[elzafir]

  http://www.tinydeal.com/original-xiaomi-piston-basic-edition-in-ear-headset-earphone-w-mic-p-158803.html
 
What are those?!?!?! New edition or fake?

 
It's new: http://www.mi.com/huosai2/

 

[zyx345]

Has anyone picked up the new color "Golden" ones?  The stock pictures look like its rose/gold however the actual customer pics look more of a traditional gold color. Can anyone confirm if they are a more traditional gold color or rose/gold? 

 

[RowJoe]

Just got these in. Initial impressions versus the Piston 3...these actually have treble but are much lighter on their amount of bass. Vocals are alright, decent clarity. These will make a fine PC and mobile headset for my needs. I'll save real listening for the Sony XBA-H1 I got a couple days ago. 

 

[andrewia]

Hello, new user, longtime lurker, et cetera.  I have gone through two pairs of Xiaomi Piston 2's (one still works great and I use it daily) and two pairs of Piston 3's (both damaged) and decided to get the Pros before my 2's died.  I bought a pair from GearBest's US warehouse and received a defective pair.  The left earbud can't hit highs very well and both earbuds have "holes" in the sound.  I lack the experience to describe it, but it gives the total impression of the earbuds being very cheap, albiet with very detailed highs.  It feels like there are a few frequencies that are almost completely absent.  I contacted GearBest support and they very quickly offered two refund options.  I took the option to get store credit and keep the Pros.  I think I'll wait a week or two for stock to be replenished and then buy a pair from GearBest's Hong Kong warehouse.  Hopefully I'll get a better pair. 

 

[EarTips]

edited

 

[Weithulu]

  Couple of things. Potentially useful tech stuff first, then my impressions of the Hybrids compared with Piston 2.1s. 
 
First, I've got one of those android devices that doesn't like the three button controller. There's a way to get them to work.
The problem is that there are two wired headset standards, and you can get a cheap adapter to convert between them.
 
'International' Standard is (starting from the plug tip) Left/Right/Ground/Microphone
But 'Non International' is L/R/M/G
So wired headsets need to use either the same wiring standard as the phone/tab, or use an adapter. The button signals are carried on the mic line I believe.

A quick web search for 'CTIA OMTP adapter' should turn one up for a few dollars if you need one. Maybe someone will find the information useful.
 
Also, plugging my Hybrids directly into the android device socket gave recognisable but awful sound - but with the adapter in the socket and the Hybrids plugged into the adapter the sound was night-and-day different. Something to do with earthing I suspect. So if yours sound terrible and only the middle button works...
 
But if you get an adapter it is up to you to research whether you need one, so at your own risk. Generally if your middle button works but the other two don't you could use an adaptor to get all 3 buttons. On android I also use (free) Jays Headset Controller app to customise the buttons.
 
Now the review. I'm comparing Hybrids with Pistons 2.1, both tuned as well as I can with (free/ad free) Viper4AndroidFX HQ drivers. I'm not comparing them out of the box. If you aren't using V4A on android you are probably insane anyway. I do not claim to be an expert on judging sound but I know what I like. I haven't done any burn in, assuming burn in even exists, which I do not claim.
 
So I like the pistons for the money and have used them a lot. Overall I found more detail at low and high frequencies with Hybrids, so the bass is less boomy and a high hat sounds more like a real high hat, but I had to tweak the midrange up more on the Hybrids and they are marginally less detailed there for my ears. Overall I prefer the Hybrids on sound, their idiosyncrasies can be tuned out and they sound just a bit better to me.
 
Edit: Just wanted to add that the sound stage of the Hybrids is noticeably better than the Piston 2.1s as well, which is a big part of why I prefer them.
 
I also found them more comfortable. With Pistons i could only wear them with Comply tips, these angled, er, ear nipples mean I can use the stock tips comfortably. I also prefer the control/mic console position. With Pistons I was always hunting to feel out which was the right hand bud. The Hybrids make it obvious. So I'm satisfied they're an upgrade on 2.1s though I wish the mids were a bit richer out of the box.. 

Its interesting how there is no standard for the plug tip. I mean we're in 2016 and having different standards between counties / devices is just unbelievable. 
 
Do you have the pistons 3, how do you think  they compare. 

 

[ytheleus]

No idea about Pistons 3, sorry, I missed out on them.
Pistons 2.1 I thought were exceptional value. I prefer Hybrids overall, particularly for the ergonomics, but I'm finding mid range (vocals is where I notice it) a little lacking, though not terrible. If the fabled burn-in effect occurs and the mids open up I will be so delighted.
The reason why standards proliferate is commercial I suppose. There's no benefit to the consumer except where a functional upgrade is involved (say Bluetooth v3 to v4). In this case I think it was originally a way to help you buy more Apple (or whoever) products by restricting what worked on their hardware. Happens a lot. I use a cable adapter that also works as a strain reliever so it's no big thing, but it's a few extra dollars that you don't want to spend on budget earphones.     

 

[Quicklite]

How do they compare against mid-range IME - e.g. Shure SE215/315? Is it very far off as reflected by the price?
 
These are about £20. Debating whether to get a pair of headphone under £10 to tie over - and wait to get a proper set of IME.

 

[RowJoe]

  How do they compare against mid-range IME - e.g. Shure SE215/315? Is it very far off as reflected by the price?
 
These are about £20. Debating whether to get a pair of headphone under £10 to tie over - and wait to get a proper set of IME.

No contest versus the Sony XBA-H1 which is in the 215's price range. These are a beater set that sound good for the price, but not much more. That said, they're in my shirt pocket every day since the headset capability is compelling for myself. 

 

[menuki]

Wanted to test them to see what their about plus i never had hybrid In-Ears. I have some mixed feelings with these.. comparison to the OnePlus Icons and Titan 5's:
 
Titan 5s:
- Fast detailed sparkly sound
- Extremly tight bass and well extended bass
- A bit sibilant for my taste
- "tad" recessed mids
- V-Shape sound
- Pretty closed in soundstage (may be a preference for some)
 
OnePlus Icons:
- Big sound image
- Treble is not very extended and to my ears recessed
- Nice full bass
- Open airy sound wide soundstage
 
Xiaomi Hyrbrids:
- Very fast
- Pretty detailed
- Recessed HD650 / HD600 treble
- Never sibilant (which is a big plus for me)
- To my ears no recessed mids (rather neutral)
- Full big bass but not the tightest
- Good soundstage!
- For the price a steal!
 
The thing is, i can't say the Titan 5's are better than the Xiamoi Hybrids. Why? Because the Titan 5's sound more detailed but more so because the treble is boosted which gives an overall more detailed impression but they get fatiguing. The Hybrids never sound fatiguing but my lack some spark and livelyness on some tracks. On modern tracks though where the treble is often boosted anyways (cause beats and stuff) the Titan 5's get pretty unlistenable where the OnePlus Icons and Hybrids are more fun to listen with.
 
Overall i like them. OOTB impression was very very bad. They sounded dull, lifeless and just bad.. after alot of hours listening i came to really like the signature.. another reason not to judge headphones right OOTB. 

 

[Andres Rojas]

Hi guys.
 
A friend of mine that was at china last week,  just bought me two pairs of IEM and they definitly look fake!
 
I took some pictures for you to take notice of how to identify them, but i haven´t been able to post pictures in here, somebody knows how to do it?
 
it tells me, my account doesn´t have the privilege to access the images page.

 

[Nomad666]

Thank you for that informative post. I guess it was always only a matter of time before counterfeits would show up.
 
Did the earphones have QR code tabs on the leads, and if so, did they fail the genuine test when scanned?

 

[Andres Rojas]

Hi
 
it´s my pleasure to bring this info to others so they won´t be scammed so easily
 
The worrying part is that the company who sold the headphones is a company who normally sells genuine products, having bought there some Mi PAD2 without problems and some MDZ-16-AA (Smart TV) witout problems, so they mix genuine with counterfit products and that very worrying.
 
Regarding the QR code tabs, that´s one thing that is different with them, they DONT HAVE ANY KIND OF TAB on the cable.
 
These headphones are a amazing replica, you see them and you wouldn´t believe they are counterfit,  they look amazing, but they sound HORRIBLE! they even hurt my ear!! That´s why i decided to risk it and open up one of them to confirm they are fake.
 
Amazing copys, everyone would be easily foul by them
 
Be very very aware.
 
Things that you can notice, at least with these in ear.
 
You can ask for two units, and see if the serial number chances (These one doesnt, have the same s/n)
Check for any sign of glu on the in the earpice
Check for the QR authencity code (althought i imagine they could copy this too)
Check for the weight of the unit, these weight nothing, they are like thin paper weight jeje
Check any sign of bad quality signs besides signs of glue like finish problem in the cabling, etc.

 

[chiggah]

How does this compare with the Piston 3 ?

 

[j0p3Y]

I have both,I prefer the Piston 3.0. The hybrids sound less crisp, quite dull actually