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[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)][size=17.03px]The Accutone Gemini HD is a Premium Experience With a Focus on Felixibility[/size][/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The Gemini HD certainly does feel like a high end pair of earphones. However, despite it’s high-end construction materials, I have some durability concerns that make me a little averse to its high price point. However, if you are prepared to baby your earphones, the detail and versatility of the sound signature may make these earphones the ones for you.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.439216)]Sound Signature[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The Gemini HD has a special feature, albeit not a unique one, that makes it a little more complex to review. It is capable of swapping tuning nozzles, little components that are screwed onto the driver housing, that modulate the sound signature. Unlike the sound filters utilized by the
Macaw GT100s, the tuning nozzles heavily change the sound signature of the Gemini HD. As such, I’ll break down each part of the sound signature into three sub-categories: one for each tuning filter.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Greens: The flat filter.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Blues: The highs filter.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Reds: The bass filter.[/color]
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Highs[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Greens: Highs are clear, and well balanced with the rest of the sound. They are detailed and capable of accurately relaying the beginning of
Detroit Rock City, by KISS. Additionally, the small grunt in the begging of Face To The Floor by Chevelle, which is inaudible with most of my other earphones, was clear and easy to distinguish.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]However, I did find that actual vocals can be rather flat and unappealing in certain songs on my Nexus 6P. Strangely, this wasn’t the case when the very same songs were played off of my desktop PC.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Blues: The highs were notable brought forward, and were very bright. It didn’t increase detail by any significant amount, and sacrificed attention to the mids and lows.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]An example of change would be the vocals of Inside Out by Eve 6. While the greens presented a very cohesive mix of vocals, high-hats, and guitars, the blues brought the vocals and high-hats in front of the guitars, making the vocals much more commanding of the song.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]When listening to electronic music, I found the highs to be fatiguing.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Reds: The highs of the reds are pretty shallow and flat. There isn’t much depth, and the highs take a back-seat to the mids and bass. While electronic music remains largely intact, I found rock songs to suffer from a lack of definition.[/color]
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Mids[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Greens: The mids are very appropriately defined in the greens. I appreciate it, as it helps fill out many of the songs that would otherwise have missing detail. For example, Fall by Daft Punk, and Overture, also by Daft Punk, had much of their detail restored by the greens.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Blues: The blues didn’t push the mids too far back, but made it difficult to distinguish fine detail that is present while using the greens.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Reds: The red filters seem to slightly amplify the lower-end of the mids. A welcomed change in electronic music such as Promises by Nero and many of Ellie Goulding’s songs.[/color]
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Lows[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Greens: The lows were much more in control and defined than with earphones such as the Thinksound Rain2. I really enjoy the depth they took on without blowing out the rest of the song. In Bloom by Nirvana, a song which is often abused by bass-heavy earphones, remained detailed and clear — an issue I took with the standard Gemini.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Far From Home by Five Finger Death Punch was reproduced exceedingly well by the Gemini HDs while using the greens. The lows and sub-bass were thundering without overpowering the finer parts of the song.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Blues: The lows are tapered off quite steeply with the blues in order to keep the highs in control and undistorted. I found that they remained detailed, but rather recessed.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Reds: The reds seem to be attempting to recreate
the sound signature of the standard Gemini. While I am personally not a fan, as I listen to more than just electronic music, I find that it does have a certain appeal to it.[/color]
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Bass[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Greens: Bass is controlled, but present. It doesn’t overwhelm the songs, but can resonate quite deeply when it needs to. For example, the bass in Lights (Bassnectar Remix) by Ellie Goulding was sonorous and deep without distorting or making the rest of the sound washed out.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Blues: The bass is less present than with the greens, but has almost the same sub-bass response.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Reds: Again, the bass-response of the reds is quite similar to that of the standard Gemini. It washes over the entire song and covers up the detail of the mids. While vocals manage to remain in control of the song as a whole, the bass wrestles the focus of the music away from almost all the other instruments.
Sound Isolation[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Sound isolation is really good with the Gemini HD. It’s above average for sure, and I am confident that the included Comply eartips have something to do with that. While washing dishes or doing the laundry, the Gemini HD managed to fend off all outside sounds, barring some loud metallic clangs from a pan I dropped.[/color]
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Sound Staging[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Sound staging is probably the most impressive part of these earphones. It has superb left / right separation, excellent width, and an above-average depth. It beats out every other in-ear solution
I’ve tested so far in this respect.[/color]
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[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.439216)]Comfort[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Comfort was not an issue at all. The Gemini HD comes with two pairs of Comply eartips — a welcome addition. However, for those of you that swear by silicone, you will be disappointed. The Gemini HD does not have them included in the original packaging.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The sharp angles of the Gemini HD’s design was not an issue for my ears, and the weight of the metal build did not weigh the driver housing down too heavily. However, like the standard Gemini, it is not possible to lay on one’s side while using these earphones.[/color]
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[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.439216)]Portability[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]I found that the Gemini HD was pretty portable. However, my usual qualm with Accutone products is their apparent need to include rather large in-line controls with all their products. I find it unnecessarily bulky. Additionally, the in-line controls, while a nice addition, make it difficult to coil the earphones up when attempting to put them back in their included carrying case or in my pocket.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.439216)]Durability[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Accutone claims to have made the Gemini HD entirely out of reclaimed aluminum and steel. Right off the bat, I take issue to this claim. While the driver housings are indeed made of metal, the inline controls are bona fide plastic, something that even the $60 Macaw GT100s was able to avoid.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Furthermore, the chrome part of the driver housing is merely paint. Underneath lies a white material. I do not know what it is, but it feels rather hard. You may be wondering, how do I know what is under the chrome paint? Well, funny story is, my unit is already chipped. I do not know how this happened, but no matter the reason, short of it being dropped (it hasn’t been), chipping on a $220 pair of earphones is unacceptable, especially in as short as 3 days.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]There is also a portion of the driver-housing made from brushed aluminum. I have kept my pair of earphones in their case when not in use, and yet the aluminum is already exhibiting minute dents and scratches. Not cool.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The cabling is another concern for me. While other earphone makers have made some reinforcements to the cabling of their products when they are made out of heavy materials such as metal, Accutone appears to not have actually done anything. The cable connections to the driver housing are direct, with no stress-relief mechanisms at all. While I doubt this is an issue for people who take good care of their headphones, any sort of rough usage will likely cause deterioration long run, more so than with other, lighter earphones.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.439216)]Inline Controls & Mic[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The inline controls are iOS compatible. While this is a frustrating inclusion for those of us with Android devices, it is an appreciable goodie for Apple users. It functions as intended on Apple devices, and even has pause/play/fast forward functionality on Android devices. However, I find that it feels rather cheap, as it is made out of a light and flimsy material. There is also a rather garish Accutone branding on the back which I find unnecessary.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.439216)]Accessories[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]The Gemini HD comes with two pairs of Comply eartips, three tuning nozzles, and a small leather case. I like how few extras there are, as I don’t really ever end up using any of the silly silicone eartips often included with other earphones, as I’ll generally opt to use Comply.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]However, I find the case in need of improvement. It’s essentially a white version of the one that came with the original Gemini. It’s also not very durable, and scratches and scars very easily. It’s not as good a solution as the pouch included with the Macaw GT100s, but is more protective than the likes of the Thinksound Rain2.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]Accutone also offers a complementary laser engraving service for the Gemini HD when you buy through their online store. I’ve gotten mine engraved, and it came out very well.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.439216)]Conclusion[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]While I find the Gemini HD has something for everyone sound-wise, is very comfortable, and styled well, I have a hard time recommending it to other because of my concerns with it’s durability. While I am confident that I can personally keep it in good working condition for a long time, I can make no such guaranties to to others. I also struggle with the price tag. While I do not think that it is worth the $220 MSRP it currently has, the discounted price of $128 on the
official Accutone online store makes it a little more attractive.[/color]
[color=rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)]In short, the Accutone Gemini HD is a versatile, but fragile, pair of earphones I can recommend to anyone confident in their headphone handling skills.[/color]