[539465]

one that wowed me - hifiman he6 powered by first watt f1j

I keep yo-yoing between getting the HE6SE and a used HE500.... any chance you can compare the two?
I just feel for the money an Arya or HE1000 is more of known territory in the $1000+ range and the HE500 would have to be used and maybe wouldn't impress giving my current collection so I might as well spend $1000+

 

[screwdriver]

I keep yo-yoing between getting the HE6SE and a used HE500.... any chance you can compare the two?
I just feel for the money an Arya or HE1000 is more of known territory in the $1000+ range and the HE500 would have to be used and maybe wouldn't impress giving my current collection so I might as well spend $1000+

sorry i was not able to listen to a he500 . all the other headphones i owned are the sennheiser hd800 , audeze lcdx , focal clear , hifiman HE 1000 , grado HP1000 , sony cd3000 . the HE 6 is veyr hard to drive and it will drive u nuts too coz its not just power - it has to have synergy . i tried different speaker amps with it , tubes and solid states mid priced , budget and expensive - but the first watt F1J just synergizes with it so well . i even have the first watt J2 but that one did not do as well as the f1J . i felt that combo has the slam, mids and detail that i crave

 

[shampoosuicide]

Fostex TH-X00 Mahogany (with Brainwavz XL Sheepskins)
Fostex TH900 MK1
E-MU Teak (with ZMF Eikon Suedes)
Beyerdynamic DT 770 250 ohm

 

[mammal]

For those who have seen the Linus Tech Tips video with DMS and Abyss headphones, he said there he would not cry, but ended up getting emotional when listening to AB-1266. Well, same with me. This headphone has been praised to heavens, so I was worries I am setting my expectations too high. People warned me about its construction being too heavy and uncomfortable, especially if you wear glasses. Happy to say that I haven't had any issues with fit, they sit on my head perfectly. As far as sound goes, they are very resolving (that's what I am after) and have something I have never heard before - hight to sound signature. This just wowed me.

 

[Heyyoudvd]

For those who have seen the Linus Tech Tips video with DMS and Abyss headphones, he said there he would not cry, but ended up getting emotional when listening to AB-1266. Well, same with me. This headphone has been praised to heavens, so I was worries I am setting my expectations too high. People warned me about its construction being too heavy and uncomfortable, especially if you wear glasses. Happy to say that I haven't had any issues with fit, they sit on my head perfectly. As far as sound goes, they are very resolving (that's what I am after) and have something I have never heard before - hight to sound signature. This just wowed me.

This is why I don’t put a lot of faith in ASR and their measurements. Supposedly the 1266 measured poorly, yet virtually every single person I’ve ever seen who has listened to them says they were blown away by the sound.

I haven’t personally had the chance to listen to any of the Abyss stuff (although I do want to pick up a pair of Diana V2s at some point in the next couple years), but basically everyone who’s heard them says they sound fantastic, and that says a lot more than measurements do.

 

[mammal]

This is why I don’t put a lot of faith in ASR and their measurements. Supposedly the 1266 measured poorly, yet virtually every single person I’ve ever seen who has listened to them says they were blown away by the sound.

I haven’t personally had the chance to listen to any of the Abyss stuff (although I do want to pick up a pair of Diana V2s at some point in the next couple years), but basically everyone who’s heard them says they sound fantastic, and that says a lot more than measurements do.

I like science (who does not), but measurements are tricky. It is difficult to prove the absence of something. I would argue that we do not 100% understand psychoacoustics nor how our brain processes sound waves / music yet. I remember times when people were arguing about something that essentially become a jitter test. It did not exist, yet some people claimed they subjectively hear differences between DACs and inputs, where folks with measurements were trying to disprove them. Is it possible that not all tests have been created yet? Very possibly. I do recognise the need for "as objective as possible" tests online, so that people can have some sort of benchmark / basis for their comparison, as you cannot hear a good pair of headphones/speakers on your laptop and choose that way. Buying blindly is risky, but for those who experiment (like I try to), measurements mean a lot less. Also, measurements tend to look at technicalities of a headphone, which I personally care less about than enjoyment. When I started with head-fi I thought I would enjoy bass heavy headphones the most (so purchased Audeze LCD 2/3), since then I went over soundstage headphones (like Hifiman Arya), but when I purchased blindly Abyss Diana V2, I knew what I am into now is resolution. For that reason, I sold my Diana V2 to fund the purchase of AB-1266, and I could not be any happier (at least for now, haha).

 

[MayaTlab]

basically everyone who’s heard them says they sound fantastic, and that says a lot more than measurements do.

https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones...j?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3

 

[rmanty]

LCD2C´s and Sundaras for the 1st time.

 

[Strayngs]

Utopia for sure for me.

 

[Dawgfish]

This is why I don’t put a lot of faith in ASR and their measurements. Supposedly the 1266 measured poorly, yet virtually every single person I’ve ever seen who has listened to them says they were blown away by the sound.

I haven’t personally had the chance to listen to any of the Abyss stuff (although I do want to pick up a pair of Diana V2s at some point in the next couple years), but basically everyone who’s heard them says they sound fantastic, and that says a lot more than measurements do.

Measurements are fine and all but I just don't get people who only look at measurements without ever listening to something and form their opinions on how something sounds just off a measurement.

 

[Dawgfish]

I like science (who does not), but measurements are tricky. It is difficult to prove the absence of something. I would argue that we do not 100% understand psychoacoustics nor how our brain processes sound waves / music yet. I remember times when people were arguing about something that essentially become a jitter test. It did not exist, yet some people claimed they subjectively hear differences between DACs and inputs, where folks with measurements were trying to disprove them. Is it possible that not all tests have been created yet? Very possibly. I do recognise the need for "as objective as possible" tests online, so that people can have some sort of benchmark / basis for their comparison, as you cannot hear a good pair of headphones/speakers on your laptop and choose that way. Buying blindly is risky, but for those who experiment (like I try to), measurements mean a lot less. Also, measurements tend to look at technicalities of a headphone, which I personally care less about than enjoyment. When I started with head-fi I thought I would enjoy bass heavy headphones the most (so purchased Audeze LCD 2/3), since then I went over soundstage headphones (like Hifiman Arya), but when I purchased blindly Abyss Diana V2, I knew what I am into now is resolution. For that reason, I sold my Diana V2 to fund the purchase of AB-1266, and I could not be any happier (at least for now, haha).

Agree 100%. I don't think measurement equipment/processing has caught up to the hearing abilities of the human ear/brain yet and for the record I am a professional scientist.

 

[Dawgfish]

For me it was the Aeon Flow Open Xs.

 

[Terriero]

I like science (who does not), but measurements are tricky. It is difficult to prove the absence of something. I would argue that we do not 100% understand psychoacoustics nor how our brain processes sound waves / music yet. I remember times when people were arguing about something that essentially become a jitter test. It did not exist, yet some people claimed they subjectively hear differences between DACs and inputs, where folks with measurements were trying to disprove them. Is it possible that not all tests have been created yet? Very possibly. I do recognise the need for "as objective as possible" tests online, so that people can have some sort of benchmark / basis for their comparison, as you cannot hear a good pair of headphones/speakers on your laptop and choose that way. Buying blindly is risky, but for those who experiment (like I try to), measurements mean a lot less. Also, measurements tend to look at technicalities of a headphone, which I personally care less about than enjoyment. When I started with head-fi I thought I would enjoy bass heavy headphones the most (so purchased Audeze LCD 2/3), since then I went over soundstage headphones (like Hifiman Arya), but when I purchased blindly Abyss Diana V2, I knew what I am into now is resolution. For that reason, I sold my Diana V2 to fund the purchase of AB-1266, and I could not be any happier (at least for now, haha).

Do you listen to metal music? There are a few people in the forum that likes a lot the 1266 for this genre.

 

[FullBright1]

Measurements are fine and all but I just don't get people who only look at measurements without ever listening to something and form their opinions on how something sounds just off a measurement.

"Sonic Magician".

1.) A person who (believes) they can look at a chart or a graph and thereby literally evaluate (hear) how a headphone sounds, before they actually listen to it to find out.

2.) A person who places headphones at the mercy of a "microphone head", and through the magic of Youtube compression (and probably not a very good mic pre), tells you their "sound demo" is "just like the headphones strapped to your ears".

"Human Drone".

1.) Person who believes in #1 and #2.

 

[FullBright1]

"headphone wow".

Thats the question?
Hummmm.
Diana V2? no.
Meze Empyrean ? no
Some version of Hifiman HE1000 ? no
Cleer Next? hummmmm, good choice but no.
OH, i know....
When i want to be wow'd i'll grab the Audio Technica ATH-ADX5000, as these are so neutral and so surgical and so sonically magnifying.
These are handmade audiophile headphones in the JAPANESE sense of the word. This means the audiophile sound engineering that created them, is not looking for dark thick slam as their idea of high end headphone sound. But rather they want to hear a straight wire with just a touch of airy bright and nicely laser focused midrange and low end that lets you analyze the low end vs being beaten by it.
Japanese Handmade Audiophile Sonic Microscopes.
They are a "wow".

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