Jupiter Audio Research

The original models that I started out with. It’s a very long story how I got started.

In the OG model, I had to make a choice between acoustic chambering, and dampening. The OG is the result of the latter route, and this is the result of the former.

The question I sought out to answer was, “Would an acoustical optimization of the 600/650 earcups sound good even at the cost of decreased damping?”

It was difficult to find a good balance between the two. For example- simply increasing the part height would give more space for dampening. But there’s no guarantee that it will sound good. (It didn’t sound good, I tried- essentially it’s because the higher the part goes, the more “cavelike” the enclosure gets. Which is not good.)

The OG has more weight to the sound. It has a tad bit more heft to the subbass and has a very controlled treble. It is characterized as more of a smoother sound. The B has a tighter bass and snapper transients. It has a wider soundstage and highly precise imaging. You can feel the air has room to move around without being sharp or sibilant.

I think the two sound different. But they are both good in what they do. It is a different approach and I’m starting to see almost a 50-50 split in people’s preferences with this.

As for me personally I prefer the vintage-based vB ones to the OG ones, and I like the 600 version very much. (I never have the time to make one for myself, though…hah). Although maybe a properly made OG 600 with extra time and effort could dethrone it.

This version is getting increasingly difficult and hard for me to make, as while in research I thought they would be very easy to make… but after doing quite a lot in series, I’m finding these are just as difficult as the OG versions. Kill me now…I am only one person. Give me a break!

Do you think I’d do this if I didn’t like what I was doing…?

Yes, I really, really like the HD800. It’s probably my favorite headphone.

I bought my first HD800 new at 2014. Despite how sharp it was I kept it because like many, I felt that it was unmatched in treble performance and space in the dynamic cans department. I then bought also the Utopia at launch- but ultimately sold it because I found its treble to be lacking, while still keeping the HD800. If I think about it, it is the only can that I have not sold since buying new.

I loved how it rendered treble so crisply and yet did it a bit differently than electrostatics. (I had my time with SR007mk1 and SR009 too). But the music I listened to was all very sharp and I wanted to be able to listen to them with the HD800 but without the crazy peaks that it kept on killing my ears with. When SDR came out I gave it a go but eventually I did not like it because while it softened the highs, it ultimately also took away what made the HD800 really special to me. The treble performance worsened and the unique space decreased.

If I found a solution online (physical/electrical) that suited my needs, I wouldn’t have made this. But there wasn’t. All the suggestions I’ve tried decreased the stage or muffled details, or killed the treble, or combinations of these.

I wanted to find a way to solve the sibilance without losing its expansive, detailed stock character. It’s almost impossible to use this headphone stock. People try to EQ or tone their system down to solve the treble spikes issue, but I emphatically disagree with this approach. The problem should be solved at the acoustical level. The treble should be shaped and controlled using a physical waveguide. It should be solved, not completely nuked and neutered.

So, as with my motto on the front page, there was no solution out there- so I made a solution myself. This is one reason why the costs are so high, as I made it originally for myself and not really as a product with intention to sell. So, cost considerations were thrown out the window.

I went on to buy every HD800 I can find (selling even my phone at the process) and eventually I listened to every serial range from 500 to 50000. After surveying each sonic and physical differences, I came up with the optimal tuning formula based on each range. And I wouldn't have been doing this if I really didn't love the HD800.

The JAR800S was made to be a slightly different character from the JAR800.

It was aimed to maintain is slightly warm character over stock while helping its ability to resolve treble.

I found that Sennheiser had made some design decisions that increased bass but unfortunately made the 800S more sibilant in certain frequencies. Basically, the 800S lost its ability to resolve in return for an increase in bass and a shift in tonality.

So, my objective was to help maintain the 800S its character as per Sennheiser, but help it resolve just as well as the previous 800.

This is an interesting one. I first did not like the 660S stock. I found it to be basically a brighter 600 with slightly more resolution in the treble. I did see that detail did increase in the highs, but.. why? Why would anyone use this over stock 600?

Then a friend asked me to try making this, based on the OG design. I did, and- I was honestly surprised by the results. I know it sounds like a cop-out, but this sounds like the lovechild of a 600 and 650.

It’s currently gaining good popularity because of its high efficiency, which makes it more friendly for portable and gaming use.

I very much like this one- it’s my go-to when I’m not using my JAR800.

I sometimes do special orders like this one here. This is the JAR600B but based on a vintage black silk pair.

These have the widest soundstage than any of the 6x0 designs I’ve made and they are my favorite next to the JAR800. Just look at how transparent it is. The design uses zero foam, and so you get direct driver awesomeness, without all the bad side effects of doing that.

I didn’t know a HD600 could sound like this. Take the stock HD600, remove any shoutiness and brightness, open up the staging and improve the resolution, and this is what you get.

But these are very difficult to make and require a lot of care and attention. It is insanely time consuming, so they are treated as special orders.

Price: Inquire