TDK BA200 - Impressions and Appreciation Thread - Page 2

I'm surprised you like it so much. I like it too, but I think I'd still get a UM3x given the opportunity. The UM3x is such a special type of IEM, pretty much unlike any other IEM out there. Everything is tuned so close to the ear, but still very spatially correct. I say it's a very special IEM to this day. I'd pick the BA200 over the W4 though. Just my $0.02.

To me, the BA200 feels like the ultimate workhorse. It will literally do everything, and well too. I can listen to it without being forced to analyze music, but if I want to, I can still do it. I can't really fault it in anything except maybe that the transition between drivers is noticeable when using silicone tips.

In terms of price, I'd still price it lower simply because it is still a dual driver IEM, and it can sound like one at times. With most dual driver IEMs hovering around the $200 price point these days, $250 makes it unattractive on the market. Maybe it's reasonable to price it at $250 in terms of pure sound quality, but TDK is the underdog when it comes to brand recognition and thus should probably price it more competitively to attract customers. I got it at an incredible street price actually ---- if I told you guys how much I got it for, you'd all be screaming highway robbery!
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by ClieOS 

Price wise, GR07 will be its competitor. Sound signature wise, UM3X is its main competitor. Even at MSRP, BA200 will win over UM3X. The fact that you can find BA200 in Singapore for less than $200 is really quite a great deal for the local. I was planning to pick up a UM3X but right now I have lost that desire after I have the BA200.

Yup, and it feels even better. I dare say, it's the most comfortable IEM I've ever tried, even over the GR07. It goes super deep and I don't even feel remotely fatigued.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by kiteki 

It looks so good...

Originally Posted by cute 

 

It sounds so good..........

Oh, I don't disagree with you at all; the BA200 is a great UM3x alternative. I was just trying to make the point that dual driver IEMs somehow all sound similar in terms of body, and triple driver ones also sound similar with respect to body --- not saying that triple driver ones actually sound better, but they do envelop the sound easier. I'm not much of a number believer either; I actually like the slightly thinner bodied presentation of dual drivers more, which is why I don't have any triple driver IEMs.

With respect to price, I'm just merely making rhetorical "marketing suggestions" to TDK. SQ-wise, the BA200 is definitely worth $250; more casual listeners might not realize it, though.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ClieOS 

I won't say BA200 is better than UM3X, but they are comparable or even on par in most places. I have had the chance to A/B the two for a lengthy time as my cousin owns a pair of UM3X. There are things that UM3X is better at, such as a sweeter vocal, and a more textured mid~low end body. But BA200 has something that UM3X doesn't have as well, such a livelier presentation with better speed and a more neutral tone. Even my cousin, an UM3X lover, agrees that BA200 makes a great UM3X alternative. I am not much of a 'driver-number believer'. If a $250 IEM can sound almost as good as a $350 IEM, it is always a better deal to get the $250 IEM.

Custom SQ is so hard to duplicate with universals. I'm starting to believe it's a pipe dream. The W4 never did blow me away. In a few years, maybe.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kiteki 

I didn't believe in driver numbers either, until I heard the UM Mage and UM Miracle demo units. Now I'm waiting for a UM Mage sound in a universal IEM.