Headfonics: Final Audio Heaven VIII review

Headfonics's review of the Final Audio Heaven VIII, about which I left a Brazilian strip of commentary, is a pretty good read, with which I mostly agree. That is, apart from the following:

“The treble of the Heaven VIII renders very well and typically has the great levels of extension and detail a balanced-armature driver provides. In drum and bass tracks, high hats decay fast and efficiently without being laidback in nature. In this sense, there is no spatial disconnect from the upper mids to the lower trebles which both share a sense of brightness in character. The sparkly clear highs make for an engaging presentation and truly satisfy those seeking extended highs without the compromise of rolled-off frequencies.”

Heaven VIII lacks the upper mid heat that has made a number of hi-end Final Audio earphones hard to listen to for long periods of time. VIII is smoother, and comparison to hitherto news-making balanced armature earphones from Final Audio, rolled off. It's got none of the dirty decay that accented some of the other mid-top end earphones. For that, I'm glad. 

The Headfonics review is a good, pithy review of a good, pithy earphone.

The Final Audio Heaven VIII

Disclaimer: Heaven VIII came through my studio for a few days thanks to a Headphone Book shoot.

Or, Lady Gaga's Final Heartbeats, whichever is easier to say, is Final's newest high-tier universal BAM! It sounds good. Very good. Strong, but linear bass, very slightly muted highs, and a detailed, but lush midrange. It is, in my opinion, their best-sounding balanced armature earphone. 

Unfortunately, it looks the way it does: like a smaller Beats by Dre Lady Gaga Heartbeats. The good news is that it is cool, heavy, and luxurious whereas the Beats isn't. Even Heaven VIII's flat cable is supple, soft, and resilient against microphonic noise. And I've never liked flat cables.

This is a nice earphone.

But the packaging: fake snake skin on the outside, fake beaver on the inside, is hideous. We Canadians love our beaver, but where there's muff, it's got to be real. Not that killing things in order to make an earphone is something I condone. I do not. But putting so much effort into faux materials, especially it at this price is, well... a little bit too Japanese for me. And, the fur shed all over my pine wood flooring. I'm still picking it out of the cracks. 

Heaven VIII goes for just north of 70.000¥, and despite its horrible packaging, it is an earphone that weighs heavy on my mind. 

NOTE: click images below to advance to the next frame.

Lachlan's Holiday Earphone Buying Guide 2014

Lachlan compares/contrasts nine different earphones. He also almost manages to hang himself. Hang in, Lach!

Be sure to subscribe to Lachlan Likes a Thing for more great videos.

DIY 0,40 calibre earphone

While the stress relief is probably inadequate, this DIY 0,40 calibre earphone is awesome.

via headfonia's Facebook page

Resetting the expectations for the mini-review: FitEar fitear at AV Watch

Poring over nutritional information won't tell you what your favourite hamburger will taste like. Neither will reading AV Watch (Japanese) give you a real idea of a product's sound, or worth.

That said, yesterday's AV Watch "mini review" of the FitEar fitear (about which I jingled early this year) makes my longest reviews at ohm read like jingles. In fact, it makes my Headfonia reviews read like 'mini reviews'. 

Still, AV Watch use a lot of space to say very little:

1. FitEar fitear's driver count is a secret (like Parterre)
2. new, compact design and fit
3. strong, direct sound with sharp transients
4. fitear helps you rediscover your music

The rest of the review is basic audiophile jargon and memes. As useless as it may be as an audio review of the earphone, it's a long wind up that re-imagines the word 'mini'. 

Source: “音への考えをリセット”したイヤフォン「fitear」。ドライバ数非公開、その実力は?

CNET: Toss your ear buds and get a decent headphone

Update: cleaned up the worst grammar boners.

We all get that included earbuds don't sound perfect, or isolate all that well. Steve, you're preaching to the choir. But telling people to toss (as in throw away) their earbuds is both mean, and short-sighted. 

Firstly, it is mean: there are millions of people with broken buds that neither need, nor want, better-sounding, or better-isolating, replacements. Finding one of these people should take two seconds. If you don't need your buds, hand them over to someone that does. You will save that person a few bucks, and our living space unnecessary pain.

No one should toss anything they don't need. Each of us should act responsibly. But if you can't act responsibly; if you absolutely have to toss your earbuds, by all means follow these simple steps:

1. kindly ask for Steve Guttenberg's address
2. gather as many unwanted buds as possible
3. drive to Steve's house
4. unload the back of your dumptruck on his garden
5. peel out

If you don't live too far, paperboy them on his lawn. Remember, it was his suggestion.

Musica Acoustics introduces Earsonics's Velvet earphones

UPDATE: this video is from 24 October, so it's not news. But Dimitri is a chum, and I love his Ygoring.

Favourite quote from the video: "It's actually very pleasant, how it feels in my ears."

Dimitri (Musica Acoustics's CEO) seems to be talking up Earsonics's strange new poison mushroom-shaped ear tip that comes with Velvet. Personally, I can't get a seal with it, nor do I like the connotation. Count me out. 

I've got Velvet in my ears now. I'm enjoying Arovane; Joy Division put salt streaks down my face before that.

Overall, Velvet is a very, very interesting earphone; and it is the first Earsonics earphone that doesn't come in a cheap plastic case, nor in a cheesy, and finger-tearing plastic package. The sound tube is a bit too flexible (though that may help it withstand daily strain), but there's little else to really complain about. The goods seem to outweigh the bads. They are:

1. same easy-to-drive Earsonics circuitry
2. same unsensitivity to background noise 
3. sound is: fusion between the laid back S-EM6 (reviewed here), the more exciting SM64 (reviewed here), and the weighty EM32 (reviewed here). 

And of course, the standout feature Earsonics are pushing is the variable bass tuning port, which I've yet to use. Use it I will. And remain impressed, I'm sure I will. 

My full review will hit Headfonia shores sometime in December. Till then, I'll rock some EDM, John Denver, and anything beaty from the 1990's to 2000's; oh, and of course, Duran Duran.

Velvet makes no enemies.

@Headfi: In-Depth Comparison: Ultimate Ears In-Ear Reference Monitor & Noble Audio 4C (Wizard Design)

tomscy2000's A/B comparison of the Ultimate Ears In-Ear Reference Monitor and the Noble Audio 4C clinches head-fi's role as the most complete source for all things headphone.

If you've not yet got a pot of coffee brewing, get one on. If you've yet to shave, don't. Tom's ~7.000-word essay goes better with a beard. 

In-Depth Comparison: Ultimate Ears In-Ear Reference Monitor & Noble Audio 4C (Wizard Design)