Rob80b
Headphoneus Supremus
Whoa! that was under my radar so another possible purchase but that will have to wait.
You were saying. lolWe Canadians all pay so much more in this hobby that you have jump on anything approaching affordable.
AXEL GRELL HEADPHONE
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zilax002
100+ Head-Fier
TBH, I'm not loving the -17dB cliff from 4-6kHz.
How this actually ends up sounding will be very interesting.
But the price is definitely right!
Can't wait to give these another try at the next SoCal CanJam.
Yeah, the cliff is bewildering to me. I'm not graph crazy but I've seen quite a few and I struggle to think of anything with that kind of drop off in the upper treble. Like a sudden cliff past 10k is totally normal. But to have such a valley between 6-10k seems bizarre.
I pre-ordered though. Low harmonic distortion in the treble, so hopefully if the treble is flawed it's somewhat fixable with EQ. Price is pleasantly closer to initial rumors, which is refreshing given the usual trend. I'm sentimentally motivated by a new over-ear from Axel, and I'm not quite ready to commit to something as expensive as the 800s.
@Rob80b Will you include a Minnesotan, eh?
Apparently they're going to refund shipping, even international shipping, so that's cool! TAX (including Value Added Tax) will still apply though... gotta pay Caesar his due!I've ordered..also you can apply discount codes..I used this one. Still $500 Can and then there will be duty on arrival, so it helps.
I posted my review, I'm going to be adding in a condensed version of my listening notes and gear comparisons throughout the day: https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/grell-audio-oae1.27216/review/33836/
ThisWe Canadians all pay so much more in this hobby that you have to jump on anything approaching affordable.
outer diameter about 10cm, inner diameter about 5.5cm, at least according to the middle of my tape measure. I left my calipers at my day job, someone else will need them to make eyeglasses properly!
According to Axel, who I also count as an expert, the physical attributes of the sound waves DO change due to the ear geometry before they reach the eardrum. The HD 600 series largely bypassed this, though the HD 800(S) did not, and this OAE1 is an extreme example and Axel credits it to helping shape the timbre more towards what our brains expect from non-recorded real life sound. OF course electronica still won't sound "real" and the sound editing room is all fantasy, but sometimes simple sounds in recordings or games had me second guessing if it wasn't coming from something in my room. The ability of the OAE1 to differentiate between close mic'd and far mic'd objects with ambient influence also helps the perception of soundstage depth... it can sound intimate or grandiose.
Some people might like more treble presence (6k is not treble), but I'm happy where it is. Apparently an older prototype at CanJam SoCal had a spike at 6k.
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zilax002
100+ Head-Fier
@Evshrug The links within the review aren't working for me. I can't see the section with comparisons, for example (or I can see the post but it's empty). Just placeholders for now?
Thanks for the detailed review!
zilax002
100+ Head-Fier
That's not in question.
But the B&K rig used already includes a head and torso simulator, so I'm not sure that really explains the oddity of the FR compared to what we see in other headphones.
Other headphones tested on this rig don't have the same pinnae interaction as the OAE1, no, but tested with a measurement rig with head and torso simulation the graphed response is simulating the end result at the ear drum.
The OAE1 *does* use the pinnae, but the B&K rig simulates that. It's not perfect or representative for everyone (no rig could be), but the pinnae interaction is simulated in the measurements.
So TLDR I'm not sure that really explains the FR.
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I forgot about it but the page confirms the initial 1,000 order size now.
I'm guessing the signature in "OAE1 Signature" is either just a part of the model name or it's the addition of the fancy Axel Drell handwriting on the band, so ultimately doesn't really mean anything
I'm guessing the signature in "OAE1 Signature" is either just a part of the model name or it's the addition of the fancy Axel Drell handwriting on the band, so ultimately doesn't really mean anything
Look forward to hearing your thoughts on the sound. I forgot about the head squeeze from the HD600, I couldn't wear them for long than an hour due to the tightness. Sounds like the OAE1 at least is less of a vice
Rob80b
Headphoneus Supremus
That is what I meant by psychoacoustics, measurements tell us one thing but the brains "recreation of the auditory illusion" is another, under normal conditions we have a tendency to hear what we see but what we see is not necessarily what we should be hearing.
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Per drop post in the discussion section:
“The OAE1 Signature are collectors items and limited to 1,000 units in total. All Signature headphones are individually measured before leaving the factory and the measurements are included inside the package. The Signature version also comes with two high quality cables, a carrying case, and as the name says—the headphones have Axel’s signature on them.”
So the waiting starts could not resist.
“The OAE1 Signature are collectors items and limited to 1,000 units in total. All Signature headphones are individually measured before leaving the factory and the measurements are included inside the package. The Signature version also comes with two high quality cables, a carrying case, and as the name says—the headphones have Axel’s signature on them.”
So the waiting starts could not resist.
Add another filthy Minnesotan to that list. Ordered mine today as well. Looking forward to this one.
I am super interested in this headphone and I will order one, would love to get the limited edition, but money is tight right now... Every dollar I can save helps. 
Or maybe the classifieds will have one of these as well some day
Or maybe the classifieds will have one of these as well some day
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Cocosan
New Head-Fier
This is the main reason I ordered OAE1 without hesitation. I enjoy HD800/650/6xx and look forward to this.
