[Theblatt]

got em

 

[manveru]

Quote:

got em

 
Nice! Here's hoping it turns out well.

 

[CBF-]

Anymore impressions or comparisons?

 

[manveru]

Quote:

Anymore impressions or comparisons?

 
I wonder. I haven't noticed them being available anywhere yet aside from $620 on eBay or the UK site.

 

[MrScratch]

FUUUUUUUUUUUU~

The british/german/dutch online stores are officially selling these cans (now you can find the Fidelio X1 with the search bar). Goddammit. :mad:

According to Google Translate (lol) it seems that orders placed on the german online store CAN be sent to other countries!!!11111oneone!!1 At least within Europe.

Orders that are placed on this website can be sent to other countries.

I wish that was true. Can anyone verify this? *mimicking Puss in boots' eyes* Q_Q -> link

 

[ruffra]

Ordered the X1 from the UK site and they are on their way.
Should have these by Tuesday latest so will post 1st thoughts later next week. I will compare against my Senn hd650 with Stefan Art cables and obviously my Tesla T1's . Hopefully they should be reasonable for the price !!!

 

[manveru]

Quote:

Ordered the X1 from the UK site and they are on their way.
Should have these by Tuesday latest so will post 1st thoughts later next week. I will compare against my Senn hd650 with Stefan Art cables and obviously my Tesla T1's . Hopefully they should be reasonable for the price !!!

 
Neat. ^_^

 

[ruffra]

Don't normally buy headphones without extensive previous reviews or a previous track record of good designs but something has drawn me to trying these out early. Shipping from Philips Holland so no many sets seem to have been delivered  yet,  Headphone Spec seems upmarket for Philips  so thought   its worth  a speculative gamble.  After many years with the Senn Range need a change for 2nd headphone set up using PC and Flac files. Hopefully has a good low range and open mids.  Don't expect it to get close to the T1 with the SPL auditor though!!!

 

[Theblatt]

Hey all,
 
Quick update.  Been using the headphones for a week now, and I gotta say they're a huge improvement over my old Sennheiser HD580s.  Even to an untrained ear, the difference was really audible--much more dynamic range, wider, more defined soundstage, and somehow simultaneously warmer and crisper.
 
I also impulsively picked up a FiiO E09/E17 Combo--which I'm returning.  Apparently, most of these DAC/AMP units, whether separates or combo, power the line out at the same time as the headphone jack--with no mute button or switch.  I have powered subs (Rokit 6) with independent volume on read, meaning it's not for regular volume control.  As it turns out, there is no way to listen to headphones without the speakers being on.  I'm surprised this situation doesn't come up mor often...?
 
I've discovered that NuForce has automatic switches on their headphone jacks that disable the line out when the headphones are plugged in.  I also found that Audinst makes a unit with a what appears to be a switch to control the signal out.
 
Would love some feedback on my situation: any particular solutions to this problem I haven't considered?  Any units in particular I should consider that would be good solutions for using my new X1s with my iMac--bearing in mind my speaker situation?  As far as NuForce goes, where in the line should I look to settle.  I could spend as little as $200-250 or as much as $1000 in their line of products--and other than varying inputs, I'm not clear on how to evaluate the added benefits amp/dac-wise.  Also, they have this new UDA-100 coming out that looks like a good option, given that realistically USB will be fine for my purposes as a Desktop amp, but still not really sure how it differs from the lower models.
 
Thoughts comments suggestions?

 

[manveru]

Turn off the speakers?

 

[Marximus]

I've found the Audinst to be nice in this regard.  Just flip a switch to change the in/outputs.  I had a uDAC-2, and I really appreciated that aspect of the DAC.

 

[hekeli]

These look just gorgeous. I guess the marketing ploy works, since I just ordered them from amazon.de. I don't really need them, so hopefully they are bad so I can return them. 

 

[ruffra]

So 1^st thoughts on the Philips Fidelio X1 Phones.
There can’t be many yet shipped as these came from the central warehouse in Holland!!
 
Packaging 3 star
In terms of a flagship headphones these are where they stand in my opinion and direct experience
AKG Q701 adequate but nothing exceptional.
Philips X1 nice sturdy box but not as good as:-
Sennheiser HD 650 which is in a good sturdy box ( Ex flagship for Senns)
Beyer T1’s  OTT metal case suitable for carry small SLR camera if it had a handle.
Sorry I don’t do unpackaging video’s on youtube I’m afraid!!!
 
Construction Feel and Comfort,
One of the best constructed Headphones I have ever handled.
Full Metal construction with excellent ear pads ( Slightly small like the T1’s  but not uncomfortable.  Excellent grip on headband and very expensive feel. 5 star for that.
 
My verdict after just a few hours of listening   Good  but probably will be excellent after tweeking:-
These headphones for me are work in progress!!
As others have said they have a excellent lower end performance for a standard design headphone but after just a few tracks of normal listening I have identified that their upper mid band and high frequencies are recessed compared to my other headphones.  This spoils what seems to be a otherwise excellent open voice to the overall headphone balance.
For a flagship design you expect a better presentation of the so called microdynamics ( low level detail) presented in good recordings and with a recessed mid/top these are more difficult to hear !!
These results were consistent across a number of my standard listening audio tracks which are well known to me on a number of headphones and systems.
So I decided to analyse what the problems were!!
I felt the Headphone Drivers and housing design rigidity were excellent so not the issue.
I tested the source amp and software with my other headphones so knew this was not the issue
So  I concluded that the very nice but flimsy connecting cable was a strong candidate
 
Trying a set of software equaliser settings on the laptop ( Mediamonkey with Kernel streaming)
I felt that a continual rise in output from around 2KHz significantly improved the listening experience with a full range of expected transients and microdynamics being now audiable again, I set to find and improved cable.
Luckily I had in stock an old series 1 Silver Dragon cable from my HD650’s and with a quick change to the 3.5mm plug on the Philips I now experienced something significantly better than the 1^st few minutes.  While I do not think this is the final solution I now can hear a good low end performance coupled with a Mid range and High end that feels that it will be Flagship status in terms of its potential!!!
 
This is not a bad result given only 9 hours of on/off listening and I haven’t yet tried it on the main HIFI yet!!!  So to those who are waiting in the wings,my belief is that this will be a headphone ( with a suitable cable) which will be something akin to a AKG K701/K702?Q701 midband/top performance with some decent low end added!!!
 
I will update when I have tried some different cables and listened further!!!
 
( Just for completeness I have been listening on a Dell lapton via a usb connection to a Teac A-H01 amp using Media monkey and Kernel streaming . Tracks used were Flac or Wav or Hi Rez 24/96 Flac using a mix of Jazz  Acoustic Guitar  Rock and Pop from my collection) 

 

[manveru]

Perhaps there's been a little bit of a confusion regarding the term "flagship." All I meant by this was that it was the top model of the given manufacturer's line. It's got nothing to do with the way they should sound. A $30 headphone with a 10dB shelf from 200Hz on down and a frequency response of 60Hz-10kHz could technically be considered a flagship under this definition, haha.
 
Quote:
 
Thanks for the impressions! Disappointing to hear 'good low end performance with recessed mids and highs.' I'm thinking it might be more simple and clean to use EQ to reduce the bass rather than try to boost everything else? Not a cable believer myself however
 
 
Ah well. I've kind of lost interest in these myself with what tentatively appears to be a dark/warm sound sig as I originally suspected. I think the metal construction is actually a no no for me too. My current headphones (which I'm selling mainly for this reason) use a lot of metal in the construction and I've got major static electricity problems. 

 Sigh...but their physical design/features look so amazing compared to almost all other headphones...
 
Updating OP...

 

[ruffra]

My view on flagship is the pinnacle of performance as defined by a manufacturer!!!
So Philips have stated the X1 is their current flagship and therefore it should be treated as such.  Its their best effort !!! So Why should a excellent Transducer and Enclosure design  be let down by a poorly designed cable ????
Perhaps different departments missing the whole aspect ?? who Knows.
 
Yes a slightly dark /warm sound initially is my feeling but not as compromised as the basic HD650 sound signature which also smears complex rifts ! The Philips is a very transparent design with a well crafted low end waiting for the right cable     not equalisation.  I only used equalisation to see if the transducers would sound better with an enhanced feed.
 
I never used to change headphone cables until 6 to 7 years ago when after some basic experimentation I could really hear audible improvements with certain cable types over stock units.  ( Mind you not all cables are an improvement and unless you can make them yourself it becomes an expensive exercise)
 
I’m currently glad I’ve purchased the X1’s as I do believe they are a potentially excellent set of phones and worth experimenting with.
However  I will imagine that the initial response of dark /warm based on 1^st reviews will stick with them on most published reviews. 
I know now that’s not really the case and will find the right cable match to unleash their full potential!
Will try Van Damme silver plated cable next  perhaps a slightly better compromise the 4 9's silver!!!
 
Just to say a well designed acoustically dead metal enclosure is not a bad solution for headphones,  I am not a lover of wood furniture enclosures !!! LOL