Author: glassmonkey

Like most sensible people I started falling in love with music as a child. My first portable audio device was a Sony Walkman (the cassette kind) that I got when I was 10 years old (25 years ago). I toted that lovely brick around with the cheap included headphones for several years in cold Fairbanks, Alaska. Like a Hieronymous Bosch mural, my tastes can be weird and wonderful: from dreamy Japanese garble pop to banks of strings and percussion in the Mariinsky Orchestra. I listen mostly to rock. I tend to like neutral bright headphones and I'm a sucker for soundstage. I don't do EQ. I believe that cables can make a difference but do not unconditionally make a difference, same thing goes for balanced outputs. Some axioms: Frequency response isn't everything, but it is important. If you didn't volume match, how can you be sure you heard a difference? Ears are beautiful things, but we hear with our brains and brains can be pretty darn stupid.

iFi iDSD Black Label: Swiss Army knife utility, top tier sound and flexibility that does everything extremely well, so much value it’s just unfair to the competition

Pros: enough power to drive an HE-6 while having enough finesse to feed a Kaiser Encore, plays everything natively, flexible inputs and outputs, flexible sound through XBass and 3D that leaves the core of the mids alone Cons: 3D can sound artificial on some tracks, black on black fonts, difficult to see volume knob level... Continue Reading →

May 11, 2017 7

Welcoming Otic Nerve

Otic nerve stumbled into the world of HeadFi, quite reluctantly, from two channel setups. He'll be writing a series of articles under the EARWAG category, a sly portmanteau of earwig (something that gets stuck in your head), and chinwag (a casual talk). Stay tuned for the kick-off of the series later today.

May 10, 2017 0

Unboxing: Simgot EN700 BASS

Simgot is a new entrant into the budget department, and I'm already impressed with the fit and finish of their latest offering. Due to busy schedule, I haven't gotten too much listening time in with these guys yet, but like most headphones now, they sound good. I gave them some run-in, which was recommended by... Continue Reading →

May 9, 2017 0

Welcoming TheOneInYellow

TheOneInYellow is a man who dips his ears and eyes in a lot of pies. His heavy reading of social media and blogs exposes him to all sorts of interesting new gear and audio stories. TheOneInYellow will be doing a series of short posts where he reflects on the audio stuff he sees around the... Continue Reading →

May 3, 2017 0

Shanling M2s gear gallery and first impressions: a pint-sized performer

In a little bit of a different take on gear galleries, this post has some initial impressions. Things I like: Tiny. Super tiny. This thing is smaller than a pack of cards. It looks like the perfect mate to a Mojo. Can be used as external DAC Bluetooth receive and transmit (Cayin N3 does this... Continue Reading →

May 1, 2017 1

iDAC2: an excellent portable performer especially with the iPurifier2

Pros: Transparent neutral/cold signature, good sound, good value, plenty of outputs, nice soundstage, USB bus powered so no power cable or brick to carry around Cons: Slight treble emphasis may be off-putting to some, timing imperfect without iPurifier2 List price: $299 Acknowledgment The iDAC2 was provided on loan to me by iFi along with the... Continue Reading →

April 25, 2017 5

Lear BTC-01: a sound surprise in wireless

Pros: Good sound, clean amplification, good driving power, lightweight and comfortable, price, many pin outs [2-pin (standard CIEM, UE CIEM, UE TF10,), MMCX, IE-8/80, AudioTechnica (IM, LS series), FitEar] Cons: Pin fit (standard 2-pin CIEM), Bluetooth noise floor and EMI (Bluetooth general flaw), no aptX, not sweatproof, limited battery life List Price: $65 at time... Continue Reading →

April 18, 2017 4

Effect Audio Arthur: $3800 of win? Yes.

Pros: Stunningly beautiful statement piece, exceptional natural sound, Excalibur cable ergonomics are excellent Cons: Price, difficult fit, huge shell, narrow nozzle doesn’t fit several Comply Isolate series tips or similar size tips (200 series fits), probably better to buy as custom List Price: $3799 Acknowledgment Thank you Eric at Effect Audio for making the HeadFi... Continue Reading →

April 15, 2017 3

Glassmonkey’s Headroom at Metropolis Studios 2017 Impressions

On March 25 I hopped on a coach from Southampton to London with the Effect Audio Arthur IEMs in my ears and the Aune M1S pumping tunes through my cranium for the two hour coach ride. Upon touching down in Hammersmith and marching my way down to the study I immediately asked where I needed to... Continue Reading →