TSIG
Head-Fier
- Joined
- May 1, 2011
- Posts
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So here is the deal: Blue sent me a pair of the newfangled Mo-Fi to review on my YouTube channel (an unboxing is embedded at the end of the article). I haven't gotten too serious with them yet as I've only had them on my head for a few hours today, but I've already formulated a few initial impressions (I will update this article as my opinions change (if they change)).
Comfort:
I feel like the old saying "don't fix what ain't broke" definitely applies here. Don't get me wrong... I appreciate the innovation and unique design style by Blue on these headphones, but I'm not convinced that the design is very practical—or necessary. Most headphones oscillate and can adapt to head sizes and positions just fine. Furthermore, like others have reported, these things are heavy. At 16.4 oz, some serious support needs to be had, and sadly, the innovative comfort measures are trumped by the fact that these things are just so damn heavy. The ear cups move down on a hinge rather than the typical snap/extender headbands we are used to. And... I don't like it. The arms are so heavy, that the ear cups gradually slide downwards while I'm wearing them. After about 20 minutes of listening, I need to readjust/resize them because they're nearly fully extended and have slipped off my ears. Furthermore, despite the tension dial on the top of the headphone, these things pinch really tightly. Maybe I'm just not used to them yet, but I don't think they're as comfortable as other premium headphones on the market. My D5000 weigh 13 oz. (nearly as much), but it feels like nothing because most of the weight sits on the plush headband. With the Mo-Fi, however, almost all of the weight is supported by the side of my head being pinched. It's just not that comfy. That being said, these headphones create an awesome seal. Due to the closed-back design, no sound comes in nor out—which can be good—but I'm not too sold on it (explanation below).
Sound:
All of the reviews that I have seen thus far (even from Jude) are incredibly positive about the sound quality of the Mo-Fi. I'm not convinced yet—that is, not convinced by the internal amplifiers. As passive headphones, they're pretty dang excellent. I have been listening to them through my WA6 and my Music Streamer II+ DAC, and the results are surprising. I wouldn't consider it perfectly balanced, but it's pretty darn flat (in a good way). The mids are clear, and I love it. Very seldom do you hear a headphone that has slight bias towards the mids without becoming too lush or warm, but Blue nailed it. When running passively, the highs are not bright at all, and the lows (while very present) remain tight and respectfully stay in their place. The bass doesn't ever bleed into the mids. Classical, classic rock, jazz, and folk sound particularly excellent on the Mo-Fi. Other genres, (particularly with heavier tracks that have multiple simultaneous instruments and vocalists) like hip-hop, dance, electronic, and some alternative rock can sound (in certain circumstances with certain tracks), for lack of another way to describe it: claustrophobic. I think a lot of that has to do with the soundstage; which is decent at best (even for a closed-back headphone) which made some tracks sound uncannily compressed. It didn't ruin the listening experience by any means, but felt a little un-natural at times with certain songs.
The story changes (and not for the better) when the headphones are turned "ON." To test the inline amplifiers, I used a OnePlus One and iPhone 5, both using 320 kbps tracks from Rdio. The results were less than stellar. While certainly responsive (volume only needed to be turned up to about 35-40%), I found that the soundstage became even worse, and the mids were no longer the focus and fell in between the cracks. The highs came in and flaunted their stuff. They were pretty bright, but without sibilance or harshness. They were just simply more dominant than I wanted them to be. Sadly, the bass became more prominent as well and it started bleed into the mids. With simpler tracks, the low-end remained tight, but with "bass-heavy" songs, it started to get pretty muddy. I thought that maybe it had to do with my source, so I turned the headphones back to their "OFF" position to bypass the inline amps and plugged them into an Epiphany EHP-O2 which then went to my iPhone. The headphones started to sound really good again. Not like they did with the WA6, but they sounded good.
I'm not saying that the inline amps are gimmicky or cheap. I think that for many consumers, they'll be the answer to their prayers. But for us head-fiers we're better off sticking to our FiiO E7. These headphones can be phenomenal when used in the right environment; however, the "right environment" isn't your set of typical genres or equipment setups for your average Joe.
I'm still formulating opinions and have many dozens of hours more to listen before I formulate my final review.
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Please keep in mind that the explanations in the video are overly simple as the majority of my audience are simple consumers.
Comfort:
I feel like the old saying "don't fix what ain't broke" definitely applies here. Don't get me wrong... I appreciate the innovation and unique design style by Blue on these headphones, but I'm not convinced that the design is very practical—or necessary. Most headphones oscillate and can adapt to head sizes and positions just fine. Furthermore, like others have reported, these things are heavy. At 16.4 oz, some serious support needs to be had, and sadly, the innovative comfort measures are trumped by the fact that these things are just so damn heavy. The ear cups move down on a hinge rather than the typical snap/extender headbands we are used to. And... I don't like it. The arms are so heavy, that the ear cups gradually slide downwards while I'm wearing them. After about 20 minutes of listening, I need to readjust/resize them because they're nearly fully extended and have slipped off my ears. Furthermore, despite the tension dial on the top of the headphone, these things pinch really tightly. Maybe I'm just not used to them yet, but I don't think they're as comfortable as other premium headphones on the market. My D5000 weigh 13 oz. (nearly as much), but it feels like nothing because most of the weight sits on the plush headband. With the Mo-Fi, however, almost all of the weight is supported by the side of my head being pinched. It's just not that comfy. That being said, these headphones create an awesome seal. Due to the closed-back design, no sound comes in nor out—which can be good—but I'm not too sold on it (explanation below).
Sound:
All of the reviews that I have seen thus far (even from Jude) are incredibly positive about the sound quality of the Mo-Fi. I'm not convinced yet—that is, not convinced by the internal amplifiers. As passive headphones, they're pretty dang excellent. I have been listening to them through my WA6 and my Music Streamer II+ DAC, and the results are surprising. I wouldn't consider it perfectly balanced, but it's pretty darn flat (in a good way). The mids are clear, and I love it. Very seldom do you hear a headphone that has slight bias towards the mids without becoming too lush or warm, but Blue nailed it. When running passively, the highs are not bright at all, and the lows (while very present) remain tight and respectfully stay in their place. The bass doesn't ever bleed into the mids. Classical, classic rock, jazz, and folk sound particularly excellent on the Mo-Fi. Other genres, (particularly with heavier tracks that have multiple simultaneous instruments and vocalists) like hip-hop, dance, electronic, and some alternative rock can sound (in certain circumstances with certain tracks), for lack of another way to describe it: claustrophobic. I think a lot of that has to do with the soundstage; which is decent at best (even for a closed-back headphone) which made some tracks sound uncannily compressed. It didn't ruin the listening experience by any means, but felt a little un-natural at times with certain songs.
The story changes (and not for the better) when the headphones are turned "ON." To test the inline amplifiers, I used a OnePlus One and iPhone 5, both using 320 kbps tracks from Rdio. The results were less than stellar. While certainly responsive (volume only needed to be turned up to about 35-40%), I found that the soundstage became even worse, and the mids were no longer the focus and fell in between the cracks. The highs came in and flaunted their stuff. They were pretty bright, but without sibilance or harshness. They were just simply more dominant than I wanted them to be. Sadly, the bass became more prominent as well and it started bleed into the mids. With simpler tracks, the low-end remained tight, but with "bass-heavy" songs, it started to get pretty muddy. I thought that maybe it had to do with my source, so I turned the headphones back to their "OFF" position to bypass the inline amps and plugged them into an Epiphany EHP-O2 which then went to my iPhone. The headphones started to sound really good again. Not like they did with the WA6, but they sounded good.
I'm not saying that the inline amps are gimmicky or cheap. I think that for many consumers, they'll be the answer to their prayers. But for us head-fiers we're better off sticking to our FiiO E7. These headphones can be phenomenal when used in the right environment; however, the "right environment" isn't your set of typical genres or equipment setups for your average Joe.
I'm still formulating opinions and have many dozens of hours more to listen before I formulate my final review.
-------
Please keep in mind that the explanations in the video are overly simple as the majority of my audience are simple consumers.
