*Note: Please pardon the poor quality photos and my amateur level review. I am quite new to headphones.
*Edit: Didn't know that Head-Fi isn't using HTML for posting. Have cleaned it up.
TMA-1 left, TMA-1 Studio, Right
Introduction
This is a comparison of 2 headphones from the same manufacturer, sharing the same driver housing and the same design concept. In this review I am going to find out if AIAIAI has improved the TMA-1 with the incarnation of the TMA-1 Studio.
TMA-1: I just love the simple and stealth look
Background
The TMA-1 was released in 2010 was designed by DJs for DJs, and marketed by AIAIAI to have the bass and sensitivity to be used in the club, yet at the same time be portable enough for traveling use.However, many users have found the headphones to be very dark sounding and have a veiled sound.
TMA-1 Studio: Look at those oversized earpads!!! OMG!!!
So in 2012, AIAIAI announced the TMA-1 Studio, which was a redesigned version of the TMA-1 with circumaural ear pads and the drivers tuned to be more suited in a studio environment.
Audio Setup
As I bought the TMA-1 Studio for home use, I will be using them with a less portable gear.
1. iPad > AW Audio OCC Copper LOD > JDS Labs C421
2. iTunes > X-Fi Titanium
3. Lilith Audio Player > Go-Vibe Petite + DAC (Wasapi Driver)
4. Sandisk Sansa Clip+ w/ Rockbox
Design Differences
TMA-1 with its replaceable earpad
First, the most obvious difference is the gigantic ear pads on the TMA-1 Studio that dwarfs the ones on the standard TMA-1.
TMA-1 Left, TMA-1 Studio right
Secondly, the cushion on the Studio is thicker and is made of a different material. The headband cushion on the standard TMA-1 is thin and is made out of rubber, offering little to no cushioning effect for comfort. On the TMA-1 Studio, the headband cushion is at least twice as thick and is made of protein leather with foam inside for cushioning.
Comfort and Isolation
Both the TMA-1 and TMA-1 Studio have fairly strong clamping force. They are neither tight or loose. As the TMA-1 Studio's ear pads are circumaural, they are more comfortable than the TMA-1.
Isolation wise, the TMA-1 Studio offers better noise isolation than the TMA-1, which is understandable due to the ear pad design.
Sound Quality
Initial impression on TMA-1
There's a lot of bass, but a bass roll off at around 25Hz results in a lack of sub-bass. The mids sound recessed and slightly veiled by the the slight presence of mid-bass. The treble is crisp, but it can be a little sibilant at times.
Initial impression on TMA-1 Studio
Bass roll off is more obvious at at around 28-30Hz, which further reduces sub-bass. The mids are no longer veiled and sound more forward and sweeter. The treble is still crisp, but no longer as sibilant as the TMA-1.
I made comparisons with a huge collection of music, but I have decided to write up on a few of them.
Cameo Lover - Kimbra (FLAC/ALAC)
Kimbra has really amazing vocals and I feel that this song brings out part of her talent. The bass beat and cymbals adds an upbeat and fun rhythm to this song.
TMA-1: Kimbra's vocal feels intimate, the cymbals are really crisp, however there's a bit of mid bass hump and boominess in the background bass beat.
TMA-1 Studio: Kimbra's vocals feels a little less intimate, but has a noticeable 3D effect and sounds a little airier. Mid-bass hump is gone and the boominess is lot less compared to the TMA-1. The highs remain crisp, with the cymbals actually feeling a little closer to me, the cymbals also do not sound like they are approaching the point of sibilance.
Versailles - Silent Knight [Instrumental] (FLAC/ALAC)
I am a lover of J-rock and once Kiteki in Head-fi forums mentioned this track to be excellent for speed test, which is true, but I also find this to be a great track to test the mid-high range, especially with the beginning of the dual guitar solo.
TMA-1: The electric bass sounds really prominent and powerful here, which puts a smile on my face since I am a electric bass player and I love the sound of good playing of electric bass. However, I was disappointed when the dual guitar solo came. The electric guitar sounded a little dull and liveless. Furthermore, the cymbals almost sounded sibilant sometimes.
TMA-1 Studio: The electric bass no longer sound as powerful as when the same track was played on the TMA-1, but it still has its weight and presence. The dual guitar solo was excellent! It sounded like the 2 electric guitars were screaming at me, like how it should sound in the recording and when the band played live. The cymbals sounded a little laidback beside the TMA-1. Separation seems better on the Studio due to the wider soundstage.
TMA-1 with TMA-1 Studio's ear pad on one side.
Additional section: Swapping of ear pads between standard and Studio
The earpads are interchangeable! However, on the TMA-1, with the TMA-1 Studio ear pads, the treble became very sibilant, and the bass drops a level or 2. The mids are a little forward compared to the original Supra-aural earpads.
The TMA-1 Studio with the TMA-1 Supra-aural ear pads didn't sound too bad. The bass was increased, the treble mellowed a little bit, and the mids sounded a little less aggressive. The decrease in distance between the drivers and my ears also reduced the soundstage.
Conclusion
The circumaural ear pads and re-tuning of the drivers has really improved the TMA-1 with the Studio incarnation. I am actually not sure of its SRP, but for this comparison of the TMA-1 and the TMA-1 Studio, the Studio is a clear winner here.
I will update this thread with comparisons with more tracks and against other headphones based on requests and also when I know the SRP (in Singapore) of the TMA-1 Studio, so I can compare them with headphones of the same price bracket.
Special thanks to:
Soundwaves Studio for the TMA-1 demo set
B**** for helping me get the TMA-1 Studio
*Edit: Didn't know that Head-Fi isn't using HTML for posting. Have cleaned it up.
TMA-1 left, TMA-1 Studio, Right
Introduction
This is a comparison of 2 headphones from the same manufacturer, sharing the same driver housing and the same design concept. In this review I am going to find out if AIAIAI has improved the TMA-1 with the incarnation of the TMA-1 Studio.
TMA-1: I just love the simple and stealth look
Background
The TMA-1 was released in 2010 was designed by DJs for DJs, and marketed by AIAIAI to have the bass and sensitivity to be used in the club, yet at the same time be portable enough for traveling use.However, many users have found the headphones to be very dark sounding and have a veiled sound.
TMA-1 Studio: Look at those oversized earpads!!! OMG!!!
So in 2012, AIAIAI announced the TMA-1 Studio, which was a redesigned version of the TMA-1 with circumaural ear pads and the drivers tuned to be more suited in a studio environment.
Audio Setup
As I bought the TMA-1 Studio for home use, I will be using them with a less portable gear.
1. iPad > AW Audio OCC Copper LOD > JDS Labs C421
2. iTunes > X-Fi Titanium
3. Lilith Audio Player > Go-Vibe Petite + DAC (Wasapi Driver)
4. Sandisk Sansa Clip+ w/ Rockbox
Design Differences
TMA-1 with its replaceable earpad
First, the most obvious difference is the gigantic ear pads on the TMA-1 Studio that dwarfs the ones on the standard TMA-1.
TMA-1 Left, TMA-1 Studio right
Secondly, the cushion on the Studio is thicker and is made of a different material. The headband cushion on the standard TMA-1 is thin and is made out of rubber, offering little to no cushioning effect for comfort. On the TMA-1 Studio, the headband cushion is at least twice as thick and is made of protein leather with foam inside for cushioning.
Comfort and Isolation
Both the TMA-1 and TMA-1 Studio have fairly strong clamping force. They are neither tight or loose. As the TMA-1 Studio's ear pads are circumaural, they are more comfortable than the TMA-1.
Isolation wise, the TMA-1 Studio offers better noise isolation than the TMA-1, which is understandable due to the ear pad design.
Sound Quality
Initial impression on TMA-1
There's a lot of bass, but a bass roll off at around 25Hz results in a lack of sub-bass. The mids sound recessed and slightly veiled by the the slight presence of mid-bass. The treble is crisp, but it can be a little sibilant at times.
Initial impression on TMA-1 Studio
Bass roll off is more obvious at at around 28-30Hz, which further reduces sub-bass. The mids are no longer veiled and sound more forward and sweeter. The treble is still crisp, but no longer as sibilant as the TMA-1.
I made comparisons with a huge collection of music, but I have decided to write up on a few of them.
Cameo Lover - Kimbra (FLAC/ALAC)
Kimbra has really amazing vocals and I feel that this song brings out part of her talent. The bass beat and cymbals adds an upbeat and fun rhythm to this song.
TMA-1: Kimbra's vocal feels intimate, the cymbals are really crisp, however there's a bit of mid bass hump and boominess in the background bass beat.
TMA-1 Studio: Kimbra's vocals feels a little less intimate, but has a noticeable 3D effect and sounds a little airier. Mid-bass hump is gone and the boominess is lot less compared to the TMA-1. The highs remain crisp, with the cymbals actually feeling a little closer to me, the cymbals also do not sound like they are approaching the point of sibilance.
Versailles - Silent Knight [Instrumental] (FLAC/ALAC)
I am a lover of J-rock and once Kiteki in Head-fi forums mentioned this track to be excellent for speed test, which is true, but I also find this to be a great track to test the mid-high range, especially with the beginning of the dual guitar solo.
TMA-1: The electric bass sounds really prominent and powerful here, which puts a smile on my face since I am a electric bass player and I love the sound of good playing of electric bass. However, I was disappointed when the dual guitar solo came. The electric guitar sounded a little dull and liveless. Furthermore, the cymbals almost sounded sibilant sometimes.
TMA-1 Studio: The electric bass no longer sound as powerful as when the same track was played on the TMA-1, but it still has its weight and presence. The dual guitar solo was excellent! It sounded like the 2 electric guitars were screaming at me, like how it should sound in the recording and when the band played live. The cymbals sounded a little laidback beside the TMA-1. Separation seems better on the Studio due to the wider soundstage.
TMA-1 with TMA-1 Studio's ear pad on one side.
Additional section: Swapping of ear pads between standard and Studio
The earpads are interchangeable! However, on the TMA-1, with the TMA-1 Studio ear pads, the treble became very sibilant, and the bass drops a level or 2. The mids are a little forward compared to the original Supra-aural earpads.
The TMA-1 Studio with the TMA-1 Supra-aural ear pads didn't sound too bad. The bass was increased, the treble mellowed a little bit, and the mids sounded a little less aggressive. The decrease in distance between the drivers and my ears also reduced the soundstage.
Conclusion
The circumaural ear pads and re-tuning of the drivers has really improved the TMA-1 with the Studio incarnation. I am actually not sure of its SRP, but for this comparison of the TMA-1 and the TMA-1 Studio, the Studio is a clear winner here.
I will update this thread with comparisons with more tracks and against other headphones based on requests and also when I know the SRP (in Singapore) of the TMA-1 Studio, so I can compare them with headphones of the same price bracket.
Special thanks to:
Soundwaves Studio for the TMA-1 demo set
B**** for helping me get the TMA-1 Studio
