Ω was out all weekend with the flu. But his betters at headfi caught the decent and indecent in the best act of the holidays. From Audio Technica to xDuoo, there's a world of geeky interest for the geeky interest in you over at headfi.
Ω out.
Musica Acoustics giving away one pair of Mr. Speakers' Alpha Dog Headphones
Mr. Speakers Alpha Dog and matching stand
As stated above, one pair of Mr. Speakers Alpha Dog headphones (MSRP 599$) will be freed to one lucky winner come 13 January, 2014. Secondary and tertiary prizes also available.
I signed up. You should, too. Here's how.
Fostex' year-end goodies : TE-05 earphones and HPA4 DAC
The TE-05 sounds great. If only a detail-oriented photographer would get rid of all that dust!
Totally understated though it may look, the TE-05 is pretty smashing. Its single dynamic driver engine comes wrapped in a turned aluminium case, terminated with MMCX connectors. Aluminium is a necessity today in the mid-budget earphone category. Its resonant qualities are much better than plastic. And MMCX for under a 100$ USD? Great.
Read moreThis is what happens when a photographer reviews a headphone
The Sony MDR-1R as seen by Martin's excellent eye. (Click to read the review)
Martin Irwin, a comrade in towns, put up a brilliant review of the Sony MDR-1R headphone back in June. Brilliant because it says all that is necessary in just a handful of paragraphs. Brilliant also because it is beautiful.
Martin Irwin has a lovely website and some great insight, especially on the photophile world, though methinks he be beating around the audiophile bush quite a bit. Be sure to check him out for more of the good stuff.
How Sennheiser Expanded its Brand With a Headphone Opera
“A lone operatic singer in a flowing white tunic sings into a headmic as she walks slowly through the lobby, trailed by some 200 audience members donning headphones. Suddenly, a line of dancers run and twist through the crowd. The audience disperses, some following the dancers, others the singer, to different parts of the station.”
If anyone is up to tacking the above task, it is Sennheiser. They've been gaining ground thanks in part to myriad high-end inner monitors which allow stage musicians and actors to put on more active performances than ever before. Bandwidth and signal fidelity are key items to conveying crystal clear performances to fans.
And in the centre of Los Angeles' buzzing Union Station, that tech was key. Audience members wore Sennheiser headphones to tune into the unique performance. Those Sennheiser phones were part of a greater system of proprietary and shared tech that allowed the pristine transmission of audio signals from the performers to the audience members.
Events like this put performers, directors, and musical producers on the map. Additionally, regular Joes and Joettes out there get to see headphones put to different -- and in this case, revolutionary -- uses.
Read all about it here.
instant ohmage: AudioFly AF78/m
It’s in and out time again, folks, and the AudioFly AF78 is on the plate. This earphone is a garnished by a sturdy melange of resin, nylon, and kevlar. Beneath its tough skin is the main course: a hybrid dynamic / balanced armature driver array. And it is good.
Read moreFiio X1 mockup photos at Fiio's Facebook
Fiio fans will want to check this out. The X1 portable digital player will be slightly larger than the excellent Fiio X3 DAP. Ω is excited that it looks to be more traditionally laid out. You can keep up to date by following Fiio's Facebook page.
“X1 mockup
- The dimensions will be 88x50mm (as tall as Plan B but wider, close to the width of Plan A. For reference, X3 is 109x55mm)
- The central control group will change from the X5’s “X” shape around the scroll wheel to a circle (with the four buttons on the circle still in an X configuration. The buttons’ functions (from upper left, clockwise) are as follows: shortcuts key (brings up a quick menu), back, next, previous) (same as on the X5) The centre button will be an “OK/confirm” key.
- The final product will look better. Much better ”
At head-fi: Dubstep Girl's Massive 5AR4/5R4/5U4G Rectifier Review/Comparison!
Threads like this are why head-fi simply rocks.
Currawong reviews the ALO Studio Six
Currawong, Headfi's prim and knowledgeable moderator-extraorindaire, has, at long last, published his review of the excellent ALO Studio Six headphone amp. Generally, and with good reason, he is ecstatic. But without intending to detract from the original text, I will point out that while Curra and I both agree that the Studio Six is an unwavering delight of power and resolution for headphones, we each await an ALO Audio power amp.
“The performance of the amp is so unwavering that even if one plugs 4 completely different pairs of headphones in, even IEMs, the performance through any single pair does not change in the slightest. The question I had at the end of it all was not about whether the amp is worth it, but why it didn’t have speaker outputs. Ken Ball’s reply to this question was to send me a custom cable with a headphone plug on one end and speaker banana plugs on the other.”
For those with short memories, here is what I wrote about the Studio Six.
the convergence of audiophilia and photophilia
Thanks to mirrorless interchangeable lens camera systems and small lenses, I can now comfortably take my X-Pro 1 and favourite lens around with my favourite audiophile system... with plenty of room left over for scotch.
I've got more over at photophile.