Background: I am relatively new to the audiophile world, but in terms of music exposure, I have played the flute for close to a decade now. This is the first review I have ever written, compelled by my wonderful experience listening to the XTCs. This is also my first open back, of which I am glad that these were the first, though I plan on going to CanJam SoCal this year to see how these compare with the more popular options, such as the HE1000s, Focals, ZMFs, etc.

Customization Journey: With John, you can send these back for free retunes (I sent them back twice), since I did not have previous preferences when I first ordered them, and John tried the best he could the first time based on what limited information I gave him about my tonal preferences. I was very impressed the first time I received them, but felt that something was missing in terms of refinement and personal enjoyment; the first tuning was missing some top-end and the second made vocals too harsh and forward upon further listen. The third time I received these, John switched to an upgraded driver and tuned these to his "preference reference" tuning, and I was mightily relieved by the fact that I didn't have to send these back anymore! I will describe the wonderful sound of the reference tuning below, and explain how every characteristic of the headphone contributes to overall enjoyment and immersion. Tuning info: Slightly warm but detailed -> Warm with elevated detail -> Reference.

Bass: These headphones have heaps of bass for a 'reference' tuning. However, it is very well-controlled and tight. Well-extended and incredibly textured, natural bass that still sounds neutral with respect to the other frequencies, reminding me of a Yanyin Moonlight with way better bass quality, but only slightly more quantity. Incredibly engaging, and satisfying, but never boomy and uncontrolled. Reference bass does not have to mean flat and boring, these hit the exact spot between neutrality and enjoyment; the bass is the best of both worlds. The reference tuning doesn't turn these into bass cannons, but it exemplifies the ability of these drivers to reproduce such high-quality bass.

Mids: I have never listened to a tube amp before, but the tube mode on my Cen.Grand DAC/amp makes vocals and instruments sound euphoric and detailed at the same time. There is a very slight touch of smoothness, that, when combined with the reference tuning, gives them just the right amount of bite and attack, but also produces plenty of overtones and just makes them sound incredibly 'correct'. Violins in the Waltz of the Flowers never sounded so lifelike, so real, with just a touch of smoothness added to help with the euphoric experience and enhance immersion. The Cen.Grand is one of the most musical solid-state sources I have tried, and if this is what the 'tube sound' is, count me in. The reference tuning, when combined with a clean musical-sounding source, makes everything sound real.

Highs: I am very sensitive to sibilance, and the treble on these is close to the borderline of what I would deem sibilant. However, I am happy to report that I have experienced no fatigue whatsoever from hours-long listening sessions. The reference tuning, along with the drivers' great extension up top, allows treble to shimmer and sparkle, but in a natural way that is not overdone. Again, it sounds real. I would describe the treble tuning as neutral, leaning very slightly bright. It is like everything is covered in a soft shimmery glow. Musical, and real, yet incredibly detailed, with the perfect amount of edge to the sound for most tracks. Poorly recorded ones will sound harsh, as this tuning results in incredible detail retrieval.

Comfort and soundstage that tie everything together: The soundstage on these perfectly matches the tonality of the headphones. Imagine you are at the center of a campfire, and the seats are arranged around the campfire at a bit of distance from the center, not too far away, but not in your face. And then the music starts playing. The staging is holographic, deep, and tall, but not artificially wide. You are not sitting at the back of a large concert hall or standing in a long school hallway, but instead, you are surrounded by the music. It's incredibly engaging, and detailed, yet relaxing and euphoric. The soundstage is effortless, and immersing yourself in the music has never been easier. Additionally, these disappear on your ears when using the fuzzy pads, which only adds to the already incredible experience.

[Added imaging & separation section]: The imaging I would describe as coherent. It is close to pinpoint imaging, though the tuning seems to slightly 'blend' the sounds together for an incredibly coherent listen. Separation is also good, again slightly 'blended' for an effortless and natural presentation. It is very easy to pick details out if desired, but I like the slightly laid-back way it presents the music, adding to the immersion and effortless nature of these headphones.

Sources: I would pair these with a transparent, yet musical source. I have tried these on my little MoonRiver2 Ti, and it didn't sound bad, though I felt that I was listening to the source instead of my headphones, with a noticeable digital glare from how Moondrop implemented the Cirrus DACs. However, with the Cen.Grand, everything fell into place and I felt that I was listening to the headphones themselves, despite it being a solid state with the ES9038 Pro and LM49720 op-amps. It is transparent, but also musical, which is what a good source should be. These headphones will reflect the source, being so transparent, so choose carefully.

Pad rolling: John usually provides a few sets of pads with your purchase that you can switch out to see if you like the sound better. I will note that, based on my experience with how each re-tune sounded, depending on which pads he had on when he re-tuned the headphones, those will sound the best, though pad rolling only takes a few minutes and it doesn't hurt to try. Currently, I am using the original fuzzy pads with the fabric still intact, as other pads ruined the reference nature of the tuning.

Conclusion: For only $799, these beat out my $650 Yanyin Moonlights no contest. In fact, I look forward to demoing other stuff at CanJam knowing that they may not even come close to the sheer quality and value of these headphones. It is like XGeneX88 said: "This is a $3000-4000 "sounding" headphone that can be had for under $1000." Absolutely incredible value for anyone starting out, and guess what? If you didn't like it the first time, send these back to John until you get the perfect sound that you imagined these would have. He might even throw some free upgrades in if you ask, such as the new upgraded driver (I didn't even ask! Greatest customer service I have experienced, ever). You will not be disappointed.