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THE best earbuds? (PK1 first impressions)

post #1 of 34
10/31/06 at 3:24am
Thread Starter 
Well folks, i was hesitant to write this impression because of what the last review was like
I contacted Romanee, who is carrying the PK1 2 and 3 to the Nov 4th meet, searched google and e-mailed the guy (just to confirm that it's not a scam) because i really wanted a great pair of normal earbuds.. We all know how they're needed sometimes, jogging, sharing with a friend, etc

On google and it came up with some chinese reviews that google translated into broken english, people seems to be satisfied despite the steep price. I e-mailed the guy and he said that he'd give a 30 day refund if i'm not happy with it and there's also a $10 head-fi promotion discount..

So after a week and a half of waiting, this was delivered (at 4PM.. strange)


It comes with a little cylinder shaped plastic case and 3-4 pairs of those foam thingies.. The strange things is that 3 pairs has holes on both sides and 1 had hole on one side (the normal kind). I thought the little cube wooden case that came with it was a nice touch

And.. IMO a very strange bonus


A closeup of the buds


Sorry for the crappy pictures, they're taken through my phone

Sound:

When i first put it on, this is exactly what's going on in my head: OH.. NO.. read on

No, not that it sounds crap, it sounds much better than it should.
I listened to various genres, techno, pop, jazz and sat there in awe
Then i switched back to my DT990 (currently unamped, supermini's gain is being adjusted ).
Obviously the DT990 was better at everything, more details, more realistic presentation, bigger soundstage, etc

Then i swiched back to PK1, listened to a couple more songs than switched to UM2.. This is the big uh-oh moment.
As we all know, UM2 is lacking in the treble department and can be muddy at times, for me especially when switching back from DT990s- a known bright headphone
I listened and i thought, wow , if these earbuds had isolation, i might actually prefer them to the UM2.. I'm not sure about this yet, I'll listen a bit more before giving a definite impression
The big uh-oh was caused by the fact that i recently purchased the westone ES2 (waiting for them to get the impressions). Even though i know it'll be quite an improvement from UM2, i'm starting to doubt my decisions

Note that the guy said that it takes a while to burn in and.. what are they going to sound like amped??

Please note that my mind is still in a state of shock and this might not all be accurate, i'll post a full review when they're burnt in, stolen a friend's MX550 and receive my amp back from xin..

Skeptics, please wait for the 4th of November meet where some PK1 will be up for listens, then make up your mind by listening to them or reading other people's reviews

Now, just looping white/pink noise and leaving them to burn in
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post #2 of 34
10/31/06 at 3:40am
Wow... Talk about a confusing first impression

Someone mentioned that many of the head-fi favorites look like cheap "junk" (Grados, KSC75, porta...etc...)... yet manage to excel where it counts. Hoping these follow suit. We dont really have too many good earbuds, hopefully these will change that.

Looking forward to your impressions on the free gift too
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post #3 of 34
10/31/06 at 3:44am
Yeah me to, with a very steep price for a relatively lame named earbud and even dubious looking design, I will put any judgement aside and listen to what the pros have to say. Looks can always deceive.

This could turn out to be the biggest surprise of all
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post #4 of 34
10/31/06 at 3:46am
Thread Starter 
Well, the free gift enhances the sound of the earbuds (duh) because it's a new visual drug.. Like.. those kids that saw pikachu's ray and vomitted (except.. it's not)

On a more serious note, the impression is confusing because.. I'm confused I'm trying hard to tell myself that it can't possibly be better than the UM2

EDIT: Should've seen my dad's face when i put it in his ears.. He's an audiophile that hates all my headphones for various reasons, but when he listened to these, he looked shocked, looked at them and said.. "they're mine"

Lol, try again dad
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post #5 of 34
10/31/06 at 4:48am
I have "possession" of the PK1, PK2 and PK3 that Yuin offered for our Nov. 4 meet. When the offered was announced in the meet thread I agreed to pick them up and carry them to the meet.

Since I've had them at home, it seemed logical to thoroughly burn them in before the meet.

I have small ears and smaller ear canals, and I can't seem to keep earbuds in my ears, so I've never been a good candidate for earbuds. I did manage to hold them in place and achieve a reasonably good seal for a brief audition after burn in.

The PK1 really sounds very good for a pair of earbuds -- better than any earbuds I've heard, though I haven't heard them all. For a while last year, I bought (and returned) a fairly wide variety of earbuds, hoping to find a pair that would sound decent -- and stay in my ears -- neither of which occurred.

As a point of reference, I am thoroughly spoiled by my ES2 IEMs which I love dearly, and I still feel the PK1 is worth hearing, even though it is pricey for a pair of ordinary-looking earbuds. Perhaps Yuin will hear our critiques and improve their finish commensurate with their price.

I'll leave it to the meet attendees to audition and offer opinions about the 3 different (and differently priced) models.

Last week I learned about the "PodFitKit" which is an inexpensive "custom earmold" kit using 2 silicone (?) compounds -- kind of like epoxy mixes.

I received it this past weekend, but I also developed a cold this past weekend so I've forestalled using the kit and auditioning the earbuds, hoping my head will clear soon (before the meet).

If my cold departs quickly I'll try the kit with PK1 (I've been told the "mold" is removable) and report my findings. If not, I'll simply deliver the 3 models to the meet and attendees with normal bud-friendly ears will hear and comment, though that's a rather noisy room we'll be in.

During the brief hand-held audition I had, the PK1 is significantly better than the PK2 (the PK3 is still burning in). The PK1 has very good extension from lows to highs, and a pretty rich sound. I can't comment more until I try my new "custom mold kit" for a better fit.

It's good of jdimitri to be courageous enough to start this thread after the unfortunate (and I believe innocent, due to inexperience) mixup.

We'll certainly get a variety of objective impressions at the Nov. 4 meet.

Cheers!
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post #6 of 34
10/31/06 at 7:27am
Edited
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post #7 of 34
10/31/06 at 8:06am
A comparison to the CM7Ti should tell whether the PK1 are the best or not lol.
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post #8 of 34
10/31/06 at 8:23am
Edited
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post #9 of 34
10/31/06 at 10:06am
I hope the review ,so that i can decide if i can buy one .
thx in advance. beacouse i am chinese.
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post #10 of 34
10/31/06 at 10:14am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Evisu
is CM700ti better than the CM7ti?

i found something interesting about the Yuin earbuds.
http://www.headphonehk.com/other.htm

it states that "PK1,PK2 ,PK3 是國內個體戶的DIY產品,而且未經註冊營業許可證.顧客購買時須了解售後服務存在風險"

"Pk1 Pk2 Pk3 are homemade by an individual in mainland china, products do not have registration certificates, when purchasing these, customers need to realized that there is a risk in after service." (meaning there may be no warranty in them i think)
I can't agree with you .i china the company not a national owner it just a indiviual .you can see ,in mainland words should used simply chinese type not complex chinese type.so It's not come from mainland.
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post #11 of 34
10/31/06 at 4:27pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Evisu
wow are you saying that pk1 is comparable to UM2s?
steep price for pk1 = ??? how much is PK1 in the states?

im looking for best SQ unamped earbuds on the market here

iem/headphone = uncomfortable to wear for long hours
All the info is here: http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?t=203373

Yes, i think it might actually be comparable to UM2 sound-wise, except for the isolation..
... I can't believe i just wrote that o_O

Quote:
Originally Posted by blazer78
A comparison to the CM7Ti should tell whether the PK1 are the best or not lol.
So far IMO the best earbuds i've tried before the PK1 was B&O A8.. and probably the senn MX550
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post #12 of 34
10/31/06 at 6:00pm
Well, thanks for the review jdimitri. Man, you have some gut.
Actually, I am not very impressed by PK1 when I first got it since I compared it with ER4s unamped. However, after I connect it to my MG-Head GT(yeah, I am old), it became a much better earplug, especially the bass extention. Therefore, I will suggest that you use it with a amp, though unamped PK1 is still not bad at all.
The holes in the foamy cover is a cool trick. jdimitri, try use the foamy with holes. You will find the mid to high range will open up and become more smooth.
Anyway, we will see how the PK1 perform after the-so-demanding "100h" burn in. Cheers.
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post #13 of 34
10/31/06 at 8:53pm
Man, he edited the post and raised the price. I am positive it was $99 for the PK1 and $69 for the PK2 with $5 off either for Head-fiers. Not that good a deal now. I was gonna give them a shot. Not at the price now.
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post #14 of 34
10/31/06 at 8:59pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by clifford
Well, thanks for the review jdimitri. Man, you have some gut.
Actually, I am not very impressed by PK1 when I first got it since I compared it with ER4s unamped. However, after I connect it to my MG-Head GT(yeah, I am old), it became a much better earplug, especially the bass extention. Therefore, I will suggest that you use it with a amp, though unamped PK1 is still not bad at all.
The holes in the foamy cover is a cool trick. jdimitri, try use the foamy with holes. You will find the mid to high range will open up and become more smooth.
Anyway, we will see how the PK1 perform after the-so-demanding "100h" burn in. Cheers.
Oh, right! With the (non-perforated) foam covers, I felt the sound was a bit muddied. I was waiting to try the PodFitKit (for my troublesome little ears) to really hear their sound, but your note comfirms my impression that the regular foam covers interfere with the sound.
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post #15 of 34
10/31/06 at 9:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jant71
Man, he edited the post and raised the price. I am positive it was $99 for the PK1 and $69 for the PK2 with $5 off either for Head-fiers. Not that good a deal now. I was gonna give them a shot. Not at the price now.

As far as I know, it has been $139+. Perhaps you're thinking of the unfortunate (though probably innocent due to inexperience) offer of a $40 discount, etc., which I won't elaborate -- which was withhdrawn and (I think) apologized for.
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