Review: Philips Fidelio L1 [Updated 5/14] - Page 37

It'd be quite interesting to read your take on the L1 vs Momentum. I have both at the moment and, while the L1 may very well be the technically superior cans (regarding soundstage in particular), the more I listen to the Momentum, the more I find them more fun to listen to and just more involving. Their initial slight congestion in the lower mids seem to attenuate with time - whether this is attributable to drivers burn-in, brain burn-in, or any other esoteric ju-ju, I can't say...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zaroff 

It'd be quite interesting to read your take on the L1 vs Momentum. I have both at the moment and, while the L1 may very well be the technically superior cans (regarding soundstage in particular), the more I listen to the Momentum, the more I find them more fun to listen to and just more involving. Their initial slight congestion in the lower mids seem to attenuate with time - whether this is attributable to drivers burn-in, brain burn-in, or any other esoteric ju-ju, I can't say...

Do the Momentum have as much bass as the L1?

I am not a Momentum fan nor a fan of Sennheiser house sound in general. I have tried every way possible to like the Momentums not even considering the price. When price is added into the equation, they really take a beating. So take all my comments with that in mind.

Overall the Senns have more treble energy but its not nearly as defined. The bass is very good and less in overall quantity. It still is the same as the treble in that is it not nearly as defined or impactful. Where the Senns really lose me is the congestion you speak of. I called this out in the Momentum, PSB and M100 threads when I compared there, For me it has never gotten better over time. I do not find that the Senns scale at all to amps or dacs. That can be good or bad. Overall for my tastes in this type of headphone, I am looking for something that allows me to listen and hear the spatial cues while not concentrating too hard unless I want. If I am mindlessly listening Pandora or Spotify the Senns would suffice but they never allow me to be a serious listener if I wanted.

The Momentum are IMO the more bassy cans of the two. But it's good, clean and slamming bass, not bloat. The L1 have a more harmless and relaxing sound overall, which can account for their being described as "veiled" sometimes, which I don't think they are. Presentation is just different.

EDIT: agreed that Momentum loose out in soundstage and airiness to the L1. That said, I really don't think the Momentum are at a loss for detail retrieval, quite the contrary.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zaroff 

The Momentum are IMO the more bassy cans of the two. But it's good, clean and slamming bass, not bloat. The L1 have a more harmless and relaxing sound overall, which can account for their being described as "veiled" sometimes, which I don't think they are. Presentation is just different.

 

EDIT: agreed that Momentum loose out in soundstage and airiness to the L1. That said, I really don't think the Momentum are at a loss for detail retrieval, quite the contrary.

I guess we hear things differently as I certainly don't hear the Momentum as the more bassy of the two. The looser warmer bass of the Senns may be heard as more quantity in some music but its really just a bloating effect. I also feel the detail retrieval is lacking at the micro level. I do not perceive more treble energy as detail retrieval.

Quote:

Originally Posted by awtryau89 

Got my L1s today. 

This is spot on from what I am hearing as well.  Very nice.  

I know after all my glowing comments this will be a surprise but I just listed mine for sale in the BST forums. I have been presented a deal on some other high end cans I just cannot pass up so I am selling off everything I can to get them. All comments still stand but I just can't pass these Ultrasones up.

I've been looking for new headphones in the $300 range and it's been between the Fidelio L1, Momentum, Sony MDR-1R, and M-100. I mostly listen to a variety of electronic music.

I've already demoed the Momentum at Best Buy, and while I was impressed with the sound, the ear pads were too small for my liking. I think the M-100 is out of consideration due to comfort issues I've read about -- I need to be able to wear these for long coding sessions. While the MDR-1R gets much praise for its comfort, I'm wary of the sound signature and build quality issues (e.g. jack rattle).

That leaves the Fidelio L1. So, I have three questions:

1) How do they compare to the above headphones?

2) Do they leak any sound? I don't care about isolation from outside noise, just sound leaking out since I sit within a few feet of my coworkers.

3) Is an amp recommended? And how do they compare to the above headphones unamped? I'll be primarily using these with a Macbook Air.

Quote:

Originally Posted by acti0n 

2) Do they leak any sound? I don't care about isolation from outside noise, just sound leaking out since I sit within a few feet of my coworkers.

 

3) Is an amp recommended? And how do they compare to the above headphones unamped? I'll be primarily using these with a Macbook Air.

I've not yet heard the two other models, so I can't comment on that. Recently I sold my L1 to my colleague sitting across, about 2-3m distance. He might not be listening very loud (don't know), but I hear nothing. I'd say they are usable in an office environment.

I used them directly out of a Macbook Pro at moderate levels. An amp should not be necessary, especially if you're using them as a background for work.

Hello guys,

I'm sure this question has been answered before, but what is the difference between the Fidelio L1/00 and the Fidelio L1/28? I'm looking to purchase a pair and noticed that the L1/00 is $20 more expensive on amazon. Any reason behind this?

Regards,

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yekrut 

Hello guys,

 

I'm sure this question has been answered before, but what is the difference between the Fidelio L1/00 and the Fidelio L1/28? I'm looking to purchase a pair and noticed that the L1/00 is $20 more expensive on amazon. Any reason behind this?

 

Regards,

I believe the L1/00 is for European Markets, and L1/28 is for North American Markets.

On a related note just scored a pair of these for less than $140!

Thank you for the clarification, much appreciated.

How did you get them for so cheap! Was it from a fellow head-fi member?