Audiophilepure

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“However, a closer look at the spec sheet tells us that there are a few differences between the two Audio Technica stablemates. The ATH-AWAS uses a 53mm dynamic driver which has a nominal impedance of 40-ohms and a sensitivity of 99db/mW, slightly different to the 48-ohm/102dB/mW driver used in the ATH-AWKT. This driver features integrated pure-iron yoke, diamond-like carbon coating, and a 6N-OFC high-purity, oxygen-free copper voice coils. Audio Technica opted for synthetic leather pads for the ATH-AWAS as opposed to the sheepskin employed in the ATH-AWKT, which presumably helps to lower the cost between models by some $500. Like the ATH-AWKT, Audio Technica thankfully includes two 3.0m cables (employing their proprietary A2DC connector) as standard with the ATH-AWAS, a 6.3mm single-ended cable plus a 4-pin XLR cable. Listeners will appreciate the inclusion of the latter cable, which is both conspicuously absent from their flagship?

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“Tonally the Solitaire P resembles many other planar magnetics and runs true to what you’d expect from its frequency responses. While it lacks the shelved-up bass demanded by the latest Harman target response it conspicuously lacks treble energy. As a result it delivers a refined, low-grit and low-grain sound but can lack a little sparkle and analysis.
‘Now Is The Month Of Maying’ [96kHz/24-bit rip from Voices Unbound; AIX 80012], a track that I haven’t played for years, comprises an a cappella choir of male and female voices singing a well-known ballett written by Thomas Morley in 1595. As with all good choir recordings, reproduced at its best it allows you to ‘hear into’ the ensemble to individual voices within, which renders the performance altogether more real, more vital and engaging than a smoothed-over, lower-resolution equivalent. Arguably the Solitaire P errs slightly on the side of the latter.”

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“One of the lesser flaunted features of the PM-50 is also its size and use case. The typical forum response to hearing that a new headphone was planar magnetic is that it’s meant to be a sit-down headphone due to its overbearing cup size and weight; I wonder if Audeze popularized this. The PM-50s run counter to this idea with a headphone footprint just slightly larger than that of an ‘on-ear’ headphone. With a DAP in hand, the PM-50s make a surprisingly apt companion around the house. Light enough to be used when doing chores yet with just enough clamp and weight to not fall off when your head is angled down. As Linus Sebastion (one of the most popular Technology Youtubers) famously demonstrated a while back, a headphone that falls off your head when you bend over isn’t exactly up to snuff
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“A note of warning if you’re able to make the same comparison yourself: The SR-Lambdas are slightly more sensitive than are the SR-Omegas, so you’ll have to readjust the volume when switching over, to avoid being misled. In all my comparisons, I set the respective levels of each headphone subjectively. I normally prefer a more precise means of level matching; but, short of inserting tiny microphones in the ear canal to measure the operational sensitivity of each headphone, it’s impractical with headphones.”

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“While somewhat recessed, the AK T5p V2’s mid-range has a rather lovely lush texture, giving a slightly ‘wet’ sound to both instruments in the lower mid-range. The guitar tracks in QOTSA’s ‘Little Sister’ have a nice, tactile body to them, but at the same time are also somewhat laid-back. The wood-block percussion and backing vocals in the same track have an extremely enjoyable and impressive ‘out-of-head’ effect.

Macrodynamics are on the whole fairly impressive – those 45mm tesla drivers create a decent amount of slam and punch when called upon. Bass drum hits in Pink Floyd’s ‘Fearless’ land with a nice, visceral whump into your ears. However, I curiously found myself experiencing the same feeling every time I listened to the AK T5p V2 – I always felt like I needed to keep turning up the volume. I continually felt like I was wanting more from them in terms of dynamics, and I really wanted to extract a bit more drama from them but they never quite got there. ”

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“I’ve heard a lot of impressive headphones over the years. Some are standouts, most are very good. The Dan Clark AEON 2 Headphones are standouts. In terms of audio, it checks all the boxes. They equal any headphone I have heard at or well above this price range. In terms of comfort and design, they are the best headphones I have experienced. The folding of the headband to keep it close to the transducers is a small stroke of genius that makes you want to take the Dan Clark Audio AEON 2 headphones along on your next trip.”

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“I’m sure many of you haven’t heard about the US based Andover audio, certainly when it comes to headphones. But the team behind Andover comes from several famous companies such as Apogee Acoustics, Acoustic Research, Harman, Bose and a/d/s/. Since its formation in 2012, Andover Audio has provided its design and manufacturing services to the most recognized brands in automotive, telecommunications, and high-performance consumer audio. Andover is now focusing on its own branded products, blending innovative audio technologies with distinctive design.”

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“However, listening to the cellist Jean-Guihen Queyras in his new Harmonia Mundi collection Complices [HMM902274] I didn’t quite get all the magic of the Saint-Saens ‘Le Cygne’. In the John Coltrane ‘Improvisation on Bach: Alabama’ Queyras is partnered by tenor saxophonist Raphaël Imbert and you hear occasional sharp spitty noises, but these became merely buzzy ‘noises off’ with the AB-1266.

The upper strings from Vladimir Jurowski’s live Moscow recording of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker ballet [Pentatone PTC5186761; 96kHz/24-bit] aren’t that well reproduced – or not that good in reality – so track 2, more low register and winds, was more enjoyable than the Overture with these ‘phones. Overall their clarity within the soundstage kept my attention over a longer tract, and they do capture subsidiary details well – as with the Johann Strauss II. And the flow of the music is engaging – toe-tapping or head-nodding, if you like.”