R10 Impressions/Thoughts

[tkam]

Thanks to Alex (ayt999) I've had a pair of R10's on loan for a good amount of time now and figured it was time to post some impressions. The R10's have wonderful detail retrieval and are one of the most resolving phones around. This is of course a double edged sword as it can be great on well recorded music but absolutely brutal on poor recordings. The R10's tonality which I do feel to be quite natural sounding is likely their best attribute. Probably the most talked about attribute of the R10's is their sound stage, yes it's huge and yes it gives the listener that sense of being completely enveloped in sound. That being said, I do not think it is very natural, in fact on some music I found it to be down right distracting. Aside from that, I will say that the imaging is very accurate and the sense of space they can portray is impressive. The R10's treble has great extension and a good amount of "airyness" to it. However I do think it has a tendency to be a little sibilant at times.

On to the R10's bass which is easily and I think rightfully so their most controversial attribute. The extension is pretty good, but the impact is lacking. For example the leading edge of drum hits sound very good but that "oomph" you expect to come after that and as the note trails off is often times non-existent or not prominent enough. I almost wonder if the less than stellar bass was done on purpose as it does seem to add to the sense of space between instruments. For a large portion of my music the lacking bass is really quite a detriment to my enjoyment of the music. For me that makes the R10's very genre limited headphones and certainly not worth the $4-$5K that they go for these days.

It's safe to say that I'm part of the group that just doesn't get all the hype the R10's receive. Their "strength" I already get elsewhere, with the L3000 I get tonality that is on par or better than the R10's IMO and when it comes to sound stage if I want a truly large sound stage I'll just listen to my speakers. Part of the reason I really like headphones is their immediacy and more intimate setting and I feel the R10s are the antithesis of that.

[humanflyz]

So would you say that the bass impact on the R10 is electrostat-like?

[tkam]

I think that is a pretty fair assessment, though electrocstat bass is a good bit quicker.

[tiberian]

i like the r-10s and i do think they are the best dynamic headphones i have ever heard. but the price they can command is ridiculous right now and they don't even sound $4000 better than a pair of woodied/rewired sennheiser hd650s.

just imho.

[humanflyz]

I heard Mikhail's balanced R10s at a meet recently out of a Dynamight; it certainly is the best closed headphone I've heard. It has that airy sound that I like, and the midrange is flawless. I felt the bass was a little bit light, but not something that I would mind. Maybe the SDS-XLR would've made them a lot better, but somehow Mikhail didn't get it to work for some reason. But I felt like the R10s are ridiculously over-priced, but then again, so are pretty much all OOP headphones.

[tkam]

That airy sound you speak of, is not something I'm really looking for in headphones. If I didn't have speakers I *might* agree with you. But for now I still think my L3000 are better

[humanflyz]

That airy sound you speak of, is not something I'm really looking for in headphones. If I didn't have speakers I *might* agree with you. But for now I still think my L3000 are better

I get where you are coming from. If I could have speakers, believe me I would. But until that time when living arrangements allow, I'm stuck with headphones. And oh yeah, I need to hear the Leatherhead one of these days.

[909]

There are two versions of the R10s as far as my understanding, based on Edwood?s comments to me. I?ve heard the R10 serial number 444, which is the early less bass version. Later on in the production Sony for whatever reason increased the R10?s bass and as I am told other sound spectrums slightly suffered.

Do you know the serial number and what R10 version you heard?

Based on the past few days with the L3000s and my time with Edwood's R10s, I think the R10s have slightly bigger soundstage and slightly better imagining and placement. Yet the R10s that I heard were really bass shy even with my amp that added a little more. I think the R10s would be better for big band or large orchestral classical music. The L3000s are more upfront, dynamic, and the bass is the best I've ever heard in a headphone in terms of quality and quantity. I think for rock, pop, jazz, and small band and classic stuff the L3000s are better and definitely more fun. The R10s are a bit dry in comparison and laid back.

[deepak]

I've heard Ray's and Mikhail's R10. Ray's sounded a lot better, iirc a 2002 model.

[PsychoZX]

I spent some time at the florida meet comparing Ray's R10s (serial number in the 1100 range) to a AT W11JPN and to my surprise the R10s had considerably deeper and fuller sounding bass with more impact. In fact the only pair of R10s I heard that were lacking in bass was an older pair that Mikhail had at the national meet (not the recabled one, he had two pairs at that meet). The rest of the R10s I have heard were the later production models and I was always satisfied with the amount of bass they presented. To me percussion instruments sound more real on the R10s than any other headphone I have ever heard.

[deepak]

I spent some time at the florida meet comparing Ray's R10s (serial number in the 1100 range) to a AT W11JPN and to my surprise the R10s had considerably deeper and fuller sounding bass with more impact. In fact the only pair of R10s I heard that were lacking in bass was an older pair that Mikhail had at the national meet (not the recabled one, he had two pairs at that meet). The rest of the R10s I have heard were the later production models and I was always satisfied with the amount of bass they presented. To me percussion instruments sound more real on the R10s than any other headphone I have ever heard.

GS-1000 is pretty good for percussion. Comparing R10 with GS-1000 on the same amp setup, the 2 aren't that different. IMO the R10 has a much better midrange.