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The diary entries of a little girl who is now 30! ~ Part 2 - Page 291

post #4351 of 12340
1/3/13 at 8:15am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ardgedee View Post

Quote:
Originally Posted by Silent One View Post

For iPhone & iTouch users, "BrailleTouch" will be hitting the AppStore 31 January. Fully compatible with "VoiceOver."

Interesting... Looks like it's a standalone app and you have to paste the text into whatever app you're using, which limits its usefulness.

I hope Apple eventually liberalizes its policy on input methods; things like this are better reasons why than the ability to add T9 or Swype or such (as nice as those are), since accessibility is a more demanding matter than convenience is.

(Incidentally; when I bought my iPad at the Apple Store, my clerk was totally blind; he handled the entire transaction himself through a stock store-issued iPod Touch, only needing a colleague to validate my credit card since he couldn't confirm the signature himself. We chatted a little afterwards; he seems much happier using his iDevices than he had been with older proprietary devices for computing for the blind.)

 

Great in-store experience you had! If I'm going to be spending my hard evil_smiley.gifunearned cash for an iPad (like I'm fixin' to do at lunch time rolleyes.gif) I'd like to have an elevated experience like that. Last year, I signed up for the Beta program and had a 30 minute chat over the phone with the U of Georgia researcher. I understand the concern you expressed over limits. However, usefulness, like running water will vary and be operator and app dependent.

 

The program was originally designed to aid sms, email & tweets. Agreed that Apple could do more for some developers. But...biggrin.gif it's more than we had. And I expect the experience to improve.


Edited by Silent One - 1/3/13 at 8:36am
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post #4352 of 12340
1/3/13 at 9:30am
Quote:
Originally Posted by MuppetFace View Post

The Ocharaku Flat4-Maple is here. ....sheesh. This thing has utterly floored me.  I don't want to talk about it much atm because I'm like totally having "new toy syndrome" here probably, but the packaging has to be the nicest I've ever seen on a pair of IEMs ever. The little wooden box is a little work of art, and inside there's a royal blue silk cloth folded with meticulous care, and inside that the IEMs.

 

The actual Maples are pretty nondescript: a lot darker in color palate than the SUI, but much more elegant looking. The little handle-like tubes----the anti resonance mechanism thingamajigs---are coated in a black lacquer. The inlays are made from wood with the same meticulous craftsmanship of the box.

 

Sound-wise, they seem pretty much like the SUI, but I'm inclined to say the balance is a little less top-heavy and more bottom-heavy, ie. the treble isn't as bright and the bass is more powerful. But that may not be the case. Need to do a direct comparison.

 

So far, I think these things are fantastic. 

 

I'm surprised you like the Ocharaku Flat-4. I tried them at my local Jaben and I was absolutely shocked on how they were very ear piercing to my ears, like two very sharp needles sticking inside my ears. It hurts, well not as bad as the XBA-4 which I think it's utter rubbish.

 

Edit: After looking at the price of the normal version and the maple version, honestly --> eek.gif

 

Maybe to clarify what I thought about the Flat-4: I expected for a dual driver IEM to be super bassy but somehow it was the polar opposite but the low end from most dynamic IEM still remains, along with the impact which I found satisfactory but it's that sheer treble that I can't stand.


Edited by VortexBlast - 1/3/13 at 9:37am
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post #4353 of 12340
1/3/13 at 9:36am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by VortexBlast View Post

 

I'm surprised you like the Ocharaku Flat-4. I tried them at my local Jaben and I was absolutely shocked on how they were very ear piercing to my ears, like two very sharp needles sticking inside my ears. It hurts, well not as bad as the XBA-4 which I think it's utter rubbish.

 

 

Your experience does not match mine. The SUI has some treble emphasis to my ears, but it's not piercing or harsh like the Tzar 340 for example. I think driver 8 can confirm that he hears them this way as well. There's also a thread here on head-fi with a few other sets of impressions that mention treble emphasis but not to a problematic degree ("like needles"). Perhaps you heard them on a poor source, there was something wrong with the pair, or are just especially sensitive to higher frequencies?

 

Personally I feel the Flat4 is one of the best IEMs currently in production.


Edited by MuppetFace - 1/3/13 at 9:39am
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post #4354 of 12340
1/3/13 at 9:46am

Yeah, I've heard way more sibilant phones than the Flat-4's.  They just seem a bit bright to me, like the HD800's or Shure SRH940's, but less so than the former.

 

They do nothing to mask sibilance that's there, though, which can be a problem for me as a lot of music I like isn't produced very well.  I'm talking about **** that borders on harsh with the LCD-3's (mine have some treble, I swear!) sometimes.


Edited by driver 8 - 1/3/13 at 9:48am
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post #4355 of 12340
1/3/13 at 9:47am
Quote:
Originally Posted by MuppetFace View Post

 

 

Your experience does not match mine. The SUI has some treble emphasis to my ears, but it's not piercing or harsh like the Tzar 340 for example. I think driver 8 can confirm that he hears them this way as well. There's also a thread here on head-fi with a few other sets of impressions that mention treble emphasis but not to a problematic degree ("like needles"). Perhaps you heard them on a poor source, there was something wrong with the pair, or are just especially sensitive to higher frequencies?

 

Personally I feel the Flat4 is one of the best IEMs currently in production.

Maybe I heard them at very high volumes that's why. redface.gif

Source was my HP-P1.

I need to re-audition it properly because I tried it very quickly.

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post #4356 of 12340
1/3/13 at 9:52am

Vortex, I can't tell if your avatar's from Armored Core, Big Bad Beetle Borgs, or... and it's really bothering me.  What is it?

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post #4357 of 12340
1/3/13 at 9:59am
Quote:
Originally Posted by driver 8 View Post

Vortex, I can't tell if your avatar's from Armored Core, Big Bad Beetle Borgs, or... and it's really bothering me.  What is it?

My avatar is a mecha called Dirfinge. It's from a manga/anime called Break Blade (Broken Blade in Europe).
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post #4358 of 12340
1/3/13 at 10:01am
Quote:
Originally Posted by VortexBlast View Post


My avatar is a mecha called Dirfinge. It's from a manga/anime called Break Blade (Broken Blade in Europe).

 

Funny. I thought it was something Gundam related.

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post #4359 of 12340
1/3/13 at 11:26am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by VortexBlast View Post

 

Edit: After looking at the price of the normal version and the maple version, honestly --> eek.gif

 

Maybe to clarify what I thought about the Flat-4: I expected for a dual driver IEM to be super bassy but somehow it was the polar opposite but the low end from most dynamic IEM still remains, along with the impact which I found satisfactory but it's that sheer treble that I can't stand.

 

I think the Flat4-SUI is actually pretty reasonable at $400, as it competes fairly well with IEMs costing three times as much, at least to my ears. But then value is subjective.

 

The Flat4-Maple is twice as much, and I doubted whether I should have splurged on it, but when I finally saw it my doubts evaporated. It is quite simply the most exquisitely presented IEM I've ever seen, usurping the Audio-Technica CKW1000ANV which previously held that distinction. The added cost comes from Oak Village's woodwork which is frankly sublime: the shells of the IEMs and the display box are heirloom quality. The amount of time, care, and artisan skill that went into producing these is where the added cost is coming from, and while some people aren't going to care about that, I personally find it delightful.

 

They're probably going to only make a handful of them, basically just a special edition to celebrate the success of the Flat4 which has been quite popular in Japan. They've been selling out in local shops, as Ocharaku is a small operation and only makes a small batch of them each month.

 

I think it's deserving of recognition, myself. One of the few IEMs I feel strongly about enough to defend. The engineering the went into it is pretty impressive, and I think they largely succeeded in eliminating nasty resonances. The treble is bright, however to my ears it stops short of becoming too hot or sibilant; I could understand it being problematic to someone with high sensitivity to certain frequencies. However there are many other IEMs with hotter treble. The bass is actually a bit too prominent on some tracks for my tastes, but again it's extremely clean and well behaved. It doesn't encroach into the midrange and gum up the rest of the sonic spectrum. The Flat4 has a definite U-shaped signature, but I personally feel it's one of the most refined and well-executed U-shapes in portables today. It has the virtue of being somewhat chameleonic, though not as much as the TG 334; it will only get bassy on those tracks that call for it, and it manages to be somewhat transparent despite its obvious coloration.

 

These are just my findings, of course. I do however think your post is the first I've ever seen calling the Flat4 rubbish. If you get the chance to try it again at a different store and with a different source, I would suggest trying it. Since it comes standard with Comply foam tips and was pretty much engineered to use them, fit could play a very large role in these sounding differently. I find the most common problem arising from a sub-optimal fit is thinner, harsher sound.

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post #4360 of 12340
1/3/13 at 1:33pm
Thread Starter 

The Luxman PD-171....

 

 

 

1000

1000

1000

 

1000

 

 

....So beautiful.

 

Originally I was set on a SOTA table, either the Star or the Nova, but the Luxman is just so classy. I've realized I don't really like skeletal designs and prefer a more "old fashioned" solid, rectangular plinth. The sort of design one finds on SOTA, Luxman, Basis, and the Shindo/Gararrd 301. Here's one of the SOTAs:

 

1000

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post #4361 of 12340
1/3/13 at 1:38pm

I like the SOTA a lot more. That's just me though.

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post #4362 of 12340
1/3/13 at 2:17pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by VortexBlast View Post

Maybe I heard them at very high volumes that's why. redface.gif

Source was my HP-P1.

I need to re-audition it properly because I tried it very quickly.


That could be your issue then. The HP-P1 is not suitable for sensitive IEM with its high output impedance. That could very well be the reason for the strident treble. I've learned that lesson a long time ago and will not buy amps and such with high output impedance' to pair with sensitive IEMs. There's much better out there in that regard. Plus learning that you can't fully use its DAC capabilities which are limited by Apples 16/48 limitations and yet the product is marketed for Apple products is a bit disappointing IMO.


Edited by lee730 - 1/3/13 at 2:28pm
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post #4363 of 12340
1/3/13 at 2:47pm
Thread Starter 

Sennheiser will be displaying their Orpheus HE90 at CES this year:

 

http://www.ibtimes.com/press-release/20130103/pinnacle-audio-reproduction-sennheiser-display-legendary-orpheus-headphones

 

Which leads me to believe they'll be announcing their new 'stats as well. At least, I hope that's their reasoning.

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post #4364 of 12340
1/3/13 at 3:45pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by MuppetFace View Post

Sennheiser will be displaying their Orpheus HE90 at CES this year:

http://www.ibtimes.com/press-release/20130103/pinnacle-audio-reproduction-sennheiser-display-legendary-orpheus-headphones

Which leads me to believe they'll be announcing their new 'stats as well. At least, I hope that's their reasoning.
That would be both fantastic and terrible. /hides wallet
Edited by Maxvla - 1/3/13 at 3:46pm
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post #4365 of 12340
1/3/13 at 4:33pm

A friend of mine convinced me to get one of those Kindle Fire HD things.  I was hesitant to get into the whole tablet scene, but I find myself using the Wii U as a web browser quite often, so maybe it's time.

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