The_Duke_Of_Eli
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- Feb 23, 2006
- Posts
- 2,113
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- 10
Initially I would like to extend many thanks to Peter and the rest of the JAYS production team who are very kind and generous to their product testers.
Unboxing impressions:
I received these final, boxed version IEMs about a week ago. The box they are packaged in is a handy black box; avoiding the usual plastic blister packaging. Inside is where you'll find the usual plastic sealing. Included inside the box is the following:
1) q-JAYS IEMs
2) 2 extension cords (1 straight, 1 L-shaped. This is something I requested they included. Sometimes the device you're using is best suited for one or the other. It's nice to see both.)
3) Tips in every size imaginable (XXS to L) in re-usable blister packaging.
4) Splitter (1 1/8" to 2 1/8")
5) Airline adapter (2 1/8" mono to 1 1/8" stereo)
6) Soft carring case
7) Instruction guide
8) Sheet of sticker filters
As you can see it's quite a complete package, especially at its pricepoint. The tips are standard rubber sleeves which get the job done. They're just as comfortable as the rubber tips from Shure and Westone. Their isolation is fair, but very high pitched noises aren't necissarily fully-blocked out. Without music playing I could hear my PC whine a bit. With music playing however, most is blocked out. The stock on the q-JAYS are a bit thicker than the standard IEMs, so you're not going to be able to fit other manufacturer's tips on it natively. At no time did I really feel the need or want to try other tips. I have been assured that JAYS has an engineer working on tip testing, so we may expect some new tips in the future. The q-JAYS themselves are built extremely strong; regardless of their small size. Their insertion is as easy as the d-JAYS, and can go either standard earbud-style, or around the ear à la Shure. The cable is kevlar-reinforced and is a step above standard cable. The back end of the IEM is also covered in some sort of rubbery material that helps your grip during insertion; as the usual plastic doesn't offer the same kind of friction for easy insertion. A last note on the cable: it is natively very short. This is meant for easy use with cell phone adaptors. To reach more than 2 feet; you'll need to use one of the 90 cm extension cables. These extension cables do double duty as they also reduce the wear on the male connector on the IEMs.
Sonic impressions
High end
The high-end on these IEMs is incredibly smooth. Enya's singing is delivered butter-smooth; even at the top of the spectrum. The only downfall in this area is a bit of extension into the higher frequencies that I can hear clearer on something like my HD595s. This is more noticeable with vocals than instrumental; which is a direct reflection on the timbre of these IEMs. These are generally dryer and more analytical than something like the UM2s. Very ER-4 like. Overall; I'm happy here, and this may be the only complaint I could have sonically, albeit minor.
Mid-range
I've always found the midrange on JAYS' prodcuts to be extremely good, and almost always their main draw. And here is no exception. The midrange is very well defined and clear, while maintaing smoothness (such as Benny Goodman's big band clarinet solos). It is overall very pleasing, and on par to other dual and on certain tiers triple-driver iems. It very much reminds me of the UM2's midrange.
Bass
The bass in these IEMs is likely to cause the same sort of uproar in the IEM community as that of the ER4. The bass on these is sufficient. These do not have the impactfulness of the UM2s, but they do have greater clarity and extension. The quantity on these I find is somewhere in between the Etymotic ER4 and Shure E4s. But on both regards has the best definition and closer to that of the ER4.
Overall
Overall, no frequency range overpowers these IEMs. This was the one reason that I disliked Shure's E4s. They in their own regard are good IEMs all-around, but didn't do anything exemplary, and overall was good, but not excellent. The q-JAYS are the same in no dominant frequency, but excels at delivering each and every frequency range at the same time.
Sound stage
Not unlike every other IEM, the soundstage of these is compressed. You just can't get that full headphone-liked soundstage out of IEMs. For now... (JAYS is working on a new headphone that sounds almost identical to full-sized headphones soundstage-wise) It is on par to the E500s and UM2s when it comes to this. But any midrange, full-sized headphone will trump it in this regard. But this is the sacrifice that's made for music in such a small package.
Conclusion
It is important to keep in mind that these are dual micro armatures that are inside these incredibly small IEMs. It is a design feat in itself how good they sound and how small they are at the same time. At 179$, there isn't any cheaper multiple-driver IEM on the market. With their small size and easy insertion, they're already winners. But what seperates these from the 300$+ E500/Triple.fi 10 pros/"3"s? Those IEMs, notably the latter are more musical I find, and offer further frequency extension (especially in the high-end). They also improve further on clarity. But again, these are midrange IEMs, and while here and there they can match the big boys, overall they're not going to make you want to throw out your high-end IEMs instead. They're a unique market in this diverging pricepoint, and its ergonomics only make the package even more attractive. I've been tempted to look into some Livewire T1s or the "3"s, but these q-JAYS have hindered any need to look into those at the current moment.
[size=medium]KEEP SCROLLING DOWN FOR PICS/YOUTUBE VIDEO LINK:[/size]
System note: tested using solely a Meier Audio Move with level 8 compression .FLAC files through Foobar2000.
Pictures
Video:http://youtube.com/watch?v=RTBj9QPn1aQ
For more reading check out kramer5150's review: http://www.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?t=256279
Unboxing impressions:
I received these final, boxed version IEMs about a week ago. The box they are packaged in is a handy black box; avoiding the usual plastic blister packaging. Inside is where you'll find the usual plastic sealing. Included inside the box is the following:
1) q-JAYS IEMs
2) 2 extension cords (1 straight, 1 L-shaped. This is something I requested they included. Sometimes the device you're using is best suited for one or the other. It's nice to see both.)
3) Tips in every size imaginable (XXS to L) in re-usable blister packaging.
4) Splitter (1 1/8" to 2 1/8")
5) Airline adapter (2 1/8" mono to 1 1/8" stereo)
6) Soft carring case
7) Instruction guide
8) Sheet of sticker filters
As you can see it's quite a complete package, especially at its pricepoint. The tips are standard rubber sleeves which get the job done. They're just as comfortable as the rubber tips from Shure and Westone. Their isolation is fair, but very high pitched noises aren't necissarily fully-blocked out. Without music playing I could hear my PC whine a bit. With music playing however, most is blocked out. The stock on the q-JAYS are a bit thicker than the standard IEMs, so you're not going to be able to fit other manufacturer's tips on it natively. At no time did I really feel the need or want to try other tips. I have been assured that JAYS has an engineer working on tip testing, so we may expect some new tips in the future. The q-JAYS themselves are built extremely strong; regardless of their small size. Their insertion is as easy as the d-JAYS, and can go either standard earbud-style, or around the ear à la Shure. The cable is kevlar-reinforced and is a step above standard cable. The back end of the IEM is also covered in some sort of rubbery material that helps your grip during insertion; as the usual plastic doesn't offer the same kind of friction for easy insertion. A last note on the cable: it is natively very short. This is meant for easy use with cell phone adaptors. To reach more than 2 feet; you'll need to use one of the 90 cm extension cables. These extension cables do double duty as they also reduce the wear on the male connector on the IEMs.
Sonic impressions
High end
The high-end on these IEMs is incredibly smooth. Enya's singing is delivered butter-smooth; even at the top of the spectrum. The only downfall in this area is a bit of extension into the higher frequencies that I can hear clearer on something like my HD595s. This is more noticeable with vocals than instrumental; which is a direct reflection on the timbre of these IEMs. These are generally dryer and more analytical than something like the UM2s. Very ER-4 like. Overall; I'm happy here, and this may be the only complaint I could have sonically, albeit minor.
Mid-range
I've always found the midrange on JAYS' prodcuts to be extremely good, and almost always their main draw. And here is no exception. The midrange is very well defined and clear, while maintaing smoothness (such as Benny Goodman's big band clarinet solos). It is overall very pleasing, and on par to other dual and on certain tiers triple-driver iems. It very much reminds me of the UM2's midrange.
Bass
The bass in these IEMs is likely to cause the same sort of uproar in the IEM community as that of the ER4. The bass on these is sufficient. These do not have the impactfulness of the UM2s, but they do have greater clarity and extension. The quantity on these I find is somewhere in between the Etymotic ER4 and Shure E4s. But on both regards has the best definition and closer to that of the ER4.
Overall
Overall, no frequency range overpowers these IEMs. This was the one reason that I disliked Shure's E4s. They in their own regard are good IEMs all-around, but didn't do anything exemplary, and overall was good, but not excellent. The q-JAYS are the same in no dominant frequency, but excels at delivering each and every frequency range at the same time.
Sound stage
Not unlike every other IEM, the soundstage of these is compressed. You just can't get that full headphone-liked soundstage out of IEMs. For now... (JAYS is working on a new headphone that sounds almost identical to full-sized headphones soundstage-wise) It is on par to the E500s and UM2s when it comes to this. But any midrange, full-sized headphone will trump it in this regard. But this is the sacrifice that's made for music in such a small package.
Conclusion
It is important to keep in mind that these are dual micro armatures that are inside these incredibly small IEMs. It is a design feat in itself how good they sound and how small they are at the same time. At 179$, there isn't any cheaper multiple-driver IEM on the market. With their small size and easy insertion, they're already winners. But what seperates these from the 300$+ E500/Triple.fi 10 pros/"3"s? Those IEMs, notably the latter are more musical I find, and offer further frequency extension (especially in the high-end). They also improve further on clarity. But again, these are midrange IEMs, and while here and there they can match the big boys, overall they're not going to make you want to throw out your high-end IEMs instead. They're a unique market in this diverging pricepoint, and its ergonomics only make the package even more attractive. I've been tempted to look into some Livewire T1s or the "3"s, but these q-JAYS have hindered any need to look into those at the current moment.
[size=medium]KEEP SCROLLING DOWN FOR PICS/YOUTUBE VIDEO LINK:[/size]
System note: tested using solely a Meier Audio Move with level 8 compression .FLAC files through Foobar2000.
Pictures
Video:http://youtube.com/watch?v=RTBj9QPn1aQ
For more reading check out kramer5150's review: http://www.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?t=256279
