PM-3 Unit #3 received
First impression after a few hours:
Bass is very polite, but accurate. There seems to be a dip and spike in the treble. Clamping force is high and the cups are small. I have small ears and they are they touch the inside of the cups. Compared to the Shure 1540's, the PM-3 are not nearly as comfortable, but are more accurate. The Shure's are definitely funner. Compared to the Beyerdynamic T-90's, the T-90 blow away the PM-3's in terms of comfort, bass, mid, treble, but not detail. The PM-3's are the only portables in this comparison, so a little apples to oranges here. Sorry.
Not saying the Oppos are uncomfortable, they probably have to clamp down more as they are designed to be worn on the move.
For songs with punch, like the live Hotel Californiam Royals by Lorde, or Like a Prayer from Madona, the PM-3's can provide the impact, but the treble spike is, well, annoying. A lot of people don't like Beyers because of hot treble, but these Oppos, man, they sound say hotter in the treble to me. On some songs they are rather anemic (or possible accurate) in the bass department). Oddly enough, I felt the same way about my son's EL-8s, so maybe this is a planer thing. My son has EL-8's and LCD-3c's, so he is no stranger to the planner sound. Unfortunately he just returned to University, so he can't compare these to the EL-8c's.
The opps also seem to need a LOT of power. way more than my 250ohm T-90's. The T-90's sound way fuller, like something is missing from the PM-3, but the PM-3 sound more detailed, which may be a result of the hot treble, or just that they are more detailed. I'm too old and insensitive to know.
Listening to the main title from Star Wars, the orchestra is there, but the boom from the kettle drums is very recessed. It's like with the bass is loud, the cans reproduce it well, but when the bass instruments are soft, they fade away. I will say that nothing bleeds into anything else.
Dang, these are growing on me. High female vocals sound very nice on the PM-3s, and almost a little compressed on the T-90s, but something is missing from the oppos to make the music enjoyable. If only there were fun planners, really comfortable, and in the $400 price range.
So far I pretty much agree with Tyl's review. Accurate, but boring. Competent in every way. That's all for now.
