[Chodi]

  Curious about the JVC Spiral Dots, but I can't find those locally, so I guess I'll have to buy one when I go to Osaka this May (buying online from where I live is a pain, since customs tend to feast on almost anything that passes through them).
 
IIRC, Suyama-san recommended burning in the Parterres for 100-150 hours, so it might sound even better after a couple of days.

If it's any help here is where I ordered them from: http://www.ebay.com/itm/121562251830?_trksid=p2059210.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
 
I can't really imagine customs caring about something so small as ear tips. The value is very low. I have the same problem with customs in my country but they ignore very low value items like this.

 

[Chodi]

I've had my Parterre for a few days now which has given me the opportunity to listen to them extensively. I have little experience with  iem's but I do own the HD800 and T1 as my reference headphones. My listening preference is mostly classical music. I was attracted to these Parterre because I read a statement  from the designer that these were created for classical and acoustic music. He wasn't lying. I have been in the audio game a long time and I have never heard better sound from any headphone with classical music. That is a very strong statement and it is meant to be so. The Parterre is competitive in every way with my full size headphones and in some respects the best of the lot but I am getting a little ahead of myself.
 
When I first received my Parterre I was anxious to hook them right to my desktop system and see what they could do. That was a big mistake. These need to burn in overnight before you ever put them on your ears. Having not taken my own advice I can say that out of the box they were a huge disappointment.  I won't bother to go into a description of how they sounded because by the next morning they were a different earphone entirely. Had they remained as they were out of the box I would have put them in the closet and considered it a very expensive mistake.
 
Those of you experienced know that it is critical to have a good seal with any iem. Only one of the tips supplied with the Parterre worked for me and fortunately it is a good fit. I have ordered several type of tips to try later but for now, I do get a good seal. These need to be worn over the ear and they are very comfortable. I can barely feel them in my ears after a few minutes of listening to music. Interesting that my HD800 is normally considered the most comfortable of full size flagship headphones and I find the Parterre more comfortable for long listening sessions than the HD800. I also find the Parterre better sounding in many ways.  This is a bit of an unusual review as I am daring to compare an iem to a flagship full size headphone. I realize that my application is unusual in that I am using these at home with a high end desktop system. My needs are different. The Parterre is certainly very portable but that is not my application so I can only compare it to my full size headphones. I can say without reservation that it compares very well indeed.
 
It is often said that iem's are "a different experience" from full size headphones. Part of that is certainly true as technically iem's insert into your ear past the pinna so they cannot produce a soundstage in a natural way as in the real world. Some very clever designers of iem's have not taken no for an answer and found a way to create a very believable illusion of a soundstage through brilliant designs. I can say that the Parterre is one such iem. The sense of the original space is recreated with startling reality through the Parterre. There is height, width and depth competitive with my HD800's. Before hearing it for myself I would have thought that impossible. I will even go so far as to say that with some recordings the imaging is more the you are there feeling then my full size headphones. An astonishing achievement from Fitear.
 
The tonal quality of piano and strings are reproduced with total accuracy faithful to the recording. The bass is shockingly deep and detailed with actual texture blended with the mids so as not to appear overdone but just right. Mid bass is full when called upon to provide the correct foundation for the music. This is a trick that few headphones get right with classical music but the Parterre sails through without ever straining. There is a richness to the tone that is very  faithful to the recording. Bad recordings sound  bad. Good recordings sound glorious in a way that few headphones can achieve. The highs are silky smooth for strings but you still get the bite on brass that you should without ever being offensive. You can hear the decay on the notes of  a piano with stark realism. These are achievements in a headphones of any type not to be taken lightly. That these tiny iem's can get it right is amazing. What's more, these are universal iem's not even ciem's custom molded.
 
The people at Fitear must be smiling at the praise for they know what they have done. These are purpose built iem's that achieve a level of performance with classical and acoustic music that will make it very hard for me to go back to my full size headphones. I would never have thought that possible. If you love classical music as I do you owe it to yourself to hear these Parterre properly burned in and with a good front end. The Parterre provides a very personal intimate experience not to be missed by classical music audiophiles.

 

[Chiyo]

Nice review. Why not try posting it as one of the reviews on this site (since there's only one posted as of now)? It might help those who are still 50/50 when it comes to buying the Parterre. For my part,  I would've loved just a little bit more bass slam and, given its price, an increased selection of included tips for a better seal.
 
And while my experience in IEMs isn't as extensive as some of the posters here, I'd like to point out (and agree with Chodi) how excellent and realistic the Parterre is on instruments in general. While it probably won't beat the top tier models, it still gives one hell of a fight. Unfortunately for me, I only listen to a small number of classical tracks, but it can still sound as realistic on acoustic and jazz.

 

[Chodi]

  Nice review. Why not try posting it as one of the reviews on this site (since there's only one posted as of now)? It might help those who are still 50/50 when it comes to buying the Parterre. For my part,  I would've loved just a little bit more bass slam and, given its price, an increased selection of included tips for a better seal.
 
And while my experience in IEMs isn't as extensive as some of the posters here, I'd like to point out (and agree with Chodi) how excellent and realistic the Parterre is on instruments in general. While it probably won't beat the top tier models, it still gives one hell of a fight. Unfortunately for me, I only listen to a small number of classical tracks, but it can still sound as realistic on acoustic and jazz.

Thanks for the comments. I did just post it as a review. Since it can compete with my HD800's I suspect it can compete with other top model iem's. Then it is just a matter of flavor to personal taste as to which is better,

 

[Dopaminer]

If anyone is looking for new pairs of Spinfit, Ortofon, Spiraldots (all 5 sizes) or Ostry, shipped worldwide, PM me.  
 
d

 

[tieuly1]

Could everyone give me some advice about aftermarket cable? ( my stock cable was broken and I don't know how to order from Sydney.... 3 months without parterre has been a kind of horrorble thing to me . Could you help me order the stock cable or at least for new aftermarket cable (( thank you guys so much

 

[mcluzar]

Could everyone give me some advice about aftermarket cable? ( my stock cable was broken and I don't know how to order from Sydney.... 3 months without parterre has been a kind of horrorble thing to me . Could you help me order the stock cable or at least for new aftermarket cable (( thank you guys so much

Hey my stock 001 cable broke as well, i ordered a BTG Audio Starlight cable for the Parterre - costs me about AUD 200 after shipping from the USA (I'm in Sydney as well). Takes more than a month to come though because they are all made to order, longer lead times as well if you want stuff like Viablue 3.5mm jack or Oyaide...

Or alternatively Jaben in Melbourne could probably hook you up with the stock cable, but they aren't really that responsive since they haven't replied my e-mail that I sent them last year enquiring about the FitEar cables

 

[Dopaminer]

If you get the Fitear mmcx adapters, cable option increase a lot....

 

[angelo898]

wow sydney has a surprising number of parterre or former parterre owners

 

[Chodi]

Could everyone give me some advice about aftermarket cable?

( my stock cable was broken and I don't know how to order from Sydney.... 3 months without parterre has been a kind of horrorble thing to me

. Could you help me order the stock cable or at least for new aftermarket cable

(( thank you guys so much

The obvious place is Ebay. Take a look here and you can find what you need:  http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2047675.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.XFitear+cable.TRS0&_nkw=Fitear+cable&ghostText=&_sacat=0
 
There are enough choices for anyone with standard fitear connectors.

 

[tieuly1]

I checked the eBay be4 but they look like I am playing gamble
- yep, the Janben said I have to send them email about the cable and I still wait reply from last year until now
Hope that someone still keep stock cable or maybe BTG will be my next step

 

[tieuly1]

Al could anyone can help me another problem? Plz
I am a second owner and my parterre have problem when I listen about 15 minutes, my left ear become smaller sound. I have to stop listen or still play the music without listening, the balance will come back..... Later on, it happened with right hand site and left hand site become normal, I might think it could be come from the cable.... This problem sound familiar but....

 

[Chiyo]

@tieuly1: It might be because of a problem in the cable, but it could also be from the drivers. You'll know for sue if you try it with another cable, but yeah, looks like it's difficult to buy one from where you are.
 
@mcluzar: How's the Parterre on the AK100Mk2? I've been contemplating on replacing my DX90 with it because of its small size and better battery life (using it for commutes).

 

[Chodi]

Al could anyone can help me another problem? Plz
I am a second owner and my parterre have problem when I listen about 15 minutes, my left ear become smaller sound. I have to stop listen or still play the music without listening, the balance will come back..... Later on, it happened with right hand site and left hand site become normal, I might think it could be come from the cable.... This problem sound familiar but....

Does not sound like it is the earphones. Maybe the cable but I would be more interested to know what is your source? The connector in your source may be defective and slight movement will cause you to lose one channel. That could be the cable or more likely the jack on your source. In any case, I would suspect your source component. Unlikely that it is the cable but not impossible.
 
I have ordered many times from Ebay and as long as you choose a company that is really in the cable business and not just selling cables along with twenty other items you are pretty safe. You can also check their feedback and quickly learn if their buyers are satisfied. Both Ebay and Paypal also protect your purchase. I must have bought more than 15 cables over time through Ebay for high end equipment and never got a bad item. Once I ordered and did not get the purchase and Ebay through Paypal quickly refunded my money. I think it is very safe.

 

[tieuly1]

oh I am ok with the ebay but in some case, I actually don't know how the cable can improve the SS of parterre.... I just follow the thread not long so what I know we prefer BTG Starlight and Norne vorpal
- I scared the problem could come from the driver because when I swap the cable side, the problem still keep remaining the same.... If It happened, I'm really in big trouble with warranty