Cons — Hard to drive with a phone (very low sensitivity); no bass or sub-bass; no slam; sounds tinny with some tracks; bulky plug in the way of many phone cases.

Executive Summary

Introduction

Koss is a reputable American company with over 60 years of experience that advertise with the slogan: “Hearing is Believing”. Founder John Koss invented the stereo headphone back in 1958. Over the years, Koss have introduced a few perennial favourites such as the 1984 Porta Pro or the 2004 KSC75, which are not only still in production, but they are also still very popular even with demanding audio enthusiasts.

Let’s not forget the 2017 KPH30i, which are sonically a tad behind the Portas/KSC75, but ergonomically ahead of them. We have evaluated these models in the context of the Yaxi earpads. For completeness, Koss also introduced a number of stinkers such as the “Plug”, which plugged my ear canals with undifferentiated noise.

The KPH7 were introduced in 2013, but it is not listed anywhere in Koss’s history. They are small on-ear headphones aiming for the super-budget crowd. Looking similar to the proven Porta Pros and KPH30i, the question is whether they are similarly good performers.

Specifications

Physical Things and Usability

In the box is…hold it…the KPH7 don’t come in a box but in one of these weird see-through thingies you have to cut it out of while ruining your scissors…urghhh…these eco pigs are called “blisters”. And, what you get when the removal operation was successful is…the KPH7 without anything else. What do you expect for $5.49 USD?

Build quality is good. The KPH7 sit on ear, which means they leak music to bystanders. The headband is small and tight and the clamp pressure may not provide the biggest comfort for big heads. Cable and plug are somewhat generic but sturdy. The bulky plug may be in the way of many phone cases.

Tonality and Technicalities

The KPH7’s signature is warm-neutral with the opposite of a bass boost. What? Yes, there is virtually no bass or sub-bass….confirming the frequency range given in the specs: the doors are shut below 80 Hz. To add insult to injury, the very low sensitivity of 91 dB makes these very hard to use with a normal phone. Additional amplification would be beneficial.

What’s left of the bass is quite tight, but any drum kit sounds as if somebody tortured the bottoms of plastic buckets with sticks. There is no rumble at all and no slam or impact either. Nobody at home down there.

This lack of support leaves vocals freestanding, marginally warm, always lean, sometimes tinny, but also provides a lot of space for them: spatial reconstruction is not bad at all. Whilst note weight is not great, note definition is also decent: piano keys, for example, are naturally reproduced. Timbre is as good as in the Porta Pros/KSC75.

Treble, yes, cymbals can be found…somewhere…thin, hesitant, like needles and they sound rather robotic.

Another issue derived from the “basslessness” is the aforementioned lack of kick…the KPH7 are not dynamic at all. Stage is a complete mess as musicians are all over the place. And so is resolution.

To bring this into context, when listening to Paolo Conte’s song “Canneloni”, a lively and bassy piece with a deep voice, the tomato sauce was entirely missing from the meal. Both bassline and voice sounded anemic. A rather bland, dry lunch.

Concluding Remarks

The Koss KPH7 are in now way competition to the KSC75 or Porta Pros. Although they offer decent spatial reconstruction, they lack bass and spice. But a real miss is their very poor sensitivity that makes them hard to drive with a phone. Why would one get extra amplification for a $5.49 headphone?

In summary, the KPH7, if used for music, are more for chilling than anything. They are probably best suited for podcasts and other spoken word performances. As in most cases, you get what you pay for.

Until next time…keep on listening!

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Disclaimer

Co-blogger Biodegraded bought these for me. Thank you very much.

Our generic standard disclaimer.

About my measurements.

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INTRO

OneOdio has sent me several of their products and I thought I was finished after the trilogy of the Wireless C, Pro 10 and Monitor 60, but then they asked if I was interested in their latest open back OneOdio Monitor 80. Of course I wondered what could OneOdio do with open back designs since none of their previous offerings were of this variety, the answer is something with delicate silkiness intimate and non-fatiguing.

GOOD TRAITS

• Non-Fatiguing sound signature
• Good height reproduction
• Lower volume listening preferred due to the boosted warm bass presentation

NEEDS IMPROVEMENT

• Stinky chemical smell with the hard zipper case
• Detail retrieval

PHYSIQUE

The OneOdio Monitor 80 over ear open back is clearly destined for home/stationary use with the 250 ohm impedance and large stature although they provide a fold-able design and hard carrying case. It comes with two long adapter free cables, one coiled and one straight. The adapter free design is something carried through on almost all their models where one end is 3.5mm and the other a 6.35mm or ¼ single ended plug that can be switched around to be plugged into one side of the headphones and the equipment it is connected to.

The headband on the OneOdio Monitor 80 is that same larger one used on the Monitor 60, but with one minor but important change, a 45 degree offset swivel that is also travel limited. This simple change reduces the chance of the ear cups flopping down. A straight earcup swivel is beneficial for DJ one cup usage but annoying any other time. There was a little squeakiness in one of the swivels, but that is fairly standard for plastic on plastic designs.

Fuzzy heavy grain plush covers the earpads, not as fine of a texture found on the Philips Fidelio X2HR or the Sennheiser HD6XX for example. The padding has plenty of give I rate it as medium firmness again in comparison to the above two models. The earcups are also denser than past OneOdio models and gives off a lower noise when tapped on. I rate the density of earcup plastic on the same level of the Philips SHP9500 and tick below the X2HR.

PACKAGE CONTENTS

• Hard Zipper EVA Carrying Case
• Coiled 3.5mm to 6.25mm 1.5-3.5m long cable
• Straight 3.5mm to 3.5mm 3M long cable
• Headphones with Adjustable band, velour earpads and swivel articulated earcups

SOUND

I forget what a pleasure open back headphones deliver in positional staging since I spend more time using IEMs. The OneOdio Monitor 80 present nice width and height, with no crowding. Depth is defined nicely too. Macro details are excellent, it does fall a little short on micro details. It’s not as noticeable unless directly comparing say the Philips X2HR (Orig $300 now $150) or Sennheiser HD6XX ($200).

The Philips SHP9500 ($80) is a closer comparison, but still has improved layering and depth than the Monitor 80. The piano percussion is easier picked up on the Philips SHP9500. Sometimes after a long day, the softer appeal of the OneOdio Monitor 80 is appreciated.

Bass is punchy and warm, a little more peaky than the Philips X2HR with slightly less lower midrange and some low end extension roll off that is normal for open backs. The Philips X2HR edges out the OneOdio Monitor 80 on Bass and Cello in terms of fullness. While the Philips X2 and Philips SHP9500 is considered quite bassy for open backs, the Monitor 80 brings it up a notch.

Female vocals sound a little shrill and recessed compared to the Philips X2, but perhaps it is not fair comparing an originally priced $300 headphone to a $100. Comparing to the Philips SHP9500S is a closer comparison for vocal presentation.

Treble is nice and sparkly albeit smoothed and soft. Just enough of the edge taken off but still very realistic sounding. Listening late at night on low volume was relaxing given the treble still shines while having that extra bass toned down and not lost. At louder volumes, I felt it struggled a bit but it is also highly possible my JDS Labs Atom just didn’t have enough gusto to really amp it up.

OUTRO

The OneOdio Monitor 80 is a great starting point for a budget open back, for warm bass and sparkly highs with above average technical details. My favorite budget pick is still the Philips SHP9500S and if you are willing to stretch your budget, the Philips X2HR is usually around $150 on Amazon. If you don’t already own a headphone amp, the Monitor 80 is going to require you to open your wallet for that accessory as it is a necessity with the 250ohm impedance.

OneOdio is clearly looking to take a piece of the pie for critical home listeners. There is not a whole lot of options between $100 to $150 in open backs, with the exception of the Sennhesier HD59x series or Beyerdynamic DT770 which is known for being analytical and sometimes fatiguing. Hifiman also offers soem planar options near this price range.

The Oneodio Monitor 80 is a rarity in that sense and a good night-time listen when I prefer listening at lower levels. It does not dethrone either of older model Philips but instead adds a nice option if looking for a lighter softer presentation with warmer bass. It is in good company.

SPECIFICATIONS

• 40mm driver
• 100db+/-3db Sensitivity
• 250 ohm Impedance
• 10Hz-40Khz Frequency Respone
• < 1% Distortion
• 1600mW Max Input Power

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The central gimmick of the MW50+ is interchangeable, magnetic on-ear/over-ear pads, which are extremely easy to swap out. As others have noted, however, the over-ear pads tend to come loose and, other than providing slightly better isolation, don’t sound as good as the on-ear pads, which enhance the bass presence and  expand soundstage. (My impressions below are based on the on-ear setup).

The MW50+ are undeniably purty leather-and-metal things, with nary a scrap of plastic in sight. Fit is secure and long-term comfort pretty good, although they do have some clamping force and feel somewhat heavier than their specified 205g weight. Battery life of 16hrs. is well below the norm, but connectivity and range are solid. There’s no app or ANC, though I found these adequate for gym use. The dimunitive control buttons are extremely hard to find and use.

Soundwise, the MW50+ immediately register as a bass-boosted reverse-L, with a warm thick tonality, a very wide soundstage and good stereo imaging—it’s a surprisingly party-hearty, consumer tuning which makes no pretense of accuracy. Low end is voluminous if not super-deep and just barely avoids sounding boomy or bleeding into the full-sounding mids.  High end rolls off fairly early but avoids stridency or coarsness –these miss some microdetail and drums sound slightly veiled.  Timbre isn’t the most lifelike—everything sounds a little juiced up—but fairly analog, especially in wired mode.

The bass remains the Achilles heel of the MW50+–it’s actually pretty well sculpted, but there’s just too much of it, which gives an incoherence to the proceedings—these tend to sound more like a big sub w/small satellites than an integrated full range speaker. The MW50+ sound richer and better than the Apple or Bose 700 over-ears, but substantially trail the better-integrated $350 Sony XM4, which also has vastly better UI and tech.

Likewise, the AKG N60 (originally $249 but widely available for $60) are better-tuned and cleaner sounding, with more tonal accuracy and less intrusive low end, while my trusty Status Audio BT One (which feel like a cheap plastic knockoff compared to the elegant, lavishly built MW50+) sound less refined and resolving at the high end but otherwise hold up pretty well for $99. For all their flaws, at the $129 ticket I’m not unhappy with the MW50+–they have a certain toe-tapping quality and rock unapologetically.

However, I’m sure I’d be more dismissive if they didn’t look so luxurious or if I’d paid the list price. Not a purist set, but fashionistas will enjoy

Non-Disclaimer: bought them myself. Product page: Master & Dynamic

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Bluetooth & TWS

12

MW50+ Wireless Bluetooth Headphones

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The  $500, open-backed Caspian arrive in a plain box with a nice leather carrying case and a garden hose-sized cloth-coated XLR to ¼” cable. Their aesthetics and design are a matter of taste — I thought the (real) oak ear cups might have looked more natural in a lighter color–but the stainless steel frame is very solid and these should last a lifetime or two.

The Caspian have some heft (13.3 oz) and considerable clamping force, but the sheepskin pads feel soft and pliable and I found these comfortable for extended listening sessions. (Note that Apos also included its balanced XLR Flow cable, which will be the subject of a separate review).

Listed at an efficient  33Ohm/128db, the Caspian get plenty loud with just a mobile or a dongle (you’ll need a ¼” to 3.5mm adapter, which was a curious omission), but gain crispness and richness when amped. My modest Aune T1 tube amp drives ‘em okay, but they really needed my buddy’s Chord Mojo to show their full potential, and I would not recommend running these without high-quality, higher powered amplification.

According to Apos, the Caspian’s designers sought to make a “fun-as-hell” phone that “didn’t ruin your favorite albums with merciless detail-retrieval.” Some pundits have thus branded the Caspian as “audiophile for beginners,” which is both partly true and somewhat dismissive, as if more sophisticated listeners all crave a highly resolving, flat tuning.   

In any event, the Caspian achieves its stated goals—it immediately registers as a loud, rich-textured, unabashedly basshead phone. Low end is seismic, with a ton of emphasis in the upper bass (80-160 Hz) region. It is by no means articulate or taut bass, and decay is slow.  

Depending upon source, the low end can sound bloated and/or overdone—Jymie Merrit’s acoustic double bass on Art Blakey’s “Moanin” sounded more like an overamped electric, while the deep  dub parts on the Clash’s “Sandanista” sounded borderline out-of-control.  But, in fairness, never dull.

Soundstage on the Caspian is less expansive than expected—it’s deep but  fairly  low-ceilinged and within-your head. There’s adequate separation between performers, but a tendency on denser fare to bunch the performers towards the middle, and stereo imaging is less precise. Mids, however, are full bodied and have very good clarity, which keeps them from being overshadowed by the massive bass.

As advertised, the Caspian are not detail-monsters, and compared to most of its price peers there is  some roll-off of the extreme high frequencies. However, most will find their level of resolution to be just fine—brass and reeds sound life-like while cymbals and hi hats have good snap.

Tonality is slightly warmer than neutral and has a juiced-up, amplified quality which works much better for rock than for subtler fare; the Caspian avoid stridency or coarseness and do well with lower-quality files.

Compared to something like the ($500ish) Hifiman Sundara planars, the Caspian have a narrower stage, less precise imaging and considerably less high-end extension. However, the Caspian were, by a wide margin, the more exciting, engaging listen, with a much weightier note texture—the Sundara sounded bass-shy, overanalytical and somewhat thin by contrast.

The Sennheiser HD600 is a closer match—the Senn is also technically superior and coherent throughout the spectrum, with more air between instruments and sparkle on top and much tighter (tho less impactful) bass which avoids the overbearing, electronic overhang of the Caspian’s.  

However, after hearing the Caspian there’s something just a bit clinical and studio-monitorish about the Senn—at least on heavier fare its highs seem a bit overpixilated and lacking in body and warmth, while the darker Caspian were more opaque but also more musical.

I no longer have my ($450) Grado RS2e to compare, though from memory the Grado had the wider stage, imaged better and had more transparent, delicate highs, but were somewhat undercooked in the lower registers and lacked the sheer physicality of the Caspian.

So is the Caspian a good value? Well, paired with a suitable amp,  they’re a  well-built, high-octane  alternative to the ubiquitous flat or Harman-tuned $500 cans. For me, even with my unrefined palate, their low end is just a bit too much—these coulda been a real contender if it had been dialed down a few dbs.

However, there is undoubtedly a big swath of listeners who crave just this sort of visceral thrill, and l hope the bombs stop falling long enough for these to continue to reach our shores.

Disclaimer: sent to me by Apos for an audition—I’ll be passing them on to the noted gangster rap aficionado Durwood for his unbiased opinion. We do not participate in Apos Audio’s affiliate program.

By the Caspian from Apos Audio.

Specifications Apos Caspian

• Driver: Graphene-coated multilayered composite
• Driver unit: 50mm
• Frequency response: 5-45,000Hz
• Sensitivity: 115dB
• Impedance: 33Ω
• Maximum input power: 500mW
• Ear cup outer material: Natural sheepskin leather
• Ear cup inner material: Acoustic memory foam
• Thickness of pads: 1” (27mm)
• External dimensions of pads: 4.5” x 3.4” (115mm x 88mm)
• Height and width of ear pad opening: 3” x 1.7” (77mm x 45mm)
• Grille material: aluminum alloy
• Headband materials: stainless steel, natural leather outer lining, bio-leather inner lining, polyurethane foam insert
• Yoke material: stainless steel
• Weight: 13.3oz (378g) 

In the Box…

• Apos Caspian headphone
• Leather carrying bag
• Stock headphone cable (single-ended 6.35mm termination)

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Headphone Reviews

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Wildly venerated as the Great Audiophile Bargain, and utilizing the same driver as ancient designs like the PortaPro and KSC35, the <$25 KSC75 look and feel cheap but can actually withstand a fair amount of abuse (as a bonus, they come with a lifetime warranty).

Like almost everyone else, I found the included earclips to be cumbersome and ill-fitting, and I replaced them with the aftermarket, $7 Parts Express headband. Thus shod, the KSC75 are exceptionally comfortable—virtually weightless, without clamping pressure. Considering the open design, isolation is a bit better than expected although they’re much better for walking the dog than for the subway.

At 60 oHm the KSC75 are a surprisingly tough load for a cheap consumer piece—my quad-DAC LG G8 drives ‘em adequately, but they scale considerably with more power.

Oft described as “neutral”, the KSC75 are better characterized as warm and balanced, without undue emphasis on any frequency. Bass is ample in quantity but lacks depth and can sound soggy/muddy, especially with lower-powered sources (amping tightens and adds punch to the low end).

Note texture is fairly rich—there’s a slightly syrupy, dark quality—but these are clean-sounding overall and wholly without grittiness or sharp edges. Mids are full-sounding and slightly forward—male voices in particular have a lot of body.  Treble is silky-smooth though lacking in extension; drums and cymbals sound rounded-off and attack transients are slow.

Soundstage on the KSC75 is unexpectedly narrow and low-ceilinged (think small club); instruments stay well-separated on less dense fare, but these can sound a bit congested on orchestral works and more complex arrangements.  Acoustic music sounds very natural and live.

Their lack of microdetail and speed notwithstanding, I can see the wide appeal of these—they nail that elusive quality of tonal accuracy. Like a good vinyl rig, they  sound very true-to-source and uncolored; perhaps because of the limited extension they make lower-quality files sound less compressed.

Well-regarded budget cans like the $80 Philips SHP9500 have punchier, tauter bass and present more information but sound more artificially juiced at the high end; I actually preferred the KSC for extended listening.  On a lark, a drinking buddy and I A/B’d the KSC with his ($500) Hifiman Sundara planars. Perhaps needless to say, the Sundara’s are technically superior in virtually every respect—far more revealing, more expansive-sounding,  crisper.

Yet both of us felt that, comparatively speaking, the Sundara was over-analytical, in the sense of drawing your ears to the separate frequencies as opposed to the seamless whole, while the homely Koss presented a more coherent performance and presented a nice alternative for less critical listening. 

I don’t want to overrate these—they don’t capture a lot of low-level  nuance and they won’t satisfy bassheads. However, they are dirt cheap, comfortable, and unabashedly “musical”. Which means, I suppose, there’s no reason not to buy them.

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INTRO

Weather has turned colder here in Chicago as we transition to earmuff season. Seems fitting to be reviewing the latest addition OneOdio Monitor 60 which appears to be the top tier currently. Recently I reviewed the wireless Pro C and then the Pro 10. Oneodio upped their game and size, something more fitting for a true over ear experience with more luxurious fit and feel. They are even more balanced sounding than the Pro 10. The real question is are they worth double the price of Pro 10?

Disclaimer: I finished all my Christmas shopping before Cyber Monday. These arrived prior from OneOdio without any out of pocket cost. They even threw in a plastic headphone stand and a rubber coaster from their accessory catalog, was unexpected and not included with the purchase of the Monitor 60.

Tested at $69 using my LG G8, Sony NW-A55 and the Liquid Spark Dac+JDS Labs Atom

GOOD TRAITS

• Larger Pads, Softer, Bigger Openings
• Balanced Sound

NEEDS IMPROVEMENT

• Larger Headband, but still light pressure makes them fatiguing. Needs a better curvature.
• Weight of pads causes the earcups to flop around. Not a big deal, just a nuisance.

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES

At first glance the headband and articulation look the same as OneOdio’s other models, but everything on the OneOdio Monitor 60 is bigger- bigger hinges, bigger arms, bigger headband padding, bigger pads. Just sitting on the counter they look intimidating, but the extra girth is appreciated.

The open mesh on the rear of the earcups it purely cosmetic, they are sealed cups 100%. The headband clicks solidly into place with a satisfying click as it is resized. Earpads are super soft and cushy, and the material feels high quality, as nice as the pads found on another crowd pleaser the Marantz MPH2, just thicker.

SIDE REVIEW – Coaster and Headphone Stand

The headphone stand is lightweight plastic, with 4 rubber feet to prevent it from skidding around on surfaces. Given the lightweight design, it still managed to hold up the monstrous OneOdio Monitor 60. Not as nice looking as those head shaped wooden ones, but if you are looking for something super simple this fits the ticket.

The coaster was a rubber with a raised/recessed design. Great for a cold or hot beverage. A little pricey for a rubber coaster.

PACKAGE CONTENTS

• Carrying Bag
• 3m long coiled Adapter free 3.5mm to 6.35mm cable
• 1.2m long 3.5mm TRRS cable with microphone
• 3m long 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable for extra long reach

Oneodio Monitor 60 is really generous with all the cables. They have a keyed friction mechanism on the 3.5mm input side, but the 6.35mm is any standard cable. Not to worry thought, they give all users plenty of options which is real handy.

SOUND

Overall, the OneOdio Monitor 60 is balanced with only a touch of bass lift around the 100hz mark. Glasses wearers will find them a little tinny sounding if the seal is not achieved. They start to roll off the bass like a typical bass neutral earphone so seismic rumble is relegated to the shadows.

The “monitor” name is fitting for these, definitely not what I would classify as a DJ headphone despite the articulation of the earcups. Typically those have ear battering bass. Instead the bass is nimble just lacking some extra grunt from the subbass harmonics, perhaps a smidge peaky for my tastes.

The OneOdio Monitor 60 lean mid forward, vocals are clean not overly breathy, there is some sharpness in the 5-8Khz region that adds vividness to brass and electric guitars. My loving wife wanted to give them a go and I asked her to describe what she thought. In one word she summed it up perfectly, brassy -not overbearing, just the part that stands out. I better watch out, or she is going to take over for me.

TECHNICALITIES

Timbre sounds a bit colored as a result. Width is great dues the extra thick pads, depth feels believable. Good separation, they avoid sounding claustrophobic. Not particularly sensitive, they can be driven from a smart phone, but they really need some amplification to boogie. They easily max out the volume on the LG G8, and I didn’t feel uncomfortable at that listening level.

SUMMARY

Personally, if you are in the market for a vivid sounding mostly balanced closed back over-ears headphone the OneOdio Monitor 60 is a better choice over the Pro 10 model. For double the price, the earpads are superior, the fitment is better, the arms and hinges are beefier and the resolution is kicked up a notch.

Not for bass freaks, these have a vintage 70’s rock groove. For others looking for a V signature with more sub-bass presence my recommendation is the Marantz MPH2 or similar ISK 9000 rebranded Stellar Labs HC5985.

SPECIFICATIONS

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DISCLAIMER

Get it from the Oneodio Store. Also available in other places such as Amazon and Aliexpress.

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About my measurements.

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SuperEQ S1 ANC TWS Headphones

Very large and  very garish-looking (with the addled slogan “Be Free Be Young” embossed on the headband), the Beats-inspired SuperEQ S1 are nonetheless well-built, light, and comfortable. Pairing was instantaneous and connectivity good; the physical control buttons are well-placed and easy to master.

ANC on these is, at least from the standpoint of noise-cancellation, quite impressive—especially since the large pleather pads seal very tightly, virtually no outside noise intrudes. Feature set is otherwise pretty basic—micro-USB charging,  Bluetooth 5.0, no AptX, no app—but battery life is very good.

With ANC enabled the S1 sound is noticeably compressed—a bright artificial-sounding V-shape with deep boomy bass, a conspicuous midrange dip and rolled-off, billowy high end.

Disabling ANC improves matters markedly—low end is still thumpy but better etched, while midrange sounds warmer, fuller, and more dynamic, and treble is more extended and detailed.

Tonality is still somewhat synthetic and drums lack some snap (these are, after all, $50 phones), but they actually work well for movies and podcasts, with a physicality and fullness that keeps you engaged. In practice, the passive isolation on these is so good that I felt no need to use the ANC.

The S1 surprise in a couple of regards. First, soundstage is impressively wide and enveloping, with good height, almost like an open-back wired set. Secondly, their wooly bass notwithstanding, stereo imaging and instrument placement are accurate, and complex arrangements are well sorted-out.  

Frankly, the S1 aren’t sonically far off from the far pricier Beats Studio, which have tighter low end but an otherwise similarly expansive stage and metallic timbre.

The S1 won’t appease audiophiles and their aesthetic seems purposely designed to alienate anyone older than 13. That said, they have their sonic virtues and, as a knockabout set will get you through the lawnmowing as well as anything.

SuperEQ Q2 Pro ANC TWS Earbuds

The SuperEQ Q2 Pro buds sport the more modern Bluetooth 5.2 codec, as well as ANC; however noise-cancelling is compromised by their large bulbous shape, which provides for less-than-optimal comfort and seal. I found the touch controls unresponsive and frustrating (there’s no volume control) and connection to my phone was fitful.

Soundwise, the Q2 Pro present an energetic L-shape with massive, subwoofer-style bass which packs plenty of visceral punch but lacks tautness and, at least, on less-heavy genres, is over-emphaiszed.

Midrange is full-bodied and very clear, while treble (in contrast to the over-ears) is crisp, with considerable extension and sparkle; percussion is unexpectedly  well-reproduced and subtle microdetails are present (note that as with the S1, the Q2 sounded less compressed and more revealing with ANC off).

Soundstage is within-your-head, with limited height but pretty good imaging; instruments are cleanly separated. Tonality is somewhat aggressive and ballsy—these lack the aliveness of pricier Sennheiser or Cambridge, and can be exhausting, but the Q2 work well for techno and hiphoppy fare, with a real toe-tapping quality.

Purely on their musical merits, I’d rate these on a par with my previous <$50 go-to, the Fiil T1XS, which has a similarly thumpy low end but good clarity and energetic presentation, although pricier pieces like the Lypertek Tevi and Status Between Pro have better-tamed bass and more overall refinement.

Despite their overdone megabass, both the S1 and Q2 sound better than their cut-rate price point would suggest and most non-critical listeners will find these more than adequate. 

If pushed to buy just one, I’d probably opt for the S1, which has less natural timbre than the buds, but better controls and UI. In any event, neither of these are the expected generic junk — SuperEQ is off to a solid start and I’d fully expect future iterations to be even better.

Visit the SuperEQ store on amazon.com.

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Bluetooth & TWS

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Intro

Welcome to part deux of the OneOdio review series after my first interaction with the Pro C reviewed previously. Consider this a trilogy with the Monitor 60 closing it out.

What had me curious about OneOdio is they are a common recommendation in the Head-Fi budget over ears thread up against the ISK 9000 series attack of the clones.

While this particular OneOdio Pro 10 was not the one most sought out, but instead the bigger padded model, my interest was still piqued. While a lot is the same between the Pro C and the Pro 10, there are still some differences worth mentioning.

For those that are looking for inexpensive, lightweight, and relatively balanced or mild V sounding over ears these are serious contenders.

Disclaimer: OneOdio approached Audioreviews for reviewing the Pro 10. These were freebies and will go into the bucket of an aspiring yute youtuber for later use.

Tested at $35: They can be purchased in the usual places such as Aliexpress, Amazon, including their very own store page here. No affliate link, no kickback.

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Good Traits

Physical Attributes

Compared to the Pro C, the OneOdio Pro 10 uses regular cables. The Pro C had a locking keyed cable that if damaged would require a very slim replacement cable to be sourced.

If you visited my past review remember though, the Pro C had battery life for days/weeks being the wireless model. The cool feature on the Pro 10 has to be the 3.5mm connection on the left earcup, and then a 6.35mm connection on the right earcup. This allows a user to primarily use the 6.35mm to 3.5mm cable and swap around without the need to use a 6.35mm adapter aka “adapter free”.

Or if you want to share with a significant other, friend, sibiling, or kiddo you can daisy chain to another pair and run around town clothes-lining innocent bystanders.

Headband and pads are the same as on the Pro C.

The earcups sport chromed paint along the entire edge of the cup. In pictures it looks like just the very edge is chrome outlined. The Pro C was all black. There are additional colors as well, chrome remains.

• Black
• Red (headband)
• Blue
• Purple
• Pink with Gray padding
• Rose Gold (all pink)
• Grey (headband padding appears gold)

Package Contents

Carrying Bag

2 separate cords as mentioned earlier, no special locking mechanism so off the shelf cables will work as well.

• 3.5mm TRRS with mic to 3.5mm
• 3.5mm to 6.35mm coilded “adapter free” cable.

Folding “DJ” style headset

Sound

Ok so OneOdio Pro 10 claim to be “DJ” headphones. They fold and twist and turn for those one sided listening usage cases wiki wiki style, but they are not bassy enough for my expectations of actual DJ use when trying to match beats.

However, as you push the OneOdio Pro10 closer to your ear, they do get pumping more than casual normal listening methods. Bass is tilted in favor of midbass over subbass – we all have our biases right? With a good seal, they might warm the lower midrange registers and make sound content sound more full bodied.

The OneOdio Pro C model sounded slightly bassier in comparison, perhaps the bluetooth/amplification had a slight tick upwards. These are clearly more balanced but not thin sounding neutral.

It’s like listening to a set of sealed bookshelf speakers, without the reach in the lower registers it maybe sounds a bit hollow on some upright bass / cellos.

Midrange vocals are clear, nothing really standing out if anything a a half a step forward. I want to stop short of calling them flat sounding as there is some depth portrayed, like eating a Ritz cracker over the Buttery crisp crackers at a friendly gathering. Still eating crackers at this price level, not fresh bruschetta or toasted bread with goat cheese.

Treble in the OneOdio Pro 10 is very well balanced nothing offensive and steps in to provide the perfect amount of life to the recordings. In comparison to the Pro C again, I find it more present purely due to the reduced bass levels. Softer and gentler with just enough air to not sound fake. Shimmer on cymbals is detailed enough so that things do not sound dull.

Clarity and resolution of the OneOdio Pro 10 is on par to the Philips SHP9500 and Marantz MPH2. I can pickup some depth, but to me they lean towards accentuating width. Timbre is oh so close perhaps slightly plasticy, the Marantz MPH-2 just barely edges it out.

Sensitivity is medium, they can be driven by a smartphone at the upper levels of the volume control. They handle amplification like a champ which is important for those who purchase for DJ usage. My Oppo PM3’s are more sensitivity than these.

Final Remarks

Material quality meets expectations for a $45 product, and sizing aside I particularly enjoyed using the OneOdio Pro10 around the house doing chores where The OneOdio Pro 10 suffers a bit on sizing, but overlooking that they provide a definite entry option in the world of over-ears balanced sounding setups despite their DJ style practicalities.

Again not a bad holiday present when trying to find something for nieces, nephews, or moody teens, or someone who wants an inexpensive balanced signature. I wouldn’t call them neutral because there is a speedbump in the bass, more of a balanced or mild V signature.

For $10 more you can have the slightly bassier model Oneodio Pro C, but if wireless is not something that interests you save your $10 and get these. As a bonus it appears you can register them directly with OneOdio and gain a 24 month warranty. Stay tuned for my OneOdio Monitor 60 review.

OneOdio Pro 10 Specifications

• Rated Power: 30mW
• 110+/-3db Sensitivity
• 32 ohms
• 50mm driver
• 3.5mm or 6.35mm stereo jack

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Intro

OneOdio is located in Hong Kong and sent both the Pro C and Pro 10 models for review. To start I picked the OneOdio Pro C (Y80B) being the more interesting wireless bluetooth model since Tesla believed in a world without wires.

While they do not sport ANC, wireless seems to be the more important feature everyday users want. Borrowing inspiration from the Audio Technica swivel DJ folding concept, they claim to be for all types of listeners. Quite lofty goals. The OneOdio Pro C wireless are relatively inexpensive amongst peers and enjoyable as well for mainstream modern music.

Disclaimer: OneOdio approached Audioreviews for reviewing the Pro C. I happily obliged due to the fact young ones are notorious for destroying headphones. They can be purchased in the usual places such as Aliexpress, Amazon, including their very own store page here. Pricing at the time of review is $45.

Good Traits

Physical Attributes

Build quality of OneOdio Pro C (Y80B) reminds me of a pair of Koss DJ headphones someone might receive as a service award of obedient loyalty. Lightweight plastic isn’t always a bad thing if the purpose is to keep it from becoming annoyingly heavy attached to your melon of matter.

The pads are medium/firm, but the outer material soft and pliable, I was expecting something harder and more plastic to be honest. They are not deep so the tops of my ears touch the inside of the clearly marked Left and Right inner mesh.

Inner diameter for a 50mm style over-ears headphone is also on the small side. Since I wear glasses, the pads are bit too hard to seal unless I remove my glasses. I actually prefer them with a little leakage of sound though as it balanced the lower end enough.

The headband sizing appears to be smaller than I am used to, larger heads beware. I had them extended 50% whereas normally 0-25% is my normal extension on other common models like the Marantz MPH2. The detent plate is made of metal and provides a solid click in position.

I noticed the headband is flatter than my more rounded Marantz MPH2, so it exerts some pressure in two spots on the tops of my head. Swivel and hinges make it more compact and DJ friendly.

It comes with a micro USB cord and 3.5mm 4 pole TRRS mic cable in case the 1500mAh battery dies. It boasts a whopping 80 hr play time meaning it could be weeks before recharging required for occasional usage.

Bluetooth connection is solid and provides expected range before cutting out. I was able to walk more than 30ft away and it continued to play with only minor stuttering. I did a quick video test as well with movie watching and did not detect any kind of lag.

The processor must be rather close to the magnet of the right driver because when nothing is playing you can hear a faint transmission chirping if you really listen closely. Less demanding listeners would probably not pick up on this though so I consider it a non-issue.

Controls

Buttons presses on the OneOdio Pro C are found on the right ear cup, with the up positioned higher for easy orientation, the middle mute/power/pairing button is slightly recessed so not to be confused with the other two, and the lower volume button placed at the lowest location.

Quick presses change the volume, while a long hold of up or down changes the track. The volume control is independent of the source volume.

Package Contents

Carrying Bag

USB charging cord, charger not included

Built in 1500mAh battery

TRRS 4 pole cable with mic to 3.5mm detachable interlocking cable

Sound

The OneOdio Pro C provides ample bass output with good reach into lower registers that was engaging. The elevation is not basshead levels and it also avoids muddiness with only minor warmth into the midrange. With proper seal it is rather punchy, with a loss of seal from my glasses it balances out a bit and I find them more enjoyable.

From here the vocals on the OneOdio Pro C provide a clear and concise rendition of male and female vocals, with the male vocals sounding a little tubby and females sounded full bodied. Treble is well balanced with the rest of the range with no offending peaks, I consider it on the softer side providing enough backup support to avoid them sounding dull. All in all, they are a V shaped signature.

Resolution is on par of something in the $50-100 class of over-ear headphones. I find them particularly wide sounding with good instrument spacing. Depth spacing gives the impression of swimming in the 5-6ft section of pools as compared to the 3ft kiddie side and the deep end for those more advanced swimmers.

Final Remarks

Material quality meets expectations for a $45 product, and sizing aside I particularly enjoyed using them around the house doing chores where a cabled headphone would typically snag on drawer pulls, door handles, etc.

Sonically they are close the Marantz MPH2 and similar ISK clones, but the OneOdio Pro C trade wireless bluetooth in exchange for a slightly improved bass control and midrange smoothness.

With end of the year celebrations coming up, these would make a great present for those looking for a gift that will not empty your wallet and introduce teenagers or even adults with smaller heads looking for a safe tuning for pop and rock music. As a bonus it appears you can register them and gain a 24 month warranty.

OneOdio Pro C Specifications

• 80hrs Playtime with 1500mAh battery
• 110+/-3db Sensitivity
• 32 ohms
• 50mm driver
• 4 pole TRRS to 3.5mm detachable cable

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DISCLAIMER

Our generic standard disclaimer.

You find an INDEX of our most relevant technical articles HERE.

The post OneOdio Pro C Wired + Wireless (Y80B) Review – The Notorious Big and Small appeared first on Audio Reviews.

Final Sonorous-II and Sonorous-III are in my opinion the absolute best closed back headphones you can buy for less than 500$ (either costing much less than that actually). You can find them stuck on our Wall of Excellence, and reviewed here.

At-a-glance Card

Why and how

Ear pads – their internal structure, size, thickness, and external fabric – do change headphones sound even more than what eartips do to IEMs. And final Sonorous Earpads are no exceptio.

First and foremost, the distance between the actual sound transducers and the ear modulate low frequency sound pressure, which obviously significantly influences the presentation. Based on this fact, final Sonorous earpads are filled with sponges of different thickness and consistency. Their external material is synthetic leather featuring equal horizontal and vertical flexibility. Finally,

Another important aspect when it comes to closed-back earphones is avoiding sound appearing “muffled” due to lack of backside venting. Final accomodates for this by carving small apertures on the inside and the outside of the pads “donuts”, achieving superb results in terms of sound clarity.

Lastly, final Sonorous Earpads feature a quite ingenious system to facilitate swapping. By direct experience it does work. You may want to take a look at the final’s official quick tutorial video to get an idea.

The range

As I mentioned, final Sonorous Earpads are avaialble in 7 different variations. Here are the lineup specs, directly taken from final’s website.

Model	Surface Material	Sponge	Filter	Stock on	Picture
Type A	synthetic leather	thick, strong standard type sponge	single layer	SONOROUS VI, IV
Type B	synthetic leather	thinner/softer sponge compared to Type A	single layer	SONOROUS VI
Type C	synthetic leather	W-shaped sponge combining Type A and Type B types	3 layer	SONOROUS X, VIII
Type D	synthetic leather	thick, strong sponge	3 layer	SONOROUS III
Type E	synthetic leather	thick, strong sponge	single layer	SONOROUS II
Type F	Polyurethane	expanded foam body with superior breathability and special polyurethane fibers	n/d	D8000
G	Polyurethane + Toray Ultrasuede	expanded foam body with superior breathability and special polyurethane fibers	n/d	D8000 Pro

My direct experience

Final of course issues a number of pairing recommendation for each of such models. You can find the entire story here.

That said, I only directly tested the 4 models which are recommended for my 2 Sonorous headphone models (II and III). Here is a recap of my opinions.

So the aftermath is… I could have saved the money for Type C and B, and just swap stock pads between Sonorous-II and Sonorous-III to reach my preferred configuration on both. But how could I have known it without trying?

Conclusions

final Sonorous Earpads significantly contribute to alter and finetune Sonorous headphones.

They are not inexpensive – retailing from ¥ 5810 / € 44 to ¥ 9300 / € 70 a pair – but their build quality is ace and they are a more than solid recommendation for any Sonorous user.

Disclaimer

All the earpads I tested are my own property, they did not come from the manufacturer or a distributor on review/loan basis.

Our generic standard disclaimer.

The post final Sonorous Earpads Review – Easy Rec appeared first on Audio Reviews.

Now that these babies have been stuck on our Wall of Excellence though… well, it’s time to act.

At-a-glance Card

Full Device Card

Test setup

Sources: Apogee Groove + Burson FUN + IEMatch / Apogee Groove / Sony NW-A55 mrWalkman / Questyle QP1R – Type-D pads on Sonorous-II, Type-E pads on Sonorous-III – Stock OFC cable – lossless 16-24/44.1-192 FLAC tracks.

Signature analysis

Technicalities

Physicals

Specifications (declared)

A glance at the technology

Quite a few by now know final (yes, they write it lowercase) as a group of incredibly proficient audio engineers, and their products, may them encounter the complete appreciation of the single individual or not, based on personal taste, are anyhow always granted to be the fruit of non-trivial investigations, studies and technological achievements. Sonorous headphones make of course no exception.

Ear pads

Ear pads – their internal structure, size, thickness, and external fabric – do change headphones sound even more than what eartips do to IEMs.

First and foremost, the distance between the actual sound transducers and the ear modulate low frequency sound pressure, which obviously significantly influences the presentation. Based on this fact, final Sonorous earpads are filled with sponges of different thickness and consistency. Their external material is synthetic leather featuring equal horizontal and vertical flexibility.

Another important aspect when it comes to closed-back earphones is avoiding sound appearing “muffled” due to lack of backside venting. Final accomodates for this by carving small apertures on the inside and the outside of the pads “donuts”, achieving superb results in terms of sound clarity.

Lastly, final designed a quite ingenious system to facilitate pad swapping. By direct experience it does work. You may want to take a look at this video to get an idea.

BAM

That stands for “Balancing Air Movement”. It’s the marketing name for final’s project focused on obtaining results similar to open-back heaphones even on closed-back ones, especially in terms of clarity, controlled bass delivery and of course soundstage and imaging.

At final, we decided to focus on developing technology for the reproduction of bass tones and three-dimensional space with the full-range reproduction of a theoretically unproblematic single driver unit, rather than taking things in a multiway direction. We went back to the beginning and reviewed the performance of the balanced armature driver, focusing our attention on something we had previously overlooked : airflow inside the housing. We developed BAM (Balancing Air Movement), a mechanism that optimizes airflow inside the housing through the creation of an aperture in the driver unit, which is usually sealed. While achieving bass tones and deep, three-dimensional spatial representation, which proved difficult with single driver full-range reproduction, we achieved a BA type that at the same time made for natural listening the user doesn’t tire of.

https://snext-final.com/en/products/detail/SONOROUSII.html

And boy, that works! Of course I’m not technically competent enough to say wether the trick is that or “just” that, but it’s a fact that Sonorous earphones do deliver an incredibly clear and vast soundstage, and perfectly controlled bass, actually sensibly better than any other closedback headphone I happened to audition equal or below their cost. On the other hand, reading final’s description we get a hint as to why Sonorous HPs are “less isolating” than other models in their same technological category.

Let’s pad-roll a bit… !

Sonorous II and III are good as-is, i.e. with their stock pads. Period. You can skip this chapter, especially if you are on a tight budget.

That said, given my appreciation for the base configuration I wanted to go all the way through on their available options – at least the official ones, those offered by the manufacturer themselves.

Final makes a number of variations available for their Sonorous headphones line, which are all mechanically compatible with every model in the lineup as the housings chassis are identical accross the board. Each model is named with a letter (Type-B, Type-C, etc). Sonorous-II and Sonorous-III come equipped with 2 different earpad variations already, then I ordered 2 more different ones, and I started rolling…

So the aftermath is… I could have saved the money for Type C and B, and just swap stock pads between Sonorous-II and Sonorous-III to reach my preferred configuration on both. But how could I have known it without trying?

Conclusions

Sonorous-II and Sonorous-III are arguably the best closeback headphones on the market in their price class, and in my experience it takes tapping at Shure SRH-1540 to have something significantly competitive to talk about.

While they feature two quite different timbres, tonalities and presentations, neither is a real all-rounder musically wise. I’d recommend Sonorous-II blind-eyed for cool acoustic jazz, and any other clear-timbre musical genres, and Sonorus-III to whomever looks for a warm-neutral, midcentric, incredibly dynamic driver for prog rock, song writers, folk or such.

Finally, they are not “inexpensive” in absolute terms – so they might well not be one’s first take at overear headphones – but rest assured that they are not by any means “cheap”, indeed they are actually worth each single penny in their price for the quality, the comfort and the musical proficiency they deliver to their owner.

Disclaimer

Both samples I’m talking about in this article are my own property, they did not come from the manufacturer or a distributor on review/loan basis.

Our generic standard disclaimer.

The post final Sonorous-II And Sonorous-III Review appeared first on Audio Reviews.

At-a-glance Card

Connectivity

A70 offer a an extensive array of connectivity options that make it easy to employ them in so many different scenarios.

Starting with wired connectivity, there’s a 6.35mm connector on the left shell, and another, 3.5mm connector on the right one. In the box two cables are supplied, a 6.35-3.5mm 2.8m “coiled” cable, and a 3.5-3.5mm 1.5m “straight” one. All of this is exclusively single ended, by the way.

You can use the coiled cable “they way you like”, depending on your source HP port: if your source has a 3.5mm port, you’ll plug the 3.5mm end on there, and the 6.35mm end onto A70’s left shell. Alternatively, if you want to connect to your desktop amp – typically featuring a 6.35mm port – you’ll simply flip the cable around, plug its 6.35mm terminal onto the amp, and the 3.5mm terminal onto A70’s right shell this time. Either way, same result, same operation.

If you’re walking around, chances are the 2.8m cable is too long. So you can pull the 3.5-3.5 1.5m straight one and use that to plug A70 onto your DAP.

Oh by the way, the 3.5mm connector on the right A70 shell has a twist-lock mechanism. Nice feature, especially in a mobile scenario.

Bluetooth connectivity is very straightforward: A70 goes on pairing mode when you switch it on. Go look for it on the phone or dap, choose it, and you’re done.  Warning: plugging the 6.35mm cable on disables bluetooth (logically).

And lastly: should you happen to own two A70s you may configure them as a “tandem”, and share musing with a friend: pair either via bluetooth, then run the long cable plugging the 6.35 end on one A70 and the 3.5mm end on the other. Done!

Battery

The A70 comes with a 950mAh battery offering up to 50h playtime. Of course the effective autonomy may vary a bit depending on condition, volume etc, but that’s not soo important I think, as pretty much any audio-dedicated mobile source will run out of juice much sooner

It will take 2 – 3 hours to recharge the internal battery. A USB cable is provided in the box. No charger though.

Build and comfort

The entire A70 structure is made of ABS and appears reasonably solid. The headband has an internal sheet metal reinforcement. Both headband cushion and earpad stuffings are quite soft, and covered in faux-leather.

Actionating on the headband to calibrate its width almost always requires taking the A70 off, so that could have been designed better, but for the rest once worn A70 feel more than reasonably comfortable thanks to good haptics, well calibrated clamping force and a limited weight (220g, without the cable).

Passive isolation is very good too. On the flip side, airflow also is minimal so some heat does build up in case of prolonged audition sessions.

When not in use A70 can be flipped and folded onto themselves in a very compact configuration. A soft carry pouch is also supplied.

Sound

Timbre is bodied, soft edged. Tonality is warm, on an obviously V-shaped presentation.

Bass is what plays the principal role on A70, coming accross full, flourished and expansive, especially the mid-bass, which often steals too much off the scene and bloats / veils on the mids, shaping the entire presentation “warm&bassy”.

Mids are recessed but per se not bad. When no big influence comes from the bass they show a certain body and articulation. Trebles are quite nice, not particularly sparkly nor extended but they do help brightening the scene quite often, although some thin metal nuance is present on some fringes.

Soundstage is quite intimate. Imaging and layering are negatively impacted by the bloated bass and the drivers’ general lack of resolving power.

Specifications (declared)

Conclusions

A70 are an inexpensive pair of comfortable closedbacks offering a plethora of  connectivity possibilities granting their user really uncommon usage flexibility and convenience. 

Soundwise they offer a sub-audiophile-grade output quality, which nevertheless may be appreciated by whoever likes warm bass-focused easy-going / fun presentations.

You can find (and buy) them at the manufacturer’s website – here.

Our generic standard disclaimer.

The post OneOdio A70 Review – Easy Plug appeared first on Audio Reviews.

Cons — The atrocious, hilariously horrible carrying case Airpods Max comes with (that you can’t avoid using)
– 9KHz peak with ANC on
– Sounds overly processed with noticeable BT compression
– No high bit-rate codec support
– Clamp can be uncomfortable, can feel heavy
– Call quality is mediocre, voice sounds muffled even in a quiet room
– Overpriced

INTRODUCTION

The moment Apple removed the headphone jack from its latest iPhone 7, it spelt doom for the headphone jack itself on all flagship devices. It’s incredible how something as innocuous as the 3.5mm jack became the bane of existence for Apple and how they called it “courageous”, but that rant is best delivered elsewhere. 

This is a review of the Apple Airpods Max, Apple’s most expensive headphone, and one of the most expensive bluetooth headphones out there. If you are someone who is enamored (!) by the Apple ecosystem and also an audiophile, this review shall address your concerns regarding the tonal and technical proficiency of the Airpods Max.

If, however, you are someone who wants the latest trend, I think you can skip the rest of the review and just get the Airpods Max right away (the prices are dropping nowadays). It is definitely the most advanced Bluetooth headphone out there right now, and the competition will take a year to catch up at the very least. However, caveats apply, as always.

All relevant specs here.

Note: the ratings given will be subjective to the price tier. I bought the Airpods Max with my own funds.

Sources used: Apple iPhone 11, Apple iPhone SE, Google Pixel 4XL
Price, while reviewed: $550. Can be bought from Apple’s Web-store.

PHYSICAL THINGS AND USABILITY

PACKAGING AND ACCESSORIES

The Airpods Max come with the (now infamous) “Smart Case” and a lightning-to-USB-C cable. That’s about it. The “smart case” is the worst headphone case in existence and $5 Aliexpress cases with questionable design decisions are less useless.

This smart case is an absolute abomination in design (it looks like a silicone bra), the material choice (attracts gunk/dust and gets dirty real quickly) , the absolute lack of protection (doesn’t even cover the headband), and the absurd requirement for the Airpods to be kept in the cover to put them in deep sleep mode (they don’t turn off otherwise). Usability nightmare.
1/5

BUILD QUALITY

Premium, super-solid, futuristic — these are the operative words. The Airpods Max is built exceptionally well. It’s mostly anodized aluminium with some rubber and plastic parts. There is a curious lack of branding all around, no Apple logo/branding to be seen anywhere.

Let’s talk about the headband first since I find the headband design quite interesting. It’s a two-piece metal construction with the inner steel frame adding rigidity whereas the outer frame (rubber coated) houses the upper-portion of the headband (a fabric layer). The sliding mechanism for size-adjustment is also very solid, though I wish there were some markers for finer adjustments.

The earcups themselves are two chunks of aluminium and are packed with several mics, sensors, receivers, and buttons. This is the most sophisticated earcup design I’ve seen till now and is an impressive feat of engineering.

The right earcup has two buttons up top: the rotary dial (digital crown, as Apple says) that acts as both volume and playback control (press down to play/pause, press twice to skip), and a square button that toggles between Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) on/off. Lastly, The lightning port (ugh) is at the bottom for charging.

Opting for lightning instead of type-C is baffling, but I guess they thought of the ease of use for existing iPhone users. The left earcup is bereft of any controls but has an antenna cut-out for RF transparency.

What’s not immediately apparent but catches your attention once you look closer: the numerous microphone holes in both of the earcups. In fact, there are a total of nine microphones. Eight of these mics (two on the top and two of the bottom of each earcup) works for the ANC and the remaining one is used for voice pickup. Two of the eight ANC mics also help in voice pickup, and that rounds up the entire mic assembly.

Other than that there are other interesting design decisions. The earcups can rotate into a flat position for storage, and there is a spring-loaded swivel mechanism which I haven’t seen anywhere before (and a great design decision IMO).

The earcups attach/detach magnetically, and there’s an IR sensor inside each earcup (underneath the cutout in the earcup on the inner-side) that detects if you’ve worn the headphones or not (something that doesn’t work on Android/Windows for some reason).

A highly sophisticated build with premium materials. I guess I can’t really ask for more.
5/5

COMFORT, ISOLATION, AND FIT

The earpads have a cloth exterior with memory-foam inner. Unfortunately, the clamp force is a bit too high. Competing products like Sony 1000XM4 and the Bose QC35ii have superior wearing comfort, and that acts as a detriment.

The headband material is surprisingly comfortable though and distributes pressure evenly across the top of the head. It’s the clamp around your temples that is uncomfortable. The ~400gm weight is also noticeable while wearing.

As for noise isolation, the Active Noise-Cancellation here is class-leading indeed. You can only hear faint irregular noises, but most noises like hum of your laptop, the noisy bus engine are well taken care of.

I also like the transparency mode and found it fantastic during commute (as you can hear the surroundings while crossing the street, or trying to follow a conversation).
4/5

CONNECTIVITY

The BT reception is generally strong, but there were some connection drop issues with older iPhones that had BT 4.0. With BT 5.0 devices and the newer iPhones (that are compatible with the H1 chip) the connection was rock-solid. Pairing was also quite simple irrespective of OS/device.

The biggest downside here is the lack of any lossless codec as Apple is using the archaic AAC codec even in their flagship headphone. It’s a major shame and the BT compression is quite noticeable in many tracks. Call quality is also middling as the voice sounds somewhat muffled.
4.5/5

AIRPODS MAX DRIVER SETUP

Apple doesn’t tell much about the driver setup apart from that it’s 40mm. Looking at iFixit’s teardown I think it’s a PET diaphragm with a PVD metal plating (likely Titanium). The driver looks cool in a matte-black finish but that’s about it. I don’t think there’s much to write home about here (otherwise we wouldn’t hear the end of it in Apple’s promo materials).

TONALITY AND TECHNICALITIES

The Apple Airpods Max has a warm, slightly V-shaped (or U-shaped, as some say) sound that focuses more on the “fun” side of things rather than going for neutrality.

The bass response is definitely north of neutral with a sizeable sub-bass boost but the mid-bass is left untouched, resulting in a clean bass-response with no mid-bass bleed. Bass is fairly textured but lacks in definition and speed, partly due to the driver limitation and partly due to the BT compression that takes a toll on the bass region. 

The midrange is perhaps the best aspect of the Airpods Max. The recession in the lower mids tend to drown out male vocals in some tracks with lots of instrumentation, but that’s about my biggest complaint here.

The slight warmth in the lower-midrange coupled with lack of shoutiness in the upper-mids and generally correct tonality makes the Airpods Max good at reproducing both male/female vocals and string instruments. Acoustic guitars sound especially nice with crisp attack and a natural decay. 

The treble is where things start to get divisive. With the ANC on, there is a noticeable rise in the 9KHz peak and the treble becomes fatiguing. With ANC off, however, that issue is mostly mitigated, and in the transparency mode it is completely gone.

It’s ironic that a headphone that went through so much trouble for ANC sounds its worst with that feature turned on. If you are treble-sensitive and want/have the Airpods Max, I’d highly recommend keeping the ANC off/transparency mode on.

As for the rest: resolved detail is middling. This is about as resolving as the $65 Philips SHP9500 and I’m not exaggerating in the slightest. In busy tracks, the cymbals turn mushy and it’s hard to pick apart leading edge of notes.

The staging is fairly tall but lacks height and depth. Apple uses heavy DSP to give you a sense of space (esp when listening to songs with Dolby Atmos) but such tracks are rare and most of all: the DSP tricks sound artificial and lacks the natural stage expansion of an open-back headphone. However, compared to other BT headphones, the staging here is above-average indeed.

Finally, imaging is fairly accurate. Center-imaging suffers though, as is the case with most headphones. Dynamics are fairly good with the macrodynamic punch being delivered with authority (though the sub-bass emphasis can make snare hits and pedals sound a bit muted). Microdynamics are decent for a BT headphone but nothing to write home about.

Bass: 3.5/5
Mids: 4/5
Treble: 3/5
Imaging/Separation: 3.5/5
Staging: 3.5/5
Dynamics/Speed: 3/5

SELECT COMPARISONS

vs Sony 1000XM4 ($300): The Sony 1000XM4 is widely popular for a few good reasons: it’s very comfortable, it’s got the branding, and the sound signature is a bass-boosted V-shaped that many find “fun” to listen to. It’s also got LDAC support and good ANC.

However, the Airpods Max has better build and controls, and the ANC on them is superior. Also the sound has better midrange resolution and imaging. Almost twice-the-price better? I don’t think so, but hey – it’s Apple.

vs Bose QC35ii ($200-ish): The Bose QC35ii has been on the blocks for a long time and I find it to be a very enjoyable pair of BT headphones. The ANC is fantastic (nearly as good as the Airpods Max) and they are supremely comfortable to wear. The lightweight helps in carrying too.

The sound signature is more mid-bass focused than the Apple Airpods Max and tends to sound thicker in general with less treble presence. A non-fatiguing sound that’s middling in resolution but very inoffensive.

The Airpods Max, again, has superior build and ANC. However, the tonal profile is different enough to cater to different audiences. Moreover, the price is markedly lower on the Bose. It’s an inferior headphone to the Airpods Max no doubt, but for the price, it’s a very good performer.

CONCLUDING REMARKS

The Apple Airpods Max has stunning looks and perhaps the best balance of sound among wireless headphones around $500. There’s one BT headphone that’s superior in almost all aspects to the Airpods Max, the Hifiman Ananda BT, but it retails for twice as much ($1000) and is an open-back headphone. Plus, the design isn’t anywhere as cool.

In terms of raw sound quality and comparing against wired offerings, the Apple Airpods Max stand no chance. It’s slightly worse than the Philips SHP9500 and that tells it all. Sennheiser HD600/650 duo are on an entirely different dimension altogether, and the Hifiman Sundara/Beyerdynamic DT1990 are technically far more proficient. 

However, you don’t get the Airpods for sound quality. The entry level Airpods are about as resolving as $10 earbuds, and Millions of people bought them. The price point is a bit too high on the Airpods Max though and for non-audiophile, style-conscious consumers it might be a bit too high a premium to pay. 

If you are someone who loves the Apple “ecosystem” (though said ecosystem barely helps here) and got the budget for it, Airpods Max will probably earn you more style points than anything else out there. The sound without ANC is quite good and the easy to use control scheme can be refreshing.

Unfortunately, I can’t recommend the Apple Airpods Max to the regular audiophile as they are overpriced, over-designed, and under-performing. They look cool, but you can’t see them when worn. You can feel them though, and the high weight coupled with high clamp-force is not ideal. The sound quality is way below average and will be bested by certain wired headphones under $200.

If you really need a BT headphone, the Bose QC35ii will be an inoffensive, inexpensive option with good ANC as well and great comfort. The Airpods Max, meanwhile, belongs more in lifestyle photo-shoot than actual real-world use.

MY VERDICT

3/5

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PHOTOGRAPHY

You find an INDEX of our most relevant technical articles HERE.

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The company was established in 1979 and produces loudspeakers, headphones/earphones, stereo systems, and home theatre systems. They have 320 employees and distributes their products directly – you have to order from them.

The headphone’s build is spectacular. The Massive is truly massive, it weighs 400 g and you can throw it at your enemy when being out of bullets. Metal hinges are so sturdy your kitchen cabinet maker could be jealous of. And you can fold it up to next to nothing. The earcups sit firmly around my ears, the thick cushioning makes for very good isolation. Comfort, well depends how you like over-ear hearphones, but it can be hot, let’s say, in Mexico.

Included are 2 cables and a storage pouch. One cable is 1.3 m long cable with a 3.5 mm jack plug that works with all standard smartphones, MP3 players, PCs, notebooks, and tablets.

An additional 3 m cable with removable 6.3 mm adapter is for use with A/V receivers and amplifiers. The fabric cover reduces cable contact noise, minimizes tangles and microphonics, and increases durability. The 50 mm neodymium magnet drivers have an impedance of 32 Ohm, so you can drive these little monsters with the weakest smartphone or dap. Frequency response is from 20 to 22,000 Hz.

In terms of sound, surprise surprise, the Teufel Massive are bass canons. The low end is as robust as the build. Distortion only kicks in at 120 dB, which makes the Massive a good choice for DJs. The bass does not bury the midrange, and the treble is refined and not grainy.

Dynamics is very good, even an iPhone produces a healthy punch, very efficient. Non-bassheads may find the overall sound a bit dull – and audiophiles typically cringe when they hear the Teufel Massive’s name. A great headphone for Techno, Hip Hop, Punk, and Rock….and not so much for acoustic sets.

In summary, the Teufel Massive’s sound is rock solid but rather a burger fare than a lobster roll. But a big, sizzling, dripping burger. Nothing wrong with that.

Until next time…keep on listening!

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Isolation isn’t great—there’s no ANC—but these actually well-suited for situations where you want some awareness of the outside world. Mic quality is very good. I really like the physical control buttons, which are more reliable than the usual control panels. The claimed 30 hour battery life is legit.

Soundwise, the Status Audio BT One presents a warm, expansive V-shaped signature with a modest bass boost and a thick note texture. The low end isn’t the most sculpted and registers as slightly tubby, though pleasantly so, and these steer clear of the Beats-like thumpiness. Mids have good presence and clarity, while treble isn’t especially extended or detailed, but has a nice smooth timbre which avoids sharpness or peakiness.

Imaging is accurate—performers are well-positioned across a wide stage, and (some bass bloom notwithstanding) the Status Audio BT One is coherent across the frequencies. Something like the AKG NC60NC ($299, but often deeply discounted) has much tighter, punchier bass and better overall resolution, though not as much as the price differential would suggest, while I found the Status Audio BT One sonically superior to the Beats Solo/Studio, which is less coherent and has a more artificial timbre.

The much pricier Sony WH-100MX4 actually has a similar tuning—warm and smooth, albeit with tighter less enhanced low end and a richer tonality; the Sony is the better-sounding phone, but I often find myself preferring the sleeker form factor and more “open” aural experience of the Status Audio BT One.

That an American company can deliver a product of this quality at this price is something of an anomaly; Bose and its ilk should be fearful. The Status Audio BT One is by any measure a roaring bargain and garner a thumbs-up.

Disclaimer: Bought the Status Audio BT One myself.

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The post Status Audio BT One Review – Chi-Fi For The Buy-American Crowd appeared first on Audio Reviews.

Pros — Fantastic Build and material choices
– Very comfortable
– Not as sweaty as the materials would suggest
– V-shaped tuning can be an interesting change from stock pads

Cons — Changes stock tuning too much, not for purists
– Price is higher than stock pads (due to material choices)
– Worse instrument separation/more congestion vs the stock pads

INTRODUCTION

Dekoni Audio is pretty well known for aftermarket earpads. They provide a range of options across a variety of price ranges and offer replacement earpads for popular models such as the Sennheiser HD6X0 lineup, Audeze LCD lineup, Denon/Beyerdynamic and so on. 

Their Elite series is basically as the name suggests: premium earpads made with premium materials. I received the Dekoni Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin and the Dekoni Elite Hybrid earpads (HD650 variant) for this review. Let’s see how things change between them and the stock pads.

Note: the ratings given will be subjective to the price tier. Dekoni Audio was kind enough to send the Elite pads for review. Disclaimer.

Price, while reviewed: $80. Can be purchased from Dekoni website.

PHYSICAL THINGS AND USABILITY

IN THE BOX…

The earpads and some stickers. That’s about it.

APPEARANCE, HAPTIC, AND BUILD QUALITY

The Elite pads are built exceptionally well. The seams are well put together and fit and finish is top-notch. The stock Sennheiser pads look cheap and janky in comparison. The plastic mounts are glued to the back and didn’t seem to budge even with some force applied. 

For the Elite Hybrid pad you get a velour front (the part that touches your skin), leather sides, and fenestrated sheepskin on the inside. It’s an interesting choice of materials but the combination doesn’t look out of place. 

The Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin pad, on the other hand, has fenestrated sheepskin layers all around. Both earpads utilize memory foams inside though the foam on the Hybrid pad is softer/less dense.

One thing you should note is that these pads don’t come with the dampening foam (there is a foam between the drivers and the earpads on the HD600 series headphones). So you should probably keep the old foams handy (or get a replacement of those foams elsewhere). 
5/5

ERGONOMICS, COMFORT

The Elite Hybrid and the Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin pads are both very comfortable but there are some differences between them. Due to the softer foam, the Elite Hybrid pad has a more supple fit. I personally find it more comfortable of the two though again: both are a substantial improvement over the stock earpads on the comfort front. In terms of feel the Fenestrated Shipskeen is smoother vs the coarser Elite Hybrid pad. I prefer the Shipskeen pads in terms of feel. 
4.5/5

SOUND

The sound changes are quite interesting to say the least. You can look at the graphs on Dekoni’s website here. The following images are courtesy of Dekoni:

First up: the Dekoni Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin pads. Compared to the stock pads, they boost the bass noticeably and some of it even slightly spills into the lower mids. As a result you lose some separation of instruments and imaging takes a hit to my ears (center-imaging esp). On the other hands, dynamics improve and the resulting sound signature is a pretty fun one and definitely suits Pop, hip-hop, RnB and such genres more than the stock pads. One thing that I noticed was how the lower-treble became peakier with the Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin pads. Compared to the stock pads, these are definitely a more V-shaped offering. 

The Dekoni Elite Hybrid earpads on the other hand provide less mid-bass and upper-bass emphasis vs the Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin pads. They do have more sub-bass but given the limitations of the HD600 series driver (cannot reproduce sub-bass notes that well) it’s not that noticeable in most cases. I personally prefer the presentation of the Elite Hybrid pads over the Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin pads as they sound less cluttered in the midrange and the treble response is slightly more even-handed. It’s still not as smooth and laid-back as the stock pads but then again: the Dekoni pads are for those who are looking for a different signature. Comapred to the Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin pads, the Elite Hybrid pads also offer better instrument separation, though both pale in comparison to the stock pads in that regard. 

CONCLUDING REMARKS

In the end, if you are looking for the stock Sennheiser sound with a different/more comfortable earpad material — such an earpad does not exist to my knowledge. Sennheiser surely knew what they were doing (and they knew it very well) so the one-to-one replacement of the stock Sennheiser pads are… stock Sennheiser pads.

However, if you want to taste a different flavor of sound to the stock HD650 tuning, or perhaps you like to switch things up from time-to-time — try the Dekoni Elite series pads. They are superbly comfortable, has great feel and finish, and are suitable for modern genres along with movies/gaming since those usually benefit from bass emphasis. 

MY VERDICT

Overall Rating: 4/5 for Elite Hybrid Pads

Recommended (if you want a V-shaped flavor of the stock HD650 sound)

Overall Rating: 3.75/5 for Elite Fenestrated Sheepskin Pads

I prefer the Elite Hybrid pads more overall so these are gonna get a pass

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Product Pages

Dekoni Audio Fenestrated Sheepskin Replacement Ear Pads for Sennheiser HD 600 Series Headphones

Dekoni Audio Elite Hybrid Replacement Ear Pads for Sennheiser HD 600 Series Headphones

The post Dekoni Elite Pads for Sennheiser HD600 Series Review – Something Different appeared first on Audio Reviews.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Dekoni Fenestrated Sheepskin earpads and and Hybrid Elite earpads offer outstanding workmanship and comfort. However, they alter the characteristics the Sennheiser HD 600 have been known for and may therefore not be for everyone.

INTRODUCTION

The Sennheiser HD 600 headphones have been standard staples with audiophiles since 1997. They are characterized by a stellar, natural sounding midrange, great treble extension, and a somewhat poorly extended and slow low end. Their characteristic sound is generated by the combination of driver and earpads.

But the stock earpads have a wear-and-tear, they will loose tension over time and cause the HD 600 to sound “wrong”. Because of the large distribution of the Sennheiser HD 600/650/6XX “( the “HD 600 series”), it has become lucrative for companies to offer after-market earpads. We have recently reviewed the offering by Japanese manufacturer Yaxi that failed our test on grounds of tonality. It is obviously difficult to break into Sennheiser’s market as they had enough time in the last >>20 years to optimize the sound of their HD 600 series models.

Dekoni Audio is an American company out of New Jersey that offers high-end headphone accessories for a number of popular models. For the Sennheiser HD 600 series, they boldly offer six different kinds of earpads, ranging from $50 to $80.

The company also offers measurements of all their ear pads relative to the Sennheiser stock pads [here]. The Dekoni Audios ear pads for these Senns show a different degrees of midrange recession (“V-shape”) compared to the stock pads.

I selected the two with the least such recession, the “Dekoni Audio Fenestrated Sheepskin Replacement Ear Pads for Sennheiser HD 600 Series Headphones” and the slightly more V-shaped (graphing) “Dekoni Audio Elite Hybrid Replacement Ear Pads for Sennheiser HD 600 Series Headphones“.

PHYSICAL THINGS AND USABILITY

Dekoni Audio claim that their pads are cooler and more comfortable than the stock pads. I tested them in the cold Canadian winter and leave the temperature judgement to testers in warmer regions. They are comfortable and have a lower elastic rebound than the stock pads.

The Fenestrated Sheepskin and Elite Hybrid have identical shapes with straight walls and flat tops. Material wise, the Fenestrated Sheepskin pads (fenestra, latin: window) feature the same material all around (sheepskin leather with little “window” holes). The Elite Hybrid feature velour on top, leather on the outer wall and Fenestrated Sheepskin leather on the inside.

The quality of these two ear pads is impeccable. I particularly like the Fenestrated Sheepskin that remind me of high-end leather seats in a luxury vehicle – compared to the Sennheiser stock pads resembling used back seats in a New York cab.

In terms of size, the Dekoni pads are narrower and 1-2 mm deeper than the stock pads and they have a slightly larger opening. The Dekonis also have a slightly smaller opening and a bigger contact area on the head owing to their flat top. The Sennheiser pads may have a bigger surface area but it is curved, and the inner walls are not straight either.

In terms of strength, the Dekoni pads (I assume they have the same fill) are firmer than the stock pads and the also have the much slower elastic rebound. I found the Dekoni pads very comfortable over longer listening periods. I leave the fit discussion to co-blogger Kazi and will focus on the most important thing: the sound.

Installation: You find lots of videos on how to replace Sennheiser HD 600 series pads on YouTube or on the Dekoni website. It is easy. You essentially rip the pads off and click the new ones into place.

TONALITY AND TECHNICALITIES

Follow these links for some background information:

My tonal preference and testing practice

My test tracks explained

Equipment used: MacBook Air; EarMen TR-amp, Sennheiser HD 600, Dekoni Audio Fenstrated Sheepskin and elite Hybrid pads.

The two types of Dekoni earpads do alter the sound of my Sennheiser HD 600 in that they make it darker, bolder, weightier – at the expense of the lean original signature. The stage becomes slightly deeper but less airy. The Fenestrated Sheepskin pads alter the sound less than the “bassier and more recessed” Elite Hybrid pads.

Fenstrated Sheepskin Pads

After my bad experience with the Yaxi earpads, which pulled the weight too far down in the frequency spectrum, the Dekoni Fenestrated Sheepskin pads came as a somewhat pleasant surprise.

The Dekoni Fenestrated Sheepskin pads do not alter the bass quantity however reduce the frequency spectrum from the upper bass up. This translates to slightly perceived bass boost, a recessed midrange and less treble extension (compared to the Sennheiser stock pads). Such recession is adherent to all Dekoni models and is least evident in the fenestrated sheepskin pads, which probably makes them the most recommendable ones.

The reduction in upper and lower midrange has positive and negative effects. The good is that the shoutiness reported by many users has been essentially eliminated, which thickens the vocals and adds more note weight to them. The bad is that the midrange loses energy and air, and becomes darker. Some may perceive vocals as duller than before, others may welcome the increased note weight.

And yep, the treble extension the Sennheiser HD 600 has been known for certainly has been tamed to some extent and caters more to treble sensitive listeners. Cymbals have become more subtle but without losing definition.

Technicalities such as timbre, soundstage, separation and layering have been largely untouched. The HD 600 have never been known for their soundstage, Dekoni claims their pads increase it because of their bigger depth relative to the stock pads. The stage may have become a bit deeper but that difference is insignificant for daily use. Soundstage with the Dekoni fenestrated sheepskin pads is fine.

Elite Hybrid Pads

The Dekoni Elite Hybrid earpads are only different from the Fenestrated Sheepskin pads through their boost below 300 Hz. When playing music without bass, both models sound essentially identical. The extra-boosted low end (with respect to the stock pads) appears to turn my HD 600 into an HD 650. 

Since an earpad does not change the driver speed, the boosted low end amplifies its weakness and makes it sonically fuzzier and thumpier than with the stock pads. 

In the mix (the human ear hears the whole frequency spectre in context), the boosted low end pushes the vocals further back (than the fenestrated sheepskins) and can somewhat congest the transition bass-midrange. It also pushes the treble further back.

IMO, the Dekoni Earpads Hybrid earpads push the weight too far down towards the bottom of the frequency range. But all it does is bloating it as the HD 600 is not basshead material because of the driver’s limited articulation down there.

I therefore much prefer the Fenestrated Sheepskin pads of the two models.

In comparison to the Dekoni pads, the HD 600 with the Sennheiser stock pads may sound leaner and they have more air, but a shallower stage. Everything with the stock pads is more subtle and it is bolder with the Dekoni pads.

CONCLUDING REMARKS

The Dekoni Audio earpads tested are superior over the Sennheiser stock pads in terms of build and haptic – they are also pricier. The Fenestrated Sheepskin pads produce a thicker/weightier but less energetic sound than the stock pads on the Sennheiser HD 600. The sonic differences between the stock pads and Dekoni Fenestrated Sheepskin pads are, however, not earth shattering – and may be not be a dealmaker/breaker. However, they do alter the characteristic sonic signature of my HD 600 probably too much to please purists.

The Elite Hybrid, on the other hand, very similar to the Yaxi pads, add to much weight to the bottom of the frequency spectrum imo that is missing in the midrange and on the top. I would not recommend these to listeners who treasure the original sound of the HD 600.

Until next time…keep on listening!

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DISCLAIMER

The earpads were provided by Dekoni Audio through their Head-Fi campaign – and I thank them for that.

Product Pages

Dekoni Audio Fenestrated Sheepskin Replacement Ear Pads for Sennheiser HD 600 Series Headphones

Dekoni Audio Elite Hybrid Replacement Ear Pads for Sennheiser HD 600 Series Headphones

Our generic standard disclaimer.

You find an INDEX of our most relevant technical articles HERE.

IMAGES…

The post Dekoni Sennheiser HD 600 Series Fenestrated Sheepskin Earpads And Hybrid Elite Earpads Review – Bold Statements appeared first on Audio Reviews.

Gear of the Year: Just in time for Christmas we list our our personal favourites of 2020 – the portable audio we personally enjoyed most. Note, these are not necessarily the best, but the ones we…you got it. Therefore, these are highly personal, subjective listings. Please be aware we don’t offer reviews for everything we like/we list here (yet).

That Christmas tree on the right is a carryover from last year. It stood in the lobby of the Windsor hotel at the Copacabana in Rio de Janeiro…and it should be a symbolism for looking forward to travelling again. Viva Brazil!

Most of our reviews would have not been possible without our 2020 cooperating partners. We thank:

Acoustic Effect, ADV, Akoustyx, Apos Audio, Azla, Bill Barraugh/Audiotiers, Blon, Cozoy, CVJ, ddHifi, Dekoni, Dunu, EarMen, Earstudio, Hifigo, iBasso, ifi Audio, KBEAR, Keephifi, Moondrop, NiceHCK, Opa Audio Store, Sennheiser, Shenzhenaudio, Shozy, Smabat, Tempotec, Tronsmart, TRN, Vision Ears, V-Moda, Wooeasy Earphones Store, Yaxi, Don’tkillusifweforgotyoujustsendusanotandwefixit. 

For the companies: you can check for your products/yourself in the search field on the right-hand side.

Note: we do not make any money (or getting compensated by products) through the gear we review. No affiliate links, trackers etc. We keep the conflict-of-interest potential as low as possible by attempting to stay at arm’s length.

As to the popularity of our reviews with you, the reader: our top-viewed BLOG POSTS for 2020 were (click to go to the respective article):

1. Simplified Guide To Silicone Eartips (~13,000 views in early Dec 2020)
2. Tin Hifi T2 Plus Review
3. Blon Bl-03 Review
4. KZ ZSN Pro Review
5. Blon Bl-05 Beta Photography
6. Tempotec Sonata HD Pro Review
7. Moondrop SSR Review
8. Drop JVC HA-FDX1 Review
9. Apple Audio Adapter Review
10. Earphones Of The Year 2019
11. Sennheiser IE 500 PRO Review
12. Reversing Starlines Eartips
13. TRN V90 Review
14. Moondrop Starfield Review
15. Sony MH755 Review

Total Number of Blog Posts in 2020: 186

Facebook Group (est. 2020-01-01)| https://www.facebook.com/groups/audioreviews: >5200 members

YouTube subscriptions | https://www.youtube.com/c/audioreviews: 660

Our most-watched YouTube Video of 2020:

And yes, this blog grew and grew and grew in 2020. We are now 8 reviewers on 3 continents. Below are our personal favourites of 2020…

Baskingshark…Singapore

My 2020 favourites in the following categories are:

Earphones

$300 – 500 USD:
LZ A7. Provides a mind boggling 10 tuning configs (or more with aftermarket tuning nozzles). It has excellent technicalities, good fit, good isolation, and the best part that surprised me is that the LZ A7 has very natural timbre for a BA/piezo containing tribid (other than the higher treble frequencies handled by the piezo). Most folks would find an ideal sound signature with it, maybe except diehard bassheads. 

$200 – 300 USD:
Audiosense T800. It has good technicalities, is “fun sounding” and excellent isolation nearing 30 dB. Even though it contains a BA bass, it sounds like a DD bass due to a vented subwoofer. The T800 may be a bit on the bright side, so it isn’t the best option for treble sensitive folks, but you can use knowles filters, warm sources or eartips to tame the treble.

@ $100 – 200 USD:
TRI I3. Smooth, balanced, grand and coherent despite the weird 1 planar + 1 BA + 1 DD config. It needs amping though, the planars handling the mids are quite power hungry. It has one of the best soundstages at the $100ish region when amped, with sweet planar mids. Treble is safe, bordering on darkish, so maybe not for trebleheads.

KBEAR BElieve. “Bearly believable” for a full beryllium set at this price? The KBEAR BElieve sports a smooth and refined U shaped tuning, great technical chops in the mids and treble areas for a single DD. It has good timbre for acoustic instruments but is very hard to drive, as per the 98 dB sensitivity. It sounds muddy, congested and slow in the bass with a low powered source, but scales beautifully when optimally amped, so those that don’t intend to get an amp best look elsewhere. With power, the KBEAR BElieve does hit about 70% of the technical performance of the famed DUNU LUNA, at 10% of the price! 

@ Sub $100 USD:
HZSound Heart Mirror. Nice mirror like shells, as per its namesake, it is a neutralish bright set, excellent timbre for acoustic instruments. I like how it manages to get a forward upper mids without going into harsh or shouty territory, a very fine line to balance. The Heart Mirror has good transients and speed on the driver. Note weight is thin and soundstage is not the best though, and it needs amping to shine, sounds meh from a smartphone. Good set for vocal lovers and timbre lovers, but maybe not so all rounded due to the lack of bass, but it takes to EQ in the bass like a champ.

Favourite earbud for the year:
SMABAT ST105 Black Gold. Neutralish set with subbass and upper mids boost. If you have always looked down on earbuds for not having subbass, think again. The SMABAT ST10S Black Gold has the best subass quantity and extension I’ve ever heard in a bud. It has excellent technicalities, is MMCX
detachable and can be worn over ears or cable down. It needs amping though, as per the 150 ohm impedance. Not to be mixed up with the SMABAT ST10S Black Silver, which is tuned differently (and has lower impedance).

Best lucky bag/Fukubukuro/Mystery bag:
Urbanfun YBF-ISS014 – it is extremely exciting to see whether u get a beryllium vs “noble metal” driver. Or a working versus wonky mmcx. Even newer batches of the Urbanfun have been reported to have QC problems in the audio forums.The Urbanfun can be summed up in this statement by Forrest Gump: “My Mom Always Said Life Was Like A Box Of Urbanfuns. You Never Know What You’re Gonna Get.”

Best price to peformance joke IEM of the year:
TRN golden ears $14,750.00 USD IEM paired with $3400 USD xiaofan ortiz “king of the gods” cable. Mere mortals cannot hope to use these gear if not you’ll be struck down by lightning! I hope the Bellsing BAs inside are also made of gold!

Biodegraded…Vancouver, Canada

Sorry, from me you get stuff that mostly hasn’t been reviewed. In no particular order; and most aren’t new this year.

Digital transports:
Pi2Design Pi2AES (+ Raspberry Pi)
For streaming (via wifi or Ethernet cable) digital music from your computer, you could go cheap and crap like a Chromecast or Airport, brutally expensive like an all-in-one streamer from Naim or PS Audio, or this $US 149 HAT for a Raspberry Pi which will produce excellent quality AES or S/PDIF digital audio to feed into your audiophile DAC. DIY aesthetic & philosophy, audiophile quality, fantastic convenience once you figure out how to set it up (variety of OS solutions, some better than others).

Amps/Preamps:
Ifi Audio Zen Phono RIAA phono preamp
$US 149 for excellent resolution and transients and the ability to work with a wide range of cartridges. Might benefit from an improved power supply such as Ifi’s own iPower, but my jury remains out on that. Audioreviews summary here.

Amp accessories:
GE JAN 5670W vacuum tube
Cheap and widely available true new-old-stock military-surplus tube that works really well as a 6DJ8/6922 preamp tube substitute (great in the Schiit Vali 2).  Nice tight lows, smooth but detailed mids, sparkly highs. 6922 to 5670 adapter required to translate the I/O pin pattern so nothing blows up.

Headphone accessories:
Yaxi pads for Porta Pro / KSC75 / PX-100
Tastefully boost bass and treble while (on the Kosses) lowering the prominent 5kHz peak. And they’re comfortable! Audioreviews summary here.

IEMs:
Drop/JVC HA-FDX1
Champion single-dynamic earphone with great DD timbre and almost BA-fast transients. Slightly boosted in the uppermost mids, heavy in the ears, intermittent availability, but huge bang-for-buck. Audioreviews summaries here and here (note that Loomis isn’t their greatest fan).

Headphones:
Fostex T50RP Mk3 with cheap angled pads and other mods
Closed or semi-open (depending on how much you stuff the cups) planar magnetic phones that with a little effort (see eg here for ideas) can be made both neutral and extended while retaining deep bass and technicalities. Need amp power to perform.

Players:
USB Audio Player Pro
Gets better with every update. Neutron is more configurable, but unnecessarily so. Put this on your Android phone, plug in a USB DAC/amp, and enjoy great lossless sound quality on the go. Equalizer plugins available. Android only though.

Durwood…Chicago, USA

CCA this year might as well been a lump of coal, it’s only two letters shy of selling your soul. If you want to talk to your boring Uncle Bob, (no offense Bob’s of the world) get yourself an iBasso IT00 or Tin Hifi T2 Plus you knob. Your uncle Bob is the guy who has lots of interesting things to say, but leaves you wondering what did you just listen to today. My only favorites this year were TRN STM who is the punk that your family doesn’t like to talk about and the Shozy Rouge as your killer looking date that likes to party but not shout. Waiting to see if Shozy Form 1.4 is in good form, only thing I decided to buy during the holiday sales storm. BQEYZ Spring 2 was a nice lively upgrade to the BQEYZ Spring 1, but fix that bass man, maybe take some lessons from the Nicehck NX7 Daniel son. Some of my friends from last year are still good folks to have around, Sony MH755, BLON BL03 for sleeping, and TinHifi T4 (I just wish you would hang in my ear longer than a few minutes of sound). Simgot EN700 is a carry over as well. I like a mild V if you can see.

Jürgen Kraus…Calgary, Canada

Blon BL-05s: These are very articulate playing single DDs also appeal to me through their hideous colour. Probably my most used items of the year (together with the JVCs and Shozy Form 1.4 below). Following the footsteps of the popular Blon Bl-03 – the Blon Bl-05s disappeared fast in the big black hole of anti-hype. And for a good reason: they look like the Bl-05, smell like the Bl-05, measure like the Bl-05, but the Bl-05 had been thrown on the market prematurely, and they sucked. The more distinguished audience may have realized that Bl-05 and Bl-05s have different drivers and sound completely different.

Drop JVC HA-FDX01: Hailed as arguably the best single DD on the market until Dunu Luna and Final Audio A8000 took over, this labour of love was originally only available 665 times….which has extended to above 2000 by now while the price dropped to $200. Carryover from 2019. Still my best earphones because of their organic timbre and great resolution.

TRI I3: Planar magnetic. Something totally different. Big and bold sounding yet soothing. Nothing offensive, nothing dull.

Sennheiser IE 400 PRO ($349): The best of their PRO series. Classic Sennheiser quality midrange. Super ergonomics. Nobody will dislike this one.

Shozy Form 1.4 ($199): The Shozy team somehow got their tuning 100% right. The Form 1.4 simply sound appealing to my ears…warm and fuzzy.

Guilty Pleasure: I pull the $70 FiiO FD1 out for the road: nice’n’punchy.

Vision Ears Elysium in the Endgame category. At 2500 EUR hand made by elfs and some Rhine mermaids in Cologne, out of reach for longer than a week (borrowed). Produce vocals better than real life but also melts credit cards. Cymbals as crisp as Swedish bread…

Perversions and Subversions: the Moondrop Spaceship at $20 beats the Moondrop SSR and SSP…less accurate but the better “junk food” for my ears. Moondrop have a history of undercutting their own mid-tier earphones with their budget offerings…we remember the $30 Crescent and the $180 KPE.

Inasmile Cable Protector: Discovery of the year. 20 cents that protect my fraying Apple cables from total breakage.

I still use the Koss PortaPro headphones with Yaxi earpads for video conferencing and listening when I need comfort around my ears. Also great are the Koss KSC75. Grab all of them when you can, they are affordable standard staples. And my standard full-sized cans are still the Sennheiser HD 600.

Tempotec Sonata HD Pro dac/amp dongle ($40): comes at the price of an adapter – but with all possible adapters to connect this little rascal to anything, including iPhones. Good enough to drive any iem. The very best dongles are the $199 EarMen Sparrow run on their balanced output, and the $120 Earstudio HUD100. In terms of larger portable dacs/amps (with integrated battery), I like the $199 ifi Audio Nano BL, the $149 ifi Audio hip-dac, and the $249 EarMen TR-amp. And I don’t think I need a bigger desktop amp.

Question mark of the year: The KBEAR Believe with their Japan sourced Beryllium drivers were too cheap to be true…which was underlined by some competing cheater Be-less Beryllium earphones and doubt seeded by the Dunu competitor. Hey, but the Luna have that Chi-Fi peak…

Personal Disappointment of the year: the continuing Chi-Fi peak between 2 and 4 kHz that kills western eardrums…TRN are leading the charge…the TRN BA8 cuts steel like butter.

Kazi Mahbub Mutakabbir…Munich, Germany

I’ve tried and reviewed more stuff this year than ever, and part of it (actually, most of it) is due to the awful home-arrest that we’ve all succumbed too. Hope things get normal soon, sigh.

IEMs: 

Final E500 ($20): This otherwise “cheap/beater” IEM does one thing better than *anything* under $100 – binaural tracks and gaming. At least it did so until its brethren VR3000 came out, but I’m yet to hear that and that’s got a 4x price tag attached to it. People call the Sony MH755 the best value IEMs, for me it’s the Final E500.

Dunu Studio SA6 ($550): This is a great all-rounder IEM. Great bass for an all-BA IEM, the lower-mids are full and organic whereas upper-mids tread the fine line between forwardness and shoutiness. The treble has good amount of sparkle and air. Great design and accessory pack. Really, hard to pick a fault.

Honorable mentions: Final E5000, Samsung Galaxy Buds, Moondrop Blessing 2, Sony IER-M9, Final FI-BA-SS, Dunu Luna

Headphones:

Koss PortaPro X + Yaxi Pads ($40): Just buy one. Don’t be stingy. Thank me later. 

Sennheiser HD650 ($300): The once and forever king. The HD6XX esp is a no-brainer. Scales better than any headphone I’ve tried.

Honorable Mentions: Hifiman Sundara, Focal Clear, Final D8000

DAPs:

Sony NW-A55 ($200): If your primary need is to run efficient IEMs, look no further. Great ergonomics, actually usable UI, good display, fantastic battery life, and then there’s the MrWalkman mod to turn it even more awesome. The only “budget” DAP I recommend. 

Questyle QP1R ($600): Questyle made the QP1R 6 years ago. It’s still one of the best DAPs out there when it comes to overall dynamics.

Honorable mentions: Cowon Plenue V, iBasso DX160, Sony ZX300

Desktop sources:

YULONG Canary II ($230): One of the best budget all-in-ones I’ve come across. Criminally underrated too which is a royal shame.

Questyle CMA-400i ($800): The all-in-one system I ended up with after countless trials and tribulations. Perfectly aligned to my tastes.

Honorable Mentions: iFi Zen Can, Headamp GSX-Mini

And that’s a wrap. Hopefully 2021 brings us better times.

KopiOkaya…Singapore

This year there are 8 of us, thus there are more choices for our readers to choose from.

This year also marked the year of COVID-19…. Meaning, people are staying home longer and more often, thus they can listen to their gears on desktop systems other than portable music players and phones. Fortunately, desktop gears are much better and more affordable now.

Desktop DACs:

Denafrips Ares II (US$700): I don’t own one but my friend do. If you like natural, organic sound with a huge, deep, tall soundstage and don’t mind its higher price tag, look no further… This is it! 

Topping E30 (US$130): A nice warm-neutral DAC. It doesn’t sound as natural, as organic or has a huge soundstage like the Ares II but it offers great audio at an affordable price.

Note: Extremely sensitive to the quality of power supply used. Make sure you power it with something decent like the iFi iPower X.

Desktop Amps:

Yulong Canary II (US$250): This is actually a DAC/Amp with a Class A amplification stage. It posseses a warm-neutral sound signature with lots of low-end drive thanks to the Class A topography. Very good value and performance consider this is both a DAC and an amp! 

Topping L30 (US$140): My current reference amp… If you have noticed, so far I don’t have any balanced amp in my list. When I tune earphones, I never tune them in balanced, simply because if it sounds good in single-ended, it should sound even better in balanced… Well, this is usually the case! The L30 is great (for me) because it has a gain REDUCTION switch for IEMs with high sensitivity… Not many headphone amps have such feature. This is a very neutral, clean and transparent amp that doesn’t colour the sound of the source. That’s all I ask for when tuning earphones.

Portable DAC-Amps:

FiiO BTR5 / Shanling UP4 / EarStudio ES100 MK2 / Qudelix 5K (US$120 or less): I don’t want to decide which is better. To me, each has its pros and cons but my point is… acceptable Bluetooth quality listening is finally here! Almost everybody owns a smartphone these days, so why not use it as a music player? Some of you despise this idea but c’mon… A TOTL DAP still runs slower than my $150 Android phone operating on Android 10.

Earphones:

Etymotic ER4XR (US$350): My reference for tuning hybrid earphones. If you are familiar with Etys you should know their earphones have a near-neutral Diffuse Field Target tuning. The “XR” version has slightly more bass. 

Etymotic ER2XR (US$100): Similar to the ER4XR except this uses a single dynamic instead of balanced armature, thus my reference when I tune dynamic earphones. The ER2XR has more natural timbre and punchier bass than ER4XR. You can forget about Moondrop SSR/SSP if you plan to buy one. This is better.

Note: Etymotic earphones are to be worn deep inside the ear canals touching the bone… #Etyheads call “deep insertion”. This can cause discomfort to first time Etymotic users but you will get used to it eventually… I used to hate it but I am OK with it now.

Headphones:

Singapore is too damn warm for headphones, unless using air-conditioning while listening to music… Sorry, I am too cheap for that. Electricity is expensive here.

Loomis Johnson…Chicago, USA

TRN STM–$20 wunderkind is not, as Durwood aptly states, a purist’s earphone, and it veers towards sounding over-pixilated and artificial. However, it has that certain toe-tapping rightness that keeps me reaching for it over much pricier “audiophile-tuned” pieces. Did I mention it’s $20?

KBEAR Diamond—you can spend a lot more and get a bigger stage or a richer timbre, but this smooth, highly-resolving single DD is awfully refined for the price, with class-leading coherence and premium aesthetics and build.

Cambridge Melomania TWS—they don’t have ANC, EQ customizability or the bells and whistles of their Apple/Samsung peers, and microphone is sub-standard. However, they sound damn good for wireless buds—and are surprisingly good value at <$99. 9 hour battery life a plus.

Honorable Mentions: Shozy Rouge, Shuoer Tape.

Slater…Cincinnati, USA

Slater is short for “See Ya Later”…and you will see him later…

And This Was The Previous Year:

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