[OldDarth]

@OldDarth - I contacted Audeze about this, it is a known issue and they are working to resolve it so that we can register our Mobius.

Thanks.

 

[OldDarth]

Yes, I contacted @Audeze and they e-mailed me back saying there is a known bug with their web site that is preventing it from recognizing serial numbers, and that they added my serial to their system manually. However, since my serial is apparently not associated with an Audeze login, I'm not sure how to file a support ticket (I'm experiencing painful crackling and popping in the left earpiece in 7.1 mode). I'll probably have to get support via e-mail rather than the web site.

Thanks.

 

[kenyee]

The next firmware version realllllly has to NOT set the default volume at 100%. Geez... My ears are blown out again

Tried the aux cable on a macbook (totally not worth it BTW...amplification is too low compared to USB), then plugged in via USB cable without turning it off and made the mistake of leaving the headphones on my head and got treated to full volume music again
I've used it in USB mode on this machine and assumed it would retain the previous volume setting...

 

[acia]

Regarding battery charging:

1. Fastest way to charge is through a 1A charger, turn off Mobius connect to a wall charger that can do 1A via USB.
2. Connected via USB: If you leave Mobius connected to a PC/Mac that is switched on, it charges at the maximum allowed 500mA, irrespective of whether Mobius is switched on or Off.
3. Connected via USB: If you leave Mobius connected to a PC/Mac that is switched off, it discharges irrespective of whether Mobius is switched on or Off. This is because the micro controller detects a USB connection and is waiting for input.
4. Connected via Aux: If you connect via Aux and leave Mobius on, even if no music is playing, Mobius will discharge as A/D converter and the rest of the system is active. If you Switch off Mobius it will keep the charge.
   
5. Paired via BT: If Mobius is paired via BT and turned on, it stays on even if music is not playing as it is waiting for BT input (like an incoming call). This will cause the battery to discharge.

Depending on your use case:

1. If you do not intend to charge Mobius switch it off.
2. If you want to charge your Mobius, use a wall charger or connect ti to a PC/Mac that is powered on.
3. If you want Mobius to idle, disconnect all cables and make sure it is not paired via BT.

Edit: For a wall charger, a 5V USB charger will work, 1A is the maximum charging rate supported by Mobius.

thank you @KMann,

looking forward to next iteration, QC 3 or USB-PD. if not too ludicrous request and need not pay too much patent fee. lol.

 

[phase0]

Another thought for some people about the USB charging. I have a powered USB hub so I have a few more ports for my devices within easy reach on my desk. No issues with Mobius draining there since it's a powered hub. I have no idea how to check the battery level. I'm primarily using it on OSX/IOS currently. Currently never had the Mobius die on me due to low battery.

 

[Mani ATH 87]

So, I just got them. I have to say I am not impressed at all. They are shouty and boomy. I wonder if they improve with some burn-in. I have watched a movie with them as well. I think the sound for that was great. However, they are super uncomfortable. And the hiss. It annoys the hell out of me. It is practically impossible for me to use the analog cable. Well, will give them a couple of more days then maybe sell them. Not recommended at this point.

How do you have them connected? If you are using them via USB on a windows PC please try turning down the room ambiance. The default setting in my opinion is too high, it makes them sound very "metallic", way too much reverb. They sound much better when you lower this setting a bit to get a good balance between the reverb and fullness/closeness of the sound. I didn't like the way they sounded either with the ambiance turned up, very thin and light. I really like them now though.

 

[mashuto]

How do you have them connected? If you are using them via USB on a windows PC please try turning down the room ambiance. The default setting in my opinion is too high, it makes them sound very "metallic", way too much reverb. They sound much better when you lower this setting a bit to get a good balance between the reverb and fullness/closeness of the sound. I didn't like the way they sounded either with the ambiance turned up, very thin and light. I really like them now though.

What did you settle on for the room ambiance? I found with mine that they sounded extremely metallic at first and nothing I did could really help... turns out I measured my head wrong and im pretty sure that was causing most of the metallic sound. Right now, I think I have mine set to maybe like 42. My issue is that I dislike the reverb they add (sennheiser gsx was great about not adding reverb) but I am finding that I am not getting much of an out of head experience. I am definitely getting 3d and surround, and its definitely easy to pick out directional cues. Its just that they all sound very very close to my head.

 

[Mkoll]

I have PS4 Pro, but I don't think there would be a difference. Who know's, but Mobius is unusable with USB to PS4 for me, volume is way to low compared to what I like it at. Which is a shame because I like the audio quality to PS4 with USB, just needs to be much louder. I hope @Audeze can make a firmware update at some point in the future to allow the ability to manually adjust Mobius' amp volume with 2CH mode for PS4 to resolve this issue.

I'm in the same boat though I wouldn't say it's way too low for me. It's more on near the threshold of what I like it at. But that's very subjective. The point is that the volume needs to be higher. Some people don't seem to have this problem, which is strange. Maybe their volume is the same as ours but they like it at that low (to us) level? Maybe there is variation between PS4s? Or even variation between Mobiuses?

I've tried all the suggestions I could find in this thread with no luck such as unplugging/replugging the USB and using different USB ports. I also tried a powered USB hub. My system volume and in-game volume are at max. The only workaround is using PS4 optical out -> optical in on standalone DAC/headphone amp (Questyle CMA400i) -> analog out -> Mobius aux, but this introduces a great deal of distortion from all the amping and digital/analog conversion, not to mention the hiss I hear through using aux at higher volumes

I strongly support your recommendation to make the Mobius volume wheel usable and taking advantage of its amping power when using PS4 USB. Right now, it does nothing. @Audeze, is this possible via firmware update?

To add, I have no problem with the Nintendo Switch getting the Mobius to very loud levels via the USB port on the dock. Volume is adjusted by the Switch's volume buttons. With the volume slider maxed, it is uncomfortably loud. Its default volume has the volume slider in the middle and it is about the same volume as a maxed volume slider PS4. The volume wheel on the Mobius also doesn't work here.

 

[Mani ATH 87]

What did you settle on for the room ambiance? I found with mine that they sounded extremely metallic at first and nothing I did could really help... turns out I measured my head wrong and im pretty sure that was causing most of the metallic sound. Right now, I think I have mine set to maybe like 42. My issue is that I dislike the reverb they add (sennheiser gsx was great about not adding reverb) but I am finding that I am not getting much of an out of head experience. I am definitely getting 3d and surround, and its definitely easy to pick out directional cues. Its just that they all sound very very close to my head.

I like it 30-32, anything higher then this and I just find the reverb to be distracting. This is especially true for gaming where I find character vocals really start to sound like they are echoing inside of a metal box. It sounds unrealistic and strange to me once i start noticing the reverb. This is mainly for gaming and movies, for music I just prefer high res mode with the 3D turned off.

I also use Equalizer APO to give a 6.5db boost to the sub bass region, it adds a bit more "boom" or "thump" to gaming sounds. It's best to EQ the default setting so you don't have to worry about swapping EQ's every time you power on the Mobius.

This is my experience at least. I personally think these headphones sound fantastic the way I have them set up. I'm really happy with them for gaming and even more surprised at how good they sound via High Res Bluetooth over LDAC.

The only hiss I can detect on these is a feint white noise when the headphones are connected via Aux and the volume is at max on the headphone dial. I don't have any white noise or hiss at all over bluetooth or USB, and I mostly won't ever be using these via the aux connection from what I can tell.

 

[Audeze]

I'm in the same boat though I wouldn't say it's way too low for me. It's more on near the threshold of what I like it at. But that's very subjective. The point is that the volume needs to be higher. Some people don't seem to have this problem, which is strange. Maybe their volume is the same as ours but they like it at that low (to us) level? Maybe there is variation between PS4s? Or even variation between Mobiuses?

I've tried all the suggestions I could find in this thread with no luck such as unplugging/replugging the USB and using different USB ports. I also tried a powered USB hub. My system volume and in-game volume are at max. The only workaround is using PS4 optical out -> optical in on standalone DAC/headphone amp (Questyle CMA400i) -> analog out -> Mobius aux, but this introduces a great deal of distortion from all the amping and digital/analog conversion, not to mention the hiss I hear through using aux at higher volumes

I strongly support your recommendation to make the Mobius volume wheel usable and taking advantage of its amping power when using PS4 USB. Right now, it does nothing. @Audeze, is this possible via firmware update?

To add, I have no problem with the Nintendo Switch getting the Mobius to very loud levels via the USB port on the dock. Volume is adjusted by the Switch's volume buttons. With the volume slider maxed, it is uncomfortably loud. Its default volume has the volume slider in the middle and it is about the same volume as a maxed volume slider PS4. The volume wheel on the Mobius also doesn't work here.

As you can see this is not an issue with Mobius USB support. it works well with PC/MAC/Switch etc. The issue here is certain devices do not use standard USB control protocol. They use proprietary ways to do this. So we have to make sure it does not affect any other device before adding support to this.

 

[TidalWave]

Suggestion for wireless use:

Please make the low battery announcement come a bit earlier. My unit seems to tell me that the battery is low a couple times, and then the battery dies just a handful of minutes later. First time it happened, I was on the go for a short walk to a post office. I got the low battery announcement on the way back and thought I could make it home in time to plug in the headphone to recharge. Nope, the battery died about 3-4 minutes following the first announcement, which took me by surprise. I think a low battery warning that comes a bit more in advance would be great--something like 15 minutes of estimated use time at least, but better something like 20 minutes.

 

[KaiSc]

What did you settle on for the room ambiance? I found with mine that they sounded extremely metallic at first and nothing I did could really help... turns out I measured my head wrong and im pretty sure that was causing most of the metallic sound. Right now, I think I have mine set to maybe like 42. My issue is that I dislike the reverb they add (sennheiser gsx was great about not adding reverb) but I am finding that I am not getting much of an out of head experience. I am definitely getting 3d and surround, and its definitely easy to pick out directional cues. Its just that they all sound very very close to my head.

I turned the reverb down to 22 (from the default 35) so it does it's job in creating a sense of ambience but isn't obviously audible by itself and does not change the sound of the music too much.
Putting in the correct head size measures is important, as this changes the sound.
The 3D effect is best with acoustic recordings of real instruments, like classical chamber music. Here it becomes really realistic. It does nice things with pop music too, by far widening the soundstage.
The only issue I have is the 3D spread is too wide or the headtracking effect too strong, so when I turn my head it can happen that a centered sound pans to the opposite side of my head-turn, instead of staying on it's former position in the room.

 

[thedoo]

@Audeze Can we get an update on the mic issues that have been posted numerous times in this thread? It seems like it's being ignored, or you just post the support article that has nothing to do with the issues we are having. A gaming headset with an unusable mic, is useless.

 

[kpet82]

A second impression. I let them play the whole night and I must say thay sound quite alright today. They are less boomy and shouty. Much more smooth. I would not consider them bright, but still a bit shouty. The bass is perfect for some good old rock'n'roll for which i basically bought them for.
I think the problem was, that my expectations were a bit high. I have other high-range products from Audeze and were comparing against those. that is not fare as they cost 3 times more and are connected to a dedicated dac/amp.
As far as bluetooth-headphones go, I have never heard better. For the asking price, they are killers. Hopefully they get more comfortable over time. I think I can recommend them now.

 

[msolok]

So, I am a backer for these, and received my copper versions a week or so ago. Have given them a good go, so thought I would give my impressions of them.

All up, for a gaming and movie watching headset, these are OK. I think the RRP of about $400USD is far too much for what you get, there are better options out there. A price closer to $200-$250USD is much closer to what these should be. Unfortunately for Audeze, there are a heap of competitors in this market with excellent products at a lower price. They have also had much longer to work out what is important in this market (comfort, long use periods, convenience over sound quality) as opposed to the Audiophile market. They certainly won't be the first headset I would recommend for gaming, sadly.

Starting off with the packaging. Going to retail, this needs to be improved. I'm really not a fan of wastage when it comes to packaging, but you need to do more than use a plain brown box. We are talking about a retail product which is mean to appeal to gamers and movie watchers. They certainly expect something more than that. There are many ways to still keep the packaging simple and without wastage, but presenting the product much better. The brown box does nothing to excite or promote the product. It's a letdown, to be honest.

The case is decent, good for throwing the headphones in when heading out for a gaming session. I don't think they are suitable for portable use due to the size (They don't fold down), battery life while on Bluetooth (only 10 hours), charge time (3 hours for 100% charge, no quick charge) and lack of isolation (a LOT of noise get's let into these closed back headphones), but the case is convenient if you are going out gaming or otherwise.

The headphones themselves are heavy. For longer gaming sessions they can get a bit heavy and fatiguing.
Clamp force on them is fairly high as well. The ear cushions are soft enough to offer some padding from the clamp, but not enough. You really feel these squeezing your head.
The ear cushions are fairly small (they are deep, but not wide of high enough), so large ear will get squashed. Even for medium sized ears, they can be squishy and tight.
They get HOT. Part of the issue is the active components in the left earcup (put your hand on it and you can feel the earcup get warm) but the other part is the closed backs, small ear cups and solid leatherette earcup materials.
Unfortunately all of these leads to these being a fairly uncomfortable set of headphones. They are OK for brief listening sessions, but for longer gaming sessions, movie marathons or whatnot, these aren't comfortable enough.

OK, so now we get onto using the headphones. The build of them is OK. They feel fairly solid, but the entire plastic build does not feel overly quality to me. For the price I would have liked to see more metal and premium materials used, but I don't think they will fall apart immediately.
The controls are... poor. There's no other word for it. Why is the time I need to hold to turn the headphones on or off o long and DIFFERENT for each action? The click in of the scroll wheels and the turn is just frustrating. The long hold combinations are frustrating. And remembering it all is just.... AGHH! They are not intuitive (why is the pause action a press of the power button instead of the volume wheel?), they are not straight forward or easy to remember. Yes, there is a cheat card, but I shouldn't have to keep digging it out to try and do basic tasks. AND all of this should be fully controllable via the App, both on Windows and on smart phones. At the VERY least, the instructions should in the app, not advertisements for the headphones I already own. Why are you advertising the 'Award Winning Planner magnetic Drivers', 'Scratch Resistant coating' etc. for headphones I already own? I know, I own them. Give me something useful here!
OK, maybe these features will come to the app in the future, but these are live and retailing now. The Apps should be ready to at least a basic level, but they aren't.

I am yet to try these via Bluetooth, as the main draw for me is the 7.1 sound. I have other headphones I would much rather use via Bluetooth. So my first use was plugging them into my Razer Blade 15 laptop and firing up a movie on Netflix. After turning down the headphones (100% volume on first USB plug in, or on changing mode, is painful) and getting into the movie these sounded decent. The surround is, honestly, very similar to what I get out of my Razer Kraken V2 7.1 gaming headphones. I honestly struggle to notice any significant improvements from the Mobius. Sure the Razer Kraken V2 7.1's don't have the 3D movement effect, but the actual surround emulation is similar.
However within a minute or 2, the Audio in the Mobius cut out and started coming out of the laptops speakers. I did nothing, but the sound cut over. I checked the cable, all plugged in and fine. So I unplug the cable from the headset and plug it back in and I get sound again, for another couple of minutes. So after a bunch of stuffing around and testing I find that the included USB-A to USB-C cable is faulty. If it get's touched while in use it disconnects, if I try and use it to charge a phone the phone throws up an error. The USB-C to USB-C cable is fine. I am now using the USB cable that came with my Samsung Galaxy phone and have no more issues.

While we are talking about the cables, they are FAR too short for using with a headset. They are only just long enough to be plugged into my laptop, which sits on top of my desk up to the side. I honestly can't see how they could be acceptably long for anyone want to plug them into their gaming PC or console. Sure, they are simple USB cables so are easy to replace, but at this sort of price I expect to get cables that are usable for the headphones intended purpose. For headphones that are expected to be used for playing games (including VR) and movies, the cables are FAR from long enough.

So once I got past the cable issues, I was able to test out the headphones more thoroughly. So I sit down, plug them in, turn them on and I instantly hear the background hum / hiss / noise. It's very audible when there is music or sounds, even audible in quiet parts of the music. It certainly takes away from those moments in games, movies or music. This is, in all honesty, very disappointing. I know Audeze has said that some level of background noise is expected from any active pair of headphones, but I haven't experienced this since I purchased a $20 pair of Noise Cancelling headphones from a supermarket chain a couple of years ago. I currently own and use multiple sets of active, wireless headphones (Sony WH-1000X M2, Nuraphones, Razer Thresher) and none have this much audible background noise.
Thinking that the issue might be the power supply of the laptop I was using I have now tested my Audeze with my Razer Blade 15 laptop (on battery and plugged in), my Aorus X7 DT v7 laptop (both plugged in and on battery), on my Microsoft Surface Laptop (both plugged in and on battery), On my Microsoft Surface Go (both plugged in and on battery) and plugged in to my Samsung galaxy Tab S4 (running on battery). The Hiss is always there, always the same. So, in at least my case, the issue is not caused by the device or power supply.
Going through this thread it looks like some people have next to no hiss while others have a lot more. I can't help but think at this stage that Audeze has some rather large variances in it's build process which is causing this. At this stage it can't simply be a case of some people being more sensitive to it.

These headphones sound good. They have good details and don't extend too high. They are lacking a bit in bass, but not that badly. Positioning is OK, but not the best. They sound nice for listening to music.
I would like to see more controls given for the equaliser. The presets are all pretty much the same to my ears, not much change between them. I would like to see larger differences between the profiles, and more control given to making the changes.

This next part I can't believe I have to say in 2018. Why, oh why, do these headphones NOT remember my last settings between uses? They should, and there is no excuse as to why they don't in this day and age. On some super cheap headphones I might be OK giving a pass on this sort of thing, but not for the high cost of the Mobius's. This is a little usability thing that makes a big difference to the every day enjoyment of the headphones.

And then we get to the Microphone. The microphone on my unit is, in just a word, trash. It is simply unusable for it's intended purpose. In my testing the microphone needs to be right up to my mouth, set to 100% volume on the headphones and 100% volume in Windows. Then I get constant breathing / wind / artifact noise, but my voice is very quite, raises and drops in volume and is very unclear. It's trash.
As A test, I recorded the microphone using the Windows Recorder software in Windows 10 with the volumes at 100%. This means that there are no software settings or incompatibilities are removed, it's all down to what Windows is receiving. The resulting mic quality was poor (wooly and muffled, voice cutting in and out, volume raising and dropping), I struggled to hear some of my words, the recording is essentially unusable. I then plugged in my Razer Kraken V2 7.1 headset (a USB gaming headset with Mic) and set the Microphone volume to 50%. The recording is far louder, voice is far clearer with less artifacts and no issues with volume dropping. Even at 25% volume, the Razer Krakens microphone is far better than the Mobius's.
I've tested the Mic on my Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 via USB as well. The same issues exist (low volume, muffled and wooly, volume raising and dropping) so it's not a Windows driver issue. However the Mic get's slightly better when plugged in using the Aux cable. Volume is still far too low, but the cutting out issue is reduce.
So the Mic hardware itself is somewhat to blame, but so to is whatever is happening when the USB connection is in use. This explains why people have noticed an improvement when switching to Bluetooth. Honestly thought, I am very displeased with the mic. It's honestly
I'm kinda wondering at this stage is the issues with high noise floor and poor mic quality are connected. How many people with the high noise floor are also having issues with the Mic.

Finally we have the battery drain while plugged in and the PC is off. This is inexcusable. Most gamers will leave their headphones plugged in at ALL times so the next time they go to jump into a game their headphones are charged and ready to go. The have to remember to unplug them or be faced with a dead battery is unbelievable. There is no reason, no excuse, and no explanation as to why turned off headphones plugged into a turned off PC should actively drain the battery.


All up, I'm certainly not overly impressed by the Mobius. I know that I am making a lot of complaints about them (some minor, some more major) but for their cost there are FAR too many issues, too many compromises, and not enough polish. Maybe Audeze can fix some of the issues via firmware, but some they won't. I honestly think there are far better headphones for gaming and movies to be had at a fraction of the price.

I do hope people find my write up to be useful. I'm certainly going to be speaking to Audeze support, as I don't think my Mobius is up to the quality I would have expected.​