Sorry, maybe my post was not clear... specifically, at least where I am concerned, the no balanced comment... all of my IEMs all have balanced cables. I also appreciate the luxury feel of the glass.
On the other hand I was agreeing with your comments about smaller size and lower weight, the PEQ for LDAC, and filters that actually make a detectable difference.
I should add that the BTR5 buttons aren’t bad compared to the buttons on the Qudelix 5K...
I had a feeling the glass and balanced were the things you were talking about.
I also like the feel of the glass, but it only gives the
impression of being luxury, it doesn't actually make it a luxury device. For it to be real luxury it has to be a good product first, luxury second. I just don't think the BTR5 is a particularly good device, therefore it really
can't be a luxury device. And if it can't be one, why is it pretending? There are plenty of materials out there that would be more appropriate, but nobody is creative enough to use them.
There's really no reason that balanced should sound better than single-ended. None. Single-ended can sound completely audibly transparent, which is
technically the best a device can sound. That's the "wire with gain" people used to tout. Once transparency is achieved, there's no reason it can't be tuned any which way the designer wants.
I realize I'm probably in the minority on Head-Fi in not wanting to use balanced cables, but in the greater world I'm in the very vast majority. I can assure you that most of the Joe Sixpack non-audiophiles aren't dying to upgrade their earphones from 3.5mm single-ended to some standard that doesn't work with their other devices. FiiO seems content with only appealing (and pandering) to audiophiles, rather than making products that are more widely appealing.
And this reminds me, I'd also want to change:
- that mushy 3.5mm jack that just screams "afterthought"
Also, just because the 5K's buttons are worse than the BTR5's doesn't mean the BTR5's are suddenly good.
Trying to get over your hating on Mr. Clapton
but your point about BT range is well-taken. Otherwise, I love this device overall, like the fit, finish, look and feel and do use it balanced for more power. I find the buttons I use routinely are reasonably intuitive. A key thing I
really like is the ability
change 2nd order harmonics in the app...I'm not an EQ fan but do think 2nd order harmonics are not 'gimmicky" but bring noticeably more musicality like tubes versus SS can. I recommend experimenting with it if you've not yet done so. Anyway, all respect to
@megabigeye for laying this list out so well for others to respond to. A useful and interesting post, much appreciated.
I knew I'd irritate somebody with my comment about Clapton. Sorry! But, my God, I stand firm in my opinion!
Oh yeah, those harmonic distortion things. I forgot about those, but I have tried them more than once. They didn't make any appreciable difference no matter how I set them. I must've lumped them somewhere between "dopey app" and "gimmicky roll-off filters" in my mind.
Not to say that nobody hears a difference with them. But if that's the case, why can't I hear a difference? Is my BTR5 not functioning properly? Either way, it's something that should have been fixed. Why would a feature be included if it doesn't do anything, or how can a product be considered market ready if certain features work on only some devices?
I'm happy to have started an interesting conversation on here. On the one hand, I'm sorry if I've upset people's enjoyment of the BTR5, but on the other hand, I think people should be more demanding of the devices they buy and live with.
Also, I'm blaming all of this on FiiO, but the truth is that a
lot (Most? All?) of audio companies are guilty of the same or different complaints. For one hot minute I was thinking about getting a Mojo... About the only thing I saw in the thread was people complaining; I don't remember seeing one positive comment on the few pages I looked at. My immediate thought was, "For
that price?! No f%^&ing way."
But, like the volume buttons, just because other companies are as bad or worse doesn't automatically make FiiO good.