T-Peos H-100 Hybrid IEM Appreciation Thread - Page 8

yeeak, sibilance? 

Yes, I mean the H-100KG, I found a good seal and fit with tri-flange silicon tips, now I let them burn in. I didn't try the B100, I just opened the box, they feel more plastic.

The H-100 sounds like a marriage between the GR07's bass & DBA-02/RE-272's treble.  The H-100's bass is similar to the GR07 MKII in both in quantity & quality.. but the H-100 has slightly less midbass.  The H-100's treble quality & presentation is closer to the RE272 than the DBA-02.  That might go to show you why I'm so impressed & intrigued by the H-100 BA/tuning.  Despite using a BA, the decay and detail sounds very natural.. much like what I heard from the RE272's treble.

 

As far as approximating the midrange's quality & sound, I'm not sure I've heard a universal IEM that has as quite a neutral, clean, transparent tone as the H-100.  I haven't heard an Ety phone.. but based on the multitudes of reviews & impressions I've read, perhaps an ER4S' midrange (with the H-100 having more body & depth) would be an apt comparison.  ClieOS could probably confirm if this comparison is correct.  The midrange's clarity and neutrality reminds me of the Paradox.  Not as technically precise.. but similar in tone, texture, and transparency.

 

As ClieOS & I have said, the midrange's positioning isn't forward or recessed (the H-100's fq curve is slightly u-shaped).. I'd say it's positioned a row or two back from how the GR07 positions it's midrange.

 

I would assume that from somewhere around 500-1 Khz and up the BA drivers is fully in charge, but I ould be wrong.  The B-100 sounds completely different than the H-100 if you're worried about them using the same single BA driver. The B-100 is nowhere near the sound presentation and quality coming from H-100, so most likely a different driver or could just be a different tuning, but I believe it's the former more than the latter.  The B-100 sounds like a $50 or less single BA driver IEM. The H-100 sounds like a $300-400 IEM.

 

I very much concur on Flysweep and CliOS initial impressions, so really no need for me to repeat what they already have said. I can add that the  the H-100 to me at least improves quite a bit when using an amp and they actually seems harder to drive than what I beforehand expected.  

The lack of midbass emphasis.. combined with a slight spike in the 4-8K range.. is what gives the H-100 a slightly cooler, crisp, bright tone.  But it doesn't sound thin or brittle, in anyway.  This comes back to why I really like it paired with my (unamped) iPhone 4.  the 4 has a very neutral output, but it seems to delicately add some midbass presence (perhaps under .5 dB?) that provides some warmth, if that's what you're looking for.  The H-100 remains sounding decidedly neutral through the iPhone 4, though.. just the way I like it.

 

I did do some listening with the ODAC/O2 combo last night.  My O2 has the standard gain settings.. and even the low gain seemed overkill for the H-100.  I could barely hit 9 o-clock on the pot (but I was, thankfully, out of the channel imbalance range of the O2).  The ODAC outputs 2Vrms, so that might account for why I was unable to use much of the O2's pot.  I'll try the O2 & UHA6-S MKII paired with my iPhone LOD (which has 1-1.5 Vrms output).  As far as my listening experience with the ODAC/O2 & H-100.. it was impressive.  As expected.. it sounded like the H-100 on steroids.  Excellent control & supreme, transparency, detail, & clarity.  It wasn't a night and day difference vs what I heard from my unamped iPhone.. but there was a distinguishable improvement.  Was the improvement substantial enough to feel like the ODAC and/or O2 was needed to realize the H-100's potential?  Certainly not, IMO.

 

There's been some consternation about the upper midrange/lower treble boost (per the fq chart).  In my experience so far (my H-100 has been burned in for well over fifty hours), it's really well controlled and 'rounded' off.. so it doesn't come off as sharp, peaky, or resonant.  Listening to poorly recorded material, though, could unnaturally emphasize this area and cause some fatigue and/or stridency.  The H-100's tendency to exaggerate the irregularities of poorly recorded material isn't as strong as, say, the the DBA-02 (but it isn't as forgiving as something like the GR07 MKII, either).

I have been using the H-100 with an Arrow 4G amp (iPod Classic) it's my very portable setup. The bass boost on the Arrow, has a hint of upper bass which again adds some warmth to the overall sound presentation of the the H-100 without interrupting anything significant. It's very pleasing to my ears.

 

Agree, adding an amp is not a night and day difference. But using the Stoner Acoustic UD10 tiny DAC  with the Arrow amp vs. my portable setup was like someone injected steroids in my ears. I'm used to have them injected somewhere else :-) 

 

Regarding burn-in. I'm not a believer in 500-800 hours of burn-in for these types of units, but I will say that when I yesterday listened to the H-100 for twenty minutes right out of the box I wasn't convinced that this purchase would really enhance the quality of my life. Very brief, vocals sounded very much off!  So I left my home in a very depressed state while the H-100 burned in for 6-8 hours and when i picked them up again it was vastly a very different experience.  The cross-overs in hybrids, burn-in effect on this?  I would be very much willing to believe that this area could to be responsible for this change. 

Damn you head-fi!!! Why do I keep coming back here? I am really fighting the urge to try these. I am perfectly content with my GR01's, but these still sound interesting.

I did more listening with the H-100 tonight.. nearly six hours straight, in fact.  Listening with my iPhone 4 (via LOD) to the UHA-6S MKII & Objective 2... this phone continues to impress the heck out of me..

 

I previously stated that using an amp with the H-100 provided a distinguishable improvement in sound.. but felt that an amp wasn't required to get the most out of the H-100.  That sentiment holds true.  Where I'll revise my opinion is just how good the H-100 sounds when amped..  It bears repeating that an unamped H-100 still sounds incredibly impressive in its resolving ability, clarity, transparency, balance, and dynamics.  So, while an amp isn't required to hear just how impressive the H-100 is, the H-100 has plenty of headroom and can take advantage of the better power a portable amp can provide.. and will reward your ears, handsomely.

 

What I heard from an amped H-100 was better extension at both ends, improved driver & frequency control, linearity, and clarity that, unfathomably, gets even better.  Bass, midrange, and treble all possess better speed and dynamics when driven from an amp.  I'm sure the 4-8K spike will be a contentious point as more people get a chance to hear the H-100.  Even when unamped, I found that peak in the tuning to be managed quite well (as long as the music's recording quality is good & volume isn't dangerously high).  An amp further improves the control in this region while improving the treble's overall precision, depth, and clarity.

 

When amped by the O2/6S-MKII, the H-100's sounds more linear (than from an unamped iPhone) to my ears, too.  In other words.. that gentle, u-shaped curve gets 'flattened out.'  I've mentioned how the bass and treble improves when using an amp.. but I saved what is, arguably, the most impressive area of improvement for last: the midrange.  With the O2/6S MKII, the midrange sounds more fleshed out, sets up an impressively wide soundstage for some terrific layering and instrument separation.  The midrange's improvement in dynamics is noticeable as well.  Combine all this with the already impressive transparency & accuracy.. and what you have is one of the finest, neutral-sounding universal IEM I've heard.  Pretty special!

Sometimes, I expected the highs to sound more refined than they are, I mean they're well controlled, but they can sound harsh a bit.
 

So we can confirm these are 32ohms not 60ohms as the listing states?

I have the money together to purchase a pair. Can I have some confirmation everyone's happy with their pairs please?

I've read the thread and what I'm interested in is how much value you guy's think you're getting. Does it sound like a $300 IEM as has been mentioned? I'm interested in the bang for money (value) I won't be amping them so that's also of some concern to me, they'll be run through a Colorfly C3 or Cowon S9. I'll be coming from GR07 MK2 and TF10. Would you guy's class it as a straight out upgrade or side grade to those IEM's.

Looking forward to some feedback!

Cheers!



Edit: Too late, my finger slipped in-between looking at the frequency graph and supplied wooden storage box.

Here we go baby, on the H-100K train. My first Hybrid!
Edited by H20Fidelity - 10/21/12 at 5:37am