And I know its true, I like the dont rush it advice, I could really use some true upgrade but I wont discard the bryston/QS wanting just yet, because of the law here articles like the HP1 pay double the taxes and is less common to get low declared… and paypal upped the commision to 5.5% and F&F doesnt exist here in MX
Anyway im moving out in 2 months so Ill have time to think and save money afterwards
Thanks for pushing the exogal it really was worth every single penny im really sad I couldnt get the powerdac TMR had comboed with the comet for 1800, that was an absolute steal and even the other ones they had individually sold very rapidly
Ill join ya on the AWKT club for sure, and hopefully on the pass labs as well.
Just going to dump my thoughts here for my “new” headphone comparison next week. Just ran a cycle of headphones in my collection and the ATH-L3000 is my favorite experience right now on this current setup. This headphone sounds crazy freaking good right now after my Allnic HPA-5000XL fully burned in. It’s really the most balanced headphones I own that check out a lot of boxes for me without overdoing it in most of the spectrum. There is something going on in the lower midrange because it just sounds so incredible, sweet and really shine for vocals for some reason. I think the closest headphone that was this balanced that I owned was probably the D8000 Pro LE. They both sound very different from each other, but at the same time, both were pretty damn satisfying across the spectrum. When I needed to sell a headphone to afford the Supretek DHT Preamp, I had 2 options, sell the D8000 Pro LE or the ATH-L3000. I could either keep something a little more technical which is the D8000 Pro LE or something that is more romantic (not a little, but by a lot) which is the ATH-L3000. It’s pretty obvious which path I took and I am glad I made the right choice. Bought the Raal Sr1a to see if I prefer a technical headphone and I was able to confirm with myself I value a more emotional experience vs one that does everything better on paper. I bought another “balance” headphone (it’s the Sus) to compare the midrange to the Mysphere 3.2 and to see if that might be a better balance headphone than the ATH-L3000 for me. The Sus comes in next week. The thing is I like forward vocals, but if vocals are done right like the Mysphere 3.2 and Sennheiser HD250 Linear 1, then I’ll be ok with it being right down the middle or recessed. So we will see if I like the Sus more than the ATH-L3000, just worry the bass won’t be enough on my setup. For now, the ATH-L3000 is giving me one of the best audio experiences at this point of my audio journey. It only took a dark horse Korean Tube Amplifier that took 300 hours to burn in for me to realize how good the ATH-L3000 is. I also think it’s one of those headphones that takes a long while to understand and appreciate how good this headphone is.
Also, I don’t think it’s a bassy headphone. trust me, I heard a lot of bassy headphones. I think the ATH-W10VTG and Onkyo A800 are bassy headphones. I think the ATH-L3000 is bass headphone done right. My favorite volume range is median to median-low because it’s the most balanced sound that I like the most about this headphone right now.
Warm and Rich Midrange Seductive in the vocals, especially whisper vocals Non-offensive in the treble and is forgiving Forgiving to bad recordings Bass Quantity and Quality is fantastic You can change the bass quantity based on the volume (loud volume) for more rumble no clipping (handle loud volume pretty well, wish I could say the same for my ears) Soundstage is better with tube amps with holographic soundstage
Welp, I think I finally broken in the Mysphere because the bass distortion issue I had is just gone. What does that mean? Time to go through my library again and listen to every track lol. Mysphere can truly play along with every genre and honestly does pretty well with every song now. So, I thought I would revisit modern rap/trap music and see how the Mysphere does against that. Safe to say I didn’t get any bass distortion except maybe 1 song and that was FE!N - Travis Scott. But the other songs like Brambleton - Pusha T, Hands on the Wheel - Schoolboy Q, and Swimming Pool - Kendrick Lamar was fine, no bass distortion. It was pretty fun with the Mysphere 3.2, but then I got curious on my other headphones.
I thought it would be cool to listen to the Audio Technica and the Onkyo headphones for these. The reason for this idea is because I thought it would be fun. The 3 Japanese dynamic headphones don’t have the subbass like a planar like the Susvara, but the elevated bass makes the punch more fun. The first headphone I tried was the ATH-W10VTG headphone since its been a while since I used it. The first track I wanted to use was FE!N - Travis Scott since I been listening to that song a lot lately. 1 Word to describe the feeling I had when I pressed play… “GOOSEBUMPS”. That slow bass looming in the background while someone screaming FE!N in my ear with the ominous synth music playing. I swapped to the ATH-L3000 and I couldn’t get the goosebumps that the W10VTG gave me. It sounded a lot more clearer, but the bass disappeared faster. It punches hard, but the atmosphere of the song feel less ominous to me. It honestly just makes me realize how crazy important the bassline can set the mood that even changing the speed of the bass can have such a crazy effect on the song. I know I talked a lot of negative of the Raal SR1a in my past couple of post, but that’s because it was sooooooo close to becoming my perfect headphone. I love everything about the SR1a, best resolution for me, best bass sound, midrange crystal clear, pulling details with ease, jaw-dropping soundstage, but the bass decays too quickly for me that it sometimes makes the song feel off-beat or the song sometimes feel like it is being fast forward. Even with that flaw, the SR1a is one of my favorite headphones I ever use for sure.
Going back on topic, the W10VTG delivered the goosebumps for me for this type of music: the slow decay in the bass; the famous Audio Technica coloration to its midrange that gives my music a touch of romance; the added warmth it gives to the music; and the close-back intimate soundstage that brings the music closer (but the downside is playing complicated music can make the music sound congested). Similar to the ATH-L3000, I say the strongest part of the music the W10VTG perform well is in the mid-bass and lower midrange, but a slightly different presentation with its slower bass. Even though the W10VTG have similar strength as the L3000, I say the genre of music that I like is different for both headphones. Because of the speed, great imaging, and the treble of the L3000 I enjoy high BPM songs and rock songs on the L3000. For songs that are slower and more focused on the lower end, I really enjoy the W10VTG the best in my collection. I tried the Mezes 99 Classics and the bass doesn’t taste the same to me lol. Spit it out and put the Audio Technica Woodies back on. Bass sounds pretty dang good on classic warm ATH woodies (at least the W10VTG and L3000). Examples modern day rap songs that led me to really like the W10VTG for this genre: She Will - Lil Wayne/Drake, On My Level - Wiz Khalifa, FE!N - Travis Scott, Brambleton - Pusha T, Hands on The Wheel - Schoolboy Q, and Swimming Pools (Drank) - Kendrick Lamar.
Future note, I am super excited for the newly release AW-KG-Naru. The amp is named Narukami which means thunder god. I hope the headphones share some of that gene and bring some thunderous bass when it comes out. Just hoping it’s not too expensive…
Man, I love applying wax and conditioner on one of my favorite classics, the ATH-L3000 and ATH-W10VTG. I just finished my 3 monthly of cleaning these headphones and it always puts a smile on my face from the start of a process to the end result. These headphones are pretty old (about 20 + years old, but they don’t look like it), but they are still one of my favorite headphones to reach out for no matter how old they get and what’s in my collection. The smell of honey while wearing the ATH-L3000 is always a great experience.
I say it really depends on your taste, but the W1000 seem more of an audiophile headphone than the W10VTG. I remember reading Audio Technica history and this person said the W1000 have a better treble extension and tighter bass than the other wooden back ATH headphones in the 90s.
The W10VTG is definitely for more consumer base. The bass slow decay in bass and nice amount of quantity makes some modern rap songs really fun. The forward sweet female vocals makes it really nice for Jpop combine with its nice mid bass punch. I always thought many Japanese producers really like mid bass for some reason rather than focusing on subbass, so headphones like the W10VTG with forward vocals and good mid bass punch was a great headphone for that genre. Even though the W10VTG and L3000 are both warm ATH wooden closed backs, they sound and present music pretty differently. I am going to assume the other ATH wooden closed backs sound pretty different from each other except the midrange may be a little similar to each other with the vocals probably a little more forward compare to most headphones. Even the W5000 sound super drastically different from the W10VTG and L3000.
I used to own the W5000, but wasn’t to my taste. I didn’t like how vocal sounded and it sounded too bright on my old setup. I gave it a week and decided to give to my coworker for basically free since he liked that headphone a lot for his Jazz music. I still to this day don’t know why he likes Jazz music with the W5000, but everyone taste and opinion is different. So, I think it’s not really what is better or not, but which ATH wooden closed backs would best fit your taste. For me, it’s modern rap on the W10VTG. Classic Rock and Pop on the L3000. And W5000 for my coworker that likes Jazz.
I only liked the W10VTG and L3000 wooden backs. Was very meh on the W5000. Never tried any other ATH wooden backs, but would love to one day. Only thing holding me back from collecting more wooden closed backs is the the classic ATH Woodies hold their value really well for some reason and can get very pricey in the used market.
Other ATH headphones I used to own is the ATH-AD2000 and really enjoy that unique sounding headphone. I tried ATH-AD5000x and it sounded like good solid headphone to me, but not something I would seek out to add in the collection.
I think the amp I had at the time was a Cayin HA-3A. My coworker love driving the W5000 off of his laptop, so I knew it wasn’t a can for me if he liked the W5000 regardless of what he plugged it into. He likes to listen to the W5000 in a very low volume (I’m talking real low), so I think that might’ve been my issue since I like to crank the volume up. This is also the same coworker I showed off the Caldera and D8000 Pro LE and he hated those phones lol. He also helped convince me to sell those headphones when I decided which headphones I should I sell in my collection. I enjoyed talking with him since he likes music a lot as well, but he is not into audio gear. I kinda trust his taste though since he likes the Mysphere 3.2, Sennheiser HD600 silverscreen (when I had it), and surprisingly the Onkyo A800 (he really likes this headphone with pipe organs). He typically listens to songs: Keep On Pushing - Kirk Whalum; Gospel John - Maynard Ferguson; “Sanctus” - Tonu Kaljuste; and Arvo Pärt: Te Deum" - Tonu Kaljuste. He also hates Sony headphones as well like the MA900, CD3000, and Z1R when I had them for a while. Thats why I think taste is a huge factor because we are hearing almost the same thing, but I can’t agree with him that the W5000 is a good-sounding headphone to me and he can’t agree with me that the Sony MA900/CD3000 is a good sounding headphone to him. Returning back on topic, it is a possibility I will end up liking the W5000 in my current chain and I could borrow them real quick, but honestly I don’t think they are for me if someone like my coworker can like them being powered from his laptop.
For me, the 1 thing I like about the AD2000 vs any other headphone in general is the speed of the headphone and the unique sound it can make the midrange. On some high bpm rock song tracks like Through The Fire And Flames - Dragonforce sound really awesome with the AD2000 that you don’t get with almost any other headphone. The unique midrange on the electric guitar, the speed of the riffs of the guitar and beat from the drums, and the vocals sounding really unnatural, but at the same time pretty epic. It’s a cool headphone I wish I still have.
Thanks, the L3000 and W10VTG are the oldest headphones of my ownership in my current collection. I want to think I will still own them many more years to come and it hopefully still work, but they are getting really old. I am trying to find a new ATH woody replacement with the new limited edition woods, but if Audio-Technica keep pricing them at $9000, imma just forget about that company lol. It can be just a good happy memory if the L3000 or W10VTG gave out.
You have had a very interesting audio journey and also an amazing collection of headphones that has probably changed with time.
Im also building mine I started recently in 2020. Audio technica quickly became my go to but as I love variety the most, I appreciate some of the riskier divisive tunings but also respect the classics.
Our tastes are not extactly the same but we can still apreciate a lot of the same cans! I understand what you mean with the ad2000, its unique.
Thats really impressive. I remember reading this entire thread when I first join which was probably back in January or February, and I think you gotten almost all the ATH woodies and a lot of Grado headphones. That’s really cool, I do want to collect more ATH woodies, but want to do that when I feel completely satisfy and feel there isn’t any more need to upgrade my chain. But that’s like a never ending journey because I became more interested in getting Vinyl and CD Transport and who knows what else I will find out in the future.
Add On: I actually don’t remember if that was you, if I got the wrong person, my bad. I feel like I remember reading somewhere here that someone either tried or owned almost all the ATH headphones.
Still need the AWKT to have every ath woodie I want
Most anniversary editions got way too expensive for what they are, so at least for now im getting the normal woodies
Also im not sure if im missing 1 grado or 2, because I havent tried PS series (looking for the og non e ones) and the GS series im not sure about, but I do wonder what the gs3000x sounds like being their current flagship of sorts but I think its expensive not to demo and hard to demo it.
Talking with @MacDLaw is a bad influence. Now I got the itch to buy more ATH woodies
I was looking at classified today just to see if there is anything cool on sale. 3 things showed up, the ATH -W100, Sony MDR-CD1700 AKA baby R10 (both the CD1700 and CD3000 was nicknamed baby R10 for sharing the same driver as the R10), and a mint Onkyo A800. Man, I wish I could buy all 3, but trying to stop spending money to prepare for next year wave like the Final X8000 or new near field speakers.
So like always, I like to read about the headphones to make the itch go away.
Read a review for the W100:
Looks like it’s the more neutral bright tuning of the 90s woodies and is the last 90s woodies from ATH. It is said to have a tighter bass punch and has some sparkle up top. Still carry the classic ATH midrange where it’s probably still rich sounding and the vocals are forward by a lot. For $500, that’s still a lot to me, might consider getting it by the end of November if it’s still available and hopefully will get a price drop. It’s from South Korea, so I think you have to pay custom if it’s over $500 to USA.
While looking up reviews for the W100, I found this post:
I thought this will be interesting to post here since there are fellow kinsman of the love of ATH Woodies in this forum. I agree with the above statement since I used to / currently own the W5000, W10VTG, and L3000 and those 3 sound and presentation is very different to my ears even though all 3 midrange is similar. I also pretty mention it in my previous post about their tuning, but it’s nice to see it in a post the group of classic ATH woodies that share similar tuning. ATH classic woodies either have a bright more detail revealing tuning, or a more warm unique tuning, or a more balanced tuning. I think I am more of the camp of the warm tuning and the balance tuning of the classic ATH woody camp. My taste has change, so maybe I will give the bright ATH woodies a try again one day. I think imma use that list to reference my future classic woodies purchase so that way, I know what kind of tuning I am getting myself into if I do end up purchasing anymore classic ATH woodies.
Man you should really try out the audio technica w1000, its the “original” colored audio technica flavor, with insane vocals and bright treble. Its only $235 which is completely insane as most people I know have it paid $500 for a less mint product.
The wood is practically mint and he even removed the pads so you can see it has no fungi or internal damage. The only downside is it doesnt include the original w1000 pads which are angled and super small but very comfy. That changes completely its signature but you can put w5000 pads to it which are still available directly by emailing audio technica.
I have never heard the w100 and the reviews on head fi tend to be very subjective… but it should be nice as well although I think w100.
I bought the W1000. Really going to regret letting the W100 go, but it’s in Korea and having to pay customs which isn’t going to make it worth it in terms of pricing. So, just settling down with the W1000 and see how they compare against something like the W10VTG and L3000. I don’t expect to like it since the reviews says it’s bass light, but I really like headphones like the SR1a and Mysphere 3.2 so much, so 1st hand listening before judging I guess.
You have to consider he is comparing the w1000 bass to a much warmer headphone with great bass extension.
I really do think with the original pads the bass is not light at all, only light if paired with a colder amp, although I do have the premier amp designed for the w1000 which is the beautiful yamamoto ha02, the w1000 were still very good in any warmer leaning amps I put it.
If you put w5000 pads on the w1000 the bass extension improves so much is unbelivable, reaches down to 40 no problem, but the whole signature changes and I prefer the lusher w1000 og pads, the w5000 are more of a neutral bright tuning but it also helps out with treble peaks.
May stick with the Yaxi AD2000 pads on it if it fits since I usually like female vocals with those pads. Those are the only pads I got available besides a bunch of ZMF pads.
I just wanted to make sure I have all 3 classic ATH factions in the collection which are the bright classics (W1000 now), warm classics (W10VTG), and the balance classics (L3000). I have spoken with my friend whom I mentioned earlier in this thread who is a huge Jazz fan. I will probably let him hear the W1000 and see what he thinks since he is a bigger fan of bright ATH cans than I am.
Yaxi ad2000 might work, and also the bunch zmf might work so I hope you have a nice time pad rolling audio technica big round headphones. They change a lot, more than ive heard other cans change with pad rolls.
Its very hard to not like the headphones at $235, people I know that got for em more expensive really like em and keep.
Warm and Rich Midrange
