When you say horrible can you expand? Iâm going to be sitting in my chair and my hp gear Is 8 feet away in a console. So the cable will be fully extended and not coiled. I just need it to not be microphonic or pickup static Interference from the carpet. The current cable is fine but the left channel cuts out so I canât move my head.
Can confirm Focal Elegia and HP-3 are interchangeable. Just carefule, the HP-3 is so efficient that on balanced out Iâd be worried of difficulty controlling the volume with some amps.
Fully extended will be ok, but because its a flat wrap cable it does not do well will bends
1 Like
Ok, as rmsanger mentioned and as I play around with another amp. These are by far the weirdest headphones I own for so many reasons I canât begin to understand. They take forever to break in (literally an over priced kph30) to breaking them in and sounding better. Then discovering this gooy and fun sound with the Dragonfly Cobalt that makes me say (and still stand) that this could be many peopleâs endgame. Now I got an entry level hybrid (Vali 2+) and the minute I start swapping tubes, they sound amazing after being a bit disappointing on the the GS-X Mini.
WHAT IS GOING ON HERE!!! These are by far the weirdest headphones I own. Theyâre proof that:
- Signal chains matter
- Proper amping doesnât always mean power
- Scaling up doesnât always necessarily mean linear scaling up
- Synergy with signal chains canât be predicted all the times
- break in periods are a real thing and sometimes take over 150 hours for comfort.
As these headphones have been on the market I can say firmly that these are a gimmick. Theyâre designed for non-audiophiles to have a respectable brand and hook into non-audiophile gear. BUT⊠occasionally some audiophile gear gets the synergy and they sound magical. I can 100% say these headphones compared to others just this odd duck of everything that doesnât make sense. You canât pad roll without going DIY. And if you havenât thought about selling them after a week or two after owning them⊠you havenât compared them to much. BUT for now, I really like them for tube rolling on the Vali 2+.
1 Like
I can say once I got the sound chain right these are my favorite go to âfunâ cans. I donât listen to the LCDX or LCD3 hardly ever. I pull out the clears when I want something more resolving and neutral but the HP3s are just my happy V.
They were terrible for me with the wrong amps I tried but very pleasant once I got it. I will say I am saving for a dedicated eq to fix the LCDX base shelf as well as the 3-5k depression in frequency response so this take may always change later.
1 Like
Really enjoying the HP-3 + AudioQuest Cobalt. Going to try some Brainwavz XL pads to just tinker. Thanks again @DDT
2 Likes
Brainwavz pads arrived. XL leather and XL perforated leather. The regular leather are great. Calms down the treble a bit which is what I was wanting, but I also get a little more bass as well. Very happy with them.
1 Like
Cool to hear - how did you apply them? Did you also get little magnets as well?
Nice! Ive also tried brainwavz xl velour and the medium hybrid. So far xl artificial leather has been the best. Really opens up the stage and reduces the highs. Kinda want to try some of the dekoni leather pads but so damn expensive
I have a ZMF suede pad that I bought before the nuggs but thought it destroyed the look of the headphone.
Oh my god, lol, this is amazing. Is that a ZMF Co-pilot pad with 8 nuggets on it? Plus you got the modded pads on there. Itâs pretty awesome.
1 Like
It is quite Frankenstein now lol
1 Like
If nobody ends up buying mine after a while Iâll just keep them and do something like this lol
1 Like
Hi everyone, i recently joined the HP-3 family! I enjoy them so much i sold my Z1R, they really are my definition of a fun headphone. Loving the way the black sheepskin pads look with the walnut cups.
8 Likes
After the stupidly long and hard break in period, they are a fun and surprising headphone. My biggest issue is that power specs say the headphone is easy to drive, but tonally the headphone has proven to be the biggest PIA to amp.
When your chain works with it, itâs VERY enjoyable. Glad youâre liking the headphones! Rumor has it that it uses an odd sized fostex driver so if you like that headphone, fostexâs biodynamicâs might be your taste.
3 Likes
They look great!! They really are fun!
1 Like
A wild Klipsch HP-3 appeared on a website locally for around 900$. They have a fun sound as far as Iâve read. But a lot of things have fun sound including Meze 99 which I own. Do you think it is overpriced or it is technically capable and a fair value?