The King of Musicality: Audeze LCD3

Posted on May 17, 2013 by

Hey guys,

As you may have read a few weeks ago, I have re-auditioned the Audeze LCD3 and I have been very impressed.

I had to get the HD800 to really understand the LCD3 . First time I have heard it, it impressed me, but I did not think it to be that much above LCD2. 

In the last month with HD800 and LCD2 I found myself listening a little more to the sennheisers. LCD2 seemed to lack in dynamics, details and soundstage compared to  HD800.

Darku was kind enough again to lend me his LCD3 for a week. I must say these days my impressions of LCD3 had completely changed from the first time I have listened to them.

It has exactly what I found to be lacking in LCD2.

Audeze Lcd3

They feel more refined than the LCD2. Also they are more comfortable. Their pads are softer, the zebra wood gives them a nice look and feel and they fit better on the head.

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Let’s get to what is really important: the sound.

Here are my impressions on a few songs:

(The tests have been made with the Burson Conductor and the Toxic Silver Widow cable)

Leonard Cohen – Dress Rehearsal Rag

The first thing that popped out was the change of tonality and the soundstage. LCD3 seem more neutral to me. The sound really opened up to a level you cannot find the music to be congested any more. Leonards’ voice has an excellent texture and body. The guitars were much more apparent on LCD3 and had a tactile feeling on them.

 Pink Floyd, Dark Side of the Moon – Time

Again the soundstage was considerable wider. The positioning of the bells was better on  LCD3 and they had more sparkle. The drums from the beginning had again a tactile feel on  LCD3. You can feel the music with it.

ABBA, Mamma Mia Slipping Through My Fingers

I just loved this song on LCD3. All blended in with great musicality. The voice was brilliant and had wonderful texture and presence. The chorus and instruments behind had a very well placed position. The sound was so better layered and you could hear all the voices in the chorus distinctively. Excellent round sound. It was so good it gave me goosebumps.

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Dire Straits, Brother In Arms – Ride Across The River

Wow, the dynamics are absolutely awesome on LCD3. You can really enjoy music on lower volumes because of this. And the bass…so deep, so well controlled so full & detailed …. mesmerizing. Somewhere on a back, a guitar told magical story that makes you weep of joy, while all the instruments around it make you feel there.

Franz Schubert -Piano Trio No. 1 in B flat Major D898 – Andante un poco mosso

The instruments are excellently put into space and have a lot air between them. You can hear every one of them and each with different intensity and feel. The instruments have great extension and a very important tactile feeling.

Infected Mushrooms, Army of Mushrooms – Wanted to

The bass is absolutely incredible. I think this is the best bass I have ever heard in a headphone and there is no doubt about it. It has an incredible body, goes incredible low and is very detailed! The sound is very well rounded, not too much of anything keeping a very good balance.

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Conclusions

Is it better than LCD2? It definitely is. It will be hard going back to it knowing what these new babies can do.

You can feel that the LCD3‘s drivers are more thin and are faster.

The dynamics are one of the most important thing they bring over LCD2. You can hear the full extension of the instruments now. Every sound has a fuller life . You can hear it born and you can hear it disappearing in the dark.

The soundstage is considerably wider than LCD2, the instruments are better separated and have more air between them.

The bass  is more detailed and refined than LCD2 and is the best bass I have heard in a headphone till date.

They are more neutral and the treble is more defined than with LCD2.

There are somethings that I like about LCD2 as well. The lower midrange and bass have a little more impact. Also the sound has a nice warmer color on them. The voices are a little fuller.

You will ask yourself if they are better than Sennheiser HD800. I, for one love them both and don’t consider one to be better than the other. They sound very different and both are excellent in their own way.

Even after LCD3 when you put HD800 on your head, the sound opens a lot.

HD800 is still more detailed, has a wider soundstage , better positioning, instrument separation & transparency.

However, LCD3 has a fuller sound with the best bass I have ever heard,  a creamy, tactile sound and great musicality.

Pros:

  • Excellent dynamics
  • King of the bass
  • Good soundstage
  • Detailed, yet very smooth and musical
  • Tactile feel of sound
  • Multi layered sound
  • Very good imaging

Cons

  • Very expensive
  • I do not own one  :))

Audeze LCD3

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The Little Black Box: Arcam rPac

Posted on May 2, 2013 by

Hey guys,

I have seen this little box recently and it intrigued me a lot. It has an impressive build quality.

Arcam rPac

It has a very thick aluminum case and it feels like a tank can get over it and wouldn’t hurt it.

Ok…Now I am curios..would it hurt it? Why am I thinking of this?

Because of this crazy video(where they run a tank over a 5000EUR dac, chord qbd76) :

Hmm…All i need now is a tank… Does anybody know a guy…with a tank?

I managed to get a test unit and while I had a good feeling about this small box, it still managed to surprise me.

P1250119

Let’s get to business shall we? For testing, I have used Sennheiser HD800, Focal Spirit One, Audeze LCD2,  Fiio E17 and Burson Conductor.

Here are my impressions on some songs:

Pink Floyd – Time

The treble is really detailed and sparkly at the beginning. The bells were nicely separated and had a very present ring. The presentation was detailed and I just loved the drums coming from every direction which you can easily pinpoint. The voice was natural and had a nice texture.

Sons de la frontera - Al jardin de la alegria

This was a nice surprise. The sound was airy, articulate, controlled & detailed. Loved how the guitar strings snapped with full extension as they were right near me. During the test I liked the sound presentation so much as I listened to 4-5 other songs from that album.

Rodrigo Y Gabriela (Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides) Angry And Dead Man Alive

Wow…I just loved this song…I really got caught in the moment. I don’t know about you but I just love articulate sound and this combo, rPac+Spirit One, was just awesome. The guitars gave me goosebumps. The drums…had a very very good impact and round full sound.

Leonard Cohen – The Traitor

Again loved the guitars. rPac goes very well with the articulate nature of the Focal Spirit One. Leonard’s voice seemed natural and present as it should be throughout the song.

Dire Straits – Sultans of Swing

Really nice PRAT. Really toe tapping! I really feel that the separation of instruments is quite good in this small package. The sound articulate as always and the bass was fast and with good extension.

Infected Mushroom – Army of Mushrooms  - Wanted To

The PRAT was awesome. I really love the well extended bass with the rPac. The sound was fast, energetic and really engaging.

Amandine Beyer & Gli Ingogniti – The Four Seasons -  L autunno Allegro

The sound was quite open and dynamic.  On this piece, however I realized the background wasn’t quite black. I changed the stock usb cable with a Chord Usb Silver Plus and the problem was solved. The difference was quite noticeable.

P1250102

Comparison to Fiio E17

Given the price point you would ask yourself how it would compare to FIIO E17.

These units are pretty close but there are some differences between them and it may be a matter of choice after all.

Sound wise

The rPac had a more detailed sound with better decay, the sound was more articulated & better rounded at both ends, with better instrument separation, better bass extension and more energetic.

E17 has a warmer presentation & a cleaner sound than the rPac and that is mainly because the E17 runs on battery while the arcam is powered by the USB. I have tried a better cable with rPac and it really improves the sound.

Sound wise, I prefer the rPac to E17.

Amplification

I have tried Sennheiser HD800  with both units. rPac was maxed out for normal listening, while the E17 had more until reaching maximum, so it seemed like e17 had more juice. However I felt that the control was quite better on the rPac, and it did reach a good normal listening volume. So rPac quite impressed me with this. I ended up listening to a whole bunch of songs with the pretentious HD800 & the arcam unit (never expected this…wow) .  There I was…minding my own business when the rPac surprised me as hell with this.

revengeb

Build quality

The e17 is almost half the size of the rPac.

Both have a very sturdy aluminium case, but the rPac really looks impenetrable.

While the E17 has a usb input, SPDIF In, aux out & headphones out, the rPac has only the USB In, headphones out and RCA out.

The E17 has a nice menu while the rPac has only volume buttons on it having a rather spartan but pleasant design .

While you can use Fiio separately as amplifier and as dac, the rPac could be used just an external dac with other devices.

Also the E17 has a battery than can become really handy in some situations, and also contributes to a cleaner sound.

P12501162

Conclusions

I really loved this little box and I recommend it with ease to anybody who wants portable sound. Don’t forget that it really benefits from a good USB cable.

Pros:

  • Excellent build quality 
  • Good amplification and DAC with good instrument separation, wide soundstage, articulated & detailed sound, excellent PRAT, good decay, well extended & punchy bass, nicely overall rounded sound, sparkly but not bright treble
  • rca out

Cons:

  • no battery
  • can’t be used just as amp (only as dac)
  • has only volume buttons with no screen or menu (i don’t find this upsetting but there might be people that would)

P1250117 P1250108

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Focal Spirit One Headphone Contest!

Posted on April 30, 2013 by

Hey guys,

As I promised a few days ago I am organizing a contest that holds the wonderful Focal Spirit One as prize.

Read more about them here. You can also find them on www.jack-fi.ro .

I really love these headphones. Until now they are my favorite portable headphones and this even extends to “my favorite closed headphones“! I just love their full, articulate, fast and engaging sound.

Focal Spirit One

The sponsor of the contest is jack-fi  (audioconcept), and I thank them for their generosity and kindness. I spent a lot of time on their premises lately.  Every time I go there for auditions, I learn new stuff and, unfortunately, end up craving for something new.  I really think it is heck of a store and  it has a great staff. Each and every one is a passionate audiophile.

If you live in Bucharest or you are just passing through, remember that you can always go to Jack-fi and hear their best systems from their 4 wonderful audition rooms.

To enter the contest you have to:

1. Like the HeadMania & AudioConcept(Jack-fi) facebook pages  and  and share this contest page with the title “Focal Spirit One HeadMania Headphones Contest!” or just share the contest post from the HeadMania facebook page.

2. Read the following posts : 7, 17, 24, 25 (you can find the associated posts to the numbers in the contents section ) and find the words that don’t fit the context. Send me an email with the resulting sentence at cascofil@gmail.com  with the subject “HeadMania Spirit One Contest”.  Don’t share the resulting sentence publicly or you will be disqualified.

3. Write a brief story, as a comment to this post about how you got into this hobby and how you explain/justify your upgrades to your wife/girlfriend/partner. I think this would benefit/inspire all of us for future purchases :D

To be noted:

  • The contest is available for any country fedex and dhl can ship to.
  • The shipping expenses will be covered by the winner. 
  • The winner will be selected randomly from the ones that followed the rules above
  • The winner will be announced after  3rd of June

These said, I wish all of you good luck and enjoy the reading.

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A wonderful trip down memory lane

Posted on April 22, 2013 by

Hello guys,

A few weeks ago when I was visiting jack-fi for an audition, we ended discussing about vinyls and old times. The guys from jack said that it was a time when they had a turntable in every audition room and that maybe they will bring them back, as they begun to miss them.

Two weeks ago I was pleasantly surprised to see a functional one in their second audition room, a Kuzma Stabi SD:

jack512_o

A pair of Focal Electra 1008 BE and a Jadis Orchestra amplifier stood proudly near the turntable.  It was a time for a listen. My ears started itching.

The music started flowing and with it so did memories from my childhood. The sound had that magic analog/turntable touch that I missed throughout the years.  We started with some old vinyls and we got that static that used to bug me while listening when I was a child. Now it surprised me to see  the situation has changed in such manner that I actually loved that static for the particularity and emotion it brought to the music.

The Focal Electra and the Jadis amplifier did their job wonderfully and they impressed me very much. Those little 2 speakers did a very good job on the whole audio spectrum.

The sound overall flowed nicely and musically. The voices were very present and had a very nice texture.  I started thinking how the hell did they manage to include all those details into that small thin groove. How could it make so many sounds in the same time. So, as you may have guessed the sound was very detailed and the separation of instruments quite good.

After listening to the old vinyls the guys put a brand new one with the soundtracks from Tron: Legacy. That is where the true WOW appeared. The bass was amazing. It was so deep and impactful it truly amazed me. The openness of the sound was again very impressive. While listening to the soundtracks I got a thrill on my spine and throughout my body at every 10 seconds or so.

That is my awesomeness meter and it was derailed that day. We then put the same song from a CD and I felt the song was less alive than on the vinyl. Did not make an extensive comparison between the two but another thing  I observer was that the bass was not as present and did not go so low as with the turntable.

I tried to listen at home to the same Tron soundtracks with LCD2 & HD800 & Burson Conductor. It was very good but not the same…

I remembered my father has over 100 vinyls at home.

Many friends of my father have sold/given all their vinyls and their turntables away when they got a cd player.

Those vinyls have been in our family for more that 28 years and I am happy they have made it through the CD era without being given away.

Jack-fi  opened a nice trip down memory lane and made me refocus my attention on the turntables once again.

Ok, so let’s get to the other part of the story.

This weekend I have been at my wifes’ grandparents at the country side. They have a modest house in a village near Tulcea. They are over 80 years old. While they were all talking in the garden I entered the house and started exploring. I found two rooms that were not lived in any longer. One room contained a old russian turntable and 4 stashes of vinyls.

omg%2520cat

Ok…so practically that was an audition room? :D I looked at the turntable.

IMAG0669

It was full of dust. I cleaned it a little and checked for the power cable. I found one… My heart was pounding… Found a socket and plugged it in. Looked over the curtain and saw one old speaker. Followed the cables and found another one across the room. Pressed the power button and it started spinning…

dramaticl250

I started looking through the vinyls and found some very interesting albums there.

That is when memories really started flooding in. My father had a russian turntable too with similar speakers. From 5 till 10 years old I used to go to sleep while listening to the turntable. I used to listen to recorded stories or music before sleeping. So…you may say I have audiophile roots since I was a little boy :P

I also found a story disk I used to listen to:

SAMSUNG

Ah…sweet childhood. I am planning of getting this turntable and use these stories when I will have kids of my own :D

SAMSUNG

I also remembered how I used to look at the disk spinning and get real close to the turntables’ needle and started hearing the music at a very very low volume.

IMAG0659

The sound quality was kind of poor but now it was all about the music, and the magic the moment had. I just stood back and enjoyed the music.

I found a wonderful vinyl with Mozart Concert Nr. 24 for Piano and Orchestra:

0IMAG0645

After this I called my wife and we both listened to some Queen:

IMAG0636

Then some Lionel Richie:

IMAG0686

We also found a Beatles Vinyl :

SAMSUNG

That trip was a real surprise and I felt like a kid that found a little treasure. It was like opening a chest full of memories and the soundtracks on which they would play.

The turntables will always have the magic of the past and of true analog sound.

+music.+

It made me think of my childhood and how the society changed throughout the years. In those times we did not have so much media and television, so we had more time to just sit and listen to music, to read a good book or just get out and play, things we could still do today but we get polluted by all the media and new life style.

So don’t forget what these turntable mean, just sit and enjoy the music.

IMAG0677

Posted in Speakers, Turntable | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Spectacular Sennheiser HD800

Posted on April 14, 2013 by

Hey guys,

It’s been a while since my last post. I have been really busy lately and I really missed writing here. Fortunately the last weeks I have gathered some thoughts to write about. The most important thing I want to write about is the Sennheiser HD800. I know I wrote about it twice now, and in both cases compared to Audeze LCD2.

My last post is the most relevant between the last two. That is when Sennheiser HD800  really impressed me a lot and changed my thoughts about it drastically. I loved them so much as a few weeks ago I bought a pair.

Sennheiser HD800

Since then, the HD800 have grown on me even more. These headphones are absolutely spectacular on the right gear, in my case the Burson Conductor .

These headphones deserve  post of their own. I almost feel responsible doing this, as I feel that I haven’t done them justice in my first post and I have to make up for it.

Lets take this from the start.

In my opinion they look quite nice and I really enjoy their futuristic design.
Every time I put them on I feel like this:

How I actually look like:

HD800
However, they seem really fragile to me. I have touched the silver grill by mistake and left a print there. My hands were clean, but still managed to do that. I couldn’t remove it so it is still there and it bugs me . Audeze LCD2 feel like a tank compared the senns.

I liked the stock cable from HD800. The build quality seems to be very good and it looks nicer than the usual stock cable ( LCD2 for example ). One thing I don’t like about it: the splitter seems to be made from cheap plastic and the cables that go from the splitter to the cups don’t look like high quality to me. Actually, I know a friend that had some problems with that portion of the cable, meaning that in time it opened up. This seemed to have happened to more owners.

HD800 Cable

I feel I really must be extra careful and treat them with more care. Don’t put them  directly on your desk as the paint may chip off. I always put them on something more cushy and not directly on a hard surface.

Sennheiser HD800

 

On the comfort side, I don’t think I have ever wore a more comfortable headphone. I really forget they are on my head after a while.

So let’s get to the most important part, the sound. So many things to say and so few words to express all I would like to say about these headphones.

I will tell you my impressions on a few songs.

ACDC – You Shook Me All Night Long

The first thing that struck me was the bass and the guitars. The bass is not at all shy. It is very present with a  very nice punch and tightness. Of course the sound was multi layered and very airy. The PRAT was awesome and toe tapping. One thing I had to do while listening to the song was to lower the volume as the treble got a little too tiresome.  The fact that I lowered the volume was not quite a bad move as I really got to enjoy the song like this with no problems. Yeah you heard me, I like rock on HD800. It is a little bright sometimes but lowering the volume solved the problem. It was quite ok as I can really enjoy music at even lower volumes with HD800 .

\becomes\

Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon – Time

Damn… The bells at the beginning were absolutely awesome. Every bell was so clear and so well defined in its place. The sounds came from all directions and you could easily concentrate on each and get it’s original location. The sound was pouring effortless and the dynamics were incredible. The soundstage is exceptional and you forget you are listening to headphones.

Infected Mushrooms – IM The Supervisor – Noon

Dat bass… Yes you heard me… Who said HD800 hasn’t got bass, clearly didn’t hear it on proper setup. The bass is so punchy, so deep and so damn fast. The PRAT on this song was awesome. The instruments were very detailed, excellent placed in space and very present throughout the song. The sound came effortless and HD800 handled it with extreme ease.

Tristania – Illumination (symphonic gothic metal)

One word. Excellent! The bass is superb. It really hits you with force and real impact. It is so punchy and so present. The sound was very opened and all the instruments were so well separated and well placed. The sound is multi-layered and not one instrument blended in with another. The voice could use a more natural tone but overall I really loved the song on HD800.

Andre Rieu (Dreaming) – Air (J.S. Bach)

The sound-stage is amazing. The sound is so opened that if you close your eyes you forget you are listening to headphones and that you are at home. You can see yourself in the concert hall, you can see the orchestra and pinpoint every instrument there. The details are amazing and the dynamics are the best I have ever heard in a headphone.

Leonard Cohen – The Traitor

The instruments in the beginning of the song are awesome. The details really tickle your ears. Again the instrument separation is absolutely beautiful. There is so much air between the instruments. You can hear everything and you can easily concentrate on the furthest instrument and still hear it clearly. The voice is quite nicely reproduced and has an excellent texture. It is not as natural as on LCD2, but the reproduction was still awesome.

Conclusions

These headphones are the best headphones I have heard to date.   The soundstage and openess of the sound is exemplary on them. I sometimes really forget I am listening to headphones.  The sound is so multi-layered that on the the most crowded songs I have listened to, never did I found, not even once, that two instruments blended in the same layer.

The imaging and sound positioning is excellent and you can really pinpoint the location of any sound with great ease.

They truly are detail monsters. The get all out of that recording. I expected to be annoyed by lower resolution files, but I enjoyed them greatly even on some mp3s I had listened to. Sometimes I got scared, as I thought some sounds came from my room and I was preparing for battle if any intruder had broken in my secret audiophile lair:

Ok, the bass…These headphones DO NOT lack bass! I repeat…they DO NOT lack any bass! Their bass is awesome, actually. It goes very very deep, it is very punchy, very fast and knows how to jam.

The mids are top notch too. The instruments and voices have a wonderfully detailed texture.

The voices are well reproduced but they could use more body and a more natural tone.

I did not find the HD800 to be bright headphones. They are very neutral to me. The times I thought them to be bright I realized the song was at fault being a bright recording. When something was bright on HD800 was even bright on LCD2. Be careful as  there are many bright recordings out there. So the treble is very very well defined  and is very sparkly when it is needed to. Unfortunately the sound is a slight sibilant but usually when it got too sibilant it was the recordings fault as well.

The dynamics & micro-dynamics on these headphones are excellent . I can really listen to lower volumes with HD800 and still be fully satisfied.

I have used it on some movies as well. They excelled here as well. In crowded open spaces you really feel that you are in that place. It is quite incredible.

I am going to give you a little advice: Don’t use them on a HD horror movie if you have heart problems!

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The Amazing Sennheiser IE800

Posted on March 25, 2013 by

Hello guys,

I have been reading about the IE800 for some time now. I heard people saying it is a mini HD800. That intrigued me, as I love the HD800.

I usually hate IEMs for their congested and bassy sound. I also hate sticking something inside my ears, but was curious about Sennheisers’ new addition.

It seems I am a lucky man,  as last week soundnews.ro asked me if I can write a review for them on their site.

Of course I accepted as I love their website. DarKu writes there and I have used it as a reference for many ears. In my opinion, It is the best romanian website about audio. It was an honor and an opportunity I couldn’t refuse, so here I am, listening to IE800.

These headphones look quite nice. The cable has a good build quality and a nice sturdy feel.

 

It would have been excellent if the cable was detachable.

The jack is with a 90 degrees angle so you can easily use a portable device in the pocket with them.

IE800 comes with a nice package that contains another 4 pairs of ear-buds of different sizes. What I love about them is that every ear-bud has an additional protective grill, keeping the unwanted stuff away from the driver that also has another protective grill.

The carry case it comes with is very elegant with a leather like material, well build and could easily fit in a pocket.

Also the comfort is quite nice. They have 2 vents. One is for the sound as they are opened in-ears and the second one is to vent the air between the earbud and your eardrum, so the pressure goes away.

And yes… that’s right ! They are opened in-ear headphones. Don’t worry though, as the people from the outside can’t hear what you hear.

Yes…but the sound..how is it?

The first time I put these headphones in my ears my jaw dropped on the floor. These babies are absolutely amazing. They don’t have the typical IEM sound at all.

amazed250

The first thing I observed is the soundstage, which was huge for a pair of in-ears.

It is quite weird. I felt like the sound is coming from inside my skull. I actually started with classical music and I felt like my head became a big, large scene with the orchestra inside it. I could not believe my ears. I instantly loved the classical music on these headphones.

The sound just hypnotized me, as I just stood still while listening to them. It is stunning.

I will start to explain some of my experiences with it on some songs:

Andre Rieu – Morning (Classical; Peer Gynt Suite) (E.Grieg)

The details are amazing and you can hear every instrument and every note. The dynamics, and micro-dynamics are on the same level, making you a part of the scene and making you feel the music in every part of your body.

Every instrument is well placed into space and easy to separate from the other. The treble is well defined with amazing details but still on the smooth side. The mids are very present and give the instruments a very good extension and a full body.

Pink Floyd – Time

The bells and ringing at the beginning of the song was really enjoyable. The treble had the necessary sparkle and detail but wasn’t too hot. The sound was very opened for IEMS.  The IE800 surprises me everytime and I forget i listen to IEMs or even closed headphones. The sound is multi-layered with very good instrument separation, amazing details and very well balanced throughout the spectrum.

ACDC – Beating Around the Bush

The voice was very well textured and quite natural . The instruments did not blend in in one layer as with the other IEMS. These headphones know how to rock having a very good PRAT and energetic sound.

Infected Mushroom – Drum n’ Bassa

I usually hate the bass on IEMS as it feels unnatural with too much pressure on the eardrum. Well until now the IE800 did not fit the  normal in-year standards and It was time to see if the bass really is better than with others.

Well…IE800 impressed me again. The bass is deep, punchy and tight, but not invading other parts of the spectrum. The PRAT was excellent and the overall experience toe-tapping.

Leonard Cohen – Be for Real

You know that this is my ultimate way of testing the  voice reproduction,  and I must say that Leonard’s voice sounded very natural, well textured and had a very nice presence. I was not like Audeze LCD2 but it captured the essence of his voice.

I have listened to many other songs, but I will not add more impressions on songs as I have already stated the most important facts about IE800′s characteristics and I would repeat myself.

Conclusions

These are without doubt the best IEMs I have ever listened to. I really think Sennheiser nailed it with IE800, and nailed it good.  As I said before, I usually don’t like the usual sound of in ear headphones, but sennheiser somehow made it in a way that while listening to it, I forget they are in this category.

It really took me by surprise:

FunnyCat

For their type, I think their openness is amazing. Also the sound is not at all congested, it is actually multi-layered, with very good instrument separation and good spatial positioning.

The details on them are quite stunning. This combined with very good dynamics  really give you goosebumps.

The mids, one of the strongest points of this headphone, are excellent  and all the instruments and voices have a good, natural and well textured presentation.

Also the bass is not at all typical to IEMS. It is well extended, punchy and tight and doesn’t get over other frequencies.

The treble is very detailed and sparkly but not bright.

Overall the sound is very balanced throughout the spectrum and they were good with every genre I gave them.

I really thought of finding some cons to these headphones but other than the price I couldn’t find anything.

And all of this can fit your pocket. They work very well with phones and other mobile devices but they benefit from some amplification and a good DAC . You can have high end sound with you, everywhere you go. For someone who is always traveling, these babies are perfect.

Here is a picture of IE80 on the left and IE800 on the right.

IMG_2009

Posted in Headphones, Portable | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Sennheiser IE800, Sennheiser IE80, AudioTehnica ATH CKS 90 & Martin Logan Mikros 70 comparison

Posted on March 24, 2013 by

Hello guys,

I usually don’t like in ear headphones, as I don’t like sticking something inside my ears and don’t like their unnatural congested sound. However I was curious about Sennheiser’s  new  flagship in this category, as I have only heard good things about it.

I was lucky to receive a pair of IE800 from soundnews.ro.  With them, I also received a pair of  Audiotehnica CKS90, Sennheiser IE80 and the guys from jack-fi  lent me a pair of Martin Logan Mikros 70.

So it was the perfect time for a IEM shootout.

I started the comparison on a few songs:

Pink Floyd – Time

Sennheiser IE80

The ringing from the beginning was  hot and all the bells blended in a single layer. The details and mids were nice on this song. The bass did not have a good control, lacked extension and the overall sound congested.

ATH CKS90

STOP THE RINGING…Ouch…The beginning of the song was quite painful.  The bass had better extension than with the IE80, but the mids were recessed. IE80 had a lot more details. The sound was congested and the instruments blended in the same layer. The voice lacked texture.

Sennheiser IE800

Ah…at last the ringing at the beginning of the song was enjoyable. The treble had the necessary sparkle but wasn’t too hot. The sound opened up A LOT.  The IE800 surprises me everytime and I forget i listen to IEMs or even closed headphones. The sound is multi-layered with very good instrument separation, amazing details and very well balanced throughout the spectrum.

Martin Logan Mikros 70

Their sound was very relaxing as it was recessed on the whole spectrum. It lacked details and the voice was kind of fade. The bells at the beginning and overall all the instruments had a better spatial positioning and the sound was bit more multi-layered than with the CKS90 and IE80

ACDC – Beating Around the Bush

ATH CKS90

The bass was ok on this song, but overall, I found them to be too bright and congested. Also the mids sounded  recessed lacking details.

Sennheiser IE80

I liked their presentation more that of the CKS90. The sens have a better midrange, more details, the sound is less congested. However, the bass was not as deep and impactful as with the ATH. The treble was overall to bright for my tastes.

Sennheiser IE800

The sound opened up a lot. The voice had a lot more texture and overall the details were much better. The instruments did not blend in in one layer as with the others. The treble was not at all too bright and the sound was very well balanced. They are in another class completely

Martin Logan Mikros 70

Again the sound was recessed. The bass lacked impact and extension, the mids & treble were somewhere in the back. The voice & guitars were missing texture and presence. The sound was again a little more multi-layered  with a wider scene  than the CKS90 and IE80. However I liked this song more with the Mikros compared to those two, because it was relaxed and did not pierce my ears.

Tiamat – Sixshooter 

Sennheiser Ie80

The bass was very punchy but it was too much in my opinion and it got over the mids . The voice was warm and natural and well textured. The overall mids were good, but I felt the bass interfered a little over the mids.

ATH-CKS90

The bass was deeper and more detailed and did not invade the mids like IE80 .

The mids were a little recessed again and the voice lacked texture compared to the senns, but overall it was more enjoyable with the CKS90.

Sennheiser ie800

The soundstage is huge compared to the other two. The bass is excellent: deep, impact-full and tight. The voice had excellent texture and was quite natural. The instrument separation was much better and the overall sound again more balanced.

Martin Logan Mikros 70

The bass lacked extension and punch but I preferred it over the  IE80 that were too much in this department and  I had to lower the volume a lot to finish the song. The sound was again lacking details but it had a larger scene with better positioning.

Amandine Beyer & Gli Incogniti : The Four Seasons – ‘L’ inverno ‘ Allegro

Sennheiser IE800

This is truly amazing. I really did not feel I was listening to a pair of IEMS, or even closed headphones for that matter. The separation of instruments was excellent, the details amazing, making every violin sound very well textured giving you goosebumps. The soundstage was wide and all the instruments were very well placed and easy to extract from the sound. One word…amazing!

Audiotehnica CKS90

The V shaped sound was felt here too. The instruments lack presence and the treble was a little piercing. Their presentation was also congested.

Sennheiser IE80

The sound was more detailed than CKS90 and the instruments had more presence. However the treble was too piercing and the overall sound congested, but wider than with CKS90.

Martin Logan Mikros 70

This was a nice surprise. I really felt the scene was wider and the positioning was better than with the CKS90 and IE80. Even if the sound was recessed and lacked details it did not pierce my ears and was more enjoyable, however still not enough for classical music.

Infected Mushroom – Drum n’ Bassa

Sennheiser IE800

Again the IE800 amazes me, like it did every time. The sound  very very detailed with a wide soundstage. The bass is deep, impactful and fast, but not invading other parts of the spectrum. The PRAT is excellent and the overall experience toe-tapping.

Sennheiser IE80

The bass was very punchy and sometimes too much but good for bass heads I think. The treble and mids are fine and detailed, but the sound is congested(still wider than CKS90), single layered, and a liitle invaded by the bass. Also the treble is on the edge  of being hot.

ATH-CKS90

The bass was clearly deeper and more extended but not as punchy as IE80. Again the mids were kind of recessed and lacking detail. The treble was a little hot too.

Martin Logan Mikros 70

Listening to them is like having a veil over your ears. The bass lacked extension and a little punch. All the sound is recessed. These are not headphones for someone who likes bass, this is clear to me.

Conclusions

The IE800 was a surprise for me and is miles and miles ahead of the other three. I forgot I listened to in-ear headphones. They have a huge soundstage for IEMS. Their sound is very well balanced throughout the spectrum making them a good headphones for every genre. They know hot to rock very well and the classical music sounds amazing on them.

Their bass is well extended, tight and punchy without being a typically annoying IEM bass.  The details on these babies are amazing, and gives you goosebumps. The treble is also very well extended and not at all hot. The sound is multi -layered and has a very good instrument separation. These are the best IEMS I have ever listened to. They are truly flagship material and could beat a lot of normal size high-end headphones if you put them side by side.

The other three  are way…way behind the IE800 which clearly won the shootout:

I am not sure which I liked better between the CKS90, IE80 or the Mikros. Actually i didn’t like any of them.

But, consider the fact that I do not like IEM sound in general and IE800 doesn’t sound like in ear headphones to me, so take my about statement with a grain of salt.

IE80 has a punchier bass but sometimes it invades the mids. It is clearly more detailed and has a better midrange presentation. The treble is too hot for me, but I am very sensitive to treble in general. Some may consider it to just detailed. The sound is more opened than CKS90 and with better positioning. They are pretty nice overall for in-ear headphones.

The CKS90 a good bass , with a better extension and not as invasive, but not as punchy . Their sound is V shaped, the mids are recessed and the treble again a little to hot for me.

Both CKS90 and IE80 has a very congested, single layered sound and they are both awful with classical music, especially the CKS90.

Everything I said about IE80 and CKS90, was in the context of comparing them near IE800. It is a big gap between them, but it doesn’t mean that IE80 or CKS90 are awfull.

The Martin Logan Mikros is a very weird IEM. My phone doesn’t get along with them. The weirdest thing happened when plugging them in. I use a Samsung Galaxy S with Voodoo Sound. The volume is very small and when I tried to increase the volume, the Voodoo application crashed and the sound started to distort bigtime. I tried them to plug them into other normal headphones outputs, but the sound seemed to lack amplification and volume. Also, I think there might be a problem with their jack as I had to find a good position for them to sound properly.

Only the Burson Conductor seemed not to have problems with them. I may have received a faulted pair, or these headphones need serious amplification.  Actually I almost hit 12 o’clock at low gain settings with Conductor.

Their sound is recessed on all the spectrum. It is like having a veil on your ears. The bass is lacking extension and control and the only thing good about it is that is not as annoying as other IEM which tend to be overdoing it at the bass section. The mids and treble are very recessed and the sound lacks details. Their sound is flat and lifeless.

The only thing I liked about them is the fact that their presentation was less congested with a wider scene and better positioning.

So,  they may be good for someone who likes a very very relaxed, flat sound and doesn’t care so  much about the bass or details. Also if you consider them, be sure to test them with your portable device first to see if it can drive them well.

When I had to give them back, I was only sorry for Sennheiser IE800 which I truly loved.

The IE800 are so good that I will reserve my next article just for them.

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Excellent aftermarket cable for Audeze LCD2: Toxic Silver Widow

Posted on March 22, 2013 by

Hey guys,

The time has finally come. It has been nearly 3  months since I ordered the Toxic Silver Widow .  The wait was not short, I can tell you that, but it was worth it and I knew it would take this long from the beginning, so it isn’t such a big deal.

The Silver Widow is a stranded OCC Silver Type 2 Litz cable. It also has a higher percentage of gold than the Silver Poison , which has 1% gold.

The cable has 80 strands per wire and 320 strands overall.

As I said in one of my previous posts, I did a lot of research before choosing this cable, and I trust my decision making system as it gave good results in the past.

However, I did not audition/test it before buying it, so it still felt like a big jump:

code-25

I was still afraid of the usual issues with the silver cable : less bass and bright sound.

From what I read, this cable was created with the purpose of removing the usual problems with silver cables, and I trusted my instinct on this subject.

Fortunately my instinct struck gold again , figuratively and literal speaking, as the Silver Widow has gold inside :) ) .

When I received the cable, the first thing I observed was it’s beautiful build quality. This cable really looks like jewelry.

I, myself, don’t like any jewelry for men and I only wear a wedding ring and a watch, but I must say this cable does look good on me :) ).

After a while I started looking at it like this (my preciouusss…) :

From the first moment I plugged it in I heard the differences compared to the stock cable.

I was expecting improvements but not like this, and it took me by surprise :

amazed

I started comparing the Silver Widow with the stock cable on a few songs:

Pink Floyd – The Dark Side of the Moon – Time

The ringing and the bells from the beginning were very good for the test. The difference was immediate and very easy to hear. The treble was much more defined with the Silver Widow. It was not bright but it gave the necessary sparkle I wanted. On the stock cable all the instruments were blending in, while on the Silver Widow the separation was much better and apparent. Also, the scene is quite larger with the Silver Widow and the sound is more articulated and more detailed.

Continue reading →

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Focal Spirit One vs Sennheiser Amperior

Posted on March 17, 2013 by

Hello guys,

I have recently managed to audition the Sennheiser Amperior with the help of DarKu. He was really curious about the Focal Spirit One, as I have praised it a lot to him, and I was curious about the Amperior.

So, we had a little “meet” at my house and tested them side by side.

The build quality on Amperior is quite nice. They look sturdy and the metal cups are really nice. Also the headband is exactly like on the old HD25-1 II.

The earpads are not leather any more and this makes them more comfortable and airier, but it takes a little from the isolation. One other thing I observed is that the cable from Amperior is much thinner than Spirit Ones‘ cable which is thicker and better built.

Overall the Sennheiser is more comfortable than the Spirit One and doesn’t press that much on the ears. However, even though the Focals have a tighter more uncomfortable grip, the isolation is quite better with them.

DarKu has slightly bigger ears than I do, and they don’t fit into the cups of spirit one, so they press directly on his ears.

My ears almost fit inside the cups so I don’t find it as uncomfortable as he did.

I did a little comparison on some songs . Both headphones were compared on Burson Conductor.

Amandine Beyer & Gli Incogniti: The Four Seasons L’autunno Allegro

Amperior

The presentation was very detailed on all spectrum but a little congested. The treble was a little too hot, but overall the song was enjoyable.

Focal Spirit One

They lacked some details compared to the Amperior, but the presentation was a little warmer and the sound a little more open, natural and fuller. The Focal has the necessary spark on the treble but not at all hot or sibilant.

Armin Van Buuren – Sail

Focal Spirit One

The energetic sound of the Spirit One was very nice on this song. The bass is very fast, well extended and punchy. The treble is sparkly and hits the sweet spot, without being bright or sibilant.

Sennheiser Amperior

The first thing that popped was the bass that seemed to be a little more full, but it was a little looser and not quite as punchy and fast as on the spirit one. The sound is a little more congested, but it has mode details, as the mids seem to be brought more in front and the treble is more present, but quite bright and I find to be a somehow sibilant, and on a long term could get more tiresome.

Leonard Cohen – Teachers

Sennheiser Amperior

The details are very nice with Amperior. The guitars are right there in your ears and have a nice feel, but the sound is overall congested and the voice of Leonard Cohen was not so natural.

Focal Spirit One

The sound was fuller and had more meat. The guitars had a fuller body, also the voice was more natural and more present.

Michael Jackson – Beat It

Focal Spirit One

I always find myself tapping on this song with the spirit one. The bass is really nice again as I said before : fast, punchy and well extended. Michael voice is nicely presented, even-though it lacks a little texture. The treble is quite good without being bright or sibilant, and this is a bright and sibilant recording compared to others.

Sennheiser Amperior

The bass lacked some punch compared to the Spirit One and the sound wasn’t as meaty, but the guitars war more present with Amperior. Again the sound was more congested and a little sibilant and bright on the treble. The prat was good on amperior too, but not as fast as with the spirit one. Both headphones did a good job on this song, actually. I still prefer the Spirit One but it may be question of tastes here.

Valerie Joyce: New York Blue – Fever

Sennheiser Amperior.

The Amperior was quite enjoyable on this song. The voice was warm and present and the instruments detailed and present throughout the song.

Focal Spirit one

The sound is overall more controlled, articulate and fuller. The voice was more present and natural, but it lacked some texture compared to the Amperiors. I felt that the sound was a little more opened than the Amperior.

Conclusions

Both headphones are quite good and of course it could resume to a matter of tastes as they have really different sound signatures.

The Focal Spirit One is a dark headphone, with an excellent, well extended, fast and punchy bass (with better bass response), good midrange and sparkly but not hot or sibilant treble.

The sound was fuller and meatier than on Sennheiser Amperior, a little more opened and I felt it had a more balanced sound overall. Actually I think that Amperior has an even more emphasized bass on the 100 hz region.

The Sennheiser Amperior have a little more details on the mids (they have the mids a little elevated compared to the Focals that have the bass elevated a bit) , the bass wasn’t as fast, punchy and well extended as on the Spirit One but it was still quite enjoyable.

It also has a more congested sound than on the Focals, the treble is well defined but it is a little to bright and has a beginning of sibilance.

The voices weren’t as present or natural as with the Spirit One, but they have more texture.

Both headphones are fast and energetic, and the only thing that puts Spirit One in front at this section, is the bass which is faster than  the Amperiors’,  overall making it an even more energetic headphone.

We both liked both headphones, but for the first time, me and DarKu had different opinions on this matter, as he liked the Amperiors more than the Focal Spirit One, and I clearly liked  the latter one better.

The things I liked more on Spirit One:

  • better, punchier, faster and better extended bass
  • fuller sound
  • more natural voices
  • better isolation
  • the cables’ build quality
  • more opened sound than on Amperior
  • good treble but not sibilant or bright

Things I liked better on Amperior:

  • slightly more details but on the midrange not on the bass
  • better transition between the midrange and treble
  • a little more texture with voices
  • more comfort

For me, the Spirit One remains the best closed portable headphone I have heard until now .

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Audiophile Power Cables Shootout

Posted on March 17, 2013 by
Hello guys,

 As you may remember, I recently found a nice USB Cable from Chord. I have noticed that they also make power cables and that Jack-Fi had them. Considering the mysterious  improvements brought by the usb cable, I thought I would try one of their power cables as well.

So, I went to Jack-fi happy to have a reason to stalk….cough…cough…visit them… So there I was at their door : “Hello guys…it’s me again!” :

oatg

Well, needless to say I stayed there again more than I expected, keeping the guys from their work …. I hope I don’t get to be their most annoying customer…

At the end they gave me a Chord Power Chord to try it out at home and see if I like it.  Ok…what store does this..? Awesome as always!

Actually it wasn’t exactly the Chord Power Chord, it had the same cable but different connectors, and it was made by jack-fi.  It was 2 times cheaper than the original cable(100 EUR compared to 200 eur) so it seemed like a great deal.

Well… I went home and started comparing it to  the PS Audio Jewel. I did not see any difference at all. Thought to myself that I should let it burn in before making up my mind.

A lot of people make the mistake of judging audio gear before the proper burnin period . For example, Conductor gets to shine over 90 hours of burn in. A friend of mine bought a Conductor off ebay that only had ~50 hours on it.  After a while he recognized that the sound really improved. The guy that sold the Burson Conductor, didn’t actually hear it at full value. If you read the manual, Burson actually says this.

After 2 days, when I put the PS Audio Jewel back I started to see the differences. The Chord cable really brought some very nice improvements : more punchier, controlled and well extended bass, better details, microdetails & dynamics. The sound was overall more articulate, the separation of instruments was better, giving a multi-layered sound.

I liked it a lot and I went to Jack-Fi to pay for the cable.

After spending a lot of time on the guys’  heads again, they gave me another cable to test. It was a custom power cable made by them for the internal usage with the audio gear from their showrooms. The cables was over 2 times thicker than the Chord Power Chord and really looked nice, but was also very expensive to manufacture because of the materials used actually (~700 EUR).  It is so expensive because the materials put into it are really  high quality.

They don’t use poor materials and after sell it with ten times the price, and I believe them because this cable is not even listed on their site, and it was made for internal usage at jack-fi and they seldom sell it to a friend or close client.

This cable is extremely well build. It is very thick and heavy but extremely flexible, much more flexible than any of my other cables.

I could not get all the specifications, because they want to keep it in house. However they told me that is a thick litz german cable, with extreme copper purity, with very high quality connectors ( silver plated copper with electromagnetic shielding), a complex braiding with triple helix like structure ( this is why they called the cable DNA).

I myself, wouldn’t spend that much on a power chord but I really wanted to hear a reference one, as I was really curios if it makes any difference at all and what are those differences, so I took it for a test.

This cable will be referred to as Jack DNA throughout the article from now on.

Well… I found myself with 4 power cables at home: Wireworld Aurora, PS Audio Jewel,  Chord Power Chord & Jack DNA ….. so I thought it’s time for a shootout :D

The comparisons were made on more songs, but the following ones are the main ones I used. The components used were the Burson Conductor and Audeze LCD2

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