Took the leap and ordered them. I'm about to return the 2nd pair, will probably swap for something else as I'm outside the return window.
First, the pros:
- they do sound impressive out of the box. I EQ all my headphones, tried the presets from Oratory and Rtings, but ultimately settled for just a crude low bass shelf (4-5 dB at ~150 Hz). The detailed presentation is most impressive.
- The large cups mean nothing touches your earlobe, that's a huge plus in my book;
- they feel unstable on my head, but it's just a feeling, won't move that much unless I really start headbanging BTW, someone recommended this cover somewhere in this thread. It does work very well.
- last but not least, this is the 1st headphone that to my ears seems almost totally immune to broken seal. I wear thin frame glasses but the temples sit ~3mm from the head. I couldn't detect any difference when listening with the glasses off. That's really something.
So why am I returning them? There is a nasty metallic resonance @ about 270 Hz and below. Like high pitched rattling/buzz, not crackles or hisses. I can hear it both with music and with pure tones. Ofc this is with no EQ, no boost anywhere. It starts when I reach 1 o'clock in mid gain on my THX 887 (balanced connection, but also audible via SE at higher levels). The 1st pair had it in the right channel only (that's why I assumed a defect), the second one has it in both, although the right gives in earlier. My HE4XX have no problem with the same frequencies at the same level.
I listen to some bass-heavy tracks so this is a deal-breaker for me. If you're curious,
here is an example of a track they can't handle (wait fot the lows @0:24).
All in all, a disappointment for me. The EDXS do have some unique qualities up their sleeve. Going back to the 4XX, I feel a bit like stepping behind the veils again
But for the life of me, I just can't rationalize those resonances in a headphone that costs about as much as all my previous pairs combined.