[NEWS / DISCUSSION / IMPRESSION] Phonak Audéo PFE232 - Page 57

 

I no longer find them v-shaped.  I find them much closer to a neutral sound, live or my big stereo.  

 

Why? One is the foam tips make a huge difference, getting rid of the somewhat ragged elements of the treble, leaving only the controlled, natural treble. May I repeat: play with different tips, using sound quality and not just comfort as criteria.  

 

Another reason is that it depends on the source.  They are not bright with my more finely-tuned, flat home system.  Bass is also linear and extended.  

 

Lastly: I got used to it.  Now, my SE530s are unlistenably bloated in the midrange, very clearly inaccurate, not just being used to it or not.  

Which foam tips do you use, Stoney?

I have a question about the isolation of these. I heard that the isolation is pretty mediocre, and that the best it can get is with deep insertion tips. Is there a pair of tips that doesn't come with the PFE232 that improves the isolation (I'm pretty sure they don't come with deep insertion tips), or do you guys just use the tips they come with?

I think the isolation is pretty decent, even for airplane use etc. I'm using the silicon tips. It's not as isolating as others (W4, or TF10) but it's close and with the right tip I don't think isolation is a major issue to worry about..

Isolation was an initial concern of mine as well, but after listening to these for a while around campus, I can say that it is not enough to be a problem. However, If you're in an extremely loud area, that I couldn't comment on.. but in relatively moderate noise-filled environment, the PFE232 are fine. The only time I notice noise or people talking is when the song changes (no sound playing) or when a portion of a song gets really quiet in combination with people being very close/loud. I hope that all made sense. Btw, I am coming from the W4 with Olives.

 

Oh, one more thing. You don't need to take these out to hear what someone said or to have a quick conversation. You can't hear every frequency (muffled), but it is enough to not pull an IEM out to hear what someone said. I think this is significant because I normally always have to pull one IEM out when I am listening to my W4. There is that much isolation.

There's one thing that worries me though, they seem to be vented, does that mean they will leak sound, or at least more than other IEMs?

I've heard the vent is only a cosmetic look. It is not functional.

Yep as treal said, they are cosmetic. With the right silicon tip they do seal decently well..

Thanks everyone.

 

There's just something that's still holding me back, the PFE232 seems to reflect the exact sound signature I enjoy (Punchy bass, resolving mids, and an impactful treble) so it seems ideal for me, however I only listen to rock/metal and I'm haven't seen the PFE232 being recommended for those genres anywhere. On the other hand, the westone 3 is said to be extremely good for rock/metal (some people say it's the genre that it's best at) and they cost nearly half the price. I'll admit it, I'm a treblehead and I love it when snare drums and cymbals have a lot of impact, and the westone 3's treble is said to be laid back which will probably affect me. Do you guys think I should go for the PFE232 since it reflects my sound preferences or the the Westone 3 since it's said to perform extremely well for my genres, but has a laid back treble?

 

Can't comment on the W3...  I was going to recommend the 3.Ai, but then you said you like snares :p  Stick with the PFE I guess :)

I'm putting up mine for sale, and they are almost brand new. They're right on par with my Westone W4 but with a different (more fun) sound signature.

Edited by moshen - 12/15/12 at 2:16am

Hi, can anyone recommend a portable amp for the 232? 

The PFE seems to scale well with all of the amps I have tried. It is my "always" IEM when using my Tera-Player. I also like it a lot with my iBasso D7 which I use with my computer.

On another subject, since I own no apple products, I would be willing to swap my switched 232 cable for an unswitched one. Mine has never been used. I would prefer to have a spare non-switched.

On the go I have tried the FiiO E6 with the 232 (grey filters) but I didn't notice much improvement on the Galaxy S3 output except for more power than I would want.

The sound is slightly different, bass is a little fuller but less detailed, treble loose a bit of clarity in my opinion.

 

On my macbook at work I use AudioQuest DragonFly, now this really improves the quality of the bass (more detailed and textured), the soundstage is wider and the treble are even more detailed. 

 

While I am here, thanks to you all for sharing your impressions on the PFE 232, had it not been for head-fi community this IEM would have stayed under my radar.

I am coming from q-Jays, TF10 and then SM3 v2 and the PFE232 is a real step up in terms of sound quality : I love them !

 

The only downside is isolation is not that great, even with a good seal and comply doesn't do much better than silicone tips (which I prefer).

It seems from this thread I'll need to try out some alternate tips (maybe XL since I have big ear canals...).

Has anyone here tried using the PFE232 in a plane? If so, does it isolate well enough, or is the engine noise a problem?