[Calvin Chen]

PM-3 Canada Unit #2 
Just PM next lucky person waiting to send out the unit.

 

[raisedbywolves]

hi, i just noticed that my place in line for the loaner program was skipped over? just wondering if that was a mistake or there was some reasoning for me not getting added.

 

[iguanajm]

I would love to try these out and agree to the t&c's

 

[HouseTremere]

If this is still accepting entries, I would be very interested in participating in the loaner program. T&Cs are A-OK with me.

 

[dweaver]

I received the PM3 yesterday and so far color me very impressed. I have been using a pair of Sony products (MDR-Z7 and XBA-Z5) for the past 10 months and have reached the point where they became the standard by which all gear was being judged and most gear was not good enough. The PM3 is the first headphone I have tried that has honestly made me appreciate a leaner signature again.
 
The first couple of songs I tried I was suitably impressed with the detail but missed the bass of the Sony's. Then I played a cover of "Another Brick in the Wall" by Steve Morse and was blown away by how good the guitars and vocals sounded, they had vitality and crunch but without the harshness! I have since found pianos have a similar tonality to them that is vibrant and refreshing. I have also tried a couple of tracks that have deep bass and the PM3 is capable of reaching down deep it just isn't as heavy as the Z7.
 
I will need to do some more testing but the PM3 may possibly be the complimentary headphone to my Z7 giving me that more aggressive sound and detail without fatigue!.
 
On a different note. I love the build quality, the looks, and the comfort of the PM3. I am sure some will feel the cables are to thin but I think they are perfect for portable use and the straight cable is adequate. I also like that these can be suitably driven by my phone (LG G3) and also work well from my Pono.
 
I can see how people who are used to sharper signatures (mid/treble heads) might find these to tame but as someone who struggles with ear fatigue I love balance of this headphone.
 
More to come later plus a review maybe on the weekend.

 

[Vividcard]

If we are still able to sign up for trying out the phones PM-3's I would like to sign up. I have been looking for a good set of over or on ears to fill the void at home and these were on the list already. If I can try before I buy even better! Obviously I agree to the T&C's. I'd also be happy to write a review during my time as well!

 

[dweaver]

Wow have I ever gotten used to warmer signatures! I love the sound of the PM3 but I found I had ear fatigue even with them. I will spend more time with them over the next few days but it is disconcerting.

 

[milaisf]

I would very much like to sign up for the PM-3 loaner program please! And I'm all good with the Terms and Conditions. Thank you!

 

[Noobzilla]

I would like to sign up. I am in CA, USA. I agree to the terms and condition. Thank you.

 

[newtocans]

I just received loaner 1 .thanks .

 

[Vividcard]

I just received loaner 1 .thanks .

At this rate I should receive loaner 1 on my birthday week! How awesome!

 

[morinu]

I would like to sign up. I am in the San francisco Bay Area. I agree to the term and conditions. Thanks!

 

[raajgunnn]

I just finished my week with the Oppo PM-3 and I am VERY impressed. Now, I've to preface my impressions with the fact that I'm a complete amateur when it comes to mid-fi/hi-fi headphones and am just getting into the audiophile game. All the songs I listened to were either FLAC files streamed from TIDAL or compressed mp3 files streamed from Google Music. I've had the chance to audition some headphones in the same price range like the B&W P7, the Master and Dynamic MH40, Sennheiser Momentum 1 and 2 and the Bang and Olufsen H6, albeit in stores and thus for a much shorter time.
 
Straight out of the box, I was struck by how beautiful these headphones were. The images don't do justice to how nice these look! They still don't look as good as the MH40 or the H6 (IMO), but they're pretty darn good nonetheless. The leather-like material on the headband and the earcups was very soft and supple, and super comfortable on the head and the ear. However, I did feel that there was a little too much clamping force on my ears and had to adjust them around a little more than I would've liked to get a near-perfect fit. Also, I did notice my ears get warm every half an hour or so and had to take the headphones off for some air. Just minor concerns and definitely not deal breakers. Compared to the other headphones I've tried, only the H6 surpassed the comfort levels the PM-3 offered, and this comes with the caveat that I wasn't able to test the H6 out for as long as the PM-3. Additionally, the PM-3's didn't have any cable noise and though the cable had some memory associated with it, I thought it was fine for portable use.
 
I always test headphones out first with Led Zeppelin's "Ramble On", looking for how clean the bass line is, how well-articulated the guitars are, how forward the mid-range is and if Robert Plant's voice soars over the music. All this with a good soundstage and I would've bought the PM-3 then and there! The bass was oh-so clean, the guitars were creamy, I could hear layers in the rhythm section I had never heard before, but that sparkle in Plant's voice was missing with the treble being a tad-bit rolled off (as several others have noted). Man, was I so disappointed! Nonetheless, I knew what to look for from these headphones and carried on with my other songs. Only the H6, IMO did a better job and till date has given me the best "Ramble on" experience, with amazing treble and a superior soundstage. As expected (and disappointingly so), the same issues were present when listening to Queen's "Under Pressure" and Iron Maiden's "Dance of Death", "Fear of the Dark" etc. I will say though that the clarity in Bruce Dickinson's voice was wonderful to hear, something I've never experienced in the past. One BIG positive though was that I truly understood why Led Zeppelin recorded the drums for "When the Levee breaks" in that big old house instead of a studio. The intro drum beat gave me the chills and I could feel the "If" (first word in the song) move from left to right. It was f*kin awesome \m/
 
I am happy to say that no matter what I threw at these headphones, they just enhanced the music and took the song to a whole new level with the only drawbacks being the lack of the sparkle at the top and the lack of a good soundstage. This signature though definitely helped with acoustic/semi-acoustic songs like "Sitting on the dock of the bay" by Ottis Redding, "Hallelujah" by Jeff Buckley, Johnny Cash's version of "Heart of gold" and Mofro's "Gal Youngin". I felt like the artists were right next to me, belting the songs out and I literally had goosebumps after all these songs. The PM-3's also did great with The White Stripes and The Black Keys (the earlier albums). The Chulahoma album (songs of Junior Kimbrough) was a special treat on these 'phones and amplified the raw quality of the blues these songs attempted to reproduce.
 
Finally, I wanted to see how these headphones did with more contemporary music, that relies a little more on editing and sound processing. Daft Punk sounded great with wonderfully clear rhythm sections. DeadMau5 and Skrillex sounded particularly exceptional in these headphones and I loved the detail separation they afforded with songs like "Ghosts and Stuff". Having heard this song on several other headphones mentioned above, I like the PM-3's reproduction the best, with the others sounding too boomy (with the exception of the H6 of course, which sounded a tad thin and sterile). Tame Impala's "Feels like we only go backwards" and "The less I know the better" sounded out of this world, with the PM-3's bringing out the best in the atmospheric quality of the songs, despite not having a great soundstage (this was a little confusing to me, maybe someone more experienced could elaborate as to why?) 
 
If not for the mellow treble and the lack of soundstage, I would've bought these by now. But I want to now audition the H6 for an extended period of time before deciding on one of them. Looks like it's going to be a dog fight! Once again, thanks a ton to Chris and Oppo Digital for this opportunity. 

 

[Drsparis]

  The PM-3's bringing out the best in the atmospheric quality of the songs, despite not having a great sound stage (this was a little confusing to me, maybe someone more experienced could elaborate as to why?) 
 

 
Great review, I have been putting my review off for some time now (I'm a procrastinator/have ADD) anyways, right now I'm procrastinating my studies so I'll gladly chime in.
In short, I think it's because of the excellent imaging capabilities of the headphone. 
 
I recently purchased a paradox Slant and the comparison was very hard for me to do. As The PM-3's cost less, and were better in some areas, notably clarity and Bass impact/decay (speed basically).  The Slants however are not necessarily made to excel in those areas, but have a much smoother romantic presentation.......... getting off track here. 
 
Back to the PM-3's and the question at hand. One area they did not do particularly well in was sound stage. Yet for some reason as you too have noticed, it did not feel like a problem. This is in my opinion due to the fact they they have excellent imaging/instrument separation making everything sound very coherent (The fact that it's a orthodynamic driver also helps) . 
 
The slight treble rolloff did not seem to bother me even though I have learnt to love it with my HD800's. The OPPO's were incredibly comfortable, are quite sexy (I look less like a dork in public than with my Slants lol) had a nice carrying case and are definately on my "one day" list. 
 
Thanks again for the opportunity 

 

[nk126]

If not for the mellow treble and the lack of soundstage, I would've bought these by now. But I want to now audition the H6 for an extended period of time before deciding on one of them. Looks like it's going to be a dog fight! Once again, thanks a ton to Chris and Oppo Digital for this opportunity. 

I totally feel you. Had very similar reactions to the PM-3 and just picked up a pair of H6 to try for awhile. So far I really like the H6's neutral + treble sparkle sound signature. But I haven't put too many hours on them yet.