Fostex X Massdrop TH-X00

In a good way I hope?

 

I like it, lots of power and a big sack of testicles. Which means more testosterone.

 

Wood grain looks sweet.

 

Just opened up my set and trying to go back and forth with my ZMF blackwoods. Plan on giving it a few weeks and then loser gets a new home. Rd 1 in comfort is going to the blackwoods, but all the pre release worries that everyone had about earpad fit on the x00's was pointless imo. Anyone else feel like the fostex could use just a bit more clamping presure?

There can only be one

 

Got mine yesterday. They give kick drums a thick thump that highlights the beat in an unflattering way. They have some legit bass but the thump thump thump is impossible to ignore.

 

Surprised to see anyone describe these as dark. Less treble than the TH600/900 or Denon Dx000? Yes. It's still pronounced, though.

Brighter than I can handle for long sessions, to be honest, but way more tolerable than the TH600.

They're brighter than the HD650 for sure. You might just be hearing the bass too much to hear treble or something.

 

I don't think bright or dark is indicative of treble only. For what it's worth, back when I had the HD650 and Denon D2000 to compare, I thought the D2000 sounded much darker than the HD650, which in turn sounded bright. This was because the D2000 had waaaayyy more bass. It had so much bass that it sounded dark to my ears. I can easily see the same thing happening here, and even moreso, since the THX00 has a more balanced treble than the D2000.

 

I also find the treble to be a touch fatiguing, particularly out of my Rag, so I get where Luckbad is coming from. I attribute this more to being a bit "rough" for lack of a better word, rather than being overly hot per say. The treble on my HD600 is comparatively more cohesive and integrated, which probably goes without saying - the HD6xx's are excellent in this regard.

This said, the THX00's treble isn't bad. I agree with Merv that a slight emphasis is beneficial in balancing out the bass. I find it much, much better than the TH900's, which I can only listen to for a few minutes without EQ before I have to rip them off my head. Perhaps worth noting is that I'm also finding that I prefer listening to them out of my Glenn OTL rather than my Ragnarok, which I didn't anticipate at all (I have the Glenn tuned in a more "solid state" direction, for what it's worth). The additional liquidity and superior staging are highly beneficial IMO, despite the bass having slightly inferior extension and tautness compared to the Rag.

All in all, I'm digging these so far though. Tons of fun and highly engaging. "Fun" done right? I think so. Perhaps too bassy for my personal tastes, but I'll need some more time to get used to them before I make the final call. The bass emphasis is very well done though; there isn't an issue with the bass bleeding in to the lower mids, which is far too often the case with "bassy" headphones. Resolution is quite good (via Yggdrasil feeding either the Rag or Glenn OTL), a bit behind the HD600 in terms of micro, but the delivery is clean and well delineated. Imaging seems pretty precise and not sloppy, despite the stage being more compressed than the HD6xx's. All in all an awesome headphone for the money, especially for those looking for a bass tilted tuning.

I can easily see why these received the highly coveted golden schlong award this year.

 

So I've tried a couple pads with the TH-X00. I find the stock pads fit fine but the frequency response is tilted too far down for me. I tried Alpha Pads, Hifiman Velour, and Hifiman Pleather. The Pleather pads worked the best with two pieces of felt cut out to emulate the restricted sound hole of the stock pads. I'm going to buy some stiffened foam of similar material to do it right soon. Very balanced now with the fun sub bass that I was looking for.

FYI Focus pads A and focus pads have the mount glued to the pads. I didn't want to screw with them to make them fit.

 

Oh my god. I just had a fantastic idea for a headphone stand. I'll see if I can find any very cheap dildos and some gold spraypaint.

 

Noone's said anything about just the headband. It's the sexiest articulation I've seen on a can, I mean wow. Cool as hell.

Also, the 1/4th TRS to baby TRS adapter barely fits, and makes the jack about two feet long, which is endearing, but.. Kinda dorky.

 

Never skimp when it comes to dildos...

 

Experience is a tough mistress.

 

Let's just say it's one of those hard lessons in life...

Looking forward to my TH-X00. It's apparent that it won't be my holy grail reference closed headphone (I guess that's what UERM is for) but it sounds interesting none the less.

 

I'd have to agree with Luckbad, not hearing these to be dark at all...