Sorry if i gave you that impression. they are not thin. I think the song i was playing and the lack of a good DAC made it sound thin. When i played Simple Minds newer tracks they sounded fine. I was thinking of trying to EQ some bass into them. But they sound great. Though it does seem on certain tracks with the volume up they get a tiny bit muddy
My end system is a great Dynamic, Planar and Electrostat driver headphone. Then a great tube amp and solid state amp. With a few good cheap dacs to try out various dac chips, and MQA.
The solid state amp i got is the THX 789 which is taking forever to get here. And i bought the Garage 1217 Ember tube amp on ebay, a great amp but the volume nob broke in shipping so im waiting on a new nob.
I dont think closed headphones have any value. I think semi-closed headphones are the best. like the Aiva’s. they have so much blockage there they might as well be semi-closed. headphones like that. open but with a lot of cover. I noticed that if i use my hands to close really open headphones they sound a little better lol. But that did NOT work on the Koss 95x lol, they sounded terrible.
I forgot to mention my Schiit Loki. I will try the E95X as is for several days and into weeks. If it does sound bass light I can just add a bit of bass. The Loki is amazing as you can add a chunk of bass and you get just that. No distortion. Perfects the Grado’s and improves the Beyer’s.
Yeah, should be easy peasy to put that in the signal chain with the 95x
Perhaps if you either have a less than ideal listening environment or you want a more private experience
There are some really good closed backs
2nd reply to your message:
If I was going THX, I think the Monoprice one is the winner with a five year warranty. But I am not sure that I want a super neutral amp.
My closed is for out and about and noisy environments, including my living room on some days.
One thing about this system i noticed was the energizer. it looks big but its really light. I heard people say the Koss 95x sounded better with other energizers. I was looking at Stax energizers on ebay. The SRD’s pop up for really cheap 50-100$ Does anyone know if these are any good? will they work with the L700?
The adapters for Koss to Stax are expensive. I was thinking perhaps i could make my own.
I would say if you are going for the l700, a better quality amp would make sense like the 353x. That would also improve the koss if you had an adapter
yeah but their so expensive. even on ebay their like 750$
Well if you plan to get the l700 you should get an amp of that caliber
Agreed. If you are travelling you need a closed back. Also, if you like to listen at work (during lunch or while working). And if you have a significant other or a roommate you need a good set of closed backs.
Unless you only listen late at night when everyone is gone to bed or you have a private room, you need a closed back.
I love some of my closed-back headphones, and I often choose them even when I have no need of isolation. I’d love a Verite Closed one day. Several owners on head-fi say they are the best headphone they’ve ever heard
I reach for my 99 Classic’s often. Beautiful to look at, super comfortable, sound great and take nothing to drive.
Shane D
I replaced the pads with Dekoni fenestrated pads for the ESP 95x and the energizer with a used STAX SRM-353X (have to make or buy an adapter). The one complaint I had with the 95x is the perceived lack of bass. The combination of new pads and more powerful energizer more or less solved it. They aren’t bass monsters or even “bassy” but rather have what I’d describe as “normal” base. This feels like a end game setup for the home office or den (NOT mobile).
Not sure about other energizers pairing w/ the 95X. For example the Stax D10 only draws ~6W (compared to the Koss energizer’s 9W, 353X 30W). Stax has more powerful energizers, but I think those are meant to drive the less efficient 007 or 009.
Of note, I got some improvement by replacing the wall wort on the Koss energizer, but only if listening critically for changes.
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Ah the wall wart, I forgot about that. I must look at it and see if I have anything in hand that will supply whatever the factory approved power rating is. Thank you for mentioning that…
take a look at the iFi iPower…three models with dif voltages n a plethora of tips to try n fit.
Since I last reported, I found a reasonably priced used 353X on ebay and ordered the adapter cable from Fong Audio to use it. The 95X sounds much better on the 353X. The extra power really filled out the frequency response. I didn’t notice any sound stage or imagining improvements, but the bass was better fuller (if it extended further, can’t say but there was more bass) and I think the highs sparkled a little more. However, the left driver kept developing an annoying squeal. Physically discharging the static from the cable (I’d disconnect the cable from the adapter and touch each socket w/ a 1/4" adapter I have on hand) would fix it for a few hours to days before it’d come back. I ended up finding a used L700 and haven’t had an issue with squeals since. The L700 seems to extend further on both ends of the spectrum and has VASTLY increased clarity / microdetails.
I’m really happy with my 'static game now, but can say for competitive gaming (specifically FPS), the 95X is a game changer (imaging and instrument separation are amazing). If anything, the lack or sub bass is a bonus as it’s easier to hear what’s going on during explosions =).
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and the L700 are supposed to really come to life when you put them on a more powerful energizer. actually, M0N said the same for the L300 and L500.
I wonder if your squeal issue has anything to do with the adapter cable?
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Typically the squeal might mean there is something in the driver, so blowing it out and making sure there isn’t dust or debris in the driver can correct that at times
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The squeal existed before I got the adapter cable & 353X. I tried looking for debris, blowing it out. The only thing I found that worked (until I retired the 95X in favor of the L700) was to discharge the static. I had to turn off the 353X, disconnect the 95X, touch each wire, re-plug in, and then disconnect and touch each wire a few times. Then the squeal would be gone, sometimes for days, sometimes for hours. It was pretty maddening.