This is the official thread for the Monolith M1570C
This thread is for discussion and reviews.
- Type: Over Ear
- Amp needed: Yes
- Closed Back Planar
Monoprice Link
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Has anybody else grabbed these in the sale that happened like a month ago when they were like $200 on Monoprice? At that price it was pretty much a no brainer for me to grab as there are not that many closed back planars at that price. Does not seem like there are that much fanfare for these headphones compared to the M1060c
Edit: Might post at a later time a review and a teardown of the headphones in the future but right now but for some reason the balanced cable I got sounds bizarre, I normally am not a big cable believer other than like noise but the performance between this aliexpress cable and the absolute hose that comes bundled with it is way too different. Sure it is a different output but I never heard a drastic difference between single ended and balanced on another headphone.
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Sorry for the late response, but I believe I’ve heard that some of the Monolith planars have weird wiring schemes that make use with aftermarket cables a bit hit and miss. I’m not sure which model(s), but Ive heard folks say that many after market cables can be wired such that playback using them will be out of phase. You can find many websites that offer audio to test whether you’re headphones are playing in or put of phase if you think that’s a possibility. When playing out of phase, music still sounds like music, but the dimensions of staging and imaging cannbe drastically different which is generally the first thing I notice. If you’re hearing drastic differences it’s probably worth checking out. It only takes a minute. 
Okay ye your comment confirms what I was thinking that the cables were out of phase and causing something funky happening. I still have to test to see if it isn’t the amplifier that is causing it but I do think most likely that it is the cable since I believe it was the same behavior out of the Monolith Liquid Platinum.
I used both this video and this website and it seemed as though when I was using the balanced out through the aliexpress cable it was like reverse when compared to the supplied cable. I would have thought though that if it was wired incorrectly that an amplifier might have triggered some kind protection circuit. I know that when you plug in an audeze cable funky things could happen. Had somebody else who I know who is an audio engineer test it and ye they confirmed that something was funky about it.
Only an improperly grounded cable would potentially trigger a protection curcuit. Having the canle wired out of phase doesn’t cause any electrical problems for the amp. It’ll be just as happy sending the same signal.
I’m glad I could help. You could probably rewired that cable yourself easily enough. If you don’t want to do that, I have heard that there are some cable makers who make cables just for the Monolith headphones with the correct wiring to work.
I’m kinda flabbergasted that Monoprice didn’t just change the wiring scheme to be standard after this issue was first brought to light. It’s not like it would required a ton of retooling at the factory or a bunch of new parts or something. It’s an easy fix. Speaking of which, if you’re comfortable with using a soldering iron, it might be worth it to rewire the connectors in the cups so your headphones will work with standard cables from now on.
Definitely not the cleanest soldering job that I have seen from a manufacture, whoever was soldering it was going ham with the iron even burning the plastic all around. I wonder how close it is to the m1570 open when removing the back cup, a lot of people have had a good time removing the m1060c cups.
Anyways back to the soldering I think default the wiring for the Monolith M1570 and M1570c is pin 1 and pin 3 are positive and pins 2 and 4 are negative. Audeze default is I think 1, 4 positive and 2,3 negative.
Edit 1: You would most likely need some washers or something to open it up as the back cup is connected to the system by screws that hold the driver to the headband.
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Thankfully, it looks like you have some decent space to work in when fixing said soldering issues. So I assume you decided to go the DIY route and solder to the more often used pin config like Audeze?
Late update on the soldering work after I finally got some more free time. I tried several things to try and fix the phase issue. I first unsoldered the 3 and 4 pin connections to see if that could perhaps fix the issue and in the future potentially use Audeze cables with them along with official monoprice ones kinda like in this guide.
The issue did not fix itself and I can at this point for sure isolate that it is the cable that is the issue. It seems as though whoever made the cable seemed to have swapped the ground and live lines. Shame honestly cause it looks and feels nice in person, coiled very nicely, and doesn’t suffer from microphonics like the included wire. Advise to avoid EachDIY Earphone Parts Store cables on aliexpress at least with my 1 sample.
Onto review cause I have way too much time and bored, first review so leave feedback if somebody wants.
Review on the Monolith M1570c:
Comes with 2 pads: Velour and Leather, preference was with leather cause more bass impact and velour made treble near unbarring.
Base Price: Around $599, Purchased On sale for $185
Desktop Use gear: Topping D10 or Focusrite Scarlett Solo > Schiit Jotunheim 2
Portable: Pixel 7 pro > ibasso DC03 pro
Power: Bass control and dynamics overall was much better on the jotunheim 2 output than on the DC03 but it was fine out of it, scarlet solo was much more hollow sounding and unengaging so not really recommended. More power is better but not really the most necessary in my opinion to enjoy these headphones, besides with how heavy these things are it is best to chose something else for a portable setup. Synergy wise high gain on the Jotunheim 2 will delight bass heads and a little tube will help with the mids and highs being overbearing
Sound isolation: Good when using Leather pads, not Sennheiser HD280 pro level but better than some headphones like the hyperx cloud alpha. If you use velour than it would be worst than Hyperx cloud
Comfort and build: Heavy as hell and can be tiring over time with hot spots. At least for my head there are not that much adjustment options. Overtime there was some creaking noises from the joints and the soldering job inside was not the best with the mini xlr port on the left side being over heated causing pin 4 to not be straight. This caused swapping cables to be a pain till it was fixed later. These also weigh over half a kilo so start working on those neck muscles. Stock cable is a garden hose, a sleeved garden hose. Heat build up is a thing with either earpad.
Sound:
Impressions on the tuning is somewhat like diffused field as if it was an Etymotic Planar, especially on velour for me? I assume that it would graph closely to that even though subjectively it does have slam. Bass quantity is not that much but the slam and how deep it hits is extremely good. Eq under 150hz by however you want to increase bass. Mids and treble are pretty present and not exactly a relaxed sound. The mids are not as pushed as a Sennheiser Hd650 but can be fatiguing for those who are looking for a cheaper audeze. Look at the M1070c if you want more sucked in mids and treble. For me it did not peak as much as something like a Shp 9500 or beyer but vocals and instruments were still clear. Female vocals though on some tracks were nice but I would rather take an hd600 or DIY Borealis headphone as some tracks left me wanting a little more or were iffy.
Planar Timbre is there with orchestral recordings being rendered extremely well, snares were fast, cellos had richness, and instruments did not have a plastic side effect or were overly smoothed. I used this track Galloping War-Horses on Erhu for the test track for it. The horse gallop from an erhu has a distinct property in my opinion to change drastically based on timbre and the M1570c absolutely nails the bow bouncing technique (1:30)
There is a lack of dynamics in my opinion with tracks such as Island Door by Susumu Hirasawa sounding more squished than on other closed backs. Rain is pushed forward in the track and the synths just rolls in way louder. That was one thing I noticed right away with this headphone and opening the headphone reveals tons of foam. Removing and adjusting foam might fix this issue though the driver does seem to suffer from the stereotypical lack of dynamics. Male vocals in this track however is absolutely nailed.
Technicalities: Despite the bass, it is still pretty easy to pinpoint where gunshots in game are. Soundstage is wide for a closed back but can be a problem with separation at times when there are tons of explosions. Would say that a beyerdynamic DT990 or something of that kind is good with the piercing treble for a gaming headphone if you are more serious but the M1570 wins on having a more fun bass rumble and being good enough for most people. For instruments however instrument separation for the price is definitely leading the pack.
Conclusion: Solid headphone and alternative to an Audeze LCD X closed. If you are looking for more of an upper mid range and treble boost to the audeze sound without pushing it as much as a sundara this would be an option. Fit and comfort must be taken into account along with drawbacks of cables if you do not want to mod. Best orchestral music headphone that I could find under $300 if you could catch it on sale and you do not mind the squished dynamics. Can handle fast transients and heavy metal can sound pretty good. Overall recommendation for most people who are in this range would most likely be the DCA Aeon Closed due to balanced tonality though that has weaker bass.
Overall Score: 6/10 with 5 being “average”
Value at retail ($599) : 6/10
Some worries on build and cable knock it down. Has to be modded with new headband or nuggets to get better comfort. Priced above bassy headphones like the Modhouse Argons (though have not heard them personally) and above more overall tonally superior headphones (Aeon Closed). Beyerdynamic DT1770 can provide fun sound too at around same price but does not produce same bass. Save a little more money and you can grab a pair of used LCD XC or even a Fostex biodynamic if you are searching for V signature. Ends up as interesting middle path option
Value at discount ($185): 8/10
At that price it basically wins by default for best planar closed back unless if you prefer the darker presentation of the M1070c. You can potentially mod them to be open if you want to and the M1070c technically has the same driver (I think) so somebody could experiment to try and have a reversible mod.
Advice to people that have it is to take AutoEQ of LCD XC and modify it.
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this tends to not be an issue when it comes to planar. planar typically are pretty great at consistent imaging. combine that with the faster lower distortion drivers this results where a stronger bass response wont really impeded on detail retention as much compared to dynamics with similarly strong bass response.
Wow that is pretty nice man. How did you find them after the mod? Mind sharing the STL if you do not mind.
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Frequency response doesn’t change much with the conversion. Biggest change I noticed is the tonality sounds much more natural. Opening them up got rid of the midrange honk and congestion. Big ol soundstage now. To my ears, the stock Leather pads still have a forward midrange. These pads reduce the mids a bit and as a result sound more even to me.
I’ll upload the file on thingiverse when I can.