dalethorn

So where did you get the Sennheiser tips?

I suppose you spam beats this way because they are so bad quality you can't sell them the normal way.

The Beats vendors push their product heavily on these forums, usually in the wrong topic areas. They do this hit-and-run style, because they know that their product has an inferior sound and can't compare to real headphones.

The PX-200ii I reviewed was purchased 2 years ago and has been used for about 200 hours. I was so happy with the EQ'd result that I decided to buy a new white one (mine was black). When I saw that J&R had some for only $49 USD I got one immediately. When it arrived I set up my 2 identical iPod Touch 64 gb players and plugged the 2 Headphones in for a comparison. Big difference in sound. Each iPod was the same - same exact content, same EQ setting. I had to play with the volume settings to get the midrange about the same for each headphone, and when all was said and done, I could see that the new PX-200ii had a much greater midrange output and consequently less bass and treble. I went over every square mm of the new headphone to see if there was any difference between it and the old one, and could not find the slightest difference. There are so many details on the exterior of the PX-200ii that I would have expected a manufacturing difference after 2 years. The fact that there wasn't means either Sennheiser's QC is extremely tight or the new headphone may have been manufactured at or near the same time as the original one. The first thing I thought of when I heard the difference in signatures was the earpads, but checking those carefully the old pads looked pretty much the same as the new ones. Since I'm nearsighted I can see extremely well close up. But the old pads could have changed in some way that isn't noticeable visually or by squeezing them to check for density and flex, so maybe 100 hours or so on the new headphone will adjust some of that out. The volume controls on each headphone were set at maximum, and I switched iPods just to be sure the 2 different players weren't making any difference. I also double-checked the differences with the Objective2 headphone amp using the FiiO LOD cable to bypass the iPods' volume controls. The O2 amp improved the sound noticeably, especially the bass, but didn't change the overall difference significantly. I will be using the new PX-200ii (mostly for portable use) exclusively for the next couple of weeks, so at the end of that time I'll retest them and see whether there is a burn-in effect or whether the earpads adjust somehow and if that makes any difference.

Good to know about Cowon. I feel like a slave to Apple sometimes.

http://www.stereophile.com/content/v-moda-...ers-review-dale Here's an item I found by surprise this week that I think everyone could use. Video and text review.

http://www.stereophile.com/content/sennhei...one-review-dale I could have done this experiment a long time ago if I just knew what the result would be. But the result is even better than I could imagine. Making the PX-200ii sound like something 3 times the price, with no downside. Text and video.

I'll tell you what I think Suell - I think you're spamming.

PM sent.

Thanks, that's something I wasn't aware of - how many spammers are selling fakes. It does make more sense now.

That must be a reason for most of the spam - fake brands.

Since it's deleted I can't tell what "spam like this" will look like. But that's OK - if it's Beats then it's probably obvious.

Compared to good high fidelity (i.e., neutral, accurate etc.) headphones, the Beats don't measure up. I tested the larger Beats at $300 USD and they had a big lower midrange emphasis that I could not correct with EQ, and the bass was dull. The smaller Beats at $200 USD was no better - they were bassier than the larger Beats, but were very uneven in sound. Instead of the small beats at $200 I would highly recommend the Vmoda M80, and possibly the new Philips Fidelio M1, and possibly the new B&W P3. Instead of the large beats at $300, you can get MUCH better sound with almost anything. Shure 940, German Maestro 8.35D, Philips Fidelio L1, Phiaton MS400.

Added earpad mod to above list of videos and images.

EDIT: Adding the "Brightness" earpad mod review: http://youtu.be/mKo2FvzssLI My short Youtube review of the SRH 1440: http://youtu.be/ro9ddGGqNPo Photos of the SRH-1440: http://dalethorn.com/Photos/Nikon9300/Head...ure_1440_01.jpg http://dalethorn.com/Photos/Nikon9300/Head...ure_1440_02.jpg http://dalethorn.com/Photos/Nikon9300/Head...ure_1440_03.jpg

To change the signature of the 1440 from similar to the 940 to very similar to the 1840, use 2 sets of 1440 or 1840 earpads. Remove the foam backings from the extra earpads and insert them into the 1440 earcups. So instead of one thin foam layer in each earcup (with the default earpads), you will now have 3 layers in each earcup. And the sound becomes almost identical to the 1840.

Adding Youtube video review: http://youtu.be/ro9ddGGqNPo There has been a lot of interest in the SRH-1440, with questions such as "Is it that much better than the SRH-940?", or "How does it compare to the SRH-1840 when it costs only about half as much?" I've had the 1840 for a couple of months, and since I've been happy with it I wasn't thinking about the 1440 until curiosity got the best of me and I finally ordered it. Since most reviews tend to bore you with lots of detail about cords, plugs and ear cushions before they get to the sound, I'll do the sound first and then describe the physical details after that. From the bass through the middle frequencies, the 1440 sounds pretty similar to the 1840 with very minor differences. Judging small differences is problematic, because those differences tend to move around the tone scale or even from one headphone to the other depending on the music tracks you're playing. In other words, track 'A' may have strong output at 200 hz and headphone 'A' may have some emphasis at that same frequency, effectively doubling the impression of that emphasis. If headphone 'B' is slightly recessed at that frequency, it would tend to cancel out the emphasis and sound "flatter" or smoother than headphone 'A'. But then the reverse may occur at a different frequency, so it's important to test with a lot of music tracks and see if there are any variances that are consistent with more than a few tracks. Where the 1840 has some forwardness or emphasis that's most noticeable around 1.0 to 1.5 khz (my impression), the 1440's emphasis seems to occur about an octave higher. This emphasis or forwardness is less than what I experienced with the Grado PS-500 which is an excellent headphone, so it's not a negative for the 1440 - merely noted for the review. Moving up to the "presence" region which I estimate to be around 4 to 6 khz - that part of the lower treble that makes voices and some instruments sound more (or less) "alive" - the 1440 is significantly more lively than the 1840, and that holds true all the way up to the sibilants region just below 10 khz. The highs above 10 khz are very similar between the 1440 and 1840, and typical for most high-end headphones. The overall sound of the 1440 in the "brightness" area from approximately 4 khz through 9 khz is very similar to the Shure SRH-940, which many people consider to be on the bright side of neutral. My years of experience with high-end headphones and music media tells me that it could go either way, depending on what you listen to. So while the 1440 is brighter than the 1840 and sibilants are stronger accordingly, I have only one music track out of 1600 where sibilants are bothersome with the 1440. See the additional notes in the music track listings below. My final impression of the SRH-1440 sound is that it's an ultra-hifi headphone that has superb balance, smoothness, detail, and which benefits greatly from the best source material and amplifier you can use with it. Some of my testing was done with the iPad-3 playing through its line-out dock port into an Objective-2 headphone amp (purchased from JDS Labs, assembled), and some with a desktop PC and Foobar2000 software playing FLAC format music tracks. A more ideal configuration would be a good DAC running from the desktop or laptop USB, feeding into a decent headphone amp like the Objective2 or better, but given the spectacular sound I'm getting already I have no doubts about the ultimate quality of the SRH-1440 headphone. The 1440 has a proprietary double-entry detachable cable that's about seven feet long and straight (not coiled), terminated by a standard straight (not angled) miniplug. A 1/4 inch (6.35mm) adapter is supplied and screws onto the miniplug. I can't be certain whether the miniplug would fit into any of the recessed sockets on music players that have such things, but the threaded portion of the plug ahead of the business end is 7mm in diameter including the threads. The cord is made up of two side-by-side strands that are bonded together, where each strand is 3mm thick, and those two strands separate at a strain-relief and join the earcups 'Y'-style. Many people feel that single-entry headphone cables are a better choice because they're more convenient, i.e. they don't get tangled as much as double-entry cables. The price for that convenience is potentially worse sound due partly to the fact that the total cable length going to each driver is different, and partly to the requirement for a thin cable running across the headband to get the signal to the second earcup. Fortunately, the 1440 matches my personal preference. The SRH-1440 comes with two identical cables, the 6.5mm adapter, an extra set of velour earpads, and a semi-hard carrycase that affords good protection when transporting the headphone. Since the 1440's cable has a standard miniplug with optional 6.5mm adapter, one might assume that Shure intended that it could be used with portable music players. Since laptop and desktop computers also have miniplug jacks, and because the 1440 is less efficient than many of the headphones that are typically used with portable music players, I'm going to assume that the intent for the miniplug is to be used primarily with computers. I did try a few relatively low-volume tracks with the iPod Touch alone, and while those were adequate for playback indoors where it's fairly quiet, they might not be adequate for playback on-the-go. If you do require that kind of playback with the 1440, you will probably need to increase the volume of at least some of your music tracks. The earpads are fully circumaural and plush velour, with openings that measure approximately 1-5/8 by 2-1/2 inches. The inside of the cups have cloth-covered thin spongy pads so the ears don't contact anything that would cause discomfort. The earcups appear to be a type of high-grade plastic, with a headband that's metal alloy internally which provides good flexibility, moderate clamping force, and good stability with no tendency to shift when I move my head around. Compared to the 1840, the 1440 is slightly heavier which is not very significant to me, but the clamping force is much stronger - a lot like the Sennheiser HD-600/650 headphones. Compared to the 600/650 though, I think the comfort will be much better long-term since the 1440 doesn't tend to get warm on my ears like the Sennheisers did, and the 1440 doesn't feel quite as claustrophobic either. The headband has small spongy pads underneath which feel very comfortable on my head, but if there is any tendency for discomfort in spite of the relatively light weight of the headphone, I recommend pulling the earcups down just slightly more than the minimum, to let most of the weight be borne by the earcups and not the headband. Note that the earcups have very little horizontal rotation, but that rotation combined with a generous vertical rotation allows alignment of the earcups to fit nearly anyone's head. The SRH-1440 is a good-looking headphone if you've seen photos of it, so it has a modest bling factor that you don't have to pay a premium for. I would rate its appearance as 8 out of 10 and I would rate its comfort factor at least a 7.5. The reason the appearance doesn't get a 9 or better is because the 1440 isn't a fashion headphone, so my subjective rating of 8 is probably as good as you can get for a serious hi-fi product like this. The reason I didn't rate the comfort higher is because the 1440 is a full-size headphone with moderate clamping pressure to keep it stable on your head. Being an open-back design, the SRH-1440 has almost no isolation. The soundstage is comparable to the SRH-1840 and slightly better than the SRH-940, which might surprise some users who aren't aware of the 940's above-average soundstage for a closed-back design. Listening to the 1440 I never get a sense of constriction, compression or any other such quality - the sound is always airy and effortless. Now that I've covered the basics of the sound, it's time to describe how the SRH-1440 sounds with a variety of music that's available on CD's or as high-quality downloads from Internet music stores. I've used the following examples in other reviews, so these will serve as good test tracks for this review and the results can also be compared to the results noted in the other reviews. Bauhaus - Bela Lugosi's Dead (~1980): Strong midrange sound effects - this is a good worst-case test for resonant-type sounds in the most sensitive midrange area. Handled very well by the SRH-1440. Beethoven Symphony 9, Solti/CSO (1972): Excellent overall sound and particularly striking how the SRH-1440 reproduces the triangles, bells and other background instruments that are often obscured with other headphones that have limited high frequency response. Of special note for this headphone are the bass impacts beginning around 10:30 of the fourth movement. Blues Project - Caress Me Baby (1966): Rarely mentioned, but one of the greatest white blues recordings ever. The loud piercing guitar sound at 0:41 into the track is a good test for distortion or other problems. Handled well here. Boz Scaggs - Lowdown (1976): Good sound quality - this is a great test for any nasality in the midrange. Handled very well by the SRH-1440. Buffalo Springfield - Kind Woman (~1968): A Richie Furay song entirely, rarely mentioned, but one of the best sounding rock ballads ever. This will sound good on most headphones, but it's a special treat with the SRH-1440. Cat Stevens - Morning Has Broken (early 70's): A near-perfect test for overall sound - this track will separate the best sounding headphones from the lesser quality types. Nothing specific, except that almost any deviation from perfect reproduction will stand out with this track. Catherine Wheel - Black Metallic (~1991): Goth with industrial overtones - I like this since it's a great music composition and the sound effects are smoothly integrated into the mix. This may sound distorted or mushy with some headphones, but the SRH-1440 renders the deliberate instrumental distortions clearly. Def Leppard - Bringin' On The Heartbreak (1981): MTV goth/pop/metal at its best - good ambience and high energy - the better headphones will separate the details and make for a good experience. Lesser quality and the details tend to mush together. J.S. Bach - E. Power Biggs Plays Bach in the Thomaskirche (~1970): Recorded on a tracker organ in East Germany, the tracks on this recording have the authentic baroque sound that Bach composed for, albeit the bellows are operated by motor today. The SRH-1440 plays the tones seamlessly through the upper limits of the organ, which are near the upper limits of my hearing. Jamming With Edward - It Hurts Me Too (1969): Intended originally as a test to fill studio down time and set recording levels etc., this was released a few years later for hardcore Rolling Stones fans. Although not as good technically in every aspect as the Chess studio recordings of 1964, and in spite of the non-serious vocals by Mick Jagger, this rates very high on my list of white blues recordings, and sounds absolutely delicious with the SRH-1440. Jimmy Smith - Basin Street Blues (early 60's): This track has some loud crescendos of brass and other instruments that don't sound clean and musical on some headphones. The SRH-1440 provides excellent reproduction. Listen particularly to the second crescendo at 15 seconds in, for maximum detail effect. Ladytron - Destroy Everything You Touch (~2009): Featured in The September Issue, this song has heavy overdub and will sound a bit muddy on some headphones. Milt Jackson/Wes Montgomery - Delilah (Take 3) (1962): The vibraphone is heavily dependent on harmonics to sound right, and the SRH-1440 plays it superbly. Pink Floyd/Dark Side of the Moon - Speak To Me (1973): Strong deep bass impacts will be heard and felt here. Rolling Stones - Stray Cat Blues (1968): Dirty, gritty blues that very few white artists could match. On some headphones the vocals and guitar lack the edge and fall more-or-less flat. If you're a really good person, playing this song will probably make you feel nervous and uneasy. Tony Bennett - I Left My Heart In San Francisco (1962): Frank Sinatra's favorite singer. Highest recommendation. With some of the best headphones, the sibilants on this recording are very strong, but they're not bad with the SRH-1440.

The HD-800 has certain specific features that justify at least part of the money. Very large size but very comfortable. Larger soundstage due to larger earcups. The harmonics seem more extended than other headphones, but I've never seen an explanation for that. If someone offered me either the Sennheiser HD-800 or the Shure 1840 for free, I'd take the Shure because it has the same range, same smoothness, same comfort and build quality, slightly less soundstage, but less of the brightness and irritation. Comparing then to the DT-48A with oval pads, the DT-48A requires some adjustment because of the tight fit, and also gets warm after awhile, but there is no long-term discomfort for me like I get with some headphones that are OK when I first put them on, but after awhile are uncomfortable. The bass is decent once you get a good earpad seal, which may take a minute. The result sound is probably the closest thing you can get to listening right through the microphones to the actual performance. For good quality recordings this is the ideal situation, and for low-quality recordings you get an even better idea of the quality problems. The DT-48A does not exaggerate anything for detail or whatever - it probably does less enhancement of the sound than any headphone, including the bass, which is why there is a widespread perception that its bass is lighter than normal. Don't get a DT-48A if you mostly listen to music while doing other things such as working or gaming. This is a headphone you want to pay attention with.

Adding Youtube review, 24 March 2012. http://youtu.be/r9jRuq0Yuew The Bose OE2i is one of the niftiest headphone designs I've ever seen, fitting into the supplied zippered case that's 5.0 x 5.25 x 1.5 inches thick when closed. This case can even fit into an ordinary man's jeans back pocket, although you would not want to sit on it. Bose warns about twisting the earcups past their design limit when rotating them, or applying any other pressures that could break the plastic parts. Unfolded and ready for use, they look like an ordinary on-ear headphone, and I never would have guessed they could fit into such a small carrycase. Besides being ultra-portable in the tiny carrycase, the OE2i can be worn around your neck all day long when not in use, by pulling the earcups all the way down so they don't bump against your chin. The earpads are oval and flat - some kind of soft spongy material, perforated in the center where the sound comes out, and more or less identical to the earpads of the Bose QC3 or the B&W P5. The headphone weighs next to nothing, but the earpads put a mild pressure on the ears. I have headphones that weigh 10 times as much and exert 10 times the ear pressure, which doesn't bother me, but even the very mild pressure of the OE2i might bother people who aren't used to wearing headphones. The headband is padded on the top and bottom, but for people who are bothered by even the slightest pressure on top of their head, I recommend pulling the earcups down a slight bit more than the minimum necessary for the fit, so the very light weight of the headphone is borne mostly by the earcups and not the headband. The headband has an internal metal construction, but how far the metal extends either way I can't tell since all I can see of the internal part is 1.5 inches on either side when the earcups are pulled all the way down. The cable with a diameter of 2 mm is thin, but not quite as thin as the B&W P5's cable. The cable is single-sided and detachable, 4.5 ft.long, and terminated by a 45 degree angled miniplug. Apparently the OE2i differs from the OE2 only by the cable type - the OE2i having the Apple i-device controls. What is odd is the large price difference between the OE2 and OE2i, and that I don't see a replacement cable on the Bose site that has Apple controls. Perhaps there is a difference besides the cables? I don't know - the OE2i cable does detach, and the earcup end of the cable looks like a standard sub-miniplug, but what the point would be of detaching if the only replacement cable is the one without the controls, I don't know. The OE2i is apparently intended to be a semi-open design, which leaks a small amount of sound when played loudly. This headphone might be OK for cubicle use when played at moderate volumes, but that's going to depend partly on the ambient noise level in the office, and partly on the sensitivity of the person(s) in the adjoining cubicles. The soundstage is about what I would expect of this type of design - not particularly wide or deep, but not especially constricted or closed-in either. The clarity and resolution seem typical to me for a small lightweight headphone - fine for portable use, but not as refined as the better headphones made for home/desktop use. The default sound of the OE2i played flat with no EQ is rolled off somewhat on the high end compared to the more expensive headphones I have, so I applied "treble boost" EQ with the iPod Touch and iPhone4, and equivalent compensation when using Foobar2000 on the desktop computer. This EQ compensation made the overall response of the OE2i very similar to my better headphones, with just a few minor differences you would expect from a small lightweight headphone. Despite the treble boost, sibilants were less noticeable than with all but one of my more expensive headphones - the Shure SRH-1840 which sells for 4 times as much. I was not able to find specs such as impedance and sensitivity for the OE2i, but the efficiency is high enough to play average volume tracks loudly on iPods and iPhones. Bass response is a very hot ticket with headphones these days, and many if not most of the headphones in the OE2i's price range are quite bassy. The Bose OE2i is not a bassy headphone in that sense - in fact its bass is lighter in strength compared to most of the better hi-fi headphones that don't have boosted bass. When real bass is present on the music track however, the impacts are very solid and gratifying. In spite of the very critical appraisal I made above, I find the sound quality of the OE2i good not only for portable use, but quite satisfactory for home use if a headphone made specifically for desktop hi-fi systems isn't handy. A concern I had with the OE2i was the EQ I assumed that Bose applied to this headphone, possibly through passive electronic components in the earcups. Since I also applied treble boost EQ externally, I worried that the combination could introduce audible peaks and dips into the response, so I listened closely for any of those. So far nothing strikes me as significantly unbalanced. In the several headphone reviews I've done to date, I haven't suggested doing any burn-in as the initial listening with those (more expensive) headphones indicated a smooth sound that wouldn't change significantly after perhaps 50 to 100 hours of use. In the case of the Bose OE2i, I would suggest at least 30 to 50 hours of play time at good volume with dynamic music tracks before making a final judgement about the sound quality. Nothing specific - just a hunch. Now that I've covered the basics of the sound, it's time to describe how the OE2i sounds with a variety of music that's available on CD's or as high-quality downloads from Internet music stores. I've used the following examples in other reviews, so these will serve as good test tracks for this review and the results can also be compared to the results noted in the other reviews. Bauhaus - Bela Lugosi's Dead (~1980): Strong midrange sound effects - this is a good worst-case test for resonant-type sounds in the most sensitive midrange area. Handled very well by the OE2i. Blues Project - Caress Me Baby (1966): Rarely mentioned, but one of the greatest white blues recordings ever. The loud piercing guitar sound at 0:41 into the track is a good test for distortion or other problems. Handled pretty well by the OE2i. Boz Scaggs - Lowdown (1976): Good sound quality - this is a great test for any nasality in the midrange. Handled very well by the OE2i. Buffalo Springfield - Kind Woman (~1968): A Richie Furay song entirely, rarely mentioned, but one of the best sounding rock ballads ever. This will sound good on most headphones, but it's very good with the OE2i. Cat Stevens - Morning Has Broken (early 70's): A near-perfect test for overall sound - this track will separate the best sounding headphones from the lesser quality types. Nothing specific, except that almost any deviation from perfect reproduction will stand out with this track. Sounds good on the OE2i. Catherine Wheel - Black Metallic (~1991): Goth with industrial overtones - I like this since it's a great music composition and the sound effects are smoothly integrated into the mix. This may sound distorted or mushy with some headphones, but the OE2i renders the deliberate instrumental distortions clearly. Def Leppard - Bringin' On The Heartbreak (1981): MTV goth/pop/metal at its best - good ambience and high energy - the better headphones will separate the details and make for a good experience. Lesser quality and the details tend to mush together. Rendered well by the OE2i. J.S. Bach - E. Power Biggs Plays Bach in the Thomaskirche (~1970): Recorded on a tracker organ in East Germany, the tracks on this recording have the authentic baroque sound that Bach composed for, albeit the bellows are operated by motor today. The OE2i plays the tones seamlessly through the upper limits of the organ, which are near the upper limits of my hearing. Jamming With Edward - It Hurts Me Too (1969): Intended originally as a test to fill studio down time and set recording levels etc., this was released a few years later for hardcore Rolling Stones fans. Although not as good technically in every aspect as the Chess studio recordings of 1964, and in spite of the non-serious vocals by Mick Jagger, this rates very high on my list of white blues recordings, and sounds very good with the OE2i. Jimmy Smith - Basin Street Blues (early 60's): This track has some loud crescendos of brass and other instruments that don't sound clean and musical on some headphones. The OE2i provides good reproduction - obviously superior to most lo-fi or cheap headphones, but not quite as detailed as the more expensive headphones I have. Listen particularly to the second crescendo at 15 seconds in, for maximum detail effect. Ladytron - Destroy Everything You Touch (~2009): Featured in The September Issue, this song has heavy overdub and will sound a bit muddy on some headphones. Sounds very good with the OE2i. Milt Jackson/Wes Montgomery - Delilah (Take 3) (1962): The vibraphone is heavily dependent on harmonics to sound right, and the OE2i plays it very well. Pink Floyd/Dark Side of the Moon - Speak To Me (1973): Strong deep bass impacts will be heard and felt here. Rolling Stones - Stray Cat Blues (1968): Dirty, gritty blues that very few white artists could match. On some headphones the vocals and guitar lack the edge and fall more-or-less flat. If you're a really good person, playing this song will probably make you feel nervous and uneasy. Tony Bennett - I Left My Heart In San Francisco (1962): Frank Sinatra's favorite singer. Highest recommendation. With some of the best headphones, the sibilants on this recording are very strong, but they're no problem at all with the OE2i.

Here's a little comparison someone asked me for, using my 9 current headphones. My Webpage Tonight I did a more detailed listen, after midnight when the background noise level is nil, comparing the mids and highs of the L1 to the Shure SRH-1840, the Grado PS-500, and the Beyerdynamic DT-48A (the all-time king of midrange). The default bass of the L1 is so overpowering that other reviewers are missing what the L1 is capable of, since none that I'm aware of have admitted a willingness to test the sound with bass reduction. I used several tracks that have acoustic instrumental sounds as well as voices, particularly the acoustic version of Al Stewart's Year Of The Cat. I found the DT-48A to be too bright, and that brightness was obvious in all of the instrumental tones in Year of the Cat especially. The PS-500 had less of the high-end brightness that the DT-48A exhibited, but its emphasis around 1.5 to 2.5 khz made it less palatable than the L1. The SRH-1840 sounded somewhat dull compared to the L1. In all cases, the L1 equalled or exceeded the other headphones in musical detail.

The Philips L1 reminds me of the best loudspeakers I ever had - not as large of a sonic picture being a headphone, but much of the same character and impact which my other headphones don't quite match. Played flat (no EQ) the L1 doesn't just have bass - you are in the bass, immersed as it were. And unlike other bassy headphones I've heard, this one is clean, clear and doesn't mask a less-than-ideal midrange and treble. In fact, those upper ranges are as smooth and silky as I would expect of something that costs twice as much. Since I normally prefer a so-called "flat" bass signature, I double-checked all of my tests of the L1 with a bit of bass reduction, and - no exaggeration - this is one amazing sounding headphone. I need to describe the physical characteristics before I get back to the sound, but I want to mention that many times while listening to the L1, it seemed like I was listening to an analog system - like there's a body to the music that's not quite there in a digital system. I would go so far as to say that you get two headphones for the price of one with the L1 - a very strong bass for users who demand that feature, and a perfectly-balanced audiophile-type signature available at the touch of a (EQ) button. With many headphones EQ means an imperfect adjustment with uneven results. Not with the L1. The Philips L1 has a short (5 inch) cable at the bottom of the left earcup terminated by a stereo mini-plug, to which you attach the regular headphone cable that has a mini-jack on one end and a straight (not angled) mini-plug on the other end. The L1 comes with 2 cables, each about 4 feet long, 3.5mm thick and fabric-covered. One of the two cables has Apple i_device controls. If the cables would ever fail, you could substitute any common headphone extension cord with mini-plug and mini-jack ends. A 1/4 inch (6.35mm) adapter is supplied, and unlike many other 1/4 inch adapters today, this one isn't threaded. This is the type I prefer, since it makes a more secure connection. Just behind the actual mini-plug end of the cable is the cylindrical gripper that's 7mm in diameter. I can't be certain whether the miniplug would fit into any of the recessed sockets on music players that have such things, since that socket might have to accomodate part of the gripper piece. The earpads are fully circumaural with openings that measure approximately 1-5/8 by 2-1/4 inches. The earpads are thick memory foam that should provide a good seal, and are covered by a type of pleather. There's a significant grip to this headphone, but after 3 hours it's been very comfortable with no complaints. The earcups appear to be mostly high-grade plastic, with a headband of metal alloy that provides good flexibility. Since the earcups rotate flat and pull down quite far, the L1 can be worn around the neck all day when not in use, which makes it very portable. The carry bag issued with the L1 should be good for dust protection when transporting, but offers no impact protection. The headband has a stitched leather cover surrounding it which feels very comfortable on my head, but if there is any tendency for discomfort in spite of the light weight of the headphone, I recommend pulling the earcups down just slightly more than the minimum, to let most of the weight be borne by the earcups and not the headband. The Philips L1 is a nice-looking headphone if you've seen photos of it, so it has a modest bling factor that you don't have to pay a premium for. I would rate its appearance as 8.5 out of 10 and I would rate its comfort factor at about 8. The reason the appearance doesn't get a 9 or better is because the L1 isn't a fashion headphone, so my subjective rating of 8.5 is probably as good as you can get for a serious hi-fi product like this. The reason I didn't rate the comfort higher is because the L1 is a full-size headphone with moderate clamping pressure to keep it stable on your head. Having said that, I haven't experienced any discomfort in several hours of continuous use. The L1 is specified as a "semi-open" design, which I assumed would provide moderate isolation along with the larger apparent soundstage of many open-back headphones. My feeling is that the soundstage is good for a closed headphone, but nothing beyond that. The isolation is very modest, and a specific example is where I had an iPad on a table 3 feet away playing a song at moderate volume through its internal speaker. Putting the headphone on, the vocal lost its presence and "air", but the voice had about the same volume and I could hear the words clearly. Sibilants seem less bothersome with the L1 than most other premium headphones I've used, in spite of the fact that the upper end of the L1's response is there in full strength. This indicates a very smooth treble, and my experience so far with about 200 tracks in many different genres tends to confirm that. I expected the L1 to be very efficient with portable music players since the impedance is 26 ohms and the sensitivity rated at 105 db/1mw. However, while my Shure 1840 is rated at 96 db/1mw, the actual difference I hear after matching midrange levels is about 2 db. Connected to an iPod Touch, I haven't had a problem with too low of a volume on any tracks I've played so far, but outdoor use with low-volume music tracks could be a problem for some users. For this review I mostly used a Dell desktop with premium soundcard playing FLAC format tracks in Foobar2000. Some of those tracks, notably certain recordings by David Chesky, sound so amazingly good with the L1 that I'm often startled by their realism and clarity. Some tracks that I use I don't have FLAC copies of, and those MP3's (320k CBR) sound nearly as good on the iPod Touch connected via the line out dock to an Objective2 "assembled" headphone amp as they do on the desktop computer. A more ideal configuration would be a good DAC running from the desktop or laptop USB, feeding into a decent headphone amp like the Objective2 or better, but given the spectacular sound I'm getting already I have no doubts about the ultimate quality of the L1 headphone. Now that I've covered the basics of the sound, it's time to describe how the Philips L1 sounds with a variety of music that's available on CD's or as high-quality downloads from Internet music stores. I've used the following examples in other reviews, so these will serve as good test tracks for this review and the results can also be compared to the results noted in the other reviews. 10000 Maniacs - Peace Train (late 80's); pleasant sound, great details and good soundstage depth. Andrea True Connection - More More More (late 70's): Classic disco, very smooth, big soundstage. Bauhaus - Bela Lugosi's Dead (~1980): Strong midrange sound effects - this is a good worst-case test for resonant-type sounds in the most sensitive midrange area. Handled very well by the L1. Beatles - And I Love Her, Things We Said Today, I'll Be Back, I'll Follow The Sun (~1964, in stereo): Amazing sound quality and decent soundstage, with excellent voice and instrument detail. These four tracks are a perfect example of how good high fidelity recordings could be as far back as the 1960's. Beethoven Symphony 9, Solti/CSO (1972): Excellent overall sound and particularly striking how the L1 reproduces the triangles, bells and other background instruments that are often obscured with other headphones that have limited high frequency response. Of special note for this headphone are the bass impacts beginning around 10:30 of the fourth movement. Bill Evans Trio - Nardis (early 60's): Fairly close-up recording, and despite soft highs, excellent instrumental detail, particularly the upright bass and piano. Billy Eckstine - Imagination (date??): Sounds like a recent high-quality stereo recording. Excellent from top to bottom, wide soundstage and overall a great vocal demo. Blood Sweat & Tears - And When I Die, God Bless The Child, Spinning Wheel (late 60's): Excellent sound quality, and fortunately (I think) given the strength of the brass instruments, the highs are slightly soft. Blues Project - Caress Me Baby (1966): Rarely mentioned, but one of the greatest white blues recordings ever. The loud piercing guitar sound at 0:41 into the track is a good test for distortion or other problems. Handled very well here. Boz Scaggs - Lowdown (1976): Good sound quality - this is a great test for any nasality in the midrange. Handled very well by the L1. Buffalo Springfield - Kind Woman (~1968): A Richie Furay song entirely, rarely mentioned, but one of the best sounding rock ballads ever. This will sound good on most headphones, but it's a special treat with the L1. Cat Stevens - Morning Has Broken (early 70's): A near-perfect test for overall sound - this track will separate the best sounding headphones from the lesser quality types. Nothing specific, except that almost any deviation from perfect reproduction will stand out with this track. Catherine Wheel - Black Metallic (~1991): Goth with industrial overtones - I like this since it's a great music composition and the sound effects are smoothly integrated into the mix. This may sound distorted or mushy with some headphones, but the L1 renders the deliberate instrumental distortions clearly. Cocteau Twins - Carolyn's Fingers (1988): Unusual ambient pop with excellent guitar details. Commodores - Night Shift (~1985): Good spacious sound with very detailed bass guitar lines. Cranes - Adoration (~1991): Excellent piano sound leading into a goth-flavored song with very unusual vocals. Creedence Clearwater Revival - The Midnight Special (1969??): Classic CCR featured in Twilight Zone, this track has great guitar sounds and a really good ambience despite a mediocre soundstage. Dave Brubeck Quartet - Take Five (1959): Paul Desmond piece - good test of saxophone sound and cymbals, less so most of the other instruments. Dead Can Dance - Ariadne (1993??): Atmospheric goth music - good ambience in spite of mediocre soundstage. Def Leppard - Bringin' On The Heartbreak (1981): MTV goth/pop/metal at its best - good ambience and high energy - the better headphones will separate the details and make for a good experience. Lesser quality and the details tend to mush together. Del Reeves - Girl On The Billboard (early-mid 70's): Classic truck-drivin' country tune with a Thelma & Louise theme, this song's overall recorded quality (almost typical of Nashville in the 70's) is a superb demo if you can get past the peculiar lyrics. d*ck Hyman - Dooji Wooji (1990??): Swing-era composition played with perfect technique by all band members, with excellent recorded sound. Frank Sinatra - Theme From New York, New York (1980): Ultimate Sinatra with big band production and well-balanced sound. J.S. Bach - E. Power Biggs Plays Bach in the Thomaskirche (~1970): Recorded on a tracker organ in East Germany, the tracks on this recording have the authentic baroque sound that Bach composed for, albeit the bellows are operated by motor today. The L1 plays the tones seamlessly through the upper limits of the organ, which are near the upper limits of my hearing. Jamming With Edward - It Hurts Me Too (1969): Intended originally as a test to fill studio down time and set recording levels etc., this was released a few years later for hardcore Rolling Stones fans. Although not as good technically in every aspect as the Chess studio recordings of 1964, and in spite of the non-serious vocals by Mick Jagger, this rates very high on my list of white blues recordings, and sounds absolutely delicious with the L1. Jim Ruiz Group - Katerine (1998?): Unusually spacious and ambient indie-pop recording with a samba flavor. Every pop song should sound this good, in my opinion. Jimmy Smith - Basin Street Blues (early 60's): This track has some loud crescendos of brass and other instruments that don't sound clean and musical on some headphones. The L1 provides excellent reproduction. Listen particularly to the second crescendo at 15 seconds in, for maximum detail effect. Kim Carnes - Bette Davis Eyes (Acoustic version, 2006?): Stripped-down ("acoustic") version of the big hit - good voice and excellent guitar sounds. Ladytron - Destroy Everything You Touch (~2009): Featured in The September Issue, this song has heavy overdub and will sound a bit muddy on some headphones. Merle Haggard - Okie From Muskogee (1969): Another good-quality country recording with almost-acoustic guitar accompaniment. Lovely guitar sounds. Milt Jackson/Wes Montgomery - Delilah (Take 3) (1962): The vibraphone is heavily dependent on harmonics to sound right, and the L1 plays it superbly. Nylons - The Lion Sleeps Tonight (A Capella version, 1980's): High-energy vocals sans instrumental accompaniment - an excellent test of vocal reproduction. Pink Floyd/Dark Side of the Moon - Speak To Me (1973): Strong deep bass impacts will be heard and felt here. Rolling Stones - Stray Cat Blues (1968): Dirty, gritty blues that very few white artists could match. On some headphones the vocals and guitar lack the edge and fall more-or-less flat. If you're a really good person, playing this song will probably make you feel nervous and uneasy. Tony Bennett - I Left My Heart In San Francisco (1962): Frank Sinatra's favorite singer. Highest recommendation. With some of the best headphones, the sibilants on this recording are very strong, but they're not bad with the L1.

I was reading about someone else's experience with the HiFiMan ortho 'phones on another site, and their explanation of how that type of driver presents sound that ordinary dynamics can't quite do. It reminded me of the time I heard someone's Magnepan speakers, which I think are similar in principle - driving from multiple points on the grid. I had a Yamaha ortho 'phone in the late 1970's, which was primitive then and didn't sound all that great, but unless I missed something there weren't any real breakthroughs in this type of headphone until the past few years with the LCD's and the HiFiMan's. It's even more interesting that big companies like Beyerdynamic and Sennheiser are not making anything like this. Beyer and Senn also canceled their electrostatic programs some years ago.

I like the idea of a forum to exchange ideas, yes. But my experience with the Really Big forum wasn't that way. There, they had senior members who had special privileges to curse other members, threaten them and get away with it, and even demand(!) an answer to their questions, and when you didn't answer, you got banned. So here it has been much, much better.

Sometimes I wonder what those interests are. But then, maybe something I don't want to know...

Banned is not the worst thing. Worse is the crazy argument that says "It's clearer" and "It has no graininess", then later "It has less details". It makes a person want to buy it just to prove which is right. -- Oops - that is the plan then - get you to buy. OK, now I get it. Thank you headfi.(???)