Massdrop x Meze 99 Noir Closed-Back Headphones Discussions | Drop

Jan 17, 2020

piedrafriaDamn I would offer to just buy those off you but Im in Canada so would probably cost too much to ship at a personal rate.

Jan 17, 2020

piedrafria

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Jan 17, 2020

Muscle_CowYeah, the meze are in sale at 160 and honestly that's all I want. Lol. To add to my collection.

Jan 17, 2020

Jan 18, 2020

piedrafria160 is a great deal for them, I have a pair and they are really attractive, sound great and have a lot of bass + sub bass... great for watching movies too, or gaming. Only problem is that they are a little small especially if you have a big head and/or you put on thicker pads (which I would suggest).

Jan 18, 2020

Jan 18, 2020

Muscle_CowDefinitely worth it at this price. Seconded on the size being a touch small if you got a big 'ol gourd (like I do). They're just a cm or so short of being at maximum extension, especially with the somewhat thick Brainwavz Angled Sheepskin Leather pads I use (which are totally worth using). Overall extremely comfortable combination.

Jan 18, 2020

Jan 19, 2020

FayneThey put that $40 discount out on my birthday lol, so I had to 😃 Looking forward to them. Hoping for a little more punchy bass over my hifiman 400i and audio Technica msr7.

Jan 19, 2020

Jan 19, 2020

tom_mOh you will get more bass from these things. Try swapping pads after you get them if you have extras because the stock pads are pretty small and for me, both stock pads cause my ears to touch the driver and it gets irritating after awhile... I put some Brainwavz on it and problem solved + comfort

(Edited)

Jan 19, 2020

Jan 19, 2020

Muscle_CowCool, thanks will do. I also only have bravo audio and little dot++ tube amps...but reading a few comments people suggesting not tube amps. Any insight here? I have an odac already, so I guess I can get the O2, but wish in retrospect I had the combo now.

Jan 19, 2020

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Jan 19, 2020

tom_mWith the 99 Noir and tube amps, it really depends on the amp itself. You've got a chance that they'll work fine for you on hybrid tube amps, purely because they're solid state at the output, and likely (hopefully?) they're sub 5Ω at the output. For reference, my LittleDot1+ works perfectly fine with my 99 Noir, but there is a slight tube power hum in the background. Plus the combination is extremely sensitive to EMI from cellular hardware. My Massdrop CTH is very not friendly with the 99 Noir, the tube power sound being a dull roar. The Loxjie P20 while not making power noise is only somewhat usable, because it has an output impedance of ~45Ω it totally screws the sound over by rolling off the bass and adding more to the treble. The xDuoo TA-20 works perfectly fine with the 99 Noir, as the power hum is near silent. Trying these on a pure tube-amp is very hit and miss. I had to replace every tube in my ZDT Jr. and lose some amplification just to get it close to safe. All that said, the most anemic of sources is generally going to have enough power to drive the 99's to hearing loss levels of loud and bass filled goodness. They're incredibly easy to drive.

Jan 19, 2020

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Jan 19, 2020

FayneI've got a fist full of tubes for the little dot but prefer the bravo audio v2 with golden lion for it's compact size. I found these tube amps nice with my hifiman 400i (crying right now over their current price on Amazon vs what I paid lol, but got a good deal here I guess). I had to EQ for a little more punchy bass with the 400i I found. But add to that the warmth from the tube and i found a good spot. The bravo audio v2 is 20~600 ohm. I thought the little dot I+ is 32 ohm? So would the bravo audio v2 work better here? The 400i are open and I don't want to take a bunch of equipment to work with me (work from home 2 days/week so I can enjoy that setup at home still). I also have an older dragonfly thats portable of course. So maybe these are just the cans I run w/o an amp. Especially if they don't need it. I just felt like the 400i, even though they are "easy to drive," just really benefitted from the amp. The hybrid tube amp really warmed them up and I had a lot of fun trying different tubes. Maybe the 99 classics just won't need that?

Jan 19, 2020

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Jan 19, 2020

tom_mAlso, would you recommend a different cable on the 99 classics? Meze's site has a balanced cable for 50% off. While I'm certain the balanced part won't help diddly squat for my equipment, I was curious if maybe it's still a better cable and given it's price right now...

Jan 19, 2020

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Jan 19, 2020

tom_mThe 99 don't need the amp, but definitely benefit from it. They sounded great plugged directly into my old iPhone 6s and iPad Air 2. They sound even better balance plugged into my THX 789 and EarStudio ES100. The Dragonfly will have more than enough grunt to handle them, and yes, I'd totally try em out on your Bravo.

Jan 19, 2020

Jan 19, 2020

Yep, the upgrade cable is totally worth it. It is a somewhat higher quality cable than what ships with the unit, and compatible with a whole bunch of other cans that use slim 3.5mm connectors at the ear-cups. Is also available on Amazon for the same price (last I checked). 2.5mm to 3.5mm adapters are crazy cheap and easily sourced. If you end up with XLR4 balanced amps, the MassDrop 2.5mm TRRS to XLR4 adapter works like a champ.

Jan 19, 2020

Jan 19, 2020

FayneWhat's a good 2.5mm to 3.5mm adapter? Anything special? Don't want to make the entire point of the cable upgrade meaningless.

Jan 19, 2020

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Jan 19, 2020

tom_mTruth be told, up until recently I didn't have any need for one. Currently I use a super generic one that came with my Shuoer Tape IEM, pictured below.

I've been eyeing these sweet looking DJ35A at Linsoul. The design is slick and I've had fairly good luck with the Linsoul products. Picture below.

Edit: Turns out they're available on amazon also. I'm ordering a couple for myself.

(Edited)

Jan 19, 2020

Jan 19, 2020

FayneThanks! I got the cable just in case. Maybe snake oil. Maybe useless with my gear. But I may upgrade to a Schiit Jot. at which point it'll be nice to have the balanced cable at the half off discount. Guess I'll do some a/b testing on the cable quality without factoring in the balanced part of it.

Jan 19, 2020

Jan 19, 2020

tom_mI consider most of the cable stuff to be snake-oil. This is my personal opinion, and likely the same opinion you'll get from anyone with an engineering background who doesn't play the mystic audiophile game. The general costs for cables are stupid on so many levels. Paying more than $50 for 4-16 conductors of wire and 2-3 terminations is insane.

Yes, silver plated and pure silver stuff does conduct better, because silver is magically conductive.
Single crystal copper is slightly better than standard oxygen free copper, but not enough to justify costs.
Litz is just copper with enamel covering each strand in a bundle, and nothing overly special. When people speak of litz being good for specific frequencies, they're misunderstanding the purpose. The quoted frequencies are specific to radio coils, where the thickness and number of strands define the frequency it works with.

Past that, the super important stuff is that the wire has a high enough gauge so that the length doesn't impact the overall Ω/impedance, and a small enough gauge that it doesn't add too much capacitance of the circuit. Shielding helps, assuming it is actually connected to the ground of the amp and not floating.

Jan 19, 2020

Jan 19, 2020

FayneSo is it the silver plating that makes the upgraded cables better in your opinion? Were the cables in this drop just low quality to keep cost down? I'm curious now what else may make a cable good/bad. Maybe replacing the stock one on my 400i also would show me different results.

Jan 19, 2020

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Jan 19, 2020

tom_mThe cable that comes with the Meze isn't bad, but it is aimed at mobile users. It is a mic and remote control cable for use with phones that still have a jack. The upgrade cables sold by Meze use slightly higher grade wire and doesn't contain the extra hardware for doing mic. And yeah, generally stuff with silver content will be a better conductor. How much that impacts the sound is open to debate. :)

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Jan 19, 2020

Jan 21, 2020

FayneMost wire stuff is snake oil but I am always willing to pay a little more for quality wires and low hassle wires... some of the real cheap stuff is just god awful in regards to kinks/microphonics/stiffness, but there is no need to spend upwards to crazy amounts of $$... best to just get higher quality wires that are versatile like that upgraded Meze ones... as you mentioned, it can be used on a lot more than just the Meze 99 Cans. I might have to snag those Linsoul connectors too... they're hawt.

Jan 21, 2020

Jan 21, 2020

Muscle_CowWell, Amazon got me the cables and a basic adapter (though I also got one of the cool linsoul ones) today. I don't think Drop has even put the headphones in the mail yet lol. Speaking of balanced cables, I saw the new (ish?) FiiO DAC/amp k3 and portable q1 mark ii both now have balanced headphone jack, 2.5mm. I'm certainly scratching my head at the price, but wonder if it's a good pairing for the meze 99s.

Jan 21, 2020

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Jan 21, 2020

tom_mI bought the Q1 in 2018, it is ok. A bit bulky for portable use. I gave it away after about a month of use. I find the Radsone EarStudio ES100 is more useful around and about, balanced with usb and bluetooth. Plus that app for managing the DAC via phone is bloody handy. Another one to check out is the Shanling UP4, also balanced with bluetooth and usb connectivity. Is on my list of units to order and play with. A few of my friends are rabid Shanling DAP users who have been frothing at the mouth about it.

Jan 21, 2020

Jan 21, 2020

FayneAwesome, adding those to my research list 😃 man I get new headphones and now I'm wanting a new DAC. But honestly my gen 1 dragonfly is old so if I can find a portable solution (now that I have new closed back headphones I actually can take on the go), then awesome. Also just spotted the FiiO BTR5. Can't believe I haven't seen any of these before...but then again I've always had mostly open back headphones and never took them to the office.

Jan 21, 2020