Nice! You will need to let us know how you like them.
I would really like to get a red myself, or at least get to try a set. I have heard many good things about that signature and also from my own experience with the set that I have. Itâs easy to see why so many folks are enamored by the Fostex TH9xxâs.
When you get them (if new) allow for time to let the drivers break in before deciding if you want to mod them. Mine are still loosening up and changing (to the +) even with @ 150 hours on them now. I think it could be a case with the 1.5T drivers. The TH610 I have (1 T drivers) did not take that long it was around 60-75 hours before it settled in.
After a long time with my Shure SH1540, I decided its time to upgrade. I was initially thinking of buying something around 1000$, and started to look at different reviews, but after I looked at the TH900 review, I kinda fell in love with them. If you are gonna invest a lot of money on headphone, they should be pretty too right?
I looked at several other reviews of them, and some wrote the are way too bright, and might cause headaches, so that kind of scares me to buy this, and possibly get headaches.
So, should I order them with other pads in case they give me headache? I also have an old O2 dac/amp, should I upgrade it? which one do you recommend as replacement?
I also read in the comment that you need to do a break in process, what exactly is that? is there a good video explaining that?
You can use Yaxi TH900 alcantara pads it will tame the treble and bring forward the midrange if you find them to be too bright. That said I ended selling my pair due to the lackluster build quality. The pivot hinges are attached to the yokes using 2mm screws that are spring loaded and therefore quite fragile. I also found the clamping pressure to be too weak.
If you get them and find they are too bright, the ZMF Eikon pads might be a good choice.
As for an amp upgrade, it would probably be best if you can afford to. Iâll let someone with more knowledge on amps and dacs help you with what to specifically get though.
Lastly, burn-in or break-in is the process of the driver physically breaking in (kind of like shoes). All you have to do is play music through the headphones, whether youâre listening or not.
Since the driver is brand new and only ever played for testing at the factory (at least in most cases) it is âstiffâ so to speak. After a few dozen hours of play time the driver loosens up and settles. This can sometimes help things like treble harshness, bass bloat, detail retrieval, etc. These changes are often subtle, but they are also often improvements.
Itâs important to note that not all headphones will have a significant or even perceptible change with burn-in (like sennheisers, which donât seem to change at all). The Fostex family though tend to change enough to be pretty easily noticed. Itâs a case-by-case kind of thing.
Just listen to your new headphones and maybe let them play while just sitting on you desk or on the stand. Itâs not a big deal in reality.
I would get them in first and give them a listen for a while. If they are brand new, give the drivers a while to break in, around a 150 hours or, if they are used and already broke in some, still give your self about 50+ hours of break in for âBrainâ burn in before making a decision on pad rolling or other options.
I was concerned about the treble harshness reported by some too as I am a little sensitive to that personally, but I found that the treble is not harsh or fatiguing. I own both a TH900mk2 and TH909, the treble is forward and extended true, but in a way that compliments the lower mids and bass FRâs - these phones do have a âVâ shaped signature so, it is in their nature. All ears are not the same so of coarse YMMV. Like I said though, donât pre-judge them until you have given them a fair listen.
NOTE: These next thoughts all depend on how far down the rabbit hole you want to go, how much you really like the headphone - and is it worth it to youâŚAND this is all my humble opinion not the word of all truths.
If you do decide that you like that âFostexâ signature but the treble is still a little too much for you there are options to consider - Pad rolling is one for sure, but IMO that is a bit of a âband-aidâ. Some other options to think about along with, or in lieu of pad rolling would be considering a quality aftermarket cable - a cable made with OCC copper wire can help smooth out the treble while not detracting from the detail, and can also enhance the bass.
Speaking of cables - what you plug them into can matter. Amplifier being the main thought here. There is so much talk about how easy to drive these phones are but, a warmer more powerful solid state amp will help by being better able to control the drivers, a product of bigger and better quality transformers. It s not always about the wattage/current an amp can put out, but the quality of power it puts out. Now, that does not mean you have to run out and buy a TOTL amp, it is just something to consider. It would be unfair to pass judgment on these phones when your running them off an Atom Amp etc. etc.
If you have not picked up on it I am a big fan of the Fostex sound and have several sets both stock and modded. Sometimes I go a bit overboard with my passion for them, forgive me, donât flame me.
Thanks for the long answer.
Sadly, I live in a small country, and There is no way for me to listen to them, and even other high end headphones are really hard to find here, and people would not lend them.
Do you have cable recommendation? DAC/AMP recommendation, not too expensive, but good enough to push the headphones.
Hi,
I apologize for so many words in my reply. It happens when I am passionate towards something.
Also, donât let me lead you down a path you did not intend to take. I often forget this forum is international and that not everyone has the same access to gear etc. etc., My bad.
In hindsight, it is probably best for you just to get the headphone in and listen with the gear that you have, break them in properly, and then if you feel the treble needs to be tamed go for a different set of pads. Like those you found or that others have recommended based on their experience, and most importantly, what is available to you and fits in your budget.
Keep us posted and let us know what you think about the TH900 when you get it. I for one am curious to hear what you think.
I bought them, they arrived yesterday, they are so comfortable, and the sound is amazing, Iâm listening non stop (still need to break them in).
Now I keep looking for good places to download high quality recordings, because its easy to hear when you listen to something not high quality.
I might want to upgrade the Amp/Dac later on, to get more of them, thinking about the Elements 2.
Thanks for all the advices, They are not too bright for me, so Iâll stick with the stock pads for now.
@M0N have you had the chance to hear og and limited edition? If so would you mind briefly compare? I read that og have recessed mids and are too bright.
I am still kind of interested in those but wander if they are not redundant as I already have eikons and now awkt.
Maybe I am just not super wowed by awkt thatâs why I keep looking into those.
I might have a chance to pick sapphire blue or og but canât decide lol
So the limited tunings on things like the sapphire or pearl white are overall a more warmer smoother tuning, actually pretty balanced, with less forwardness and intensity, and a bit less slam and impact. The og are more I want to say neutral bright v? Or perhaps a brighter v, but either way the midrange is indeed not the focus, although itâs still very good. Things are much more forward and hit you harder overall, although they can get a bit harsh at times. Generally while I do enjoy the stock tuning for fun factor, the limited edition tunings feel a bit more coherent and tonally correct imo.
Itâs going to be pretty different from the awkt, and different enough from the eikon imo
If thatâs the case, what do you like about them and what would you change so far?
Itâs a hard decision since they are both good, it mainly will come down to what your use case is tbh
I like detial, speed and clarity and separation. What i miss is bass impact which I could expect. I also donât necessarily like them on my amps except for mlp. I still donât have them long enough so will see if they stay or I will move.
On eikons I like timber, bass is sufficient and overall listening is relaxed compared to awkt. I do find them somewhat muddy/muffeled in the mids or lower treble. Like thereâs a blanket or something over some parts of the song and staging and placement could be better.
After that, honestly the ltd turnings might make a good bit of sense imo, but so could the regular 900 lol. The ltd would be closer to a combination of the eikon and awkt where the th900 would be more different than that
Iâve liked it with things like a pass hpa-1, a luxman p750u, bryston bha-1, and more hard to find options after that lol. I do think it can be pretty enjoyable on some tube designs as well, something like a lta mz2 + lps or mz3 is nice, modwright ha300 (or cayin ha300 for that matter), an allnic hpa-3000 gt, something from eddie current, and other options. Although this isnât factoring anything dac wise
@M0N 's reply nails it for me as well⌠I have a Pearl White, and also 909 (I know the discussion is including OG 900, not 909) but all in all the TH900mk2 Pear White is outstanding and âfeelsâ a bit more sophisticated with the smoother more âbalancedâ signature while still being fun leaning. I like it for modern Jazz/Jazz Fusion, Funk and progressive variants. Where I want that fun but also want to enjoy the more natural (to my ears) timber and textures of instruments like saxophones/horns, drums, keys, and vocals, male/female.
The 909, though not quite the same as the OG (havenât heard but tempted to buy) is definitely more âfunâ to me bass is more prominent with some sacrifice of textural quality mids are not as forward but for me that makes things like electric guitars etc more enjoyable. I like these phones for Rock, progressive rock, electronic mainstream pop/rock blues etc.
I donât personally find the treble to get too harsh - though, it certainly points a finger at âpoorâ recordings.
Edit: I was not paying attention to the ongoing conversation. My bad sorry for interruption.
Yeah I donât either on the 909, but it can happen on the 900, the 909 hasnât done that for me personally. The treble on the 900 is more elevated as well compared to the 909. The 909 feels slightly inbetween a ltd tuning and a regular 900 with some specific quirks as well
I guess still need to pick up a stock 900mk2⌠and just admit it for real, I am a fanboy! lol
seriously I really, really enjoy these phones with their own distinctions between versions without mods. I am not a good person for objective value add.
now to figure out which to pick.