B9Scrambler
Headphoneus Supremus
I have a couple headphones in my possession which I like a lot, but can't really explain why. Weird concept, I know.
Take for example the ClarityOne ECW102. I purchased these one a whim because they were in the discount bin at Staples, and I love the EB110 earbuds. I figured for a flagship they should be decent, especially given how nice their in-ears are. Wow....was I ever in for a surprise.
Out of the box I found the build to be a weird mix of high and low quality bits and pieces. The cloth cable feels like a larger version of that on the Monoprice 9927. The ear cups have a really nice aluminum section, surrounded by dollar store plastic. The headband is nice and flexible, with a nice pleather band, but has no padding and again, dollar store plastic....not impressed.
They are the weirdest sounding headphones I've run into....ever....by far. Mids increase disproportionately to the rest of the frequency spectrum when you turn up the volume. They do not have a ton of bass, but the sub-bass is bonkers. You feel everything, but hear nothing. Treble is slightly grainy but pretty detailed....mids are either recessed or the main focal point depending on the song. They are an oddly dynamic headphone that are just so inconsistent, I cannot help but be mesmerized and listen to them more and more even if it's not always an enjoyable experience. Maybe they're broken...I have no idea.
The Marley Revolution are another one. They are bass heavy with veiled mids and highs, a mixture of great build quality with shoddy materials (they used cheap plastic nuts and nice high quality aluminum bolts for the earcups...all four nuts have split in half....super glue for the win). They also have an insane clamping force....three years later and they are still really tight. I have a small head....I feel sorry for anyone with a normal noggin.... :S. Despite this, I wouldn't trade them in for anything.
To round out the trio, in come the J+- Wooden Earbuds. These sounded like mud out of the box, went through a rigorous burning session of I don't know how long, and finally ended up sounding pretty acceptable. However, they too are a mixed bag, and are overshadowed in competency by the majority of my other IEMs. My first pair had a cracked housing out of the box and you can disassemble them pretty easily with a bit of poking and prodding as the glue holding them together is pretty weak. The vent in the back is fake, but they felt the need to add an aluminum (or steel) plate to make it look like there is a vent. They are just cheap all around (minus a pretty decent cable) and sound just alright, yet I still love them, and again would take them over many of my other IEMs.
Anyone else here have a headphone or IEM that they love, but just don't know why because everything seems to be stacked against it?
Take for example the ClarityOne ECW102. I purchased these one a whim because they were in the discount bin at Staples, and I love the EB110 earbuds. I figured for a flagship they should be decent, especially given how nice their in-ears are. Wow....was I ever in for a surprise.
Out of the box I found the build to be a weird mix of high and low quality bits and pieces. The cloth cable feels like a larger version of that on the Monoprice 9927. The ear cups have a really nice aluminum section, surrounded by dollar store plastic. The headband is nice and flexible, with a nice pleather band, but has no padding and again, dollar store plastic....not impressed.
They are the weirdest sounding headphones I've run into....ever....by far. Mids increase disproportionately to the rest of the frequency spectrum when you turn up the volume. They do not have a ton of bass, but the sub-bass is bonkers. You feel everything, but hear nothing. Treble is slightly grainy but pretty detailed....mids are either recessed or the main focal point depending on the song. They are an oddly dynamic headphone that are just so inconsistent, I cannot help but be mesmerized and listen to them more and more even if it's not always an enjoyable experience. Maybe they're broken...I have no idea.
The Marley Revolution are another one. They are bass heavy with veiled mids and highs, a mixture of great build quality with shoddy materials (they used cheap plastic nuts and nice high quality aluminum bolts for the earcups...all four nuts have split in half....super glue for the win). They also have an insane clamping force....three years later and they are still really tight. I have a small head....I feel sorry for anyone with a normal noggin.... :S. Despite this, I wouldn't trade them in for anything.
To round out the trio, in come the J+- Wooden Earbuds. These sounded like mud out of the box, went through a rigorous burning session of I don't know how long, and finally ended up sounding pretty acceptable. However, they too are a mixed bag, and are overshadowed in competency by the majority of my other IEMs. My first pair had a cracked housing out of the box and you can disassemble them pretty easily with a bit of poking and prodding as the glue holding them together is pretty weak. The vent in the back is fake, but they felt the need to add an aluminum (or steel) plate to make it look like there is a vent. They are just cheap all around (minus a pretty decent cable) and sound just alright, yet I still love them, and again would take them over many of my other IEMs.
Anyone else here have a headphone or IEM that they love, but just don't know why because everything seems to be stacked against it?
