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February 3, 2017

Is this the Airpod killer?

Impressions Shure SE425 with a bluetooth cable.

Because of an earlier post by a redditor, my attention was brought upon the fact you can order wireless ‘cables’ for IEM with removable cables.

Two of my close friends bought Airpods and keep on raving about wireless headphones and all the practical benefits: no more cable getting yanked out of your ears at doors, no longer being tethered to your device so more freedom to do whatever you like. That’s all fun and games, but when I’m at home I will listen to my dedicated headphone setup with DAC and amp. Therefore the only interesting use case with wireless headphones for me would be on the go or while working out. During commuting wireless audio can have tangible benefits, but I need the passive isolation of an IEM, which Airpods do not offer. Without the passive noise isolation humans have a tendency to turn up the volume. The danger of turning up the volume to such high levels is you could damage your hearing permanently!

Conclusion: Let us check out a cheap wireless IEM: Cheap in the sense of already owning the IEM and merely replacing the cable for a bluetooth adapter.

In my research I noticed that wireless audio is seen as a bad idea generally by audio enthusiasts, which led me have doubts about this experiment. I needed more information:

Why is bluetooth considered as a bad idea for audio?

According to this article from lifehacker:

  1. To be able to transmit the digital signal, it has to be compressed. Rule of thumb: Digital compression is detrimental for your audio quality.
  2. Bluetooth uses the 2.4 GHz bandwith, which has to compete with other wireless transmitters using the same frequency such as Wi-Fi, wireless mice/keyboards and microwaves among others. These interferences can cause signal drops, which means your music will cut out for a short while.

As a wireless-sceptic I figured there would be losses to audio quality that are simply not worth it. On the other hand, there are use cases where I would prefer to be able to listen to music over not having any music at all. My conclusion, it's not all bad news and I was curious. I felt it would be a worthwhile experiment to look into. After a quick google on ‘shure bluetooth’ I found this cable, and I ordered it immediately. The cable was delivered on the 20th of january, and here are my impressions after using the Shures wirelessly for the last two weeks:

First, let me express my expectations. I expected the sound quality to suffer to the point that it would be audible, in the same sense that you can hear a difference between a 128 kbit/s mp3 compared to a 320 kbit/s mp3.

Clarity - instrument separation and imaging is just as fantastic as wired. You can definately hear fingers moving on the fretboard on acoustic songs. I expect I am a little influenced here, I expected it to be worse.

Soundstage -  As intimate as you would expect with an in ear monitor, it was the same.

Lows - Not overly bassy for an IEM, but it is present and extends well. I think the bluetooth transmission losses can be heard best in the bassier songs, especially at higher volumes. The SE425 is not regarded as one of the most bassy IEM, so I thought this was quite a shame.

Mids - The SE425 is known for its' sliky smooth mids, fantastically facilitating vocals, Which I value as one of the strongest points of this IEM. I did experience some significant loss in quality from the bluetooth transmission here, but it really depends on the song.

Highs - The SE425 is not the best when it comes to treble. it lacks in emphasis and does not extend as high in the frequency range as I would like. The bluetooth transmission makes certain songs a bit less involving and distorts the sound to be a bit tinny, But again this really depends on the song.

What are the practical benefits of bluetooth headphones?

Wireless transmission makes using the Shures easier, less of a chore to get everything right to listen to music. All you have to do is: turn the bluetooth reciever on and press play on your phone and you are good to go. During commuting you have the benefit of just putting the phone in your pocket and not being thethered to your device. When I used them with the wire, I occasionally had to put my phone in another pocket to prevent the cable from being damaged. Not a huge issue, but irritating nontheless.

My biggest concerns with this bluetooth headset setup:

  1. At times when I was cycling there was a short loss of signal during transmission, which ruins the immersion into the music. The music cuts out for a second and then resumes playing, sometimes multiple times repeatedly.
  2. 'Did I charge my headphones?' is a frustrating usability concern.I have encoutered two times already I wanted to use the headphones, but I could not since it ran out of charge. Other wireless headphones like the Airpods have this covered with charging cases. One solution could be to keep a powerbank in your bag and a short micro usb cable to charge them when you’re out and about, but seriously who wants that? (hint: not me) I ended up charging the headphones at work when I was working without music, but this is something you have to get up for and arrange which takes a little bit of effort.
  3. Switching from device to device is cumbersome although after you have finished the initial pairing it's quite easy to connect it to your phone.
  4. Audible loss of sound quality because of the bluetooth transmission.

Is bluetooth worth it?

Honestly, not really. At least not in this configuration. The benefits of a less cumbersome headset in use is not more profitable for me compared to the sacrifices that are necessary to create the wireless connection. There are only three cases where bluetooth is good enough for me to use the wireless setup:

  1. Simply put, when portability is the main objective.
  2. In noisy environments/environments where you would not be able to listen carefully anyway. In my case it would be my noisy office or on the go in the train.
  3. When you are streaming lossy audio anyway.*

When I am cooking dinner and watching a youtube video or listening to a podcast at the same time. When I cook, I can run around the kitchen a bit. Being able to use my tablet untethered is a clear benefit here. In all other cases I prefer the improved sound quality and lack of signal drops that you get with a cable.

I still want to buy a pair of Airpods though, sigh.

*= I have one second thought about this one. According to this link you should never convert lossy files to anything else. So how about playback? In transmission, bluetooth needs to compress the audio signal. If the file has been compressed already from a lossless source to a lossy file, and then during transmission again, would that not have a even worse effect on the audio quality? Right now, I don't know.

January 18, 2017

Schiit Vali2 compared to Macbook Pro

The internals in the MacBook Pro are really good for a laptop. No wonder so many audio professionals use them on the go. Still for headphones that require more power to sound good the Mac just doesn't cut it. In my experience the HD600 shows the biggest difference, so I tried it with two different setups: directly from the Mac and with the Modi2u hooked to the Vali2. I decided not to hook the Vali2 directly to the Mac without the DAC since then you'd be double amping and the sound would be dependent on the weakest amp, therefore not really showing the potential of the Vali2.

HD600 - MacBook Pro internals: Look I’ll be honest. I expected the sound of the HD600 to sound bad, veiled and congested, lacking in the low end since the amp in the MacBook is nowhere powerful enough. If you've ever seen the data from innerfidelity, you can see the spike in the low end, almost 550 ohms at 100Hz! There's just no way the 2VRMS output jack of the Mac can deliver enough current. Still the HD600 is such a great headphone, it still sounds awesome unamped directly from the minijack. It's just less detailed/precise compared to with the Schiit stack. After a while you start to notice little faults though, little details sounding too harsh, more complex parts of music start to blur.

HD600 - Modi2u & Vali2: With this setup the HD600 truly starts to shine. Details come alive. The quality of the bass is better, more defined. The quality of the midrange and highs is improved as well, although less significant. Soundstage is good. Separation is improved as well, although it still gets a bit blurry when the music becomes to complex, just way less to a point that it becomes nitpicking in my opinion.

When I use low impedance and high efficient headphones I switch to low gain on the Vali2. The difference becomes less apparent, since the output jack of the MacBook is more than capable of driving the lower impedance/higher efficiency headphones. For example my SR60e are 32 Ohm/99.8 dB SPL/mW. It comes to a point that I would advise you really don't need a separate DAC/amp for these kind of headphones.

January 17, 2017

Grado GS1000 replica

It seems ages ago, but on 15 September 2015 I received the Grado SR-60e. I bought it on a whim as my first open backed headphone, since I had read they are better compared to the closed backs I was used to. The most recent closed back headphone was at the time the Marshall Monitor.

Additionally after doing some research on them I noticed Grados are very easy to mod and since I liked to tinker with my hands once in a while I was intrigued. After a while I discovered the 'Post your Grado mods' thread on head fi, and into the rabbit hole I went.

What you see here is the current state of events.

List of adjustments/mods:

  1. A set of L cush (official) and G cush earpads from ebay.
  2. A pair of wooden cups in Mahogany, GS1000 style, made by Bruce Mackenzie from Wabi Sabi Headphones. His instagram
  3. V6 drivers by Symphones
  4. Leather headband by Turbulent Labs
  5. 3.5mm to dual mono 2.5mm jack removable 1.5m cable from ebay.
  6. Drivers soldered to 2.5mm female jacks

How did I like this headphone with the L cush earpads?

The V6 drivers deliver an un Grado clean and slightly v-shaped sound signature that is musical and fun to listen to.

Lows:
Compared to the stock Grado drivers the bass has much better quality and quantity. Especially if I compare them to my HD600's, the bass is killer on this set. I would position the Magnums between my HD600 and X2 in terms of bass.

Mids:
Vocals are cristal clear and in balance with the lows and highs. Even though the others are a bit more pronounced, the mids are not recessed at all. Compared to the stock Grado drivers there was a better balance and a significant increase in detail. I would position the Magnums between the X2 and the HD600 for the mids, albeit it being very close to the HD600, almost on par with it actually.

Highs:
If you think Grado, you think strong treble. With the Magnums, this is not the case. Very detailed, on par with my HD600. Soundstage: The soundstage can be described as sitting in the front row, with the musicians playing right in front of you, to the left and right. As a result it feels very intimate and enjoyable.

How did I like this headphone using the G cush (bowl) earpads?

To be honest I was underwhelmed by them. To much bass and treble making the mids feel veiled and recessed. I prefer the L cush pads by miles.

Cost (including shipping):

  1. Symphones drivers: $120
  2. Cups: $100 (made by Fleasbaby from headfi)
  3. Leather strap: $45
  4. Grado SR60e: $65 (used)
  5. Cable: $30
  6. Connectors: $5

Total: $365,-

While a real Grado GS1000 costs: $1299,-

Conclusion:

I can recommend going into modding grados if you like to fool around with tinkering and such. For me it was an enjoyable and educational experience.

My next step will be getting a DIY measurement rig, since I'd like to mod based on measurements as well as my own hearing. For now just modding based on my ears was good enough, but I'd like to step it up a notch.

January 12, 2017

Office setup

Januari 2017 Office setup

  • MacBook Pro 2016, without the touchbar
  • PFU Happy Hacking KeyBoard Pro2, also known as the HHKB Pro2
  • Logitech MX Master
  • Shure SE425 with an aftermarket cable from ebay with mic and inline remote

I work at an office with a flex setup, which means there's a lot of considerations you need to keep in mind for your work setup. Firstly you need to find the right laptop, then there is the peripherals and last but not least: headphones for music and calling.

Macbook Pro 2016, non touchbar

As a OSX user for a decade, I wanted a laptop that would run on Apples' OS. My employer listens to my input regarding laptop options, but price wise there were some limitations. I had been working on a personal MacBook Pro Retina from late 2012 up until now, which was suboptimal since I'd like to keep work and private life separated.

Although, I am not going to lie, the Macbook Pro lineup was quite dissapointing. I even considered making the switch back to Windows, considering the work I do at a Microsoft Partner.

In the end it came down to the following choices:

  • MacBook Pro 2016, non touchbar
  • MacBook Pro 2015, 256GB SSD option selected

The above mentioned models both have the same price. The difference is on two fronts: the 2015 model has a slightly better CPU, 2.7 GHz i5 vs 2.0 GHz i5, but the 2016 model has a more recent Skylake CPU which is more energy efficient and has a better performing iGPU relatively. In the end I chose the 2016 model.

PFU Happy Hacking KeyBoard Pro 2, with bluetooth mod

I write a lot for work, mainly blogs for on the company website. During college I had an episode where I had sympthoms of repetitive strain injury, which led me to research for ways to prevent it. As a result I discovered /r/mechanicalkeyboards and the rest is history: The HHKB Pro 2 is one of the most popular keyboards for on the go in that subreddit.

 

© 2022 Vincent van der Toorn