[Sonic Defender]

   
You've got a hard life ! lol You should be thankful you don't live in the U.K. !
 
( It's only because your body is used to very high temps. )

Come on, the UK isn't cold! Mind you the dampness exaggerates the cold so I'm sure it feels cold enough.

 

[520RanchBro]

  Come on, the UK isn't cold! Mind you the dampness exaggerates the cold so I'm sure it feels cold enough.

 

I'm sure you experience similar or even colder temperatures.
 
 
Don't talk about cold unless you have to deal with temperatures that range from -20 to -40 degrees Celsius (with windchill, mind you) for days or even weeks at a time. And I walk to work. Hopefully the PM-3s make nice earmuffs for the winter months next year. This winter was thankfully quite mild. I remember two years ago there was still piles of snow well in to April.

 

[Sonic Defender]

   

I'm sure you experience similar or even colder temperatures.
 
 
Don't talk about cold unless you have to deal with temperatures that range from -20 to -40 degrees Celsius (with windchill, mind you) for days or even weeks at a time. And I walk to work. Hopefully the PM-3s make nice earmuffs for the winter months next year. This winter was thankfully quite mild. I remember two years ago there was still piles of snow well in to April.

Yes, it does get quite cold here, likely even colder on average. Mind you, you get the cold air masses sweeping down from the flat Canadian Prairies so who knows? Anyway,  I'm not sure I would want headphones as ear warmers. I worry that you go from inside where it is warm to suddenly very cold conditions, then you go into suddenly warm conditions. I wonder if these rapid shifts can have any impact on the headphone? What about condensation? I don't even know if any of the materials used could be impacted by these temperature shifts. I would be surprised if Oppo or any company took such scenarios into account during design and testing. Maybe nothing to worry about at all.

 

[sabloke]

I'm not so worried about condensation since temeprature variations between indoors/outdoors are not significant. In addition, Adelaide is one of the driest cities in the world. I used the PM3s in 42C heat and while it got a bit sweaty under the pads, everything was fine.

 

[Sonic Defender]

  I'm not so worried about condensation since temeprature variations between indoors/outdoors are not significant.

They would be if you went into an air conditioned space that was nice and cool.

 

[520RanchBro]

 
Yes, it does get quite cold here, likely even colder on average. Mind you, you get the cold air masses sweeping down from the flat Canadian Prairies so who knows? Anyway,  I'm not sure I would want headphones as ear warmers. I worry that you go from inside where it is warm to suddenly very cold conditions, then you go into suddenly warm conditions. I wonder if these rapid shifts can have any impact on the headphone? What about condensation? I don't even know if any of the materials used could be impacted by these temperature shifts. I would be surprised if Oppo or any company took such scenarios into account during design and testing. Maybe nothing to worry about at all.

I've done with countless cheaper headphones. They are not efficient as earmuffs but definitely no damage to them. Maybe a longer walk could be worse but my commute is only 7-10 minutes and they will be on my head, usually with a hood over them. I will look in to this though, if it could be damaging, I'll use IEMs in the winter months.

 

[WayTooCrazy]

  So I tested PM-3 sub-bass with the test below. PM-3 has indeed crazy good sub-bass extension. I also tested TH900 and while it went just a small bit lower, PM-3 more than held up its own against the bass king. Just goes to show what an amazing headphone PM-3 is.
 
http://www.audiocheck.net/testtones_subwooferharmonicdistortion.php

Pretty cool. I actually just clicked on it to see, and my Cheap subwoofer (Monoprice 8") will go down to about 50hz. My dang Audioengine A2+ will go down to 10hz, but the woofers will move (no sound).

 

[520RanchBro]

Out sick from work and my PM-3s arrived! The seal is perfectly on my ears, isolation is quite good.
 
Just a few songs in so very early impressions on my Asgard 2/Modi 2U desktop setup will come a bit later. I will say these sadly will not replace my HE-400is but do offer a distinct signature and will be so enjoyable for portable and travel use. Bass impact and response right out of the box is awesome, not quite as good separation and detail as the 400i though. I've got plenty of paces to put them through before I reach a more solid verdict.
 
Overall though, pretty thrilled with the purchase and glad I went with these over a new pair of IEMs.

 

[WayTooCrazy]

  Out sick from work and my PM-3s arrived! The seal is perfectly on my ears, isolation is quite good.
 
Just a few songs in so very early impressions on my Asgard 2/Modi 2U desktop setup will come a bit later. I will say these sadly will not replace my HE-400is but do offer a distinct signature and will be so enjoyable for portable and travel use. Bass impact and response right out of the box is awesome, not quite as good separation and detail as the 400i though. I've got plenty of paces to put them through before I reach a more solid verdict.
 
Overall though, pretty thrilled with the purchase and glad I went with these over a new pair of IEMs.

My audio toys ALWAYS arrive when I'm home "sick".

 

[Sonic Defender]

 
My audio toys ALWAYS arrive when I'm home "sick".

LOL, coincidence?

 

[Sonic Defender]

  Out sick from work and my PM-3s arrived! The seal is perfectly on my ears, isolation is quite good.
 
Just a few songs in so very early impressions on my Asgard 2/Modi 2U desktop setup will come a bit later. I will say these sadly will not replace my HE-400is but do offer a distinct signature and will be so enjoyable for portable and travel use. Bass impact and response right out of the box is awesome, not quite as good separation and detail as the 400i though. I've got plenty of paces to put them through before I reach a more solid verdict.
 
Overall though, pretty thrilled with the purchase and glad I went with these over a new pair of IEMs.

That was my conclusion, the PM3 are excellent in many ways, but I also preferred the 400i almost across the board. I have since sold the PM3 and now toying with letting go my 400i. I'm thinking of getting another Bluetooth headphone as I can now use them with my computer so I'm not sure if I want to bother with wired even for home use now. That said, I really like the 400i so I'm not sure yet.

 

[520RanchBro]

Well upon further listening, looks like being ill and the fact that my band played a pretty loud show last night were affecting my impressions. Treble response still feels a bit rolled off but these are sounding a bit more lively now. I'll wait a few days to make sure I can give the most accurate impression.

 

[Sonic Defender]

  Well upon further listening, looks like being ill and the fact that my band played a pretty loud show last night were affecting my impressions. Treble response still feels a bit rolled off but these are sounding a bit more lively now. I'll wait a few days to make sure I can give the most accurate impression.

The treble is very deceptive on these headphones. Yes, there is no doubt that they are rolled off, but somehow they do seem to contain enough detail and energy to do the trick. I play drums so of course how cymbals sound is something after 30 years playing you get the feel for.  Even though the  total treble energy is restrained, it still seems to contain enough information. Ultimately they do lack some sparkle that for some will make them seem a little dull, but conversely they will never fatigue you and are really suitable for people who like to listen for hours. I still think I prefer the B&O H7 overall, but damn the PM3 set the bar high and when build quality, comfort get rolled into things, the PM3 still has to be right up there with any portable. I hear the Sine is making a run at the PM3 and might even beat it, that is fine, competition is a good thing. Now Oppo may need to step up and do a PM3.2 so we all win.

 

[exsomnis]

I have to admit, I was about to relegate my PM-3s to the 2nd Division before I came across an exceptional synergy. PM-3 + Alo Audio Pan Am (using the on-board DAC too) + Mullard CV4010 tubes are the real thing. Musical, intimate tube warmth and forward mids all combine into a wonderfully live presentation that is still sending shivers down my spine. Islandsmoen: Requiem - Lacrymosa is the track that triggered it all.

This is almost up there with my absolute epiphany of listening to an LCD 3 and planar magnetic cans for the first time ever. Or with how good my LCD 2s synergise with the Precision 1 and ODAC.

The PM-3s were decent paired with Voskhod tubes, they were pretty good on my Audio-Gd Precision 1 but all in all didn't really seem to be that much of a big deal. Accomplished but not overreaching. Once I switched in the Mullards, it was literally the difference between night and day.

Listening to a symphony was as if a bored conductor had suddenly been replaced by his rockstar twin brother and the orchestra had been kicked awake. Recorded sopranos turned into sopranos singing right there in your head, to front left and front right of the brain.

That said, I am experiencing this after having burned them in for around 50 hours. And I do play my music loudly.

 

[JbstormburstADV]

I have to admit, I was about to relegate my PM-3s to the 2nd Division before I came across an exceptional synergy. PM-3 + Alo Audio Pan Am (using the on-board DAC too) + Mullard CV4010 tubes are the real thing. Musical, intimate tube warmth and forward mids all combine into a wonderfully live presentation that is still sending shivers down my spine. Islandsmoen: Requiem - Lacrymosa is the track that triggered it all.

This is almost up there with my absolute epiphany of listening to an LCD 3 and planar magnetic cans for the first time ever. Or with how good my LCD 2s synergise with the Precision 1 and ODAC.

The PM-3s were decent paired with Voskhod tubes, they were pretty good on my Audio-Gd Precision 1 but all in all didn't really seem to be that much of a big deal. Accomplished but not overreaching. Once I switched in the Mullards, it was literally the difference between night and day.

Listening to a symphony was as if a bored conductor had suddenly been replaced by his rockstar twin brother and the orchestra had been kicked awake. Recorded sopranos turned into sopranos singing right there in your head, to front left and front right of the brain.

That said, I am experiencing this after having burned them in for around 50 hours. And I do play my music loudly.

 
From what I know in general, Mullards will work really well with the PM-3s due to the bass emphasis of their inherent sound signature and the warmness of tubes helping the treble and mids.  However, as someone wanting to get a tube amp for these at some point, do OTL amps have issues with these like most other planars, or does this pair buck that trend?