JH Audio Sirens Series Roxanne Impressions Thread

[mikemercer]

  I was able to do an A/B comparison of the Roxanne's to my JH16's (non freq phase) last night at the studio.  I went back and forth with recorded music and found that the JH16's are brighter overall with a bit less bass vs. the Roxanne's that seem warmer and more balanced with good low end as shipped from JH Audio.  Will take some adjustment but the differences are very noticeable but in a good way.
 
Cheers,
Paul

that's almost precisely how I felt about my Roxannes vs. my JH-13 Freqphase (upgraded from JH-13 pro)
 
LOVIN em!!

 

[mikemercer]

  BTW - I bookedmarked your review as I want to try some of the music you played on the Roxanne's. You got me interested in expanding my horizens beyond classic rock and pop.  I will google the titles, but are they avialable on HDTracks or some similar site?

hey there!
Thanks so VERY much for this message!!
 
I LOVE turning people onto new music too!
As for the music:
 
I'm not sure if any of the titles I mentioned are available at HDTracks,unless I mentioned the new Tori Amos in the review - then YES!
But many ARE available at Bleep - my favorite online music spot - you buy, they go in your dashboard,
and you download a zip file! NO SLOW-A__ download manager to contend with!
You un-zip it, and add it to iTunes/Amarra Symphony 3.0 (what I use).
 
Or, if you get .WAV or FLAC   - I use Amarra to turn those folders into hi rez AIFFs - for use with iTunes & Amarra
but I keep the original files for use on my A&K DAPS!
 
I've also used Audirvana and Pure Music without issue
 
you can also find Recondite (a HUGE hit at the San Francisco Head-Fi Meet), Eno & Hyde, and Hecq are on Spotify Premium if you just wanna
stream to your DAC to check em out! 

 

 

[Wilderbeast]

So I was listening to my Roxannes (plugged into my RWAK120) last night.
 
I usually listen to music at fairly low levels but for some reason I cranked the volume up a bit and started to notice something. I turned it up a little more. Then a bit more, until I was listening at around 40% louder than I would usually.
 
Holy ****.
 
I was tired but ended up listening for about another hour. I had the complete illusion of wearing over-ear headphones, perhaps aided by the large memory wire over the ear. I wouldn't say the sound changed; it was more than that. I was having a completely different experience of listening to music. I've seen people write on this site about 'being inside the music' or 'having the instruments right in front of me' but this was the first time I've experienced anything like it. 
 
I listened to a few of John Williams' soundtracks (ALAC files) and was right in front of the orchestra. Wonderful.
 
NOW I get the Roxannes.

 

[headwhacker]

That's where the 12 drivers per side shows it's advantage. Cranking up the volume higher than usual allows it to scale well where other iems start to crumble.

That is why I set my DX90 to med gain. Roxanne just sound at a different level than on low gain.

 

[krismusic]

Not so great for your hearing if you have to listen at high volume.

 

[headwhacker]

^ You are missing the point. I didn't say you listen to a very loud music. There are music tracks with wide dynamic range where you need to crank the volume higher to get to the same volume level as most compress music.

 

[Wilderbeast]

I don't tend to listen to loud music - I've very conscious that ears are not replaceable - but some IEMs don't come fully to life until the volume is turned up. For example Westone 4R's 3D imaging only becomes apparent above a certain level. 

 

[mikemercer]

  So I was listening to my Roxannes (plugged into my RWAK120) last night.
 
I usually listen to music at fairly low levels but for some reason I cranked the volume up a bit and started to notice something. I turned it up a little more. Then a bit more, until I was listening at around 40% louder than I would usually.
 
Holy ****.
 
I was tired but ended up listening for about another hour. I had the complete illusion of wearing over-ear headphones, perhaps aided by the large memory wire over the ear. I wouldn't say the sound changed; it was more than that. I was having a completely different experience of listening to music. I've seen people write on this site about 'being inside the music' or 'having the instruments right in front of me' but this was the first time I've experienced anything like it. 
 
I listened to a few of John Williams' soundtracks (ALAC files) and was right in front of the orchestra. Wonderful.
 
NOW I get the Roxannes.

SO glad you "get" em now!!

 
It's a terrific feeling!
Psyched for my 1st plane ride with em tonight!!!
 

 

[goodvibes]

That's where the 12 drivers per side shows it's advantage. Cranking up the volume higher than usual allows it to scale well where other iems start to crumble.

That is why I set my DX90 to med gain. Roxanne just sound at a different level than on low gain.

http://www.head-fi.org/t/684396/new-jh-audio-flagship-siren-series-roxanne/6405#post_10735899 I posted to the advantages here.

 

[nnotis]

  SO glad you "get" em now!!

 
It's a terrific feeling!
Psyched for my 1st plane ride with em tonight!!!

I just had a surprisingly easy 36 hours of flight, largely thanks to my Roxanne + Pico combo.  Even with -26 db, there's still a good deal of audible plane noise though.  Thus, I recommend staying clear of your most dynamic recordings.  That mostly means uncompressed orchestrated music.  It also might be worth getting a set of comfy tips from JHA, as they could help block out a few extra db.  Sadly, I forgot to bring mine, so I can't speak from experience.
 
And yes Wilderbeast, the Roxannes are fantastically detailed in their 3 dimensional presentation.  Not having a big mid treble spike allows one to turn the volume up enough to read micro detail in quite components.  Of course, none of this matters with brickwalled recordings.  In such cases, listening louder offers no additional information, and only exposes one to ear damage. 

 

[Wilderbeast]

I'm wondering whether using an amp would enable me to hear the Roxannes 3D goodness without having to turn the volume up so much. Has anyone used, say, Chord's Hugo or CEntrance's M8 with their Roxannes? I'd be interested to hear some impressions.
 
On another note, does anyone have a frequency graph of the Roxanne? I have an idea what it might look like but it'd be good to see it measured. I know the bass is variable so a graph showing bass at it's lowest or mid setting would be preferable.

 

[kantana]

I normally listen to the Roxannes @ 30/75 on the AK240 and still get decent staging.  If I use the Hugo it does get wider and clearer but I'm using red volume wise which is near nothing.  I don't need copious volume to hear the soundstage.  The Roxannes just has the full can presentation that I haven't heard from any other IEM.

 

[Mimouille]

Do you guys think these are legit?
 
http://www.earphonesolutions.com/roxanne-balanced-cables.html

 

[kantana]

They look like the balanced cables supplied with AKR03 but only one way to find out.  I placed an order,  will report back once I receive them

 

[mikemercer]

  I'm wondering whether using an amp would enable me to hear the Roxannes 3D goodness without having to turn the volume up so much. Has anyone used, say, Chord's Hugo or CEntrance's M8 with their Roxannes? I'd be interested to hear some impressions.
 
On another note, does anyone have a frequency graph of the Roxanne? I have an idea what it might look like but it'd be good to see it measured. I know the bass is variable so a graph showing bass at it's lowest or mid setting would be preferable.

I've used my HiFi-M8 w/ em, and my ALO Island (even got that w/ the new Dragonfly ver 1.2) and this Ernestolone Carot One hybrid tube amp! There it came alive, like the M8:
 
I experienced, w/ the M8 and Carot One a widening and deepening of the soundstage, micro and macro-dynamics were heightened greatly - the air, the dimensionality was superb with those two!
Gotta snap a shot of em w/ my HiFi-M8
 
will be out on the East Cost w/ my fam til Aug 6th though
and only brought my ALO Island, HRT microStreamer, and Dragonfly with me though
- other than my AK240 & Glove Audio Ai be CEntrance (the up-coming DAC/Amp for the OG AstellnKern AK100 + 120)
plus my Roxannes & Audeze LCD-3s w/ Fazor..
 
would be happy to post more impressions of em w/ the M8 when I get home!!