[Ranma13]

I just got a pair of Yuin PK1's from Head-Direct yesterday and I'm very unimpressed. Reviews and comments seem to indicate that it's like the earbud version of the Grado RS1. Well, I own the RS1's and there is a big difference between the two, with the PK1's lacking the energy the RS1's have all across the board. In fact, when comparing the PK1's to the earbuds that were included with my Cowon D2, I think the Cowon earbuds beat the PK1's. I was wondering if I got a fake pair, or if I need to burn them in more, or if something is just wrong with my hearing?

By the way, I'm running everything through a Pico amp using 320kbps MP3's.

 

[inthecup]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ranma13 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I just got a pair of Yuin PK1's from Head-Direct yesterday and I'm very unimpressed. Reviews and comments seem to indicate that it's like the earbud version of the Grado RS1. Well, I own the RS1's and there is a big difference between the two, with the PK1's lacking the energy the RS1's have all across the board. In fact, when comparing the PK1's to the earbuds that were included with my Cowon D2, I think the Cowon earbuds beat the PK1's. I was wondering if I got a fake pair, or if I need to burn them in more, or if something is just wrong with my hearing? By the way, I'm running everything through a Pico amp using 320kbps MP3's.

Don't know about the PK1's but I am impressed with my PK2's. Although I don't really think any earbuds will sound like $700 cans.

 

[goober-george]

I don't think I've read them being compared to Grado RS-1s, but I think I've heard them compared to Grado SR-60s.

 

[TSi]

you can always ship them to me for 30$ =P

 

[western120]

sometimes product is overhyped....sometimes you may not like its sound signature...

 

[richardu]

I recently did a lot of reading on the PK2s, and it looks to me like the Yuins had the usual over hyped response. So at the start there was a lot of posting saying how wonderful they were, etc. etc. then slowly this became a little more toned down, then even more toned down, and it is only recently that a more balanced opinion is starting to emerge. An unfortunate effect of these forum style groups. I have no doubt they are very good earbuds, but on an absolute scale including all types of headphones, I am not sure they would be placed in the upper levels.

 

[funniecow]

Trust no one, rely on your own ears. Or find people who are honest, and unbiased and don't' have the "buyer's rush". Most people think items HAVE to sound good because they pay a hefty price for it, so they fool themselves into saying crappy items are god like. I normally experience it with food.

Will these be up for sale though?

 

[b0dhi]

Stock Cowon buds beat the PK1? No offense, but either you got fakes, or you need to get your hearing checked

The PK1 hold their own against full size cans costing many times the price. That said, I don't agree that they sound like RS-1s.

 

[channum]

I'm in the "Yuin products are overhyped" group. I was happy enough with their sound (PK2s), and Fang did swap them out three times for me before I gave up on them, but I did need to swap them out three times in about a ten month span. They do sound very good for earbuds, but so don't a lot of sub $20 earbuds nowadays. They were certainly nowhere close to the sound quality of my original favorite earbuds, ATH-EC7s, or even Sony MDR-E88s that I had and returned for fit reasons. Build quality is certainly no better than a sub $20 earbud, that's for sure regardless of your opinion of their sound quality. I can't imagine PK1s magically fix all the shortcomings I found with the PK2s since they're virtually identical in construction.

I'd much rather spend the money on some nice ATH-CM700 or EC700 instead of PK1s without any question.

The hype versus reality of Yuins has left me similarly skeptical of all the recent gushings over the RE1/RE2 IEMs.

 

[rhythmdevils]

I wasn't that impressed with them. in fact, i wrote a mini-review stating that I pretty well disliked them. Very unbalanced sound signature to my ears. Reminded me of the GS1000 in that regard (just the sound sig, im not saying they sound like gs1k).

 

[Ranma13]

I'm pretty sure my ears are fine, I can hear the difference between the SR-225 and RS1. As for the PK1, I'd say the sound is very neutral across the board, whereas the Cowon's earbuds have weaker bass but a nice hump in the midrange. Both have the same clarity and resolution though, it's not like the night and day difference between some cheap Sony cans and the RS1.

I'm not expecting the PK1 to be at the same level as the RS1, but I at least expected it to be better than the earbuds that were included with the Cowon D2. I've also tested the Shure E2G's against them, but eh...the E2G just has way too much bloated bass. I'll do some more testing and read the subsequent posts in this thread, but if nothing significant changes in the next few days, I'm going to be putting them up for sale. In the meantime though, additional comments are appreciated.

 

[Libertad]

You need to burn them in and they need some power to shine! Arn't the PK1s like 100ohms? Id say get a amp i here that the minibox-d from head direct is pretty good and burn them in at least 24hrs then they'll come around

 

[shomie911]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Libertad /img/forum/go_quote.gif You need to burn them in and they need some power to shine! Arn't the PK1s like 100ohms? Id say get a amp i here that the minibox-d from head direct is pretty good and burn them in at least 24hrs then they'll come around

He's using a Pico:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ranma13 /img/forum/go_quote.gif By the way, I'm running everything through a Pico amp using 320kbps MP3's.

 

[MD1032]

If the PK1's aren't kicking the piss out of every other earbud you have in your posession, something's not right. Fit-related, most likely. Try earpads or no earpads, and not using any EQ if you're using EQ.

I've heard the PK1's and PK2's on two different occasions. Are they RS-1's? No. Whoever told that to you was downright lying. Are they quite good? Most certainly. They are a completely new standard for earbuds in my opinion. I did not in the least expect the sound that came out of them. They literally turned my entire view of earbuds upside down... and I was one of the first people to hear them at the NYC meet before the hype began. The reason I don't own them is because earbuds don't fit me and I have to press against them to get them to stay in my ears.

Also, what kind of music do you listen to?

 

[analogbox]

That's because you haven't burned them in yet. I, too, was really disappointed when I first got my PK1. The sound was kinda trapped and distant. But then things started to open up after about 100 hours of burn in. Now they sound unbelievably good. One thing to keep in mind is that they're ear buds so outside noises leak in pretty easily and it could affect the sound coming out of PK1. If you wanna listen to PK1 at it's best, listen in a quiet room where there are no outside noises. If your pair is fully burned in and you listened to it in a quiet room and you still don't like the sound, then maybe PK1 is just not for you.