[killerweed]

Also wanted to thank you for this great review. Taking your cue, I listened to that Krall album too, and wow, you are on the money with your descriptions. I feel happy that the BA200s were less than $150. Coming from a musician, the praise has an extra layer of credibility.
Quote:

TDK BA200 Impressions.
 
My first venture into the IEM world past the $200 mark, I got the Ba200 2 weeks ago and it sounded hollow and everything sounded like its at a 45* angle. I couldn't stand listening for more than 5 minutes.i tried everything from switching amps, sources, even replaced the filters and it didn't do anything to improve (nor to correct) the sound. Reading all the reviews from very respectable reviewers here, I thought to myself, they are probably defective. So I got them replaced by the dealer (They have great service). and lo and behold, I was right! My first pair were in fact, defective.
 
Now this new unit sounds a lot different. The previously muffled highs came to life, everything sounded balanced with each instrument placed where the engineers wanted them to be. I was really impressed, so much that I wanted to share my personal opinion about these particular IEMs. As a disclaimer, I am just getting into the IEM scene. I never write reviews, and in fact this will be my very first. (If you would call my impressions a review). But i do have over 15 years experience as a professional musician and coming from the Conservatory of Music, listening to my own instrument (Piano and percussions) and my buddies practice their individual instrument day in and day out. So I would say I have a pretty good idea of how each instrument should sound. (But do take my opinion as it is....My opinion) In the interest of being consistent, I will be comparing the BA200 to how I remember live music and to my old trusty RE0.
 
Setup:
 
Listening to Diana Krall's "The Girl in the Other Room" Album in FLAC played on a very weird setup ---- A Macbook Pro connected to an FiiO E10 via USB (I know its not ideal but because the E10 has coax input) with the line out connected to a Cary Audio Design sli-30 integrated tube amplifier. (Yes it is not a headphone amp). I also use the stock comply tips.
 
Now on to the sound/Soundstage and other stuff on a particular track "The Girl in the Other Room"
 
Highs:
 
The ride cymbal is slightly to the left of the stage, hi-hats almost dead center (A little to the left), cymbals crashes with attack at both sides extending a few inches past the left of your left ear and right of your right ear with just the right amount of reverb. I agree it does not have the sparkling highs of say the RE0, but the soundstage is pretty good. Air and timbre are both correct and very natural (More natural than the RE0) (I tried the bi-flanges and they sound more detailed, but also less natural with the sound that seems piped out of a thin hollow tube. (So back to the comply tips)
 
Mids/high Mids:
 
Guitars playing at the lower left side is clear and fast that notes do not linger to distract you from the spaces in between. Diana's voice is at the center stage in front of everything else, with reverbs decay slightly to the right and are textured but I wont describe them as smooth. Her vocals have a little bit of grit as if you can hear her vocal flaps vibrate. Piano's slightly to the right but lower octaves dead center or just a little to the left with an airy sound as if in a large, but slightly dampened studio. Not totally dry
 
Bass/Lower Mids:
 

The bass (Upright) sounds full with string noise present with a few fret noises here and there. The bass drum, while not as had hitting, does have pretty good impact. This is where I wish it had a little bit more kick. These are not bass light but I would say kick it up a tad at the 90-120hz region to give it a little more kick. (But I don't use EQs). The best part is, that the bass is present and does not overpower everything else. Midbass is also present but just so that vocals sound warm but not nasal and muddy. I would say, just right...
 
Transients/Speed/Attack:
 
These have good speed with the right amount of attack. Transients come off strong with the snare drum sounding powerful and quick with just the right amount of decay. I can guess these may have the tendency to get muddy with fast and sub-bass-ey tracks with a lot of percussions. I dont know...
Instrument separation is good with just the right amount of space between them. What I like is the air in between hard hitting notes, because of a very fast mid-midbass response, can stop on a dime and open up these spaces.
 
But enough of the technicalities.
 
These are very musical with a very engaging and "true" timbre especially with cymbals and guitar string noise. Vocals are intimate, but can sometimes sound just a little bit artificial with the upper "hiss-grit" of voices sounding a little too emphasized). Instruments sound as if they were well put together. Unlike  in the RE0's where each instrument seem like they sitting on each of their own separate track, the BA200 can put instruments together and actually sing with melody. I find listening to them is very relaxing and I am not forced to analyze every detail or compare how they sound to all my other equipment.
 
 
I wouldn't use them on stage though because I am afraid I will break the complicated armatures if I use them as my monitor while playing. They sound as if they are delicate, and probably because of my experience with the faulty unit, I am a little paranoid...So I will do my very best to take care of these little gems.
 
Overall I am inclined to think that the BA200s were designed to reach out to both my professional and technical side without ignoring the casual listener in me. They are detailed, natural sounding, fun, and can be analytical if I want them to be. These do everything well without overly exposing a lot of recording faults, but still technical enough to be considered reference.
 
I would recommend them to those that are new to IEMs as their upgrade from an entry level phone. I consider these mid level as they are in many ways, ahead of my RE0.

 

[Annafrancesca]

Also wanted to thank you for this great review. Taking your cue, I listened to that Krall album too, and wow, you are on the money with your descriptions. I feel happy that the BA200s were less than $150. Coming from a musician, the praise has an extra layer of credibility.

Thanks for appreciating. I am glad you are enjoying the ba200's. I also emptied my wallet on the Vsonic GR01 just a few days ago and waiting for them to get past the 50 hour mark. I will write another impression in a few days. But just to justify the ba200 purchase, I would say right out of the box, the ba200 sounds much more ear friendly...the GR01 feels like its shouting all the "S's" the "Sh's" and the "th's". Initial impressions....the BA200 are still my favorite.

 

[BobJS]

Selling mine :
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/635742/tdk-ba200-for-sale-barely-used

 

[Techno Kid]

I've had the BA200 for over a week now and I'm loving them.  They sound so smooth with better than expected detail after reading some reviews, they're just as detailed as any other multi BA IEM I've heard.  Also they're more balanced than I thought and not mid-centric with the mids having nice spacing but not sounding V-shaped in anyway.  My other favorite part is the soundstage which has a little bit more width compared to the e-Q5 and it reminds me of the RE262's soundstage also which I loved.  They also have a good left right effect which works great with edm.  For $150 these are really hard to beat and should be on anyone's short list that's looking for a well priced warm detailed BA with a monitor like signature.

 

[killerweed]

Agree. Guess they are not for everyone. But to me, they are a very very nice phone for the money. They also like an amp if you have a decent one.

 

[Techno Kid]

Quote:

Agree. Guess they are not for everyone. But to me, they are a very very nice phone for the money. They also like an amp if you have a decent one.

 
I'm using my FiiO E11 and they do sound better amp'ed with of course more bass as I have it on EQ 2 and the mids feel a bit more forward along with more crisp sounding highs.  I'm loving them and they're the smoothest IEM I've heard but they still have enough energy to not make edm sound boring and they sound a lot like the e-Q5 imo. Yesterday I was comparing them to my buddies W4 and they held their own nicely, now the W4 had a bit more micro detail and a larger soundstage but the BA200's soundstage is no slouch either.

 

[jv92red]

So after reading this thread I feel like the reviews infer these IEM's are more musical than a GR07, would this be a fair assessment?  Anybody who currently owns or who has owned the RE262, how do the BA200 compare to the RE262?  I have been looking at the RE262 as they excel in mid performance but the reviews with treble/bass performance are mixed so I'm worried to take the plunge on them.  If these BA200 can give me better performance on treble/bass regions than the RE262 and still hold their own against the RE262 in the mids then I will need to consider these.  I was looking at the T-Peos H100 as well but after reading through that thread that the mids may be a little recessed for my liking so my search lead me here.

 

[Techno Kid]

I sold my RE262 to help me fund getting the BA200 and for me I like the BA200 more.  I'm more of a balanced armature person and I love how the BA200 sounds, its every bit as smooth as the RE262 but I like the signature of the BA200 more plus they have much more bass than the very bass light RE262.  Both have spacious soundstages so it a draw there but I like the imaging on the BA200 a bit more than the RE262.  The BA200 also has more prominent highs with a good amount of sparkle so coupled with the better bass I think the BA200 is a bit better than the RE262 over all plus you can get the TDK for the same price as the RE262 on ebay.

 

[nick n]

Techno how do the highs and detail on these compare to the H-100 from memory ?
 
Thx

 

[aras]

Quote:

 
I'm using my FiiO E11 and they do sound better amp'ed with of course more bass as I have it on EQ 2 and the mids feel a bit more forward along with more crisp sounding highs.  I'm loving them and they're the smoothest IEM I've heard but they still have enough energy to not make edm sound boring and they sound a lot like the e-Q5 imo. Yesterday I was comparing them to my buddies W4 and they held their own nicely, now the W4 had a bit more micro detail and a larger soundstage but the BA200's soundstage is no slouch either.

 
Can you comment on the un-amped bass response compared to EPH-100 and e-q5 ?

 

[Techno Kid]

Well the e-Q5 and EPH-100 have a bit more bass impact and depth over the BA200 but if you just EQ the bass from your pmp then the bass can sound quite good imo.  As most know I listen to a lot of edm and the BA200 has plenty of bass for me and if amp'ed or EQ'ed they bass is on par with the e-Q5, I actually like the texture of the BA200's bass over the e-Q5.

 

[aras]

Thanks TechnoKid! Just wondering what did you dislike about the EPH-100 ?

 

[Techno Kid]

The highs had a metallic kind of sound to them that I didn't like but other than that they were good but not near as good as the BA200 imo.

 

[aras]

I'm really tempted to buy the BA200, however I'm just worried about the bass response. EPH-100 has the perfect bass response for me, so BA200 looks like will be downgrade for me and I'm not planning to use any amp with it. I listen to EDM a lot so bass is quite important for me

 

[Techno Kid]

Well the EPH-100 does have more bass but like I said if you just use the EQ on your player you can get the bass to sound good for edm plus the mids and highs along with the soundstage are all quite a bit better than the EPH-100.  I like bass also but I don't put it as high as mids, treble and soundstage because imo you can all was adjust the bass to get it to where you like but you can't do that with the mids..  EQ mids and high just make them sound off to me more so the mids than the highs but bass it doesn't do that.  So if bass is the most important to you than stick with the Yamys but if you want to hear great mids and nice highs that are better than the EPH-100 along with a better soundstage the BA200 is an excellent choice.  Or the e-Q5 which sounds a lot like the BA200 and the bass on thoughs are as good as the EPH-100 as far as impact and they are more detailed with better texture.