[babya]

JVC HA-FX33 "Marshmallows"
Really nice design -mine are the black finish models, very professional in style and the eartips are foam for a impressive seal.

Cord has a a length slider and is 1.2m.

These are wonderful sounding earphones and I listened to some Depeche Mode songs and noticed that sound was quite nice with -great mids and lows, powerful bass and highs.

Then, Michael Jackson's "beat it", showcased the SQ-packed punch.
Overall. I'm impressed with all areas of the HA-FX33.

 

[lewislink]

Head Direct RE2 canalphones continued...

Unfortunately, the company that produces these phones doesn't seem to be very supportive. I've had a support request in to them for the last few days and have not had a response. I'll give till the end of the week...actually till next Monday before I make a determination on whether I got screwed out of $100.

 

[tstarn06]

You will not be screwed by Fang at Head-Direct. He's an honest Head-Fi vendor. Sometimes it just takes time to hear back from him, but he's never ripped anyone off that I know of. You can check the Head-Direct feedback, posts, etc.

 

[lewislink]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tstarn06 /img/forum/go_quote.gif You will not be screwed by Fang at Head-Direct. He's an honest Head-Fi vendor. Sometimes it just takes time to hear back from him, but he's never ripped anyone off that I know of. You can check the Head-Direct feedback, posts, etc.

That's cool, thanks.

I needed to read that.

 

[lewislink]

JVC HA-FX33 Marshmallow canalphones

I just had to buy a set of these and hear for myself how good they are praised to be. Being a $20 set of phones isn't too bad just for experimenting so I went to WalMart and made my purchase of the white ones. I noticed the two additional foam sleeves and figured there might be more in the package but there were not.

Pulling my Altec Lansing iM616s out...I dearly love those phones...I squeezed the JVC foams and inserted. I was lead to believe these were heavy on bass but the seal wouldn't hold well enough to produce any bass at all. I couldn't achieve decent bass without holding pressure on them. Either that or maintaining a grin like the Joker in Batman. If I do the grin, I get good bass. I tried and tried to get a good seal with these 33s but just couldn't do it. When I got home I pulled out the collection of silicone sleeves I have and opted to use the dual flanges from the Head Direct RE2s I have. Finally I have good bass and good seal. They are indeed heavy on bass but they have great tonality. The bass can be lowered through an EQ and these would be an excellent alternative to the high priced phones like the Ety6s and such.

These Marshmallows produce a very nice soundstage and a crisp and clean overall quality. they can't compete with the UE3s or Klipsch Custom-1s but I guarantee if I had to choose a low cost set of phones, these babies would be them. However, I can get the Air Cushions for the same price as these and ANTOnline had them even lower and would buy those instead. Not because these don't sound as good but because I can get a better seal with the ACs.

I've been using the AL 616s all day and actually for the most part of the last 3 days and have become accustomed to their sound. Using these Marshmallows made me want to break out my old favorites, the Air Cushions, and listen with them a little while. After putting them in and starting up the music on my D2, I did some EQ adjusting and have it set where these ACs are producing a sound quality very similar to the ALs and Ety6s. They aren't to the level of the UE3s but they do sound great.

 

[lewislink]

Crossroads Mylarone XBi canalphones

The original set of these XBi's faulted out with shrinking cable encasement after about 2 months usage, The left phone was the first to go and that's when I put them away. I don't know what the chemical composition of the rubber or plastic casing was but it definitely needed to be improved.

The sound quality was great when I used them but at that time I hadn't gotten into the higher end brands like Ultimate Ears, Etymotic Research and so forth and didn't have a better reference point. These were the best I had and I felt they were excellent sounding with plenty of bass response. The "B" in XBi designates them to be enhanced bass whereas the other model, the X3i, is the standard or normal version.

Nevertheless, I decided to get warranty support for them and just received the replacements. These are entirely different from the original pair. The originals were all black but these are all white. No matter tpo me, I kind of prefer white to black in headphones. I haven't had the chance to listen to them but "I'll get a round tuit".

 

[lewislink]

Crossroads Mylarone XBI canalphones continued...

These are alright, I suppose, but the sound I'm hearing can't compete with the other phones in my signature. I used to like the sound from these phones but after having experienced the sound from those other phones, these are hardly worth listening to. I'm certainly not saying they have a bad sound, by no means, they sound very good for their class. I would probably prefer these to a set of iFrogs, Griffin Tunebuds, Beyerdynamics, Zen Aurvanas, Lenntek Sonix and so forth.

Since becoming accustomed to the quality of sound the Ultimate Ears, Altec Lansings, Klipsch, Etymotics and such put out, I have a hard time even liking the JBL Reference 220s, which was once in my favorites list.

My advice would be, if you like the Mylarones, don't get into any of the onse listed directly above. You'll be glad.

 

[lewislink]

Altec Lansing iM-716 canalphones

These phones are made by Etymotic Research and are most likely based on the ER4s. I have a set of Ety6i's and they certainly don't sound quite as wonderful as the 716s. These have an inline volume pod and are identical in design to the iM-616...minus the pod. They have equal length cords to each ear, a very important factor for myself, and a 30 degree angled connector.

I've used these phones without an amp and with, and can say they do sound better with a decent amp. I've used them with a Practical Devices XM4 and a Nickyboyo CMOY amp and they sound better with the CMOY. They produce an extremely potent and dynamic sound with excellent low frequency response. The soundstage is quite awesome, the detail is right on the spot, with very little if any graininess to the sound and the definition is good, but could be better.

I believe I'm going to run these up to second place in my Favorites lists for now, till I've had opportunity to hear the UE3s with this amp. There's a couple things the UE3s have on these other phones, including both Altec models, is definition and outstanding soundstage. What i want to look for in the UE3s is detail, to see if the graininess I'm suspecting is there. The amp will help me determine this. If i do hear the graininess, the iM-716s will go to first place.

 

[lewislink]

Sennheiser CX500 canalphones

When i received these some time ago a preliminary fitting suggested extremely heavy bass mucking up the mids and highs. But after recently trying them out again my view is very much different. More to come and I'll do my best to explain what I now feel about these CX500s.

 

[lewislink]

Sennheiser CX500 canalphones continued...

After allowing myself an adjustment period to where my senses became acclimated to these phones, they began to show their worth. The bass, although heavy, is very defined and accurate. The mids and highs are aren't as sharp as others in their price range but it is definitely good. The highs, if I may provide an analogy, are similar to two pictures. One picture is of a very defined and sharp image, the other picture would be of the very same image but would be very slightly blurred...or a softened image. The softened image would be these CX500s and the sharp image would be the UE3s. Sometimes portraits are preferred with a softened touch. It adds to the quality of the image. That's the case with these CX500s, the softness of their mids and highs actually provides a particular quality that can be rather pleasant.

These phones are in the higher end class as much as the UE3, Altec iMs and the Ety6s. However, technology wise, they use the old dynamic driver. This is an example, to me, of how well a dynamic driver can sound. The soundstage is very good, as good as the UE3s. But the detail lacks a bit. I noted some very course sounding mids while using them. But it's nothing that would take away from the pleasant aspect of these phones. I could listen with these phones all day without any trouble whatsoever.

Are these phones worth the high MSRP? I doubt it considering other phones sound as well with better mids detail for much less cost. Would I choose these phones over the UE3s if they were the same price? That's difficult to say. It would have to boil down to other factors than sound, like fit and comfort and quality of construction because they both have outstanding sound quality and i would want both sets. Would I buy them along with the UE3s if they were the same price? Most definitely. These are worth having.

 

[lewislink]

Ultimate Ears Super fi-4

The UE4s have an MSRP of $130 for the standard version and $150 for the vi, which is iPhone accessorized. For that price you receive a phone with a single balanced armature driver in a small, traditional style shape. They are made of metal and the nozzle is the usual large style. They can be easily worn over the ear or hanging down and sit deeply into the ear with no protrusion at all.

Comments on sound quality will come once I've had time with them.

 

[babya]

Philips SBC HE590 "Virtual Surround":

Paid $10 for these interesting reflecter driver system based earphones.

Philips's patented reflector driver system is used for "virtual surround"-very unique and it produces a surround-like sound, which is intriguing.

The sound is phenomenal-and the "virtual surround" effect is very immersive.

The earpieces will not work with any other eartip-as the driver in these is round and slightly larger than a small eartip.

 

[lewislink]

Ultimate Ears Super fi-4 continued...

I tell you, if you listen to the Sennheiser CX500s, like I was doing prior to plugging these in, for any period of time, the next set you put in, these UE4s as an example, they won't sound too good for some reason. The CX500s have a quality of sound that, once adjusted to it, is very pleasing and enjoyable.

I went straight to these UE4s after doing an extensive listening period with the CX500s and I just didn't like what I was hearing. The sound seemed colored and boring and there was a distinctive hall effect going on where it sounds similar to the sound made by talking into a tube, like an empty roll from paper towels. I knew I needed to give them time but I wasn't encouraged at all. Then, after a night of sleep and then using some different phones for a while, I put these back in and was presented with a very pleasing sound quality. I wouldn't say the sound quality of the previous day was gone, I just wasn't hearing it as unpleasant. The sound is not like the UE3s, not as good, but is certainly not bad.

I would characterize the sound as high quality generic. It doesn't have the presence or air of the UE3s, nor the soundstage. They seem to have a hazy Etymotic ER-6i sound to them. Actually, a more accurate description would be, they have a flat sound, lifeless sound. But they do sound very good in comparison with the majority of lower end lines like the JVCs, Skullcandys and such as those.

 

[lewislink]

Ultimate Ears Triple fi-10 Pro canalphones

Okay, I can now stop my search for the best canalphone! I'm listening to the best, right now. Seriously, these are some stunning phones. The sound they produce isn't perfect but is the closest I've heard to perfect.

My current setup:

iAudio 7 w/OGG@500KB/s (ripped to OGG directly from the CD with dbPoweramp set to the securest mode with 3-pass checking)
Practical Devices XM4 portable amp w/audiophile grade interconnect
Comply foams

I just now received them but am already stunned by their sound. Talk about rich, velvety, open, airy, effortless sound. The other makers can pack up and go on home, it's done.

j/k

Morfe to come

 

[lewislink]

Ultimate Ears Triple fi-10 Pro canalphones continued...

These have an incredible high volume performance. There more signal you throw at them the better they sound all the way up to ear damage levels. I felt like I was at the stage of a concert, next to the main speakers, when I accidentally increased the volume on my amp tremendously. I think these would make an excellent Rock/Punk Rock/Heavy Metal listener's canalphones. They certainly put out a very powerful sound that just has absolute zero distortion...as far as what the ear can hear. The sound is rich, defined, has high definition and the more signal they receive the more these characteristics increase.

Not that these are only for those genres mentioned above, but they are excellent with modern instrumental Jazz. I don't want it to sound like they are limited to particular genres of music, that isn't what I'm saying at all. I listen to Jazz and these do an outstanding job of conveying the quality of particular instruments. The sax is conveyed in way that the spit can be heard slathering around, getting in the way of the orifice...well, at least it seems.