Haha, it was an odd mix of descriptors. Basically he liked the Blox TM5 for bass, the MX980 for mids, and the PK1 for balance. He picked the MX980 ultimately but did so because of the vocals which was his preference. He was amazed that the TM5 could produce the bass it had in such a small package. He liked the air of the MX980. He also really liked the separation in the MX980 and found the overall presentation enjoyable, "tasty." He seemed to want a little more solid of a presence from the MX980, maybe a little too airy, aloof? I don't know. The PK1 had a big headphone sound (often described by head-fiers too), and it was less dark than the MX980. From the funnily worded description, it seems like he's saying the PK1 has a heartier note, perhaps more solid and defined. The Blox was a list of good, good, good, amazing bass. The blue wording is a lot easier to follow, lol. The gist from it seems to be:
MX980: wonderful vocals, air, separation
PK1: balanced, well defined sound
TM5: good all around performer with little fault, incredible amount of bass for a tiny device
That seems to be roughly what I'm reading from that thread. The MX980 seemed more liked and enjoyable. The PK1 seemed to be described as the most appropriate. The TM5 was excellent all around with great bass. The fit and finish of the MX980 also vastly outpaced the Yuin and Blox products, but that's to be expected from Sennheiser. Both Sennheiser and Shure tend to go out of their way creating visually refined products. The thread starter seemed to favor the MX980 in the end. His buddy that I guess helped him during his review seemed to favor the PK1. His buddy also said the OK1 was more detailed but less balanced which is on par with what fellow head-fiers have described.
I'm not quite sure if the guy in the review had an amp for them or not. He mentioned uDAC, but I'm not sure what he's specifically referring to with that. I Google it, and I get Nuforce Icon as the main links, but I don't know if he's actually using a Nuforce Icon or something different. The Icon is not a very powerfull amp, albeit decently featured and nicely designed. I know it's not enough to push an OK1 effortlessly. I also know the Icon is also decently outpaced by better options. I'm really just guessing that uDAC is referring to the Icon. It may not be. I've gotten to the point where I pretty much see the need for a high quality player plus amp or a good amp/DAC combo as a requirement by the time you step to any high end earphones. These products get so good and reproducing sound that any flaws or limitations with lesser hardware simply limits the product. The iTouch seems to output a good quality sound according to testing I've found online, good frequency response, low distortion, decently low noise. Now there's a few generations, so there might be some variance.
Yes as to the OK1, it's not really a product I would recommend to someone without buying a robust amp (no cheap FiiO E5 or similar here), and you really have to be fine with a bright earphone or have EQing power on tap. With none of that, I would certainly point you in another direction because the OK1 wouldn't be as good as it could be.
The Custom 3 is just a nice product that does a lot of things right. In terms of sound, there is not a whole lot to complain about. Is there better? Sure.
It would be interesting how long you might wait for the DBA-02. I ordered mine at the beginning of the month. I'm still waiting for ethan at Bugden to get his shipment in and things sent out. It might still be another week or so just for me, and even then his stock will be out again. Anyone ordering now may see their own month's wait too. I'm hoping it's a good product. Joker liked it a lot. LFE liked it a lot and he does audio for a living. I'm expecting good things, but in the end it's always personal preference and if the product fits my preference. I've listened to a lot of really good hardware, but good sounding and good fit are two different things. I've sold a lot of great products simply because they were not the presentation of sound I was shooting for.
Also with my time with head-fi, I come to the conclusion that personal preference in king. What I mean by this is there are a lot of good hardware out there at a wide range of prices that all perform at a similar level overall. The big difference comes from how they sound different and present music in different ways. Better isn't so much a factor of SQ but more a factor of fitting to your own preferences. You can even step down a half notch or notch in sound quality and end up better off if the product fits you better. You don't want to drop too far or you'll miss out on a lot of other aspects (trade off too much for personal preferences), but there is wiggle room for fitment to your taste in music. Something like the Custom 3 is one of those half step down products, but for the few things falls short on, it makes up with everything else. I suggest it because it is a well balanced product that will fit well with a lot of people and it does enough things right to be worth purchase, especially at it's current pricing. Is there better? Yes, you can find something better. Is there something more fitting for you personally? Probably, but without you going into great detail, I don't really know what it might be.
