is justified or not is another story. I'm not sure what the 'mod' entails though.

oh i definately am not a believer in re cables. but i believe that the mod does help quite a lot. still for that money you can afford a denon AH-MD5000, so why not get that.

 

[nick20]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gautam /img/forum/go_quote.gif oh i definately am not a believer in re cables.

Have you had a pair of headphones recabled?

 

[G-man]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nick20 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Have you had a pair of headphones recabled?

no, but what i mean is that money should only be spent on recables after you have a good pair of headphones, with good amp, good DAC/ source, and a HUGE collection of music. good is obviously relative, along with "HUGE" but you get the idea. and i believe music should come before anything.

 

[demoNMaCHiN3]

well you could always get the recabling done by S2 Audio for $85.

Here's a comparison between an ALO recabled 780 and an S2 Audio recabled 780.

So what's the word on the new Ultrasone HFI-780???? - Page 166 - Head-Fi: Covering Headphones, Earphones and Portable Audio

 

[Jalo]

I have an ALO-HFI-780 (with about 140 hrs of burn-in) and I had a chance to compare it to the ED9 for only a few minutes. Like you, I originally struggle between the two hp, especially when someone said the sq is 90% similar but the price difference is hugh. After the comparison, I have to say the statement is accurate. I, however, like the look and feel of the ED9. It is a lot more comfortable then the 780. But then in high fi, as we all know, the cost of getting the last 5 to 10 percent sometimes can be more than the whole item itself plus the satisfaction of knowing you own the best in the line up. It is still a tough choice for me.