[EarphoneNet]

I saw the huge thread on Chinese and Asian audio brands and managed to read part of it . Even though it rates and reviews products it doesn't show what the best earphones are. Unless of course you read the more than 900 pages of the thread. So I wonder what according to you is the best Chinese or Asian earphone (regardless of price)?

 

[thatBeatsguy]

  I saw the huge thread on Chinese and Asian audio brands and managed to read part of it . Even though it rates and reviews products it doesn't show what the best earphones are. Unless of course you read the more than 900 pages of the thread. So I wonder what according to you is the best Chinese or Asian earphone (regardless of price)?

Oh, you asked for it.
 
Final Audio Design Piano Forte 2. Only $2,000. 
You're welcome. 

 

 

[billybob_jcv]

There is no such thing as "best" in audio. The concept is meaningless. We can separate audio components into quality categories, but even then there would be massive arguments over the inclusion/exclusion of particular headphones in each category. What I hear and prefer and what you hear and prefer are not the same. Any list of the "best headphones" is simply the opinion of whoever created the list. If you take 10 headphones that are all in the same price bracket, and ask 1000 audiophiles to rank them from 1-to-10, I can almost guarantee you that every headphone will receive at least 1 vote for "best". This is even more true if we are talking about the most expensive, top headphones in the world. They are ALL great, they are just different flavors of great, and the "best" entirely depends on the personal preferences of the listener.

So - first define specifically what "best" means to you, and then maybe we can steer you toward headphones that match that sound.

 

[EarphoneNet]

There is no such thing as "best" in audio. The concept is meaningless. We can separate audio components into quality categories, but even then there would be massive arguments over the inclusion/exclusion of particular headphones in each category. What I hear and prefer and what you hear and prefer are not the same. Any list of the "best headphones" is simply the opinion of whoever created the list. If you take 10 headphones that are all in the same price bracket, and ask 1000 audiophiles to rank them from 1-to-10, I can almost guarantee you that every headphone will receive at least 1 vote for "best". This is even more true if we are talking about the most expensive, top headphones in the world. They are ALL great, they are just different flavors of great, and the "best" entirely depends on the personal preferences of the listener.

So - first define specifically what "best" means to you, and then maybe we can steer you toward headphones that match that sound.

I understand this is entirely subjective, but that is what I hope to hear; general recommendations. People can choose to answer with their reasons for what they believe is the best earphone for their needs.
 
The word 'best' should be read as the subjective representation of the experience of that particular individual and not as an objective qualification. I could also rephrase it and ask; what is a good Chinese/Asian earphone according to you or for your needs?
 
I am not looking for anything particular, that is why I'm asking for recommendations from others so I can read their reasons and see what I like. 
 
edit: spelling errors and tone of voice

 

[ZaWorld]

I agree with above that best should be tuned to what you want in a sound signature. Though I suppose the only way you can really find out is through experimenting. That being said you cannot go wrong checking out HiFiman's many wide range of products. Have fun and sorry about your wallet

 

[cel4145]

There is no such thing as "best" in audio. The concept is meaningless. We can separate audio components into quality categories, but even then there would be massive arguments over the inclusion/exclusion of particular headphones in each category. What I hear and prefer and what you hear and prefer are not the same.

Agreed. It's highly subjective. Not only that, but how many people have heard all of the "best" headphones?

For me, it's also price/performance determined. That's why I like the Battle of the Flagship reviews, because the rankings take that into consideration.

Then start thinking about the psychological factors that influence headphone choice:

1) Sequence of ownership. If one has owned A for a year, and then hears B, simply because B provides a new experience, a new "high" could make it better. Even though if one had owned B first instead, then A might sound better.

2) Cognitive dissonance. One can naturally privilege what they own over what they don't to internally justify the money that has been spent and to feel better about the decision that they made in other ways (e.g., researching something a lot makes one more prone to want to feel that they made the right choice).

3) Expectational bias. It has been proven that people judge more expensive audio equipment as better based on price, even when the same judgment doesn't hold up when price is unknown.

 

[EarphoneNet]

  I agree with above that best should be tuned to what you want in a sound signature. Though I suppose the only way you can really find out is through experimenting. That being said you cannot go wrong checking out HiFiman's many wide range of products. Have fun and sorry about your wallet

lol thanks, I'm going to take a look at them.

 

[billybob_jcv]

I'm kind of curious why the country of origin matters? Are you including Audio-Technica & Sony?

To answer your question, even though I have never heard them, I think the Lear LCM BD4.2 has to be on any list of the best IEMs - not just from China, but from anywhere in the world.

 

[EarphoneNet]

well, after starting to read the aforementioned thread about earphones from China/Asia I got curious what people on this board think are good earphones from there. There are so many brands and models mentioned in that thread that I couldn't see the forest for trees.
 
I suppose I am more curious about brands that aren't well known so that would exclude Sony or Audio-Technica. Maybe my question is motivated by the the percieved reputation of "made in china" brands as well.
 
Come to think of it, I do have an earphone from China myself, a Brainwavz M2. Not really at the samel level of the Lear LCM BD4.2 

 

[thatBeatsguy]

  well, after starting to read the aforementioned thread about earphones from China/Asia I got curious what people on this board think are good earphones from there. There are so many brands and models mentioned in that thread that I couldn't see the forest for trees.
 
I suppose I am more curious about brands that aren't well known so that would exclude Sony or Audio-Technica. Maybe my question is motivated by the the percieved reputation of "made in china" brands as well.
 
Come to think of it, I do have an earphone from China myself, a Brainwavz M2. Not really at the samel level of the Lear LCM BD4.2 

Well, IMO, there are four types of brands in the Chinese/Asian Brand thread:

• The popular, consumer-type ones (Sony, Audio-Technica)
• The niche, audiophile ones (Zero Audio, Final Audio Design)
• The Chinese brands that made the cut and practically fit into Category 2 (Ostry, KZ [although I classify KZ as Category 4])
• The Chinese brands that don't have much of a reputation and make cheap, cheap crap (SADES, and most of the junk they post about that sound "amazing")
• The fakes, counterfeits, and copies sold on TaoBao, AliExpress, eBay, etc.

 
Category 4, IMO, doesn't have a proper reputation and usually is only raved about for a couple days until someone joins the bandwagon and says "OMG, THEY'RE AMAZING." At times that someone could actually be the same guy who started raving about it.

 

[billybob_jcv]

You forgot #5, the fakes & copies sold on eBay & AliExpress...

 

[thatBeatsguy]

You forgot #5, the fakes & copies sold on eBay & AliExpress...

Oh yeah...I totally forgot about those.

 

[EarphoneNet]

You forgot #5, the fakes & copies sold on eBay & AliExpress...

hehe, that's only complicating matters even more. Seems to me that if you are able to make a copy of a product and people confuse it with the real thing you should just start you own brand.
 
 

  Well, IMO, there are four types of brands in the Chinese/Asian Brand thread:

• The popular, consumer-type ones (Sony, Audio-Technica)
• The niche, audiophile ones (Zero Audio, Final Audio Design)
• The Chinese brands that made the cut and practically fit into Category 2 (Ostry, KZ [although I classify KZ as Category 4])
• The Chinese brands that don't have much of a reputation and make cheap, cheap crap (SADES, and most of the junk they post about that sound "amazing")

 
Category 4, IMO, doesn't have a proper reputation and usually is only raved about for a couple days until someone joins the bandwagon and says "OMG, THEY'RE AMAZING." At times that someone could actually be the same guy who started raving about it.

sounds like a sensible distinction. I am wondering, maybe those in category 3 and 4 like KZ or Sades aim for category 1 or maybe they are popular consumer models in China already?

 

[thatBeatsguy]

 

• hehe, that's only complicating matters even more. Seems to me that if you are able to make a copy of a product and people confuse it with the real thing you should just start you own brand.
• sounds like a sensible distinction. I am wondering, maybe those in category 3 and 4 like KZ or Sades aim for category 1 or maybe they are popular consumer models in China already?

• Well, there are those kinds of people who think they can get away with ripping off people with fakes.
• Those types of brands are popular in China, although there's really no way of telling if you're not in China yourself and you actually see the popularity yourself. But then again, even when you're already in China, you still can't really tell since those brands don't really have proper websites and whatnot -- they only sell through 3rd-party resellers on TaoBao, Aliexpress, etc., so honestly, I have very little trust in those brands and keep wondering why the people in the CABIT keep buying it. It's almost like they have too much money to burn and yet they complain about not having much money left. 
  

 

[EarphoneNet]

1. Well, there are those kinds of people who think they can get away with ripping off people with fakes.
2. Those types of brands are popular in China, although there's really no way of telling if you're not in China yourself and you actually see the popularity yourself. But then again, even when you're already in China, you still can't really tell since those brands don't really have proper websites and whatnot -- they only sell through 3rd-party resellers on TaoBao, Aliexpress, etc., so honestly, I have very little trust in those brands and keep wondering why the people in the CABIT keep buying it. It's almost like they have too much money to burn and yet they complain about not having much money left. :rolleyes:

1. I can understand it when they go for the higher priced brands but faking a low cost, low margin earphones like Xiaomi hardly seems worth the effort or risk but apparently it is.
2. That is the conundrum, some of those brands may have a good product so you start buying and then you keep on buying and buying just to hear if they are any good.