CHANGSTAR: Audiophile Headphone Reviews and Early 90s Style BBS
Lobby => IEM Measurements => Topic started by: Marvey on January 15, 2013, 03:53:56 AM
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Subjective Impressions Pre-Measurement.
(http://www.changstar.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=740.0;attach=2834;image)
Tonally like an AT woody with cupped hands coloration. Reminiscent of the W3000ANV, but with less bass and less treble. So kind of like a W5000, but with less treble. Cavity resonances heard in the bass. No treble air. Not particularly dexterous or resolving, but it's an interesting sound.
Measurements OTW
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Frequency response. Told ya they are like AT woodies, but with less low bass and less treble.
(Measurements cut-off after 9kHz)
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So if you only listen to, say, talk radio, these would be perfect.
At least they've got looks and personality.
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Burst decays
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So if you only listen to, say, talk radio, these would be perfect.
At least they've got looks and personality.
Definitely. They are more comfortable than they look. At least to me.
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Lower 3rd order in midrange than BA type IEMs. This does have a certain strong appeal and is a good trait.
Otherwise, the bass distortion cannot be described as exemplary.
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I presume bass distortion does not matter when it's not present. Will be curious to see how the silver 1601 measures up.
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LOL that's probably why the bass isn't present.
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FAD was going for stereotypical vintage horn speaker sound with these. They're basically a novelty, but I really enjoy them with certain music. The IX and X are even more extremely colored than the VIII lol.
The 1601 series should be a bit less rolled off. Also a big virtue of the 1601 series is that you can change out the tips. They had a few cases of the metal tips getting stuck in peoples' ears so they made the 1602 / Piano Forte series tips fixed.
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FAD was going for stereotypical vintage horn speaker sound with these. They're basically a novelty, but I really enjoy them with certain music. The IX and X are even more extremely colored than the VIII lol.
The 1601 series should be a bit less rolled off. Also a big virtue of the 1601 series is that you can change out the tips. They had a few cases of the metal tips getting stuck in peoples' ears so they made the 1602 / Piano Forte series tips fixed.
I've been circling different threads about the Piano Forte's for some time now, because the their design and idea is just unreasonably attractive to me, but living in Europe, getting a chance to hear them is pretty much impossible. So just out of curiosity, since i know you to be a big fan of FAD (from reading these threads) I thought you'd be the right person to ask: How does the Piano Forte II's sound compare to their big brothers? They seem like they might be a relatively cheap way to see if you're a fan of their sound signature?
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I've been circling different threads about the Piano Forte's for some time now, because the their design and idea is just unreasonably attractive to me, but living in Europe, getting a chance to hear them is pretty much impossible. So just out of curiosity, since i know you to be a big fan of FAD (from reading these threads) I thought you'd be the right person to ask: How does the Piano Forte II's sound compare to their big brothers? They seem like they might be a relatively cheap way to see if you're a fan of their sound signature?
I think the weirdness of the Piano Fortes (or "uniqueness" for the more sensitive souls out there) largely stems from their extremely mid-centric signature. The lows and highs are very rolled off. The mids themselves are very thick and viscous. So you get a very warm and blanketed sound, but at the same time the open design results in a very cavernous large-scale sound. It's almost like listening to a bunch of old radios in a concert hall.
The Piano Forte II is similar in that it's very mid-centric, but it's far less refined and spatially nothing like the VIII, IX, and X.
Another problem is the fit. Even if you get the PFII and like that mid-centric sound, it'll give you absolutely no indication of whether you'll get a good fit on the others. All the PFs are unique in that they don't use tips, but rather flanges that are built into the housing itself. The IIs are significantly different however. In my case the II fits just fine, but the IX and X practically fall out of my ears (due to their shape, bigger size, and heavier weight). They're definitely not for portable use, but even just having them fall a foot or so onto your desk is nerve racking. So I experimented with foam tips stretched over the flange in an effort to give them more "grip."
The problem is, those types of solutions block the airflow. It borks the sense of spaciousness and gives them a more congested sound. I found a compromise by using them with the cable looped over my ear sans actual earhooks.
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Revising this thread, I realized why I felt kinda "vintage". I guess it's due to the absence of thumping bass. However, frankly, in PF VIII, I didn't notice any apparent absence of treble. Maybe I didn't really pay attention to it tho. Just feel weird from the first click of "Play" button.
Btw, MF, is the PF IX even polarized, ie. severely lack of bass and treble?
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I think the weirdness of the Piano Fortes (or "uniqueness" for the more sensitive souls out there) largely stems from their extremely mid-centric signature. The lows and highs are very rolled off. The mids themselves are very thick and viscous. So you get a very warm and blanketed sound, but at the same time the open design results in a very cavernous large-scale sound. It's almost like listening to a bunch of old radios in a concert hall.
The Piano Forte II is similar in that it's very mid-centric, but it's far less refined and spatially nothing like the VIII, IX, and X.
Another problem is the fit. Even if you get the PFII and like that mid-centric sound, it'll give you absolutely no indication of whether you'll get a good fit on the others. All the PFs are unique in that they don't use tips, but rather flanges that are built into the housing itself. The IIs are significantly different however. In my case the II fits just fine, but the IX and X practically fall out of my ears (due to their shape, bigger size, and heavier weight). They're definitely not for portable use, but even just having them fall a foot or so onto your desk is nerve racking. So I experimented with foam tips stretched over the flange in an effort to give them more "grip."
The problem is, those types of solutions block the airflow. It borks the sense of spaciousness and gives them a more congested sound. I found a compromise by using them with the cable looped over my ear sans actual earhooks.
Wow, completely forgot forgot this thread again somehow in my delirium. But thanks a lot for the answer - I imagined it might be something along those lines. Might give them a shot!
Also, I'm going to Thailand on a family vacation later this year, so with some luck i might get around to try the 'big' PF's if i can find a Jaben store somewhere at some point...
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Well, just bought a pair of these, so here goes nothing... Hope i like them... If not, they're at the very least pretty p:3
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FWIW, they're photogenic. My PF IX is a beauty, just that it's so much troublesome to clean it everytime it touches my skins. An ultra fingerprint magnet.
But for the sound, well, YMMV. The appeal is there. There's no need to argue about the graphs, as it really is mid-centric. Like how I experienced the storms in HF FAD thread. I personally like it. But there are people who find it too weird to like.
Headphone Viking, "hoping to like them" is a challenge. LOL.
Oh ya, I give up on its openness (zero isolation). There's no need to block it because i guess it's what makes the sound so appealing.
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Headphone Viking, "hoping to like them" is a challenge. LOL.
Oh ya, I give up on its openness (zero isolation). There's no need to block it because i guess it's what makes the sound so appealing.
Ugh! Now I'm even more worried. I fear I will end up having to "pass them on" p:/
Well, lets see when they turn up - so far the postal services havent even registered the tracking number for some reason :S
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Pass them on like find two buyers and ship one side per to both and claim you didn't scam them?
What a joke.
Headphone Viking, "hoping to like them" is a challenge. LOL.
Oh ya, I give up on its openness (zero isolation). There's no need to block it because i guess it's what makes the sound so appealing.
Ugh! Now I'm even more worried. I fear I will end up having to "pass them on" p:/
Well, lets see when they turn up - so far the postal services havent even registered the tracking number for some reason :S
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Pass them on like find two buyers and ship one side per to both and claim you didn't scam them?
What a joke.
Headphone Viking, "hoping to like them" is a challenge. LOL.
Oh ya, I give up on its openness (zero isolation). There's no need to block it because i guess it's what makes the sound so appealing.
Ugh! Now I'm even more worried. I fear I will end up having to "pass them on" p:/
Well, lets see when they turn up - so far the postal services havent even registered the tracking number for some reason :S
No, as in see if anyone on my local forum want to try them, since they're quite the rarity here. And as always hope the postal-service gods are kind.
Its pretty common on my local forum to send gear on 'tour' so others can try it. Its quite hard to get your hands on much of the high end gear here, sadly. :'(
The market is ever growing though! popcorn
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If you're referring to what I think you are, I'll let you know it took me almost 6 months of calling different postal offices to find one of the packages that were lost that time, and the rest I never found, so if it caused anyone else even half the headaches or waste of time it did me, I feel sorry for them.
But 6 months is more than enough time spent on that in my book, so I'm not going to get in that discussion again.
On a sidenote, that hazzle is also the reason I now mostly deal nationally, with people I can actually meet etc. since that seems to prevent those sorts of problems - partially made me understand why many Americans refuse to trade/deal internationally...
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Wait...You put these things in your ear?....it's like you have mini lightning rods attached to your ears. Guess that makes you Frankenstein? On a serious note, the cable is really hard to see in that picture. Black on black doesn't work well.