New Phonak Models with "Perfect Bass" up for pre-orders!

[JxK]

Yep, a PFE perfect bass review would be nice. dfkt, off topic, but have you had a chance to hear the new hippo shroom EB? I'd be interested to hear how it compares to the VB.

[CrowdAds]

[dfkt]

Everything there is to say about the bass filters in comparison to the normal PFE I already said... it's really not a lot of difference - slightly more bass, slightly less clarity. And an "economy" assortment of accessories instead of the full package.

Yeah, I have the Shroom EB. They're not all that comparable to the VB, they still have way less bass, and only a tiny bit more than the regular Shroom. I'll post more (in another thread) once I listened some more to them.

[JxK]

Ah, thanks for the reply. The reason I asked is because on headfi a review of the shroom EB just came out, and the conclusion was that the EB basically crush the VB in all aspects except for soundstage. So I wanted a second opinion.

[dfkt]

Ok, this is going way off-topic for this thread, but here goes.

Sigh. Yet another baseless sensationalist "review".

The EB and VB are totally different phones, made for different tastes, made for different applications. One of them doesn't "crush" the other, just like the, say, FX700, doesn't "crush" the SM3. They're both very good, and both very different.

The Hippo VB is the best basshead phone I've heard in that price range, and there's nothing that comes close in delivering that bass quantity paired with that quite respectable clarity, for that price. The Shroom EB are more in the league of the RE0 and PFE, neutral phones that don't lack bass, but don't have overly much as well. The EB are very nice sounding so far, but I have to give them a bit more time before I can draw a final conclusion.

[JxK]

Good to hear. Thanks dfkt for clearing that up.

On topic, it would be good to eventually hear how the relatively analytical shroom EB compares to the relatively analytical PFE with perfect bass filters.

Off topic, the only thing I'd disagree with you is that the VB are basshead IEMs. Sure, they have good bass quantity, but it's very well behaved and most importantly stays out of the way when necessary. None of that horrible, ever present mid-bass bloat that you find on real basshead phones. I just think of the VB as neutral (though not linear).

[odigg]

Originally Posted by JxK

Off topic, the only thing I'd disagree with you is that the VB are basshead IEMs. Sure, they have good bass quantity, but it's very well behaved and most importantly stays out of the way when necessary. None of that horrible, ever present mid-bass bloat that you find on real basshead phones. I just think of the VB as neutral (though not linear).

Listen to the PFEs w/greys exclusively for week. Then try the VB with the maximum bass port. Then tell us if it's a basshead IEM or not

[dfkt]

Originally Posted by JxK

Off topic, the only thing I'd disagree with you is that the VB are basshead IEMs. Sure, they have good bass quantity, but it's very well behaved and most importantly stays out of the way when necessary.

Ok, to clarify: I have a ~15m² office room, and I run a 500W Klipsch KSW12 subwoofer in it, paired with my studio monitors. My girlfriend and me have a tiny Peugeot 106 car, and we run a 15" subwoofer on a 1200W amp in it. The audio gear is prolly worth more than the car. I think I'm on the slightly insane side when it comes to bass. I'm also a bass player in a band, by the way... And I indeed think the Hippo VB have a really HUGE bass.

Seems the definitions of basshead differ between what you and I understand in that word. For me it's not a negative word (like, for example "audiophile" would be for me) - for me it's all about good, tight, textured, controlled - yet earthshakingly heavy bass, that makes something a recommendable basshead phone for me. The uninteresting rest, the flabby, bloated, uncontrolled fart cannons need not apply. Hope that cleared a bit up.

[k5r2an]

Most bassheads I know absolutely love the fart cannon bass. The term "basshead" is a bit of a negative term to me because of this. Ironically, what they define as 'fart cannon' is the retardedly huge exhaust that's attached to Civics, which generates a really annoying and flappy "putt-putt-putt" sound.

[JxK]

Well, then I suppose I'm a basshead. I suppose for me I always thought of basshead phones as those aptly described "fart cannons." But if the VB (2 dot plate) is considered a basshead's IEM, then I like bass - so long as it's controlled and has clarity.

[Timar]

I've just sent a request to Phonak, asking when the "Perfect Bass" line will be avaible in Germany. They said that due logistic problems it won't be available before july 15th. The retail price will be "around 80€". So I guess you have either to wait or to pay quite a bit more...

[Timar]

So finally I got the Audéo 012... from amazon marketplace (79€) though, as they aren't avaivable from audeoworld.com yet.

First impressions: the earphones are smaller than expected, the fit is indeed very good, but because of the peculiar design they are rather diffucult to put in. What you get is just the earphones plus 3 pairs of silicion earpieces. So they really cut on the accessories here.

After reading the PFE review here at ABI I expected to be instantly blown away by the crispness and detail - and initially was rather disappointed with such high expectations. The high frequencies are neither more accentuated nor more extended than those on my eq'd Klipsch S2. However, after listening to some of my test tracks I began to appreciate the smoothness the PFE deliver on the hf-range. There could just be a little bit more of it for my taste, so I guess the black/gray filters would suit me better.

The bass is indeed "perfect" - there's not too much and certainly not too little of it. Most importantly it's there where it belongs and doesn't mask the midrange.

As I've ordered the UE700 too, I'm going to write a comparative review soon. I'm curious if their dual-BA design can have any advantage over the single driver PFE.

[jiamenguk]

Originally Posted by Timar

Words, spaces and punctuations

I do recommend you to get the white filters then, cos if the Green filters are lower in the highs than the black filters, and the black filters are mufflier than the white ones, the white ones should achieve the level of clarity you were expecting

[Timar]

It's a shame that Phonak only sells 4 pairs of them. Maybe there's another one here who got the 012 and wants to try some other filters? If someone orders the other colour we could exchange some filters

[dfkt]

I'm not a particularly big fan of the new bass filters either. In my opinion they take a bit away from the special qualities of the PFE's usual sound, their clarity and balance. Even though I'm generally what one calls a basshead, I found myself using the grey filters, the ones that are lightest on bass, the most.

On the other hand it's nice that Phonak sell those cheaper PFEs now, without the case, the ear guides, the Comply tips, and whatnot. Those things aren't really necessary - and the price of the bassy PFE sure is a lot more appealing. Even though the separately purchasable grey and white filters are a bit overpriced, if one wants to turn their 012 into an 112.

But as I said before: the PFE really love a good EQ, and one can tune the 012 to sound like anything else rather easily with a Rockbox or Cowon EQ.

[Timar]

You're right, the price is a lot more appealing... but I guess the crucial point for me was the different look. I like the all-black design of the 012 much better.

So I'll go for the grey filters. If someone here is going to purchase the black ones, I would trade 2 pairs.

Btw., dftk, in your Phonak report you stated that the Phonak eartips deliver up to 2khz more hf-extension. Did you mean the silicon or the comply tips or both?

[dfkt]

Originally Posted by Timar

Btw., dftk, in your Phonak report you stated that the Phonak eartips deliver up to 2khz more hf-extension. Did you mean the silicon or the comply tips or both?

Both - the Comply tips that come with the PFE were made to Phonak's specifications as well. It's the combination of the sound tube's inner diameter and length that give their higher treble extension.

[Loserfish]

I really liked my original PFE's until they started defaulting.

Now im left with a broken cable close to the right earpiece (the cable itself became really stiff/unflexible in general after some time) and additional to this the earpiece is producing some odd hiss noise.

Unfortunately I can't find my invoice, so guarantee is out of the question and I'll have to head for new ones.
Maybe this model could be the solution, since I still have all the accessoires from my original PFE's.

But I'm not so sure if i should go for another pair of Phonaks. I never encountered similir problems with in-ears before.

[Timar]

I'd ask phonak before purchasing another pair. Maybe they will exchange your PFEs by accommodation.

It's known that the first PFEs had that issue, and Phonak fixed it in the new revision. It's very unlikely that any recent PFEs will have similar issues, I've never heard of any, and I don't think they would make the same mistake twice.

If you need to get a new pair however, I'd go for the 012. You'll get green filters and can exchange them with the supplied filters from your old PFE.

[dfkt]

I have both, the old and new revision, and the new cable is pretty good. From what I gathered, they should replace your phones without hassle.

The 012 look much better in all-black than the cheesy fake-metal plate on the 112.

New on top, old below:

[Loserfish]

This new cable design already looks a lot better to me.

My first phonaks defaultet after just one week with a broken cable, then I got a new pair from the retailer and it hold out until just now.

Since I don't have an local contact information (I'm situated in Germany), I just sent them an email on their audeo.pfe@phonak.com adress.
Let's see what they are going to say.

Anway, thanks for your fast and helpful replys... this community is at it's best!