Vimberg Mino loudspeaker $31,000 Review
May 6, 2020 Comments Off on Vimberg Mino loudspeaker $31,000 Review
“In the midrange, the Minos sounded as clean and uncolored as the Dutch & Dutch 8c speakers that I also review in this issue. I found myself playing a lot of solo piano recordings with the Vimbergs. Not only did this loudspeaker love pianos, but its transparency and imaging accuracy clearly revealed the differences between different recordings. I followed Tor Espen Aspaas’s performance of the Maestoso from Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No.32 in C minor, Op.111 (24/96 FLAC file from Mirror Canon, 2L 2L-49) with my own recording, made in 2000, of Robert Silverman performing the same movement (24/88.2 ALAC file, OrpheumMasters, no longer available). Aspaas’s piano sounded powerful and close-up, set within a supportive (Norwegian church) acoustic, while the Vimbergs made it only too clear that Silverman’s Bösendorfer piano had been recorded in too small a hall in Santa Monica. (In my defense, I had not been involved in the choice of the” hall, and when I set up my microphones, it proved impossible to move the piano.) But this was offset by the Minos’ lack of coloration, low-frequency clarity, and impressive dynamics, allowing me to be caught up in Silverman’s engaging interpretation.”
FIIO FH1S REVIEW
April 30, 2020 Comments Off on FIIO FH1S REVIEW
“The entire top end is very tame, but with a slight sparkle factor that is just inching toward bright. I found this a stark contrast to the upper midrange, a sudden bump of treble that makes the top feel just a little more lively. But, at the same time, still not what I would consider plentiful or bright overall up top.
What does that mean? Well, to use fusion guitar as a reference point, harmonics and piano key strikes (sudden treble out of nowhere) have a great sense of dynamic flair and enjoyable flavor. That brightness and engaging factor are there, but the top end is not omnipresent with this tonality. It comes only when called for and for the rest of the experience, it is laid back in regard to physicality.”
FIIO UTWS1 TRUE WIRELESS BLUETOOTH MODULE REVIEW
April 28, 2020 Comments Off on FIIO UTWS1 TRUE WIRELESS BLUETOOTH MODULE REVIEW
“The FiiO UTWS1 True Wireless Bluetooth Module is everything I want in a True Wireless headset. It is comfortable, convenient, versatile, has enough power to drive any IEM (there is some mention in their Amazon ad of noise floor issues with extremely efficient IEMs, but I did not experience this with the FH7s), has a good microphone and active noise cancelling for phone use, allows you to use them with or without a seal (though you would obviously want a seal for music as there is no bass without it), and the sound quality is about as good as you can expect from a Bluetooth amplifier of their size. The range was excellent requiring me to leave my house to lose signal even with several walls in the way.”
Noble Audio Falcon – Wireless $156 Review
April 25, 2020 Comments Off on Noble Audio Falcon – Wireless $156 Review
“The Falcon has two types of function control, physical and virtual. The physical is via a physical button housed under the main faceplate on each driver. I am on the fence on the use of physical buttons due to the depth of the nozzle. Sometimes the force on physical models can make the TWS lodge too deeply in your ear.
On the Flacon, however, it does feel quite steady with little movement when pressing on the buttons. Now, the drivers stick a little out of your ear. That is a good thing for its physical control system as you can pinch the driver and press the buttons quite easily. By doing so, you can prevent the Falcon from jamming into your eardrum and creating unnecessary discomfort.
The default multifunction controls cover the standard range of TWS actions including playback and call control and they are independently assigned per driver via the Noble Sound Suite app. The combination of clicks are 1, 2 and 3 depending on what you assign to each click. Volume control is activated from the driver which is not always a standard feature on some TWS so that is welcome.”
FINAL A8000 £1999 REVIEW
April 17, 2020 Comments Off on FINAL A8000 £1999 REVIEW
“The tuning and speed/texture reminds me of STAX headphones and the er4 series but the bass isn’t as compromised on the A8000. The cleanliness in the tuning and emotions are well balanced.
As usual, we are letting the earphones to run in and impressions will be made pairing the A8000 with a handful of sources. Final has put some note on their website for the burn-in process and they stated a long time (150-200 hours) is required before the aging effects on this product level off.
I gave the A8000 15 hours a day for roughly 2 weeks with the cables swapped from my burnt-in E5000. From memory, the bass becomes less shy, and the initial treble sparkle is tamed.”
EMPIRE EARS VALKYRIE $1,599 REVIEW
April 11, 2020 Comments Off on EMPIRE EARS VALKYRIE $1,599 REVIEW
“I’ve played trumpet for almost 40 years and know the sound of this instrument more than my own voice at times and the ability to hear it almost perfectly reproduced through a portable set of in-ear monitors had the hairs on my arms stand up to full attention. This was truly an experience that I’ve only really had with one other pair of IEMs, the Zeus –XR by Empire Ears. What was, however, different was that the timpani and various other percussion instruments offered a more visceral feel with the added bass. In the end, I found this presentation with classical music so very satisfying and enjoyable that I think I might prefer the Valkyrie’s representation overall for this added benefit. Instrumental separation and clarity came with world-class transparency and I can easily say that these are right there with the very best in-ear monitors that I’ve ever heard, but cost almost 1/3 – 1/2 as much! They offered an ability to cast both a deep and wide mental image which were equally impressive and if you are a fan of orchestral music, these IEMs were made for you!”
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Jabra Elite Active 75t Earphones Review
April 9, 2020 Comments Off on Jabra Elite Active 75t Earphones Review
Craft Ears Craft 4 Review
April 6, 2020 Comments Off on Craft Ears Craft 4 Review
https://headfonics.com/2020/03/craft-ears-craft-4-first-contact/
“Now is there enough true sub-bass presence for the likes of dub-step track mixing in the studio? I am not too sure about that. At least not compared to a dynamic driver there might be less space to thin out the bass for kick drum channel mixing.
However, for percussion and traditional Trance mixing which needs a more rapid BPM and those aiming for a tighter level of timing then the dual-sub BA drivers do have the speed to keep up and more than a decent fundamental to prevent it from sounding too shallow.
The Craft 4 also seems to dip the lower-mids in requesting fashion to keep the bass from bleeding into the mids. The instrumental tone is light but smooth and clean with good separation. Male vocals are easy to pick out even if not that forward. Female vocals that pitch higher in a mixed or head voice/falsettos do much better on the Craft 4.”
Audiophilepure 
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