givemeyourshoes
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Aug 16, 2010
- Posts
- 25
- Likes
- 21
Introduction:
Up until recently, I always considered myself an IEM kind of guy. I prefer their low sensitivity, portability, fit, and isolation. In February of 2015, I received the Brainwave HM5 as a gift for my birthday. My experience with circumaural headphones was pretty limited. I had owed a pair of Sony MDR-V700 headphone previous, and I have a feeling they are a big reason I always preferred IEMs. The Sony’s were always so painful to wear after just a few minutes, and the sound they output was most displeasing to my ears (read: bass head material)
The HM5 was much more to my liking. It was comfortable, had a lovely neutral sound, and does a great job at reproducing fine detail. Not to mention, the comfort is outstanding Overall, I was pretty happy with them. However, the sound signature is just too bass light and thin sounding for me. I typically prefer a slightly warmer, thicker sound signature. Not to long after acquiring the HM5, I picked up the AKG K7XX off MassDrop and fell in love with open headphones. But, I still wanted a different sealed headphone to use at work, or on the couch while the wife is watching TV. I lurked r/headphones a lot, I read a ton of reviews over at Head-Fi.org, and I kept up with the content on Innerfidelity. In my search for another set of cans, I narrowed down my options to the Oppo PM-3, the NAD VISO HP50, and the Sennheiser Momentum 2. When the price of the HP50 dropped to $249.99 on Amazon, I pulled the trigger. I figured worst case scenario, I can send them back for a refund and try one of the other models (despite living in a larger city, Portland, OR, I was unable to locate retailer(s) that had any of these items in stock).
The HP50 arrived two days later (thanks Prime!). I was a bit fearful, as the box was pretty heavily damaged in the lower right corner, and the plastic view window under the flap was cracked and missing a section. However, there was no physical damage to the headphones, and fortunately, they function perfectly. After opening the box and inspecting the contents, overall I am happy with the accessories provided. The HP50 comes with a shorter, flat cable, with Apple compatible volume contracts, and an answer/end/play/pause button that works with both Apple and Android devices. It comes with a slightly longer flat cable without the remote, presumably for home/office use. I do wish the cables were a bit more “relaxed” because out of the box, they retained some of the kinks from being packaged up. The standard quarter inch and airline adapters are included as well. The HP50 comes with a nice quilted lined soft-shell zipper case, and a bucket to keep the accessories and cables in.
Build Quality and Comfort:
The overall build quality of the VISO HP50 is solid. It’s not perfect, and I would absolutely prefer that NAD switch out the piano black finish to a soft touch material (it’s such a finger print magnet). But overall, the fit and finish is solid. The adjustment mechanism has a nice positive feedback, clicks into place and stays there, and is easily adjusted while wearing the headphones. The headband is nice and cushioned, and seems to be an all metal construction. The ear cups are plastic, with very nicely padded memory foam pads, all be it, they are a bit shallow. And, the cable entry is single sided, but can input into either side, per your preference. One nit to pic here, I would like to see an included plug to cap off the side not being used at that time, to prevent dust or damage to the cable entry port.
When it comes to comfort, the VISO HP50 seems to be very hit or miss. After reading and watching as many reviews on the headphones as I could, it seems that people either love the HP50 or hate it when it comes to fit and comfort. Luckily for me, I fall into the love it camp. My head is on the smaller side, round in shape, and I have small-ish ears. I personally find the HP50 to be superbly comfortable. The clamp is moderate, and even with thick plastic glasses frames, I never seem to get any pain or aches from the ear cups. That said, my ears do touch the inside of the cups, but it’s never an issue for me. For those who have larger ears, or for those that really can’t sand to have your ears touching, this is certainly not the best headphone for you. The padding on the headband is more than sufficient, and I never find that it causes any hotspots on the top of my head. The only real issue ever present, is the same one I have with my HM5, and that is simply that my ears get warm and/or sweaty during longer listening sessions. I have found that if I am up and moving around, I need to give my ears a breather after an hour and half or so. If I am sitting at my desk, or just relaxing, I can manage two hours or so before I need a break. After a just a couple of minutes or so (long enough to get a beer, or hit the bathroom), I am fine to listen again. As with most any closed headphone, the seal of the HP50 really determines how good the sound quality (especially in the low end) will be. Again, with a smaller ear, and small-ish head, I had no issues getting and maintaining a good seal with the ear cups. YMMV though.
Sound:
When it comes to sound quality, I found what I wanted. Overall the sound signature comes off as just a bit on the warm side, but does not venture very far from neutral. The bass is very clean, and nice and tight. The bass extends nice and low, and never seems to get boomy or muddy. Most importantly for me, I never find myself reaching for the 4db bass boost switch when using the HP50 with the FiiO E12a. The bass on the HP50 is solid, and every so slight boosted. I never find that it bleeds over to the lower midrange, and it never impedes other parts of the sound register. There is not enough low end for those who identify as a bass head, but for everyone else, disappointment will not be had.
The midrange on the HP50 is every so sweet sounding. The entire midrange is very tonally balanced. The upper midrange (read: female vocals) are ever so slightly elevated, and it really makes the music feel more lively. Vocals in general feel a bit more forward in the mix. I have zero complaints when it comes to the midrange.
The upper registers of the sound spectrum are reproduced in a fairly polite manner. The VISO HP50, to me, seems to have a slightly rolled off treble. My ears don’t detect much of a spike in the 3k to 5k region. I don’t think anyone would describe the treble on these cans as harsh. It’s very present, but softer and easy to cope with. Personally, I am treble sensitive, so to me, this is the best case scenario. There is still plenty of treble to make music feel lively, however. Some may desire a bit more shimmer or sparkle in the high end, but the HP50 has enough treble presence to sound amazing.
When it comes to detail and resolve, the HP50 nails it. These closed cans showcase the fine details in recordings, and I would envision having to spend twice the price or more for a set of headphones that does better. The reason I love IEMs so much, is that I have found I get a ton of detail of out music when using multi-driver balanced armature IEMs such as the Westone UM3X or the UE Triple.Fi 10. The detail presented in the VISP HP50 is on par with those and others such as the Phonak PEF-012. Two of my favorite albums to listen to when critically listening for the presence of detail are ZABA by Glass Animals, and Sound and Color by Alabama Shakes. Compared to higher end IEMs, I found the VISO HP50 to be very much in the same realm.
The soundstage of the HP50 is a bit intimate. Having the AKG K7XX, I had gotten used to a very open and airy soundstage. The HP50’s soundstage is certainly dismissed compared to the K7XX, but to be honest, that isn’t really a fair comparison. For a closed back headphone, I was surprised at just how good the soundstage on the HP50 really is. Narrow it is not. I can certainly pinpoint where instruments are located in the mix, and the left/right separation is very defined. And while I am at it, the dynamic range of the headphones is lovely. I find that I can hear sounds lower in the mix still, even when other sounds are much louder.
Thanks to the 32Ohm impedance, and a 106db at 1mw sensitive, these headphones are very, I repeat, very easy to drive. I had no issues driving these out of my LGG3. The G3 struggles to drive some of my IEMs, such as the Phonak PFE-012 and UE Triple.Fi 10, but the HP50 has headroom to spare. Running these headphones direct out of my iPad Air 2 and MacBook Air is never an issue either. I find I need just over half volume to get a reasonable listening level. Having a collection of mostly IEMs, the only solid amp I own is the Fiio E12A, and it puts out about 420mw max into 16ohm on low gain. The E12A has more than enough power to drive the HP50 at half volume or less. The sound was slightly improved over using the LGG3, becoming a bit more musical and lively, with increased detail present in the music. When compared to my MacBook Air, there was no real discernible difference. Not having access to any higher end gear, I can’t say for certain, but I don’t think the HP50 would really scale up with higher end equipment. Fortunately, it’s not really needed, as these things just simply sound outstanding even driven out of a smartphone.
Marketing:
Now, to bring up the elephant in the room(feel). Paul Barton, designer of the NAD VISO HP50, has spend his career designing and tuning loudspeakers, mostly for PSB. When he decided to move into the world of headphones, his first attempt, the PSB M4U, and now the NAD VISO HP50 use what he (more likely the marketing team) has dubbed RoomFeel. The idea here is to provide a sound signature for the headphones that mimics that of a high end loudspeaker in a room. Jude over at Head-Fi interviewed Paul Barton, and they spent about 30 minutes going into detail about the science behind this, and discussed the difference between a technically neutral sound signature versus what is acoustically pleasing to most people. It’s worth a watch if you have the time (about 30 minutes), and can be found here. I have several pairs of loudspeakers, and to me, these headphones get closer to sounding like listening to a speaker than others, but they are still headphones, and they are still small drivers right next to my ear. I think the RoomFeel is more marketing hype than anything. But, by attempting to hit a target sound curve that is not considered neutral, but is considered (and proven?) to be more acoustically pleasing, Paul Barton and NAD have hit a home run here.
Conclusion:
Over the past few weeks, the one thing that has stood out more than anything else with these headphones, is that they simply reproduce music in the most pleasing way, with no prejudice to genre or source. They just work, and work well. I have a ton of IEMs in my collection because well, some do a much better job than others when playing back different genres of music. I wholeheartedly expected the same to be true with the NAD VISO HP50, and much to my wallet’s pleasure, it is not the case. To be honest, a part of me had hoped that I’d return them and try out others such as Oppo PM-3. But after spending a few weeks with the HP50, they are here to stay, and I couldn’t be happier about that. They are great for portable use, isolate well, and the sound is very, very pleasing. The NAD VISO HP50 is now the default recommendation I will be providing to those asking for a good sealed / closed headphone. Period.
Gear Used:
NAD VISO HP50 Headphones
FiiO E12a Amplifier
LGG3 Smartphone
iPad Air 2
Mid-2011 Apple MacBook Air
Music Source:
320k files via RDIO streaming services
FLAC files in my personal library (mainly Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd)
Pandora set to highest quality
Movies / TV Shows via Netflix
Up until recently, I always considered myself an IEM kind of guy. I prefer their low sensitivity, portability, fit, and isolation. In February of 2015, I received the Brainwave HM5 as a gift for my birthday. My experience with circumaural headphones was pretty limited. I had owed a pair of Sony MDR-V700 headphone previous, and I have a feeling they are a big reason I always preferred IEMs. The Sony’s were always so painful to wear after just a few minutes, and the sound they output was most displeasing to my ears (read: bass head material)
The HM5 was much more to my liking. It was comfortable, had a lovely neutral sound, and does a great job at reproducing fine detail. Not to mention, the comfort is outstanding Overall, I was pretty happy with them. However, the sound signature is just too bass light and thin sounding for me. I typically prefer a slightly warmer, thicker sound signature. Not to long after acquiring the HM5, I picked up the AKG K7XX off MassDrop and fell in love with open headphones. But, I still wanted a different sealed headphone to use at work, or on the couch while the wife is watching TV. I lurked r/headphones a lot, I read a ton of reviews over at Head-Fi.org, and I kept up with the content on Innerfidelity. In my search for another set of cans, I narrowed down my options to the Oppo PM-3, the NAD VISO HP50, and the Sennheiser Momentum 2. When the price of the HP50 dropped to $249.99 on Amazon, I pulled the trigger. I figured worst case scenario, I can send them back for a refund and try one of the other models (despite living in a larger city, Portland, OR, I was unable to locate retailer(s) that had any of these items in stock).
The HP50 arrived two days later (thanks Prime!). I was a bit fearful, as the box was pretty heavily damaged in the lower right corner, and the plastic view window under the flap was cracked and missing a section. However, there was no physical damage to the headphones, and fortunately, they function perfectly. After opening the box and inspecting the contents, overall I am happy with the accessories provided. The HP50 comes with a shorter, flat cable, with Apple compatible volume contracts, and an answer/end/play/pause button that works with both Apple and Android devices. It comes with a slightly longer flat cable without the remote, presumably for home/office use. I do wish the cables were a bit more “relaxed” because out of the box, they retained some of the kinks from being packaged up. The standard quarter inch and airline adapters are included as well. The HP50 comes with a nice quilted lined soft-shell zipper case, and a bucket to keep the accessories and cables in.
Build Quality and Comfort:
The overall build quality of the VISO HP50 is solid. It’s not perfect, and I would absolutely prefer that NAD switch out the piano black finish to a soft touch material (it’s such a finger print magnet). But overall, the fit and finish is solid. The adjustment mechanism has a nice positive feedback, clicks into place and stays there, and is easily adjusted while wearing the headphones. The headband is nice and cushioned, and seems to be an all metal construction. The ear cups are plastic, with very nicely padded memory foam pads, all be it, they are a bit shallow. And, the cable entry is single sided, but can input into either side, per your preference. One nit to pic here, I would like to see an included plug to cap off the side not being used at that time, to prevent dust or damage to the cable entry port.
When it comes to comfort, the VISO HP50 seems to be very hit or miss. After reading and watching as many reviews on the headphones as I could, it seems that people either love the HP50 or hate it when it comes to fit and comfort. Luckily for me, I fall into the love it camp. My head is on the smaller side, round in shape, and I have small-ish ears. I personally find the HP50 to be superbly comfortable. The clamp is moderate, and even with thick plastic glasses frames, I never seem to get any pain or aches from the ear cups. That said, my ears do touch the inside of the cups, but it’s never an issue for me. For those who have larger ears, or for those that really can’t sand to have your ears touching, this is certainly not the best headphone for you. The padding on the headband is more than sufficient, and I never find that it causes any hotspots on the top of my head. The only real issue ever present, is the same one I have with my HM5, and that is simply that my ears get warm and/or sweaty during longer listening sessions. I have found that if I am up and moving around, I need to give my ears a breather after an hour and half or so. If I am sitting at my desk, or just relaxing, I can manage two hours or so before I need a break. After a just a couple of minutes or so (long enough to get a beer, or hit the bathroom), I am fine to listen again. As with most any closed headphone, the seal of the HP50 really determines how good the sound quality (especially in the low end) will be. Again, with a smaller ear, and small-ish head, I had no issues getting and maintaining a good seal with the ear cups. YMMV though.
Sound:
When it comes to sound quality, I found what I wanted. Overall the sound signature comes off as just a bit on the warm side, but does not venture very far from neutral. The bass is very clean, and nice and tight. The bass extends nice and low, and never seems to get boomy or muddy. Most importantly for me, I never find myself reaching for the 4db bass boost switch when using the HP50 with the FiiO E12a. The bass on the HP50 is solid, and every so slight boosted. I never find that it bleeds over to the lower midrange, and it never impedes other parts of the sound register. There is not enough low end for those who identify as a bass head, but for everyone else, disappointment will not be had.
The midrange on the HP50 is every so sweet sounding. The entire midrange is very tonally balanced. The upper midrange (read: female vocals) are ever so slightly elevated, and it really makes the music feel more lively. Vocals in general feel a bit more forward in the mix. I have zero complaints when it comes to the midrange.
The upper registers of the sound spectrum are reproduced in a fairly polite manner. The VISO HP50, to me, seems to have a slightly rolled off treble. My ears don’t detect much of a spike in the 3k to 5k region. I don’t think anyone would describe the treble on these cans as harsh. It’s very present, but softer and easy to cope with. Personally, I am treble sensitive, so to me, this is the best case scenario. There is still plenty of treble to make music feel lively, however. Some may desire a bit more shimmer or sparkle in the high end, but the HP50 has enough treble presence to sound amazing.
When it comes to detail and resolve, the HP50 nails it. These closed cans showcase the fine details in recordings, and I would envision having to spend twice the price or more for a set of headphones that does better. The reason I love IEMs so much, is that I have found I get a ton of detail of out music when using multi-driver balanced armature IEMs such as the Westone UM3X or the UE Triple.Fi 10. The detail presented in the VISP HP50 is on par with those and others such as the Phonak PEF-012. Two of my favorite albums to listen to when critically listening for the presence of detail are ZABA by Glass Animals, and Sound and Color by Alabama Shakes. Compared to higher end IEMs, I found the VISO HP50 to be very much in the same realm.
The soundstage of the HP50 is a bit intimate. Having the AKG K7XX, I had gotten used to a very open and airy soundstage. The HP50’s soundstage is certainly dismissed compared to the K7XX, but to be honest, that isn’t really a fair comparison. For a closed back headphone, I was surprised at just how good the soundstage on the HP50 really is. Narrow it is not. I can certainly pinpoint where instruments are located in the mix, and the left/right separation is very defined. And while I am at it, the dynamic range of the headphones is lovely. I find that I can hear sounds lower in the mix still, even when other sounds are much louder.
Thanks to the 32Ohm impedance, and a 106db at 1mw sensitive, these headphones are very, I repeat, very easy to drive. I had no issues driving these out of my LGG3. The G3 struggles to drive some of my IEMs, such as the Phonak PFE-012 and UE Triple.Fi 10, but the HP50 has headroom to spare. Running these headphones direct out of my iPad Air 2 and MacBook Air is never an issue either. I find I need just over half volume to get a reasonable listening level. Having a collection of mostly IEMs, the only solid amp I own is the Fiio E12A, and it puts out about 420mw max into 16ohm on low gain. The E12A has more than enough power to drive the HP50 at half volume or less. The sound was slightly improved over using the LGG3, becoming a bit more musical and lively, with increased detail present in the music. When compared to my MacBook Air, there was no real discernible difference. Not having access to any higher end gear, I can’t say for certain, but I don’t think the HP50 would really scale up with higher end equipment. Fortunately, it’s not really needed, as these things just simply sound outstanding even driven out of a smartphone.
Marketing:
Now, to bring up the elephant in the room(feel). Paul Barton, designer of the NAD VISO HP50, has spend his career designing and tuning loudspeakers, mostly for PSB. When he decided to move into the world of headphones, his first attempt, the PSB M4U, and now the NAD VISO HP50 use what he (more likely the marketing team) has dubbed RoomFeel. The idea here is to provide a sound signature for the headphones that mimics that of a high end loudspeaker in a room. Jude over at Head-Fi interviewed Paul Barton, and they spent about 30 minutes going into detail about the science behind this, and discussed the difference between a technically neutral sound signature versus what is acoustically pleasing to most people. It’s worth a watch if you have the time (about 30 minutes), and can be found here. I have several pairs of loudspeakers, and to me, these headphones get closer to sounding like listening to a speaker than others, but they are still headphones, and they are still small drivers right next to my ear. I think the RoomFeel is more marketing hype than anything. But, by attempting to hit a target sound curve that is not considered neutral, but is considered (and proven?) to be more acoustically pleasing, Paul Barton and NAD have hit a home run here.
Conclusion:
Over the past few weeks, the one thing that has stood out more than anything else with these headphones, is that they simply reproduce music in the most pleasing way, with no prejudice to genre or source. They just work, and work well. I have a ton of IEMs in my collection because well, some do a much better job than others when playing back different genres of music. I wholeheartedly expected the same to be true with the NAD VISO HP50, and much to my wallet’s pleasure, it is not the case. To be honest, a part of me had hoped that I’d return them and try out others such as Oppo PM-3. But after spending a few weeks with the HP50, they are here to stay, and I couldn’t be happier about that. They are great for portable use, isolate well, and the sound is very, very pleasing. The NAD VISO HP50 is now the default recommendation I will be providing to those asking for a good sealed / closed headphone. Period.
Gear Used:
NAD VISO HP50 Headphones
FiiO E12a Amplifier
LGG3 Smartphone
iPad Air 2
Mid-2011 Apple MacBook Air
Music Source:
320k files via RDIO streaming services
FLAC files in my personal library (mainly Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd)
Pandora set to highest quality
Movies / TV Shows via Netflix
