[Beagle]

"The early impression I am getting with the P1 it signature may be similar to the hd650 with better transparency. "
Sounds marginal to me

If sound is the same because of the drivers then the PM-2 is a better deal.

 
I think we are talking about a similar FR response with a better top on the Oppo. I'm sure the PM-1 sounds much better.
 
 
As far as the PM-2 sounding the same as the PM-1 just because they have similar drivers, remember that the original Grado SR200 and 300 had HP-1000 drivers but did not sound the same as the HP-1000. The housing, material and cable/wire account for a big difference.

 

[musicheaven]

I think we are talking about a similar FR response with a better top on the Oppo. I'm sure the PM-1 sounds much better.


As far as the PM-2 sounding the same as the PM-1 just because they have similar drivers, remember that the original Grado SR200 and 300 had HP-1000 drivers but did not sound the same as the HP-1000. The housing, material and cable/wire account for a big difference.

Thanks I thought we could save some cash but maybe we can't the two offerings than for me is confusing. I think I'll stay clear and wait a few months for both models to be reviewed.

 

[aamefford]

Alright, I bailed on the thread earlier.  It seems to be at least a little more polite, so I'll weigh back in.  Chris Marten's brief impressions were linked above, and I'll link them again HERE.
 
CAVEAT:  I was one of the Beta testers.  I had a great time participating in the test, I felt that I truly did participate - Oppo did give real credence to our input.  That said, we were a beta test group.  We listened, we criticized, we lauded, we bickered good-naturedly.  Oppo designed, redesigned, tweaked, brought in Igor Levitsky (I hope I didn't slaughter his last name) to do the real heavy lifting in tuning.  Many Oppo staff and Igor participated and were truly interested in our input.  It was a really cool experience.  I am predisposed to like these headphones for that reason - I helped just a little in creating them.  Oh, and Oppo gave each of the beta testers one of the first released retail package PM-1's.  This was completely unexpected and gracious.  Oppo really did right by the beta test, and the beta testers.  As I said, I am predisposed to view the PM-1's with rose colored glasses.  Take my comments below with a grain of salt.  Or not.  Those that have read my other gear comments know that I can be enthusiastic (fanboy) but I do try to be realistic, honest and at least reasonably objective in subjective comments.
 
Away we go!
 
Chris's impressions are pretty dead on save for the LCD3 comments. Reminiscent absolutely. I just find the PM-1 the easier, less fatiguing, more realistic and more pleasant listen. This from a guy who wasn't all that excited about the LCD2.2, but seriously considered parting with a kidney for the LCD3 (I had the pleasure of living with another head-fief's pair for about 3 or 4 days). 

The LCD3 transports me to a smokey 1930's speakeasy - men in silk suits, beautiful women, cigars, illicit booze, great jazz band and that stuff going on in the back room.  A stunning headphone. 

The PM-1 on the other hand, welcomes me home, takes my shoes off, sets me in a chair, invites a few friends over, hands us each a cigar and a sippin' whiskey or cognac and introduces the great band that materialized in the living room. Easy, but wonderful.  Yup, I like them a lot.
 
OK, that pretty much covers the emotional aspect of the PM-1's.  In fact, as far as I'm concerned, that may be all that really actually matters.
 
​For the gear heads out there (guilty) I'll do what I can here.
 
Yes - Extremely efficient.  They sound better out of an amp and a good source.  They sound really freakin' good out of an iPhone 5S though.  Really good.
 
They are feather weight for a planer, and pretty dang light anyway.
 
They are quite comfortable.  They may be the most comfortable planer I've worn - mostly because they are light.
 
​The bass is good, accurate, articulate and deep when needed.  It is not a bass tilted can though.
 
​The mids are lush and accurate.
 
The highs are detailed, again articulate, airy (barely) and smooth.
 
If you are looking for a boosted, euphonic bass or mid bass, the PM-1 might not be the right headphone.  If you are looking for a bright sparkle up top, the PM-1 might not be the right headphone.  If you are inclined to EQ for either trait - the PM-1 might be the right headphone (conjecture - haven't QE'd it).
 
​If you are looking for what I and others described, a pretty natural, lovely, easy headphone, you might be with me - the PM-1 is my new favorite open headphone.
 
Oh, build quality is excellent, the box and stuff is beautiful and helps with the whole cachet of "Statement Product."
 
OK, since this thread has teetered on the brink a few times, please, enjoy my comments, take them for what they are worth and leave it at that.  If you've heard them and vehemently disagree, blame it on different tastes, or the information in in my disclaimer.  If you haven't heard them….

 

[conquerator2]

I wonder how the fixed baffle 560 bass extension compares to the PM-1. It'll probably be almost the same I assume.

Also, it says in the materials that the PM-1 and PM-2 will sound almost the same, again. Maybe Oppo did some comparing

Thanks aamefford! That about seals it on the 560 for me. I don't need a treble that is smooth and barely airy right now. Though again, I'll be very closely watching the PM-2 and 400i.

 

[Otodynia]

   
 

 

Thank you.  I'd seen those pics before but didn't notice the Oppo logo on the base of the stand.  When I performed an image search on google, I found pictures of the PM-1 on a different stand (which were sourced to head-fi as well):  http://www.head-fi.org/t/685704/oppo-pm-1-a-new-planar-magnetic-headphone/390#post_9906311  

 

[jerg]

  Alright, I bailed on the thread earlier.  It seems to be at least a little more polite, so I'll weigh back in.  Chris Marten's brief impressions were linked above, and I'll link them again HERE.
 
CAVEAT:  I was one of the Beta testers.  I had a great time participating in the test, I felt that I truly did participate - Oppo did give real credence to our input.  That said, we were a beta test group. We listened, we criticized, we lauded, we bickered good-naturedly.  Oppo designed, redesigned, tweaked, brought in Igor Levitsky (I hope I didn't slaughter his last name) to do the real heavy lifting in tuning.  Many Oppo staff and Igor participated and were truly interested in our input.  It was a really cool experience.  I am predisposed to like these headphones for that reason - I helped just a little in creating them.  Oh, and Oppo gave each of the beta testers one of the first released retail package PM-1's.  This was completely unexpected and gracious.  Oppo really did right by the beta test, and the beta testers.  As I said, I am predisposed to view the PM-1's with rose colored glasses.  Take my comments below with a grain of salt.  Or not.  Those that have read my other gear comments know that I can be enthusiastic (fanboy) but I do try to be realistic, honest and at least reasonably objective in subjective comments.
 
Away we go!
 
Chris's impressions are pretty dead on save for the LCD3 comments. Reminiscent absolutely. I just find the PM-1 the easier, less fatiguing, more realistic and more pleasant listen. This from a guy who wasn't all that excited about the LCD2.2, but seriously considered parting with a kidney for the LCD3 (I had the pleasure of living with another head-fief's pair for about 3 or 4 days). 

The LCD3 transports me to a smokey 1930's speakeasy - men in silk suits, beautiful women, cigars, illicit booze, great jazz band and that stuff going on in the back room.  A stunning headphone. 

The PM-1 on the other hand, welcomes me home, takes my shoes off, sets me in a chair, invites a few friends over, hands us each a cigar and a sippin' whiskey or cognac and introduces the great band that materialized in the living room. Easy, but wonderful.  Yup, I like them a lot.
 
OK, that pretty much covers the emotional aspect of the PM-1's.  In fact, as far as I'm concerned, that may be all that really actually matters.
 
​For the gear heads out there (guilty) I'll do what I can here.
 
Yes - Extremely efficient.  They sound better out of an amp and a good source.  They sound really freakin' good out of an iPhone 5S though.  Really good.
 
They are feather weight for a planer, and pretty dang light anyway.
 
They are quite comfortable.  They may be the most comfortable planer I've worn - mostly because they are light.
 
​The bass is good, accurate, articulate and deep when needed.  It is not a bass tilted can though.
 
​The mids are lush and accurate.
 
The highs are detailed, again articulate, airy (barely) and smooth.
 
If you are looking for a boosted, euphonic bass or mid bass, the PM-1 might not be the right headphone.  If you are looking for a bright sparkle up top, the PM-1 might not be the right headphone.  If you are inclined to EQ for either trait - the PM-1 might be the right headphone (conjecture - haven't QE'd it).
 
​If you are looking for what I and others described, a pretty natural, lovely, easy headphone, you might be with me - the PM-1 is my new favorite open headphone.
 
Oh, build quality is excellent, the box and stuff is beautiful and helps with the whole cachet of "Statement Product."
 
I think NDA's are still in place with the PM-2, but I very strongly believe that the statements that they will be the PM-1 with lower cost to produce parts, pleather pads, but very essentially identical sound are accurate.
 
OK, since this thread has teetered on the brink a few times, please, enjoy my comments, take them for what they are worth and leave it at that.  If you've heard them and vehemently disagree, blame it on different tastes, or the information in in my disclaimer.  If you haven't heard them….

So you're saying it is dead-neutral, not warm-neutral? Or maybe mids-heavy-neutral?
 
is it more like ---------------------- , or ------------_______, or _____--------_____, in terms of bass->mids->treble balance, to your ears?

 

[conquerator2]

^ it seems warm neutral to me.

 

[aamefford]

@jerg - I'm not gonna go there - many folks have different opinions of "neutral".  I've heard at least two that are purported to be neutral.  I own one, like them both, and they sound different.  The PM-1 is a very natural sounding headphone.  It is a very non-fatiguing headphone.  It is a very accurate and dynamic (as in dynamic range) headphone.  I really like them.  Ummm….. the LCD3 is like a special occasion headphone to me.  I don't go that smokey jazz club every night, nor do I want to.  I go home and relax every night that I can.  The PM-1 is the headphone I want to do that with, at least right now (again with the caveat that I'm a bit of a fanboy, and trade things around a lot).  It really is a good headphone.  Like most headphones, it is not for everyone.  It is not, for instance EXCITING in it's sound (boosted bass or mid bass, boosted treble, etc.)
 
OK, I'm gonna kind of bow out for a while here.

 

[podeschi]

 When I look at the PM-1 order page, there's an option to buy a headphone stand as well.  Unfortunately, there's no picture of this stand to be found on the Oppo website.  Does anyone have any information about the stand?

 
 

 

The headphone stand is more intriguing than the headphones.

 

[podeschi]

 Alright, I bailed on the thread earlier.  It seems to be at least a little more polite, so I'll weigh back in.  Chris Marten's brief impressions were linked above, and I'll link them again HERE.
 
CAVEAT:  I was one of the Beta testers.  I had a great time participating in the test, I felt that I truly did participate - Oppo did give real credence to our input.  That said, we were a beta test group. We listened, we criticized, we lauded, we bickered good-naturedly.  Oppo designed, redesigned, tweaked, brought in Igor Levitsky (I hope I didn't slaughter his last name) to do the real heavy lifting in tuning.  Many Oppo staff and Igor participated and were truly interested in our input.  It was a really cool experience.  I am predisposed to like these headphones for that reason - I helped just a little in creating them.  Oh, and Oppo gave each of the beta testers one of the first released retail package PM-1's.  This was completely unexpected and gracious.  Oppo really did right by the beta test, and the beta testers.  As I said, I am predisposed to view the PM-1's with rose colored glasses.  Take my comments below with a grain of salt.  Or not.  Those that have read my other gear comments know that I can be enthusiastic (fanboy) but I do try to be realistic, honest and at least reasonably objective in subjective comments.
 
Away we go!
 
Chris's impressions are pretty dead on save for the LCD3 comments. Reminiscent absolutely. I just find the PM-1 the easier, less fatiguing, more realistic and more pleasant listen. This from a guy who wasn't all that excited about the LCD2.2, but seriously considered parting with a kidney for the LCD3 (I had the pleasure of living with another head-fief's pair for about 3 or 4 days). 

The LCD3 transports me to a smokey 1930's speakeasy - men in silk suits, beautiful women, cigars, illicit booze, great jazz band and that stuff going on in the back room.  A stunning headphone. 

The PM-1 on the other hand, welcomes me home, takes my shoes off, sets me in a chair, invites a few friends over, hands us each a cigar and a sippin' whiskey or cognac and introduces the great band that materialized in the living room. Easy, but wonderful.  Yup, I like them a lot.
 
OK, that pretty much covers the emotional aspect of the PM-1's.  In fact, as far as I'm concerned, that may be all that really actually matters.
 
​For the gear heads out there (guilty) I'll do what I can here.
 
Yes - Extremely efficient.  They sound better out of an amp and a good source.  They sound really freakin' good out of an iPhone 5S though.  Really good.
 
They are feather weight for a planer, and pretty dang light anyway.
 
They are quite comfortable.  They may be the most comfortable planer I've worn - mostly because they are light.
 
​The bass is good, accurate, articulate and deep when needed.  It is not a bass tilted can though.
 
​The mids are lush and accurate.
 
The highs are detailed, again articulate, airy (barely) and smooth.
 
If you are looking for a boosted, euphonic bass or mid bass, the PM-1 might not be the right headphone.  If you are looking for a bright sparkle up top, the PM-1 might not be the right headphone.  If you are inclined to EQ for either trait - the PM-1 might be the right headphone (conjecture - haven't QE'd it).
 
​If you are looking for what I and others described, a pretty natural, lovely, easy headphone, you might be with me - the PM-1 is my new favorite open headphone.
 
Oh, build quality is excellent, the box and stuff is beautiful and helps with the whole cachet of "Statement Product."
 
I think NDA's are still in place with the PM-2, but I very strongly believe that the statements that they will be the PM-1 with lower cost to produce parts, pleather pads, but very essentially identical sound are accurate.
 
OK, since this thread has teetered on the brink a few times, please, enjoy my comments, take them for what they are worth and leave it at that.  If you've heard them and vehemently disagree, blame it on different tastes, or the information in in my disclaimer.  If you haven't heard them….

So you're saying it is dead-neutral, not warm-neutral? Or maybe mids-heavy-neutral?
 
is it more like ---------------------- , or ------------_______, or _____--------_____, in terms of bass->mids->treble balance, to your ears?

Ok I will pass. Way too many references to LCD-2 and 3. Too dark and midrangy for me.

 

[aamefford]

^^^ Might want to re-read my post.  I use the LCD2 and LCD3 more for reference and comparison, as I've heard them, and so have others.  They are not polar opposites, they have some similarities, but they are not voiced similarly at all, really.  For instance, I would not call either of the Audeze "natural" sounding.  I wish I was better at providing a good description of what I'm hearing.  My impressions are very subjective.
 
OK, now I am bowing out for a while before I muddy the waters any more.

 

[keanex]

  Alright, I bailed on the thread earlier.  It seems to be at least a little more polite, so I'll weigh back in.  Chris Marten's brief impressions were linked above, and I'll link them again HERE.
 
CAVEAT:  I was one of the Beta testers.  I had a great time participating in the test, I felt that I truly did participate - Oppo did give real credence to our input.  That said, we were a beta test group.  We listened, we criticized, we lauded, we bickered good-naturedly.  Oppo designed, redesigned, tweaked, brought in Igor Levitsky (I hope I didn't slaughter his last name) to do the real heavy lifting in tuning.  Many Oppo staff and Igor participated and were truly interested in our input.  It was a really cool experience.  I am predisposed to like these headphones for that reason - I helped just a little in creating them.  Oh, and Oppo gave each of the beta testers one of the first released retail package PM-1's.  This was completely unexpected and gracious.  Oppo really did right by the beta test, and the beta testers.  As I said, I am predisposed to view the PM-1's with rose colored glasses.  Take my comments below with a grain of salt.  Or not.  Those that have read my other gear comments know that I can be enthusiastic (fanboy) but I do try to be realistic, honest and at least reasonably objective in subjective comments.

 
Yup! I have nothing but great things to say about how Oppo handled the beta, unlike another company I did some "beta" testing for. I have taken some pictures for you all to view.

 

[HiFiGuy528]

What I love about the PM-1 over any of the LCDs is the Oppo feels light on the head.  Great job at addressing all the concerns we all had with comfort during the testing period.  

 

[keanex]

  What I love about the PM-1 over any of the LCDs is the Oppo feels light on the head.  Great job at addressing all the concerns we all had with comfort during the testing period.  

 
For sure. I've had these on for 2 hours. I forgot I had them on until you mentioned something.

 

[Otodynia]

The headphone stand is more intriguing than the headphones.

Personally, I'd have to disagree: other than the base, it looks quite bit like many others I've seen on Amazon.  I'm more of a fan of the double-headphone Woo height-adjustable models.  I don't need the height adjustment, but they have a small footprint and accommodate draping the headphone cable as well.  To each their own, though.