Got my space grey APMs a couple of days ago, after a 4 month wait. So far I am sold on them.
Compared to my hitherto much loved H9 Gen 3:
Comfort - Top notch. People go on about the weight, but I really don't notice it. Much more comfy than my H9s, and the fabric ear pads are a (rather obvious?) stroke of genius. The B&O lamb skin is nice, but it gets hot and sweaty and I was constantly having to shift them about on my head.
ANC - bliss. Shut that damn noisy world out. Thank you Apple. Much better than the H9's.
Transparency - Crazy good.
Ease of use - 1 button and 1 rotary dial, again, genius. The H9's fiddly slide controls are bloody awful, and no ability to turn them off. Fail.
Battery - I get an easy 22-23 hours from them. Not class leading, but plenty long enough for my listening stints.
Integration - It's Apple, therefore top tier. Solid connection, no random pops and clicks like the H9s, just a robust and stable experience at far greater distances than my H9s can manage. I even like the battery level on my iPhone widget. Nice.
Ease of use - Again, it's Apple. Just take them of the silly bra and they connect to what ever they're near. Brilliant - if you're in the Apple world obviously, but I've also connected them to non Apple devices with zero issues, but it's the polish of the Apple ecosystem that makes the experience better overall.
Volume - Much louder than the H9. Absolutely no distortion, although on the iPhone the last couple of volume clicks noticeably attenuate the bass down, but my Apple TV 4Ks and Macs don't do that. Curious.
Sound signature - Big, chunky, open, clear, vivid, bright and instantly foot tapping. And that is what I go for. I don't care for ultimate clarity and accuracy, or some arbitrary frequency plot some bloke decided is 'best' some years ago, I just go for subjective foot tappiness, and these just sound so damned good right out of the box. Audiophilia is a rabbit hole I don't go down - constantly chasing a subjective level perfection that may or may not even exist. If a product sounds good, it sounds good, period. I don't feel it needs any scrutiny beyond what is objectively a great sound at the price level, imo, but I get that Audiophiling is a hobby to some folk.
Build quality - Excellent. Utter beasts. They will last for years.
Styling - I think they're kind of ugly like Helicopter pilot headsets personally, but I didn't buy them to win any beauty contests. The H95 is more my bag, but their sound signature didn't quite float my boat.
For context I listen to EDM, House and Garage. I'm not an Apple butt boy, or a B&O bad ass (I have many products from many brands), I'm just a fan of high quality gear, regardless of who makes it.
Considering how lame Airpods and Beats are, I'm shocked Apple have pulled these out of the bag with such aplomb.
Are the APMs Apple's own work, or do we suspect a well known audio company, <cough, B&O>, had a hand in them? I mean, who else are experts in aluminium and fabric when it comes to high end Audio gear? If it is all Apple, I tip my hat to them.
In short, I like them. Expectations exceeded and well worth the coin, imo.
Compared to my hitherto much loved H9 Gen 3:
Comfort - Top notch. People go on about the weight, but I really don't notice it. Much more comfy than my H9s, and the fabric ear pads are a (rather obvious?) stroke of genius. The B&O lamb skin is nice, but it gets hot and sweaty and I was constantly having to shift them about on my head.
ANC - bliss. Shut that damn noisy world out. Thank you Apple. Much better than the H9's.
Transparency - Crazy good.
Ease of use - 1 button and 1 rotary dial, again, genius. The H9's fiddly slide controls are bloody awful, and no ability to turn them off. Fail.
Battery - I get an easy 22-23 hours from them. Not class leading, but plenty long enough for my listening stints.
Integration - It's Apple, therefore top tier. Solid connection, no random pops and clicks like the H9s, just a robust and stable experience at far greater distances than my H9s can manage. I even like the battery level on my iPhone widget. Nice.
Ease of use - Again, it's Apple. Just take them of the silly bra and they connect to what ever they're near. Brilliant - if you're in the Apple world obviously, but I've also connected them to non Apple devices with zero issues, but it's the polish of the Apple ecosystem that makes the experience better overall.
Volume - Much louder than the H9. Absolutely no distortion, although on the iPhone the last couple of volume clicks noticeably attenuate the bass down, but my Apple TV 4Ks and Macs don't do that. Curious.
Sound signature - Big, chunky, open, clear, vivid, bright and instantly foot tapping. And that is what I go for. I don't care for ultimate clarity and accuracy, or some arbitrary frequency plot some bloke decided is 'best' some years ago, I just go for subjective foot tappiness, and these just sound so damned good right out of the box. Audiophilia is a rabbit hole I don't go down - constantly chasing a subjective level perfection that may or may not even exist. If a product sounds good, it sounds good, period. I don't feel it needs any scrutiny beyond what is objectively a great sound at the price level, imo, but I get that Audiophiling is a hobby to some folk.
Build quality - Excellent. Utter beasts. They will last for years.
Styling - I think they're kind of ugly like Helicopter pilot headsets personally, but I didn't buy them to win any beauty contests. The H95 is more my bag, but their sound signature didn't quite float my boat.
For context I listen to EDM, House and Garage. I'm not an Apple butt boy, or a B&O bad ass (I have many products from many brands), I'm just a fan of high quality gear, regardless of who makes it.
Considering how lame Airpods and Beats are, I'm shocked Apple have pulled these out of the bag with such aplomb.
Are the APMs Apple's own work, or do we suspect a well known audio company, <cough, B&O>, had a hand in them? I mean, who else are experts in aluminium and fabric when it comes to high end Audio gear? If it is all Apple, I tip my hat to them.
In short, I like them. Expectations exceeded and well worth the coin, imo.