[Denkmal]

I believe I am going to drop the cash on the Dali iO-12's and see how they sound in comparison here to the Px8's. I can get them from a store where I can return them if I am not satisfied.

I am sure the Dalis sound awesome but also very different from the PX8.
The house sound of Dalis speakers and headphones has always been much brighter than the warm cozy B&W sound. More detailed and more ”hi fi”, no doubt.
They look freakishly big though. Not quite as mobile as PX8…

 

[yrstruly]

The Dalis will look ridiculous on the head I bet. I'm too vain to own them...

 

[jthomp72]

I am sure the Dalis sound awesome but also very different from the PX8.
The house sound of Dalis speakers and headphones has always been much brighter than the warm cozy B&W sound. More detailed and more ”hi fi”, I am sure.

Partially why I am intrigued. I love the Px8 sound. I loved the Bathys sound for different reasons it was just fatiguing for me, a bit too bright, and uncomfortable on my head. I am interested to see if the iO-12 is a middle ground between the two with some added detail.

 

[jthomp72]

The Dalis will look ridiculous on the head I bet. I'm too vain to own them...

I got a monster noggin and monster ears, probably will look normal on me. 5'11, 250, broad shoulders big head, probably won't look ridiculous on me sadly.

 

[Denkmal]

I got a monster noggin and monster ears, probably will look normal on me. 5'11, 250, broad shoulders big head, probably won't look ridiculous on me sadly.

OK so I couldn't help myself and had to swing by my local hifi store and give the IO12 a go.
First impressions, after A-B demoing next to the store's PX8:

- Yes they look absolutely ridiculous on the head. A no go for my use case in which I would take them on flights/trains etc.
- Yes they sound absolutely great. Compared to PX8 I could immediately hear the larger soundstage and the more neutral tuning. Lots of detail and excellent instrument separation. A little bright for my taste but others will like this more than the PX8, Bathys or any other ANC can on the market.
The sound is not configurable other than with a physical button that toggles between "hifi" and "bass" modes. The hifi mode is not anemic and the bass mode is not a basshead sound, so it is fairly balanced I would say.
Overall, with the sound stage and detailed treble they sound technically superior to PX8 but I still like the timbre, warm midrange and the overall sound profile of PX8 a little better.
- Build and looks is great but not better than the PX8. Also did I mention they look stupid on the head...
- Fit and comfort was good for me but not better than PX8 which I think is one of the comfiest ANC cans out there, for me. IO12 is a heavy headphone and even though it is plush and padded it still felt big.
- ANC was good enough, not on Sony level but perhaps on par with or even better than PX8.

Are they worth the price tag? Maybe. For me personally, not really, since they are not a do-it-all headphone anyway and would never accompany me on trips or even leave the home office. For the same price you would get a very decent wired open can for home use, and a more than decent ANC can like PX7s2e or Senn M4.

 

[mainguy]

OK so I couldn't help myself and had to swing by my local hifi store and give the IO12 a go.
First impressions, after A-B demoing next to the store's PX8:

- Yes they look absolutely ridiculous on the head. A no go for my use case in which I would take them on flights/trains etc.

Are they worth the price tag? Maybe. For me personally, not really, since they are not a do-it-all headphone anyway and would never accompany me on trips or even leave the home office. For the same price you would get a very decent wired open can for home use, and a more than decent ANC can like PX7s2e or Senn M4.

I think this is going to be a trend with these higher end BT headphones, like the 5909. As you increase the cavity size the sound quality absolutely will improve, and the limitations on the portable form factor with added battery, electronics, etc, are just too great to match full sized closed back performance.

I mean sure, my Focal Radiance is miles ahead technically compared to PX8/Bathys. But I don't want to walk to the shops, park, or get on a plane with Radiance on my head.

Then for people who just want something to listen to at the office/home, that's wireless, well they may as well get a Radiance/P9 or whatever high end closed back, plug it into a ifi go blu, and viola, I guarantee that'll outperform a IO12 or any of these high end BT cans, and serve the same function.

I think the only company (personally) who can make a desktop competitive BT headphone are Focal if they release a Bathys with a Utopia/Stellia driver inside. It's a similar size to the Clear driver currently in there so they could do it if they wanted...

 

[Denkmal]

I think this is going to be a trend with these higher end BT headphones, like the 5909. As you increase the cavity size the sound quality absolutely will improve, and the limitations on the portable form factor with added battery, electronics, etc, are just too great to match full sized closed back performance.

I mean sure, my Focal Radiance is miles ahead technically compared to PX8/Bathys. But I don't want to walk to the shops, park, or get on a plane with Radiance on my head.

Then for people who just want something to listen to at the office/home, that's wireless, well they may as well get a Radiance/P9 or whatever high end closed back, plug it into a ifi go blu, and viola, I guarantee that'll outperform a IO12 or any of these high end BT cans, and serve the same function.

Agree. I just dont get the point of a wireless ANC headphone if the form factor doesnt work for mobile use. The IO-12 is so big and weird looking on the head that I would not even use it in the office. Also it felt a bit too heavy and like it would move around too much.

But for someone looking for an alternative to ML5909 or the T+A Solitaire this is definitely worth a listen.

 

[mainguy]

Agree. I just dont get the point of a wireless ANC headphone if the form factor doesnt work for mobile use.

With iFi Go Blu and other bluetooth dongles on the market, there is literally no point.

 

[Denkmal]

iFi Go Blu

do you use your with a cable running down from the headphone to the table/your pocket, or have you found a way to clip the iFi Go Blu to the actual headphone? I am sensitive to cable microphonics and would like to avoid any cable rubbing down my shirt...

 

[mainguy]

do you use your with a cable running down from the headphone to the table/your pocket, or have you found a way to clip the iFi Go Blu to the actual headphone? I am sensitive to cable microphonics and would like to avoid any cable rubbing down my shirt...

If you have a short cable you can use a black elastic hairband tie (or whatever colour you please) to connect the go blu directly to the headphone

viola, BT headphone with LDAC! Whatsmore the multipoint actually works unlike on all of these ANC headphones lol.

 

[ryanmatic]

With iFi Go Blu and other bluetooth dongles on the market, there is literally no point.

I personally agree in that I wouldn't wear headphones bigger than the Px8 when out and about, but I think there's still a market for large, home-focused wireless ANC headphones. I think of it a bit like an iMac compared to a MacBook Pro. The markets may not be the same size-wise, but they both exist.

I have an iFi Go Blu (which I think is terrific) that I use with my DT 177x Go when I'm at home. The sound is great but it is undeniably more cumbersome compared to the Px8. If Beyer made a wireless version of the DT177x I still wouldn't use it out and about as it would probably be too bulky, but I'd love it for home use.

 

[begor]

Hey folks, also sharing here for anyone's interested in IO-12 and a brief comparison (or lack thereof) with PX8: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/new...nes-–-impressions-thread.970380/post-17812406

Re. size of Dali IO-12. I'd personally not wear anything larger (and with more "geeky" design) than PX8 on the street, including Bathys/T+A/5909 (tbh, I'd not wear even PX8 on the street, preferring APP2 for pure comfort with a sound quality trade-off).

In the office/plane/train I think it doesn't matter that much and IO-12 might be suitable. What I don't think is "good" is BT dongles that you still have to connect via wires, charge separately, etc. I'd rather take "worse sound, no wires" trade-off when I'm travelling/working from the office, but that's of course my preference.

 

[Denkmal]

Well, only yesterday one member who is VERY popular and posting A LOT in this thread apparently caring about my opinions because he asking me only yesterday a question in the iO-12 thread. And he even saying "I trust you to be brutally honest". Again, Mr Dude, I'm only speaking about facts.

Wow. @jthomp72 you seem to have a huge fan here. Let me know what you think when you have auditioned IO-12, I trust you to be brutally honest

 

[jthomp72]

Wow. @jthomp72 you seem to have a huge fan here. Let me know what you think when you have auditioned IO-12, I trust you to be brutally honest

To be fair I do trust him for a brutally honest opinion. His opinion, but it’s gonna be brutally honest.

 

[yrstruly]

Couldn’t wait until Christmas…