D8000 Pro Limited Edition - To mark the year when we entered a new phase in our ongoing efforts for research and development, and in the pursuit of sound quality with the latest technologies, we are releasing a Limited Model of our flagship D8000 Pro Edition headphones, with a new stylish finishing concept and further upgrades. As symbolic accents, a luxurious and authentic matte black finish is applied throughout, and gold-plated perforated metal is used for the AFDS driver. Meanwhile, the structural and acoustic design of the driver, and dedicated housing construction, which optimizes sound quality and is highly acclaimed worldwide, have been retained.
Key Features:
- Limited to 200 pieces worldwide with a gorgeous suitcase;
- 4.4mm silver cable next to the 3 meter silver 4-pin XLR cable;
- Gold Plated Inner Meshed Plate of AFDS Driver;
- Newly-Developed Air Film Damping System;
- Newly-Developed Open Earpads;
- Machined Aluminium Magnesium Alloy Housing.
In addition, for the first time, high-grade Washi (Japanese paper) with excellent durability, air permeability, moisture control, and antibacterial/odor-eliminating properties is used as the earpads' material, providing the best fit and comfort. A dedicated Attache Case-Type New Carrying Case with * TRAVEL SENTRY® Approved Lock has been newly adopted for this model. 2 types of detachable cable, OFC silver-coated balanced cable ( XLR 4-pin / 3m ) and OFC black balanced cable ( 4.4mm TRRRS / 1.5m ) for portable use are included as accessories, making it a full-fledged package that is truly the pinnacle of the Pro range.
Low frequency range with a sense of openness and sufficient necessary volume
Conventional planar magnetic headphones' driver unit is normally designed to have a higher limit of the lowest frequency of bass it can reproduce in order to prevent the diaphragm from coming into contact with the magnet when the playback volume is high.
To compensate for the lack of bass due to this intentional design, the earpads are designed to seal the ear in order to create an enclosed space in front of the diaphragm. This shares the same principle that allows earphones sealed with earpieces to reproduce sufficient low frequencies despite their small size. Even though the method of sealing the earpads allows the bass to be reproduced down to the lower frequency range, the bass is lacking a sense of openness and fullness.
In the D8000 Pro Limited Edition, the AFDS (Air Film Damping System) solves the problem of the diaphragm coming into contact with the magnet, thus highering the limit of the lowest frequency of bass that the driver unit can reproduce is not necessary. Together with the breathable earpads, this system makes it possible to reproduce the rich bass sound with a sense of openness, which normally could only be achieved with a superior dynamic driver.
Delicate high frequencies
In reproducing subtle high frequencies, the lightweight nature of the diaphragm comes before anything else. Compared to other dynamic models with the same driver diameter, D8000 Pro Limited Edition's diaphragm is 1/3 lighter. A super thin aluminum coil is etched on the extremely lightweight film diaphragm, and as such, the adhesive essential for use between the coil and the diaphragm of a dynamic driver - which has a very negative effect on sound quality - is not necessary. With the D8000 Pro Limited Edition, problems originating from the adhesive have been fundamentally resolved, and the reproduction of a delicate sound in high frequency range has been achieved.
With a combination of the planar magnetic model's subtle high frequencies and the dynamic model's full and open bass tones, you would discover new details about the music you're used to listening to through the D8000 Pro Limited Edition ; they have you wanting to listen to your favorite music over and over again. With this product, you realize that high sound quality provides the impetus for experiencing the deeper aspects of music.
Newly-developed AFDS: Air Film Damping System
Conventional planar magnetic headphones' driver unit is normally designed to have a higher limit of the lowest frequency of bass it can reproduce in order to prevent the diaphragm from coming into contact with the magnet when the playback volume is high. To solve this problem, we took measurements by conducting diaphragm simulations using the finite element method and laser Doppler devices, and established new diaphragm braking technology known as AFDS - Air Film Damping System. In doing so, the shortcoming of planar magnetic driver - the low reproducibility of bass tones - was solved. This technology could be considered a reinvention of planar magnetic models.
With D8000 Pro Limited Edition, the problem with the diaphragm coming into contact with magnets has been solved through AFDS (Air Film Damping System), and it has become possible to lower the frequency limit of the bass that the driver unit can reproduce. Combined with newly developed breathable earpads, the rich bass sound with a sense of openness which normally can only achievable with superior dynamic driver becomes possible.
Designed with Prolonged Use and Ease of Repair in Mind
So as to make repairs and future upgrades possible, almost every part has been designed in such a way that they can be disassembled, ensuring that the product can be used for many years following purchase.
A Machined Aluminum Magnesium Alloy Housing
To establish AFDS, an extremely high level of precision compared to typical driver units is necessary. Because of this, the machined aluminum magnesium alloy housing has been machined with great precision and applied with luxurious and authentic matte black finish.
Manufactured at Our Own Factory Espousing Precision
The D8000 Pro Limited Edition is manufactured at our own factory in Japan. Together with the precision of individual parts, the precision involved in the assembly process depends on the precision of the tools known as jigs that assist in the assembly process. So as to be able to fine-tune even the slightest of irregularities in jig precision during the assembly process, we design and manufacture production jigs and measurement jigs ourselves.
We developed manufacturing apparatus such as a diaphragm formation machine and a diaphragm tension meter in-house, specifically for the D Series. To create truly good products, it is necessary to get to the core of the manufacturing process of parts close to the raw material. What is good about "made in Japan" is that when doing so, you can gain the cooperation of those manufacturers close to the material. By controlling everything together, from sourcing the raw materials through to the assembly of the product, we have achieved high-quality products.
D8000 Pro Limited Edition Exclusive Headphones Case
Attache Case-Type New Carrying Case with TRAVEL SENTRY® Approved Lock included as an accessory.
Newly-developed open type earpads
Most headphones, both closed-back and opened-back headphones, have sealed earpads in order to extend the reproduction frequency to bass to compensate for the lack of bass reproduction capability of the driver unit. However, in order to express the natural, expansive, high-quality bass, the driver unit itself must be capable of reproducing those low frequencies and paired together with breathable earpads. However, conventional planar magnetic drivers and most dynamic drivers suffer from the lack of low-frequency range when paired with breathable earpads.
With D series, the reproduction band of bass frequencies has been extended through AFDS, and it has become possible to sufficiently reproduce bass frequencies even with earpads that are not sealed tightly just with driver unit ability. For the D8000 Pro Limited Edition, the earpads that greatly influence sound quality have been newly developed from Washi ,means, Japanese traditional paper, which has excellent durability, air permeability, moisture control, and antibacterial/odor-eliminating properties.
Differences in Sound Quality Comparing with D8000 and D8000 Pro Limited Edition
The D8000 Pro Limited Edition is adopting the exact same AFDS driver and structural design as the D8000 Pro Edition and therefore it possesses the same sonic characteristic. However, due to the newly designed earpads which have different air permeability, users can expect slightly different when out of the box but the difference would fade away after the earpads become slightly softer with use.
Comparing to D8000, the D8000 Pro Limited Edition has undergone retuning of driver units which adopt the Air Film Damping System (AFDS) in accordance with actual use for professional sound recordings upon the request of recording engineers. As a result of the new tuning, which takes into consideration the human auditory characteristic by which low frequency range becomes easier to hear as volume increases, the D8000 Pro Limited Edition provides sound quality perceived to be of higher clarity when listening to rock, pops and other selections featuring a narrow dynamic range in contrast to the D8000, which is suitable particularly for classical music and other selections that feature a wide dynamic range. The following figure shows the difference in sound quality tendencies between the D8000 and the D8000 Pro Limited Edition.
In the Box:
- Headphones;
- OFC black balanced cable (4.4mm TRRRS/1.5m);
- OFC silver-coated balanced cable (XLR 4-pin/3m);
- Headphones Case;
- User manual