Almost 3 weeks after my review of Head-Direct's RE2, I finally received its big brother - RE1 in the mail yesterday. In short, if RE2 is intended for the entry/mid class IEM market, RE1 is, without any doubt in my mind, a heavy weight contender for the current top end universal IEM market. RE1 is currently not on sell yet, but I got an estimated price quote from Fang @ Head-Direct that this little baby will likely be sold at around $200, placing it's price tag close to the reign of top end IEMs.
[size=xx-small]^ Triple.fi10 pro, RE1 and RE2.[/size]
[size=xx-small]^ RE1 with the special bi-flanges.[/size]
[size=xx-small]^ Yes, gold is the way to go.[/size]
[size=xx-small]^ The slightly heavy extension cable, same as the one with RE2.[/size]
Package & Build Quality
As like the RE2, the RE1 I got is just sample package with limited accessories. However, this time Fang did include the special bi-flanges missing from my RE2 package.
The basic build quality/ design is equal to that of RE2 (see RE2 review for more detail), except RE1 spots a golden finish instead of the RE2's silver finish. I am not sure whether it is really gold plated or not, but it does look higher in class when compare to RE2. Like RE2, the only complaint I have is the rather short main cable. It would be great if we can get 120cm on it instead of 100cm.
One of the most significant difference b/w RE1 and RE2 is, RE2's impedance is 32ohms but RE1 is 150ohms - with that saying, yes, RE1 really shine when paired with amp (more on this later).
Isolation
Also equal to RE2, which is roughly 20~23dB of noise reduction on the special bi-flanges. Although not as highly isolated as many other IEMs, RE1 is more than adequate for use on busy street. Like the RE2, the new Comply T400 will also fit on RE1 and give even better isolation.
Sound Quality
Same as my review of RE2, my rig consists of Sony D-EJ1000 PCDP to Firestone Audio Little Country amp (tweaked for maximize detail/soundstage) via line-out. IEMs of choice for A/Bing are iM716 (original), SA6 (B+ and T++ ports), and the addition of my newly acquired Triple.fi 10 pro. RE1 has been burn-in for around 35hrs via different genre of music so far. I don't think extra burn-in time will significantly change the SQ, so I decided 35hrs is good enough.
Robbie Williams’s Have You Met Miss Jones? from album ‘Bridget Jones’s Diary: Music From The Motion Picture’
If RE2 is like Yuin PK3, which sounds pretty good with most unamped DAP, than I guess RE1 is like PK1, which sounds very good unamped and fabulously great amped. It has no doubt a very high impedance, but you should be able to use it unamped, just not as good as when you amped it.
Out of the three I compare it to, I find RE1 (when amped) to be almost as good as TF10, out performing SA6 in general and smoking iM716 with out a doubt. Even when use with out an amp, RE1 is still as good, if not better than my SA6 (just not as detail) - plus it is very forgiving, so you can pair it with most of any source, especially with lossy music. However, a brighter source will be more suitable as RE1 seems to be a bit recessed on treble.
Overall, I think RE1 will prove to be a worthy competitor on the current top end universal IEMs' world. It certainly has impressed me
[UPDATE] I didn't keep track of the hours I put on RE1, but I am quite certain that I should at least have double or triple the original burn-in time now. I can't really tell if the burn-in affect the treble or not. If it does, the effect is somewhat subtle as I still have the same overall impression I have before.
Head-Direct now has RE1 on group buy for $150, and this time it comes with a case, maybe leather but I can't really tell what material it is from the blurry picture of Head-Direct's website. As my original opinion stated, RE1 is really a great pair of IEM and those of you who are interested should grab it before the group buy is over.
[size=xx-small]^ Triple.fi10 pro, RE1 and RE2.[/size]
[size=xx-small]^ RE1 with the special bi-flanges.[/size]
[size=xx-small]^ Yes, gold is the way to go.[/size]
[size=xx-small]^ The slightly heavy extension cable, same as the one with RE2.[/size]
Package & Build Quality
As like the RE2, the RE1 I got is just sample package with limited accessories. However, this time Fang did include the special bi-flanges missing from my RE2 package.
The basic build quality/ design is equal to that of RE2 (see RE2 review for more detail), except RE1 spots a golden finish instead of the RE2's silver finish. I am not sure whether it is really gold plated or not, but it does look higher in class when compare to RE2. Like RE2, the only complaint I have is the rather short main cable. It would be great if we can get 120cm on it instead of 100cm.
One of the most significant difference b/w RE1 and RE2 is, RE2's impedance is 32ohms but RE1 is 150ohms - with that saying, yes, RE1 really shine when paired with amp (more on this later).
Isolation
Also equal to RE2, which is roughly 20~23dB of noise reduction on the special bi-flanges. Although not as highly isolated as many other IEMs, RE1 is more than adequate for use on busy street. Like the RE2, the new Comply T400 will also fit on RE1 and give even better isolation.
Sound Quality
Same as my review of RE2, my rig consists of Sony D-EJ1000 PCDP to Firestone Audio Little Country amp (tweaked for maximize detail/soundstage) via line-out. IEMs of choice for A/Bing are iM716 (original), SA6 (B+ and T++ ports), and the addition of my newly acquired Triple.fi 10 pro. RE1 has been burn-in for around 35hrs via different genre of music so far. I don't think extra burn-in time will significantly change the SQ, so I decided 35hrs is good enough.
Robbie Williams’s Have You Met Miss Jones? from album ‘Bridget Jones’s Diary: Music From The Motion Picture’
Sara Bareilles’s Bottle It Up from album ‘Little Voice’
Diana Krall’s Isn’t This a Lovely Day from album ‘From This Moment On’
Sara Bareilles’s Bottle It Up from album ‘Little Voice’ [Ampless, headphone out from iriver clix (warm), wma vbr on second highest setting]
Conclusion
If RE2 is like Yuin PK3, which sounds pretty good with most unamped DAP, than I guess RE1 is like PK1, which sounds very good unamped and fabulously great amped. It has no doubt a very high impedance, but you should be able to use it unamped, just not as good as when you amped it.
Out of the three I compare it to, I find RE1 (when amped) to be almost as good as TF10, out performing SA6 in general and smoking iM716 with out a doubt. Even when use with out an amp, RE1 is still as good, if not better than my SA6 (just not as detail) - plus it is very forgiving, so you can pair it with most of any source, especially with lossy music. However, a brighter source will be more suitable as RE1 seems to be a bit recessed on treble.
Overall, I think RE1 will prove to be a worthy competitor on the current top end universal IEMs' world. It certainly has impressed me
[UPDATE] I didn't keep track of the hours I put on RE1, but I am quite certain that I should at least have double or triple the original burn-in time now. I can't really tell if the burn-in affect the treble or not. If it does, the effect is somewhat subtle as I still have the same overall impression I have before.
Head-Direct now has RE1 on group buy for $150, and this time it comes with a case, maybe leather but I can't really tell what material it is from the blurry picture of Head-Direct's website. As my original opinion stated, RE1 is really a great pair of IEM and those of you who are interested should grab it before the group buy is over.
