Saturday attendee reporting and just about managed to see the things I wanted to, hitting 90% of exhibits. Will have to attend both days next year and especially if CanJam London 2016 is bigger and badder Please wrap spoiler tags around photos if quoting this post! Select individual photos to view full-size. Apologies for any focus issues (blame me, not the Samsung Note 4). My writing is from memory only having not taken any notes and so may contain inaccuracies.
Leaving the house - so early!
Exiting Russell Square Station
Main entrance
Getting lost. Please just tell me which way??!!?
Preview behind the scenes before opening time. And the award for the biggest sign and best in show brand placement goes to...
IEM Clinic tables
Registered!
New HE400S and HE1000!!!
The good people of HFM explained that they normally do not attend shows with other manufacturer sources, but made an exception for the Chord Hugo TT. Convenient as i am already familiar with the Hugo TT sound (please see my
six-page review in the Head Gear section). The chap in front of me (not the person in the photo) remarked he thought the soundstage was too much and did not like the HE1000. Booting up Bruno Mars the soundstage is very wide but without the occasional distracting jaggedness or pointedness of the HD800 soundstage. Good separation, killer bass, very good tonal quality and no peaks or troughs. Not a headphone that seeks to artificially attract your attention by boosting a frequency but rather a headphone that is confident in all areas. There is an effortlessness to the presentation that lot many headphones get quite right. This is a definite top-tier headphone with a price to match. Very comfortable to wear with the strap and in person the styling of the cups is alright.
Fostex! i just feel their adjacent neighbour HFM is pushing harder in the headphone arena right now and on the earphones front, RHA was opposite with cheaper and better earphones.
Questyle secured prominent placement in the Show Guide. Knowing nothing about them (my wallet has resisted the revival of 'audiophile' daps) this little device blew me away. Very solid build and nice weight. Colour is pretty. The control scheme could do with some work. Detection of gestures on the scroll wheel was inconsistent and for me any tech has to pass the "usability without reading the manual". The normal scrolling up and down a list and using the centre button itself was fine although could do with fast scrolling being built-into the software. All that aside the sound is really to my liking. I have always found A&K to be a touch too dark and low-end weighty for my personal tastes. The clarity of the QP1 sound was really impressive. Clear, good timbre, extended and just the right amount of fullness. No apparent boosting of different frequencies and very good balance. With my Shure SE846 the extension and impact is as good as i have ever heard them. Really enjoying the bass rumble.
Pendulumic's wireless headphone has a built-in rechargeable battery and also removable triple-AAA batteries giving an extra 8-hours playback. Despite this they felt very light. Still frustrated by my lack of a wireless headphone...
My man in front explained that he was queuing
only for the Blue Hawaii. After patiently waiting and also accidentally losing my place because Peter manning the table who is absolutely delightful and charming (nothing to do with my being a Pico Power owner i am sure), the Stax combination is best of show for me. There is an effortlessness to the presentation that pulled it ahead of the GS-X and HE1000 setup. The previous poster mentioned there was a cold edge to the HE1000 and which is noticeable against the Stax system, which i would agree with though for me it was
slight. This was not something i encountered with the earlier Hugo TT pairing so perhaps there is a system synergy consideration. I was not under the impression there is a production output factor in play. i did not ask about the price of the SR-009 and BH system
. All other manufacturers need to pay attention to HeadAmp because as far as build quality and finish goes they are on it, right down to the accessories like the perfectly form-fitting leather portable amplifier case.
Currently in the market for new cables. This HK brand offers interesting cables and it was good to get the opportunity to test, even in such a short time. As someone who buys for ergonomics first, the silver and gold TOTL did enhance my SE846 bass whilst taming the hard treble edge of the stock cable. The copper wire was warmer sounding and quite nice. A toss-up between either.
Easily the hardest working guy at the show. Not the only exhibitor with a lone representative but nobody else had as many testing pods - and they at least sat down! Brannan thought it was funny that my CanJam spend will dictate whether i can get a PS4 and MGSV in September (the answer: no, due to subsequent purchases in the next suite, c'est la vie). Managed to secure the chair in front of the Chord Hugo, with Savant and K10. The Savant is more balanced sounding but not as flat as Etymotic. There is still a punchiness. Turning to the K10 (the show is not my first listen), my Shure SE846 has greater sub-bass quantity and impact. Some ears would perceive it as boosted. For all round balance, the K10 bass quantity is still good and could not be accused as boosted. The midrange on K10 is better than SE846 and there is an ethereal quality. Treble would go to the K10 again. Extended but without some of the annoyances of the SE846 treble presentation. BTS worked great with my Samsung Note 4. I did find the BT connection took some of the low end extension away from my Shure SE846 but of course you are measuring that against wireless convenience.
Speaking of which then, linum BaX cable purchased for my SE846. The Super BaX difference was very slight. i think what others have posted in the linum thread about what the current cable does to the SE846 sound is a touch overstated. I did sign up for the Super pre-order list also though.
Sennheisser know how to put on an exhibit. Busy busy, put it off hoping there would be a return chance.
i know i know, but next week
finally my Fostex TH900 will be in a close encounter with Custom-Cable's demo Pioneer SE-Master1 for a mini-showdown (i think the Pioneer rep mentioned Custom Cable will secure a number of the UK units but please ask
@PhilW rather than quoting me). Please look out in the Pioneer thread for the forthcoming ramblings. For now i will only add that Tidal was one of the winners of the show in that seemingly
everyone with a computer or notebook were running Tidal
HFM and Oppo seem to be in their personal battle to improve on the ergonomics and comfort of planar technology, although there is clearly only one winner if we are discussing design. Audeze need to step up and their lack of recognition is bewildering. Since testing the PM3 earlier this year, Oppo have refreshed the blue and red colours. The red seemed more vibrant. I was advised that the paler blue was deliberate. Connection to Samsung Note 4 was automatic but i did find a touch of interference. Hmm. The build quality and finish of the HA-2 is really lovely. The form factor is perfect. Going to hit up the HA-2 thread about EMI
That is Andy Shiach, the founder of ACS. Privileged buyee. He should not wash that side of his face until at least Wednesday.
@moedawg140 posted a review about sesaphonics sleeve for his SE846. He dropped occasional mentions to sleeve up my SE846. Unfortunately sensaphonics are a US company. Fortunately snugs were in attendance at CanJam. They even had a demonstration half-sleeve and full-sleeve demonstration on each earpiece of the Shure SE846 that belonged to one of the employees. After patiently answering far too many of my questions sat down for a 3D scan of my ears. Quick and simple. Now the wait...
i was on the UK review tour of the T20 (
link) so my attention was on the new budget S500i, which
officially is debuting in Germany next month. My
unofficial quick impressions of the S500i then are that it borrows many physical design cues of the RHA line. Cable still seems very long. In terms of sound i thought it was fuller than the thinner sounding Fostex earphones and with more bass. Still think the T20 at £179 - cheaper than other earphones - represents a fine purchase for anyone who does not want to shoot for four-figure universals. Woo Audio sadly was not in attendance but by a random quirk of happenstance, the RHA guys have a WA7 to take with them to every show
KEF brought new product in the M400 headphones and M100 earphones. The existing M500 was also in attendance. Just like the M500, the M400 and M100 need more juice than other manufacturer offerings to drive properly. I would like it if KEF made their line more sensitive. Anyway the M400 seems to be darker than the M500 in that the mid-range and treble is not as forward and lacks the quality and resolution of the M500. The M100 earphone shares the same colour scheme. Nice bass rumble although i still think the RHA T20 is a better sounding earphone
The guys at Audio-Technica asked if i know about the Sony MDR-1R. "Sure, i purchased the mk2 in Tokyo". There are definite physical design similarities. Without having my Sony to hand, the AT seems to have more of a treble lift, so it is a matter of preference. The headphone lacked the usual colouration of AT headphones (being an ex-ESW9 owner). This apparently was deliberate to go head-to-head with competitors and the Sony MDR-1R was again mentioned. AT say they are still working on the headband and are looking at one with more comfort and give. On that note i do think the 1R is still the comfort king.
Disappointingly the Usain Bolt inspired "yellow" edition was not present as from the flyer it looked much better than anything on the table. They say Usain consulted on the rugged sports version, so you can twist the headband (reminiscent of my previous German Maestro) and it is sweat resistant
i was quietly impressed by AKG's new headphone. After getting over the £1300 sticker shock, it was time to sit down for a listen. After the headphone scanned my ear to deliver a "personalised sound" i liked my brief listen. Very good passive isolation, no doubt assisted by the big comfortable pads that sit around the ear. Big soundstage. Good texture and impact to the bass. Good clarity to the vocal. Definitely something to explore further. i for one liked the colour scheme.
New product. User-replaceable cups. Different materials. Even 3D printing. The gold there is actually gold-plated brass, though apparently some rich Saudi Arabian customers have ordered solid gold cups. Did ask about scratches and apparently there is a VM screwdriver that will prevent shredding and accidents. After pairing with my Samsung Note 4 this is definitely a dark bass-heavy signature, though not to the extent of Beats. Can see this doing well for a certain demographic.
IEM clinic table! This is just a mere fraction of what was available. I cannot remember the top photo but really enjoyed the sound. Arrgh!
This side room completely passed me by (yes, i know it is on the map). The amp has lots of Creative technologies harnessed from their computing expertise. And you know what, it does make a tangible difference. The price of £170 was a surprise as i was expecting it to begin with a "2" such is the abundance of features and connectivity. N.B. Samsung smartphone owners should avoid updating to Lollipop if they wish to pair with this, no ETA on a Samsung fix and who knows if that will happen with new models recently announced...
HD630 VB checking in! In the background is my complete set of stamps (was not intending to participate in anticipation of only attending for one-day, but actually it was only 16-exhibitors to collect). Quite comfortable to wear despite being on the larger side. It was being driven easily by a tethered portable dap though it is more home headphone proportioned. The variable bass is a nice consumer touch though the show was a touch loud to fully verify anything. The effect was nevertheless tangible. Smooth and no distortion. Good job. For a closed headphone the soundstage was quite good. Presumably people will want to compare with the Fostex TH600. Isolation was respectable and the worst excesses of show conditions was filtered out.
Obviously had to go back to the HeadAmp table before heading home
Those droplets is the British weather right on cue. Think spread it out over two-days next year!
Back to the start of the day. This was taken a few moments before bumping into Jude, who wanted to make it clear he had taken a back seat and it is these guys (and a few others not pictured) that deserve the credit for making the show happen. Indeed. Great show to everyone involved!