Equation

[aerius]

is it just me or is everything new always going to be treated with skepticism and dismissed by this forum?

It's just you.

Serious answer? I won't speak for other head-case members, but I for one, having seen all kinds of "this new thing's the best shit ever!!!" threads on more pieces of gear than I can remember, will treat any new claims of "miracle gear" with a healthy degree of skepticism. To me it's nothing to get excited about until either myself or someone whose opinions I trust hears it and gives it the thumbs up.

[qazwsx]

is it just me or is everything new always going to be treated with skepticism and dismissed by this forum?

No, just stuff that has "better than the HD600", advertisements and obvious company accounts in the same forum.

[postjack]

It's just you.

Serious answer? I won't speak for other head-case members, but I for one, having seen all kinds of "this new thing's the best shit ever!!!" threads on more pieces of gear than I can remember, will treat any new claims of "miracle gear" with a healthy degree of skepticism. To me it's nothing to get excited about until either myself or someone whose opinions I trust hears it and gives it the thumbs up.

x2

and the denons did go over pretty well, got me interested in a pair.

[saint.panda]

The Equations are yellow and ugly. I wouldn't want to wear them in public.

[recstar24]

maybe tomorrow

Cool - works for me

[Pinto]

I bought a pair. They sound good for $99 cans, but they are not going to challenge the L3000 as closed can king anytime soon...

[KenW]

x2

and the denons did go over pretty well, got me interested in a pair.

I was a bit hesitant about the Denons, but took a chance and bought a pair(5000s). I'm quite pleased with them out of my Supra so far. Not bad out of my ZVM and laptop either.

[Pinto]

I think the D5000's are terrific. For me they are the best sounding Japanese Woody (but I have never heard the L3000).

[deepak]

I think the D5000's are terrific. For me they are the best sounding Japanese Woody (but I have never heard the L3000).

Which AT's have you heard? (W5000, W10vtg, W11jpn, W2002 all receive high praise so I'm just curious)

[qazwsx]

I don't like pinto beans.

[Pinto]

Which AT's have you heard? (W5000, W10vtg, W11jpn, W2002 all receive high praise so I'm just curious)

The W5000, W1000, and W2002. AT Woodies just don;t have enough bass for me. I hear great things about the W11jpn but they are made of unobtanium.

I don't like pinto beans.

Dude! Pinto Beans are awesome. Beans, Beans, good for the heart...

[deepak]

I hear great things about the W11jpn but they are made of unobtanium.

If you really want them you can get them.

[NightWoundsTime]

I had a few minutes with both versions of the Equations, and they're cool for $100 phones. If I still worked an office job I'd probably end up getting them for good sound, minimal leakage, good build, and loseability without too much pain. When I worked at the post office it was Triports for me (with sexy electric tape mod. Didn't help the sound much but 3 rolls of black electrical tape around the headband stopped that pesky eggshell breaking problem.

[Yikes]

About the Equation Audio RP-21

A dealer of mine who knows that I am into headphones asked me to give the RP-21?s a listen. These are my thoughts.

Build ? Seems durable and it is relatively comfortable. The cable has a really cheap feel ? Plastically feel to it. Nice design for a removable cable. The removable plug is a ? turn locking 1/8? plug. A much better designed plug than the crappy HD600/650 plug. The Copper and black color scheme is OK, but the logos on the sides look silly.

Comfort ? They are fairly comfortable, but not as comfortable as my K-701?s. Most of the cup force is taken by the ear-pads, however the distance from the pads to the foam that covers the drivers is insufficient to keep the foam from touching my earlobes. The resultant pressure does get to be annoying (FYI ? I don?t have Radar ears).

Sound ? Very dynamic with very good speed and clarity. The bass is very strong and powerful, albeit a little wooly sounding. After about 25 hours the highs have smoothed out and extrapolating out a thorough break-in I believe that the high frequency performance will end up being very good (It?s already good).

On recordings that emphasize clarity speed and transparency (Classical, and acoustic Jazz) the RP-21?s were clearly bested by both my AKG K-701?s (Still stock) and my Sony MDR SA-5000?s (Siltech wired). They acquitted themselves quite well on Art/Prog rock, with 70?s art rock (Kansas) I actually preferred the RP-21?s to my reference phones. It?s sort of like using a good loudness control on an old receiver. As far as image goes the RP-21?s make no effort at attempting to sound like anything but headphones.

Are they accurate? No. They have an exaggerated and slightly wooly sounding bass register. The midrange and highs are both good to very good.

Up ? Very dynamic with great bass power and slam.

Down ? Wooly bass ? Lack a degree of transparency ? They press on my ears so long term comfort could be an issue.

Value ? I would consider them a good value at the $149 retail; at their MAP of $99 they are an exceptional value. No giant killer, but for Rock definitely a fun can to listen to.

A quick comment about the selling price. Equation Audio is attempting to set up a brick and mortar dealer network where prospective customers will be able to actually listen to the product (As Grado has done). They are emphasizing MAP and making dealers actually stick to it. This is the only way that they can get dealers to invest in demos/stock and actually promote the product.

If a product is widely advertised at a very low price (Internet dealers commonly settle on as little margin as 2 - 5%) brick and mortar dealers that due to the nature of the business must make more margin will not carry and promote a product that for them is not viable. If a manufacturer can maintain their pricing structure (i.e. keep the product from being widely advertised at excessively discounted rates) brick and mortar dealers will be able to, and willing to show and sell the product.

Scenario 1 ? A Company that has not maintained a rigid pricing structure or not enforced their MAP policies. The end user (The customer) can?t find a local dealer where they can audition the product because local dealers won?t carry it. The end user is forced to decide what product to buy based upon someone else?s written opinion in an idiotic on-line forum or a written review in some magazine. The end-user gets a great price on product A. The problem is that as everyone knows everyone?s opinion is different, and product A just doesn?t suit them. So they sell it (At a loss) and order a different product. This is why so many members have owned so many different headphones. It usually takes many sets of headphones and a lot of time and money to find what they are looking for.

Scenario 2 ? A Company has maintained a pricing structure that allows a brick and mortar store a fighting chance to make enough profit to effectively carry the product (Grado). The end-user goes into the store with some CD?s and listens to the various models. They narrow it down to one model. They ask, and the dealer allows them to take the headphones home for a day or two (With security) to hear what it does with their equipment. The end-user can therefore make an informed decision. The user pays more for one set of phones that they have auditioned and already knows that they like. This ultimately saves money.

A manufacturer of quality product (That people will actually buy if they are able to audition) benefits greatly by having a dealer network where customers can audition the products. The only way of actually getting this dealer network is by insuring that the product is viable for the dealer to carry. A strict MAP policy is the only way a company can attempt to do this.

The Internet is bringing everything to the lowest common denominator: The Price. This is what is killing audio stores all over the country and the world. Unfortunately in the future you won?t be able to locally audition much of anything. People will make purchasing decisions based upon other people?s gossip. They will get great prices, but they?ll be great prices on a lot of CRAP.