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33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Be Careful of the Hype..., March 15, 2008
I have been a serious audiophile for 5 years now, always specializing in headphones. I have auditioned a great many headphones over the years and have become a fairly discerning listener when it comes to audio quality.
SYSTEM:
-Harmonix Reimyo CDP-777 CD Player (w/mod by Upgrade Company)
-SinglePower SDS-XLR Balanced Headphone Amplifier
-Over 200 NOS tubes
-Sony MDR-R10s, Sennheiser HD650, Grado RS-1, AKG K701
-Grand Prix Monaco Modular Isolation System
-Virtual Dynamics Genesis Interconnects
-Virtual Dynamics Master Power Cords
REVIEW:
Tone: The SA5Ks lean towards the treble, and are a little bright. Neither the mids or bass seem more/less pronounced than the other, but the treble is definitely front and center for these phones. This is likely a bi-product of these phone's emphasis on speed, detail, and clean representation.
Bass: The bass is a weak point for this headphone. Extension isn't terrible, but impact is on the light side and the tone doesn't have alot of body or bloom. These are very fast, clean headphones, and sometimes the result of increasing detail is losing tone and body.
Mids: Decent mids, but certainly nothing special. Of course, I'm very spoiled by my R10's mids as they're likely the best in all headphonedom. But again, very clean, and pretty accurate. But these certainly aren't romantic headphones that will make you melt at hearing female voices or classical music.
Higs: Bright and piercing out of the box, but burn in has a way of bringing the highs under control. After burn in, the highs actually come across as a highlight - especially with fast, exciting music that relies on lead instruments often playing in high registers.
Detail: THIS is where these headphones shine. It's likely due to the speed at which these headphones retrieve and deliver audio information, but they can make a claim to being the most detailed headphones on the market. It's not just the fact that you'll be able to hear everything, but that you'll be able to hear everything presented in such a clean, transparent manner. They certainly won't miss anything, and if it's in the recording, it will fish it out.
Speed: Obviously as I've already said these are EXTREMELY fast headphones. But before you interpret that as an intrinsic, positive quality, there's also a downside. Speed has to do with how fast a component transmits attack (the point at which a note enters) and decay (the point at which it fades/leaves). With phones of such speed what you get is attacks that hit very quickly, last very shortly, decays that end quickly, and a somewhat thin note "body". This means that legato music (like violins and other strings) often don't flow as well as they might. However, staccato music (think of fast metal riffing) is delivered on point without a "sludge" effect of notes running into each other.
An example might be if you were to listen to the E-string chugging of thrash metal bands (Metallica, Megadeth, etc). On a slower headphone it's easy to miss the pick/attack of the individual notes - but that's not so on the SA5Ks as they catch the attack of each rapid fire note and due to the quick decay are able to hit the next one with no note obscuration. This is also evident on the quick beats of techno and other club music.
Soundstage/Imaging: The soundstage is decent on the Y-axis (up/down), but weak on the X-axis (left right). The headphones also have a way of flattening sound images so you're not getting much depth either. However, making up for this is the pinpoint precise imaging which presents images with clearly defined edges, allowing instruments to breathe despite the limitations of the X-axis. Again, this is likely due to the speed of the headphone which doesn't allow for sound to be slowed and thus infringing into other sounds' space.
Component Matching: They definitely work best with a system that can fill out their lean character; providing more body and punch. Don't worry about slowing them down to the point where the detail and clarity is lost as I don't think that's possible. I've tried them even with very lethargic and sludgy tubes and the result is still a fast, clear sound that merely has better bass and fuller mids. One tube that goes wonderful with the SA5k is the Sylvania 6SN7W, which provides alot of body, dynamics, and "umph!". Of secondary importance is finding components that can extend the soundstage.
Music Best/Least Suited For: They're best suited for fast, complex music that doesn't rely on slow, toneful, emotive passages too much. Genres like progressive metal or techno sound excellent on these cans. They are also excellent with rock and other metal, even though I still often prefer Grado's kick and presentation. They're least suited for classical, emotive vocal music, and anything that uses slow, toneful, sweeping passages. Again, these ARE NOT romantic headphones. They are somewhat cold and merciless and really not for people who listen to music or audio to be swept away by beautiful sound.
Comparisons: These headphones are almost the opposite of those like the Senn HD650, which are slow phones with alot of body that can make it seem as if you're listening to music through a veil. However, the Senns work better on classical and vocal music. They also have better bass and soundstaging. The cans that come off as an amalgamation of the SA5Ks detail and the HD650's musicality is the AKG K701s. They have superb soundstage and air, good bass and highs, great mids, but also don't lose out on the detail department. I really don't have time to go into detailed comparisons with 1000 other phones, so hopefully this can provide a little more insight into how the SA5K sounds.
Comfort: I can't find any faults in this department. As far as I can tell these are well designed headphones that are easy to wear for hours on end.
CONCLUSION:
The SA5K's greatest strengths are its incredible detail, speed, and clarity. Its weakness are its lack of body, warmth, musicality, and potentially harsh brightness. In the audio world it's often much more about personal preference than objective good/bad, better/best. So be careful and pick components which suit your tastes and musical needs. The SA5Ks are great headphones, and are competitive with others in their price range, but they are not monster killers (R10s, L3000s, Qualias), or the greatest headphones in history (or even in production now). They have a very unique sound that's very easy to impress upon first listen or impress any audio neophyte. But be warned that while many of the Amazon reviewers make it sound as if these phones are unbeatable, there may be a better option for you.
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55 of 61 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sony remaps the land of high-end headphones once again, April 8, 2005
I've owned quite a few high-end headphones over the last few years, but this new model from Sony take a page from Metallica, and kills 'em all. The comfort and design are unparalleled, and the materials used are top-notch, outclassing similarly priced and even more expensive cans. The sound is unprecedented, certainly among sub-$1000 dynamic headphones. The frequency spectrum is amazingly well balanced, from the deepest bass to the highest treble, with no readily apparent gaps or peaks. The frequencies transition very smoothly, which results in virtually no listener fatigue. Detail is excellent, surpassing all other dynamic headphones I've heard, rivaling that of the expensive, esoteric electrostatic models. Individual instruments and sounds are rendered wonderfully, each with it's own distinct static place in the spectrum, and are placed with pinpoint precision around your head.
If you listen to a lower-quality source or amp, the SA5000 might not be for you, as it will spit that garbage right back into your face. In that situation, more forgiving cans like the Sennheisers or Grados would be better suited. If you have some great sounding gear though, like my Benchmark DAC-1, then the SA5000 will give you the detail and transparency that other cans will hide.
Here are my impressions of a few other prominent high-end cans compared to the SA5000:
Grado RS1 (An ergonomic nightmare, and no benchmark for build quality, the Grado succeeds in making even a lowly MP3 player sound exciting to listen to. However, it achieves this through a bumped upper bass and upper mids, which can grow annoying when used on a high-class source and amp, which reveals these colorations. Also has the most distortion (sibilance) and least frequency extension of the group. It's best attribute is that bass boost, which is quite thumpin' with the right music.)
Sennheiser HD650 (This headphone makes almost anything quite listenable, with its slow, decay-oriented presentation, and muted high end, it takes the edge right off even the harshest recordings. This is good if you like your hi-fi to whisper sweet lullabies, however it makes the sound quite dull and lifeless compared to any of the other cans mention. The Zu Mobius cable helps fix this, and extend the lower and upper ends, but it is still no match for the detail and accuracy of the SA5000.)
Sony MDR-CD3000 (The SA5000's predecessor, by comparison has bloated bass and a lacking midrange. The extreme frequencies are also underrepresented. Its only "advantage" is an artificially wide soundstage that can make a studio rock recording sound more like a live concert. The cans are also VERY large and bulky, which makes them a tad annoying to wear, though they are very soft.)
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
precise sound, November 13, 2006
These headphones need very good upstream gear- I would suggest a turntable or cd player/transport dac that focuses on the midrange. They need a dedicated headphone amp to preform at their best. Transient attacks and treble extension are hallmarks of this design. Overall they are a microscope on the recording but a headphone like this requires careful attention to setup. It is very easy for them to become bright and sibilant if using pedestrian equipment. I have used Grado 325's and Sennheisers HD600's for several years and found that the 5000's combine the midrange and smoothness of the Senns with the explosiveness of the Grados. I am reminded of listening to electrostatics when I am lusing them. In a nutshell the MDR-SA5000's are a superior headphone.
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