A Modern Classic - Modhouse Tungsten Review
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- Опубліковано 15 чер 2024
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00:00 - Intro
00:51 - The Tungsten
02:39 - Build, Design & Comfort
06:41 - Power Requirements
08:55 - Sound: Objective
15:49 - Sound: Subjective
17:56 - Comparisons
20:56 - Conclusion - Розваги
"The last headphone I need, I swear..."
I can't help pick up an element of sarcasm lol... nothing is the last in this game 😂
Might be the last you "need" but it won't be the last one you'll "want".
@@nunoferraz5426 well spotted
@rogerhuston8287 A guy can dream , can't he? 😄
"... And this time I mean it!"
I'm glad I somehow managed to sneak in an order before this went live. 😂 Although I've already had to upgrade my amp to an Oor to feel confident that I'll be able to drive them. We'll see when these arrive... in a few months.
Congrats. What was your older setup?
good review... glad you chose the compare headphones as those choices make a lot of sense...
Thank you Resolve! I’ve had my pair of SS Tungsten since the end of June. Ryan is a wonderful person! I hope to see you in NYC at CanJam!
Is there a reason you went with the SS rather than the DS? Just curious.
@@djtlee yes at the time I ordered my Tungsten from Ryan the SS was the first finished production version.
Hi thank you for the review! I wanted to ask how does the tungsten compare to the he1000 stealth? As Always great work! 😁
Great video. Very great showing for Modhouse.
Hoping to see Meze's 109 Pro on the rig
On what rig?
I like the measured praise. Good job.
Hadn't seen a Propper review for these since tungsten went live back in 2023. Very comforting to see you guys have faithful impressions of this headphone considering I was one of the first people to place a quick rather rushed order for them! Also worth pointing out for other people, that Ryan from Modhouse does also offer a wooden finish instead of the normal/coloured metal. I chose Paduok wood for mine. Great review, and very exited to get mine to try
Check out Z reviews he's been on the tungsten train for a while.
Awesome review as always! What program are you using to eq the headphones to the Harman curve?
On Windows he's using Equaliser APO with Peace GUI
@resolve, what would your EQ for the tungsten look like on roon using parametric eq? forgive me if it's obvious but not sure what program you are using in your example. Nice review!
Hey man really been loving the channel! Just wanted to ask how would you compare these to things like hd800s and hifiman arya stealth?
This supposedly blow those headphones out of the water.
The Composer is in a similar price bracket, looking forward to that review!
Just like headphones and ampliers drastically improved during the last few years, so has the quality of reviews like this. So well presented. Well done!
I need to get my hands on one of these.
Odd that there was a comparison to HE5/6 that are no longer available, and that there was a comparison to Elite (much more expensive, double in the case of single-sided version) but no comparison to HE1K V1/V2/Arya Organic, which are all in the similar price range (single-sided version)
Would the Element III MK2 be able to utilize these headphones at 75db?
So are you just going to talk mostly about FR from now on? Would love more elaboration on the subjectives.
How is the dynamic slam of the double-sided Tungsten compared to the OG HE-6? Stronger or weaker? And stronger or weaker than the dynamic slam of the Focal Clear?
If you want a more dynamic slam, opt for the single-sided version which is ever so slightly V-shaped in its presentation. Tungsten is better than Clear in all ways.
Would love to see single sided review.
Trying to decide between these and LCD-X for metal.
I saw on Modhouseaudio that he even sells Fostex headphones. Does this headphone come from a mod from Fostex drivers then he upgraded and tune to become Modhouse Tungsten?
So would a Holo Serene drive DS version? Can't get any data on yhe Serene driving headphones.
XLR is stated at 17v output
I do have both a Schiit Loki max and Felix Audio Echo in the train so i could bump up the voltage if i switch them in?
Ordered the single-sided version (one review mentioned the single-sided was better for EDM/House type music...and also $$$). Currently have the K9 Pro ESS and hoping based on the linked forum discussion this setup will work well enough. Has anyone actually used this all-in-one DAC/Amp with the Tungsten? I have not budgeted for more gear and crossing my fingers...
Just watched your Emp’s 2.0 review…and now this is super interesting 🫨
That’s amazing.
Resolve smelled that headphone like he was being held at gunpoint and forced to do it 😂
newbie in the audiophile world and looking for a new headphone to replace my audeze lcd 2.
Anyone know if the audeze deckard amp is enough to drive these ??
Will my Shoit Mjolnir 3 drive the Tungsten close to there best potential?
For everyone who's now interested, please keep in mind that it is a one man operation so it may be difficult to get one, and it'll take a while for you to receive it if you manage to order one. Please have patience!
I read in a forum that it pairs well with a Jotunheim 2. If so, I may have to jump on board.
Great, now I will have to learn how to create a bot that will order a pair for me, because there is no way I will manage to put my order in before they are out of stock.
What would be better for bass, the tungsten or lcd x
You know, when you use a black background with thin colored lines in your graphs it's really hard to read on my little laptop during daylight hours.
I tried to put an order through in early January when the website said it was going to go live but it never did and never got a chance to put an order.. will try again later this month when it goes live again.. hopefully.
This has been my default headphone to use at home (and sometimes on-the-go). It is simply wonderful and if you want endgame-level performance below $2k, I would recommend the single sided version. I can wear them for hours and they even made me cry on a few occasions. If you have a $2k budget for an entire set up, get single sided and then buy a douk U5($50) and a topping E50 ($220). That stack is easily the cheapest I've found that runs Tungsten to it's fullest.
Is this seriously a stack worth considering? Have you tried it on anything else with a notable difference?
@@c34webb I A/B'd the Douk U5 against the topping L70 and it drove Tungsten indistinguishably from the L70. I've also tried Tungsten on the speaker out for Loxje A30. That also drove them well
@@TheLeftistOwlI hadn’t heard of the Douk U5. It looks amazing for the price. Where are you on the volume knob with the Tungsten, and roughly how loud do you listen?
@@radioactivehalfrhyme I listen around 60-70dB. I get around noon-1 I clock on the douk u5
@@TheLeftistOwlInteresting, thanks! This makes me wonder if Goldensound’s amp recommendations in the forum thread aren’t a little bit conservative.
And good on you for practicing better listening safety than me! I have to limit my use of the HE-6 because I struggle not to listen to it around 80 dB.
Looking forward to the Tungsten Closed in 4 years :-)
Still stuck watching adds but I am excited to find out ..
Would the THX 789 be powerful enough for this headphone?
You need 20 Volts of gain - answer is NO.
Excellent review. I think it shows the preference zone is a myth.
You mean the Harman research? Also, how so... This headphone generally falls within the range of established preference groups from the research.
@@ResolveReviews No, the shaded preference zone in your first 2 graphs, where it escapes in 3-4 places.
@@el_arte that is from the Harman research.
Bruh someone is lost
For those who've bought, did you buy DS or SS and why? If you've tried both, which one did you like better and why? Looking to buy for their next release.
I bought DD because they're easier to drive and more neutral. That gives me flexibility to adjust the sound via the pads, so I picked up the hybrid pads as well. I don't have the headphones in hand yet so I cannot comment beyond that. Lead time is a few months after ordering.
I ordered the SS because I prefer a bit more fun to my sound vs neutrality. Power and voltage are not a concern for me with my current setup. (You can see my earlier posts if you want to know what I will be using).
I ordered the SS because I prefer a bit more fun to my sound vs neutrality. Power and voltage are not a concern for me with my current setup. (You can see my earlier posts if you want to know what I will be using).
I'm just curious if tungsten could be better than my Phobos (with ZMF pads) just because it has better mid range than anything, I have big respect for Ryan but it is too hard and expensive to order his headphones outside of USA
I'm looking at getting the tungsten and I have a schiit bifrost and jotunheim stack. Would that be enough for the tungsten?
Indeed
No. That setup won’t even properly drive the He-6SE, I use the Flux Fa-10.
I would be very hesitant in trying it. I had the Bf2/Jot2 with the HE6SEv2, and it wasn't quite up to the task there. It could get 'loud' but there were the noticeable anemic bass issues and uncontrolled treble that comes with using an under-powered amp. And the Tungsten are going to be much more demanding than the 6SEv2.
@@Michael_mki233 Ryan himself said it worked as he had one. But do what you want
@@73split lol Ryan said it worked. Check the Head-Fi thread.
@2:15 I literally just preordered mine in all Stormtrooper White Cerakote fisnish. So I can show you what that'll look like in 4 months lol
Ok..be straight with me.. How far below acceptable is the headphone section of the Ifi Ican Phantom at driving dual sided tungetens... according to golden eyes post..its not close. Its got the 20v? but the mw measurements are just WAYYYY off. Was really hoping to kill 2 birds with the phantom as i want the estat amp ..HOWEVER i was also hoping to NOT have to buy ANOTHER amp to drive tungtens. But since i tends to listen a bit on the lud but safe side... sighh. Does the search continue?
Unless you're wanting to run stats as well you'll get decent sound out of both but not excellent. The Tungstens need current like from the Violectric v550
♥
nice if someone could try it with a olt tube amp M H says they will work
Any idea if it can be driven by an RME ADI-2/4 PRO SE ?
No, ADI-2 amp is weak. You need to buy amp(pricey amp) if you want to use tungsten
Ahahahahahahahaha. No bro , that thing is weak
According to RME it's maximum output level is 18.4V RMS on balanced output. It should drive the Tungsten to around 111dB SPL peak. I think that's plenty unless you listen very loud or plan to add tons of bass with EQ.
@n0xt it's hard for me to understand the relationship between what RME describes as the technical abilities and what the Tungsten might need.
Is that for the main speaker outs or the headphone balanced outs?
And what about Wattage?
Seems the Tungsten are used on some Speaker Outputs right?
I am interested tobuse them in a mastering and mixing/producing scenario in the studio.
@@Aquiiin I recommend you watching another video on this channel which explains the basics of headphone amplifiers, their power and volume. It was uploaded around March last year.
In my previous comment I was talking about the balanced headphone output.
You can calculate the power from the P=U^2/R equation. 18.4V at 160 Ohm load equals to around 2.1W. You can confirm that with RME support to be sure, but it lines up with their measurements (page 95 in the manual).
I don't recommend using a speaker amplifier to drive any headphones unless you are 100% sure of what you are doing.
I'm not sure if mixing and mastering requires even more headroom. If you listen at around 85dB SPL, then the RME will have around 25dB of headroom.
I placed my order on December 22, 2023 and I expect my Tungsten (SS) to arrive in March.
I will run them on my current setup which is the Gustard A26 DAC which has an output of 5 volts (balanced) and my amp is the Burson Soloist 3X Performance which has up to 28 volts on high gain (balanced).
From everything I have read about the Tungsten, my setup will drive them easily with voltage & current to spare.
I am posting this because I think the Gustard A26 DAC (or Gustard R26) combined with the Burson 3XP offers nice value compared to most other DACs and amps with similar specs. Combined the cost is about $2,500. Both are fantastic! IMO, of course.
Resolve, I really appreciate your commentary and explanations on this very technical shit!!! I learn a lot.
I hope Hifiman makes a mass production version of this. They discontinued he6 and he6se has quirks.
You should be good on power. Other amp scale better at higher ohms though.
I hope Hifiman makes a mass production version of this. They discontinued he6 and he6se has quirks.
What kind of quirks? Thanks
build comfort qc availability@@zoide-777
@@zoide-777 HE6SE V2’s driver is prone to get stuck to one of the magnet arrays, which can cause a severe channel imbalance. Check out Crinacle’s measurement of one such pair. You can fix it, but it’s nerve-wracking. This wasn’t a problem with the original HE6.
I'd have jumped on the Tungsten if they weren't so hard to drive. Not investing in a TOTL Amp. Recently got the JM Audio XTC2 Open HP and it's amazing for the money. Get a pair The HP Show. Best All Rounder I've ever heard. EASY to Drive!! So good that I sold my ZMF Caldera
Which driver?
@@mariothesharkfucker6063 I got the 64 ohm Beryllium driver. I was shocked how good these sound. I emailed back and forth with John who turns out to be a wizard with tunings. I told him what headphones and gear I like and the music Genre's I listened to like Hard Rock and what I most prefer in a HP's sound signature and he nailed it. I wanted Soundstage, Deep Bass, Punch and Slam/Dynamics but without getting hot in the treble. I have no skin in the game. I just feel like John and JM Audio is probably the best kept secret in the Headphone Hobby. For my music genre's these are the best All Rounders I've heard to date and I've heard a few HP's 5X the price like Susvara and Utopia. The JM Audio XTC2 Open hit that fine line between Audiophile sound and being a FUN headphone. And the 64 ohm are really easy to drive. They kind of look like an Audeze in build... but the comfort is amazing compared to an Audeze. You don't even notice them on your head. 3 sets of Pads, Quality HP cable. All for $1K. I have a feeling that JM Audio is going to blow up once more people are aware of him/them
I would prefer pay a little..more to have an easier drive-wear heaphone with similar tonality like abyss mr or Meze.I think the strongest point of a headphone is to forget that you wearing it
🔥 All aboard the hype train 🔥
A Topping A70 Pro would blast any headphone into deafening volume levels and not clip when doing so....
yea and be at that cold as my EX
I came early today
@Resolve You didn't answer the main question that I was hoping this review was going to answer. How much punch and slam? Better than HE-6 or LCD-4, Focals? You normally speak about this subjective quality in detail.
Yeah I'm moving away from this kind of language because it's more confusing for people than it is helpful. But for that quality, I'd say Focals still do this best, and it's kind of a wash for the planars. But with the tungsten and HE-6, if you have an imperfect seal it will sound more impactful down low (even just a tiny bit), where the LCD-4 will not.
@@ResolveReviews Turning to the dark side (asr)?
@@maximgodunov7717 in the sense of using measurements and data to indicate sound quality? I've always done that. In the sense of the narratives and misuse of the research they put forward there, absolutely not.
To me, the 6-screw HE-6 is appreciably punchier than the LCD-4, with and without EQ-say 10/10 vs. 7.5/10. If Resolve has been using the HE-6 as a regular reference and he thinks it and the Tungsten are about tied, that’s a VERY high compliment.
I can’t speak for the Utopia, but Focal open-backs generally have worse sub-bass extension and don’t respond as well to a bass boost. My OG Clear was about as punchy as the HE-6, but its bass got quite muddy with the 6dB shelf that I prefer, and it clipped even at comfortable listening levels with certain tracks (e.g. “Foster Care” by Burial). I’m sure the Utopia’s better, but it still rolls off below 50 Hz. Whether this matters to you would depend on your preferences and the kind of music you listen to.
@@radioactivehalfrhyme gun to my head I'd probably say Utopia > he-6 > Tungsten > LCD4 for the subjective quality I'm considering there, but depending on the person it could be totally different.
There is a sound difference between SS and DS, but DS is much easier to drive than SS. So if you thought the DS was hard to drive, SS is nearly impossible on anything but the strongeest amps. Susvara seems easy in comparison.
The SS and DS are very close in power/current/voltage needed.
SS takes more power trying them side by side at CanJam. It was quite a bit more, but that was compared to each other. Comparing to all headphones, yes they are closer to each other on that scale than to other headphones. So you are right from that perspective.
I dont suppose a jds atom 2 stack will be enough :(
Unfortunately nopes
It wouldn't hurt to try, Atom 2 outputs around 9.2V RMS, which should be enough for 105dB SPL peak.
2nd coming of the he6 lmaooo (pretty true tho, sounds like a slightly different he6, basically a better he6sev2)
I think it pushes past the HE6sev2 and more towards the Susvara...
@@dixter1652 Its a different presentation to susvara I think. Not as wide but its so much more natural sounding.
@@dixter1652 definitely, I just said that comparison with the he6 se v2 cuz the he6 se v2 has a differnet tuning from the og he6 (or at least to my ears)
You are using a Violectric V550 to power the Tungsten but it's not recommended as an amp to power the headphones in the link you provided even though the V550 is more than capable with 20v output @ 155 ohms.
It is recommended, those ones are in addition to this one.
@@ResolveReviewsWould you recommend the SPL Phonitor XE (or X) as well? I know you have that one and use quite often. I’m curious if you have heard the Tungsten on that one?
@@johs12345 Maybe on high gain, but I haven't tested that amp with it.
@@ResolveReviews Okay! It’s my one amp (which is why I’m curious). SPL wrote me that it outputs 33.54 Volts at 150ohm (7.4W through balanced). Currently I’m rocking the He1000 V2s (non-stealth). How would you rate the two comparatively?
Greatly appreciated 🫶🏼
Wrong, it is recommended
Tungsten vs hedd 2 was such a obvious comparison at exact same price. 🤷♂️
man headphone curves are soooo weird compared to IEM curves.
I got the impression that you intentionally focused mostly on objective aspects and FR, and abstained to use very specific “audiophile” terms for describing subjective quality. And it probably is going to be your new approach for upcoming reviews? If it’s the case it absolutely makes sense. You try to understand how objective performance, affects these so called subjective properties. As someone that never does EQ and some of my fav headphones have such messed up FR, I appreciate this new approach more. Talking about facts. Your objective oriented evaluations will be more informative (at least for me) since we all preserve subjective aspects very differently.
Thanks for the review
Having a peak in the frequency response means there's probably a reference there. You can EQ the peak out but a resonance is still a resonance.
Strictly speaking... a peak IS a resonance. But if you're talking about anything to do with group delay, that's usually people looking at certain data and making the wrong conclusions from it - to determine if there are issues that make a headphone non-minimum phase you want to look at EXCESS group delay, and I put that in the forum post in the description. It's all fairly normal with this one.
@@ResolveReviews shouldn't she talk about group delay in all headphone reviews.
@@dangerzone007 With headphones, the more important bit is excess GD.
Argon review when
A review now is unlikely, but I’d love to see proper 711/5128 measurements of the Argon to see what exactly the mods are doing to the FR.
@@radioactivehalfrhyme yeah, even measurements would be great, there are a lot of reviews on them but I haven't seen measurements yet.
halloe
Too much hype for smth that is already available but this one is just even more difficult to drive.
Only Andrew would envy a stormtrooper smh.
I listened to a pre release version at canjam and didn't find it very impressive (not sure which version). Tuning was good and the bass was fun but overall resolution seemed just mid.
What do you compare them with in your impression?
@@staticosaur I listened to several flagship headphones present (utopia, LCD-5, empyrean II, d8000 pro, & Spirit Torino's Valkyria) and found most of those to be better overall. Empyrean II did have less bass clarity than the tungsten but mids and treble were more transparent with better emotion. LCD-5 was higher resolution than the tungsten though I'm not a fan of the tuning. Utopia and d8000 pro were a step ahead of the tungsten in just about every category for me. The Valkyria was my favorite of the show, but is way too expensive.
At home I have an lcd-xc and didn't find the tungsten to sound more resolving than that, so while the tungsten seems relatively competitive at the price point I didn't notice it having flagship level sound quality. Again, I don't know which version I tried, so maybe the final product is better than what I listened to.
@@aracari Thanks for sharing. I listen to LCD-X and have tried LCD-5, Utopia, LCD-4z and original Empyrean. I found I like LCD-X most overall and did not find anything significantly better in any of the flagships, only marginal improvements, e.g. the slightly faster LCD-5. LCD-3 is the only one I liked more overall, but still close enough to LCD-X to justify 60% higher price tag. It is a pity Tungsten cannot be auditioned in outside US.
can i get those to run on a desktop pc using a sound card or do i still require a full amp in addition?
Bro you need an amp. Those are the HARDEST to drive headphones out there
Nominal price of $2000! Requires high quality and high current output amplification. Power consumption is significantly higher than bookshelf speakers. These $3000 - $4000 headphones offer modest price-performance acquisition benefit. The Arya Organic are the apex predator, when considering all variables.
Not with that obscene amount of treble on the "Organic"
Organics are very very good. Need something to warm up the upper shelf but magical by all other standards.
Pair with the xDuoo XD-05 Pro with thr AKM AK4499EX DAC module. This injects sufficient warmth and elevates the Organic to new levels.
Hype. Hype. Hype.
Thanks for this, the Tungsten is good but WAY to overhyped.
It’s biggest weakness is the bass performance, it’s good but not great.
I prefer the Empy2 overall.
just EQ a bass shelf. It's perfectly capable of producing bass.
Curious, what amp/dac did you use ? And was it the same setup with Empy 2 ?
@@random-internet-dude Amps: 250W custom speaker amp, Mass Kobo 465, Holo Bliss KTE, Mass Kobo 394 II, Cen Grand Silver Fox, Kinki THR-1, Burson Soloist GT, Sparkos Aries.
DACs: Sonnet Pasithea, Holo May KTE, Cen Grand DSDAC 1.0 Deluxe, Chord Hugo TT2.
@@sjqideez6626 That's some serious high end right there 😃
Out of curiosity, did you find a preference out of those DACs ? Haven't seen much talk about Pasithea nor the Deluxe DSDAC. Thanks!
@@random-internet-dude the Deluxe is a rare kind of DAC with its onboard DSD up sampling to 1024, it is the most spacious & resolving of the bunch. The bass goes to the May KTE though, so dynamic sounding in the low end.
This is what happens when an actual engineer makes a headphone
Headphone cables can make a difference. I don't really like the grave digger corpse cable. It sounds a bit dead.
Another FOTM.... I wonder how it might seem normal to make headphones that can't be driven by any headphone amp...
Anybody can make good open headphones, the closed backs are where it's at.
Addiction. It’s all a sad addiction.
And we love and crave MORE!
$1500 and sold out. Snore
Don't take the name of the Lord in vain! Otherwise you will stay lost ...