arunbupathy
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Mar 25, 2015
- Posts
- 19
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- 16
Having listened to the Vsonic's GR07 BE and GR07 Classic, and Hifiman's RE-400, I just wanted to give my two cents to those who are looking to buy any of these.
Disclaimer: I'm not a very seasoned audiophile!
Bass: The GR07 BE is the bassiest of them all but still the tonality of the original GR07 has been preserved. It is quite tastefully done too as the bass never bleeds into the mids. It rectifies a couple of minor, how should I put it, annoyances of the GR07 Classic and introduces a couple more. Let me explain: (1) The GR07 Classic has also a very mild bass boost, but it kind of hides its sub-bass extension. I often find myself straining a bit to hear the sub-bass notes. In comparison, the Hifiman RE-400, even though it has less bass, sounded better in this respect. But be warned that this is a subjective experience coming from me. There are many other Head-Fiers who're plenty happy with their bass/sub-bass tuning. The BE's bass boost, which lifts the sub-bass back to where it should be, is particularly noticeable coming from the Classic version. However, the entire bass range is lifted by a couple of decibels and I wouldn't call it natural. (2) The added bass-boost of the BE's offsets the somewhat splashy and sibilant treble of the GR07s, which is a good thing. But again, the mids sound noticeably recessed because of this. However, note that the RE-400 is no slouch when it comes to speed and texture of the bass, although I find it a bit lacking at times. The trick is to "not ask" for more bass from it. Wait (like a few 10s of hours) for it to sink in, and when it does it is really that good!
Mids and Treble: I've always liked how the Hifiman RE-400's are tuned and neither GR07's can come close to the lushness of their mids. Not very textured but plenty of details there. The GR07 Classic sounds a bit thin and dry next to the RE-400. Again, the BE has the least midrange clarity of the three. I found it a bit too recessed for my tastes. The GR07 Classic has reasonably good treble extension. If only it wasn't sibilant. The BE fares better in this aspect entirely because of its boosted bass. And with the RE-400 the treble rolls off very fast and is kind of unnatural, but it's nothing you can't live with. However they are silky smooth and far more forgiving compared to the Vsonics. I enjoyed them best on long listening sessions.
Soundstage and Imaging: After much listening, I feel that the RE-400s are much more rounded whereas the GR07s are more wide than deep. The RE-400s tend to image better.
Build Quality: When it comes to build quality they all fall short. The RE-400 has too fine a cable that can easily get caught between crevices, and while the GR07's have a thicker cable, their weakest point is the place where the cable exits the earbuds. There is not much strain relief there and that was exactly the place where my GR07 Classics failed! Also the sheath of the GR07s' cables tend to get brittle and break off after prolonged use. So if you buy any of these, take care of them like you'll take care of your lover!
TL;DR: If you come from cheaper/consumer-oriented earphones (or) if you're not really sure which one to choose, then you can't really go wrong with the GR07 Bass Edition. If you're after a flatter sound and clarity, and you know that you are not sensitive to sibilance then go for the GR07 Classic. And last but not the least, if you are okay with a slightly less impactful bass and slightly mid-centric sound then the RE-400 provides a more well rounded experience. That said, the RE-400 is the earphone that has the least number of flaws out of the bunch, but it may not be for all.
However, I recently asked myself a question: Now that I know how the GR07 BE sounds, given a chance, will I go back to the Classic? I really liked the Classic's mid range clarity, but I found its sibilance to be a bit offensive. So the answer is probably "no". That said, I'm more interested in GR07X which is said to improve on this.
Disclaimer: I'm not a very seasoned audiophile!
Bass: The GR07 BE is the bassiest of them all but still the tonality of the original GR07 has been preserved. It is quite tastefully done too as the bass never bleeds into the mids. It rectifies a couple of minor, how should I put it, annoyances of the GR07 Classic and introduces a couple more. Let me explain: (1) The GR07 Classic has also a very mild bass boost, but it kind of hides its sub-bass extension. I often find myself straining a bit to hear the sub-bass notes. In comparison, the Hifiman RE-400, even though it has less bass, sounded better in this respect. But be warned that this is a subjective experience coming from me. There are many other Head-Fiers who're plenty happy with their bass/sub-bass tuning. The BE's bass boost, which lifts the sub-bass back to where it should be, is particularly noticeable coming from the Classic version. However, the entire bass range is lifted by a couple of decibels and I wouldn't call it natural. (2) The added bass-boost of the BE's offsets the somewhat splashy and sibilant treble of the GR07s, which is a good thing. But again, the mids sound noticeably recessed because of this. However, note that the RE-400 is no slouch when it comes to speed and texture of the bass, although I find it a bit lacking at times. The trick is to "not ask" for more bass from it. Wait (like a few 10s of hours) for it to sink in, and when it does it is really that good!
Mids and Treble: I've always liked how the Hifiman RE-400's are tuned and neither GR07's can come close to the lushness of their mids. Not very textured but plenty of details there. The GR07 Classic sounds a bit thin and dry next to the RE-400. Again, the BE has the least midrange clarity of the three. I found it a bit too recessed for my tastes. The GR07 Classic has reasonably good treble extension. If only it wasn't sibilant. The BE fares better in this aspect entirely because of its boosted bass. And with the RE-400 the treble rolls off very fast and is kind of unnatural, but it's nothing you can't live with. However they are silky smooth and far more forgiving compared to the Vsonics. I enjoyed them best on long listening sessions.
Soundstage and Imaging: After much listening, I feel that the RE-400s are much more rounded whereas the GR07s are more wide than deep. The RE-400s tend to image better.
Build Quality: When it comes to build quality they all fall short. The RE-400 has too fine a cable that can easily get caught between crevices, and while the GR07's have a thicker cable, their weakest point is the place where the cable exits the earbuds. There is not much strain relief there and that was exactly the place where my GR07 Classics failed! Also the sheath of the GR07s' cables tend to get brittle and break off after prolonged use. So if you buy any of these, take care of them like you'll take care of your lover!
TL;DR: If you come from cheaper/consumer-oriented earphones (or) if you're not really sure which one to choose, then you can't really go wrong with the GR07 Bass Edition. If you're after a flatter sound and clarity, and you know that you are not sensitive to sibilance then go for the GR07 Classic. And last but not the least, if you are okay with a slightly less impactful bass and slightly mid-centric sound then the RE-400 provides a more well rounded experience. That said, the RE-400 is the earphone that has the least number of flaws out of the bunch, but it may not be for all.
However, I recently asked myself a question: Now that I know how the GR07 BE sounds, given a chance, will I go back to the Classic? I really liked the Classic's mid range clarity, but I found its sibilance to be a bit offensive. So the answer is probably "no". That said, I'm more interested in GR07X which is said to improve on this.
