YUP. Fostex seems to be the clear favorite here. My local guitar center has the TH900s. Maybe I can get in there and demo them. The fact that pretty much everyone came in here to direct me to that set certainly has me interested.
Can anyone compare the TR-X00 to the TH900? Both seem to get praise for similar things, low end in particular, but one is waaaaaay more affordable than the other.
The th900 is pretty much just an easily higher tier headphone overall, you get better extension and tighter impact, more controlled yet just as punchy and fun, a bit more width but lots more depth, it’s much more resolving overall, treble is a bit more prominent but it’s also more refined overall, pretty much just what the x00 has but much further elevated and refined, that being said this is going off the x00 ebony for the most part. The x00 purple heart might actually have the most bass quantity of the x00 and more quantity than the th900 but it’s not really near the quality of the 900, the th900 is still very much a basshead can imo. Something to note though is that the th900 is more amp picky and demanding so an amp upgrade might be worthwhile later on if you are still using the 788
Thanks for the comparison. Still using the 788, still really happy with it. Do they just need a shitload of power? Do you think that even if I got a 4-pin cable to use the balanced setup it still wouldn’t cut it?
I don’t think they need a lot of power, but I do think they need quality power which imo the 788 didn’t really provide for my tastes at least
Also take a look at the Audeze LCD2CBs, they can sparkle up top and have giant bass extension while retaining quality. They also work well off of your 788.
In search of bass-heavy headphones with audiophile qualities, I got stuck with the Denon AH-D9200.
The bass is dry as dust, deep and very clearly defined, without interfering with the rest of the frequencies in the least.
The brilliant thing about these headphones is that they can represent a very precise and disproportionate stage for a closed headphone.
The treble sparkles without being intrusive and thus gives a very balanced, almost addicting sound.
I had the opportunity to hear in direct comparison with the Fostex TH900mk2 and it is at least as good as this, but, at least here in Germany, it is significantly cheaper in price.
Since both seem to have good refund policies I’m seriously considering picking up both the Cascades and the 900s and then having them fight it out. Guitar Center lets you finance which makes the 900’s price-point significantly less problematic for me.
M0N, I saw you over in the Cascade thread. Any thoughts on the differences between these two?
Hmmm so the cascades are def not going to be as resolving and capable as the th900, that being said the cascades most likely will come off thicker in the midrange with a bit smoother warmer sound, they also would have a bit less aggression overall especially in the treble. They might have a bit more prominence in the bass than the th900 but not the quality aspect as it’s a bit looser impact and not as impressive in that regard. Stage wise they might be similar width but the th900 has way more depth to offer. The cascade is easier to drive and less amp picky, also the cascade actually isolates and is portable which the th900 doesn’t really do. Comfort for both are good but not great for me personally but I really have no qualms with either in that regard. So basically I think the th900 is easily the higher preforming headphone but the cascade could be appealing if you plan to go portable and need the most isolation. You should be able to find cascades around the 500 mark used at times which is a pretty good value
Do the pads on the Cascades fit all the way around your ears? I’ve never tried them but from the pictures the ear pads look kind of small.
For my ears yes, but if you have pretty large ears they might be a tad on ear. My ears do touch the inside of the headphones a bit but it’s well padded and doesn’t bother me. I know comfort wise for some the headband might cause a hotspot if you are sensitive
So there’s a good chance I’m going to pull the trigger on the 900s in the very near future. Given that I have never been anything with happy with my 788 I’m not thrilled by the idea of having to pick something else up for the 900s if they don’t play well together, but I’m trying to see it as an opportunity to maybe get a new sound from my setup. Do you have any recommendations for the 900s? I’m really trying to keep the price low-ish. I’ll use the DAC from the 788 and if the 900s aren’t really power hungry could something like the atom work well?
I’m also looking at some stuff like the Drop Cavalli tube hybrid but again, I have no idea what is and isn’t a good idea here. I have less experience with amps than any other aspect of this hobby.
I would say minimum a schiit asgard 3 is a solid pairing imo, but I would say going a bit higher if you wanted to relax the treble and increase slam even further the liquid platinum is a great pick (but only if you can run them balanced). If you wanted something that would make them very organic at the expense of some bass impact and slam the rnhp is a good pick but for you are most likely after it prob wouldn’t be the pick. I would assume for now you wouldn’t want to go into that 1k ish range for now but that’s where a lot of things open up
I’m going to second @M0N. My Fostex biodyna-based headphone responds well to both Asgard 3 and Liquid Platinum. You’ll need a balanced headphone cable for the 900 if you plan to go Liquid Plat, though.
Despite my claims of wanting to keep the price low I have actually been eyeing the liquid platinum for awhile. It looks like it gets some pretty huge discounts from time to time… and being a hybrid, it would give me something that I have yet to experience.
This shit is getting expensive, but I’m selling a bunch of stuff right now that would cover most of it. I’ll probably do it. Thanks for the info!
You can find plats around the 350-400 used and sometimes even like 450 new so good deals
OOOOKAY.
I got the Liquid Platinum directly from Monoprice, it’s currently 40% off so I got it under 500.
Guitar Center has no-interest 36 month financing as well as a 15% holiday discount code so I picked up the TH900s there, currently out of stock but I don’t mind waiting.
Lastly, after looking around a bit, I ordered a custom balanced cable from Oidio Sound. I considered playing it safe and just getting the cable directly from Fostex, but that shit costs 300 dollars and looks like hot garbage compared to the absolutely gorgeous cables that these guys make, which I got for just under half that price.
Gonna be awhile before I get to listen to it all together, but I’m really excited.
Thanks for helping me complete the thread objective everyone =)
So, after some months, what are your impressions of your new set up? Are you happy with the TH900??
These look really great. I have seen someone selling them used in Spain for less that 1000€, with only two weeks of use (with purchase invoice)… I am tempted even if I am really happy with my LCD2 Classic… How much do they cost involved Germany? I have seen them for 1300€ new in a Spanish store.
It is not easy to find reviews for these headphones. I have been looking for them and it’s just that German guy, very enthusiastic, but I don’t know if he is hyping them too much, losing objectivity.
I don’t know why I entered into the bass heavy rabbit hole and now I am interested in the Argons mk3, the Campfire Cascade (600€ used in Spain), and these Denon. The Denon seem from another league. My only caveat is that I was waiting for a better amp, (I have the Dx3Pro now) and I think that my most logical next step should be something like the Arya, Clear, LCDX or something in that range.
Didn’t end up getting them lol. My order with guitar center fell apart due to them not restocking and I ended up going with the EM-U Teak. Same driver tech, quite happy with it. I very briefly had my hands on some 900s and didn’t find them to do anything better than the Teaks were doing, but like I said, it was a VERY brief listen.
I really don’t think you can get IEM bass-like in a headphone but whatever.
Aurisonics ASG-2.5 can do 18 inch subwoofers in your ears.
