Pros: Generally crowd-pleasing sound signature: not bright like RHA’s other products, more warmth; forgiving sound signature; ceramic shell is pretty, nearly indestructible, and ergonomic; 3 good cables included alongside tons of tips; build quality; 3 year warranty; active customer service Cons: soft veil over the mids, some mid-bass emphasis and minor bleed, needs more treble... Continue Reading →
Lark Studio LSIV (Custom) Review: all about that bass
Pros: Big warm booty-ful bass, easy to enjoy sound signature, excellent build quality, perfect fit, nice cable Cons: compressed soundstage, uneven upper mids and lower treble, could use more treble extension, a legit travel case would be nice List Price: $441 (Lark Studio), £369 (Audio Concierge) Product Website: http://lark-studios.com/ Rating Disclaimer: ratings are subjective. Audio... Continue Reading →
HiFiMAN Jade II Electrostatic Headphone and Amplifier Review: inviting electrostat
Pros: Silky mids, balanced sound signature, fluid and detailed treble, treble that contrasts favourably to other electrostats, comfortable earpads, lightweight, that cool jade green dust-cover on the drivers Cons: Tangle prone flat cable, amp isn’t completely silent and takes several hours to warm up (leave it on if you like listening), not as comfortable as... Continue Reading →
SendyAudio Aiva review: luxurious and energetic
Pros: rocking guitars, pristine percussion and treble, nicely textured bass, excellent resolution, great speed, it’s ravishingly beautiful, high quality cable with stock 4.4mm balanced and included adapter to 3.5mm single-ended, cheekily awesome case, everything about it screams quality, best overall package in this price range, driveable off of my LG V30 and also some USB-C... Continue Reading →
Linsoul BLD initial impressions, $50 IEM shootout
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 as you’d like it... Continue Reading →
Stealth Sonics U9: bass plus refinement
Pros: Precise accurate bass tuning, tasteful bass uptick, timbral accuracy all around, good stage width and height, high quality stock cable, includes microphone cable (flexibility+), light-weight Cons: Upper mids can be a bit aggressive, aggressive elements of presentation reduce perceived stage, case not very usable from a travel perspective, does not look or feel like... Continue Reading →
oBravo Cupid – first impressions of something unexpected and brilliant
Would you believe me if I told you that I'm enjoying the £249 oBravo Cupid as much as any oBravo I've listened to? The oBravo line-up is notoriously picky with amplification, including the £8999 Ra C-Cu. Each of the ERIB and EAMT hybrid series has several flavours with different sound according to housing material (warm wood, neutral... Continue Reading →
Unique Melody Mason V3 review: mastering the details at terminal velocity
Pros: Remarkably detailed, natural treble extension, deep bass extension, speed to dominate even the fastest tracks, flexible tuning with dB-Go and ‘Dual Tone’ cable, big soundstage, timbre, bass texture, revealing details previously unnoticed and giving new life to old music, can battle with full size headphones for stage Cons: large universal shell, price, cable is... Continue Reading →
Bristol HiFi 2019: best audio show in Britain, even better with friends
Bristol HiFi (previously known as Bristol Sound & Vision) organised by Audio T and What HiFi is the biggest audio show in the UK. It's huge, taking over 4+ floors of the Bristol Marriott with over 100 brands on exhibition. Many new technologies are debuted here and it's a good place to have identify gear... Continue Reading →