Got my phones.
Straight out of my 5th Generation Ipod headphone jack, here are my first impressions. Most are while listening to Duke Ellington and Ray Brown’s “
This One’s For Blanton”. Technically I plugged the headphones in while the ipod was playing some Steely Dan.
Sign in Stranger (quick 30 second Steely Dan audition): This is the first closed phone I’ve put on my head in some months, having sold my seldom-used D2000 a while back. I do notice a slight hint of boxiness, all else ok. There is some very deep bass response going on, yet not boomy, muddy, slow or out of balance. OK, off I go to Duke. I’ll start at the second song, to avoid the slow interlude of the first track.
Pitter Panther Patter: upper register piano is clear as a bell. The phone seems to retain dimensionality and complexity. The bass is very controlled. The best I’ve ever heard in a small headphone. Ray Brown always goes all over the neck on his bass, and the upper register bass notes retain all the detail and warmth. This is where I’ve heard other phones get a little washed-out. The hint of boxiness from Steely Dan is all but gone now.
Things Aint What They Used To Be:
Same results. Some of the slaps of the bass that are focused on the center of the stereo image, it becomes apparent I’m wearing headphones; it hints at the “sound is inside your head” sensation. Not necessarily a bad thing, and easy enough to get re-acquainted with.
Sophisticated Lady:
One thing these phones seem to do is be very revealing of instrument location. I can tell very easily when an instrument is panned to a new area, such as from left to right. Its rendered in a different way than my open HD650s. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but its almost as if Ray Browns’ bass hits have a slight crackle quality here and there. I guess the tone of the bass is less about euphonics and more about detail. But its not a cold sound at all, so its difficult to explain. I’m hesitant to say it has more detail than the HD650, but perhaps that is the case here. Remember, this is straight out of a 60GB 5G ipod; no amp whatsoever.
See See Rider/Fragmented Suite for Piano and Bass:
This headphone just nails piano tone. Perhaps just a little less of the fundamental tone than the HD650, and a speed increase. I think adding an amp may get back that slight thickness or heft of the initial piano notes. It’s a subtle difference. All the sound is closed in the headphones, and that can give an impression of a bigger difference in tone from time to time. The fact that the headphone is closed is definitely the only obvious difference. I suppose that’s also why I can pickup Duke’s voice better out of the background. This phone seems to reach further back in a way.
Second Movement:
OK, now one thing I can notice is a slight loss of dynamics compared to the HD650s. There is a set of chords that Duke really pounds into the keyboard, which get quite loud on the Sennheisers. The volume doesn’t exhibit quite the same increase on the ESW10s. Its still dynamic enough, just not quite the same way as my senns. I’m probably not being quite fair to these, as they aren’t benefiting from the same tube amp. Still, to get this close without an amp is pretty awesome, and far more practical for use at the office, which is where I plan on keeping these.
I think that should give a good brief first impression. I can definitely see why these were recommended for jazz. They really nail piano, and manage to get the tone of the upright bass correct without getting unbalanced or boomy. Not even a remote hint of sloppiness in the bass.
Here are some quick snapshots. Excuse the lack of focus, and the mess.
With PX100s
With HD650s
View another angle here
