[lvince95]

 
So, let me get this straight: you're faulting it because it fell short of perhaps the greatest headphone currently in regular production (SR009), and a well amped open headphone (R70X on a m903)?  When you paired it with an amp it wouldn't match well with AT ALL (Vali) and a carbon on ***high*** gain?!  The THX00 is incredibly efficient and low impedance, so putting it on high gain with just about any amp is pretty crazy and the Vali1 is both tubes and relatively high impedance, which both aren't great for the THX00.
 
I realize that the THX00 maybe isn't for everybody, but that seems like hitting your foot with a concrete brick and then complaining that your new shoes are hurting your feet compared to the $900 well worn in loafers you tried yesterday.  

I agree. Pairing it with the Vali, and also LC on high gain makes his credibility questionable. The TH-X00 has only 25-ohm impedance lmao, I would think 'experienced' guys such as this would know how to properly test headphones before making such statements.

 

[fjrabon]

 
I agree. Pairing it with the Vali, and also LC on high gain makes his credibility questionable. The TH-X00 has only 25-ohm impedance lmao, I would think 'experienced' guys such as this would know how to properly test headphones before making such statements.

sad part is, that m903 he tried the R70X on would have been better in two regards: 1) same system comparison 2) amp that matches both headphones well.  Also, the m903 is just like a million times better amp period than the Vali (as it should be, costing $1000 and being solid state vs. a $150 tube amp).

 

[lvince95]

 
sad part is, that m903 he tried the R70X on would have been better in two regards: 1) same system comparison 2) amp that matches both headphones well.  Also, the m903 is just like a million times better amp period than the Vali (as it should be, costing $1000 and being solid state vs. a $150 tube amp).

That's crazy. I never understood why people would make statements such as his when he doesn't even test the headphones in question on the same setup. I think testing it on the same system is a must for comparisons such as this, otherwise the whole thing would be just pointless imo. Even though I'm not a huge fan of the TH-X00, pitting a TH-X00 + Vali against a R70x + m903 is just downright nonsensical.

 

[Yobster69]

Im so confused on these. Half the people say the bass is great and the treble is forward, and half say its muddled and dark!
Hi, yes, owning both headphones and without going into stupid detail they do have similarities. Both have a non fatiguing treble, the mids are great on both, and though they can both handle about the same amount of sub and mid bass, the 00's have more impact and rumble, definitely due to the closed nature of the phone. Of course the soundstage of the X1's is bigger, but that's just the physical nature or the phone, but if you are looking for something similar but that gives you that ear tingle then you can't go wrong for your money. IMO, YMMV, and all that jazz.
BTW, I like my bass and listen to both with the bass boost on, and EQ both phones, but I find the X1's need a little lift in the mid and treble (just my preference, about 1db). The 00's I leave almost flat.

Essentially im looking for something that splits the difference between my x1 and my grado 325. Overall i prefer the x1 signature, which i believe is similar to the x00 but want more bass impact than the x1, and with detail and imaging of the grado. Looking for something fun that can hit that.

Is this close to that?

 

[DecentLevi]

Elements of the sound signature of a headphone generally change moderately, but not drastically depending on the amp used and the gain setting. Things like dynamics, clarity and soundstage seem to be the most prone to differences, but the general frequency response and tonality doesn't generally change that much from amp to amp. Including my previous try I have tested it on 3 amps, and as well there does seem to be a general consensus from others who have tried the TH-X00 (a few on this forum and a few owners I met yesterday) who agree the generally tonality is on the dark side. So any points about source used for my impressions are moot.
 
Also if you notice at the end of my post, I had done a more fair comparison, of it against the K7XX (which were on the same system). Sure a few impressions were apples to oranges, and it wasn't the most thorough listening either, as it was a busy meet. Just trying to give you honest impressions, as one who has tried it. A few other good closed alternatives for anyone on the fence are DT-770 or 1770, TH-900 or PM-3, the ladder being too similar to the X00, IMO.
 
No comparison was made between the X00 and the Stax flagship, I just threw that in there for contrast to show how much better things could get in general. Thanks to the tips from a few of you though, it does look like the X00 does have potential to rise higher with a swap of earpads, and pairing with a better amp. And as mentioned, their signature is still well received, depending on your preferences.

 

[Yobster69]

Im so confused on these. Half the people say the bass is great and the treble is forward, and half say its muddled and dark!

Essentially im looking for something that splits the difference between my x1 and my grado 325. Overall i prefer the x1 signature, which i believe is similar to the x00 but want more bass impact than the x1, and with detail and imaging of the grado. Looking for something fun that can hit that.

Is this close to that?

Sorry, I'll try that again - Hi, yes, owning both headphones and without going into stupid detail they do have similarities. Both have a non fatiguing treble, the mids are great on both, and though they can both handle about the same amount of sub and mid bass, the 00's have more impact and rumble, definitely due to the closed nature of the phone. Of course the soundstage of the X1's is bigger, but that's just the physical nature or the phone, but if you are looking for something similar but that gives you that ear tingle then you can't go wrong for your money. IMO, YMMV, and all that jazz.
BTW, I like my bass and listen to both with the bass boost on, and EQ both phones, but I find the X1's need a little lift in the mid and treble (just my preference, about 1db). The 00's I leave almost flat.

 

[bavinck]

R70x is slower than thx00?

I would say so. For most music it will not have much affect. However, for electronic and fast rock (like metal) I can tell.

 

[fjrabon]

  The sound signature of a headphone generally changes moderately, but not drastically depending on the amp used and the gain setting. Things like dynamics, clarity and soundstage seem to be the most prone to differences, but the general frequency response and tonality doesn't generally change that much from amp to amp. Including my previous try I have tested it on 3 amps, and as well there does seem to be a general consensus from other who have tried the TH-X00 (a few on this forum and a few owners I met yesterday) who agree the generally tonality is on the dark side. So any points about source used for my impressions are moot.
 
Also if you notice at the end of my post, I had done a more fair comparison, of it against the K7XX. Sure a few impressions notes were apples to oranges, and it wasn't the most thorough listening either, as it was a busy meet. Just trying to give you honest impressions, as one who has tried it. A few other good closed alternatives for anyone on the fence are DT-770 or 1770, TH-900 or PM-3, the ladder being too similar to the X00, IMO.
 
No comparison was made between the X00 and the Stax flagship, I just threw that in there for contrast to show how much better things could get in general. Thanks to the tips from a few of you though, it does look like the X00 does have potential to rise higher with a swap of earpads, and pairing with a better amp. And as mentioned, their signature is still well received, depending on your preferences.

I do agree that amps aren't nearly as important as people on here make it out to me, with two important caveats: proper powering and sufficient damping.  Lack of proper damping will make a headphone sound bloated, slow and fuzzy in the bass.  Which clearly won't do the THX00 any favors, as, yes, it does verge on those qualities naturally.  This isn't a "not good synergy" thing with the Vali, this is a it messes up one of the only two things that actually matter.  The LC issue (too high of gain) should have been less important, as all that really does is pushes you to the extreme low end of the volume dial, where there can be more crosstalk issues (smaller stage, incoherent imaging) or even channel imbalance.  But yeah, it shouldn't do too much to the actual FR by using too high of a gain setting.

 

[The Third]

Does anyone know how the TH-X00 sound with the modi 2 uber/magni 2 uber stack? (And any reason why I should get another AMP/DAC combo instead of that one :3?)

 

[fjrabon]

  Does anyone know how the TH-X00 sound with the modi 2 uber/magni 2 uber stack? (And any reason why I should get another AMP/DAC combo instead of that one :3?)

1) very good 2) not really.  Sure, there are things that will be better, but there's no real reason to upgrade unless you just want to.  

 

[innaterebel]

 

For TH-X00 owners: how much would you say these improve with a proper DAC/amp? Is it night and day or is it more subtle?

We can't guarantee anything. So maybe you could just take a small leap of faith and decide for yourself. Amps dont really change the sound of anything it just improves whats already there or bring out whats suppose to be there. Tighter bass, extended treble or bass, better spacing between instruments, ect.. So its all up to you and your highly trained ears.

 

  an amp can tighten the bass of the thx00 if one finds it too boomy.

 
A low output impedance amp, to be not mistaken, if you are gonna expressly buy one for TH-X00

 

 

[bavinck]

  Does anyone know how the TH-X00 sound with the modi 2 uber/magni 2 uber stack? (And any reason why I should get another AMP/DAC combo instead of that one :3?)

Version 1 stack m&m sounds very good. 

 

[EinZweiDrei]

A low output impedance amp, to be not mistaken, if you are gonna expressly buy one for TH-X00  

Those aren't hard to find these days.

 

[pickleweed]

Sorry, I'll try that again - Hi, yes, owning both headphones and without going into stupid detail they do have similarities. Both have a non fatiguing treble, the mids are great on both, and though they can both handle about the same amount of sub and mid bass, the 00's have more impact and rumble, definitely due to the closed nature of the phone. Of course the soundstage of the X1's is bigger, but that's just the physical nature or the phone, but if you are looking for something similar but that gives you that ear tingle then you can't go wrong for your money. IMO, YMMV, and all that jazz.
BTW, I like my bass and listen to both with the bass boost on, and EQ both phones, but I find the X1's need a little lift in the mid and treble (just my preference, about 1db). The 00's I leave almost flat.

Thanks for the info. Sounds in the ballpark im looking for. And honestly i think i prefer the grado soundstage which was very close so this may be a real winner for me. Fingers crossed they reopen the drop tomorrow

Brw, how is the detail compared to the x1? I dont think the x1s were overly detailed

 

[legcramp]

  Elements of the sound signature of a headphone generally change moderately, but not drastically depending on the amp used and the gain setting. Things like dynamics, clarity and soundstage seem to be the most prone to differences, but the general frequency response and tonality doesn't generally change that much from amp to amp. Including my previous try I have tested it on 3 amps, and as well there does seem to be a general consensus from others who have tried the TH-X00 (a few on this forum and a few owners I met yesterday) who agree the generally tonality is on the dark side. So any points about source used for my impressions are moot.
 
Also if you notice at the end of my post, I had done a more fair comparison, of it against the K7XX (which were on the same system). Sure a few impressions were apples to oranges, and it wasn't the most thorough listening either, as it was a busy meet. Just trying to give you honest impressions, as one who has tried it. A few other good closed alternatives for anyone on the fence are DT-770 or 1770, TH-900 or PM-3, the ladder being too similar to the X00, IMO.
 
No comparison was made between the X00 and the Stax flagship, I just threw that in there for contrast to show how much better things could get in general. Thanks to the tips from a few of you though, it does look like the X00 does have potential to rise higher with a swap of earpads, and pairing with a better amp. And as mentioned, their signature is still well received, depending on your preferences.

 
Fwiw, I thought your impressions of the TH-X00 are spot-on while using original pads on my equipment.