This is the official thread for the Fostex TR-X00 Ebony
This thread is for discussion and reviews.
- Type: Over Ear
- Amp recommended: Yes
- Closed Back
Hifiguides (Mass)Drop link[Reviews]
Z Reviews
##Metal571
Ok i just bought these and i just saw the Metal571 video on this and dear god what have i done? I bought the Neumann NDH20’s and hated them and it almost seems like this is just the same. Someone please assuage me of this opinion.
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I don’t think they are that close tbh. They are not too similar imo. Personally I would rather much take the ebony for actual enjoyment
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Also if you end up not liking them, you can always sell them and since they aren’t made any more and somewhat well regarded you could most likely sell them pretty easily too
Well i bought them cause i wanted to experience a high end fostex sound. also i love semi-open headphones, also interested in what a bass headphone sounded like on some of my music. so i’m looking foward to trying them out. but yeah i was thinking i could sell them and pretty much recoup all the expense since i got them at such a discount.
Oof I’d love to buy those off of you but I ordered the 4XX a week ago and and I don’t have any money to spend on things for the time being. Still waiting on the 4XX too, shipping is alot longer than I anticipated. I’m too used to Amazon Prime shipping times lmao
Well, I think you will find that the x00 is a very good bass headphone lol
Amazon prime shipping has spoiled me lol
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I’m selling my NDH20’s and was considering picking these up. Looking forward to hearing how they compare.
Also curious how you feel they stack up 
Cant do much of a comparison. This is my experience with the NDH20’s. I put them on. Played Simple Minds. Took them off and looked at them quizzically. Put them back on to try again. after 30 minutes took them off and went to Kohls to return.
I hated them. They make no sense to me. I dont understand why people like them. I found them woolly and muffled. like i bought some cheap lame headphones back in the day for 5$
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Whoa! That definitely wasn’t my experience, but I’ve heard a few people who disliked the NDH20’s. I’ll settle for your opinions on the Ebony’s, since my Neumanns are about to be sold in favor of the Kennerton Magni.
I am very interested in what you think of the Magni when you get it
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I’ll post up my impressions for sure.
wow magni, nice. those are expensive headphones. why closed?
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The Vali are like a speaker. Wife doesn’t love that. She sleeps mega early and I stay up until 2:00am on most nights. A closed back was needed. 
Ok tried these tonight and wow. These are amazing. Just… wow. Ive been listening to Simple Minds with monster detail headphones. The Aiva, Elex, 95x, Ananda. But tonight i tried these and for the first time ive heard something that was missing before but i couldn’t quite put my finger on.
Simple Minds are a band that create huge walls of sound. They use synthesizers to create sublime almost spiritual music. And i was wondering why those synths weren’t as strong as they used to be. i thought, “well maybe in higher resolution thats just the way they are in reality, and what i was hearing before was not really there”. But tonight ive heard it again. Thanks to the Fostex Ebony’s more fuller sound. And it is. the Sound seems lush. more body. and it brings out things in Simple Minds music that the others did not.
This sounds more like the music i was used to before i got into this whole hifi thing. The Bass is so nice and complements Simple Minds so well. Mel Gaynor is a very powerful drummer and not afraid to use the deeper bass drums. and they come through gloriously in these headphones. Simple Minds can be bombastic sometimes too. This headphone will sound great with U2 also. the simple minds track “brass band in african chimes” sound amazing on these with its heavy hitting bass drums. unfortunately on a couple tracks the music gets a little distorted by the bass i think. maybe its vibrating the driver surface so much that its distorting them? idk. But its very minimal. tiny. and it only happens for a few seconds on certain songs. i can ignore it.
Simple Minds
Bass doesn’t get boomy most of the time, only heard it on one track. but you can tell its always there, but it doesn’t dominate the music. i’d say these headphones are bass leaning but really not that much unexpectedly. I heard the TH-00X line were bassy. but everything else is here and is not overruled by bass. at first i was a little disappointed as i expected the bass to be a little stronger. but on some tracks it is a little too strong. I find on those songs i want this full sound with more normal bass. Maybe the Aeolus will be this.
Surprisingly it has great treble too. Sometimes sibilant but mostly fine. I was surprised at this cause i heard they were warm headphones. but there’s plenty of treble here. Midrange seems fine. Soundstage is good also, id say close/normal. and theres nice detail also, but not as much as those headphones mentioned above. but yeah these sound awesome. these are a revelation to me.
The Cups arent black. you can see the wood grain there but you have to look closely in good lite. it reminds me of old English houses and their walnut paneling on the walls that darken with age and maybe haven’t been cleaned in a while lol. I wish it was brighter. I was thinking of replacing it with the TH610 cups, which are beautiful in dark walnut. The Lawton cups would look fabulous with these. The cable is good. not detachable. sound leaks and they are not that isolating.
The pads are a problem. they are not over ear but on ear. and my ears arent that big. i can imagine how they would be on bigger ears. i can stuff my ears into the small hole in the pads but the music doesn’t sound as good lol. so it rides on top of my upper ear and bottom and after a while it starts to hurt. i was thinking of getting pads with a larger hole but i hear that causes the treble to rise and the bass to drop. not sure i want that as the treble is already high. i could stand to lose some bass. so maybe i’ll try them. but why not just leave these as my bass headphones?
There are other headphones in this line. The mahogany and the purple hearts. but a lot people think these are the best of the lineup. and i know that the mahogany and purple hearts carry more bass. these seem to me at times to not have enough bass and at other times too much bass. so not sure if i would like those lol.
but yeah. these are wonderful headphones. gives me hope for “warm” headphones. Thumbs up, way up.
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These also have a break in period where the treble gets more refined, the bass gets better, and the mids improve a bit. The driver is stiff and needs to get a decent amount of usage
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good to know, thanks
I agree with this 100% I initially wanted the thicker bass of the Argon and thought, “this is a letdown, maybe I need to buy back the Argons”.
The more I listened, the more I changed my mind. Not only do I prefer it to the Argon, but it’s starting to threaten my Phantoms as my #2 favorite headphone. I think it’s emotional attachment to the Phantom that is keeping it’s spot. More listening needed.
What I like about the Ebony is that I purchased it as a utility headphone to add bass to certain music that wants it. It’s giving me that, but I’m finding I just enjoy it all the way around. I used metal571’s 1 band EQ suggestion and it really made me happy.
Glad you’re enjoying them. I am, too.
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