Noble Audio Kublai Khan – initial impressions

Acknowledgement The Kublai Khan was purchased with my own money at a small discount from the ever-helpful Andrew at MusicTeck USA for the purposes of writing a full review (which will be published soon). No input or other incentive was sought or received from MusicTeck or Noble - all opinions and words below are my... Continue Reading →

July 8, 2022 2

oBravo Ra 21 C

Acknowledgements The oBravo Ra21-C were loaned to me for a few days by the UK distributor (Phil Wannell at Audio Concierge), in order to provide some listener feedback on the updated tuning. No review was solicited (or expected - thanks Phil), and the impressions given below are entirely my own. Introduction oBravo are a Taiwanese... Continue Reading →

March 5, 2021 1

Dunu DK-4001 -hybrid excellence

Introduction and acknowledgment Dunu are a Chinese brand that as a UK based audiophile I had heard a lot about over the last few years, but not actually managed to hear until pretty recently. Coming across their Falcon-C model (review here) at Canjam London 2018, I was impressed enough with their approach to tuning and... Continue Reading →

August 26, 2019 0

CanJam London 2019, part one: fun with electrostatic hybrids (Jomo Audio, Empire Ears, Vision Ears, WAVAYA)

CanJam London is the biggest headphone and portable audio show put on in the UK every year. It is the highlight of the HeadFi enthusiasts calendar and something that I have attended since the inaugural CanJam London in 2015. This year was the 5th annual edition and it lived up to its billing. I'll be... Continue Reading →

August 3, 2019 2

Campfire Audio Solaris – sound like the sun

Acknowledgement The Solaris were very kindly provided by Ken Ball at Campfire Audio for the purposes of writing a full review. I paid nothing for these, and there is no obligation to or input from Campfire Audio with regards to the content of the review. Allegations was (politely) asked for was a few brief impressions... Continue Reading →

February 17, 2019 1

StealthSonics U4 and U9 – unboxing and initial impressions

Introduction As regular readers of the blog will know, StealthSonics are a brand I had heard rumblings about in the usual HF blogs, but only came across properly for the first time at the recent Canjam London event. Some more details about the firm are available on the original blog post, but suffice to say... Continue Reading →

October 19, 2018 3

BGVP SGZ-DN1 unboxing and first impressions, $50 IEM shootout

$50 IEM shootout pre-amble One of the coolest phenomenons in audio right now is the big improvements moving forward in the budget sector. $100 headphones can and do compete with $400 headphones, and $25 headphones sometimes compete with $200 headphones. It’s a great time to be an audiophile, even if your budget isn’t as large... Continue Reading →

July 20, 2018 13

NCM Bella – the Bella of the TOTL hybrid ball

Pros: Sub bass presence and overall bass capability, beautiful and non-recessed midrange, exceptional treble, lots of air and sparkle, very coherent tuning Cons: Fit is shallow, nozzle bore is very large List Price: 23,500,000 (Vietnamese Dong) / c. £735 (UK) Product Website: http://www.nguyencustoms.com/ncm-bella/ Rating Disclaimer: ratings are subjective. Audio quality and value do not mean... Continue Reading →

April 3, 2018 8

IMR Acoustics R1 – unusual ceramic/beryllium hybrid with bags of tone

Pros: Smooth and organic sound signature, good all metal build, serious bass prowess, nice texture and weight to the sound, smooth and clear treble, very coherent and musical tuning, multiple tuning options with filters, capability to open up the soundstage with the open/closed port mechanism Cons: Not massive amounts of micro-detail, could potentially be a... Continue Reading →