Great review. It was a pleasure listening to you. It was very thorough and detailed regarding the hardware and construction. No speeds and feeds which I enjoyed. Your assessment of the sound seems right on with many others who were not so kind. These were obviously a dud for the manufacturer. They are on sale at manufacturer for $109 with no tax and free shipping. I just bought a pair for watching my guy flick action movies and live video music performances on my large screen computer. Might be fun for video games too. The extended bass should be really fun for those. It's just not a good audiophile headphone for critical listening.
You don’t get more drive or efficiency because of the cable. It’s because the amplifier is balanced. You’ve basically got two separate amplifiers in a balanced amp, which is how you get more power. It’s like an amp per side rather that one amp powering left and right. It ultimately can double the amount of power you get. Balanced was ultimately created… by headroom I believe, to provide more power because back then with the parts available, it was hard to make a lot of power. So they figured if you had a completely separate amplifier for each side, you could basically double the power. It also splits the ground, like said, which some people believe and I also think it can measurably be proven to lower cross talk and possibly distortion. Sounds better? That’s up for debate. Nowadays with the parts and tech available you can make a single ended amp that makes multiple watts of power… and when the amp is designed as single ended… it can sound every bit as good as a balanced amp. So really balanced doesn’t reeeeaaaly need to exist anymore, but it has become the prevailing trend and it’s what people want so most amps are designed balanced. That’s my understanding, I’m not an engineer so someone can correct me if I’m wrong. The first balanced amp headroom made was actually two separate boxes … very interesting. I like your reviews and I’m not trying to be rude… but the cable itself has nothing to do with making a headphone more efficient… it’s purely that the amp, being designed balanced, makes more power than it does single ended. 😊
That's an excellent point. I didn't mean to imply that the cable itself was providing the efficiency, but that the amp that provides balanced does. Good lesson for me to be more clear about that in the future, so thank you! Also I've not heard of Headroom, I'll have to look them up.
Thanks a lot for your review. I already had a dt770pro 250Ω and want to try something new, and this one goes on sale for about $230 in China (no R2R Bluetooth). I would love to try this.
That part about the balanced cable is wrong, as long as you follow the T(+)R(empty)S(-) config you can run dual entry. My cable does dual entry into XLR Wait I'm not a basshead though, then again I was looking for a bass heavy headphone to compliment my AWKT and honestly the kilobuck compertition disapoint in that reguard. Its nice to have such a bass heavy headphone still have tight and controlled bass for how bass heavy it is. One thing to note is that the mid/upper trebble is very smoothed over. Not really a issue in most songs but particularly noticable with choir vocals.
@reckulurn3038 I'd put it between the Cobalt and the R9, as the R7DX is really just a slightly less capable Cobalt. If you want big boomy bass, R9. If you warm and smooth with more controlled lowend, then probably the Cobalt.
Calling the R9s Bass cannons is funny to those of us with a bass head sensibility that actually own Bass cannons lol . Maybe in the audiophile community that constantly seek neutrality they are Bass heavy
@@MasterMarslander easily the most Bass in an off the shelf Headphone would be either the JVC HA-MR77X or the Sony MDR-XB1000 But my vinyl pad modded Grado Sr325 are definitely in the running
@@turbomustang84 man, I'm having a hard time finding the JVCs. I remember hearing about them a few years ago, but now they have gone the way of the discontinued dodo. I don't even see any available on Ebay.
@@MasterMarslander a lot of the really Bass heavy cans are discontinued including the Sony's JVC's as well as the Vibe Black Death Headphones which come with a skull in the package LoL The black Death Headphones not only have thunderous bass but surprisingly are very detailed even more than my Sundara's ... However they look ridiculous but the coiled cable is better than anything shipped with any of my Hifiman Headphones. But if I'm watching a movie and want the home theater experience then the Skull Candy skull crusher ANC's can not be beat but music on the other hand is not so pleasant but if you want to put something on a non headphone devotee that will shock them skull crusher ANC's are the weapon of choice
It was an excellent description. Would you or anyone here know how it compares to the Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO? I mean, when it comes to closed headphones, for the purpose of listening to music without disturbing the people next to you and that are in the same price range, is the R9 better than the classic DT 770? Congratulations on the channel and a big hug from Brazil, Rio de Janeiro!
I don't have a 770 here to compare with directly and give you a very detailed comparison, but the R9 in general will offer more soundstage and bigger, harder hitting low-end.
I actually like the Philips Fidelio x2 better. Even if R9 is $270! The highs and upper mids just don’t seem right to me, and they’re not so great on the X2 either but I do not find them annoying like the R9.
Hey, you said R9s always sound like they plugged into tubes. I listen to R9s on Fiio BTR5 and they sound warm if I get an amp more warmer than BTR5 will the R9s sound overly warm and bass to the point where it distorts? Or will it be fine? BTW please help with a suggestion, I need to upgrade my Bluetooth dac/amp from BTR5 to something that has more battery life and better sound quality, I'll spend upto $300.
It's a little hard to say how much any portable amp might affect the sound, but in general I think you should be pretty safe with most gear. The bass performance, while very warm, is still high quality. As for your portable AMP/DAC, to be honest I'm in the market myself. I've been looking a the new Sony Walkman for around $350. I haven't dived very deep into portable audio, so unfortunately I can't give you much in terms of suggestions. I hear Fio makes really solid stuff though.
My R9 arrive today now it on my head while typing this comment to u :D Im just about to ask ur opinion which one r the most fun between R9 & Z7m2 for ur personal taste@@MasterMarslander
$250 is a great deal. The edition XS is a very different headphone. It is probably a better performing headphone overall, but the XS is an open back headphone while the R9 is closed back. Consider your needs first, I suppose.
They are too expensive for their plastic ugly looks. My T60 Argons are cheaper and better build or 99 Noire take place of "bass cannon" in my collection (also nice walnut build in 1/3 price of R9)
The price drop helps significantly. They are a much easier recommendation under $400. T60 Argons are a better overall headphone, no doubt, and Meze 99s have a lovely smooth musicality, but the R9s do have better base performance. It's going to be down to preference, and whether or not you can accept those ridiculous looks.
How absolutely DARE you show and succumb to your human frailties and functionalities?! Well…….I NEVER…..😬 Edit: whoa waitaminnit…..how does that balanced cable even work if it’s plugged in to one side? Are both cups connected to each other?
I'm not even going to begin to pretend I know enough about electrical engineering to say anything definitive about it, but my understanding is this: The single end balance connector is a four pole, meaning it separates channels in the same vein as, say, an XLR could, but rather than it being separated on individual pins it dedicates individual zones on the plug to connect to. Some people say this isn't "true balanced," but those same people often don't really know how to describe what does make for true balance. So I donno. From my experience it works almost as well if not indistinguishably as well as a balance XLR.
@@MasterMarslander yeah I get that but I guess my question is: if the L and R speakers are not connected somewhere in tandem, then only one should work, right? Because to use them otherwise, without the “balanced” aspect of it, you still have to connect L and R together through the 3.5. See what I’m saying?
@thejabberwocky1488 ah. So instead of the L and R drivers sharing the same connecting cable as they would from a regular single ended headphone, instead, the drivers have their own independent connection to where the audio sources are connecting to the poles. Does that make sense?
I certainly do not want to spread any misinformation, so if there is anything you can correct about what I said regarding cables please feel free to mention it. My cable knowledge is very basic, but I am eager to learn.
