šŸ”¶ Abyss Diana Series

Headphones [Official] Open Back
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So I got the V2 on Wednesday and have been listening non-stop to it at my desk (P6 pro line out ā†’ gsx-mini ā†’ V2). First off, truly blowing my mind. About 95% certain im selling LCD-X, Arya, and clear as these damn things sound better directly off My P6P than clears do on any dap I have (and I have a few) and have better layering and staging than arya when both are properly powered (at least on gsx-mini).

But what I really wanted to talk about is timbre. Something kinda wierd for me is that I didnt realy think diana walked away from the clear/arya camp in terms of timbre with them lacking a bit in terms of treble timbre on instruments like high register piano and piccolo. Interesting enough, I just tried them directly off my P6P for the first time (idk what power is but its well under a watt at least) and the timbre across the board is actualy much better than off of the P6P into mini. I just found it kinda interesting that way that chanced when the mini is already something abyss heavily reqs for the diana series as an amp.

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What is the P6P?

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Luxury Precision P6 Pro

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Itā€™s possible the P6P amp just sounds better to you. Diana really doesnā€™t need a lot of power - Iā€™ve run it off of a WHAMMY which puts out 0.4 watts.

Itā€™s also possible the P6P analog outputs arenā€™t great.

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This is kinda counter to basicaly everything I have ever heard about diana. What I have heard so far is:

And tbh, my experience on the mini vs sp1k, hugo2, and p6p seem to reflect that.

Tbh, I donā€™t have experience with any desktop dacs, so I just have to go off of what others say, bit everyone in the p6p thread that does have higher end desktop experience rate it fairly highly.

As got just liking the amp stage synergy of the p6p more, thats what ik expecting is happening tbh. I will be trying my mass kobo 428 later this weekend to see if I just like a bit of a more neutral sound with diana and the p6p dac

Edit: another thought is less powrr tames bass presence a bit allowing for a bit more neutral og a tuning as opposed to a darker one

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The P6P is fairly expensive so it may simply be better than the mini :man_shrugging:

As for the power requirements, one of Abyssā€™ recommended amps (which they sell) is the Broadway S which is just 0.8 watts.

Yes, more power is always better (because you stay in the ampā€™s linear region) but thereā€™s no rule that says a lower powered amp wonā€™t sound better.

The point of my comments ultimately is, forget about power and all the other stuff. Whatever sounds best to you is the best for you.

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Price isnā€™t the only metric. Also youā€™re comparing a DAP to a desktop class A unitā€¦ the mini will have a much higher output.

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I think in one of their videos, they mentioned that they adjusted the machining/design so the DMS mod is no longer needed or it can at least be requested to have it that way.

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Well, the price point should theoretically point to it being a quality product. I have no experience with the unit so I have no idea. But for something at that price point I wouldnā€™t be shocked if it sounds good.

As for power, thereā€™s no need to argue. Obviously more is better. But for a planar current capability is much more important than raw power.

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You are comparing a pocket device with a desktop single use device. Price point or not, the DAP will have a hard time driving a planar headphones properly. Itā€™s designed for IEMs.

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Do you still have the same high opinion of the D. Phi as you had last April, now that youā€™ve had time?

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No. I have higher praise after comparing them to more expensive options. The Diana Phi is awesome but if you want more bass presence and dirtier there are better options (V2 and Final D8000 Pro).

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Okay so Iā€™ve had these for a few weeks now. Running them out of a Violectric v200 and Soekris 1321.

They are really something special and there is something about the bass on these that I love. It might just be planar bass? I have daily drove the clears for about ~4 months before getting these, and those were supposedly very punchy with a warm tilt, but I enjoy these waaaay more for the low tones on just about every single genre I can throw at them. The bass isnā€™t overwhelming or anything, but itā€™s like just the perfect amount of depth, punch, width, and full-ness.

Mids sound natural with a bit of warmth, but not extremely forward or pulled back. The top end is also very much present, but never sibilant. The presentation definitely seems to be smoothed over a bit, which may be even more influence by my desktop setup I have. With that being said, they just have an incredibly rich and fulfilling sound. They arenā€™t veiled by any means and they are exceptionally fast. I definitely think this sound signature is more to my suiting than what would be Diana Phi, but I would still like to try that eventuallyā€¦

The timbre and tonal balance is definitely better than the clears as well and now I kind of see where people come from when saying the focal line ā€œshinesā€ or whatever. These definitely sound a lot more natural. Imaging is and separation is also on another level. Itā€™s crazy though listening to songs I have a vivid memory of and they sound so different in terms of separation now. Like specific instruments on the left, and specific instruments on the right.

I guess these are things I maybe should have expected going from $1k to $3k headphone, but I digress. I think they are worth that jump up tbh.

I do have some complaints/caveats though! The pad design is so smart and stupid at the same time. The magnetic structure they use is an amazing design, but why the FUCK are the pads glued to the magnet? I got these used and the pads are already separating from the magnet. I know they just released a new pad, so Iā€™m curious if they did a different connection instead of glue because that is a design flaw imo.

Also the driver is so thin that you can hear driver crinkle extremely vividly if you decide to move your head, jaw, body, etc around. Maybe I just got unlucky, but the right side of this headphone has the worst planar crinkle Iā€™ve ever heard on any headphone by far. Lastly, if I wear them for too long I start to see condensation forming on the little plates between the drivers which is kind of weird.

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If youā€™re hearing crinkling you probably have a damaged driver.

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I initially thought that as well, and was freaking out about it but I am not sure that is the caseā€¦ They donā€™t make any crinkle noise if sitting still, but only when moving around or messing with the earcup.

Link from Audeze - https://audeze.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/115001045046-Crinkling-clicking-static-sound-when-I-press-on-the-earcup

another forum thread - LCD-X what's this crackling sound in my left ear? [Archive] - AudioAficionado.org

email response from abyss when questioned -
The drivers should not make any noise during normal listening. Itā€™s possible though when pressurized a certain way the non linear motion of the driver could produce a noise. In general they are typically quiet.

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:man_shrugging:

Ā  Ā 

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Drama time. Iā€™m with tge OP though tbh. Dms pads were the only reason I could even wear dv2

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Just like anything else. If you can hear a difference and it makes you happy, good. If not, well whatever. At least pads are straight forward and not full of snake oil.

Please donā€™t try to start up drama especially where there is no reason comment. In the video they do address a core issue of why people want the DMS pads, fit.

As an owner with the original pads and DMS pads on a Diana Phi, I only care about what other people have tried it hear and experience.

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My issue lies entierly with how dismissive Joe was of dms tbh. Kinda decreases confidence in your design skills if you canā€™t even admit there was a flaw when your cans litteraoy just donā€™t fit fair portions of your potential customer base.

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Well hereā€™s 2 takeaways.

  • Joe has an odd shapped head that others have issues with (hence the fit issues people have with the Diana series)
  • The end result seems to be more DMS pad like than the original.

Regardless, not a lot of drama and Iā€™m happy I go the DMS pads on the Diana Phi. I can say donā€™t use the DMS pads on the V2 based on feedback Iā€™ve heard.