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[/size]I would like to thank Spider Cable for choosing me and generously sending out a review sample of their premiere product .
Specification:
driver size: 12.5 mm diameter driver
nozzle size: 5.5 mm
impedance: 18 ohm (not listed so I pulled out my multimeter) weird impedance number might be in house produce driver(sorry typo on 48 ohm corrected)
the housing seem to be made of aluminium coated with plastic(best guess due to weight and feel but might be pure plastic)
ipod volume controls and mic
there is a rear bass vent (potential for modder, perhaps to tune the bass)
Packaging:
The packaging it came in was very nice.
Everything was easy to remove (unlike Sennheiser which takes several minutes to remove varies cardboard inserts; almost felt like I was assembling IKEA funiture)
Was well package in a beautiful box with a magnetic flap.
Accessories:
Included in the box is:
1x hard case
1x carabiner (this was a surprise)
1x shirt clip
1x set of tips(s/m/l) medium install and one set of bi-flange
1x CD with reference music by Nik and Sam(A lovely country album)
Fit and Comfort:
These are not deep insert in ear like the etymotics which some people find very uncomfortable until they adjust
Even after adjusting I do notice that whenever I move my mouth (your ear canal contracts when your mouth is open) they cause slight discomfort. Like the re0 they are shallow fit (although I insert them really deep).
The tips included with the realvoice are very comfortable and very soft.
The body is very light weight despite their size.
I had no problems jogging with these.
In terms of comfort these are light years ahead of either the re0 or etytmotics.
Sound:
Initial impression: very nice but I'll need some more burn in and use time is needed before any conclusions can be made
definitely not as treble focus as the re0 and hf5, fuller lower bass
update after 1/2 day burn in and use:
These are a completely different beast than either than the etymotic or the re0, but they roar just as ferociously.
The bass was slightly bloated during first use, but settled down during the burn in process which led to the soundstage expanding quite a bit.The etymotic hf2 and re0 are still ahead in decay, positioning and treble detail, but the realvoice has a much larger soundstage and is way ahead in bass amount and bass texture. The realvoice does improve slightly with amping.
The nature of these are warm and slightly laid back with a large soundstage when compared to the re0. They still have good clarity but just not as clean as the re0. Both the hf2 and the re0 are similar in nature up highly detailed and cold quite different from the real voice. The realvoice presented a more natural reproduction. I found myself enjoying these a lot!
When I heard the name of these were the "real voice" I had to try some Norah Jones:
Norah Jones: Feels like Home:
This album quickly became additive. The warm smooth nature of the real voice compliments the smooth vocals so well. When compared to the Re0 or the Etymotics hf2, the realvoice conveyed a more realistic reproduction. For Norah Jones fans this is heaven. The experience can be compared to eating velvety smooth chocolate cake. The re0 and hf2 just seem dead cold and a bit grainy next to the realvoice. I found myself listening to this album over and over.
Vocals are absolutely beautiful with the realvoice.
The realvoice is just miles ahead in this aspect compared to the re0. The re0's vocal performance was slightly better than the hf2.
Quick change of pace as I struggled to put myself away from a vocalist listening marathon.
A State of Trance(511):
The soundstage is wonderful.The re0 and hf2 are both killer iem in this genres, but I was hearing thing with more depth with the real voice. Voices layered on top one another creating a illusion that was...... just fantastic. It create a much better picture, but failed to dominate over the re0 and hf2 as the speed and details output.
I would say the hf2 wins in this genre, but the realvoice does create an different experience especially with trance vocals.
Herreweghe Kopatchinskaja Beethoven- Concertos pour violons Romances:
Once again, a battle of wide image vs accurate image. The position with the re0 and hf2 yet again is more accurate and the realvoice much wider.But in this case I would prefer the neutral sound of the re0 and hf2. The realvoice added some slight coloration to the sound when compared to the re0 The realvoice does well in this category especially with a treble boost, but the re0 and hf2 are just better as image positioning, and neutrality is important in this genre.
Katy Perry Teenage Dream Album:
Another album where the realvoice shines. The extra bass of the realvoice gives the song so much more texture compared to the re0 or hf2. The song was just much more fun with the realvoice. I found myself tapping my toes to catchy notes with the realvoice.
the clear winner for this album is the realvoice.. Pop music is always better with good bass. The re0 just wasn't as fun with this alum as the spider realvoice.
Nirvana Nevermind Album:
The re0 and hf2 extended treble really shines here.This album is about speed and treble and bothe the hf2 and re0 have that in excess. The realvoice just seems slow with this album even with a boost to the treble via equalizer the realvoice weakness is obvious.
HF2 would be on top here. As grado lover known a good amount of treble is essential to rock music and the realvoice's treble is weak when put next to either the etymotic or re0
Conclusion:
Quick conclusion(not final I want to spend at least a week with these before a final conclusion)Clearly the sound signatures are different. The Spider Realvoice is a more natural warmer iem while the re0 is a neutral flat iem. Most newcomers equate neutral, but no it isn't. While both are very enjoyable iem, the Realvoice would be a much better recommendation for your average consumer who would like to just sit back and relax to vocals or some pop music. Especially when you consider the number of complaints of people adjusting to thinner sound of re0. The details of the re0 are really impress, but you must also take into account of the bass texture that are lost without heavily amping re0. There are some trade off like wider soundstage vs better positioning of the re0, but overall I believe the real voice would be a nice companion to the re0 and a better suited iem for mainstream music.
Realvoice vs Re0
Pro:
Warm
Natural
Wide Soundstage
Bass(huge plus)
Excellent for Vocals
Con:
Details(good but not as good as the re0)
Image positioning(mose fuzzy than the re0)
slightly dark treble(Most iem are dark compared to high treble iem)
I also want to add that the comfort of the tips with the laid back natural of these creates a very relaxing pair of earphone for just laying back and enjoying music.I would highly recommend for vocal lovers.
Also way better for movie viewing than the re0.
Will update with more use(please pardon the grammatical errors this is a work in progress and I do rush through this with my sparetime)!
[/size]Specification:
driver size: 12.5 mm diameter driver
nozzle size: 5.5 mm
impedance: 18 ohm (not listed so I pulled out my multimeter) weird impedance number might be in house produce driver(sorry typo on 48 ohm corrected)
the housing seem to be made of aluminium coated with plastic(best guess due to weight and feel but might be pure plastic)
ipod volume controls and mic
there is a rear bass vent (potential for modder, perhaps to tune the bass)
Packaging:
The packaging it came in was very nice.
Everything was easy to remove (unlike Sennheiser which takes several minutes to remove varies cardboard inserts; almost felt like I was assembling IKEA funiture)
Was well package in a beautiful box with a magnetic flap.
Accessories:
Included in the box is:
1x hard case
1x carabiner (this was a surprise)
1x shirt clip
1x set of tips(s/m/l) medium install and one set of bi-flange
1x CD with reference music by Nik and Sam(A lovely country album)
Fit and Comfort:
These are not deep insert in ear like the etymotics which some people find very uncomfortable until they adjust
Even after adjusting I do notice that whenever I move my mouth (your ear canal contracts when your mouth is open) they cause slight discomfort. Like the re0 they are shallow fit (although I insert them really deep).
The tips included with the realvoice are very comfortable and very soft.
The body is very light weight despite their size.
I had no problems jogging with these.
In terms of comfort these are light years ahead of either the re0 or etytmotics.
Sound:
Initial impression: very nice but I'll need some more burn in and use time is needed before any conclusions can be made
definitely not as treble focus as the re0 and hf5, fuller lower bass
update after 1/2 day burn in and use:
These are a completely different beast than either than the etymotic or the re0, but they roar just as ferociously.
The bass was slightly bloated during first use, but settled down during the burn in process which led to the soundstage expanding quite a bit.The etymotic hf2 and re0 are still ahead in decay, positioning and treble detail, but the realvoice has a much larger soundstage and is way ahead in bass amount and bass texture. The realvoice does improve slightly with amping.
The nature of these are warm and slightly laid back with a large soundstage when compared to the re0. They still have good clarity but just not as clean as the re0. Both the hf2 and the re0 are similar in nature up highly detailed and cold quite different from the real voice. The realvoice presented a more natural reproduction. I found myself enjoying these a lot!
When I heard the name of these were the "real voice" I had to try some Norah Jones:
Norah Jones: Feels like Home:
This album quickly became additive. The warm smooth nature of the real voice compliments the smooth vocals so well. When compared to the Re0 or the Etymotics hf2, the realvoice conveyed a more realistic reproduction. For Norah Jones fans this is heaven. The experience can be compared to eating velvety smooth chocolate cake. The re0 and hf2 just seem dead cold and a bit grainy next to the realvoice. I found myself listening to this album over and over.
Vocals are absolutely beautiful with the realvoice.
The realvoice is just miles ahead in this aspect compared to the re0. The re0's vocal performance was slightly better than the hf2.
Quick change of pace as I struggled to put myself away from a vocalist listening marathon.
A State of Trance(511):
The soundstage is wonderful.The re0 and hf2 are both killer iem in this genres, but I was hearing thing with more depth with the real voice. Voices layered on top one another creating a illusion that was...... just fantastic. It create a much better picture, but failed to dominate over the re0 and hf2 as the speed and details output.
I would say the hf2 wins in this genre, but the realvoice does create an different experience especially with trance vocals.
Herreweghe Kopatchinskaja Beethoven- Concertos pour violons Romances:
Once again, a battle of wide image vs accurate image. The position with the re0 and hf2 yet again is more accurate and the realvoice much wider.But in this case I would prefer the neutral sound of the re0 and hf2. The realvoice added some slight coloration to the sound when compared to the re0 The realvoice does well in this category especially with a treble boost, but the re0 and hf2 are just better as image positioning, and neutrality is important in this genre.
Katy Perry Teenage Dream Album:
Another album where the realvoice shines. The extra bass of the realvoice gives the song so much more texture compared to the re0 or hf2. The song was just much more fun with the realvoice. I found myself tapping my toes to catchy notes with the realvoice.
the clear winner for this album is the realvoice.. Pop music is always better with good bass. The re0 just wasn't as fun with this alum as the spider realvoice.
Nirvana Nevermind Album:
The re0 and hf2 extended treble really shines here.This album is about speed and treble and bothe the hf2 and re0 have that in excess. The realvoice just seems slow with this album even with a boost to the treble via equalizer the realvoice weakness is obvious.
HF2 would be on top here. As grado lover known a good amount of treble is essential to rock music and the realvoice's treble is weak when put next to either the etymotic or re0
Conclusion:
Quick conclusion(not final I want to spend at least a week with these before a final conclusion)Clearly the sound signatures are different. The Spider Realvoice is a more natural warmer iem while the re0 is a neutral flat iem. Most newcomers equate neutral, but no it isn't. While both are very enjoyable iem, the Realvoice would be a much better recommendation for your average consumer who would like to just sit back and relax to vocals or some pop music. Especially when you consider the number of complaints of people adjusting to thinner sound of re0. The details of the re0 are really impress, but you must also take into account of the bass texture that are lost without heavily amping re0. There are some trade off like wider soundstage vs better positioning of the re0, but overall I believe the real voice would be a nice companion to the re0 and a better suited iem for mainstream music.
Realvoice vs Re0
Pro:
Warm
Natural
Wide Soundstage
Bass(huge plus)
Excellent for Vocals
Con:
Details(good but not as good as the re0)
Image positioning(mose fuzzy than the re0)
slightly dark treble(Most iem are dark compared to high treble iem)
I also want to add that the comfort of the tips with the laid back natural of these creates a very relaxing pair of earphone for just laying back and enjoying music.I would highly recommend for vocal lovers.
Also way better for movie viewing than the re0.
Will update with more use(please pardon the grammatical errors this is a work in progress and I do rush through this with my sparetime)!
