Review: Fischer Audio's DBA-02 - Page 145

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zoide 

Which one do you like most so far?

rudistor imd-3

Anyone w/ sibilance or treble harshness issues should try some Klipsch Gel Tips.  Not onl do they have smaller apertures but they turn the DBA into a deeper insertion headphone, its pretty funny.  The housings are sticking out of my ears.

I did that with the Monster triple. Compared to regular tips they went in pretty deep and similar to Etymotic deep. I really do hope all of you get that are getting them in the mail end up liking them. They really are something at their price level.

Mind sharing your review on them?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bass-Society 

rudistor imd-3

Sorry, are you referring to my snaps? If yes, they are the free Comply T100s from Treoo as part of their pre-order promo.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anaxilus 

I'm confused, whats the story w/ the pics that have jars w/ foam tips in them?  I'm not missing anything am I?

Mine arrived today also.  Just to state my tastes, I use the CK10 and Ortofon eQ7 and like both very much.  I also have an SM 3 and still sometimes like to listen to my Shure E 500.  I still have my ETY 4 P's and occasionally use them.  With all the discussion of sibilance and other problems people have been talking about, I was getting very curious about what these would do.  Right out of the box with the stock tips they were packed with, they sounded excellent.  My very first impression was, "these sound like my CK 10s but with a much larger sound stage."  I was listening to them out of an Ipod 7th gen played through a Mini Box E + portable amp. I thought the width of the soundstage really quite good.  The detail, was on par with the CK 10s, but I thought both the male and female vocals were better.  The vocals sounded very natural to me, no artificial huskiness to the male vocals, nor did I hear any exaggerated aspects to the female vocals. I thought the instrument placement very good, the highs were very clear without sounding exaggerated, and I also thought there was decent depth to the presentation.  I did not hear any sibilance or grain to the sound.  The bass sounded a lot like the CK 10 and the Ortofon eQ7 and I didn't find it lacking.  With my setup, there was also adequate warmth to the sound, so I didn't find them clinical or cold or aggressive.  Now, my ETY 4s I find all of those things, they are much colder  and harder sounding than the DBA's and much more aggressive in the highs and not as smooth.  The DBAs sound very natural to me, but at the same time very clear and "present."  Another impression I had right away was that they sounded a lot like I expected the SM 3's to sound from reading other people's descriptions of them (with the exception of the bass), but I could never get the SM 3s to sound that good. I had the same impressions of the sound after burning them in all day.

From all the variance in impressions, I think it, among other things, represents the variances we all have in ear structure, and how various tips seal for us.  I get a good seal with the with various DBA  tips, but getting the SM 3s to get a good seal for me is very difficult, and the sound of those varies greatly for me with various tips, so I wouldn't be surprised if some folks have the same kind of issues with the DBAs.  Fortunately, I don't, and I am getting an excellent, large, clear, slightly warm, highly detailed, and very engaging sound from these IEMs.  Good luck to everyone with theirs.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dogears 

Mind sharing your review on them?

 

give me a few weeks to compare with the others like ddm md etc
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by vorlon1 

Mine arrived today also.  Just to state my tastes, I use the CK10 and Ortofon eQ7 and like both very much.  I also have an SM 3 and still sometimes like to listen to my Shure E 500.  I still have my ETY 4 P's and occasionally use them.  With all the discussion of sibilance and other problems people have been talking about, I was getting very curious about what these would do.  Right out of the box with the stock tips they were packed with, they sounded excellent.  My very first impression was, "these sound like my CK 10s but with a much larger sound stage."  I was listening to them out of an Ipod 7th gen played through a Mini Box E + portable amp. I thought the width of the soundstage really quite good.  The detail, was on par with the CK 10s, but I thought both the male and female vocals were better.  The vocals sounded very natural to me, no artificial huskiness to the male vocals, nor did I hear any exaggerated aspects to the female vocals. I thought the instrument placement very good, the highs were very clear without sounding exaggerated, and I also thought there was decent depth to the presentation.  I did not hear any sibilance or grain to the sound.  The bass sounded a lot like the CK 10 and the Ortofon eQ7 and I didn't find it lacking.  With my setup, there was also adequate warmth to the sound, so I didn't find them clinical or cold or aggressive.  Now, my ETY 4s I find all of those things, they are much colder  and harder sounding than the DBA's and much more aggressive in the highs and not as smooth.  The DBAs sound very natural to me, but at the same time very clear and "present."  Another impression I had right away was that they sounded a lot like I expected the SM 3's to sound from reading other people's descriptions of them (with the exception of the bass), but I could never get the SM 3s to sound that good. I had the same impressions of the sound after burning them in all day.

 

From all the variance in impressions, I think it, among other things, represents the variances we all have in ear structure, and how various tips seal for us.  I get a good seal with the with various DBA  tips, but getting the SM 3s to get a good seal for me is very difficult, and the sound of those varies greatly for me with various tips, so I wouldn't be surprised if some folks have the same kind of issues with the DBAs.  Fortunately, I don't, and I am getting an excellent, large, clear, slightly warm, highly detailed, and very engaging sound from these IEMs.  Good luck to everyone with theirs.

x2  The ER4P was nasty w/ sibilance and harshness for me.  ER4S fantastic for me.  I have no issues w/ the DBA so far and the mids are not grainy, jury is still out on the bass though.  Listening at my Gumsticks lowest volume setting atm so YMMV.  The DBA might be the perfect candidate for Monster Hybrid experimentation.

Quote:

Originally Posted by guliver 

I just got them 2 hours ago  got lucky I ordered  them 2 weeks ago from Ethan and they are perfect Close to the panasonic HJE 900 but better bass more detailed less bassy I'm listening I musici 4 seasons from Vivaldi (flac) and they sound very good even with no burn in, so far I am very happy with the SQ

Really... I placed my order in JULY and I don't have them yet. What the...?  

Others on the west & east coast got theirs as well. Hmm.... 

On Aug. 30 I got an email stating "Your order has been completed successfully." Then nada.

Maybe tomorrow...?

Quote:

Originally Posted by shane55 

Really... I placed my order in JULY and I don't have them yet. What the...?  

Others on the west & east coast got theirs as well. Hmm.... 

 

On Aug. 30 I got an email stating "Your order has been completed successfully." Then nada.

 

Maybe tomorrow...?

Most likely tomorrow. I got the same email on the 30th and I got mine yesterday - Sept. 7th (2nd shipping option - air mail). I placed my order on July 21st.

I haven't spent a lot of time with them yet (about 3 hours), but they are very clear with good tracks. I think these will satisfy my my want of more clarity. I don't really get any sibilance with these either - with the exception of 2 tracks so far (don't remember what ones). It wasn't bad, though. With all of the reports of sibilance, I was beginning to worry. But, it seems that I'm not really sensitive to sibilance. Maybe I can thank my minor hearing loss for that (or my ear canal anatomy...)

It's quite a change going from the Custom 3's to these. The C3's are more low end oriented. So, naturally, the highs are rolled off a bit and they lack some clarity IMO.

@tacomn: Quite a bit earlier you had asked about the PA2V2. I listened to the DBA-02's for a brief while (about 15 minutes) with the PA2V2. My opinion: If you're going to want more low end out of the DBAs then you'll probably want to go with something else. They add a tiny bit to the low end, but it's a very small amount.

I also tried them with my iBasso P2 and it gave them a really nice bump to the low end. They sounded a lot more full using the P2 with it's bass boost on. The DBAs can really put out a good amount of bass with it. The P2 is discontinued, and kind of bulky. A T3 might be a good choice with the DBAs - though I've never heard one. If someone else has the T3 and the DBAs then maybe they can chime in about the combo.

EDIT: I forgot to add - I didn't get any hissing with the PA2V2, but I did with the P2. It makes me wonder if the T3 hisses with the DBAs too... /EDIT

I know that there's probably a ton of unboxing pics around now (there are some a few pages back if I remember correctly), but here's some more to throw in the mix if anyone wants to see them:

Fischer Audio DBA-02 Unboxing Gallery

Quote:

Originally Posted by shane55 

Really... I placed my order in JULY and I don't have them yet. What the...?  

Others on the west & east coast got theirs as well. Hmm.... 

 

On Aug. 30 I got an email stating "Your order has been completed successfully." Then nada.

 

Maybe tomorrow...?

Maybe or another day.  I'm in Minnesota, so I'm pretty close to where they left.  It might be another day or two to traverse the rest of the US to farther away locations.

Small note on the DBA-02.  They do favor a solid fit tip and deeper insertion.  A loose fit tends to degrade the bass and sound stage some.  Deep insertion helps warm up the sound.  It's an effect important with the SA6 earphone.  They aren't good about shallow insertion as well, but deep, they totally change.  I suspect these fair a little better the deeper you're willing to fit them.  The bass will come out, and the sound will warm some.  I don't have a tip I like for deep use.  Most ear tips bug me unless they're purposely trimmed or were initially geared correctly for deep insertion use.  I typically find the Comply T-100 tip most comfortable because it's sufficiently soft.  I also trim off the end up to the hard core so I can't pinch off the opening.  So basically if you find it too bright, make sure the seal is solid and go deeper (using a tip choice that will let you).

Got my DBA-02 today.  Tried all the tips and they sounded harsh in the highs, due to I couldn't get a good seal. Tried the Klipsch tips (from my X10), not any better. Tried Comply T100 tips and I get a good seal and now the DBA-02 sound sweet out of the box.  

I understand now why these are getting rave reviews.  I first got the Silver Bullets and liked the warmth (but lacked some clarity). I've been looking for both warmth and clarity in the same IEM. DBA is a different animal than the Bullets.  I need some burn in on the DBAs but I do like them a lot already.  Very subtle, natural and musical at the same time.  Not too crazy about the cable but I'll give it while (maybe it will grow on me). So far it tends to get tangled up.

I hope my pair comes soon, i feel lonely :(

@4sound, you made me try the T100 and I am amazed. The sibilance has gone down to a very acceptable level. All those extra tips for nothing? :D

@Fantoon, it will come soon :)

dba-02 is not able to give me low volume listening satisfaction.. since i lost a lot the low end, im always at vol 12+ with the gumstick with dba-02.

now im normally on volume 04, or volume 08 outdoor with ck10.. if quiet place can go down to 00 (there is a 00 volume and a mute, also shown as 00 on gumstick).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anaxilus 

x2  The ER4P was nasty w/ sibilance and harshness for me.  ER4S fantastic for me.  I have no issues w/ the DBA so far and the mids are not grainy, jury is still out on the bass though.  Listening at my Gumsticks lowest volume setting atm so YMMV.  The DBA might be the perfect candidate for Monster Hybrid experimentation.

ya for some reason I really have to turn up the volume for these things