[REVIEW] Aurisonics AS-2's - Like being a kid in a candy store with a bag full of quarters

[penguinicus]

Quote:

It would be great if AS  give us some pics of their full range of customs options/ colors etc
on web site?

 
 
Last week (2012-08-09) I asked Andy (Aurisonics's custom products coordinator) about photos of the black rhodium, and he said:
 
 

Thanks for following up. Getting these images arranged is on my to-do list. 
 
Hopefully I'll have something for you by next week.

 
So with any luck, maybe we'll have some more promo photos by the 18th?

 

[jrkong]

Quote:

 
 
Last week (2012-08-09) I asked Andy (Aurisonics's custom products coordinator) about photos of the black rhodium, and he said:
 
 
 
So with any luck, maybe we'll have some more promo photos by the 18th?

can't wait! would be real nice eye candy!

 

[maguire]

At the moment they have a pic of 3 IEM'S with a matt black in the middle....Is this not the black rhodium? If not what is it?  Anyway we will soon find out Thats good news.... I suppose all things take time.

 

[Cassadian]

Does anyone know the impedance of the AS-2?

 

[kenman345]

@Cassadian
 
It says it in my review......
 
34ohm +/- 10% impedance @1kHz

 

[kenman345]

I'll take plenty of pictures when I get them, but it's not Black Rhodium, Dale calls them "Stealth".
Quote:

At the moment they have a pic of 3 IEM'S with a matt black in the middle....Is this not the black rhodium? If not what is it?  Anyway we will soon find out Thats good news.... I suppose all things take time.

 

[maguire]

Quote:

The AS 2 Black Rhodium plate look so stealth like..........



Oh wow Kenman That was exactly my take on them also......but were not the Black Rhodium....
Do we know what price these are fetching?

 

[kenman345]

Not 100% sure as I got them on AS-1's, not on a set of AS-2's. I also have gotten some weird responses to telling people prices. I rather let Aurisonics do that themselves.
Quote:

Oh wow Kenman That was exactly my take on them also......but were not the Black Rhodium....
Do we know what price these are fetching?

 

[mgohler]

Hi Everyone,
 
First, I would like to thank everyone for their helpful posts that led me to buy some AS-2's . Secondly, I would like to clarify that I'm a sax player using them  on a tour of the Broadway show "MEMPHIS". Keeping that in mind, I would love to post my impressions after using them for a week and answer any questions if I can...
 
It took about 6-weeks to get them after sending ear impressions from an audiologist in New York City ($50). Unfortunately they arrived with the wrong white color cables, as I had ordered black to avoid the green oxidizing that I had read about from you guys. Andy had forgotten to let me know that they had run out and offered to send the black ones; but I declined since it seemed unnecessary. They come in that Otter box in a re-sealable plastic bag along with a tool for adjusting the Bass/Ambient port and a small brush for cleaning I suppose. There's a little sheet of documentation on care and also the adjustment of the ports.
 
This is my first pair of custom fit IEM's and I didn't anticipate that not only the inner canal would being formed, but that the outer ear would be shaped as well! I had been provided with some basic Shure's for the first few months of the tour and definitely wanted to make an improvement. Our bass player used to play with Joan Jett and was using a pair of older Ultimate Ears. After some research, I was going to get some JH-16's, but then starting reading posts about hybrids like the MG-6 pro's.
 
I have to say that initially it wasn't the "mind-blowing experience" that I was expecting: Of course they sounded way better than the basic Shure's; but what caught me off guard was the level of isolation. I don't even hear the sax player talking next to me during periods of no music in the show! That means that I'm much more reliant on the sound coming from the IEM's and less on the band bleeding in from the outside.
 
The bass is definitely strong and I can actually feel the air moving against my eardrums when the bass and bass drums play. I've tried opening up the bass/ambient port to let in a little more of the horn section sound and reduce the bass a bit. That seems to work. Unfortunately, there's no indication of how far to turn the screw or if it's a progressive change or not. All the directions say is to "turn counter-clockwise"...
 
They are very comfortable and seal well. After 8 shows I'm enjoying tweaking my mix. I don't really have a frame of reference with other custom monitors, but they seem pretty damn good.
 
I hope that this was helpful and would be happy to share any other impressions. Thanks again for all your super helpful posts.
 
 
 
Michel
(Reed 2, Memphis tour)

 

[kenman345]

I hope you're enjoying them. I didn't get such a sheet with information on cleaning them and the tuning ports. The mg6pro's are not a hybrid, but a dynamic driver setup, but in the end, it doesn't entirely matter as the AS-2's are what you got. Let us know how you find they work for you after a bit more time to tweak them and get used to the tuning. The ports are definitely hard to figure out how much you have adjusted, pretty much the main reason why I havent touched mine since I got my AS-2's. Glad to hear someone else on the site has a set.
Quote:

Hi Everyone,
 
First, I would like to thank everyone for their helpful posts that led me to buy some AS-2's . Secondly, I would like to clarify that I'm a sax player using them  on a tour of the Broadway show "MEMPHIS". Keeping that in mind, I would love to post my impressions after using them for a week and answer any questions if I can...
 
It took about 6-weeks to get them after sending ear impressions from an audiologist in New York City ($50). Unfortunately they arrived with the wrong white color cables, as I had ordered black to avoid the green oxidizing that I had read about from you guys. Andy had forgotten to let me know that they had run out and offered to send the black ones; but I declined since it seemed unnecessary. They come in that Otter box in a re-sealable plastic bag along with a tool for adjusting the Bass/Ambient port and a small brush for cleaning I suppose. There's a little sheet of documentation on care and also the adjustment of the ports.
 
This is my first pair of custom fit IEM's and I didn't anticipate that not only the inner canal would being formed, but that the outer ear would be shaped as well! I had been provided with some basic Shure's for the first few months of the tour and definitely wanted to make an improvement. Our bass player used to play with Joan Jett and was using a pair of older Ultimate Ears. After some research, I was going to get some JH-16's, but then starting reading posts about hybrids like the MG-6 pro's.
 
I have to say that initially it wasn't the "mind-blowing experience" that I was expecting: Of course they sounded way better than the basic Shure's; but what caught me off guard was the level of isolation. I don't even hear the sax player talking next to me during periods of no music in the show! That means that I'm much more reliant on the sound coming from the IEM's and less on the band bleeding in from the outside.
 
The bass is definitely strong and I can actually feel the air moving against my eardrums when the bass and bass drums play. I've tried opening up the bass/ambient port to let in a little more of the horn section sound and reduce the bass a bit. That seems to work. Unfortunately, there's no indication of how far to turn the screw or if it's a progressive change or not. All the directions say is to "turn counter-clockwise"...
 
They are very comfortable and seal well. After 8 shows I'm enjoying tweaking my mix. I don't really have a frame of reference with other custom monitors, but they seem pretty damn good.
 
I hope that this was helpful and would be happy to share any other impressions. Thanks again for all your super helpful posts.
 
 
 
Michel
(Reed 2, Memphis tour)

 

[kuatto]

Thanks for your review, Michael.  Did you go with any of the custom options with your AS-2s?  Do you have any pictures to share?

 

[mgohler]

Quote:

I hope you're enjoying them. I didn't get such a sheet with information on cleaning them and the tuning ports. The mg6pro's are not a hybrid, but a dynamic driver setup, but in the end, it doesn't entirely matter as the AS-2's are what you got. Let us know how you find they work for you after a bit more time to tweak them and get used to the tuning. The ports are definitely hard to figure out how much you have adjusted, pretty much the main reason why I havent touched mine since I got my AS-2's. Glad to hear someone else on the site has a set.

Thanks for replying kenman, as it is a little intimidating to post with all you Head-Fi "heavies"  .
 
I AM really enjoying them, once I got through the initial jolt of not being blown-away by the sound... Of course, these are my first customs and I am not playing in an ideal acoustical situation: The entire rhythm section (keyboard, drums, organ, bass and guitar) are to my right and the rest of the horns (sax, trumpet, trombone) are to my left. On the other hand, live stage monitoring is what they are designed for!
 
So far I have opened-up the bass/ambient ports a couple of twists and it definitely seems to help my situation. I can now hear the other horns a bit more acoustically on the left and I also don't feel the bass thumping more in my right ear from the bass & drums. I'm going to continue opening them a bit more on each side to see what happens...
 
Here's what Andy sent me on the process:
"The vents require very slight adjustments with light torque. They should be all the way closed, so tiny incremental turns counter-clockwise will open them. They are open completely when you look into the vent hole and can't see the tip of the valve anymore - it's maybe 4 half turns... though it varies depending on each set of ears. Obviously you don't want to open it so far that the top part of the valve sits outside of the hole - this would scratch your ear."
 
Michel

 

[mgohler]

Quote:

Thanks for your review, Michael.  Did you go with any of the custom options with your AS-2s?  Do you have any pictures to share?

You're welcome kuatto,
 
I got them basic with smoked shells and white cables; although I had ordered the out-of-stock black... They do add your initials (in red for right) and blue for left) free of charge. I didn't order them clear because I thought that they would look too much like hearing-aids on stage; but now that I have them, I think that clear would be cool as well to see the "insides" . I could take pictures if you guys want, but they're pretty straight ahead.
 
Although the $800 price is quite competitive compared to the JH-16's, UE-18's, Heir Audio etc at $1,000+, I felt that I had spend enough without adding extra options; not to mention the $50 Audiologist ear-molds plus shipping them to Aurisonics.
 
By the way, they fit so well, that they are little tricky to remove quickly so that I can hear the person next to me!
 
Michel

 

[kuatto]

Sure Michel, I would still like to see some pictures if it's not too much trouble.  I'm interested in these IEMs but I'm not really sold on the frosted look.  They almost look like a prototype/unfinished product.    And the price jump is quite significant if you decide to go with any of the custom options.

 

[kenman345]

Thanks for considering me a heavy hitter. I really appreciate that. I had a hard time figuring out how to remove them quickly as well. Try putting your pointer finger in the hook of the wire and pull the wire to the front of your face while also pulling down. They AS-2's should kind of roll out of your ear. I do the exact opposite to put them in my ears easily as well. Let me know how that works for you. It's like rocking your AS-2's into your ear. You can always send in your AS-2's to get upgraded aesthetics if you so desire. Just talk to the people at Aurisonics about what you want first.
Quote:

You're welcome kuatto,
 
I got them basic with smoked shells and white cables; although I had ordered the out-of-stock black... They do add your initials (in red for right) and blue for left) free of charge. I didn't order them clear because I thought that they would look too much like hearing-aids on stage; but now that I have them, I think that clear would be cool as well to see the "insides" . I could take pictures if you guys want, but they're pretty straight ahead.
 
Although the $800 price is quite competitive compared to the JH-16's, UE-18's, Heir Audio etc at $1,000+, I felt that I had spend enough without adding extra options; not to mention the $50 Audiologist ear-molds plus shipping them to Aurisonics.
 
By the way, they fit so well, that they are little tricky to remove quickly so that I can hear the person next to me!
 
Michel