[shigzeo]

The Rx actually doesn't have the synergy it has with the JH13Pro as it does with the 1601. And, a lot of home amps don't drive the JH13Pro as well - they lose out on frequency response, though they may have a nice signature. I have also used them with pretty good home amps and find that when I want their brute response, I reach for the Rx. The 1601 is better with a non-linear amp like the Voyager.

 

[javajive]

Quote:

Originally Posted by firoze /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hello, I am travelling to Tokyo next month. Where would be the cheapest place to buy the SB or SS models? Other than Yodobashi, is there any other place in Akihabara where I could audition them?

The best place to audition these is at Dynamic Audio in Akihabara. Their ground floor is dedicated to head/earphones and they have very comfortable listening chairs for auditioning.

 

[james444]

Quote:

Originally Posted by james444 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Now all that's missing is a photoshopped picture of the Phonaks to prove the 1601 are really abominable.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dfkt /img/forum/go_quote.gif I mainly posted the EQ settings so anyone interested can easily recreate them with any other parametric EQ. It sure is an interesting tweak you won't hear very often. It doesn't really have anything to do with the PFE or ER4, it's just that those flat phones are the easiest to recreate the frequency contours of other phones with.

Yeah, I know. Sorry, just couldn't resist.

Don't know if you read my previous posts, in fact the bass and treble roll-off is easily noticable when you A/B them to other IEMs. Nevertheless the mids are really classy. Enter the Voyager into the equation, enhancing bass and treble via contour setting, and the result is a nice compensation for the original roll-off.

Whether a $700 phone should be needing tricks like that to sound adequately, is however another question.

 

[iponderous]

^ "Whether a $700 phone should be needing tricks like that to sound adequately, is however another question."

I know what my answer to that question is but I'm most interested in yours james444.

 

[firoze]

Quote:

Originally Posted by javajive /img/forum/go_quote.gif The best place to audition these is at Dynamic Audio in Akihabara. Their ground floor is dedicated to head/earphones and they have very comfortable listening chairs for auditioning.

Thanks for the info javajive. Do you have an address for this place? Or could you give me some directions on how to get there once I get to Akihabara station?

Ps: I've been to Akihabara several times but my last visit was over two years back and I believe much has changed there in the meantime....

 

[nonsupremous]

Quote:

Originally Posted by shigzeo /img/forum/go_quote.gif Well, they make earphones with the same thing in mind that drove Senn to make the HD800 or Ultrasone the Ed 9 or 8. FAD want the inner earphone to be the highest end - that is obvious. Admittedly that is an 'absurd' price, but so too is the price for the HD800

Completely agree with all that. Personally I think that once you start passing the 500.00 mark, you're getting to a place that is a bit absurd for pricing. However, I can understand why manufacturers do it and also understand that there will always be a target audience.

You can purchase a single tower speaker that costs 1 million dollars. Personally I just think that there comes a point where audio cannot possibly get any better to the human ear. Human ears can only detect sound up to and down to certain frequencies.

I think Koss has really kind of proven a point with the PortaPro. It's over 25 years old, nothing has been changed except the cord and a slight color modification, yet to this day they are still revered as one of the best portable headphones you can buy. AND they come with a very cheap price tag.

Sigh....but I own a LOT of headphones myself, so I get caught up in the "always searching for the next best thing" also. As long as there's a consumer, there will be a new headphone.

 

[dfkt]

Quote:

Originally Posted by james444 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Yeah, I know. Sorry, just couldn't resist.

I see you're in Vienna... maybe I can hear them sometimes in person?

 

[javajive]

Quote:

Originally Posted by firoze /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks for the info javajive. Do you have an address for this place? Or could you give me some directions on how to get there once I get to Akihabara station? Ps: I've been to Akihabara several times but my last visit was over two years back and I believe much has changed there in the meantime....

Akihabara [English]

look for the dyna5555 entry which is the shop

 

[audioqueso]

Fender, it would have been worse if you went to Osaka. I thought the Yodobashi in Tokyo was big. I just visited Osaka last month, and the one there was 13 floors of electronics! The headphone section was sooooooo sweet! There were several booths with siding to block out noise. Each booth had it's own category (like all Audio Technica large headphones, all Sony IEM, etc, etc). They all had Marantz Reference CD players as the source, and a Audio Technica AT-HA60 amp. They had a bunch of CDs that you could choose from. It was really nice! I could've stayed there all day! But I was only there for a few minutes.

 

[shigzeo]

Yeah, the Osaka one is very good.

 

[firoze]

Quote:

Originally Posted by javajive /img/forum/go_quote.gif Akihabara [English] look for the dyna5555 entry which is the shop

Thanks! Am looking forward to going there...

 

[james444]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dfkt /img/forum/go_quote.gif I see you're in Vienna... maybe I can hear them sometimes in person?

No problem, I can lend you the Voyager + 1601 for a week or two, if you promise to handle the cables with kid gloves (did I already mention that I hate them?). Maybe you could do a review for ABI? Anyway, I'll PM you later this weekend.

 

[rebski]

Quote:

Maybe you could do a review for ABI

Now there's a prospect to look forward to! Thanks for facilitating that.

 

[firoze]

Hello james444, have you spent more time listening to the SB's since your last post on their sound quality when paired with the Voyager? Could you give us an update on how you feel about them now?
Regards.

 

[james444]

^ Hi, it's a shame I can't use these for commuting, because that would give me much more listening time. However, I've had several more hours with them at home, mostly trying out different sources with the Voyager. My iPod Classic with LOD gives me a tad too thick mids for my liking, even though the overall SQ is fascinating. For now I've settled on a small stick-like Sony player with a slightly recessed midrange, velcroed to the side of the Voyager. Here's a picture of this rig (note that while the small silicon tips add to a more secure fit, they do not seal the ear canal):

The sonic result is by any account mind-boggling and listening to this combo makes it hard not to involuntarily grin like a moron. But if you consider the fact that what you hear is the aggregated output of a slightly U-shaped source, plus a more pronounced U-shaped Contour setting on the Voyager, fed into a phone with an inverted U-shaped frequency response, then you realize that this has more in common with mixing a Magic Potion than HiFi.

Long story short, this rig is very likely the most impressive I've ever heard, but unamped and unequalized the 1601 are hardly the show-stoppers their price would suggest. I sent PM to dfkt to arrange for a meet/loan and I'm really curious about his opinion.