[bneiderman]

Guys....I am in heaven. I am listening to the final revision of the JH3A at work. Charged it last night like they said to but it must have been nearly completely charged as it finished in 30 minutes. Regardless, I left it to charge over night. Turned it on this morning and there is ZERO BACKGROUND NOISE. This thing is now completely black. First smile of the day. Next, I am playing lossless audio files through it and sonically it sounds FANTASTIC. I had the original version and that sounded great to me except for the background hissing. This final version sounds the same to me even with all the recent changes. The midrange may be a bit clearer to me. I don't hear the sibilance that some had commented on at the recent RMAF. I do not typically review audio products so this is coming from my gut. I am happy I waited it out. I feel sorry for those that backed out but maybe they will come full circle in the end. My hat's off to Jerry and crew on a job well done. It might have been a long road but it was worth it.

 

[Germs]

Thanks for your review, it is reassuring to hear that the background issue has been fixed and the latest design does not affect the SQ.
Which input are you using?

 

[Waazup]

Good news.

 

[dj nellie]

Cool, good to hear.  Can you compare its sound qualities to any other customs or headphones you've heard?  Any more specific impressions you can provide would be appreciated.

 

[bneiderman]

Quote:

Cool, good to hear.  Can you compare its sound qualities to any other customs or headphones you've heard?  Any more specific impressions you can provide would be appreciated.

Only other customs I have are the JH13 which are fabulous in their own right. I like the JH16s though because I love the bass. It is nice to be able to dial up the bass with these. I only use digital input from the Wavelink HS out from a 2011 Macbook Air. Can't wait til others like Warp post their impressions.

 

[Carlosfandango]

Looks like some good news arriving out of the gloom.

 

[wsilvio]

I got mine last week, however I was out of town so started listening only yesterday.  All I can say is that it blows away any expectations I previously had.  I knew it would sound good, but I never imagined it would be this good.  My only problem is a slight fit issue in my left ear.  It looks like they didn't just modify my old jh-13's but scanned them and remade them with the new electronics.  I hope they are willing to fix it.

 

[business_jj]

anymore impressions ?

 

[daveDerek]

Will, could you compare and contrast it with your hd800 & sensaphonics rigs.

 

[wsilvio]

 
Quote:

Will, could you compare and contrast it with your hd800 & sensaphonics rigs.

I would say that my hd800 rig with ps audio PWD and RSA B-52 still has a decent edge over the JH-3A.  However, The JH-3A competes extremely well and at a much much lower price point.  I think the JH-3A represents quite a good value in terms of a price to performance ratio.  
 
My sensaphonic 2-Xs and 3 max iems sound great.  They offer the most isolation of any iem out there.  But, the JH-3A still wins in bass quality and overall clarity.  The JH-3A allows you to look very deep into the recording.  It uncovers all the details!  Also, I would like to add that I think the JH-3A is better for rock/pop and some jazz.  I think the HD-800 is better for classical and most acoustic jazz.  
 
If I had any criticism of the JH-3A it would be that they sound a bit bright.  I would say that they sound as bright as the HD-800 on a solid state amp, and brighter than the HD-800 on my B-52.  
 
Lastly, I think the 3A sounds best through the coax input.  The usb input is nice, but I notice quite an improvement using coax.  I have been using the coax out on my ALO CLAS.  Sounds quite good.  Also, I just ordered a halide bridge to try with it.  I'll report on if there are any improvements using the bridge and computer as source.
 
I hope this helps.
 
 
 
 

 

[Waazup]

Quote:

 


I would say that my hd800 rig with ps audio PWD and RSA B-52 still has a decent edge over the JH-3A.  However, The JH-3A competes extremely well and at a much much lower price point.  I think the JH-3A represents quite a good value in terms of a price to performance ratio.  
 
My sensaphonic 2-Xs and 3 max iems sound great.  They offer the most isolation of any iem out there.  But, the JH-3A still wins in bass quality and overall clarity.  The JH-3A allows you to look very deep into the recording.  It uncovers all the details!  Also, I would like to add that I think the JH-3A is better for rock/pop and some jazz.  I think the HD-800 is better for classical and most acoustic jazz.  
 
If I had any criticism of the JH-3A it would be that they sound a bit bright.  I would say that they sound as bright as the HD-800 on a solid state amp, and brighter than the HD-800 on my B-52.  
 
Lastly, I think the 3A sounds best through the coax input.  The usb input is nice, but I notice quite an improvement using coax.  I have been using the coax out on my ALO CLAS.  Sounds quite good.  Also, I just ordered a halide bridge to try with it.  I'll report on if there are any improvements using the bridge and computer as source.
 
I hope this helps.
 
 
 
 

Can i ask how you use the coax input from the CLAS? Is it with just an RCA to RCA cable or what cable are you using?
 
 

 

[wsilvio]

I made an RCA to 4-pole 3.5mm plug.  

 

[Waazup]

Quote:

I made an RCA to 4-pole 3.5mm plug.  

Nice.
I might give that a go myself once i get my unit, below is a picture of the 4-pole jack, could you please tell me which of the 4 poles go where on the centre pole and the ground on the RCA?
If i had to guess i would say that L,R and SPDIF go to the centre signal pole and GND goes to GND on it's own.

 

 

[wsilvio]

Your diagram is correct.  

 

[Kunlun]

Quote:

Guys....I am in heaven. I am listening to the final revision of the JH3A at work. Charged it last night like they said to but it must have been nearly completely charged as it finished in 30 minutes. Regardless, I left it to charge over night. Turned it on this morning and there is ZERO BACKGROUND NOISE. This thing is now completely black. First smile of the day. Next, I am playing lossless audio files through it and sonically it sounds FANTASTIC. I had the original version and that sounded great to me except for the background hissing. This final version sounds the same to me even with all the recent changes. The midrange may be a bit clearer to me. I don't hear the sibilance that some had commented on at the recent RMAF. I do not typically review audio products so this is coming from my gut. I am happy I waited it out. I feel sorry for those that backed out but maybe they will come full circle in the end. My hat's off to Jerry and crew on a job well done. It might have been a long road but it was worth it.

You're saying that the version with active crossovers sounds the same as the new one with only the usual passive crossovers... Sounds like Jerry's version with active crossovers wasn't at all the radical next-step that people hyped it to be.