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Philips Fidelio S1 and S2 - New IEMs with semi-closed back

Jul 27, 2013 at 10:33 AM Post #211 of 367
Quote:
dsnuts said:
Don't know if you guys know but I also own the X1. If you guys want to supersize the sound that is coming out of your S1/S2 I highly recommend looking into the Fidelio X1..Love having my S2 on the go and my X1 at home..
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!!
you've caught my interest dsnuts.
I loved the sound of the S1, i really liked it, i would use it as my day to day IEM.
However, the left earpiece stopped working and i sent it back to the seller for refund. 
The bad luck then continues as the item got lost on the way somewhere during shipment and I didn't get any insurance from auspost 
size]
 
99 bucks gone 
sigh 
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Aug 2, 2013 at 11:16 PM Post #214 of 367
Does anyone know how long the burn-in process for the S2 have to go on for? I've done about 40 hours and it's sounding really nice...
biggrin.gif

 
Steve
 
Aug 20, 2013 at 6:24 AM Post #217 of 367
Quote:
karistep said:
Can you compare with ba-200 tdk ?
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I was initially more or less satisfied with my s2 until I walked into a store the other day and auditioned the ba200 on impulse. Guess what, I immediately bought it on the spot. What's interesting is I used to own the ba200 a long time ago and sold it as I was determined to leave this hobby (the plan did not work, as you can tell).
 
BA200 sounds better to me as I really love its smooth, slightly warm, highly detailed yet laid back, realistic sound. S2 is slightly thinner and more v shaped which results in a fatiguing listening experience. S2 has excellent bass though, a bit more enjoyable than the BA200 but for everything else i feel the ba200 is an upgrade.
 
The biggest complaint I have of the s2 is its harsh treble and aggressive upper mids. Even on slightly above average volume I sometimes cringe from the overly sharp 'shh' and 'sss' and 'ts'. Cymbals sounds harsh too. Other than that its not that far behind the ba200. 
 
Aug 20, 2013 at 6:55 AM Post #218 of 367
I don't have much experience in this area, but after going into the headphones store and testing both the Philips S2 and the BA200, I also came to the conclusion that the BA200 was a better sounding set of IEMs as well. And best of all they were cheaper as well!
Quote:
omastic said:
I was initially more or less satisfied with my s2 until I walked into a store the other day and auditioned the ba200 on impulse. Guess what, I immediately bought it on the spot. What's interesting is I used to own the ba200 a long time ago and sold it as I was determined to leave this hobby (the plan did not work, as you can tell).
 
BA200 sounds better to me as I really love its smooth, slightly warm, highly detailed yet laid back, realistic sound. S2 is slightly thinner and more v shaped which results in a fatiguing listening experience. S2 has excellent bass though, a bit more enjoyable than the BA200 but for everything else i feel the ba200 is an upgrade.
 
The biggest complaint I have of the s2 is its harsh treble and aggressive upper mids. Even on slightly above average volume I sometimes cringe from the overly sharp 'shh' and 'sss' and 'ts'. Cymbals sounds harsh too. Other than that its not that far behind the ba200. 
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Aug 20, 2013 at 5:38 PM Post #219 of 367
Quote:
omastic said:
The biggest complaint I have of the s2 is its harsh treble and aggressive upper mids. Even on slightly above average volume I sometimes cringe from the overly sharp 'shh' and 'sss' and 'ts'. Cymbals sounds harsh too. Other than that its not that far behind the ba200. 
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This is also true for the S1. In the beginning I thought I have faulty headphones as nobody complained about those sharp 'sss'. However I had replaced them for another reason (splitting rubberized ring) and now I think the new set sounds better, I hardly hear that unpleasant sound. But maybe I have just gotten used to it.
 
Aug 21, 2013 at 8:07 PM Post #221 of 367
Quote:
omastic said:
The biggest complaint I have of the s2 is its harsh treble and aggressive upper mids. Even on slightly above average volume I sometimes cringe from the overly sharp 'shh' and 'sss' and 'ts'. Cymbals sounds harsh too. Other than that its not that far behind the ba200. 
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Quote:
majestictwelve said:
This is also true for the S1. In the beginning I thought I have faulty headphones as nobody complained about those sharp 'sss'. However I had replaced them for another reason (splitting rubberized ring) and now I think the new set sounds better, I hardly hear that unpleasant sound. But maybe I hav
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Harsh treble on both models?  I was really interested in these because I needed a open/semi open IEM.  Not really sure about them now.
 
Aug 21, 2013 at 8:14 PM Post #223 of 367
They don't have harsh treble..Keep burning them in and try different tips with a wide bore..They can sound treble happy on open box and with lesser optimal tips on them. Try using UE silicones or wider bore tips. Also these are very fit dependent so a proper tip can be the difference from having treble emphasis with loose bass and a proper sound.
 
The more I use these the better they sound. I have a good amount of burn in on them now too..The mids open up and balances out even better. My pair don't sound at all a U shape. They sound ruler flat to me or even a touch mid forward now.. One of my favorite in ears by far this year.
 
One of the things you potential buyer gotta know about these S1/S2s. I find the stage on these in ears to be something fantastic for in ears.. I compared these with some GR07 Be editions and the GR07s are not known to have a medium amount of stage. The S2 scales wonderfully to what ever power you put into it.
 
The GR07s stage sounds closed in when I tried them on the same source..It was immediately noticed.. I feel the S2 on a more powerful source is where they truly shine.
 
Aug 21, 2013 at 10:46 PM Post #224 of 367
Quote:
dsnuts said:
They don't have harsh treble..Keep burning them in and try different tips with a wide bore..They can sound treble happy on open box and with lesser optimal tips on them. Try using UE silicones or wider bore tips. Also these are very fit dependent so a proper tip can be the difference from having treble emphasis with loose bass and a proper sound.
 
The more I use these the better they sound. I have a good amount of burn in on them now too..The mids open up and balances out even better. My pair don't sound at all a U shape. They sound ruler flat to me or even a touch mid forward now.. One of my favorite in ears by far this year.
 
One of the things you potential buyer gotta know about these S1/S2s. I find the stage on these in ears to be something fantastic for in ears.. I compared these with some GR07 Be editions and the GR07s are not known to have a medium amount of stage. The S2 scales wonderfully to what ever power you put into it.
 
The GR07s stage sounds closed in when I tried them on the same source..It was immediately noticed.. I feel the S2 on a more powerful source is where they truly shine.
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You are right, may be I have not burned them in fully yet. About the fit though, I am confident I am getting a good fit as the isolation is fine and I can hear all the way down to 30Hz in seal test. I have tried enough IEMs to know when the seal is not right!
 
It is only the lower treble that I find harsh, and A/B ing with the BA200 I definitely hear unwanted peaks in the upper mids and trebles, which leads to sharp "s" sounds and somewhat shouty vocals on occasions. The harshness is less noticeable on instrumental tracks though. Its the vocals that I find troublesome. The "s" sounds simply lingers for too long!
 
I will continue to burn it in and see if there are any improvements!
 
Aug 21, 2013 at 10:58 PM Post #225 of 367
I remember them having a more pronounced treble perhaps for the first 100-200 hours or so. It does take a bit of time. The treble sounds great to me now though. I am certain the mids open up a bit more too which gives them a better sound overall.. Keep at it. Leave em playing overnight if you can.
 
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