Headphone Reviews

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Art Dudley ListeningHeadphone Reviews
Listening #158
Art Dudley  |  Feb 10, 2016  |  8 comments
In my sophomore year of high school, one of the greatest challenges my friends and I faced was the search for the perfect after-school hangout, perfect being defined as "having the least amount of adult supervision." Some of us lived in single-parent homes, but only one had a single parent for whom weekday surprise inspections were impossible, and that was Scott. So Scott's place—a downstairs apartment in a nice older house not far from school—got the nod.
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Headphone ReviewsInnerFidelity
V-MODA Crossfade Wireless a Mixed Bag
Tyll Hertsens  |  Jan 30, 2016  |  0 comments
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com

In the end I think these are pretty good for a wireless headphone, but you're going to have to wade through a lot of mixed feelings from me to get there.

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Budget Component ReviewsDigital Processor ReviewsHeadphone Reviews
Chord Electronics Mojo D/A headphone amplifier
John Atkinson  |  Jan 27, 2016  |  29 comments
Like all men, I learned at an early age to resist the allure of a pretty face.

Okay—I learned that I should try to resist the allure of a pretty face.

Okay, I confess: I have never been able to resist the allure of a pretty face. Which is why, when I first clapped eyes on the Mojo D/A headphone amplifier from English company Chord Electronics, at an event hosted by Manhattan retailer Stereo Exchange, I had to borrow a sample for review.

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Budget Component ReviewsDigital Processor ReviewsHeadphone Reviews
Apogee Electronics Groove D/A headphone amplifier
Jon Iverson  |  Dec 22, 2015  |  0 comments
Apogee Electronics Corp. has been in business for 30 years, and I've always thought of them as one of the pro-audio companies responsible for moving digital in the right direction. They've made their mark in recording studios around the planet with digital-audio interfaces and master clocks that have long been considered some of the most technically and sonically advanced, and that were probably used in a high percentage of the recordings in your collection. So when I saw Apogee pop up at the consumer end of the market with a technically unique product, budget-priced at $295, it got my attention.
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Headphone ReviewsInnerFidelity
A Surprisingly Successful Dual Driver Headphone: The Enigmacoustics Dharma D1000
Tyll Hertsens  |  Dec 18, 2015  |  0 comments
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com

The room was crazy loud at CES last year, but even through the cacophony the new dual-driver (dynamic/electret) Enigmacoustics Dharma had something special.

The question is how special?

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Headphone ReviewsInnerFidelity
A DIYers Delight: The Fostex T50RP Mk3
Tyll Hertsens  |  Dec 05, 2015  |  0 comments
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com

The most modified headphone in the hobby, now modified by its maker. A terrific job, and done in a way virtually impossible for DIYers to achieve, but continues to allow similar modifications as the previous model.

It seems to me hobbyists have an excellent new starting platform for another round of modding!

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Gramophone DreamsHeadphone Reviews
Gramophone Dreams #7
Herb Reichert  |  Dec 02, 2015  |  8 comments
The golden rays pouring in through the left oculus transport a tiny child carrying a cross: ". . . the devil was vanquished, as if he had just swallowed the bait in the mousetrap." In his essay "'Muscipula Diaboli,' The Symbolism of the Mérode Altarpiece," the late art historian Meyer Schapiro explains how every object, every surface—even the smoke, light, and volume of space—depicted in the famous triptych by Robert Campin (ca 1375–1444) is a coded symbol explicating the mystical underpinnings of Netherlandish Protestantism.
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Headphone ReviewsInnerFidelity
A Look at the Torque t402v Bass Adjustable Headphone
Tyll Hertsens  |  Nov 24, 2015  |  0 comments
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com

I spent all day yesterday measuring the two different pads with four filters each of the Torque t402v headphone.

Some things just don't go as expected.

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Headphone ReviewsInnerFidelity
The Exceptionally Pleasing HiFiMAN HE1000 Planar Magnetic Headphone
Tyll Hertsens  |  Nov 20, 2015  |  0 comments
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com

I'd like to believe that neutrality, low-distortion, and excellence in transient response is what leads to a satisfying listening experience.

The HE1000 makes me question that belief.

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Headphone ReviewsInnerFidelity
"The Empiric" a DIY Headphone Worth a Shout-Out!
Tyll Hertsens  |  Nov 18, 2015  |  0 comments
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com

When I get stopped in my tracks I just need to say something.

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Headphone ReviewsInnerFidelity
Cool and Confident: Mr. Speakers Ether Planar Magnetic Headphones
Tyll Hertsens  |  Nov 06, 2015  |  0 comments
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com

Mr. Speakers first fully in-house designed and manufactured headphone seems to deliver quite nicely in the top-of-the-line category.

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Headphone ReviewsInnerFidelity
The Terrific HiFiMAN HE400S Planar Magnetic Headphones
Tyll Hertsens  |  Oct 30, 2015  |  0 comments
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com

Watch out HD 600, there's a new headphone in town.

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Headphone ReviewsInnerFidelity
Shakin' it with the Subpac S2 Headphone Subwoofer
Tyll Hertsens  |  Oct 27, 2015  |  0 comments
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com

Over the years I've tried a number of headphone subwoofer gadgets. Most didn't work well at all. The Subpac S2 is a whole 'nother story.

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Headphone ReviewsInnerFidelity
Philips Fidelio M2L First Lightning Connector Headphone
Tyll Hertsens  |  Jul 08, 2015  |  0 comments
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com

The first Lightning cable headphone...but not the last, no doubt.

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Digital Processor ReviewsHeadphone Reviews
Aurender Flow D/A headphone amplifier
John Atkinson  |  Jun 11, 2015  |  0 comments
Aurender was a name new to me when I encountered the company at the 2015 Consumer Electronics Show, where they displayed a range of music servers designed in California and manufactured in South Korea. But what caught my attention in Aurender's suite was their Flow portable D/A headphone amplifier ($1295). This handsome, battery-powered device, housed in a machined aluminum case about twice the size of a pack of playing cards, offers optical S/PDIF and USB 2.0/3.0 input ports and a single ¼" stereo headphone jack. Two features distinguish the Flow from the pack: Its USB input can be used with iOS (iPhone/iPad) and Android smartphone sources, and it can accept an mSATA drive (not included in price) of up to 1TB capacity for internal storage of audio files. Visually, the Flow's distinguishing feature is its round LCD display, which stands proud of the faceplate; the bezel encircling the display acts as a velocity-sensitive volume control operating in 0.5dB steps.
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