Azla Azel Vs JPRiDE 1984 Freedom
Test track: Radiohead - Lotus Flower (because great bassline, and Thom's vocals naturally hit close to sibilance in this song making it a great test track).
With the 1984s - in the song intro, the bassline is loud and shows good presence with adequate oomph! The high end details with the claps, hi-hats, snares envelope the stage nicely and present themselves clearly with good detail. The
highs have an edge to them, and one wouldn't call these polite.
With the Azels, the entry bassline is equally loud, only i think these have a little more meat (not bloat), or rather the
bass in the Azels come across as a little thicker. As a result, the Azels have a warmer tone in comparison. The balanced
highs help achieve this tone in the Azels, whereas the 1984's forward
highs remove this warmth and give them a brighter overall tonality.
The hi-hats shimmer less with the Azels, with the edges smoothed out. The edgy treble does carry a little extra detail in the 1984s, which the Azel's decided to let go in favour of a more earthy presentation (final audio like).
The
mids are more convincing in the Azels. They sound fuller and i hear more mid-range detail as the focus is concentrated in this area. Contrarily, the
highs are where the 1984s seem to have their spotlight. They do put out more treble details to your face.
The vocal timbre and weight sound better in the warmer Azels than the relatively thinner, colder output of the 1984s. The ssssss and the shshshshs in the vocals are also easier to listen to with the Azels than the 1984s. Although i must say the 1984s are not really sibilant. They do play this song much better than some other sibilant earphones (e.g: ATH E70, Flare R2A).
Soundstage & Positioning:
The Azels have a more lateral presentation and greater stage width. The positioning equally good - maybe just slightly better than 1984s with the mid range instruments.
The 1984s have more height to the stage, the
highs play a little higher grabbing your attention, and the stage width is slightly narrower compared to Azel. The treble information can be easily picked out in the 1984s than the Azels.
Overall, i must say i prefer the tasteful
highs and the more
mid-focused presentation of the Azels.
The 1984s do throw a little extra detail and sound more exciting, but the mids do take a slight back seat in the picture.
Both are very competent earphones and are rightly priced.
The 1984s give you detachable MMCX cables, and extra treble detail!
Azels get you a nice carry case, with fuller mids and smoother highs!
@prawdziwysimone Choose what you will
