Review-ish Write up
Unless noted otherwise, they ran of my LakePeople G103-S with a Focusrite Scarlett 2i4 (2nd Gen) as the DAC.
Presentation, Build & Accessories
The velvet lined transport case is good quality with a small pouch in the lid to keep the airplane and 6.3mm adapter. Like the strap to store the cable on the other side, it is velcroed to the velvet.
Inside you find a fantastic looking pair of headphones. As the parts match color a little too well for plastic moldings, I suspect these are lacquered.
The feel is sobering. They are plastic, the earcups “flop” around like they do on the PortaPro’s. The metal hinges don’t produce a decisive clack.
Worst in terms of build quality is the earcup adjust. This is by far the worst off all headphones I own. Even the PortaPro’s with their “moves when not stressed”-headband are nicer than this plasticy ratchet. It does not help that the metal slides are unmarked making you count sluggish clicks.
The cables remain janky, despite hanging from a shelf while not in use. On the upside, the cable is light and flexible.
The TRRS cable for mobile use is too long (about double the headphone-phone distance for me). Despite looking like metal, the inline-remote is plastic.
The connectors are aluminium with a PVC insert to prevent the cable from breaking.
Comfort:
They clamp tightly in place and stay there.
Cushion on the headband could be thicker for how soft it is.
Ear-Pads, despite the wierd shape, are comfortable and leave room for the frames of my glasses. Whatever material (could be leather?) they used feels nice. I suspect fast memory foam inside the pads.
During long sessions (>4 hours), the clamp and odd ear pad shape become evident. For sane listening sessions, these are all right.
Sound:
Bass goes low and comes in considerable quantity. Works well when the music requires it (most electronic genres), but also helps give a body to classic or acoustic pieces. The drum hits in “Heilung - Svanrand” never sounded this full and complete to me, edging out the M40x and PortaPro. During “Lorn - Unraveled”, I had a few of those “Should I enjoy this?”-moments. Maybe I am a basshead after all.
In “Mick Gordon - Rip & Tear” (Doom 2016 Soundtrack), the bass spills into the mids too much for my liking.
The mids don’t come with any surprises. Despite the emphasized bass, Vocals are not drowned out. Which given the initial “oh, that bass”-impression, I was a bit surprised by this. The treble rolls off towards the treble taking some of the power out of organs and other wind instruments.
They are initially a bit muddy, which given enough burn in, clears up.
Treble is lowered, not quite recessed. Helps keep sharpness in check, but compared to some other headphones I have (K-712 Pro) they lack something. As if treble comes from next door. “I Ching - Young Girl’s Heart” and “London Grammar - Hey Now” lack just that bit of sparkle here.
Depending on what Genre you listen to, maybe a good aspect to take the edge of cymbal hits, or the harsh electronic elements in “Paul Leonard-Morgan - Mega City One” (Dredd 2012 Soundtrack) or of the harder electronic genres.
Positional/Misc:
Sound stage is adequate. Neither wide nor super boxed in. So in “Yosi Horikawa - Letter”, you get pencil marks on your forehead.
Instrument seperation could be better. Could be that they need more burn in (out of the box, they sound a bit messy).
Hans Zimmer - Mountains (Interstellar Soundtrack) does not let any instrument or the deep rumble slip by unnoticed, just that you are standing in front of the orchestra instead of being immersed in it.
In “Nightwish - Storytime” they portray the muddy section from 20 to 30 seconds just as well as my other headphones. If they had better spacial characteristics, they would be ideal for Symphonic Metal.
Compared to my M40x and RP-HD10, these have the best vocal presentation of the closed backs I own. I noticed the vocals “coming forward” when I changed from M40x to these while in voice chat.
Power Test:
So, what happens when instead of an LP G103-S, I throw them on a BasX A-100?
Apart from them being efficent and doing a remarkable job producing hiss from the bias current, not much honestly.
The 32 Ohm combined with the 120dB per 1V (RMS) make these by far the most efficent headphones I own.
Give them the cleanest amp you have!
The Ugly:
And all would be well, except for a flaw in the headband design or material (or both).
The replacement I got cracked in the same exact spot in the same exact manner.
This cracking is caused by the design. You see, a U-profile is very good at resisting forces in all directions. The head-facing part of the headband is flat, so it just conforms. The upside down U-shaped plastic forming the top half reaches stress limits and cracks.
If the headband was made from thin spring steel (think Porta Pro headband), then this would not be an issue as steel does not just snap like plastic does (under these forces at least 
).
Verdict
After the initial “oh, that bass!”-thought and the inital muddy treble, I was not expecting them to perform their MSRP. But they do!
When your ears fit the ear-cushions and you don’t happen to listen to orchestral/neo-classical music all the time, these are good. When you listen to a lot of electronic music (DnB and similar in particular), these are nice.
Had I paid MSRP (300€), I would be very upset about the crack. At the less than 50€ I paid for them brand new, whatever.
TL;DR Fun headphones with warm signature and one fatal design flaw.
Why I am not sending it in for RMA a second time.
I paid 44.50€ including shipping for these. The postal services are overworked anyway due to human malware. Yes, there is a crack that shows when I put them on.
I don’t care about that one crack. Gives it character, I guess. 
