[caiyuwei]

Quote:

hmm...
 
I need to grab the cheapest ultrasone, take out the drivers, put them on a ed8 casket and sell it.
 
I can make a fortune if a/b is the same!
 
*taking notes*

nice idead, hahaha

 

[MuppetFace]

The amount of money for an Ed8 shell and PRO 550 drivers would probably equal out to the amount of money a used Ed8 costs on head-fi. And it probably wouldn't sound as good.

 

[AnakChan]

@MuppetFace, seeing that you own quite a few Ultrasones I'm curious if you've ever managed to test a balanced Ed8 (e.g. RSA SR-71B) against the Signature Pro? I wonder if (based on your opinion naturally) a balanced Ed8 would improve it's "shortcomings" against the Signature Pro model.

 

[MuppetFace]

Quote:

@MuppetFace, seeing that you own quite a few Ultrasones I'm curious if you've ever managed to test a balanced Ed8 (e.g. RSA SR-71B) against the Signature Pro? I wonder if (based on your opinion naturally) a balanced Ed8 would improve it's "shortcomings" against the Signature Pro model.

Nope, never tried a balanced Edition 8. My experience with balanced operation (trying the L3000 and HD800 balanced vs. single ended) didn't reveal much of a discernible difference to my ears, aside from being louder. Any difference in SQ was minimal enough to not inspire me, personally, to change out all of my gear.
 
My main complaint with the Edition 8 is the upper-end brightness and glare with certain recordings (not all recordings). Based on my past experience with balanced operation, I don't imagine the brightness would tone down much. But I could be mistaken, of course.

 

[shamrock134]

This upper-end brightness you speak of. Was that not present on other cans you've owned such as the HD800, HE6, T1 and K701?

 

[derycksan]

Not only is the 550 unsung, it's actually discouraged by people that have never heard it here.  Really fell in love with the 550's especially considering I got mine for < $100.  And you're right about the 900 comparison, hard to justify paying 3x the price for slightly better bass and significantly harsher highs (I'm not a fan of metallic drivers in cans or loudspeakers).
 
 

 
 
Spent a bit of time with Pro 550 today for the first time and I have to say that's one heck of an 'unsung' basshead hero can, it's
quite decent for other material too but there is no mistaking it's forte with bass heavy material.
 
Why does this can not get more attention for a fraction of the Pro 900 price? I was auditioning between the
Pro 550/900 (Tron Legacy soundtrack) on a Woo Audio 6 tube amp and could not really justify the cash difference 

 

 

[pietcux]

The funny thing is, that I bought the PRO 550 because I wanted the case that it brings with it, to have a better storage for my HFI 2400 on the go. I wanted to sell the PRO 550 without the case then. But the PRO 550 is my only headphone right now. Sold the HFI-2400 because of its openness and also because of the overpronounced highs. Then sold the Beyerdynamic T70p and the DT 1350 for different reasons and kept only the PRO 550 because it simply got the most headtime and it is so easy to drive from any DAC I own. But the Meier Audio Stepdance improves the sond a lot for my hearing.

 

[Gwarmi]

Quote:

Not only is the 550 unsung, it's actually discouraged by people that have never heard it here.  Really fell in love with the 550's especially considering I got mine for < $100.  And you're right about the 900 comparison, hard to justify paying 3x the price for slightly better bass and significantly harsher highs (I'm not a fan of metallic drivers in cans or loudspeakers).
 
 

 Time to start singing the 550's praise loud and clear I say 

 
 It really took me by surprise, there it was in it's identical carry case like the 750/900 ~ it had never really crossed
 my mind, spent the afternoon with it and then thought 'It's easily one of the best basshead cans getting around
 at the price' - very easily.
 
 When you think what people pay for a TMA-1 ~ Why would you bother, the Pro 550 eclipses it's strong suit
 and then adds build quality, comfort and further flexibility and suitability to various genres.
 
 Then there is the more popular Ultrasone 580 sure it might be more practical in terms of packaging and a
 bit more balanced sounding but when you consider that many people who buy a 580 are in some ways
 ~ bassheads ~ it just makes you wonder, the 550 for a few more dollars is going to pay off bigger dividends
 of enjoyment in the long run ..

 

[MuppetFace]

Quote:

This upper-end brightness you speak of. Was that not present on other cans you've owned such as the HD800, HE6, T1 and K701?

The HD800 is very picky about amplification, and in certain configurations it can be a bit too bright for my tastes. The ZDSE however does a very good job taming it, and I don't find it harsh when paired with it. The T1 and HE-6 I wouldn't call overly bright for my tastes.
 
I would classify the Edition 8 as slightly harsher in the upper registers than any of those headphones, though it's still much less so than say the Edition 10.

 

[Ahzari]

Hey MuppetFace,
 
Can you comment on the differences in treble response of the Sig Pros vs the Beyer T1s... I'm interested in both, have the 2900s (too sibilant), I've read that the T1s can be sibilant as well, which worries me.. I have a Woo Audio WA6SE that tames treble harshness a bit, but I'd rather just get a headphone that has that controlled from the get go..
 
Also I can get my hands on a Sig Pro for much less than a T1, but how would you rank their overall sound.. Would you say they are within the same realm of audio quality (the T1's get compared to the Sen HD800s) I don't hear many people using the comparison with any of the Ultrasones when talking about those cans. I don't care much about appearance, most important is sound quality (I listen to a lot of electronic music -and variations of it- so female vocals are important) next is build quality, some of these higher end cans like the HifiMan series just don't seem that well build (to me)..
 
Thanks.

 

[MuppetFace]

Personally, I don't find the T1 to be sibilant or overly bright on the sources / amps I've paired with it. Same with unamped. In terms of a relative comparison between the T1 and Signature Pro, I'd say the T1 is the brighter of the two, but both are within the realm of what I'd consider tonally balanced.
 
Overall sound quality of both is good, though I'd place both as being just slightly behind the HD800 in terms of fidelity and detail retrieval. Both sound more musical than the HD800 to my ears however. I'd say it's something like T1 < Signature Pro < HD800 in terms of resolution and HD800 < Signature Pro < T1 in terms of musicality / euphony, but they're all fairly close.
 
Presentation is the biggest area of difference between the Signature Pro and T1 imho. The T1 lacks a bit of the Signature Pro's dimensionality and depth (S-Logic + at work), with a smaller more intimate headstage. The T1 however has more body, texture, and weight in rendering voices and instruments to my ears. That weight isn't grounded though like the LCD-2's. The HD800 is perhaps the most lacking in this sense, with a more stereotypically "electrostatic" presentation that is vaporous.

 

[Gwarmi]

Quote:

Personally, I don't find the T1 to be sibilant or overly bright on the sources / amps I've paired with it. Same with unamped. In terms of a relative comparison between the T1 and Signature Pro, I'd say the T1 is the brighter of the two, but both are within the realm of what I'd consider tonally balanced.
 
Overall sound quality of both is good, though I'd place both as being just slightly behind the HD800 in terms of fidelity and detail retrieval. Both sound more musical than the HD800 to my ears however. I'd say it's something like T1 < Signature Pro < HD800 in terms of resolution and HD800 < Signature Pro < T1 in terms of musicality / euphony, but they're all fairly close.
 
Presentation is the biggest area of difference between the Signature Pro and T1 imho. The T1 lacks a bit of the Signature Pro's dimensionality and depth (S-Logic + at work), with a smaller more intimate headstage. The T1 however has more body, texture, and weight in rendering voices and instruments to my ears. That weight isn't grounded though like the LCD-2's. The HD800 is perhaps the most lacking in this sense, with a more stereotypically "electrostatic" presentation that is vaporous.

 Had to ask Muppetface ~ how does your PS1000 fit into all of this? 

 

[MuppetFace]

The PS1000 and T1 are actually owned by a friend of mine. He has my HD800 and DX1000 in exchange right now.
 
I feel the PS1000 is somewhat underrated around these parts. In describing its general character, the best word I can conjure up from my mental depths is "majestic." Basically, with the PS1000, it's like Grado left the bar and entered the concert hall. The sound is full and robust, with more of an initial "wow factor" than the T1 and Signature Pro. The HD800 has a similar ability to knock one's proverbial socks off upon first listen, but that's more a matter of its truly cavernous presentation.
 
Without an amp to reign it in, the PS1000's bass can be a bit bloated and amorphous. Apart from that, the rest of the sonic spectrum is tight and crystalline and superb. The Signature Pro is closer to neutral in presentation I think, and it possesses a more well defined soundstage with better imaging. Still, the PS1000 is great to my mind because it manages to present music with an airy and spacious quality, yet give it enough body, texture, and impact. It's hard to nail that almost suspension-like combination as aptly as Grado did with the PS1000.

 

[Ahzari]

Quote:

Personally, I don't find the T1 to be sibilant or overly bright on the sources / amps I've paired with it. Same with unamped. In terms of a relative comparison between the T1 and Signature Pro, I'd say the T1 is the brighter of the two, but both are within the realm of what I'd consider tonally balanced.
 
Overall sound quality of both is good, though I'd place both as being just slightly behind the HD800 in terms of fidelity and detail retrieval. Both sound more musical than the HD800 to my ears however. I'd say it's something like T1 < Signature Pro < HD800 in terms of resolution and HD800 < Signature Pro < T1 in terms of musicality / euphony, but they're all fairly close.
 
Presentation is the biggest area of difference between the Signature Pro and T1 imho. The T1 lacks a bit of the Signature Pro's dimensionality and depth (S-Logic + at work), with a smaller more intimate headstage. The T1 however has more body, texture, and weight in rendering voices and instruments to my ears. That weight isn't grounded though like the LCD-2's. The HD800 is perhaps the most lacking in this sense, with a more stereotypically "electrostatic" presentation that is vaporous.

 
Thanks for the comparison. So in your opinion, if I can get the Sig Pros at a much better price than the T1s (considering they retail for about the same) should I jump on it..?
 
Also you mentioned dimensionality, would you consider that S-Logic character to be greater in the Sig Pros than the Pro2900? In the 2900s I felt like it was lacking a bit; my closed Denons D7000s often sounded more dimensional..
 
 

 

[fhuang]

there are lots of things t1 does better to me than signature pro.  i don't want to get into details because i don't want to start a fight or sound like a t1 fanboy.  still, t1 vs signature pro is not fair because open headphones vs closed.   by the way, i though signature pro sound dark. at least darker than, hfi780.  signature is the darkest headphone i own that i love