Can recommend D7200 but it does need synergy in the chain and don’t expect it to be anything similar or an upgrade to the Fostex biodynas. It’s more intimate, got more coloration in the mid, more forward and present mid, and less hot treble. But you’d need a DAC/amp that controls the fat bass. It’s not very forgiving
Yeah I don’t see the gl2k competing with these, the fostex biodynamic sounds so good, love the detail and bass.
Hi everybody! Recently I bought the fostex th610 and there’s not a lot of reviews on YouTube in comparison with the thx00… I’m trying to find used the thx00 ebonys but first want to know about the full differences with the th610 because reviewers only just say they are the least v-shape of fostex family… Can someone tell me your experiences with both in the stock form? Are they so similar that ebonys are not worth buying?
While I haven’t own either of those specific versions, my experience with the purple heart and doing the Lawton mod lead me to say it’s probably not worth it to get the ebony along side the TH-610 unless you intend on modding one of them.
If you care about graphs any, Crin has the 610 and the E-MU Teaks (similar to the ebony) available on his comparison tool.
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This is the best I’ve been able to come up with using the bits I had in my collection to make the ifi iDSD Signature tether free from the phone or tablet.
It’s even pocketable in my shorts without any trouble so I can walk around the house untethered to my phone.
Couple right angle mini TOSLINKs to take pressure off the connections and a mini battery pack strapped on with short TOSLINK cable.
Can probably make it even more compact with some custom cables and enclosure for the chromecast. Still pretty happy to have some mobility with the stuff I had laying around.
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Thanks for the reply… The actual measurements methods are better than a few years ago but personal experience is the best option to know and understand the sound no matter what different people can interpret the sound. I hope somebody will help me with the experience of listening both headphones
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So, i am confused about the bass in the 5200 and the 7200. Which one has more bass quantity? Some say, the 5200 and some the 7200 (like damir franc on youtube).
From reading this thread, my opinion is, that both has emphasised bass, but the bass on the 5200 does have a midbass emphasis, which can be bloated sometimes and the 7200 has a more controlled bass. Is this correct?
I like v-shaped headphones. Right now, i am using a B&O H6 2nd gen. I would like to have an upgrade with more soundstage, so i was thinking about buying the 7200.
I owned the meze 99 classic and neo in the past, but both were a little bit thick in the bass, so i think, the 5200 wouldn´t be the best option for me.
Does anybody have experience with the 5200 vs. 7200 (and maybe meze 99 classic/neo or b&o H6) and could give me a little bit input here.
Thanks!
According to Crin’s graphs (however much you trust graphs), the D5200 has more bass than the D7200, but neither are as bassy as the 99 classic/neo and both have a less withdrawn midrange (500-2000hrz).
I would recommend the D5200 since it looks to sound more like the E-MU Teaks/TH-610/TR-X00 while the D7200 looks to have a different tuning in the upper mids. Also, the D7200 has a different driver (not a biocellulose). If these are even remotely similar sounding to the X00s I love so much, they won’t sound muddy or bloated at all.
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My personal experience is actually the opposite. To my ears 5200 is leaner and 7200 is more bloated. The rest of the graph largely corresponds to my impression. Weird lol
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Hello,
I had the Denon D7200.
At the beginning it was quite good, but over time it got on my nerves.
Because it liked to bleed into the mids, at least for me.
For me, the old versions were much better tuned.
I had heard the D5200 in the shop.
It was quite strange.
First I listened to it on a fairly neutral headphone amplifier and I didn’t like it.
But when the dealer offered to listen to it on a Macintosh, everything changed.
It was a Macintosh tube amp and the D5200 really opened up there.
It was a pleasure to listen to it.
And at that moment I thought why buy such expensive headphones when they sound so good.
I think if you have never had a D2000/5000 or Fostex tr xx 00 or Emu teak you will not notice the difference in bass.
The video of Damir Franc is unbelievable,the guy has unfortunately no idea.he has already shot his ears several times,and can no longer hear properly.besides,he treats his community on Youtube pretty shitty.especially when others have different opinions,he does not accept them.
And makes them ready.
You definitely can’t rely on his opinion.There are better people on Youtube who have more clue than he will ever have.
Thank you guys for your answers.
So my confusion is still big, because a_coconut and mochimashu had opposite experiences. So i guess i am going to put collect more info about this. But there are good news, that both (5200/7200) aren’t as bloated as the meze.
What DAC and amp are you using? My personal experience is that the new Denon line are quite picky and depend a lot on synergy. On various previous setup I found D5200 to be bright and D7200 to have grainy mod and bloated bass. I think they are less forgiving than the previous D2/5/7k lineup. For v-shaped headphones I can suggest Sony Z7M2 (although also somewhat amp picky as the treble might be harsh), and the Argons. If seal is not a problem, you might try EMU Teak or Fostex Ebony / Purpleheart as well. Nighthawk/Nightowl is somewhat v-shaped too I suppose but its tonality is not for everyone.
I do have the ifi zen dac/amp ( which is on the smoother side) and the geshelli archel 2.5 (brighter than neutral i would say).
I had the nighthawk carbon in the past, but the treble was too rolled off in the long run. Right now i have the sundara, the zeus and the b&o h6.
Argons are also on my watchlist, but hard to get these days.
Hello,
With the Archel, it could work against the D7200 because it is quite dark in terms of tuning.
And I can agree with @mochimashu’s opinion.
As in my pre-post the D5200 in the shop the first amp was extremely neutral and almost powerless,and on the Macintosh a delight.
I listened to the D7200 on the Beresford Capella and it was better than the Singxer Sda2c that followed.
Because it sounded almost too fat on the Singxer.
But as I said, if you don’t know the old models, you will hardly notice it.
You only notice the difference when you have both in front of you and do an A/B.
The Denon D5200 on the Macintosh was, in my opinion, much closer to the older models in terms of its tuning.
But I can only say that now because, apart from the Emu and the Th900, I’ve never held one in my hands.
But I can’t say 100% whether their dac/amps would be more like the D5200/7200.
Otherwise you would have to test them.
I currently have a tube amp there from Felikis Audio, the Euforia model, and it is quite neutral in its main tuning.
This means that it is not quite as strong in the bass range, especially on planar headphones, but it is there.
Generally speaking, if you have something neutral as a dac or amp, the D7200 could help to compensate for this in terms of bass and can harmonise with it.
With the Ify zen Dac with its True Bass function, this could be two much in my opinion.
The D5200 would probably be better because it would be smoother and could deliver just the right amount with True Bass on.
With Geshelli, I don’t think the D5200 will shine quite as much as the Ify probably will.
Of course, in the end it’s all a matter of taste.
As the previous speaker said, the new models are a little bitchy, that’s true. even mods are quite difficult, which is not the core of it. but I can really support the amping in the listeners with his opinion. I didn’t understand the world when I heard the D5200 on the Macintosh.
It was almost better than the old models to be honest.
The sound was really full of charm,flow,on point,great stage,presentation,coherent.Never too much and not too little.
If you have the opportunity to listen to or order both somewhere,keep the one that suits you better in the end.
And maybe put one of the dac/amps in the drawer as a reserve for a rainy day.
Or you could go straight for the Emu Teak, which would be another alternative. it doesn’t have too many problems being driven and is much friendlier in terms of amping.
Something just occurred to me. Why not get the E-MU Teaks, which are well reviewed and often discussed on this thread, and maybe Lawton mod them if you feel the need to? You are already willing to pay for the D7200 ($1000) which is about the cost of an E-MU Teak with Lawton cups ($700-1000). You could even get some purple heart, rose wood, or ebony cups from E-MU to try if you really want. Also, pad swaps can really help to fine tune the sound of the Foster biodyna drivers, so if it is a bit muddy to you, a pad swap could fix that (I would recommend ZMF Ori with attenuation rings).
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Well, I pulled the trigger on these and got some dekoni nuggets since I have a small head and the headband is huuuuuge.
So happy with these, exactly what I was looking for when I want some absolutely slamming bass.
Cannot recommend these enough to anyone considering them!
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Enjoy! I love mine. 
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Anyone have hands on with both the Cascade and the TH-X00 PH? I love my Purplehearts but the pads hurt my ears after about an hour and all the pads I’ve tried has kinda ruined the sound.
I’m thinking Cascades with XL pads might be a bit of an upgrade. I listen to mostly Rock/Indie/Hardcore and play games. It look me a few years in this hobby to realize I was bass head, lol. Now I’m full leaning into it.
I’ve only heard the purple hearts, but I’m pretty sure the cascades have a fair amount more mid bass. It’s also possible the purple hearts have better sub bass extension. @ShaneD can give you more info on the cascades.
What pads have you tried? I found the dekoni X00 sheepskin pads with attenuation rings sounded about the same as stock, but with better technicalities like sound stage, imaging, etc. Also the comfort is good enough, especially if you don’t have dumbo ears.
I also quite liked the accessory house global X00 pads. They are pretty much identical to stock but with real leather and memory foam. The comfort is better as a result of these materials, but is only what I would call passable.
If you are OK with losing a bit of warmth in the sound, the ZMF Ori pads with attenuation rings are fantastic imo. Pluss I find these to work best after the Lawton mod if you ever want to do that.
I don’t want to clutter up this thread, especially since I have sold off my TH-610’s.
I only got the Cascades last month and they have not seen a ton of time.
I have been concentrating the last few weeks on my planars.
Initial thoughts on the Cascades are:
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The bass is Amazing. All you would want (unless you’re a basshead?). Very sharp and clear with no bloat, to me.
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Mids are just a bit recessed. You only notice it when you are coming directly from mids-focused headphones. I do find them nice and clear and I don’t notice any bass bleed.
These are the closed backs that I have been looking for since 2014. No need to change pads or cups, they are a turn-key solution. Although I did add two Dekoni Nuggets.
In the next week or two I will probably do a full week on them to really get a feel for everything they offer.