LH Labs Verb: Indefensibly Bad

And speaking of Cymbacavum acoustic measurements, here's Mr. T telling it like it is, re: LH Labs Verb earphone:

“When shipments of the Verb began going out to the general populace in March last month, however, the tide began to shift. While there were positive reviews of the product from individuals largely unknown to the veteran enthusiast community for IEMs, quite a few experienced listeners began coming out in droves to complain about poor sound quality in the Verb. Our very own shotgunshane was one of these backers.

He received his LH Labs Verb and immediately remarked (internally to us at CYMBACAVUM) that it “sucks” and was “muddy, bassy, veiled, and with crappy resonances all over”. We were genuinely surprised. Those of you who have been readers of CYMBACAVUM know that most of us lean toward a more neutral sound signature, but we can appreciate a high-performance bassy signature when it is presented to us, and shotgunshane assured the rest of us that this was not merely a bass issue. Apparently, on top of sloppy bass, it had no midrange and bad ringing in the treble region.

Meanwhile, more troubling revelations came to light about a possible spurious origin to the Verb. Whilst LH Labs has maintained that the Verb was designed and developed exclusively for their own company, the Xuma PM73, a low-cost, mass-produced IEM sold at New York based Photo/Video superstore B&H for about $25, is a near identical product to the Verb, and had come out years before the Verb was even released.”

Source: LH LABS VERB: INDEFENSIBLY BAD

CYMBACAVUM unveil in-house acoustic measurements

Today, Cymbacavum, have unveiled their newest project: the acoustic measurement of earphones and headphones thanks to a new contributor, speakerphone. 

“Our newest contributor is speakerphone; he has been running his own acoustic measurement blog, http://clarityfidelity.blogspot.kr/, but will be partnering with us to deliver measurement results on select items featured on this website. Occasionally, he will also be delivering commentary regarding measurement results and products. As a modest guy, speakerphone claims that his English isn’t that good and is reticent to provide opinion pieces, but Mr. T thinks otherwise and will be encouraging him to open up with thoughts!”

Between the ears, par excellence indeed.

Source: ELECTROACOUSTIC MEASUREMENTS FROM SPEAKERPHONE

Have Aurender fixed the FLOW's remote functionality?

Seeing no mention of the FLOW's duffy remote controls in Headphone Guru's review of the Aurender FLOW, I am led to believe that track forward now means track forward. Barring that, it's obvious: audiophile reviewers really only care about how something looks and sounds; more specifically, that we dig song-specific subjective analyses, which Eric Neff does pretty well.

The thing is: until audiophile reviewers get good at reviewing gear, not just sound, the gear vomited out by unscrupulous vendors will only proliferate, reaching critical mass, where shit becomes normal as long as it sounds good.

Aurender FLOW is an awesome performer, but its hardware interface is duff, and should be crapped on in CONS lists of all reliable review sites. 

Disclaimer: I reckon my take on the Aurender FLOW is the best out there. 

The Aune B1

Yesterday, headfonia published my review of the Aune B1. The B1 has a lot going for it. It also has a lot going against it.

Depending on the beholder, the B1 could be either sexy, or silly. I reckon it's a bit of both. Its solid chassis and brushed lines look great in a HiFi system, but are completely anachronistic for portable use. And when switched on, the B1 reminds me of an evil version of the robot Vincent from Disney's The Black Hole. 

Its chassis redefines the word brick, being both extraordinarily sturdy, and extraordinarily symmetric. Its volume pot twists with more precision, less wobble, and more Leica-like pleasure than any pot I've used on portable amp. But it's a tiny nub, and when both source and headphones are plugged in, it's a bugger to twist. 

The gain switch (which engages or disengages a +10dB of extra volume), is too easy to accidentally toggle. I've dubbed it the ear self-destructor. And the CLASS A switch, would either doubles or halves the number of milliwatts dissipated, and according the the manual, should never be touched while the amp is powered on, is just as easy to accidentally toggle. I dubbed it the self-destructor.

Finally, every port: USB, audio in, and audio out, is sunk too far into its well. Certain sized cables won't latch onto signal because they can't get their bits far enough into the amp's circuits. 

Sleek styling does not a good design make.

But the B1 sounds wonderful. Its background is blacker than black, with hiss barely audible via my most sensitive earphones, and that, at levels close to, but no exceeding, placebo. I go into way more detail about the sound and utility of the B1 at Headfonia. 

Headfonia: Aune B1 - Vincent

Reference Home Theater loves the Oppo PM-3

Concise and well-put, Stephen Hornbrook's review of the awesome Oppo PM-3 is well worth the read.

“We recently gave another Oppo product, the HA-2, perfect marks, so to do so again seems odd. Yet I feel even stronger about the Oppo PM-3’s perfect score than I do about the excellent HA-2. The Oppo PM-3 planar magnetic headphones are scary good. Previously my go-to recommendations for closed back headphones were the PSB M4U, NAD HP50, and Sennheiser Momentum. The Oppo PM-3 outshines them all and will be one of the most confident product recommendations I have ever offered. They are versatile as they can be driven directly from a smartphone, but will benefit from quality amplification so users can squeeze every bit of performance from these amazing headphones. If you don’t need a closed-back headphone, the Hifiman HE-400i delivers better sonic performance but only with better amplification. If looking for more flexibility with sources and listening environments, the Oppo PM-3 is the clear winner. Very highly recommended.”

Source: Oppo PM-3 Headphones Review

For reference, my review of the PM-3 can be read at Headfonia.

Which Grado GR10 do you have?

The above photograph is my Grado GR10. It is from 2014. It's front metal cap is silver and shines. There is a small port between its sheath and the cap. The older version lacks the port. And, like the GR8, its aluminium cap is matte, not shiny. The older version one can be seen below (photo taken by Headfi member CH23, seen in this Head-fi post):

Could be evidence of continual production kaizen, à la manière employed by Sennheiser in the HD series of headphones? And if so, are surreptitious updates a good thing?

As you know, I'm a big fan of the GR10. While the GR10 has many fans, some people are vehemently against it. And, if the changes noted at Head-fi truly return disparate results, it's understandable that opinions vary. I am  have tested the old GR10 vs. the new GR10. 

And recently, Grado recently released the GR10e, which I think we can assume boasts further improvements. Later, I will be taking a look at the GR10e, and comparing it with the GR10, which many of you know is my favourite universal earphone.

Source: GRADO GR10: Reviews, First Impressions Thread - Page 67
Be sure to check out my review of the 2014 Grado GR10 at Headfonia.

Lachlan on the Sony NWZ-ZX2

Lachlan fondled the new NWZ-ZX2, which he compared to version 1. Evidently, it still hisses:

“So I had a quick demo of the Sony NWZ-ZX2! First of all, I confirmed with the IM02 that the ZX2 still hisses. It was quite noisy in the shopping centre so I couldn’t tell if it hisses less than the ZX1, but it seemed like it might be a slight improvement. The unit on the whole is chunkier and heavier than the ZX1, which makes the whole thing seem a bit excessive. But hey if you are paying 1299 then I suppose you want to look like you have something in your pocket. I can’t comment on the sound as the player was only loaded with demo tracks that I’m not familiar with. Don’t think I’ll be getting one any time soon though.”

Lach's got loads of great stuff on his Facebook page, so check it out.

BTW, the earphones he yaks about in the above quote the Audio Technica ATH-IM02, which he reviews here (YouTube). 

Headfonia: Oppo HA-2 - 2007 All Over Again

Well, after long last, I've finished my review of the Oppo HA-2 for Headfonia. It's a great DAC/amp that has the following quirks:

- AK100-level output noise
- confusing in/out for DAC users on the run

But those are mere niggles. The HA-2 is an amazing piece of portable equipment with a great DAC. It should challenge the status quo on both ends of the price spectrum. It should leave an iPhone-like mark on the industry.