Final Audio Design Appreciation/Discussion Thread - Page 36

Been using the SS lately, I honestly though I was going to dislike and dismiss, but it's surprisingly nice. Was mostly worried of a harsh treble, but it isn't bad, I think perhaps because Im able to insert them quite deep with an over-the-ear fit.

 

joker mentioned he though that it was so revealing it seemed to show hidden artifacts, but I think that's just the slightly hint of audible distortion. Having said that, it gives it that unique sound, everything about this IEM tries to be exclusive and it sure does is in some attributes. 

im using heaven 4..its quite good!!

:-)

 

Normally the LED is greatly hidden beneath the Classic, even when I am using the UD100 as source.

 

 

 

I took the Classic off for the previous picture. Cheating, I suppose.

 

 

I am finding it impossible to ignore the love that the SS gets from many directions...

Listening to a Best of Baroque collection on the PF IX. No doubt the Piano Fortes were created with this kind of music in mind. It is wonderful.

For those of you who haven't heard, three new fullsized headphones were shown at RMAF. They range in build and price from a more affordable plastic model to the top model which will be metal and have an MSRP of around 1250 USD or thereabouts. 

 

Final Audio had them in stealth mode like a car manufacturer, wrapped up in fabric and other materials to try and hide their actual design. Initial impressions of their sound have been positive.

 

Thinking about putting in an order for the Heaven VI this week. Kinda... ehhh... not really feeling it at the moment however. I haven't had much urge to buy anything audio-related in a while. 

 

Interesting. Final Audio really seems to be taking a new approach to pricing and the target audience.

MF, that sounds fascinating, I wonder if anyone has taken some snaps? Paul. I agree, Baroque is made for the PF's. Last night I listened to Charles Avis 6 concertos and it was sublime. The other thing these are made for is Tom Waits, Bruce Springsteen or any other what I call "organic Rock". Buffalo springfield sounds so warm and organic through these, just how I remember the vinyl all those years ago.

  As mentioned earlier, that will be the Heaven VI, which is actually already out. 545$ via MA, which is a reliable seller FWIR. FAD states it takes the core concept of the Heaven IV and tweaks it to improve, housed in Chrome Copper, quite an exotic material for an IEM's housing. They market:

 

"The result is the first balanced armature earphone that perfectly reproduces the sound of a human voice"

  Kind of late, but Rin recently did an analysis of all of the first generation FAD Heaven series BA IEMs, the Heaven S, A and SA. A seems to have the best performance, but it's drivers mismatch more than the other two

  He tested this and no air escapes there, its sealed. 

 

Hmm, I tested this too when I wrote this review two years ago. Scroll a bit down and look at the dark reddish picture, where I fed light through the back vent.

 

dfkt and I both tested covering the vents back then and he concluded that the whole BAM thing was a cheat, because we couldn't hear much difference. That gave me the idea to investigate things more in-depth.

 

Strange that Rin would come to a different conclusion, especially since these are the exact same IEMs.

Well, first, covering the vent does make a difference, surprised you guys didn't hear it. The differences aren't big, but it reduces bass a bit. 

 

Rin completely sealed the strain reliefs and there was no sonic difference.

Edited by Inks - 10/18/12 at 8:59pm

Actually here's what I think happens

 

The vent on the back of the Heaven FADs likely is being enclosed to trap in a specific amount of air, thus "Balancing Air Movement". Light comes out through that with no sonic difference because of that, it's independent of the sealed nature inside. 

 

Either that or his sealing had a leak, hmm. 

Edited by Inks - 10/18/12 at 9:05pm

Just to be clear (cause you guys got me confused now, lol), I'm talking about the FI-BA-SB (Heaven S), not the FI-BA-SS.

 

Strain reliefs on the FI-BA-SS are sealed and covering the vents makes a noticeable difference, so I'm not doubting this.

 

But on the FI-BA-SB (Heaven S) we couldn't detect much difference, so I fed light through the vent and could clearly see it leaking through the strain relief:

 

  Yup, the Heavens. Even though light could escape through the housing on these, the BAM mechanism I think means it seals trapped air inside the housing that is brought from the outside vent on the back so it gets an specific amount in. Thus, no sonic difference when sealing the opening in the strain reliefs, yet covering that back vent results in a slight loss of bass. That's my take on what I think happens with these. 

 

  The SS seems to do something different with the vents, Rin will have to test these. 

Edited by Inks - 10/18/12 at 11:22pm