[ObsidianGT]

  really mk2 are rare in the US, I thought companies ship there first (top consumer market) compared to Asia (excluding China).

It makes no sense to me either. I have a pair coming from Japan via an Amazon US marketplace vendor but I'd still be interested to know of any reputable source for MK2's in the US.

 

[AUDIOBREEDER]

MK2 haven't been released here in the US. Not sure if it will but I see a number of used pairs selling on eBay (probably imported) with the A1 releasing soon I highly doubt MK2 will be the daylight.

It makes no sense to me either. I have a pair coming from Japan via an Amazon US marketplace vendor but I'd still be interested to know of any reputable source for MK2's in the US.

 

[ObsidianGT]

MK2 haven't been released here in the US. Not sure if it will but I see a number of used pairs selling on eBay (probably imported) with the A1 releasing soon I highly doubt MK2 will be the daylight.

While it's true that the 1A and 1ADAC are right around the corner, I don't think either of those is a direct replacement for the 1RBTMK2 because neither of them support Bluetooth. The closest I could come up with is the new MDR-XB950BT/B (AKA "Extra Bass" lol?), but even it seems to come up short. It's half the price and just judging from specs it doesn't seem to measure up:
 
MDR-1RBTMK2: http://www.sony-asia.com/product/mdr-1rbtmk2
 
MDR-XB950BT/B: http://store.sony.com/extra-bass-bluetooth-headset-zid27-MDRXB950BT/B/cat-27-catid-collections-ifa
 
Unless I missed something from IFA? Or perhaps a "MDR-1ABT" is in the works?

 

[wigglepuff]

1a/1b are upgrades for the 1r series using the al coated driver and balanced cable options. they will probably release a bt version later i guess.

 

[Smugsie]

Hey guys, just came back to say that these headphones are now in my "purchases I did not regret list"

Thanks to FiiO's beta firmware v3.2 for the FiiO X3. The sound signature on the X3 became a bit brighter, neutral mids and tight bass balanced out the 1R's. Making them sound somewhat like my beloved ATH-A900X

Unfortunately, it seems I still dislike the Beyerdynamic COP's =\

 

[wigglepuff]

  Hey guys, just came back to say that these headphones are now in my "purchases I did not regret list"

Thanks to FiiO's beta firmware v3.2 for the FiiO X3. The sound signature on the X3 became a bit brighter, neutral mids and tight bass balanced out the 1R's. Making them sound somewhat like my beloved ATH-A900X

Unfortunately, it seems I still dislike the Beyerdynamic COP's =\

err wrong post???

 

[Smugsie]

 
err wrong post???

No
I came back to say I like the MDR-1R's now thanks to my source sounding a bit brighter =]

 

[skingg]

I recently purchased this:
 
http://www.sanwa.co.jp/product/syohin.asp?code=MM-BTUD43
 
As listed, it supports pretty much every profile listed there. But after getting it to work and connected to the MDR-1RBTMK2 (A2DP sink service) on Windows 8.1, I get really crappy stereo over the connection. I tried pairing the headphone to my Galaxy S3 and it works flawlessly (great audio). Am I doing something wrong?

 

[ObsidianGT]

  I recently purchased this:
 
http://www.sanwa.co.jp/product/syohin.asp?code=MM-BTUD43
 
As listed, it supports pretty much every profile listed there. But after getting it to work and connected to the MDR-1RBTMK2 (A2DP sink service) on Windows 8.1, I get really crappy stereo over the connection. I tried pairing the headphone to my Galaxy S3 and it works flawlessly (great audio). Am I doing something wrong?

You're probably hooked up to your PC as a headset (HSP profile) instead of a headphone profile (A2DP). You can probably adjust this within the Bluetooth settings.
 
Once it's set to headphone (A2DP), you should be able to further select which codec to use under the A2DP profile; SBC (regular audio) or AptX (high quality audio).
 
Good luck.

 

[jconde]

So you can confirm that it has aptx? If so, does it really improve sound?

 

[skingg]

  You're probably hooked up to your PC as a headset (HSP profile) instead of a headphone profile (A2DP). You can probably adjust this within the Bluetooth settings.
 
Once it's set to headphone (A2DP), you should be able to further select which codec to use under the A2DP profile; SBC (regular audio) or AptX (high quality audio).
 
Good luck.

I was connected to A2DP (it says A2DP sink) and right clicking on it I only have the option to "Connect' or "Disconnect'. I've also looked into the Bluetooth settings and checked every option there is but there was no codec selection. Is there a proper way to pair the bluetooth headphones on Windows 8 without it turning into a headset profile? I've tried searching for steps on how to setup the Azio micro usb bluetooth adapter (which also supports Apt-x) but to no avail.

 

[ravdo]

  I was connected to A2DP (it says A2DP sink) and right clicking on it I only have the option to "Connect' or "Disconnect'. I've also looked into the Bluetooth settings and checked every option there is but there was no codec selection. Is there a proper way to pair the bluetooth headphones on Windows 8 without it turning into a headset profile? I've tried searching for steps on how to setup the Azio micro usb bluetooth adapter (which also supports Apt-x) but to no avail.

Go to your bluetooth device.  If there's a Handsfree Profile there, disconnect it.
I'm using Windows 7 64 bit though, not sure if Windows 8 has that settings or not.

 

[ObsidianGT]

  I was connected to A2DP (it says A2DP sink) and right clicking on it I only have the option to "Connect' or "Disconnect'. I've also looked into the Bluetooth settings and checked every option there is but there was no codec selection. Is there a proper way to pair the bluetooth headphones on Windows 8 without it turning into a headset profile? I've tried searching for steps on how to setup the Azio micro usb bluetooth adapter (which also supports Apt-x) but to no avail.

Going back to your prior post, maybe I should have asked you to clarify what "really crappy stereo" sounds like to you, since it's a subjective topic. For some reason in my mind I thought of phone call hold music, because that's what the headset profile sounds like. A2DP with the default SBC should sound like a 128 kbps MP3, or thereabouts.
 
As for your setup, Bluetooth settings are very limited when using the default Windows drivers, but there should be checkmarks for the profiles currently in use by a device.
 
More importantly, while Bluetooth has native Windows support, I don't believe AptX does. I believe you must install CSR's software that came with your Bluetooth adapter to even get AptX working. Installing the software might automatically fix the problem just because AptX will then be automatically enabled (similar to how your Galaxy S3 went straight to AptX).

 

[skingg]

 
Go to your bluetooth device.  If there's a Handsfree Profile there, disconnect it.
I'm using Windows 7 64 bit though, not sure if Windows 8 has that settings or not.

 
Thank you!! Apparently this was the culprit all along! There is also an AVCRP target profile for me to connect to although I do not know what it does as when I try connecting to it, I got no audio.
 

  Going back to your prior post, maybe I should have asked you to clarify what "really crappy stereo" sounds like to you, since it's a subjective topic. For some reason in my mind I thought of phone call hold music, because that's what the headset profile sounds like. A2DP with the default SBC should sound like a 128 kbps MP3, or thereabouts.
 
As for your setup, Bluetooth settings are very limited when using the default Windows drivers, but there should be checkmarks for the profiles currently in use by a device.
 
More importantly, while Bluetooth has native Windows support, I don't believe AptX does. I believe you must install CSR's software that came with your Bluetooth adapter to even get AptX working. Installing the software might automatically fix the problem just because AptX will then be automatically enabled (similar to how your Galaxy S3 went straight to AptX).

 
When I said crappy stereo it kinda sounds like well, handsfree audio and that smartphone earbuds sounded better than the MDR-1RBTMK2!
 
In any case, I've solved the issue and it sounded as good as if it was connected to a smartphone now, although I did a fresh re-install of the CSR software that came with it. 
 
One quick question, it seems after I connect the bluetooth adapter and after using it I would like to safely remove the device but I can't seem to find any "Safely Remove Device'" at the notification bar. Do you guys just unplug it from the USB port after disconnecting the connection with your headphones?
 
Again, thank you guys so much.

 

[ravdo]

   
Thank you!! Apparently this was the culprit all along! There is also an AVCRP target profile for me to connect to although I do not know what it does as when I try connecting to it, I got no audio.
 
 
When I said crappy stereo it kinda sounds like well, handsfree audio and that smartphone earbuds sounded better than the MDR-1RBTMK2!
 
In any case, I've solved the issue and it sounded as good as if it was connected to a smartphone now, although I did a fresh re-install of the CSR software that came with it. 
 
One quick question, it seems after I connect the bluetooth adapter and after using it I would like to safely remove the device but I can't seem to find any "Safely Remove Device'" at the notification bar. Do you guys just unplug it from the USB port after disconnecting the connection with your headphones?
 
Again, thank you guys so much.

I never unplugged my Bluetooth dongle, lol.
All I do just turn the Bluetooth Radio off.
 
You can just unplug it (no need to "safely remove device") if you want, though