[sidhelps]

@Audeze I ordered a Penrose from headphones one.in in India back in November. Still waiting on them when the rest of the world has had them since December.

 

[Marvelm]

@Audeze I ordered a Penrose from headphones one.in in India back in November. Still waiting on them when the rest of the world has had them since December.

Chill bro, I'm waiting since September in Europe

 

[ElSaigel]

I hope this isn't inappropriate to ask, but RTings, a site that from my understanding rates things pretty objectively, recently released their review of the Penrose. My understanding is that the Penrose are supposed to outclass pretty much any gaming focused headset in terms of sound quality, but comparing to the Arctis Pro Wireless (just as an example), it scored worse in just about every audio-related metric (see here: https://www.rtings.com/headphones/t...o-wireless/19746/751?usage=9280&threshold=0.1)

Are there other factors that wouldn't show up on this review that would attribute to why general consensus is that the Penrose sound better? Just to be clear, I'm not trying to smear the Penrose or anything, I'm just wondering.

That is pretty much the number one media in gaming hardware so it's quite disappointing that they've lost to their main competitors like Astro and Steelseries. They also confirmed the weird sound on the left ear cup.

I guess these headphones weren't ready for the market and now us early adapters pay for Audeze's R&D. At this point these have just too many downsides considering their price point. There are so many issues that can't be fixed by software and the firmware fixes are quite slow also. I'm sure they will release gen 2 in 2-3 years and it will be a lot better. I just hope they had worked for Mobius support for Series X and PS5 and not rush with The Penrose. Maybe even worked for wireless link for Mobius. Mobius support would have gave them plenty of time to engineer Penrose to its finest.

Now they will have really hard time selling these as internet is full off people discussing different issues and #1 media is telling people that actually these don't even sound so exceptionally good. Even if they are a lot better sounding headset compared to competitors, over 99% of people will not know this.

 

[Marvelm]

That is pretty much the number one media in gaming hardware so it's quite disappointing that they've lost to their main competitors like Astro and Steelseries. They also confirmed the weird sound on the left ear cup.

I guess these headphones weren't ready for the market and now us early adapters pay for Audeze's R&D. At this point these have just too many downsides considering their price point. There are so many issues that can't be fixed by software and the firmware fixes are quite slow also. I'm sure they will release gen 2 in 2-3 years and it will be a lot better. I just hope they had worked for Mobius support for Series X and PS5 and not rush with The Penrose. Maybe even worked for wireless link for Mobius. Mobius support would have gave them plenty of time to engineer Penrose to its finest.

Now they will have really hard time selling these as internet is full off people discussing different issues and #1 media is telling people that actually these don't even sound so exceptionally good. Even if they are a lot better sounding headset compared to competitors, over 99% of people will not know this.

The question is why guys on Rtings claim they sound worse when people here claim they sound a lot better?

 

[ElSaigel]

The question is why guys on Rtings claim they sound worse when people here claim they sound a lot better?

I'd say it's one thing how they sound to you and the other how they sound to a meter. Rtings' uses machines for listening. It's obviously very objective view but then again listening is subjective experience.

But I guess the inaccuracies and distortions found in Rtings' tests are still there. So this headset could perform better if they were engineered to its' finest.

 

[AshA]

I hear these headphones disconnect frequently from xbox series x. Is this true, has anyone had any issues?

Never had a disconnect from either my Mac or Xbox with these. But then I sit at my desk about 1-3ft from the dongle as both are on my desk where I work/games.

 

[AshA]

Hi


Numbered to write replies.


#1 and #2 I don't get this. But I heard FW update helps (might not help you if you only have MAC but see #8 and the comment on that page)

#3 This is a first.

#4 update what? you mean firmware? I would say see #8 but I see that FW update not yet supported

#5 see #8

#8 Mac app was released I thought a few days ago. Suggest rechecking the app download page.
Audeze HQ Download

#9 I find the gain on the headset itself I find does "stick". I do in Windows that the mic mutes altogether. Gain resets to 40 in the control panel. This is my number one issue

#13 I get through from 09:00 until 18:45 most days without plugging in. 19:30 it tends to start complaining.



Regard
Chris

Thank you. I've been checking the mac app store! I would have thought the app would be on there. I'll download now and find a home for my Android phone (back in the cupboard probably!)

Can you PM me your ticket number ? We usually respond within a few days. The Mac app was released a few days ago. We are testing the firmware update and it should be released shortly. Happy to send it to you (with firmware update option).
We are working on new firmware that will have some new features (early March)
1. Bluetooth + 2.4Ghz audio mix - so you can adjust the balance
2. Button combinations to change presets from the headphone

Thanks for the reply, I can send the ticket number to you. I didn't realise the mac app was an independent download, I thought it would be on the store. I'm on 0.1.5 so I'm assuming this is the latest version? Please do send it to me if you can.

 

[Jonnymc1]

The question is why guys on Rtings claim they sound worse when people here claim they sound a lot better?

They say the seal over the ear can cause a huge difference. Head sizes/glasses/cushions havent formed yet to your head. Wonder of little placebo effect as well. Like buying a Mercedes model but can't come to terms it doesn't drive nice. I'll give them a try when there's a sale. Maybe black friday. Be a year with my pros and prob want a change by than. Or they crack.

 

[XDaddyBearX]

I owned both the penrose x and a50 gen 4 over Xmas and floated between both while using them on my series x. Astros features are far more convenient, however imo the penrose are far more cleaner sounding. I felt the astros sound was like looking through a dirty window compared to the penrose. In the end I settled on selling the a50s. Since audeze released the sound packs I use the warm preset. One thing I've learned about audio is that its very subjective.

Last year I gave my friend the 9x to keep as I preferred the astros at that time.

 

[destiny21]

I have never heard sound quality as good as the penrose, levels above anything else ive listened to, lost faith in rtings now and wont use them as a buying guide anymore, my only gripe is they can be a bit on the bright side, bass is good, but could be louder, they were very uncomfortable to begin with but am used to them now.

 

[sa100]

Would anybody be able to help and answer an another question I have... Can the Penrose X be updated via Mac OS X, or is this headphone similar to the Mobius and requires a Windows based PC? Thank you.

 

[sa100]

I’m not an audiophile. I gradually came to realize after living in with them for a few weeks that every other headphone or ear bud I’ve ever used basically sucks compared to the penrose (even though they have a some warts in their initial release) Look at my previous posts. They made me realize I’ve been accepting suboptimal music reproduction for almost 50 years. I’m probably never gonna buy an EQ or whatever but I’ve experienced so much joy in this lockdown because of these damn headphones that I can’t wait for them to send a replacement pair to me, warts and all. I’m conflicted as a subset appear to have some issues but they make you feel like you are in a club listening to music again. The company has been responsive when I put in a ticket (within a day or two which seems reasonable to me) so I’m confident they are going make things as good as they can be (check out some of the interviews with their folks, they have a passion for sound reproduction).

I’m an old punk rocker who listens to bluegrass and classical and punk and the Penrose are a revelation to me. I know that there is a world beyond $300 headphones I won’t be able to afford until my kids are through college but for now I like them for a unified gaming and music platform. Just my humble and uninformed opinion.

You should check out their LCD-1 model, it's a wired headphone and paired with something like the iFi Zen DAC or their Hip DAC, I'm sure you'll be taken to a different world. You can even start out with using the those DACs on the Penrose then go to the LCD-1.

 

[sa100]

Never had a disconnect from either my Mac or Xbox with these. But then I sit at my desk about 1-3ft from the dongle as both are on my desk where I work/games.

Yes, I'm sure distance will play a key part. I'm not looking to be any more than 5 feet away from the console anyway. Thank you for the response.

 

[crypticc]

I hope this isn't inappropriate to ask, but RTings, a site that from my understanding rates things pretty objectively, recently released their review of the Penrose. My understanding is that the Penrose are supposed to outclass pretty much any gaming focused headset in terms of sound quality, but comparing to the Arctis Pro Wireless (just as an example), it scored worse in just about every audio-related metric (see here: https://www.rtings.com/headphones/t...o-wireless/19746/751?usage=9280&threshold=0.1)

Are there other factors that wouldn't show up on this review that would attribute to why general consensus is that the Penrose sound better? Just to be clear, I'm not trying to smear the Penrose or anything, I'm just wondering.

I guess that's danger of using tech rating labs for audio equipment.

Rtings score "features" as highly as sound. So batteries that you can remove to charge add points, handy if you play games for longer than 10hours straight.
Also the 3d audio which has no need or place on consoles anymore, and prob not PC if you have Atmos licence (Mobius head tracking excepted).

So what's left? Sound. Interesting on the noise but I also note they down-grade the ~5k response dip, which
a) easily adjusted for
b) another "proper" review saw same thing in Mobius and determined probably intentional and/or a flaw in measurements not reflecting actual ear-canal resonance which adds to that dip.
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/audeze-mobius-review-impressions.887808/post-14457658

 

[crypticc]

I guess that's danger of using tech rating labs for audio equipment.

Rtings score "features" as highly as sound. So batteries that you can remove to charge add points, handy if you play games for longer than 10hours straight.
Also the 3d audio which has no need or place on consoles anymore, and prob not PC if you have Atmos licence (Mobius head tracking excepted).

So what's left? Sound. Interesting on the noise but I also note they down-grade the ~5k response dip, which
a) easily adjusted for
b) another "proper" review saw same thing in Mobius and determined probably intentional and/or a flaw in measurements not reflecting actual ear-canal resonance which adds to that dip.
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/audeze-mobius-review-impressions.887808/post-14457658

Here's Penrose compared to LCD2 Classic and which shows the same "dip", and you'll see that on many of the higher end headphones. B&O and Sennheiser excepted

https://www.rtings.com/headphones/1-4/graph#19746/4046/691