Latest Thread Images

Final Audio Design website now in English
Feb 18, 2011 at 1:30 PM Post #16 of 33
^ Nice to know they thrilled you so much James, they must be pretty special! Am looking forward to hearing them soon myself, hopefully when I'm in Canada in the next few days, else almost certainly when I go to HK early next month - I will pop into Mingo's or try one of the Sony stores there. As for the contradictory opinions of them, from my recent experience with the BA-SS, it could well be due to not getting an optimum fit with them. By that I mean not simply a matter of getting best isolation but more a matter of how you insert them in the ears - the angle and depth. Some days back, my Monster Foam Supertips de-laminated from the cores and stopped sounding good, so I was forced to use the stock tips that came with the FAD's. A blessing in disguise that could well turn out to be, because I have been able to get an excellent sound with them. To my surprise, considering I have big ear canals, the medium size stock tips give me the best isolation. But to get the best sound with these tips is tricky, like I said, it's not just a question of getting the maximum isolation with them, rather it's the angle and depth that you insert them into the ears that matter. It's vital to get a 100% optimum fit, 98% won't do. With anything less than optimum, the sound is no doubt good, but the treble is a bit hot and the and the 'phones are unforgiving of poor recordings or low bit-rate tracks. However, get that fit 100% right and the sound just snaps into focus, akin to bringing a telephoto lens into sharp focus. Then, with heart on hand, I could not say that the FAD's are too revealing or that the treble is at all hot. No, the sound then is completely wholesome, with no unnatural sibilance at all. And of course you get that glorious 3D soundstage. And then they are also much less unforgiving of poor recordings or MP3 artifacts. Maybe the same thing applies to the Sony's. Maybe it's a matter of experimenting with the fit. I look forward to hearing them.
 
Meanwhile, when you get a chance to A/B the BA-SS and the EX1000, would love to hear your impressions.
 
Jun 21, 2011 at 11:28 PM Post #17 of 33
Just got a set of the FI-BA-SS a few days ago after some serious auditioning at Jaben (Singapore). Very impressed by these IEMs. Just to give a bit of perspective to this comment, I started with Shure IEMs (moved up the range to SE530), then to Senn IE8, then to JH13PROs customs and now the FAD FI-BA-SS. I also used the Hornet and Iqube amps to drive my JH13PROS.
 
The JH13PROs were great but I find carryinging an external amp to make them sound great becomes a chore. I use Iphone4 and Ipad2 for my music source. The amp is cumbersome to use with the Ipad2. Music content are all in either lossless or AIFF. Without amp, I would say that FAD FI-BA-SS is my firm favourite. The musicality, clarity, details, soundstage are all very very good. In terms of clarity the FAD wins slightly. You will pick this up only when you A/B between the 2. Not to say that I can't live with the JH13PROs either. The gain on the FAD seems to be high - this works well with the Iphone and Ipad. I now listen at around 40-50% of the volume. On JH13PROS, I have to turn them up to 70-80% without amp.
 
The weight of the buds are also quite reassuring and they sit comfortably in my ears. No discomfort. The metal contact with the ear has a cooling effect - which is nice - especially in hot weather like Asia. On the contrary, my ears can get sweaty with the customs. Sound insolation on the FI-BA-SS is as good as the customs once you get the right fit.
 
On jazz and classical tracks, the cymbals were simply amazing and addictive - its so clear without listening fatugue which comes with "hot" treble. No idea how FAD did this but I think they are on to a winner!
 
 
Jun 22, 2011 at 6:08 PM Post #19 of 33
Nice coincidence @cold water, I've been listening to a JH13 demo unit during the last few days and compared it to the FI-BA-SS (amongst others). The FAD's sensitivity is much higher, though they're also more prone to hiss. Overall A/Bing these was a close call, but at the end of the day I too prefer the FI-BA-SS.
 
They have better clarity and transparency, detail is about on par and soundstage and airiness are again better than the JH13-D. The latter have a slight edge in separation and their liquid and rich mids may appeal to more listeners than the FAD's slightly dryer and leaner presentation, but for me the JH13-D were too much in-your-face. Funny thing about bass btw, even though the FI-BA-SS roll off a bit earlier below 30Hz, they don't have that slight mid-bass hump that plagues the JH13-D. Therefore stuff like dubstep sounds even deeper on the FADs, because the mid-bass drowns out deep bass on the JH13-D.
 
Overall it's nothing short of amazing what Final Audio has achieved with a single BA driver, it gives the six JH13 drivers a run for their money.
smile_phones.gif

 
Jun 22, 2011 at 9:05 PM Post #21 of 33
I think the high sensitivity is a very underrated aspect of the FI-BA-SS. The fact that they perform so well without an amp is a major positive in my book! It annoys me how, for example my MD Tribute just don't sound nearly as good IMHO without amping.
 
I also think it is interesting the FI-BA-SS hissed a lot on my Ipod touch 1G, but on my 4G they barely hiss at all and have better synergy.
 
 
 
Jun 29, 2011 at 3:49 AM Post #23 of 33
I haven't been able to spend much time here in the last few months due to work pressure so I would like to know if has anyone here on Head-Fi heard these new Hi-end Piano-Fortes? In any case Im travelling to Tokyo next month so will take a listen and post my impressions here. Not that I'm planning to buy them but I'm interested to know how they compare to the 1601 series.
 
Jun 29, 2011 at 9:20 AM Post #24 of 33


Quote:
firoze said:
I haven't been able to spend much time here in the last few months due to work pressure so I would like to know if has anyone here on Head-Fi heard these new Hi-end Piano-Fortes? In any case Im travelling to Tokyo next month so will take a listen and post my impressions here. Not that I'm planning to buy them but I'm interested to know how they compare to the 1601 series.
Click to expand...


Finally bothered getting a head-fi account after lurking around the forums for a few years :p
 
Anyways, I was compulsive / silly enough to get the Piano Forte IX (the stainless steel one) around end of April soon after it was released when I was on holidays in Japan (picked it up at Yodobashi Camera). 
 
I don't have anything from the 1601 series so I can't comment, but personally I think the Piano Forte IX (compared to the Earsonics SM3 which I use daily) has a wider sound stage and slightly more detail without sounding artificial.  They're great for listening to "live" concert recordings as it almost sounds like you're actually there.
 
Unfortunately though for me at least the Piano Forte's don't fit into my ear very well (there are no instructions on how to put one on - and it's a bit too big to just shove in) and as a result I get really poor noise isolation, which means I can't really use them unless it's in a relatively quiet area.  They also have a habit of falling out of my left ear if I'm in motion :frowning2:
 
If you wanna try one out go to Yodobashi Camera - the store attendant was happy to let me test any of the Piano Forte's they had on display (including the omgwtf $2000 usd one).
 
If you want some pics I can take a few snaps and post it up.
 
 
Jun 29, 2011 at 10:12 AM Post #25 of 33
Yeah some pictures would definitely be nice, wondering how much did you pay for yours?
This is very interesting as I also have SM3, do the FADs provide more clarity?
As some people mentioned that the 1601 series sounds veiled and muffled if I remember correctly, do you sense a little bit of that as well or is the clarity outstanding?
Also how is there treble, midrange, and bass compared to the SM3? Do you think the price difference is worth it for you?
 
 
Jun 29, 2011 at 11:13 AM Post #26 of 33
Looks like FAD didn't bother to improve ergonomics on the 1602 vs. the 1601 - too bad. The 1601 only sounds muffled if you use them with sealing tips, they sound very clear and detailed with the non-sealing metal tips. I asked FAD whether the 1602 retain the 1601's mid-centric sound signature and they confirmed this, adding that the "horn speaker principle" on the 1602 would produce a more dense sound.
 
Honestly, I love the 1601 for being somewhat exotic and they sound really impressive with some kind of music, but compared to the EX1000 I feel that Sony is able to get so much higher sound quality out of their 16mm dynamic drivers, that I simply can't justify to consider the 1602.
 
The FI-BA-SS are different beasts though and remain the clearest and most transparent IEMs I've heard.
 
Jul 6, 2011 at 8:40 PM Post #27 of 33


Quote:
silverkaze said:
Yeah some pictures would definitely be nice, wondering how much did you pay for yours?
This is very interesting as I also have SM3, do the FADs provide more clarity?
As some people mentioned that the 1601 series sounds veiled and muffled if I remember correctly, do you sense a little bit of that as well or is the clarity outstanding?
Also how is there treble, midrange, and bass compared to the SM3? Do you think the price difference is worth it for you?
 
Click to expand...


I believe I paid the "retail" price for the IX's (98000yen).  Oh, I should clarify that I'm using the v1 SM3's and not the v2 in my comparisons.  I've attached a few pics of the Piano Forte IX's to this post.  The box is sitting at home so no shots of that.  The IX's are so polished I can see myself holding my phone while taking the pics
tongue_smile.gif

 
As for clarity differences I'm going to have to listen to them again before I can tell you - it's been a few days since I last used them and I can't remember the sound signature.
 
EDIT: Separation is definitely noticably better than the SM3's.  So I guess that means it has better clarity (?).  Much better bass response without being overwhelming like the IE8's.  Mid's feel less "sharp" than the SM3's though - probably more like the Westone 4's.
 

 

 
 
 
Jul 6, 2011 at 9:54 PM Post #28 of 33
zgundam... How.. Do you put those things in your ears...? Look like they could.. Hurt...
 
Jul 6, 2011 at 10:16 PM Post #30 of 33
They look really nice, could've been better if they had detachable cable, it'd really suck if an earphone this expensive breaks because of the cable.
As you are the only person I know that owns a pair of these, you need to give us more information on how it sounds, a review would be even better! :D
tongue_smile.gif

 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 2 (members: 0, guests: 2)
Back
Top