[samandhi]

I have been in contact with Herry and he is well... just busy with other business and family-life. Currently, he and I are finalizing the details of a special commission mod project that will take some time due to his busy schedule. I will surely keep you all posted.

oooh, a mod project. Sounds cool!

 

[samandhi]

Good!!!! the stock sound on these isn't bad, it's kind of bright which makes them useless to me for long listening sessions and they were mercilessly stripped. Know that TO600 is a 500 ohm driver + a resistor, the design is not closed, it has a large opening at 6 o'clock

So, not a true 600 ohm bud is what you're saying? Interesting.

 

[FranQL]

So, not a true 600 ohm bud is what you're saying? Interesting.

This trick is used by some other manufacturer

 

[samandhi]

This happens with most brands....

I wonder how much resistance they actually add to some of the higher impedance buds?! Because one of the attractions of having higher impedance drivers is that they are more accurate and have better resolution overall (comparatively speaking).

 

[WoodyLuvr]

Good!!!! the stock sound on these isn't bad, it's kind of bright which makes them useless to me for long listening sessions and they were mercilessly stripped. Know that TO600 is a 500 ohm driver + a resistor, the design is not closed, it has a large opening at 6 o'clock

My mistake I meant to type semi-closed back (due to position of this single vent and close proximity to the driver, although large, it is not as open as other earbud designs in similar shell types/designs). Thank you for the correction. I have edited my post.

 

[FranQL]

I wonder how much resistance they actually add to some of the higher impedance buds?! Because one of the attractions of having higher impedance drivers is that they are more accurate and have better resolution overall (comparatively speaking).

I have edited, the translator played a trick on me, looked like a general comment and it is not like that

 

[samandhi]

I have edited, the translator played a trick on me, I wanted a general comment and it is not like that

OK, gotcha'. Danged language barriers...

 

[samandhi]

So @WoodyLuvr What was the very first consumer earbud ever? Was is a Sony? Also was it available for purchase or was it bundled with some device (like they used to predominately do)? Just curious to know such things.

 

[WoodyLuvr]

Good!!!! the stock sound on these isn't bad, it's kind of bright which makes them useless to me for long listening sessions and they were mercilessly stripped. Know that TO600 is a 500 ohm driver + a resistor, the design is not closed, it has a large opening at 6 o'clock

Indeed these can be very fatiguing for me as well like their cousins the Toneking (MrZ - MusicMaker) Dendroaspis Viridis "Green Mamba". Definitely not for those with sensitive ears.

 

[gordonli]

My personal opinion: hands down the Longyao-Yinman龙谣音曼 2.0 600 Limited Edition.

To be completely honest the Toneking TO600 has been a polarizing earbud on this thread... many have liked it (@HungryPanda, @FranQL, @davjac84) and just as many have not liked it (myself, @seanc1441, @Alex.Grimm). We all have different ears and listening preferences (tastes).

I didn't think there was anything special about the Toneking (MrZ - MusicMaker) TO600. It was not bad sounding or anything like that... just nothing remarkable about it. The bass roll off is very noticeable on these... it happens somewhere in the mid to sub bass region but they do make up for it with super emphasized upper-mid to upper bass frequencies due to their being of semi-closed back design. Though this semi-closed back design does come with it's drawbacks: their signature can be a little aggressive and harsh sounding in the upper mids for certain listeners. Their staging is a little "narrow" sounding. And they exhibit noticeable bass bleed into the midrange. Nonetheless, they are very warm and pleasant sounding earbuds. Probably perfect for acoustic music and perhaps certain vocal heavy genres.

Good!!!! the stock sound on these isn't bad, it's kind of bright which makes them useless to me for long listening sessions and they were mercilessly stripped. Know that TO600 is a 500 ohm driver + a resistor, the design is not closed, it has a large opening at 6 o'clock

Thanks guys!! This will surely be helpful to me in choosing a high impedance bud!

 

[WoodyLuvr]

So @WoodyLuvr What was the very first consumer earbud ever? Was is a Sony? Also was it available for purchase or was it bundled with some device (like they used to predominately do)? Just curious to know such things.

Excellent question(s)!

In fact, Sony was not the first company to launch flathead earbuds. They missed it by around five to six months to Trio-Kenwood Corporation who first debuted their KH-0.5 in Tokyo in early December 1981 (they were widely available for sale worldwide by the Christmas & New Years holiday period). Although it must be admitted that Sony's mini on-ear clip-on earphones the MDR-E22 and MDR-E33 (the world's first on-ear clip-on earphones and they were tiny!) launched in June 1981 (unofficially previewed and teased as far back as December 1980) must have been highly influential on Trio-Kenwood's KH-0.5's flathead earbud creation and design.

These are the first three (3) earbuds released upon the world:

​

Trio-Kenwood KH-0.5 Petitphones; 32Ω (World's 1st Earbud; debuted December 1981)​

Sony MDR-E252 Nude Fontopia; 18Ω (World's 2nd Earbud; debuted May/June 1982) *​

Teac HP-30 Stereo Cutie Headphones; 32Ω (World's 3rd Earbud; debuted June 1982)​

All of these early Golden Ear earbud models from 1981 until 1983/4 were sold separately as stand-alone accessories (products). Audio devices at the time were only bundled with on-ear headsets... you know those terrible hair-pulling, ear-nipping, razor thin metal and plastic head bands that would break if you even looked at them the wrong way.

If I am not mistaken, the first bundled earbuds were Sony's 1984 MDR-E242 Nude Turbo (18Ω) which were bundled with a few of their very top-tier audio devices as an option. However, mainstream earbud bundling didn't go into full effect until 1985 after Sony released and bundled the Sony MDR-E222 Nude Turbo 12 (16Ω) with a good number of their Walkman and radio devices across all pricing tiers. Other audio companies quickly followed suit immediately thereafter with their own bundled models.

* Although Sony's first stereo flathead earbud ear receiver, the MDR-E252, debuted in May/June 1982, it was actually Sony's highly influential predecessors, the monaural/stereo clip-on ear hook ear receivers, the MDR-E22 and MDR-E33 (the world's first clip-on on-ear earphones utilizing 23mm diameter dome-type drivers), that officially launched the MDR-E Series a year earlier in June 1981.​

 

[nymz]

​

Today I bring you something different. Instead of IEMs or sources, I'll be covering the best earbud I've ever had the chance to try and I figured it would match this thread.

In fact, stratch that. Serratus is one of the best transducers I've ever heard and everyone knows I'm a picky one. Oh and did I mention that it is built by one of our own head-fiers, @tgx78?

Hope you enjoy the reading as much as I enjoyed hearing these.

 

[yaps66]

​

Today I bring you something different. Instead of IEMs or sources, I'll be covering the best earbud I've ever had the chance to try and I figured it would match this thread.

In fact, stratch that. Serratus is one of the best transducers I've ever heard and everyone knows I'm a picky one. Oh and did I mention that it is built by one of our own head-fiers, @tgx78?

Hope you enjoy the reading as much as I enjoyed hearing these.

+1 @tgx78 has crazy skills!

 

[WoodyLuvr]

​

Today I bring you something different. Instead of IEMs or sources, I'll be covering the best earbud I've ever had the chance to try and I figured it would match this thread.

In fact, stratch that. Serratus is one of the best transducers I've ever heard and everyone knows I'm a picky one. Oh and did I mention that it is built by one of our own head-fiers, @tgx78?

Hope you enjoy the reading as much as I enjoyed hearing these.

+1 @tgx78 has crazy skills!

After reading your posts and that splendidly presented review I am now simply dying to receive my tgxear Tantalus MMCX buds!!!

 

[nymz]

After reading your posts and that splendidly presented review I am now simply dying to receive my tgxear Tantalus MMCX buds!!!

Guess what I'm wearing right now? Warm up the gear and embrace the journey.