[tuahogary]

Hello again guys, so I bought the Panasonic HJE900 from Amazon for a discount and got them last Thursday. Out of the box they sounded quite bad, harsh treble and very very sibilant. I let them burn in over the weekend for about 15-20 hours and now the treble has tamed down and it sounds more mature. 
 
I must say I was a little skeptical of it partly because of the not so flattering Headfonia review and its sound out of the box. But now that it has burnt in, I am somewhat surprised at the timbre of these Panas. The electric guitars and bass guitars sounded more... "electric", crunchy and real. Compared to my W3, it totally blew them away! I never really noticed the timbre on the W3 until I compared them with the HJE900. I know I shouldn't quantify timbre but if I say the HJE900 sounds 90% real, the W3 only manages a mere 40% on the same scale. W3 sounds a lot more "plastic" and synthetic. Keep in mind that I have only really tested the timbre of electric guitars / bass. I cannot say much about vocals and acoustic instruments yet.
 
The HJE900 sounds closer to like if I put my ears beside the amp that is plugged into the guitar and in comparison, W3 just sounds wrong. That isn't to say the HJE900 is better though. The W3 does almost everything else better, especially detail retrieval. Even though the HJE900 sounds more edgy and W3 rounded in comparison (W3 are actually quite aggressive compared to other IEMs), the W3 seems to be able to present small details more effortlessly. 
 
I have to say big thanks to the people who have contributed in this thread. I've never heard of the HJE900 before and it seems to be a little gem that has been overlooked in this forum most of the time. I'm hoping to try other IEMs too, and maybe if I come across a deal with the FX700 and EX1000, I'll snap them up as well 

 

[Confispect]

Welcome to sound, son. 

 
As far as FX700 those are gonna blow you away. Top Universals : SM3, Fx700, Panasonic HJE900, 
 
As of right now though I have the Fischer Audio Eterna stuck in my ears the SM3/HJE900 are collecting dust. 

 

[tuahogary]

Wow.. Those Eternas must be really good. I was also interested in trying the VB which has a similar signature to the Eternas, mostly because I might be able to get them for less than $50 in my hometown. 
 
ps. If you're wanting to sell your SM3, I'm all ears 

 

[fzman]

what about phase/time domain performance?  timbre really has as much or more to do with the overtones being time-aligned, than just with amplitude response...
 
I found the Grado GR8's to be the most natural sounding in terms of timbre.
 
just my 2 cents worth
 
Quote:

A listeners perception of timbre is entirely dependent on the ability of headphones to reproduce frequencies accurately. Timbre is created by harmonic frequencies. Every note has a specific frequency, which are fundamental frequencies. Harmonic frequencies are integer multiples of the fundamental frequency (for instance the note A can have a fundamental frequency of 440hz and the harmonic frequencies will be 880hz, 1320hz, 1760hz, and so on). No matter the instrument, it will create these exact frequencies. All sound is to our ears is air molucules vibrating at different frequencies. The only way for our ears to differentiate between instruments (or whatever is producing the noise) is by the amplitude (which is loudness to our ears) of the harmonic frequencies. Every instrument, or anything that produces noise, creates different amplitudes of the harmonic frequencies (these changes are caused by the physical charaecterstics of the origin of the noise), and that is what timbre is, physically. This is why instruments playing the same note sound different and why people have distinctive voices. So, as long as a headphone, or any type of speaker, has an accurate frequency response, timbre should not be an issue.
 
This is your brain on music is an excellent book if you are interested in the physical attributes of sound and why we hear things the way we do.

 

[james444]

Quote:

I have to say big thanks to the people who have contributed in this thread. I've never heard of the HJE900 before and it seems to be a little gem that has been overlooked in this forum most of the time. I'm hoping to try other IEMs too, and maybe if I come across a deal with the FX700 and EX1000, I'll snap them up as well 

 
Quote:

Welcome to sound, son. 

 
As far as FX700 those are gonna blow you away. Top Universals : SM3, Fx700, Panasonic HJE900, 

You're welcome, tuahogary. In my experience the HJE900 improve even more when foam modded, so I'd recommend you try this at the latest when their filters come off (as they most likely will). Regarding the FX700, in my book they are a noticable step up in many aspects while retaining a similar sound signature to the HJE900. And last but not least, the more I listen to the EX1000 I'm inclined to say that these are in turn a noticable upgrade to the FX700, while slightly deviating from the HJE900/FX700 sound signature and heading for a sublimely elegant, smooth and refined one.
 
If your wallet can take it, I'm pretty confident that you're destined for a glorious ride...

 

[Mad Max]

 
Quote:

Wow.. Those Eternas must be really good. I was also interested in trying the VB which has a similar signature to the Eternas, mostly because I might be able to get them for less than $50 in my hometown. 
 
ps. If you're wanting to sell your SM3, I'm all ears 

I forgot to recommend RE252 to ya.  It's right up your alley and well worth a try. 

 

[tuahogary]

 
Quote:

If your wallet can take it, I'm pretty confident that you're destined for a glorious ride...

I think can afford it.. I'm just not sure if I can convince myself that the EX1000 is worth the price. If I buy these now, I might have to wait a bit longer to get something like a Future Sonic MG6pro Ear Monitor. Or I can hold out and get customs earlier? If these are perfectly capable of replacing customs, I might as well go for it. They just look so damn sexy! 

 

[JxK]

Quote:

 

I think can afford it.. I'm just not sure if I can convince myself that the EX1000 is worth the price. If I buy these now, I might have to wait a bit longer to get something like a Future Sonic MG6pro Ear Monitor. Or I can hold out and get customs earlier? If these are perfectly capable of replacing customs, I might as well go for it. They just look so damn sexy! 

I suggest you stick with universals for a while longer, maybe even a year or more, in order to properly learn your preferences. This is more than just sound signature, but includes other esoteric variables like airiness, timbre (clearly), soundstage, etc. For instance, after using some different universals I've learned that I value very highly a large and airy soundstage, and am willing to give up some detail to have it. This means that for me nearly every custom in production (with the possible exception of the ep-10 plus)  would not be a good choice since they all have an intimate stage - or so say all the impressions.

 

[Redmetal1897]

Quote:

 I am somewhat surprised at the timbre of these Panas. The electric guitars and bass guitars sounded more... "electric", crunchy and real. Compared to my W3, it totally blew them away! I never really noticed the timbre on the W3 until I compared them with the HJE900. I know I shouldn't quantify timbre but if I say the HJE900 sounds 90% real, the W3 only manages a mere 40% on the same scale. W3 sounds a lot more "plastic" and synthetic. Keep in mind that I have only really tested the timbre of electric guitars / bass. I cannot say much about vocals and acoustic instruments yet.
 
The HJE900 sounds closer to like if I put my ears beside the amp that is plugged into the guitar and in comparison, W3 just sounds wrong. 
 
I have to say big thanks to the people who have contributed in this thread. I've never heard of the HJE900 before and it seems to be a little gem that has been overlooked in this forum most of the time. I'm hoping to try other IEMs too, and maybe if I come across a deal with the FX700 and EX1000, I'll snap them up as well 

Glad you are hearing the magic that I hear in the Pana's 

 That beautiful distortion guitar 'CRUNCH' just keeps me coming back to these bad boys over and over which is why I would never sell them despite having higher priced IEM's in my collection. The FX700 is on my horizon though so I'll update my impressions afterwards. 
 

 

[Confispect]

Quote:

I suggest you stick with universals for a while longer, maybe even a year or more, in order to properly learn your preferences. This is more than just sound signature, but includes other esoteric variables like airiness, timbre (clearly), soundstage, etc. For instance, after using some different universals I've learned that I value very highly a large and airy soundstage, and am willing to give up some detail to have it. This means that for me nearly every custom in production (with the possible exception of the ep-10 plus)  would not be a good choice since they all have an intimate stage - or so say all the impressions.

 
Agreed, this is for anybody and everybody. To you two Pana owners if you were thinking about moving I would suggest wrap you brain around what signature you want first. I'm currently stuck between two customs. I'm trying to keep my one eye away from the W4 also 

 

[tuahogary]

 
Quote:

I suggest you stick with universals for a while longer, maybe even a year or more, in order to properly learn your preferences. This is more than just sound signature, but includes other esoteric variables like airiness, timbre (clearly), soundstage, etc. For instance, after using some different universals I've learned that I value very highly a large and airy soundstage, and am willing to give up some detail to have it. This means that for me nearly every custom in production (with the possible exception of the ep-10 plus)  would not be a good choice since they all have an intimate stage - or so say all the impressions.

Quote:

Agreed, this is for anybody and everybody. To you two Pana owners if you were thinking about moving I would suggest wrap you brain around what signature you want first. I'm currently stuck between two customs. I'm trying to keep my one eye away from the W4 also 

 
 
Good advice. You know if I hold out against customs, that means the EX1000 might be in my hands sooner than later. And my wallet is already shaking in fear! 

 

 

[james444]

Quote:

For instance, after using some different universals I've learned that I value very highly a large and airy soundstage, and am willing to give up some detail to have it. This means that for me nearly every custom in production (with the possible exception of the ep-10 plus)  would not be a good choice since they all have an intimate stage - or so say all the impressions.

The same thing applies to me, plus from my obvious timbre preference for DDs and MAs I very much doubt timbre to be much better in customs vs. universal BAs.

 

[Redmetal1897]

Quote:

The same thing applies to me, plus from my obvious timbre preference for DDs and MAs I very much doubt timbre to be much better in customs vs. universal BAs.

 
James of all the IEMs you have heard, which would you say does soundstage and airiness best? Is it the FX700 or the IE8?

 

[Redmetal1897]

Yea i'm nervous about getting customs. I remember Pianist telling me he spent close to a grand on one of the westone customs and hated them. Luckily he had a nice seller who gave him a refund but that might not always be the case

 

[james444]

EX1000 > FX700 > IE8. The IE8 project a much more distant soundstage than the others, like sitting somewhere in the middle of a concert hall, whereas the Sonys and JVCs place you much closer to the stage. For those who prefer to be seated further back the IE8 would obviously rank higher.