[SpringBiscuit]

Quote:

Thanks Paul, it is wonderful and i am having the same experiences that you had when you got yours. Do yours fit in solidly or do they sort of just sit there. Mine don't fit behind the tragus (the little bit in front of the ear entrance that sticks out) like on the models in the pictures but it does not effect the sound. In fact I pressed it in a little thinking it would go deeper and the sound was not as good.
I just played some Paul Simon, hearts and bones, Oh my! I think I am going to have a late night here!

yea glad you like them so much, surprisingly despite the size so big, my VIII really fits well in my small ears, somehow i felt it has better fit compare with some of my IEMs.
Amazing indeed =D.

The only thing i don't enjoy is when you fresh insert the earphone into your ear, icy popsicle spot on!!

 

[ianmedium]

Thanks so much, yeah, I thought the Heavens were cold to start with but these, boy, when I go to the Rockies for my usual christmas break later this year i won't be wearing these outside! As to fit, I can only assume the young Asian woman FAD use to show wearing these must have huge ear canals as mine stick out way more than they do on her! But it is surprising. I have been walking around with them and they show no signs of budging. Interestingly no thump thump either as I walk and no micro phonics from the cable.

I think it is the ability to resolve micro details that is getting me. Listening to very familiar pieces I am just getting a ton more detail but everything is smoothly delivered, no harsh or grainy treble.

 

[ianmedium]

You know, I am having the devil of a job describing the sonic signature to these phones, all I know is they are something very special indeed and you either get it or don't. I don't think these phones tread a middle ground.

One of the other things they have done is give me a new perspective on recordings that I have wanted to love but have had a hard time doing so. Alison Krauss and Robert Plants Raising Sand is such an album, as is Steely Dan, these are giving me a whole new perspective on those albums, I am actually having a hard time not listening to them!

You know, I think I might be able to give an insight into these. It is like being at a HiFi show and being wowed by various systems and then you go into the Audio Note room, speakers in the corner a few watts of exotic tube amplification, everything feels wrong in a way in comparison to the uber systems, you should not like it but there is something that draws you in and won't let go. It feels simple, uncomplicated but it just keeps drawing you in and in and can't stop. You leave the show forgetting everything except that Audio Note system. You want to dismiss it as crazy for the price but you can't, you just feel that you have witnessed something rare and very special indeed and you like it so much you want to sell everything to get it! Does that make sense fellow Piano Forte users?

 

[SpringBiscuit]

Quote:

You know, I am having the devil of a job describing the sonic signature to these phones, all I know is they are something very special indeed and you either get it or don't. I don't think these phones tread a middle ground.
One of the other things they have done is give me a new perspective on recordings that I have wanted to love but have had a hard time doing so. Alison Krauss and Robert Plants Raising Sand is such an album, as is Steely Dan, these are giving me a whole new perspective on those albums, I am actually having a hard time not listening to them!
You know, I think I might be able to give an insight into these. It is like being at a HiFi show and being wowed by various systems and then you go into the Audio Note room, speakers in the corner a few watts of exotic tube amplification, everything feels wrong in a way in comparison to the uber systems, you should not like it but there is something that draws you in and won't let go. It feels simple, uncomplicated but it just keeps drawing you in and in and can't stop. You leave the show forgetting everything except that Audio Note system. You want to dismiss it as crazy for the price but you can't, you just feel that you have witnessed something rare and very special indeed and you like it so much you want to sell everything to get it! Does that make sense fellow Piano Forte users?

Right on! i like how you describe and explain the experience we all getting.
We impressed by uber set up, because we "expect" uber set up should have all the necessary elements, when it reached our expectation, "well.. great set up, i expect the performance in this price range, definitely a good brand".
You tend to get hook up something different, while Final audio is not focusing on "Uber set up sound" such as superb detail, awesome bass extension, ultra accurate etc... FAD wants everyone to enjoy clean, musical and something not so complicated which wouldnt make you fussy all over on it sound presentation.

P/S : My explanation sucks btw..  

 

[ianmedium]

P/S : My explanation sucks btw..  

Not at all, I think you have got it bang on! Well, it has been almost 6 hours of listening now. I must go to bed, finishing with Nick Drakes five leaves left, so many more details than I have ever heard before on this album, so much more feeling and yet it is relaxing, engaging, musical, thoughtful and I feel refreshed rather than exhausted, Zero pain or discomfort, in fact it simply does not feel like I have anything in my ears!

I have not felt this way about a HiFi product since getting the LCD's and you know, I won't get rid of them but these could easily replace the LCD's as they not only bring me the positive points of those but add so much more detail and musicality. I scratch my head in wonder at the minstrels and magicians at FAD!

 

[music_4321]

Hey ianmedium,
 
Great to hear the IXs did not disappoint and that you got a pretty good fit!
 
I can understand your excitement & puzzlement very well. The PF IX is indeed a very special phone and, in my case, it remains the best I've ever heard. After a few months, I still marvel at just how these seem to reach deeper into music.
 
EDIT: Now, please do yourself a favour and get a copy of Talk Talk's Spirit Of Eden.

 

[cooperpwc]

I am loving all of the descriptions.
 
Quote:

Thanks Paul, it is wonderful and i am having the same experiences that you had when you got yours. Do yours fit in solidly or do they sort of just sit there. Mine don't fit behind the tragus (the little bit in front of the ear entrance that sticks out) like on the models in the pictures but it does not effect the sound. In fact I pressed it in a little thinking it would go deeper and the sound was not as good.

 
I am certain that the pictures of the model have been Photoshopped. This is complete hokum:
 

 
Mine do slot in just behind the tragus but I have huge auricula and ear canals. They still don't go in that deep!
 
As for depth influencing sound, it probably didn't sound as good because you were blocking your ear canals. Free flow of air around the Piano Forte is key. (That is not an issue for me; such are my elephantine canals.)
 
Anyway if you are able to walk around with them, it sounds like you have a great fit. (Shanghai is too loud for that although I did it once for the experience). Here is something to consider: I wrap the cord back around my ears CIEM style and it has already saved my PF IX from accidentally being pulled out to a precipitous drop at least twice. Worth trying...

 

[music_4321]

Quote:

I am certain that the pictures of the model have been Photoshopped. This is complete hokum:
 

 

 
Yes, absolutely.
 
These look closer to the real thing:
 

 

 

[cooperpwc]

Yes that looks much closer to real. Okay, with apologies for too much graphic information, here is the PF IX in my right ear:
 

 

[ianmedium]

Thanks for the pictures, Paul, yours is much closer to how mine fit, I have quite small apertures in my ears so the way mine are would make sense in relation to the picture of your ear. I have gone through so many of my torture tracks to know I am getting all the frequencies that are there. I think the biggest thing has been like most others, getting used to a different style of sound. I was listening for pretty much 6 hours straight last night and by the end of it I had such a hard time stopping so that I could sleep. Can't wait to start listening again today!

The walking around was only in my apartment, I don't think these will be going outside to my usual listening places like coffee shops as they will be too loud to hear all the nuances that these phones portray that are so intoxicating.

I went back to tool and it sounded better but I don't think metal are these phones forte.. Luckily the only metal album I have is that one! I tell you what though, have a listen to Dire Straits love over gold album! Telegraph road and private investigations sound fantastic through these!

Just for reference I am listening to wav files through my portable set up.. Oh yes, the SR71-B and these are a perfect match.. It just makes me wonder what these would be like balanced!

Ok, will head out later today and get Talk Talks album, thanks for the recommendation mate.

 

[MuppetFace]

One thing I'd like to note about the 1602 Piano Fortes is that they are really, really sensitive. They actually pick up ground loop noise from the surrounding environment when I use them with my desktop setup, either amped or unamped, and that is something I've not encountered on any other pair of earphones before.

 

[music_4321]

Quote:

Yes that looks much closer to real. Okay, with apologies for too much graphic information, here is the PF IX in my right ear:
 

 
Quote:

Thanks for the pictures, Paul, yours is much closer to how mine fit...

 
That's also pretty close to how mine fit, except I wear mine with the cable down; the earpieces don't fall out even if I shake my head vigorously. I also get a fairly shallow fit and when I push the housings in, SQ just isn't as good (a very noticeable difference).
 
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Originally Posted by ianmedium /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Ok, will head out later today and get Talk Talks album, thanks for the recommendation mate.

 
I can guarantee you won't regret the purchase, and if you do, I will Paypal you whatever you spend on the album. Seriously.

 

[cooperpwc]

Quote:

One thing I'd like to note about the 1602 Piano Fortes is that they are really, really sensitive. They actually pick up ground loop noise from the surrounding environment when I use them with my desktop setup, either amped or unamped, and that is something I've not encountered on any other pair of earphones before.

 
This is a reason that I love the Stepdance. It burns power pretty quickly with 5 opamps instead of 2 but the active balanced ground works. Even with USB Monica, which is a fairly dirty DAC powered by a cheap switching walwart, the powered ground rejects all noise. The Stepdance + PF IX is black.
 
(The one thing that the Stepdance does not fully reject is interference from neighboring iPhones. Jan says that he has completely solved this with extensive RF filtering on the Quickstep. That is my next amp.)

 

[cooperpwc]

Quote:

I went back to tool and it sounded better but I don't think metal are these phones forte.. Luckily the only metal album I have is that one! I tell you what though, have a listen to Dire Straits love over gold album! Telegraph road and private investigations sound fantastic through these!

 
Heavier music can be a bit hit and miss (but I'm not a metal head either). Right now I am lost in the Who's Live at Leeds. That is a heavier album that works quite wonderfully. (Okay I am a dinosaur...)
 
Thanks for the tip on Love Over Gold. I will cue that up. It's one of those albums that I have not listened to much, i.e. a good album to explore with the PF IX.
 
(And I will keep an eye open for Spirit of Eden too.)

 

[ianmedium]

No worries on the spirit of Eden, always liked Talk Talk and cannot think why I don't have that album. I have had to order from ebay as the only CD store we have in town now is a classical one,which is a stunningly good CD store if anyone is ever visiting, They listen through an ancient pair of Linn Isobariks!

As to Muppets comment, I will keep an eye on that, luckily, like Paul I use a really really quiet battery powered amp so things like noise are not within my hearing capability in terms of any electrical anomalies going on. In fact one of the many things that is getting me hooked is their ability to explore the benefits of an inky black background.

Things such as reflections of Studio walls, second, third or fourth waves of vibration of a plucked string or piano key being struck are so much more evident with these phones. Honestly, the more I think about the the more the comparison with Audio Note gear is appropriate I feel.

Just took a couple of quick pictures this morning, they are the devil to photograph! Excuse my pudgy fingers in the reflections!!