Monoprice Monolith: A new planar?

Listening to them naked (pads and grills removed*) on the Jot, less of the tie fighter soundstage (hd650)... more fleshed out like my 2 channel system, digs deeper into the bass! Having fun with them.

Gonna do the xlr in a bit.



*seems less stifled, yet untamed transients / highs

 

Finished and have a working balanced cable. But not worth it with this cable, I chopped it and discover the L/R grounds are still connected together!

Had to break open the Y split to separate it out, ugh. Looks OK in the end.

Sounds good, widens the stage.

 

The graph of the angled pleather pads seems like the one I'd go for. How does it sound?

 

Honestly, really promising, which is annoying because I hate the feel of the pleather. Despite being lower relative in bass to the vegan it's got great impact, and the treble is quite lively sounding even at lower levels, it's puzzling to me. I'm may order a pair of HM5 angled hybrids to see how they go as the velour on the face contact alone would be a big comfort improvement.

Playing with various damping with the Pleather HM5, currently liking the Yellow line the best but swapping back and forth still, green line get a little sharp/sibilant.


Red=Stock, Green=HM5 Pleather, Yellow= Front:HM5+Felt Ring. Rear:Felt Square-Paper Towel,-Polyfil-Felt Disc. Pink=Front: HM5+Felt Ring. Rear:Felt Square-Paper Towel-Stock Foam.

 

First attempt to apply the paper mod no success, as I found it suppressed too much of the treble. (Will try later with softer paper). But these can be made to sound very good with simple EQ-ing: Down with 1k area, up with the bass. Kind of "ugly duckling"- headphones, if you ask me.
Otherwise they seem to demand an amp that is strong in the bass department, and generally able-bodied. Weaker stuff chased away the immaculous swan, so to speak.
Anything else? Well, IMO they may have little charm or personalty of their own. ( I do not complain, one can see this as a health symptom!. But after applying EQ they made me slightly think of eating plain soft-ice cream with no flavor or toppings).
My first extended listening session was with organ music and it turned out a hypnotic experience. I sat speechless for 5 minutes afterwards, just being happy.
I am grateful for the thread, which made me want to try these. I will keep them, since I see them as a near perfect complement to my electrostatic stuff.

 

Hey guys, have any of you tried the round Velour pads from Brainwavz? They aren't angled, so I was wondering what that would do to the sound... If not, I'll probably still get them and let you know what I think, but I have no measuring equipment unfortunately. Audeze pads are really hard to get here, so I'm looking for the best alternatives.

 

I'm packing up my 1060s today to send back to Monoprice. There seems to be some channel imbalance with my pair that I find distracting, but even if I didn't have that issue, I don't think I'd want to keep them. The overall build quality is just too poor. In particular, I have a problem with the creaky suspension system, and the stupid bumpy head strap.

 

Bumpy head-strap is the reason why I'm returning them. They're just too heavy and I get a hotspot on top of my head with them. Those earpads though, omg. Comfort on the ear-side of things is supreme.

 

I had a replacement headstrap for the HD650 laying around. I actually just shove that between my head and the headband whenever I put it on. Works like a charm! No more hotspot. Thinking about a way to permanently glue it in place...

 

I am currently using a very early LCD2 leather pad that a friend sent me, and honestly I really really like, unfortunately I'm unsure if the new LCD2 pads would measure or sound the same.
RED=Stock, PEACH=Vegan, BLUE=LCD2 leather, YELLOW=LCD2+damping changes.

 

@Hands Did someone send Vegan pads for you to try? I honestly hated the sound with stock pads.

 

From http://deals.headphonesnao.com/sunday-monoprice-m1060-for-255-with-coupon/

The Sunday coupon MOTHERS15 also works on *surprise-surprise* the buzz-generating new (and revised based on various new user reports) Monoprice M1060 planar magnetic over ears. The price before the coupon is $300. The coupon drops 15% off, making it $255.

 

nice! Would love a pair of those!

 

@Tyll Hertsens fame of wall?

 

I do not see them there. Maybe one day, but MP needs to work out the comfort level. At the denver meet, many agreed the headband was atrociously uncomfortable. I felt pain at the top of my head within minutes.

 

Although I love my pair, these headhones are a non-sense without the mod (at least for me). If you consider connectors and headband as @AllanMarcus mentioned, then there is a very long way before these cans reach Tyll's Wall of Fame.

 

Wow... To all of you who recommended pad rolling these, a massive thank you. I couldn't get Audeze Vegans here in The Netherlands, so got Brainwavz round velours ones instead. Here's my comparison (in both cases w. paper towel mod).

Sound:
1. A lot of the upper-mid forwardness ('shrillness') is gone. Not completely, but man do these pads do wonders. I am now comfortably listening at much higher volumes and don't mind the slight emphasis that is still there anymore. This for me is the most important change.
2. The bass extension is roughly the same, but it feels slightly thicker at ~60Hz, which I love.
3. Highs are roughly the same, maybe even a little more detailed. Could be due to the drivers being closer to my ears now.
4. Imaging has slightly improved, again due to the drivers being closer to my ears I assume.
5. Soundstage has decreased a little. These pads are narrower and not angled. But staging is still adequate for me as the stage was very big anyway on the stock pads.

Comfort:
1. No more sweaty pleather, yay!
2. Slightly denser foam as compared to stock pads, but I actually find them more comfortable.
3. A little smaller than the stock pads as well (both inner and outer diameter). My ears just touch the insides, but no discomfort whatsoever. If you stick them on properly, you only see the metal ring behind the pads. Pretty much all the screws and residual glue that is found behind the stock pads can be concealed if you stick them on with a little stretching.

My recommendation? If you're looking for a cheaper alternative (or at least readily available one) to the Audeze Vegans, the Brainwavz round velours won't disappoint. Unless soundstage is of utmost importance to you. I am incredibly happy with them!

 

I see @Scott Kramer seemed to have made a balanced cable for the M1060's - Is it difficult to do and can anyone build one besides Scott?