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[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]It’s not often I have the absolute pleasure of listening to headphones such as the MA750i. It’s been more than a year since I’ve gotten my Macaw GT100s, and several months since I’ve lost them. I’ve yearned for a sound similar to them, and the MA750i delivers in a spectacular way. Not only are the MA750i more comfortable and lighter than the GT100s, they also sound
much, much better, while retaining a similar overall sound signature.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]I have a thing for British headphone makers, as the Brits have something special in store for me every time I check back with them. RHA is no exception. However, unlike the rest of the crowd, RHA puts a tremendous focus on the engineering aspect of building headphones — and it shows.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]You can buy the MA750i for $130 from the official US RHA store page
here.[/color]
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Disclaimer: This review is based upon a sample unit provided to me by a manufacturer in exchange for my
honest opinion and un-edited words. I do not profit
in any way from the writing of the review. I would like to thank Marina at RHA for providing me with a review unit of the MA750i.[/color]
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Preference and Bias: Before reading a review, it is worth mentioning that there is no way for a reviewer to objectively pass judgment on the enjoy-ability of a product: such a thing is inherently subjective. Therefore, I find it necessary for you to read and understand what I take a natural liking to and how that might affect my rating of a product.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]My ideal sound signature would be an extended sub-bass with a leveled, but textured, bass. The mids should be slightly less pronounced than the treble, but still ahead of the bass. I prefer a more bright upper range.[/color]
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Source: The MA750i was powered off of a Nexus 6P -> Creative Sound Blaster E3. All music was served as FLAC, ALAC, or as 320Kbps Mp3. I found the standard DAC/Amp inside my phone and PC to be inadequate to drive the MA750i at its peak levels of performance.
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[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.439216)]Sound Signature[/color]
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Treble: Songs used:
Supermassive Black Hole, Arise, Fade Into Darkness[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]When listening to the MA750i, the first thing I noticed was the energetic treble. It’s unlike anything I’ve tested so far, and is better than the titanium driver-clad GT100s. Furthermore, both treble response and detail is better in the MA750i than the blue-filter Gemini HD.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Supermassive Black Hole felt incredibly complete and coherent, as much of the instrumentation Muse uses regularly crosses from the mids to the treble — something that causes detail to be lost in less capable IEMs.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The high-hats of Arise remained clear throughout the entire song, and were spaced well. Each one had a clear beginning and end, and had excellent transient response. The timbre of the instruments represented in the treble is overall very good.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]While not a song I listed as “using” for treble, I find it worth mentioning how sweet the treble of The Drift was. It’s tonal qualities are represented drastically different way from my other headphones, which have usually lent a softer, and sometimes harsher, sound.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Treble is generally tied with the upper mids for the most “forward” frequency range.[/color]
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Mids: Songs used:
The Drift, Jars, In Bloom[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The mids in The Drift were phenomenal. This is owed to the MA750i’s relatively flat frequency response. The piano sounds
natural. Far more so than with other IEMs I’ve tested, barring the M50x which performs about the same on this song.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The guitars of Jars became alive, and were raw in their deliverance. There is so much precision, you can hear the picking of the strings clearly through the upper-left channel. Vocals were fantastic. You can hear the strain of Pete Loeffler’s voice, and even detect a slight slur in his pronunciation. The clear mids really help provide a good amount of transparency to the overall sound signature.[/color]
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Bass: Songs used:
Lights, Bangarang, 99 Problems (Hugo Cover)[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]I find bass to be a tad too dry. Lights has the potential for some really nice bass accentuation, but remained rather surfacey.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Bangarang is much more tight than I’ve heard it before, which is not necessarily a bad thing. It opens up the song to become more than just its bass response, making it much more enjoyable overall.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]99 Problems had an impact (or the lack thereof) issue. While the detail was there, it didn’t reach far down enough into the bass for me. Some light EQing was able to handily fix that.[/color]
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Male Vocals: Song used:
Hotel California, Ashes of Eden, Sunday Bloody Sunday[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Male voices resolve pretty well over the MA750i. I found Hotel California to perform well, with Glen Frey’s voice sounding fuller than usual. Ashes of Eden’s vocals were a tad too dark, but otherwise detailed and clear. Sunday Bloody Sunday’s lyrics were airy and light, and meshed well with the song.[/color]
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Female Vocals: Songs used:
Stupid Girl, Sweet Escape, Need Your Heart[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Female vocals can come off too softly. Stupid Girl was particularly subject to the softening, while Need Your Heart was virtually unaffected. Sweet Escape was in the middle, but still noticeably softer than I remember it being on the GT100s and M50x. However, for every song I tested that sounded too soft, I found two more that sounded just right. Therefore, I can conclude that the fault lies not with the drivers themselves, but the various compression formats and mixing styles of different producers.[/color]
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Sound Stage[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Sound staging is among the best I’ve every heard from an IEM. There is an airy width to the stage, along with a large amount of height, and a moderate amount of depth. It’s the first true “3D space” I’ve heard through headphones. As such, I’m not sure how it compares to other IEM giants, but can assure the layman that it is beyond anything you can casually pick up at Best Buy or Target.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.439216)]Packaging and Unboxing[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.439216)]Build[/color]
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Construction Quality[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Construction quality is top notch. Much of the build is machined from stainless steel. The driver housings are light, smooth, and cool to the touch. I find them to also be very, very hard, and not prone to scratching.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The cable is solid feeling and textured well. However, in my brief period with the MA750i, I’ve noticed the cable tends to hold its shape too well, leading it to become unruly. Relatedly, bending the cable at anything further than a shallow angle can cause some distortion in the plastic’s color, creating some white spots.[/color]
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[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Engineering quality is RHA’s specialty, and they really leave it all on the table when designing the stress relief systems of their cables. The 3.5mm jack’s connection housing is stainless steel, and has a rubber-sheath that extends onto the cable and is covered by a strong and appropriately taught spring. The spring helps negate a lot of the arbitrary bending force applied to the cable throughout the day, while not getting in the way. I like the implementation.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The inline controls are also built well. Made from a single unit of machined stainless steel and a soft-touch plastic covering, the MA750i’s Apple inline controls feel and look great. The buttons are sturdy, and have the right amount of give. The cable is reinforced at the points where the it meets the controls’ housing, something many IEMs oddly omit. Microphonics ,while not completely eliminated, are so faint that they are easily ignored when listening on the go.[/color]
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Comfort[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Comfort is always a tricky subject, but is more so on over-ear IEMs. Since everyone’s ears are shaped differently, I cannot guarantee that my words here will apply when you try on the MA750i.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]I am using the MA750i with the included Comply tips. This means that in addition to fitting the ear hooks, I also have to compress the foam and press it into my ear, making for a rather tedious 3-step process. However, the reward is well worth the effort. The ear hooks completely disperse any pull gravity has on the headphones, letting the Comply ear tips make the MA750i “disappear” into my ear. So while the MA750i has the potential to be
verycomfortable, there is a learning curve to getting them to sit correctly in, and on, your ear.[/color]
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Sound Isolation[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Sound isolation is okay. I generally expect more from IEMs that share the MA750i’s form factor, and am slightly disappointed. I could still (barely) hear a snap through my music at moderate levels. However, the MA750i brilliantly blocks out the sound of my mechanical keyboard, and the sound of those around me.[/color]
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Inline Controls / Mic[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]I’ll never approve of anything less than the inclusion of universal controls on IEMs of this price range. Unfortunately, RHA decided to go the Apple only route, leaving the majority of people who own a smartphone without any volume or rich control functionality. But yes, play/pause and fast-forward functions do indeed work with Android and Windows Phone devices.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The mic sounds pretty good, and is the best among those I’ve tested so far. I sound clear on the other line when making a phone call, and playing back voice recordings taken over the mic results in a rather clear playback.[/color]
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Accessories[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The MA750i comes well stocked with extra earbuds, all of which I found to be high-quality. I especially appreciate the inclusion of two sets of Comply ear tips. The leatherette carrying case is very premium-feeling, and is sturdy enough to give me the confidence to throw this case into my backpack without the headphones suffering any complications.[/color]
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[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.439216)]Summary[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The MA750i provides a premium feel, a premium look, and a premium sound. The flat sound signature is not for those seeking jaw-breaking bass, and will be much more satisfying for treble heads and audio purists. If you don’t want to deal with the learning curve of getting the right fit for the MA750i, then you may want to look elsewhere. For everyone else, I
highly recommend these IEMs.[/color]
Head-Fi readers deserve to be aware about ****ty products too. And there is nothing more to say that this is the worse product I have heard in the whole of my life Baby.. I feel offended by all the reviewers that did not mention this. However some did say it was **** I should have read their review before.