[music_4321]

My Parterres now have about 150 hrs of burn-in as per Mr Suyama's (alleged) recommendation. I still remain sceptical of noticeable / significant / audible SQ changes after burn-in but I don't rule out very minor variations — they certainly haven't got any worse!

Have had about 25 hrs' ear-time already and I feel I must state this again: the Parterre is an exquisitely tuned IEM, a superb high-end IEM. Had another very short A/B session with my K3003s last night; these phones are different but close enough tonally, with small variations on all frequencies — what a fine IEM the K3003 is, too. Incidentally, still very surprised the K3003 is so close sonically to the HD800s while the IE800s, Senn's $1,000 flagship IEM, er, isn't… not even close.

The Parterres, as I noted a few days ago, handle every genre with aplomb, a true sign of a great phone, though obviously some albums, rather than genres, will sound better depending on recording and/or mastering quality, but even on poorly mastered albums the Parterres certainly deliver. Detail retrieval is excellent; layering is superb; treble continues to impress; low-end extension, tightness and texture are simply brilliant; fast passages are handled brilliantly; the midrange remains very natural and clear sounding. Low volume listening through the Parterres, like on the K3003s, is impressive—at higher volumes it never gets fatiguing. The out-of-head presentation is outstanding, very, very believable—brilliant full sound that is never thick (or thin!) or congested.

To these ears, the Parterre is an incredibly engaging phone, it gets my body moving / responding a bit too often — poor grumpy ageing sparrows who can barely move. (A reminder the Parterre is indeed a closer relative of the TG334 than of the F111)

(** Sincere apologies if I didn't use terms such as resolving/resolution, attack, transients, decay, imaging, coherence, micro-details, dynamics, etc.—perhaps next time. Or not.**)

http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/Happiness+Is+Easy/55weKV?src=5

http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/Motorhead/4OUoxq?src=5

http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/String+Quartet+No+8+Op+59+No+2+I+Allegro/44I9Bp?src=5 (a shame I couldn't find my favourite version but this one isn't that bad)

http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/Here+Comes+The+Flood/5aYXLQ?src=5

http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/Disengage/5aYWLu?src=5
 
http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/North+Star/5aYWTO?src=5
 
http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/Ny3/5mvEjG?src=5

http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/Mary/5aYXaG?src=5

http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/India+B/1RpVrJ?src=5

http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/Beautiful+As+The+Moon+Terrible+As+An+Army+With+Banners/4EbHcU?src=5
 
http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/Elgar+Cello+Concerto+In+E+Minor+Op+85+1+Adagio+Moderato/4TQYVD?src=5

http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/My+Skin/3UX2jt?src=5

http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/The+Wild+The+Beautiful+And+The+Damned/1Va72r?src=5
 
http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/Beatles+Twist+And+Shout/3UtdGj?src=5

 

[castleofargh]

the other day we discussed a theory with a fellow forumer, stating that the burn-in time might be the time needed for the dampers to get dirty and by doing so, kind of increase their own damping value by letting less air flow ^_^.
 

 

[angelo898]

isnt the burn in time there to burn in the cable, which gives in subtle changes in the sound?

 

[angelo898]

soo anyways, i have recently been listening to these on the dac of the b&w mm1, and changed the cable to btg audio silver coated copper. i think they sound out of the head. i officially take back that statement i made that they are not for rock, but live performances are great, as with concerts with a lot of instruments.

 

[EveTan]

Thinking back on IEMs, I'm wondering if getting either a Parterre or 334 as a new toy before I delve deeper into FitEar customs.

 

[music_4321]

Quote:

Thinking back on IEMs, I'm wondering if getting either a Parterre or 334 as a new toy before I delve deeper into FitEar customs.

 
I've had my Parterres for 16 days now and I love these IEMs—they are quite simply terrific, superb phones — 2 drivers? 3 drivers? Who knows... and who cares, TBH.

I've already stated I'd take the Parterres over the 334s, so I won't rehash what I've said already, but suffice to say that I've used my Parterres for hours on end several times and have never had any listening fatigue like I would with the 334s, yet the Parterres are a solid performing IEM AND very exciting — things just sound awfully right. No matter what album or genre I throw at them, they are simply stunningly good. I said this before, but I feel I need to stress this again: the Parterres also deliver in spades with poorly mastered tracks—again, to me this is a sign of a truly excellent IEM / headphone.

I often cringe when I see the clichéd phrase 'crap in, crap out' — the Parterres will certainly let you know which albums have been mastered better, but they'll make poor masters very listenable and, dare I say, pretty enjoyable, too. I also cringe when I see people insisting, and dictating, that with good phones one must use lossless or Hi-Res files — the Parterres sound brilliant using my 64GB 4G iPod Touch (192 & 256 kbps AAC VBR files) and my MacBook Pro (WAV files) > V200.

You know very well I love the KAEDEs, but I prefer the mids and treble on the Parterres, and the bass is certainly no slouch—the low-end is tight and authoritative. The Parterre, to these ears, is more linear than the 334 and with less treble emphasis yet more accurate and refined (better note weight & tonality) than the KAEDE's treble.
 
The Parterre is not linear in an ER-4S/F111 boring/anaemic and 2D way (give me my Heaven S or FI-BA-SS any time over the F111s, two single-BAs that render music more realistically!), they sound more linear in what I've come to hear in the real world of music playing over the years.

 

[EveTan]

@Mr. Sparrow
 
Thank you for your impressions. I'm a bit worried about the mids though. You described them before as not really forward and not really recessed. I'm not sure if that would be my sweet spot with vocals since we do hear things a bit differently I bet. That was the problem I had with the TH900s. 
 
I hear the Parterre would be closer to the Kaedes/TH900s than the 334 would, and not sure if it's something I'd want.
I believe most of my music would benefit more from an exaggerated mid section instead of something more naturally sounding (could be wrong, but that's what I've concluded for now).

 

[music_4321]

Quote:

@Mr. Sparrow
 
Thank you for your impressions. I'm a bit worried about the mids though. You described them before as not really forward and not really recessed. I'm not sure if that would be my sweet spot with vocals since we do hear things a bit differently I bet. That was the problem I had with the TH900s. 
 
I hear the Parterre would be closer to the Kaedes/TH900s than the 334 would, and not sure if it's something I'd want.

 
Never heard the TH900s so can't comment on those, but we both know the KAEDEs, hence my mentioning them. I don't think the Parterres and KAEDEs are that closely related. I think they are more more closely related to the K3003s, FWIW, but I don't think you've heard the AKGs.
 
Quote:

I believe most of my music would benefit more from an exaggerated mid section instead of something more naturally sounding (could be wrong, but that's what I've concluded for now).

 
Perhaps you should be fairly brave now and start considering getting a pair of Piano Fortes instead. Seriously. BUT, bear in mind the PFs have zero isolation and fit may prove problematic. (FYI, I hardly ever recommend or mention the PFs to people)

 

[EveTan]

Quote:

 
Never heard the TH900s so can't comment on those, but we both know the KAEDEs, hence my mentioning them. I don't think the Parterres and KAEDEs are that closely related. I think they are more more closely related to the K3003s, FWIW, but I don't think you've heard the AKGs.
 
 

I've heard the K3003s in a meet condition. And in less than 5 minutes. 

 It definitely didn't give me a 

.... more of a 

. Honestly, out of the 3 I tried, the 1P2 and K3003s were 

 while the 334 was 

 . I imagine those 

 type IEMs are something that you'd appreciate only after listening to it for long periods at a time? Have the Parterres fit side by side with your K3003s yet? Or is one higher/lower than the other in your rankings.
 
I'd have to say that I never found the Kaedes to be fatiguing, if that does say anything about my preferences.

Perhaps you should be fairly brave now and start considering getting a pair of Piano Fortes instead. Seriously. BUT, bear in mind the PFs have zero isolation and fit may prove problematic. (FYI, I hardly ever recommend or mention the PFs to people)

This one was a bit tricky. It was surprisingly comfortable shape wise. If only if it wasn't soo heavy. But I always felt a thin veil between my music and my ears with the PFXIII. Kinda hard to describe. Again, meet conditions.... so grain of salt taken etc.

 

[Idsynchrono_24]

I'm not quite sure how anyone makes up their mind about a phone in the span of 5 minutes, and during meet conditions.. Anyhow, the 334 was one of my favorite phones, but I think the K3K is more evenhanded, a better all arounder and just plain more more impressive from track to track. In the end I could take or leave the 334, while the K3K is a keeper in my estimation. If the Parterre is similar with comparable SQ, then color me interested

 

[music_4321]

Quote:

I've heard the K3003s in a meet condition. And in less than 5 minutes. 

 It definitely didn't give me a 

.... more of a 

. Honestly, out of the 3 I tried, the 1P2 and K3003s were 

 while the 334 was 

 . I imagine those 

 type IEMs are something that you'd appreciate only after listening to it for long periods at a time? Have the Parterres fit side by side with your K3003s yet? Or is one higher/lower than the other in your rankings.
 
I'd have to say that I never found the Kaedes to be fatiguing, if that does say anything about my preferences.
This one was a bit tricky. It was surprisingly comfortable shape wise. If only if it wasn't soo heavy. But I always felt a thin veil between my music and my ears with the PFXIII. Kinda hard to describe. Again, meet conditions.... so grain of salt taken etc.

 
Now, this is getting awfully confusing for a 98-year-old terribly cranky sparrow (

).  
 
First off, I don't find the KAEDEs fatiguing, either—for the most part, that is (95+% of the albums I've thrown at them), but I do find the midrange and treble quality on the K3003s & Parterres more convincing / correct / lifelike, clearly so, and yet... and yet the KAEDEs have this very addicting quality to them that make them a very special phone, a phone that renders certain tracks / music like no other phone.
 
TBH, I think you already know you want to get the 334s, so go ahead and get yourself a pair!
 
Like I said before, the K3003 & Parterres, to these ears, have quite a few things in common but are different enough for me to keep both. I honestly don't know which I'd choose between the two. I've had the K3003s for 1 year and 8 months and, if anything, I have more respect for them than I did before. The Parterres are the latest new toy, but I instantly recognised the tremendous quality of these phones.
 
As for the PFs, they're the one IEM that I would insist—for those seriously interested in them—people spend a least 3-4 days with them and possibly not listen to other phones during that period — the PF's sonics can be (a bit of) a shock to some/many people—they were certainly a shock to me—but... well, it's all there in the FAD thread.

 

[EveTan]

Quote:

I'm not quite sure how anyone makes up their mind about a phone in the span of 5 minutes, and during meet conditions.. 

 

I used to think of it as, "If it can't hook me in the first 5 min, I'm not sure if it'll be interesting enough to last a few months"
 
Of course now I know it isn't as simple as that, but that was the mentality at the time.

 

[music_4321]

Quote:

I'm not quite sure how anyone makes up their mind about a phone in the span of 5 minutes, and during meet conditions.. Anyhow, the 334 was one of my favorite phones, but I think the K3K is more evenhanded, a better all arounder and just plain more more impressive from track to track. In the end I could take or leave the 334, while the K3K is a keeper in my estimation. If the Parterre is similar with comparable SQ, then color me interested

 
If you like the K3003s that much, your pair must be fakes, then.

 

[Idsynchrono_24]

I used to think of it as, "If it can't hook me in the first 5 min, I'm not sure if it'll be interesting enough to last a few months"

Of course now I know it isn't as simple as that, but that was the mentality at the time.

I'm pretty sure that the K3K excels across a broader range of music than the 334, but the latter is a difficult phone to dislike.

If you like the K3003s that much, your pair must be fakes, then.

The wild incoherence makes it feel like I'm listenin to two phones at once, double the phone for the price! A bargain in this stifled economy methinks

 

[castleofargh]

there is out there a flock of birds that feed on punchy vivid sound and find the er4 signature to be boring

. the first time I met a guy like that, I thought it was "Invasion Los Angeles" all over again, but after checking with my sunglasses, there are indeed humans who love those signatures. (hell! a lot of people adore the hd800, when it would kill me in 15 to 20mn on a neutral source).
 
guess we all are indeed different. to me the parterre was punchy and oh so far away from linear. the f111 was close to what I feel is linear but not on par with its big brothers on overall sound quality. and the 334 is the almost shy funny guy, nothing neutral here but yet a lot of details and no instrument going MIA (yeah westone4 I'm talking about you). it's like a normalizer making all instrument sound as loud as the other. a battery will not take over the scene like in a real garage with a real band and hurt your ears. there is not much punch in the battery and it helps us getting the other instrument without them needing to be boosted much. bass is too much and too round (distortion or super slow I can't say but it feels like more than there really is).
they are not perfect, not at all but for everyday use on all kind of musics I would pic the 334.
on classic, anything where percussion isn't freely rampaging like cool jazz, I would go for the Parterre.
 
Eve Tan my view on this is: if you weren't bothered by too much bass and didn't find the high mids lacking on the 334, then you shouldn't bother with the Parterre.