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ESS-RLM-713 On Ear Headphones

ESS-RLM-713 On Ear Headphones

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Product Description
Known for their legendary work utilizing the Heil Air Motion Transformer invented by Dr. Oskar Heil, the RLM-713 is the first headphone from ESS Labs. Based upon the sound signature they are known for, this durable headphone is constructed from premium ebony wood that delivers music straight to your ear in a natural and organic environment Read More

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Dogfaceriley
1
May 18, 2023
Now discontinued but NOS and used they sell for $100 or so. My RLM-713 were re-wired to be balanced and have a 3.5mm cable connector on each ear cup. With my EL84 tube headphone amp, I enjoy them a lot. I think you would have to move up to the HE6SEV2 with an amp capable of driving those hard to drive headphones or the Final Audio Sonorous III headphone to get better sound. The tubes really enhance their sound. One major con for me is the on-ear design which makes them uncomfortable.
(Edited)
Praxisx
1
Oct 14, 2015
How do these compare to the K7xxx for $200? I mostly listen to hard rock/metal.
HansyPants
26
Oct 12, 2015
Well, here's another drop that I want that doesn't ship to Canada. Maybe next time.
Uzuzu
1431
Oct 11, 2015
lmao "closed so it has a nice black background to listen to" I lost all of my keks right there and you lost all your internets MD overpriced 3rd-rate cans.
Acidtrip69
244
Oct 9, 2015
Did anyone vote for theses ? or is another Shady Massdrop deal with a company so they can unload their junk overpriced products on us ? Because that what it seems like to me.
asdfasdfasf
1
Sep 24, 2021
Acidtrip69Maybe do your research before slamming a company..... ESS has been around a long time, made some GREAT products. $100 - these are DIRT CHEAP I have the bigger ones and IMO they beat my AKG K701's These are not cheap products - just a great deal.
SuperFlyEDSguy
57
Jul 16, 2022
asdfasdfasfThis is especially true if one ventures out from IEMs and cans to the speaker world as ESS has been producing first-rate speakers and speaker systems for decades now! ESS is fairly new to cans, but they are far from new to engineering great sound. So, I really wouldn’t expect those unfamiliar with receivers, amps, and speaker systems to know their name; but if you are familiar with ESS, their AMT should certainly be top of mind! What ESS is now trying to do is get their signature AMT sound into something a bit more portable. Closed-back was a design choice as to achieve the most passive noise cancelation possible, besides many studio producers and engineers have a preference for closed-back headphones to allow them to better focus on their work with minimal distractions. Personally, I feel that there is a need for both open- and closed-back headphone designs, and I own both types so that I could just pick what I’m in the mood for or what works best at the moment. Let’s also not forget that passive noise cancellation works in both directions and just like you would want to block out the noise while taking a train or waiting for a bus on a busy city street, you may also need to ‘tone down’ the sound leakage if others in the room are not up for listening to the same thing you are. This literally becomes exponentially more vital as you’re increasing the listening volume (with dBs being an exponential scale of course). I’ll end on this — I have to concur that these cans don’t suck — furthermore, there is a ‘funny’ caveat if you will as I also own the ESS 252 closed-back headphones and though smaller and less expensive, they are far better IMHO! So, if you’re going to get some ESS cans, which I’d certainly recommend doing, go for the cheaper ones first as these were okay, but the 252s frankly blew me away!
carlsan
146
Oct 9, 2015
If these are a rebrand of the Meze 88, then I wouldn't pay more than $40 for them. One of the worse sounding headphones I ever heard, but they looked great.
SuperFlyEDSguy
57
Jul 17, 2022
carlsanThey do look like the Meze 88 Classics AND are also nearly identical to the Fischer Audio Con Fuoco, however the underlying specs are different from model to model, e.g. the ESS model has a 40Ω Impedance, yet the Meze are rated at 36Ω. This leads me to believe that an OEM is handling the builds, however they are only going with the drivers provided to them. So, though they may look alike on the outside, their audio characteristics may vary dramatically. Just a thought.
mdwills3521
2
Oct 8, 2015
Not only is it suspicious but kind of over-the-top for the portability most people use on-ears for.
razorblader
40
Oct 8, 2015
From the head-fi review of hakushondaimao:
I contacted Rick, the head designer at ESS, directly to find out more about the driver technology. Based on my discussions with him, this is what I discovered:
The RLM-713 is a dynamic driver headphone. It does not contain a Heil AMT driver, but has been designed and tuned to mimic the ESS sound. Rick began working on these headphones 3 years ago, and it took him 2 years to get the sound the way he wanted. The casing and headband looks the same as some other woodie headphones currently available online (ESmooth and Meze), but the inside of the wooden chamber and the drivers are different. The wooden case is designed to be like a ported wooden box, with larger than normal chamber. The drivers were designed in the USA by ESS, and the headphones were built overseas. Earpads have a specially formulated, high density foam for natural noise cancelling and more impactful bass. Rick has asked the sites that claim the RLM-713 to be a hybrid headphone to change their stories, but this has not yet occurred. He is currently working on a Heil AMT headphone that will contain ONLY an Air Motion Transformer. He is hoping to have prototypes ready late in the summer, and planning a release for fall (October/November).
So it's just a dynamic driver in the RLM-713.
dalethorn
193
Oct 14, 2015
razorbladerIf 'Rick' worked on the sound of this headphone for 2 years, and the guts are very different from the Esmooth and Meze headphones, then it would sure help to know if the treble on this $200 version is more like a Sennheiser Momentum or NAD HP50 etc. (i.e. near-neutral 'lifestyle' sound), or whether it's more like the Symphonized Wraith v1/v2 (i.e. heavily recessed). That's important to know at this price point.
dalethorn
193
Oct 8, 2015
I did a google search, and other than a promo piece on headfi, there were no recognizable headphone review site mentions. AudioKarma repeated headfi but that hasn't proven to be more than a promo site. The Absolute Sound said that it's a Heil Air-Motion Transformer hybrid, but if it really were, it's odd that no "real" reviews have appeared. The eSmooth headphones I've had (several including the Wraith-2) were all heavily recessed in the treble. But all that said, if it really is a HMT hybrid, it may be worth it.
ssdc
2
Oct 8, 2015
First time I've seen Audio Technica headband cloned.
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This is especially true if one ventures out from IEMs and cans to the speaker world as ESS has been producing first-rate speakers and speaker systems for decades now! ESS is fairly new to cans, but they are far from new to engineering great sound. So, I really wouldn’t expect those unfamiliar with receivers, amps, and speaker systems to know their name; but if you are familiar with ESS, their AMT should certainly be top of mind! What ESS is now trying to do is get their signature AMT sound into something a bit more portable. Closed-back was a design choice as to achieve the most passive noise cancelation possible, besides many studio producers and engineers have a preference for closed-back headphones to allow them to better focus on their work with minimal distractions. Personally, I feel that there is a need for both open- and closed-back headphone designs, and I own both types so that I could just pick what I’m in the mood for or what works best at the moment. Let’s also not forget that passive noise cancellation works in both directions and just like you would want to block out the noise while taking a train or waiting for a bus on a busy city street, you may also need to ‘tone down’ the sound leakage if others in the room are not up for listening to the same thing you are. This literally becomes exponentially more vital as you’re increasing the listening volume (with dBs being an exponential scale of course). I’ll end on this — I have to concur that these cans don’t suck — furthermore, there is a ‘funny’ caveat if you will as I also own the ESS 252 closed-back headphones and though smaller and less expensive, they are far better IMHO! So, if you’re going to get some ESS cans, which I’d certainly recommend doing, go for the cheaper ones first as these were okay, but the 252s frankly blew me away!
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