jaysins
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Dec 9, 2008
- Posts
- 179
- Likes
- 16
So before I start I want to thank Dale for being such an awesome host. He was a great, extremely knowledgeable and very passionate about his product and company. I’ll disclose some things about my visit, but I was asked to not share certain things I heard and saw and I absolutely intend not to make Dale regret giving me a very intimate look at his operation and his upcoming products. This is an overview of my visit and very small snippet of my listening time with a new prototype, emphasis on prototype, for an upcoming ASG series release.
So a couple months ago Dale, owner of Aurisonics, contacted me about possibly having a tour of a new center they were opening up in my side of the woods. Of course I said yes but I also thought that it would be a pretty limited experience and more of a product highlight. Well, true to his word I got an email from Dale saying he was in town and asking me when I was available for a tour. After so much time I was surprised he remembered, as I had not wanted to be a bother by reminding him of it, and I got ready to go with a friend of mine to see what he had to say and show us. It turned out being much more than just a product overview or sales pitch.
After waiting for a few minutes on some pretty swanky red leather chairs in the waiting room, out pops Dale and almost immediately starts asking me questions about headphones, what I like about the ASG-1’s and how they stack up. This is a guy that loves to talk audio. He led us into the facility and I got to see where everything is made. He personally introduced my friend and me to many of the people running things and we got explanations on not only how things are done, but why he chooses to do them a specific or certain, way. Aurisonics also has very unique ways of doing things and always a good reason behind it. It was very cool to see how everything is made, the care and craftsmanship behind everything, and be told why Dale prefers some unconventional methods for constructing the headphones I, and others around this forum, wear and listen to daily. It was awesome to see what goes on and meet the people behind his products. The whole staff was great and really let us knows things I didn’t think they would want to share. To see pieces being handcrafted and have some of the staff stop what they were doing to show and discuss what was going on was incredible. The facility is quaint but packed to the brim with people very passionate about what they do. Making just the custom tips is much more complicated than I thought and definitely an art. From how the cabling is inserted, to ways of sculpting the negative molds, I got to see a very large portion of the operation. This wasn’t even the main one where the coolest equipment is. I would have loved to have taken pictures but, understandable so, was not permitted.
Now I do want to take a moment to talk about Dale himself as his personality helps make Aurisonics what it is. Dale has had some very interesting jobs around the communication and headphone industry and brings a lot of that to the table. He is extremely passionate and knowledgeable about headphones and can recall even the minutest details from memory about a particular pair. He refers to his customers on a first name basis and even told me their handles on head-fi so I would know who he was talking about. All from memory mind you. He reads the forums and commented on it and its impact it has had on the ASG-1 evolution and the very strong effect it has had on his developing the successor to them, but more on that later. He talked about amps, sources, how the community perceived his products and what his aspirations were and what he wanted to give us as consumers. When something negative is said he takes notice and looks to make it better. He answers emails personally because he feels every detail matters to him and if something needs to be said to a customer he wants it said a certain way, his way. I came away very impressed with how important he takes his product, and not from a business standpoint, but from how much he wanted to give listeners an incredible experience as he was always talking about how he hopes we perceive their sound or how much he hopes to blow us away with what he has cooking up. The ASG-1’s were his first product in this genre aimed at the pro musician community; however, he was surprised and inspired when the audiophile community picked up on the ASG-1. Of course with the ASG-1 there has been much debate over their strengths, weakness, and just how good of a headphone they were. He wants to deliver a product that everyone can enjoy and wants to tackle this impossible task of pleasing everyone or at least go down trying. I feel like he might be obsessed and I’m sure we will all reap the benefits of his compulsion for giving us an incredible listening experience. It really seems to drive him and when he talked about manufacturing headphones for other people he’s very uncompromising in quality. He’s not putting out a product he can’t be proud of. Not to mention, he actually tries to do little things to surprise customers and let us just say that one particular member on this forum is going to be very pleasantly surprised.
Now this is going to be both being the most exciting and disappointing part of this post; I got to listen to unreleased headphones and I can’t talk much about it. Now, doesn’t mean I can’t give some vague impressions though. I auditioned possible different versions of what the next generation ASG series will be. Dale asked me to bring my portable source so I could A/B them as well as another pair of headphones which in this case is the Sony XBA-4. Out of the headphones I listened to, he hasn't yet settled on the exact sound signature so we were fortunate to hear possible directions they may go in, my friend and I actually both agreed on the same ones as far as sound signature goes. My friend and I usually don't agree completely on these things as we have different preferences on whether highs or lows are more important, sound stage etc. so to be on the same page and hear the same, wonderful things, is hopefully a testament to how versatile these will be. They are different than the ASG-1’s and your previous EQ settings will very likely be rendered moot. Also, they are impressively capable and I hope some people who didn’t like the ASG-1’s give them a go as many of the most common complaints have been addressed and they, in my opinion, have a much more audiophile sound signature rather than for a professional musician. I cannot go into too much detail here but let’s just say my Sony’s are still within buyer’s remorse and while I enjoyed them, they are going back tomorrow. I really like my ASG-1’s and this new ASG series are more than different enough to warrant owning both. I’m very excited about what’s to come from this company and demoing has only made me more impatient. To top it off I got to listen to something even more in the future from Dale, and just let me say, he’s not content to just try one thing and really push the boundaries of what an in ear monitor can do.
So thank you Dale for an awesome experience. I was impressed with not only your product, but yourself and your company. I wish you the best of luck and I’m positive you will get more money out of me yet.
So a couple months ago Dale, owner of Aurisonics, contacted me about possibly having a tour of a new center they were opening up in my side of the woods. Of course I said yes but I also thought that it would be a pretty limited experience and more of a product highlight. Well, true to his word I got an email from Dale saying he was in town and asking me when I was available for a tour. After so much time I was surprised he remembered, as I had not wanted to be a bother by reminding him of it, and I got ready to go with a friend of mine to see what he had to say and show us. It turned out being much more than just a product overview or sales pitch.
After waiting for a few minutes on some pretty swanky red leather chairs in the waiting room, out pops Dale and almost immediately starts asking me questions about headphones, what I like about the ASG-1’s and how they stack up. This is a guy that loves to talk audio. He led us into the facility and I got to see where everything is made. He personally introduced my friend and me to many of the people running things and we got explanations on not only how things are done, but why he chooses to do them a specific or certain, way. Aurisonics also has very unique ways of doing things and always a good reason behind it. It was very cool to see how everything is made, the care and craftsmanship behind everything, and be told why Dale prefers some unconventional methods for constructing the headphones I, and others around this forum, wear and listen to daily. It was awesome to see what goes on and meet the people behind his products. The whole staff was great and really let us knows things I didn’t think they would want to share. To see pieces being handcrafted and have some of the staff stop what they were doing to show and discuss what was going on was incredible. The facility is quaint but packed to the brim with people very passionate about what they do. Making just the custom tips is much more complicated than I thought and definitely an art. From how the cabling is inserted, to ways of sculpting the negative molds, I got to see a very large portion of the operation. This wasn’t even the main one where the coolest equipment is. I would have loved to have taken pictures but, understandable so, was not permitted.
Now I do want to take a moment to talk about Dale himself as his personality helps make Aurisonics what it is. Dale has had some very interesting jobs around the communication and headphone industry and brings a lot of that to the table. He is extremely passionate and knowledgeable about headphones and can recall even the minutest details from memory about a particular pair. He refers to his customers on a first name basis and even told me their handles on head-fi so I would know who he was talking about. All from memory mind you. He reads the forums and commented on it and its impact it has had on the ASG-1 evolution and the very strong effect it has had on his developing the successor to them, but more on that later. He talked about amps, sources, how the community perceived his products and what his aspirations were and what he wanted to give us as consumers. When something negative is said he takes notice and looks to make it better. He answers emails personally because he feels every detail matters to him and if something needs to be said to a customer he wants it said a certain way, his way. I came away very impressed with how important he takes his product, and not from a business standpoint, but from how much he wanted to give listeners an incredible experience as he was always talking about how he hopes we perceive their sound or how much he hopes to blow us away with what he has cooking up. The ASG-1’s were his first product in this genre aimed at the pro musician community; however, he was surprised and inspired when the audiophile community picked up on the ASG-1. Of course with the ASG-1 there has been much debate over their strengths, weakness, and just how good of a headphone they were. He wants to deliver a product that everyone can enjoy and wants to tackle this impossible task of pleasing everyone or at least go down trying. I feel like he might be obsessed and I’m sure we will all reap the benefits of his compulsion for giving us an incredible listening experience. It really seems to drive him and when he talked about manufacturing headphones for other people he’s very uncompromising in quality. He’s not putting out a product he can’t be proud of. Not to mention, he actually tries to do little things to surprise customers and let us just say that one particular member on this forum is going to be very pleasantly surprised.
Now this is going to be both being the most exciting and disappointing part of this post; I got to listen to unreleased headphones and I can’t talk much about it. Now, doesn’t mean I can’t give some vague impressions though. I auditioned possible different versions of what the next generation ASG series will be. Dale asked me to bring my portable source so I could A/B them as well as another pair of headphones which in this case is the Sony XBA-4. Out of the headphones I listened to, he hasn't yet settled on the exact sound signature so we were fortunate to hear possible directions they may go in, my friend and I actually both agreed on the same ones as far as sound signature goes. My friend and I usually don't agree completely on these things as we have different preferences on whether highs or lows are more important, sound stage etc. so to be on the same page and hear the same, wonderful things, is hopefully a testament to how versatile these will be. They are different than the ASG-1’s and your previous EQ settings will very likely be rendered moot. Also, they are impressively capable and I hope some people who didn’t like the ASG-1’s give them a go as many of the most common complaints have been addressed and they, in my opinion, have a much more audiophile sound signature rather than for a professional musician. I cannot go into too much detail here but let’s just say my Sony’s are still within buyer’s remorse and while I enjoyed them, they are going back tomorrow. I really like my ASG-1’s and this new ASG series are more than different enough to warrant owning both. I’m very excited about what’s to come from this company and demoing has only made me more impatient. To top it off I got to listen to something even more in the future from Dale, and just let me say, he’s not content to just try one thing and really push the boundaries of what an in ear monitor can do.
So thank you Dale for an awesome experience. I was impressed with not only your product, but yourself and your company. I wish you the best of luck and I’m positive you will get more money out of me yet.
. Yea lots to look forward to. The prototypes I listened to will likely go through some modifications and refinements but I was extremely impressed.