jetpacksam
100+ Head-Fier
With respect, they are not a proprietary cable at all:
Multiple Listings On Amazon
There is no notch or recess on them like the Audio Techicaa's somtimes have.
Last edited:
Shure AONIC 50 -
- Thread starter jetpacksam
- Start date
With respect, they are not a proprietary cable at all:
Multiple Listings On Amazon
There is no notch or recess on them like the Audio Techicaa's somtimes have.
D00M
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2008
- Posts
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- 199
This is going to be long:
Summary: I’m going to return Aonic 50 due to the glitch issue (pause in sound for fraction of second). I was at a loss whether this is design issue or particular unit issue. But I don’t plan to get replacement. My search continues. I think I might go for wired headphone. Or I might get AONIC 50 version 2 if that comes out in the future. I don’t need wireless; I already have Apple AirPods, AirPods Pro. I don’t need ANC, as I have Shure SE420 IEM for airplane travel.
Sound Glitch
I reported previously about the glitch that I encountered. I now believe it has to do with multipoint paring. But it still can occur if I’m only connected to 1 device (but have being paired to multiple devices).
The occurrence rate varies. On some days, no issue for hours. Then there are other times, glitch occurs every couple minutes, to around 3-4 times every hour.
This was the worst instance. I am connected to 2 devices (MacBook Pro and iPhone Xs Max). I was be listening music on device 1, then I hear the glitch. I noticed there were text messages on my iPhone. But the glitches do not exactly match the notification on iPhone. But I continue to get the glitch every minute or so. So I on the 2nd device (iPhone), I started to play music. Now the glitch became continuous jumbled noise. So this suggests the glitch is due to multipoint pairing. And sound from 2nd device is somehow causing conflict.
Then this other case should not have any issue with multi pairing. I’m outside at park with only 1 device, my iPhone. I don’t have any other device with me. And no one else is within at least 100 feet. So there should not be any multipoint pairing or or any bluetooth interference. And the glitch still occurred, around 4-5 times over 1.5 hour period. And I turned off/on the headphone, but that did not fix the issue.
I have used ShurePlus Play app to Clear Paired Device List and Restore Default Settings. But after I pair multiple devices, the issue still exists.
I tried to pair to 1 device only (and only 1), after Clear Paired Device List. I tried this for 5 hours and seems OK. It is not long enough to say this definitely is the solution. However, to me, this is not usable. I have 1 iPhone, 2 MacBook Pros, 2 iPads. There is no way I want to Clear Paired Device List or Restore Default Settings every time I change device.
And the interesting thing is that I got Sony WH-H910N h.ear on 3 right before this. It also had weird glitch issue. On Sony, the glitch is worse. When it happens, the sound can be distorted going forward (like sound from seconds ago gets mixed in with current sound). At the time, I thought it had to do with bluetooth interference. It didn’t matter, as I was going to return the Sony anyways because the SQ sux.
Both Sony h.ear 3 and A50 have exactly the same multipoint pairing feature. Both can be connected to 2 devices at same time; sound can be played from only 1 device at a time. And both can remember up to 8 last devices. I wonder if they both use the same 3rd party chip, and thus the issue occurred on both of these headphones.
I don’t really care for multipoint pairing. I wish this feature doesn’t exist.
With similar issue on 2 different brand/models, it’s possible the issue is on the source side. However, even with only 1 paired device within range, A50 still had the glitch. And I also have 5 different sources, and issue occurred on all of them. In any case, doesn’t matter if root cause Operating System, bluetooth protocol, headphone issue, or whatever, this issue is a show stopper for me.
Sound Quality
I have Aonic 50 for 1 week. I like it, 95% of time. There is that 5% of time listening to certain music that I wish it has more oomph!
My old headphone is Audio-Technica ATH-A700. So that is my main comparison. My other listen devices are earphones (AirPods, AirPods Pro, Shure SE420); so not comparable between earphone and headphone.
A50 is definitely flatter than A700. Mids are good and vocals/voices sound great, which is a great improvement over A700. A700 has V-shape response: OK bass, weak mid, strong high; vocals sound thin on A700. I really like A50 for the vocals. And A50 sounds great for larger variety of music.
A50 is clear and can hear all the instruments, just like A700. However, the instruments that stands out differ between A50 and A700. On A700, because of the high emphasis, cymbals stand out. Sometimes this sounds more exciting. But then in other music, A700 sounds off because mid is weak.
Surprisingly A50 sound stage is not as wide as A700. A700 feels and sounds very airy. But after comparing A50, A700 sound stage seems a bit artificial, because vocals and some instruments sound like they are from back of the room (too far back). A50 soundstage just sound more realistic and also more enjoyable.
This part is a bit hard to describe. Sometimes, after listening A50 for couple hours, then certain rock song comes up, I feel the sound is too flat. This is especially true when volume is low. I have to crank up the volume and the music sounds better. Then when I do A/B comparison between A50 and A700 on the song that I thought A50 was flat, A50 still sounds better. I think I get used to that A50 sound and need some change or comparison to kind of realize or appreciate the sound quality.
Analog cable without power
Volume is lower without power. Sounds good, but it doesn’t sound as good as with power on; very close though. Hard to tell or describe of the difference. I guess that is how close the SQ is without power. This was huge difference compared to Sony h.ear on 3, which sounded ridiculously bad without power, like AM radio.
Comfort
A50 ear cups are smaller than I expected. I wish they are larger, particular more depth. My ears do touch the lining covering the drivers.
I have used the headphones for 2-3 hours at a time. Although it is not uncomfortable, once I take the headphones off, I do feel relaxed and the pressure around my ears is released. So it is definitely not as roomy or as comfortable as A700. Audio Technica has this weird wings that go over the head. But that is not the main factor; it’s the very large ear cups that really make it comfortable.
Also, A50 is quite hot and sweaty.
Noise Cancellation
I have Shure SE420 in-ear monitor passive noise cancellation for travel and plane rides. So ANC is not important to me. I briefly tested this. ANC has 2 settings (Normal and Max) that can be controlled from ShurePlus Play app.
Normal ANC: I don’t hear much difference in SQ between ANC on Normal setting vs off, which is good. But the ANC effect is also quite minimal. There is a bigger difference from no headphones to to passive isolation (headphone on with ANC off), than from passive isolation to ANC on Normal.
Max ANC: When ANC is turned to Max, then I do hear more noise reduction kicking in. Sony WH-H910N h.ear has more effective ANC. On A50, there is noticeable reduction in volume, there is a background hiss, and there is some cabin pressure. Hard to tell if SQ is different except the volume difference.
Blue light
When the unit is on, the blue light flashes. At first I though this will be annoying, but it is actually useful. Because I often just take off the headphones and put my desk without turn it off. Then when I see the lights, that prompts me to turn off the unit.
Negative
Headphone has very strong plastic or rubber VOC outgassing and smell. Man, when I first open the package, it smelled like it was painted just hours ago. And that smell lingered for days. Even after 1 week, it still smells. And the worse culprit is the interior of the case. Shure should change this for consumer health and the environment.
And the deal breaker for me is the sound glitch mentioned above.
Summary: I’m going to return Aonic 50 due to the glitch issue (pause in sound for fraction of second). I was at a loss whether this is design issue or particular unit issue. But I don’t plan to get replacement. My search continues. I think I might go for wired headphone. Or I might get AONIC 50 version 2 if that comes out in the future. I don’t need wireless; I already have Apple AirPods, AirPods Pro. I don’t need ANC, as I have Shure SE420 IEM for airplane travel.
Sound Glitch
I reported previously about the glitch that I encountered. I now believe it has to do with multipoint paring. But it still can occur if I’m only connected to 1 device (but have being paired to multiple devices).
The occurrence rate varies. On some days, no issue for hours. Then there are other times, glitch occurs every couple minutes, to around 3-4 times every hour.
This was the worst instance. I am connected to 2 devices (MacBook Pro and iPhone Xs Max). I was be listening music on device 1, then I hear the glitch. I noticed there were text messages on my iPhone. But the glitches do not exactly match the notification on iPhone. But I continue to get the glitch every minute or so. So I on the 2nd device (iPhone), I started to play music. Now the glitch became continuous jumbled noise. So this suggests the glitch is due to multipoint pairing. And sound from 2nd device is somehow causing conflict.
Then this other case should not have any issue with multi pairing. I’m outside at park with only 1 device, my iPhone. I don’t have any other device with me. And no one else is within at least 100 feet. So there should not be any multipoint pairing or or any bluetooth interference. And the glitch still occurred, around 4-5 times over 1.5 hour period. And I turned off/on the headphone, but that did not fix the issue.
I have used ShurePlus Play app to Clear Paired Device List and Restore Default Settings. But after I pair multiple devices, the issue still exists.
I tried to pair to 1 device only (and only 1), after Clear Paired Device List. I tried this for 5 hours and seems OK. It is not long enough to say this definitely is the solution. However, to me, this is not usable. I have 1 iPhone, 2 MacBook Pros, 2 iPads. There is no way I want to Clear Paired Device List or Restore Default Settings every time I change device.
And the interesting thing is that I got Sony WH-H910N h.ear on 3 right before this. It also had weird glitch issue. On Sony, the glitch is worse. When it happens, the sound can be distorted going forward (like sound from seconds ago gets mixed in with current sound). At the time, I thought it had to do with bluetooth interference. It didn’t matter, as I was going to return the Sony anyways because the SQ sux.
Both Sony h.ear 3 and A50 have exactly the same multipoint pairing feature. Both can be connected to 2 devices at same time; sound can be played from only 1 device at a time. And both can remember up to 8 last devices. I wonder if they both use the same 3rd party chip, and thus the issue occurred on both of these headphones.
I don’t really care for multipoint pairing. I wish this feature doesn’t exist.
With similar issue on 2 different brand/models, it’s possible the issue is on the source side. However, even with only 1 paired device within range, A50 still had the glitch. And I also have 5 different sources, and issue occurred on all of them. In any case, doesn’t matter if root cause Operating System, bluetooth protocol, headphone issue, or whatever, this issue is a show stopper for me.
Sound Quality
I have Aonic 50 for 1 week. I like it, 95% of time. There is that 5% of time listening to certain music that I wish it has more oomph!
My old headphone is Audio-Technica ATH-A700. So that is my main comparison. My other listen devices are earphones (AirPods, AirPods Pro, Shure SE420); so not comparable between earphone and headphone.
A50 is definitely flatter than A700. Mids are good and vocals/voices sound great, which is a great improvement over A700. A700 has V-shape response: OK bass, weak mid, strong high; vocals sound thin on A700. I really like A50 for the vocals. And A50 sounds great for larger variety of music.
A50 is clear and can hear all the instruments, just like A700. However, the instruments that stands out differ between A50 and A700. On A700, because of the high emphasis, cymbals stand out. Sometimes this sounds more exciting. But then in other music, A700 sounds off because mid is weak.
Surprisingly A50 sound stage is not as wide as A700. A700 feels and sounds very airy. But after comparing A50, A700 sound stage seems a bit artificial, because vocals and some instruments sound like they are from back of the room (too far back). A50 soundstage just sound more realistic and also more enjoyable.
This part is a bit hard to describe. Sometimes, after listening A50 for couple hours, then certain rock song comes up, I feel the sound is too flat. This is especially true when volume is low. I have to crank up the volume and the music sounds better. Then when I do A/B comparison between A50 and A700 on the song that I thought A50 was flat, A50 still sounds better. I think I get used to that A50 sound and need some change or comparison to kind of realize or appreciate the sound quality.
Analog cable without power
Volume is lower without power. Sounds good, but it doesn’t sound as good as with power on; very close though. Hard to tell or describe of the difference. I guess that is how close the SQ is without power. This was huge difference compared to Sony h.ear on 3, which sounded ridiculously bad without power, like AM radio.
Comfort
A50 ear cups are smaller than I expected. I wish they are larger, particular more depth. My ears do touch the lining covering the drivers.
I have used the headphones for 2-3 hours at a time. Although it is not uncomfortable, once I take the headphones off, I do feel relaxed and the pressure around my ears is released. So it is definitely not as roomy or as comfortable as A700. Audio Technica has this weird wings that go over the head. But that is not the main factor; it’s the very large ear cups that really make it comfortable.
Also, A50 is quite hot and sweaty.
Noise Cancellation
I have Shure SE420 in-ear monitor passive noise cancellation for travel and plane rides. So ANC is not important to me. I briefly tested this. ANC has 2 settings (Normal and Max) that can be controlled from ShurePlus Play app.
Normal ANC: I don’t hear much difference in SQ between ANC on Normal setting vs off, which is good. But the ANC effect is also quite minimal. There is a bigger difference from no headphones to to passive isolation (headphone on with ANC off), than from passive isolation to ANC on Normal.
Max ANC: When ANC is turned to Max, then I do hear more noise reduction kicking in. Sony WH-H910N h.ear has more effective ANC. On A50, there is noticeable reduction in volume, there is a background hiss, and there is some cabin pressure. Hard to tell if SQ is different except the volume difference.
Blue light
When the unit is on, the blue light flashes. At first I though this will be annoying, but it is actually useful. Because I often just take off the headphones and put my desk without turn it off. Then when I see the lights, that prompts me to turn off the unit.
Negative
Headphone has very strong plastic or rubber VOC outgassing and smell. Man, when I first open the package, it smelled like it was painted just hours ago. And that smell lingered for days. Even after 1 week, it still smells. And the worse culprit is the interior of the case. Shure should change this for consumer health and the environment.
And the deal breaker for me is the sound glitch mentioned above.
Last edited:
angelom
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
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I don't have glitch problem you're experiencing. Sometimes I hearing small quickly pause when I connect with sa50 but this isn't repeating again after that moment. I'm connected with 2 devices always (iPhone and macbook pro). Sometimes if I changing device, I hear quick pause initially, but isn't repeating this pause again after this.
So, I think your sa50 is defective.
plakat
Headphoneus Supremus
@JimmyK Neither do I experience glitches like you described. I use my A50 paired to an iPhone, but not paired to any other devices. There are still many devices using Bluetooth nearby. My iPhone is mostly muted (the sideswitch) though, you might want to try that as one last thing if you would like to keep it were it not for those glitches.
Hello,
I just received my Shure Aonic 50. I am very satisfied for the moment. However, when I adjust the volume, the sound cuts automatically when the volume is less than 7%. Do you have the same problem ?
I just received my Shure Aonic 50. I am very satisfied for the moment. However, when I adjust the volume, the sound cuts automatically when the volume is less than 7%. Do you have the same problem ?
angelom
Headphoneus Supremus
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Maybe is helping for this problem if you put the sounds and the prompts off in the shure app.
Thanks for your answer. Unfortunately, even if I delete Shure app (IPhone version), I still have the same problem.
D00M
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
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Good to know you have iPhone and MBP with multipoint pairing, and doesn't have this problem. So very likely my copy is defective. I already shipped the unit back to retailer.
I just ordered Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro. It is only $150, so easier on the wallet. I suspect DT 770 will be more comfortable, with larger ear pads. Not exactly sure how is the sound between DT 770 vs Aonic 50. Does anyone have both of these and compared?
First of all, good news. The Shure App (for Android) doesn't need the location permission anymore.
I also figured out how to work around the weird higher piano notes audio problem. At least for me it only seems to occur when playing at 96kHz (LDAC). Virtually any other combination isn't a problem at all.
EDIT: It's still painful since switching the headphones off and on again it either defaults to SBC (with LDAC disabled in the Bluetooth settings of the headphones) or to LDAC 96kHz (with LDAC enabled). And changes have to be done deep inside the developer options each time. If anyone knows a way to default LDAC to like 88.2kHz I would love to know how to.
@ Shure: Please still fix that. Most people will give a crap about tinkering and return the headphones, which would be too bad because they're awesome.
I also figured out how to work around the weird higher piano notes audio problem. At least for me it only seems to occur when playing at 96kHz (LDAC). Virtually any other combination isn't a problem at all.
EDIT: It's still painful since switching the headphones off and on again it either defaults to SBC (with LDAC disabled in the Bluetooth settings of the headphones) or to LDAC 96kHz (with LDAC enabled). And changes have to be done deep inside the developer options each time. If anyone knows a way to default LDAC to like 88.2kHz I would love to know how to.
@ Shure: Please still fix that. Most people will give a crap about tinkering and return the headphones, which would be too bad because they're awesome.
Would love to hear those compared too.
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plakat
Headphoneus Supremus
I own several variants of the DT770 (80ohm, 32ohm, 16ohm), of which the 80ohm has the most fun bass representation, while the others are more linear. I don't have them on hand since I'm not at home, so please don't expect much details. Overall I'd say that the DT770 follows a more U-shaped curve, with the A50 being more linear, move lively, more immediate, while the DT770 feels more distanced, but sounds wider. It has a peak somewhere around 7-8kHz that some find not to their taste.
The cups of the DT770 are wider, but I'd say they are not deeper. Yet the DT770 is a really comfortable headphone, the only downside being the 3m fixed cable (depends a bit on the variant, my 32ohm has a 1,2m cable). The DT770 has already shown that it works for a long time, with spare parts readily available. I hope Shure shows the same support for the A50, but given Shures rather slow approach to headphones (see SE846) I'd fully expect the A50 to be usable for years to come.
Received an answer from the Shure support, that they're aware of the "LDAC sound problem" and are currently developing/testing a firmware update to solve that problem. While there is no release date for that yet, that's good news and since this is my first Shure product, I'm quite impressed with the support already.
pilgrimbilly
100+ Head-Fier
I've been trying to reproduce your problem without "success". Tried many genres and it all sounds fine to me.
Did Shure say whether it is all units, or just some?
They didn't mention that. But from what I heard from other people my guess is, that it's only for Android playing via LDAC and 96kHz sample rate (LDAC default).
Good to hear, that there was no success for you xd.
You can use this one to test. At about 3min it's pretty horrible. Way more distortion than on my CD flac file (of the same piece).
pilgrimbilly
100+ Head-Fier
Will try it later. I know the piece well. My ex - although in all other ways a witch - was a wonderful pianist and a Chopin freak....
evhvis
100+ Head-Fier
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Had mine for close to a week now and really like them so far. They are the first ANC headphones which I would say sound good in general, not just good for "ANC headphone". The sound signature feels close to neutral and they are a very enjoyable listen. The treble is slightly on the polite side when run lossless over USB or higher bitrate codes, but they also highlight the shortcomings of AAC and SBC. The soundstage is precise and is decently sized to the point where they avoid the "in your head" soundstage that plagues the Sennheiser HD650 etc. but it is not as large as from the Shure SRH-1540. They do sound a bit better powered than passive, regardless of the amp on the other side, but the passive mode still sounds quite good. When run in completely passive mode I would probably expect them to match headphones at half the price. This improves a bit when turning the amp on, but I am still unsure if I would consider them a good buy at 400USD as a wired pair with the amp on. I would definitely consider getting them as a wireless headphone though, even if they didn't have ANC at the initial price.
The horizontal hinges are quite stiff and must be turned after putting them on the head to get a good seal, while the vertical ones turn quite freely. Theser are huge ANC headphones which do not fold so the carrying case is huge. Most of the time this is only a minor drawback but there will be situations where I will bring something smaller like in-ears or the wh-1000xm3s. The ANC is decent and will beat out most in-ears (a notch or two above my SE-846), but is not at a point where it will make the Sony wh-1000xm3 sweat. I have only been able to try them around traffic, but not on a buss or a plane yet. From the initial tests I do believe it will give decent attenuation, but it will not be able to completely drown out external noise like the Sony wh-1000xm3 do. I can notice the surroundings more with the aonic 50, even when in max noise cancelling mode but I do expect it to be enough for them to work fairly well on a bus or train. For a flight I would most likely reach for the Sonys, especially if I only bring a carry-on.
They leak quite a bit of sound so one might have to be careful with the volume in an office environment. Not really an issue at the moment as most are in the home office now, but do keep this in mind if buying them for office use.
I mainly use a sony nw-a45 with my headphones and LDAC works well outside of the first 15 second or so. During the inital pairing there are some artifacts and for a short while afterwards there are som glitches and artifacts, after that it is stable and without artifacts. Haven't had a lot of opportunities to test it in a crowded areas due corona, but LDAC on high quality is generally a lot more susceptible to interference than lower bitrate codecs. I got the sony player because apple refuses to support anything outside of AAC and SBC. Across multiple headphones my listening limit over AAC or SBC has never surpassed 2-3 hours before I need a long break, while I can listen all day over LDAC or aptx-HD. It also saves my phone battery for more important stuff.
One interesting thing is that these are the first headphones I've been able to run from the lightning to USB3 camera adapter on my iphone, allowing for use as a DAC without the AAC limitations from apple's bluetooth implementation.
Overall my initial feeling is that these are the ANC headphones I have been wanting for a long time. They are meant to be my office and commuting headphones so I am a bit worried about the sound leakage, but otherwise I am very happy with mine.
The horizontal hinges are quite stiff and must be turned after putting them on the head to get a good seal, while the vertical ones turn quite freely. Theser are huge ANC headphones which do not fold so the carrying case is huge. Most of the time this is only a minor drawback but there will be situations where I will bring something smaller like in-ears or the wh-1000xm3s. The ANC is decent and will beat out most in-ears (a notch or two above my SE-846), but is not at a point where it will make the Sony wh-1000xm3 sweat. I have only been able to try them around traffic, but not on a buss or a plane yet. From the initial tests I do believe it will give decent attenuation, but it will not be able to completely drown out external noise like the Sony wh-1000xm3 do. I can notice the surroundings more with the aonic 50, even when in max noise cancelling mode but I do expect it to be enough for them to work fairly well on a bus or train. For a flight I would most likely reach for the Sonys, especially if I only bring a carry-on.
They leak quite a bit of sound so one might have to be careful with the volume in an office environment. Not really an issue at the moment as most are in the home office now, but do keep this in mind if buying them for office use.
I mainly use a sony nw-a45 with my headphones and LDAC works well outside of the first 15 second or so. During the inital pairing there are some artifacts and for a short while afterwards there are som glitches and artifacts, after that it is stable and without artifacts. Haven't had a lot of opportunities to test it in a crowded areas due corona, but LDAC on high quality is generally a lot more susceptible to interference than lower bitrate codecs. I got the sony player because apple refuses to support anything outside of AAC and SBC. Across multiple headphones my listening limit over AAC or SBC has never surpassed 2-3 hours before I need a long break, while I can listen all day over LDAC or aptx-HD. It also saves my phone battery for more important stuff.
One interesting thing is that these are the first headphones I've been able to run from the lightning to USB3 camera adapter on my iphone, allowing for use as a DAC without the AAC limitations from apple's bluetooth implementation.
Overall my initial feeling is that these are the ANC headphones I have been wanting for a long time. They are meant to be my office and commuting headphones so I am a bit worried about the sound leakage, but otherwise I am very happy with mine.
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