[HiFlight]

I'm sure there will be other places to buy those couplers but here are some on ebay for example, 10 couplers for £12: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10pcs-Adapter-Connector-MMCX-to-MMCX-straight-for-wireless-/222138693621

Majo123 : Of course I don't mind the quote - that's great news that someone else has heard the same thing (hopefully directly, not just from reading this thread!).

If anyone needs the name and website of the US company I bought mine from, drop me a PM. Cost was about $8.50 each.

 

[HiFlight]

Many thanks to LuckyNat for suggesting trying the balanced Pono! I pulled mine out of storage and spendt a number of hours comparing it to my other balanced sources and I have to say that there is some kind of special magic synergy between the Flares and the Pono. I have never heard music rendered with such a sense of realism. Adjectives just don't do justice to the sound, you just have to try it to believe it. This is using the Trinity balanced Pono cable, couplers and the Everyday silicon tips, (L red).

New life for my Pono Player for sure!

 

[barondla]

Many thanks to LuckyNat for suggesting trying the balanced Pono! I pulled mine out of storage and spendt a number of hours comparing it to my other balanced sources and I have to say that there is some kind of special magic synergy between the Flares and the Pono. I have never heard music rendered with such a sense of realism. Adjectives just don't do justice to the sound, you just have to try it to believe it. This is using the Trinity balanced Pono cable, couplers and the Everyday silicon tips, (L red).

New life for my Pono Player for sure!

Well you had to go and say there's a synergy between the new Flare and my Pono Player. Curious how much of that sound quality is lost using single ended Flares and Pono Player? Did you ever hear the original Flare R2Pro with the Pono? Thanks.

 

[HiFlight]

Well you had to go and say there's a synergy between the new Flare and my Pono Player. Curious how much of that sound quality is lost using single ended Flares and Pono Player? Did you ever hear the original Flare R2Pro with the Pono? Thanks.

Yes, I had both the R2Pro and R2A but neither of them had the magic that I hear with the balanced Pono/Flares Pro. While they sounded OK, there was just not that sense of space and realism that I currently am enjoying.

 

[rickhawk22]

Many thanks to LuckyNat for suggesting trying the balanced Pono! I pulled mine out of storage and spendt a number of hours comparing it to my other balanced sources and I have to say that there is some kind of special magic synergy between the Flares and the Pono. I have never heard music rendered with such a sense of realism. Adjectives just don't do justice to the sound, you just have to try it to believe it. This is using the Trinity balanced Pono cable, couplers and the Everyday silicon tips, (L red).

New life for my Pono Player for sure!

I had the same thought as barondla. You had to go and describe the pairing like that! You've doomed me to purchase the Flare Pro's now! If Flare was smart, they'd use your description in their marketing for this, as many Pono owners would be all over it! I love my pairing of the R2S and the Pono in single end, and have yet to experience the Pono in balanced mode with any set of headphones. I am officially in saving mode, and waiting until the Pro is available in the US without all the shipping fees from the UK, like Amazon did with the R2's. Thanks HiFlight for the time you took to give us your thoughts/review on the Pono/Pro paring. You lit a fire!

 

[barondla]

@rickhawk22 you will be amazed how the Pono Player sounds in balanced mode. Are the Flare your only earphones? I may have to start saving now. How much are the shipping fees from UK to US?

 

[rickhawk22]

I own the NAD VISO HP 50, Sennheiser Momentum OTE, Grado SR60's and preordered a set of Senn HD6XX from massdrop, that I hope to get the balanced cables for the Pono.
If you add the Pro's to your cart on the Flare website, they are $788.65. Guessing some fees are included in the US price.

 

[Bananiq]

Sorry newbie question:
I have an older iPhone 5 64GB and learned that Apple does not support APT-X connectivity. What is the trade-off over AirPlay? Will Bluetooth module work with my iPhone in full SQ potential? Also should be APT-X supported by my Dell notebook to have best sound over bluetooth module? I am just before clicking on BUY, but would like to learn how usable Bluetooth module will be for me, since I don't have any balanced DAP.
Thank you!

 

[barondla]

I own the NAD VISO HP 50, Sennheiser Momentum OTE, Grado SR60's and preordered a set of Senn HD6XX from massdrop, that I hope to get the balanced cables for the Pono.
If you add the Pro's to your cart on the Flare website, they are $788.65. Guessing some fees are included in the US price.

Had that happen the first few days the Flares went on sale. At that time the Flares were really about $450. Unless something has changed greatly, your price isn't correct. Try a different browser or something.

 

[HiFlight]

I had the same thought as barondla. You had to go and describe the pairing like that! You've doomed me to purchase the Flare Pro's now! If Flare was smart, they'd use your description in their marketing for this, as many Pono owners would be all over it! I love my pairing of the R2S and the Pono in single end, and have yet to experience the Pono in balanced mode with any set of headphones. I am officially in saving mode, and waiting until the Pro is available in the US without all the shipping fees from the UK, like Amazon did with the R2's. Thanks HiFlight for the time you took to give us your thoughts/review on the Pono/Pro paring. You lit a fire!

Just to make it a little harder for you to resist, the delivery cost to the US is included in the purchase price. I received mine in under 3 days via DHL.

Outstanding service, IMO. I have sent several emails and placed an order for some spare tips and in all cases, my emails were answered within hours and my order was shipped the next day.

 

[HiFlight]

I own the NAD VISO HP 50, Sennheiser Momentum OTE, Grado SR60's and preordered a set of Senn HD6XX from massdrop, that I hope to get the balanced cables for the Pono.
If you add the Pro's to your cart on the Flare website, they are $788.65. Guessing some fees are included in the US price.

That $788.65 price is incorrect. My total bill via paypal was about $452.00 delivered to my door. I don't know where that higher price came from as I also saw it when I was placing my order but I was not charged that.

 

[barondla]

So one could sell this best ever Bluetooth box to someone with different IEMs to reduce the package cost. Guess it might not be worth it since mmcx cables would have to be sourced and provided.

When I Kickstarted 2 sets of Trinity Atlas it was over the limit ( slightly over $215) and had to pay delivery man $20 import tax.

 

[HiFlight]

Digi-Key has 18" male to male mmcx cables for about $18 ea. RG316 cable is used which is lightweight and flexible.

 

[Arysyn]

Since receiving my Flares Pro, I have been conducting some trials with some of my favorite test files. These files include recordings binaural thunder, audience applause and concert piano selections . I also conducted some sinewave sweeps in which I found an extremely smooth response across the entire audio spectrum. I might add that none of the enclosed tips provided me an adequate seal so I am using the large Spinfits. Piano is reproduced as well as I have heard with any phones, which I feel is a good representation of timbre quality.

I have also found that I am enjoying the balanced bluetooth module far more than I had anticipated. The sound is unbelievably good and not being tethered to my source by a cable is the ultimate in comfort.

I look forward to reading the response you receive from Flare. I have contacted them on several occasions and have always received a prompt reply.

I'm excited to hear from them, hoping that the impressions I'm getting from reading reviews of these is what I think it'll reflect in results from either an audio frequency response graph or a matching of my ideal preferences.

I've seen a few audio frequency response graphs of the R2 earphone, that looks to have a great mid-forward vocal range, but drops off once it gets to the treble. From reading reviews of the Flares Pro, going for a "live" sound tells me the treble will be quite the opposite of that. If Flare Audio has managed to combine the same qualities I've seen from the graphs of their older product, with the newer spacious sound, these might be very close to my ideal sound signature.

Currently, I'm using the HiFiMan RE800, which I did a review on, here : https://www.head-fi.org/f/showcase/review/18932
explaining not only about that product, but my own preferences in what I'm looking for. The RE800 has great treble, though I wouldn't say it sounds "live", and isn't as spacious say as my B&O Play Earset earbuds. If Flares Pro has that, with more "live", forward vocals, without having forward bass - my bass preference is neutral to having less bass in quantity, then Flares Pro might suit my preferences better than the RE800, which while I like alot, is not forward enough in the vocal range.

I don't want to go the balanced armature route though, regardless that they typically have a response closer to my preference. I've listened to a few ba driver iems, and they don't sound natural enough to me.

 

[HiFlight]

I'm excited to hear from them, hoping that the impressions I'm getting from reading reviews of these is what I think it'll reflect in results from either an audio frequency response graph or a matching of my ideal preferences.

I've seen a few audio frequency response graphs of the R2 earphone, that looks to have a great mid-forward vocal range, but drops off once it gets to the treble. From reading reviews of the Flares Pro, going for a "live" sound tells me the treble will be quite the opposite of that. If Flare Audio has managed to combine the same qualities I've seen from the graphs of their older product, with the newer spacious sound, these might be very close to my ideal sound signature.

Currently, I'm using the HiFiMan RE800, which I did a review on, here : https://www.head-fi.org/f/showcase/review/18932
explaining not only about that product, but my own preferences in what I'm looking for. The RE800 has great treble, though I wouldn't say it sounds "live", and isn't as spacious say as my B&O Play Earset earbuds. If Flares Pro has that, with more "live", forward vocals, without having forward bass - my bass preference is neutral to having less bass in quantity, then Flares Pro might suit my preferences better than the RE800, which while I like alot, is not forward enough in the vocal range.

I don't want to go the balanced armature route though, regardless that they typically have a response closer to my preference. I've listened to a few ba driver iems, and they don't sound natural enough to me.

It is very difficult to describe the sound of headphones subjectively, but I can say that the Flares Pro are not bassy, are not bright, not mid-forward. They just present the music in such a natural manner that I quickly forget that I am listening to recorded music. Although the term "holographic" is often used (and overused), I can say this is what I experience with them. When I tested them with all of my tone files and sweeps, I found they actually deliver bass at 20hz. It has sub-bass that is almost palpable but never intrudes where it doesn't belong. Same goes for the highs. They are there when called for but never sibilant or with annoying spikes, both of which are quite annoying to me.

I think what really contributes most to the sense of realism is the perception of depth to the music and to the accuracy of the imaging and timbre. These are performance components that do not lend themselves to measurements. I have also found the sound to be more expansive and enveloping when using the tips supplied by Flare. I never got a decent seal with the foams, but the Everyday silicons not only provide me with a perfect seal, but they are also so soft that the soon "disappear" and I find that I often have to remind myself that I have phones in my ears.

Although I don't wish to be considered a Flare fanboy, IMO these certainly deserve to be considered a TOTL instrument regardless of price.