NAD Viso HP50 Review (headphone)

[Mauro]

With the EQ profile shared by @Maiky76 and some minor tweaks, this headphone sounds really really good. Comfort is horrible though (I have the same headband version as the one reviewed). One way to get around that is to wear the headphone backwards and then reverse the channels (e.g. in Peace GUI). They don't clamp on the cheekbones so hard this way. And it's great that Peace GUI saves the reverse to the EQ profile so it switches back to normal when I change headphones.

Another dissappointment is the pads quality - the pads looked great when i bought the headphone (used) but have cracked and started flaking in just a few days of use. I tried Brainwavz lambskin pads but they sound absolutely terrible.

I have been a owner for a long time.
I agree on wearing it backwards. That’s what I do as well.
No clamping problems for me.

I bought it new and earpads started flaking with daily use after 6 years or so. I bought the spare earpads from NAD but the headband started flaking. I think it is fair considering the construction choices but anyway since then I tend to buy headphones with replaceable headband pad or with real thick leather.
About the NAD HP50, I would not suggest to buy it used.

very very good headphone anyway. A lot of good hours spent with it in the last decade

 

[Newman]

I got replacement pads from china on ebay for $10-15 and they fit well.

Not impressed how the originals fell apart, though, considering I didn’t even use them a lot.

 

[marv]

I got replacement pads from china on ebay for $10-15 and the fit well.

Not impressed how the originals fell apart, though, considering I didn’t even use them a lot.

On my pair, the pads disintegrated also.. I tried other pads but sounded very different from the original. What i did was i cut the filter out from the original pads, removed the filter from the after market ones and attached the original filter to the aftermarket pads. Sounded the same with the original pads. : )

 

[ishmeister]

On my pair, the pads disintegrated also.. I tried other pads but sounded very different from the original. What i did was i cut the filter out from the original pads, removed the filter from the after market ones and attached the original filter to the aftermarket pads. Sounded the same with the original pads. : )

Interesting. How did you attach the filters?

 

[marv]

Interesting. How did you attach the filters?

Hi, I didnt really attach them per se.. i just tucked them in between the headphone and the pads...

 

[marv]

Hi all. Chanced upon this thread, I still have mine and would like to give my inputs on the HP50. Like many others, the original pads have disintegrated, wrote to Nad a number of times for replacement pads info but to no avail. Tried numerous aftermarket ones but changed the sound signature which i didnt like. What i did was i carefully cut out the original filter on the stock pads as i couldnt find any raw material in my area resembling the stock ones. i then inserted the stock filter between the aftermarket pads and the driver... im not a pro but the mod preserved the original sound signature. I also had an issue with the shaft of the headphone when extended tends to revert back to its original position. What i did was to wrap a piece of velcro to the shaft to prevent the shaft from sliding back. The HP50 remains in my collection as i like how it sounds...but im curious to try Amir's EQ : )

here are pics :
View attachment 108968
View attachment 108970

Here's what they look like.. i posted them earlier in this thread

all the best,

 

[ishmeister]

Here's what they look like.. i posted them earlier in this thread

all the best,

Thanks marv, that's great info. I'll give this a try.

 

[ishmeister]

Update on the pad situation. I tried the Brainwavz leather pads and they sounded absolutely awful. I then tried these cheap pads from ebay and to my surprise they sound really good. Maybe still a little on the warm side but the upper mids/lower treble don't sound as muted as with the original HP50 pads.

 

[Philippe42]

Hey, well that's great that you're enjoying them based on my recommendation in the headphone recommendation thread. I know you bought them used, are they in good condition, the pads & everything? You're using Amir's EQ, I gotta say when I tried Amir's EQ I thought it was well off, not good, way bloated in the bass and just plain strange......although you do say you wear glasses, so it's possible you don't get a perfect seal which means that you'd probably appreciate the greater bass boost that Amir's EQ provides.....I also have a feeling that Amir didn't have a good seal on his head with this headphone too, partially based on his measurements that also show it wasn't sealed properly, if you look at his headphone pics of the NAD HP50 I think he tested a duff pair, as it's not totally symmetrical in his pics (both in the measurements & the physical pics of the headphone)....however your pair is probably fine, just the glasses may be affecting a bit hence you like the Amir EQ. To be honest I don't really like Oratory's EQ for the NAD HP50 (even though I do generally like his EQ's - I use his on my K702, HE4XX & HD600 for instance), I did an EQ of my own which I based on his measurement, and it's still done to the Harman Curve, I think I posted it to you in the headphone recommendation thread, have you tried mine yet? Here's mine and find EqualiserAPO file attached at end of post:
View attachment 127720
You could also try some listening without wearing your glasses, just for experimentation purposes to work out if you're getting seal variability.

I'm pleased you're enjoying your headphone!

I am using a NAD HP50 with UAPP on Android ( Phone and Mibox3 as UPNP renderer).
I would like to test your EQ but the parametric EQ in UAPP (Tonebooster) is limited to 10 bands. What would be your recommandation with such limtation.
Thanks

 

[Robbo99999]

I am using a NAD HP50 with UAPP on Android ( Phone and Mibox3 as UPNP renderer).
I would like to test your EQ but the parametric EQ in UAPP (Tonebooster) is limited to 10 bands. What would be your recommandation with such limtation.
Thanks

Hi, it's been a while since I used my NAD HP50 and a long time since I did this EQ, but from what I remember I think Oratory made some questionable decisions on how to align the target on the measurement which resulted in the treble being way off above 10kHz....I'm not sure on this point though as to why I didn't like the Oratory EQ as I can't remember exactly why.......however he's measured some more HP50 units since then and now he's also happened to have chosen to align the target on the measurement in the same way that I did in my EQ, so I think this would provide a better result now than his earlier EQ's of this headphone. So if I was you I'd give Oratory's latest EQ for this headphone a go (rather than using mine) as it's limited to 10 bands too, so that would suit your needs as well:

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

index/list_of_presets - oratory1990

r/oratory1990: Mostly covering topics like headphones, in-ear headphones, acoustics, electroacoustics, acoustic tuning, headphone design …

www.reddit.com

If it sounds a bit harsh & piercing experiment with reducing the gain on the High Shelf Filter he uses (Band 10 in his EQ).

 

[baadaq]

Hi, it's been a while since I used my NAD HP50 and a long time since I did this EQ, but from what I remember I think Oratory made some questionable decisions on how to align the target on the measurement which resulted in the treble being way off above 10kHz....I'm not sure on this point though as to why I didn't like the Oratory EQ as I can't remember exactly why.......however he's measured some more HP50 units since then and now he's also happened to have chosen to align the target on the measurement in the same way that I did in my EQ, so I think this would provide a better result now than his earlier EQ's of this headphone. So if I was you I'd give Oratory's latest EQ for this headphone a go (rather than using mine) as it's limited to 10 bands too, so that would suit your needs as well:

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

index/list_of_presets - oratory1990

r/oratory1990: Mostly covering topics like headphones, in-ear headphones, acoustics, electroacoustics, acoustic tuning, headphone design …

www.reddit.com

If it sounds a bit harsh & piercing experiment with reducing the gain on the High Shelf Filter he uses (Band 10 in his EQ).

i did try one of the latest oratory eq for the nad recently (well my nads are a bit different since one of the hinges broke, ended desoldering the cable that was between the headband and changed the pads since they kind of "dissolved"), the parametric eq was "okish" but had some treble troubles that you pointed out, still he has like 3 eq options, the fixedband sound fun and its easy to change, but between oratory and amirm eq settings, oratory are superior since the nads are quite neutral and amirm kind of dull them too much, at least to my ears and tyll charts when he measured them (i dont have much experience with headphones, only shure srh440, hd600, sony mdr ma900 and nads, ofcourse the shure are my favs but holy crap they surpass the nad even in the discomfort for long hours of listening), quite different to what amirm measured but dunno, will not be surprised if nad have qc issues since they are brittle, uncomfortable and flimsy for who used to be an expensive headphone, still it baffles me the difference between the PSB M4 and the NADs listed on this site, if my memory doesnt fail, the should sound quite similar but the graphs here make them look totally different, still super great sounding headphone, ez to eq and quite cheap sometimes (87 bucks) but woulndt recommend them since their quality is bad, they are uncomfortable, easy to break, the cable in the headband will break and the pads doesn't last even a year.

 

[Robbo99999]

i did try one of the latest oratory eq for the nad recently (well my nads are a bit different since one of the hinges broke, ended desoldering the cable that was between the headband and changed the pads since they kind of "dissolved"), the parametric eq was "okish" but had some treble troubles that you pointed out, still he has like 3 eq options, the fixedband sound fun and its easy to change, but between oratory and amirm eq settings, oratory are superior since the nads are quite neutral and amirm kind of dull them too much, at least to my ears and tyll charts when he measured them (i dont have much experience with headphones, only shure srh440, hd600, sony mdr ma900 and nads, ofcourse the shure are my favs but holy crap they surpass the nad even in the discomfort for long hours of listening), quite different to what amirm measured but dunno, will not be surprised if nad have qc issues since they are brittle, uncomfortable and flimsy for who used to be an expensive headphone, still it baffles me the difference between the PSB M4 and the NADs listed on this site, if my memory doesnt fail, the should sound quite similar but the graphs here make them look totally different, still super great sounding headphone, ez to eq and quite cheap sometimes (87 bucks) but woulndt recommend them since their quality is bad, they are uncomfortable, easy to break, the cable in the headband will break and the pads doesn't last even a year.

Yeah, I think Amir had some troubles measuring the HP50 on his headphone fixture - I've since bought a miniDSP EARS measurement fixture and measured all my different headphones and I found the HP50 to be trickiest to measure properly as well. I did try Amir's EQ on my HP50 and it was horrible - I feel that Amir didn't get a good seal on his head and neither on his fixture when he did this review, which is reflected in him boosting the bass, etc - but it's not surprising as it's the earcups are so small and it's not easy (or impossible with large ears) to get a great seal on your own head as well as on the measurement fixture. The Oratory EQ should be fine, as I mentioned in my last post, or instead you can try my EQ I did for them which is based on one of his earlier measurements, and from measuring my HP50 on my miniDSP EARS I think his earlier published measurements were more representative of the particular unit I have - so you could try my EQ out if you're still not totally happy with your HP50, it might help, or it might not, I listed my EQ back in this post:

NAD Viso HP50 Review (headphone)

Cool, well it's good that it's an improvement for you in the bass.....I was gonna suggest combining my filters for the bass with Amir's treble filters, but he's chosen to align the target curve in a different place on the measurement, therefore it's not that simple (it wouldn't be valid just...

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[baadaq]

Yeah, I think Amir had some troubles measuring the HP50 on his headphone fixture - I've since bought a miniDSP EARS measurement fixture and measured all my different headphones and I found the HP50 to be trickiest to measure properly as well. I did try Amir's EQ on my HP50 and it was horrible - I feel that Amir didn't get a good seal on his head and neither on his fixture when he did this review, which is reflected in him boosting the bass, etc - but it's not surprising as it's the earcups are so small and it's not easy (or impossible with large ears) to get a great seal on your own head as well as on the measurement fixture. The Oratory EQ should be fine, as I mentioned in my last post, or instead you can try my EQ I did for them which is based on one of his earlier measurements, and from measuring my HP50 on my miniDSP EARS I think his earlier published measurements were more representative of the particular unit I have - so you could try my EQ out if you're still not totally happy with your HP50, it might help, or it might not, I listed my EQ back in this post:

NAD Viso HP50 Review (headphone)

Cool, well it's good that it's an improvement for you in the bass.....I was gonna suggest combining my filters for the bass with Amir's treble filters, but he's chosen to align the target curve in a different place on the measurement, therefore it's not that simple (it wouldn't be valid just...

www.audiosciencereview.com

pretty nice eq, just tweaked them a bit to my likings (almost nothign tbh).
edit: holy crap, they sound amazing, only if they were more comfy.
i added a bit on the higher end, maybe the pads muffed them a bit, because i was having troubles hearing the extension of the drum cymbals.

 

[USER]

I guess this is a good time for an update as there seems to be interest in these again. I am the owner of the headphones and I still use them to this day. As I use them in my office with EQ easily accessible I simply have not found anything else that seems worth the upgrade expense. I replaced the pads with the $10 ones mentioned on this thread and was able to bend the headband to a more even position as soon as I got them. I believe that this helped even out and seal both channels. I am using Robbo99999's EQ off Amir's measurements. They sound great. I like Maiky76s EQ as well but it sounds slightly more treble forward, which is not a bad thing; otherwise reasonably similar though Robbo's seems more balanced. Amir's EQ sounded much too bass heavy when I first got the headphones but I tried it again today and I don't think it's too much anymore. Certainly my limit. Perhaps I have become accustomed to the Harman curve. Nonetheless it needs a little more dialing in, which makes sense as it was a quick EQ. I also own a pair of Sennheiser HD 650s and while they sound good, the "sound stage," bass, and clarity on these is so much better.

I also have the Crinacle Zero's coming in tomorrow so I'll be able to better compare these after EQ to a known Harman tuned headphone (IEM).

 

[Robbo99999]

pretty nice eq, just tweaked them a bit to my likings (almost nothign tbh).
edit: holy crap, they sound amazing, only if they were more comfy.
i added a bit on the higher end, maybe the pads muffed them a bit, because i was having troubles hearing the extension of the drum cymbals.
View attachment 231331

Ha, well I'm glad you found it an improvement, looks like Oratory's earlier measurements of the HP50 are potentially closer matching to a few headphones out there.

I guess this is a good time for an update as there seems to be interest in these again. I am the owner of the headphones and I still use them to this day. As I use them in my office with EQ easily accessible I simply have not found anything else that seems worth the upgrade expense. I replaced the pads with the $10 ones mentioned on this thread and was able to bend the headband to a more even position as soon as I got them. I believe that this helped even out and seal both channels. I am using Robbo99999's EQ off Amir's measurements. They sound great. I like Maiky76s EQ as well but it sounds slightly more treble forward, which is not a bad thing; otherwise reasonably similar though Robbo's seems more balanced. Amir's EQ sounded much too bass heavy when I first got the headphones but I tried it again today and I don't think it's too much anymore. Certainly my limit. Perhaps I have become accustomed to the Harman curve. Nonetheless it needs a little more dialing in, which makes sense as it was a quick EQ. I also own a pair of Sennheiser HD 650s and while they sound good, the "sound stage," bass, and clarity on these is so much better.

I also have the Crinacle Zero's coming in tomorrow so I'll be able to better compare these after EQ to a known Harman tuned headphone (IEM).

I don't think I did an EQ using Amir's measurements did I? I think the only EQ I've done is the following one, is that the one you're using?

NAD Viso HP50 Review (headphone)

Cool, well it's good that it's an improvement for you in the bass.....I was gonna suggest combining my filters for the bass with Amir's treble filters, but he's chosen to align the target curve in a different place on the measurement, therefore it's not that simple (it wouldn't be valid just...

www.audiosciencereview.com

I've got the Crinacle Zeros coming too, but a couple of weeks, will be interesting to try them.

 

[USER]

I don't think I did an EQ using Amir's measurements did I? I think the only EQ I've done is the following one, is that the one you're using?

NAD Viso HP50 Review (headphone)

Cool, well it's good that it's an improvement for you in the bass.....I was gonna suggest combining my filters for the bass with Amir's treble filters, but he's chosen to align the target curve in a different place on the measurement, therefore it's not that simple (it wouldn't be valid just...

www.audiosciencereview.com

Yes, that's the one I have been using. Very much appreciated!

I wanted to try the Oratory one you mentioned but I am not sure how to translate the first HPQ filter onto Peace for Equalizer APO.

 

[Robbo99999]

Yes, that's the one I have been using. Very much appreciated!

I wanted to try the Oratory one you mentioned but I am not sure how to translate the first HPQ filter onto Peace for Equalizer APO.

@baadaq was able to put the first HPQ filter into Peace in the following post:

NAD Viso HP50 Review (headphone)

With the EQ profile shared by @Maiky76 and some minor tweaks, this headphone sounds really really good. Comfort is horrible though (I have the same headband version as the one reviewed). One way to get around that is to wear the headphone backwards and then reverse the channels (e.g. in Peace...

www.audiosciencereview.com

He's changed just a few of the other filters though, so best to copy the EQ from mine, the one I linked you in my previous post. Oratory doesn't use an HPQ, so I think you're confused about who's doing what. That's my EQ from Oratory's measurement (one of his earlier measurements).

 

[USER]

@baadaq was able to put the first HPQ filter into Peace in the following post:

NAD Viso HP50 Review (headphone)

With the EQ profile shared by @Maiky76 and some minor tweaks, this headphone sounds really really good. Comfort is horrible though (I have the same headband version as the one reviewed). One way to get around that is to wear the headphone backwards and then reverse the channels (e.g. in Peace...

www.audiosciencereview.com

He's changed just a few of the other filters though, so best to copy the EQ from mine, the one I linked you in my previous post. Oratory doesn't use an HPQ, so I think you're confused about who's doing what. That's my EQ from Oratory's measurement (one of his earlier measurements).

Ah, OK, gotcha now. I thought you linked to this EQ that you posted, which is the one that I am using (the one based on Amir's measurements): https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...p50-review-headphone.19121/page-5#post-628229.

I'll try out thE Oratory based EQ when I test out the Zeros. Thanks again.

 

[USER]

@baadaq was able to put the first HPQ filter into Peace in the following post:

NAD Viso HP50 Review (headphone)

With the EQ profile shared by @Maiky76 and some minor tweaks, this headphone sounds really really good. Comfort is horrible though (I have the same headband version as the one reviewed). One way to get around that is to wear the headphone backwards and then reverse the channels (e.g. in Peace...

www.audiosciencereview.com

He's changed just a few of the other filters though, so best to copy the EQ from mine, the one I linked you in my previous post. Oratory doesn't use an HPQ, so I think you're confused about who's doing what. That's my EQ from Oratory's measurement (one of his earlier measurements).

So I just tried it out. On these headphones the Oratory based one sounds duller and the soundstage a bit more constricted. Looking at the graphs on the link I posted it seems to make sense as there is more above 1kHz on the Oratory measurements. Amir's measurements then are true to this pair of headphones, which is to be expected. In comparison to the Maiky and Oratory-based filters, yours based on Amir's measurements sounds the most neutral and in between them treble-wise. Glad to have been using it all this time! (Though I just remembered that I added to it a Low Shelf filter of 4dB at 35Hz and a Peak filter of -5dB at 12100, which I just changed to -3.5dB.)

 

[Robbo99999]

Ah, OK, gotcha now. I thought you linked to this EQ that you posted, which is the one that I am using (the one based on Amir's measurements): https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...p50-review-headphone.19121/page-5#post-628229.

I'll try out thE Oratory based EQ when I test out the Zeros. Thanks again.

Ah, I'd completely forgotton I'd done an EQ based on Amir's measurement.

So I just tried it out. On these headphones the Oratory based one sounds duller and the soundstage a bit more constricted. Looking at the graphs on the link I posted it seems to make sense as there is more above 1kHz on the Oratory measurements. Amir's measurements then are true to this pair of headphones, which is to be expected. In comparison to the Maiky and Oratory-based filters, yours based on Amir's measurements sounds the most neutral and in between them treble-wise. Glad to have been using it all this time! (Though I just remembered that I added to it a Low Shelf filter of 4dB at 35Hz and a Peak filter of -5dB at 12100, which I just changed to -3.5dB.)

View attachment 231389

Ok, good. Why do you think Amir's measurements would be truer to your headphone than Oratory's, or was it you that sent Amir the HP50 to measure?