Magicthyse
Better to look good than to sound good!
- Joined
- Jun 13, 2002
- Posts
- 890
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- 10
I thought I'd just mention a word about the RP-FDA100 since noone else seems to have on this board to date. I'm no longer into doing long, rambling reviews so here it is:
Looks: Need I say more - it is arguably the most stunning headphone on the market at this time. Here's a Pic.
Mechanics: The phones have a detachable cloth-covered cord with a unimatch plug at the end. The headband is a spring-loaded, velvet-covered affair and will probably adjust well to most heads. There is no fabric or cloth covering on the drivers - simply a metal mesh.
Comfort: The 'earpads' a 2-piece velvet-covered affair, with one piece going around the back of the ear and the other a sort of front outrigger covering a small area in front of the ear, is pretty comfortable. However the front earpad can rest on the jawbone and be a bit uncomfortable if you don't shift the headphones back a bit. Overall though, these are long-term listening phones, they're very comfortable once you settle into them. Because there's so much open space between the phones and your ears, and the velvet coverings, there's practically no chance that you'll get sweaty or sticky while wearing them. As remarked, there is no cloth covering on the drivers, and it is possible for your ears to contact the metal mesh on putting the phones on. It's not a huge comfort problem.
Sound: This is where it gets a bit complicated. The phones promise a range of 3hz - 100khz response. Now my first reaction, as well as your of course, is to laugh. Who knows the phones may respond at those levels, but I very much doubt that it plays any part in the sound.
Extreme trebles are airy but, despite the apparent presence of a super-tweeter, not as bright as a Grado for example. That's doubly surprising as there's nothing that could be occluding the sound - the metal mesh is all that sits between you and the drivers. Low trebles and mids are creamy-smooth and superb to listen to, and the bass is largely absent, due to the distance between the driver and your ears (the earpads space the drivers a fair distance away from your ears, and they aren't adjustable). You can hear the the phones do respond to a very low level as far as bass is concerned - it's just that within the normal listening experience, the bass is just not there.
The overall sound is never grating, very smooth, but ultimately gutless - a limitation of the physical design of the phone. The character of the sound is really surprising as a headphone marketed as a "DVD-Phone".
These phones do a great job of reproducing string instrument music. In many ways, I preferred the measured rendition of the FDA100 over the Grado SR225 for stringed music. But for something which I'm not going to wear outside, style is obviously not an issue. The phones are very pretty, but they are frankly not a patch on the Grado SR225 - and arguably, even the SR60 - as an all-purpose phone.
Next!
[size=xx-small](But at least this is a phone I can sell on at a profit...)[/size]
Looks: Need I say more - it is arguably the most stunning headphone on the market at this time. Here's a Pic.
Mechanics: The phones have a detachable cloth-covered cord with a unimatch plug at the end. The headband is a spring-loaded, velvet-covered affair and will probably adjust well to most heads. There is no fabric or cloth covering on the drivers - simply a metal mesh.
Comfort: The 'earpads' a 2-piece velvet-covered affair, with one piece going around the back of the ear and the other a sort of front outrigger covering a small area in front of the ear, is pretty comfortable. However the front earpad can rest on the jawbone and be a bit uncomfortable if you don't shift the headphones back a bit. Overall though, these are long-term listening phones, they're very comfortable once you settle into them. Because there's so much open space between the phones and your ears, and the velvet coverings, there's practically no chance that you'll get sweaty or sticky while wearing them. As remarked, there is no cloth covering on the drivers, and it is possible for your ears to contact the metal mesh on putting the phones on. It's not a huge comfort problem.
Sound: This is where it gets a bit complicated. The phones promise a range of 3hz - 100khz response. Now my first reaction, as well as your of course, is to laugh. Who knows the phones may respond at those levels, but I very much doubt that it plays any part in the sound.
Extreme trebles are airy but, despite the apparent presence of a super-tweeter, not as bright as a Grado for example. That's doubly surprising as there's nothing that could be occluding the sound - the metal mesh is all that sits between you and the drivers. Low trebles and mids are creamy-smooth and superb to listen to, and the bass is largely absent, due to the distance between the driver and your ears (the earpads space the drivers a fair distance away from your ears, and they aren't adjustable). You can hear the the phones do respond to a very low level as far as bass is concerned - it's just that within the normal listening experience, the bass is just not there.
The overall sound is never grating, very smooth, but ultimately gutless - a limitation of the physical design of the phone. The character of the sound is really surprising as a headphone marketed as a "DVD-Phone".
These phones do a great job of reproducing string instrument music. In many ways, I preferred the measured rendition of the FDA100 over the Grado SR225 for stringed music. But for something which I'm not going to wear outside, style is obviously not an issue. The phones are very pretty, but they are frankly not a patch on the Grado SR225 - and arguably, even the SR60 - as an all-purpose phone.
Next!
[size=xx-small](But at least this is a phone I can sell on at a profit...)[/size]
