Zulkr9
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2012
- Posts
- 364
- Likes
- 130
Introduction
I had no idea of the company noontec, a marketing guy in head-fi contacted me to see whether I was interested about reviewing them. I was hesitant at first as I had not received equipment from manufacturers before but upon seeing the frequency response graph from inner fidelity I thought I might give it a go since it looked so good measurement wise (obviously there are a few draw backs but its excellent for the price and even 2 times the price). So I did contact noontech for the review and they sent me a pair and they were very good in communicating over the period of time I had these.
Aesthetics 7/10
This headphone is an on ear design it takes many of its design queues from the beats line of headphone, while I am not personally a fan of the beats design (too gaudy for my tastes) I think noontec appeals to the millenials out there and I would even go as far as to say the overall fit and finish is better than the beats line, also the brushed aluminum on the sides of the cups where the nootec emblem is also a nice touch. I have the gloss blue finish and I think it looks pretty good overall.
Build 8/10
Although it feels like there is nothing that feels cheap or flimsy about it. if folds up nicely and the folding mechanism also seems strong enough to take some abuse also the hinges are quite thick and seem to be made of good quality materials so I don't think this will break easily, the padding and the earpads are also of decent quality although I would have like to see thicker padding and memory foam, but I guess you can't do much more at this price point. I have used them rigorously, lugged them in my backpack and carry them with me to the gym, college and other places, overall I think it took the beating I gave it without any problems. You can use this as a beater headphone if you like and I don't think they will break easily.
Sound 9/10
I was surprised when I saw the graph at innerfidelity I knew this was going to sound good seeing the measurements but often headphones don't sound the way they measure but this one did and boy it was pretty surprising for me. I own the Audeze LCD-2, He-500, Phillips x2 and Creative aurvana live. The creative has always been my go to headphone for portable use and I never thought I would find a better headphone than the CAL for the price, but I was proven wrong by the little zoro, it sound smoother with a better bass body, tighter and more articulate, the mids were more organic and intimate, the highs were less splashy but slightly grainier. the only place where I thought the CAL had the noontec beat was the soundstage (CAL does have a really exceptional stage for a closed back dynamic). I think the tonality was similar to the LCD-2 ( don't get me wrong though it didn't have the finesse or the resolution of the LCD-2, its not supposed to the LCD- 2 is 10x more expensive) but being what it is and at the price I think it holds its own against the big guns. Really really nice. Overall these babies sound not only really good in their price bracket but they pack a good punch even at twice the price. As mentioned above the soundstage on the CAL was better, the noontec has an average soundstage and pretty decent imaging, its more on the intimate sounding side.
Value 10/10
As mentioned earlier at this price point I don't think you will find a phone that sounds better, scratch that I don't think you will find a phone that sounds this good at twice the price, at the time of the review this phone can be had for 90 dollars from amazon, 89,99 to be precise, I think its a fantastic value and amazing performance at the price.
Conclusion
Overall I had lots of fun with these phones, they were easier to carry around than my creatives, they sounded very good from my phone, I used them almost everywhere and they performed pretty well! I enjoyed reviewing this pair and I'm even thinking of getting one!
Ill update some pictures when I get time, going through a rough semester final
I had no idea of the company noontec, a marketing guy in head-fi contacted me to see whether I was interested about reviewing them. I was hesitant at first as I had not received equipment from manufacturers before but upon seeing the frequency response graph from inner fidelity I thought I might give it a go since it looked so good measurement wise (obviously there are a few draw backs but its excellent for the price and even 2 times the price). So I did contact noontech for the review and they sent me a pair and they were very good in communicating over the period of time I had these.
Aesthetics 7/10
This headphone is an on ear design it takes many of its design queues from the beats line of headphone, while I am not personally a fan of the beats design (too gaudy for my tastes) I think noontec appeals to the millenials out there and I would even go as far as to say the overall fit and finish is better than the beats line, also the brushed aluminum on the sides of the cups where the nootec emblem is also a nice touch. I have the gloss blue finish and I think it looks pretty good overall.
Build 8/10
Although it feels like there is nothing that feels cheap or flimsy about it. if folds up nicely and the folding mechanism also seems strong enough to take some abuse also the hinges are quite thick and seem to be made of good quality materials so I don't think this will break easily, the padding and the earpads are also of decent quality although I would have like to see thicker padding and memory foam, but I guess you can't do much more at this price point. I have used them rigorously, lugged them in my backpack and carry them with me to the gym, college and other places, overall I think it took the beating I gave it without any problems. You can use this as a beater headphone if you like and I don't think they will break easily.
Sound 9/10
I was surprised when I saw the graph at innerfidelity I knew this was going to sound good seeing the measurements but often headphones don't sound the way they measure but this one did and boy it was pretty surprising for me. I own the Audeze LCD-2, He-500, Phillips x2 and Creative aurvana live. The creative has always been my go to headphone for portable use and I never thought I would find a better headphone than the CAL for the price, but I was proven wrong by the little zoro, it sound smoother with a better bass body, tighter and more articulate, the mids were more organic and intimate, the highs were less splashy but slightly grainier. the only place where I thought the CAL had the noontec beat was the soundstage (CAL does have a really exceptional stage for a closed back dynamic). I think the tonality was similar to the LCD-2 ( don't get me wrong though it didn't have the finesse or the resolution of the LCD-2, its not supposed to the LCD- 2 is 10x more expensive) but being what it is and at the price I think it holds its own against the big guns. Really really nice. Overall these babies sound not only really good in their price bracket but they pack a good punch even at twice the price. As mentioned above the soundstage on the CAL was better, the noontec has an average soundstage and pretty decent imaging, its more on the intimate sounding side.
Value 10/10
As mentioned earlier at this price point I don't think you will find a phone that sounds better, scratch that I don't think you will find a phone that sounds this good at twice the price, at the time of the review this phone can be had for 90 dollars from amazon, 89,99 to be precise, I think its a fantastic value and amazing performance at the price.
Conclusion
Overall I had lots of fun with these phones, they were easier to carry around than my creatives, they sounded very good from my phone, I used them almost everywhere and they performed pretty well! I enjoyed reviewing this pair and I'm even thinking of getting one!
Ill update some pictures when I get time, going through a rough semester final
