Ultimate Ears 18 Pro in-ear headphones
Headphone listening is hot these days, due not only to the ubiquity of the iPod as a music source but also because it is possible to get state-of-the-art headphone playback without having to have stupidly bottomless pockets. A plethora of affordable high-quality headphone amplifiers are available, and high-performance 'phones can be had for a few hundred dollars. Used with a computer or iPod to play uncompressed WAV or AIF files or losslessly compressed FLAC or Apple Lossless (ALAC) files, a headphone-based system can offer the audiophile on a budget seriously good sound.
Ultimate Ears Reference Remastered Custom In-Ear Monitors
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.comIt's been nearly 5 years since ToTL Madnessour attempt to survey the growing custom IEM landscape and identify the best of the best. It's still a good read if you want to learn more about the history of the industry, the major players, and the strengths/weaknesses of these colorful little ear gems.
Ultimate Ears UE-10 Pro in-ear headphones
All of a sudden, it seems there's a renaissance in in-ear monitors. Used to be there was just Etymotichttp://www.stereophile.com/headphones/805">Etymotic;, but now Etymotic, Shurehttp://www.stereophile.com/headphones/504shure">Shure;, and Ultimate">http://www.stereophile.com/headphones/1204ultimate">Ultimate Ears are all producing high-performance in-ear headphones. It's almost enough to make me suspect we audiophiles have become a marketing juggernaut.
Ultimate Ears UE-11 Pro in-ear headphones
Meeting strangers at social events, I've learned not to say that I write about hi-fi for a living. It's generally a conversation killer—unless your idea of scintillating repartee is "People make a living doing that?" (Short answer: Not many, and not really.)
Ultimate Ears UE-5c in-ear headphones
"You need to keep still."
V-MODA Crossfade M-80 and V-80 True Blood Headphones
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.com
Call me out of touch with pop-culture, but I had no idea what the "True Blood" referred to on V-MODA's V-80 True Blood headphone. A quick Google and I know we have a new kind of celebrity headphone, one endorsed by a T.V. show about vampires. Fine with me because ...
... these headphones are AWESOME!
V-MODA Crossfade Wireless a Mixed Bag
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.
Westone 3 in-ear headphones
Designed to be used onstage by musicians monitoring their sound and mix, in-ear monitors (IEMs) such as the new Westone 3 are great in situations where you want to hear nothing but the music. They're small and portable, and their high efficiency and easy impedance load mean they work well with portable players. IEMs are better than electronic-feedback, noise-reducing, closed circumaural phones at blocking out airplane engine noise and annoying neighbors who want to chat. They're also more compact, sound better, and don't require batteries.
World's Best Headphone: The Focal Utopia
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.comAnd then, at 21 second in, right after she sings, "When God gave out rhythm...", two chords are gently played on the piano. My goodness, I've never heard such sensitively percussive, harmonically rich, filled with weight and substance sound from a piano. Most astonishing is the interplay of tones, harmonics, and intermodulation making the whole of the chord a rich textured wave of sound. I was transfixed until track's end.
ZMF Atticus Sealed Over-Ear Headphones
This story originally appeared at InnerFidelity.comTo my eyes, the Atticus is one half of a two part experiment by Zach Mehrbach, Founder and CEO of ZMF Headphones. His past has been dominated by the venerable, but in my opinion underperforming, Fostex T50RP planar magnetic driver. I guess Zach sees his future with a more modernthough more commondynamic driver. It seems to me he's designed these latest two headphones as an experiment to find out just how good a headphone he can build using two different types of dynamic driver: the Atticus with a TPE (Thermoplastic Elastomer) diaphragm driver; and the Eikon with its bio-cellulose cone and rubber surround.