INTRODUCTION Anyone who’s followed my recent reviews will know that I’m a big audio fan of both desktop and portable rigs.  As far as my portable rigs go, most of my listening has been with my iPhone 5S, or my Fiio DAPs – the X1, new X3ii, and the quite excellent X5.   I was intrigued (and also sceptical) when PONO first launched – seeing a lot of hyperbole and marketing speak.  Once the first units started hitting purchasers, I began seeing both positive and negative reviews (and again both viewpoints often ridiculously polarised to one side or...

To view larger images (1200 x 800) click the appropriate photo INTRODUCTION I’m a proud owner of the Fiio X5 and X1 – they’ve been my go to DAPs for some time now, and I use both daily.  The X1 for when I want ultimate portability, and the X5 when I need a little more power, and also want the added level of refinement it brings. I’ve been using Fiio audio equipment for some time now, and have watched them evolve from a fledgling company to becoming a serious player in the personal audio world , with IMO some fantastic equipment that both sounds and...

For larger views of any of the photos (1200 x 800) - please click on the individual images INTRODUCTION In my Head-Fi journey to date the one headphone category that remains unfulfilled for me at the moment continues to be the ideal portable headphone. For me personally, that means a mix of SQ, comfort, size, build and isolation. In my journey so far, I’ve tried a lot of different portable headphones, and owned (at one stage or another) the Momentum on ear, UE6000, and Beyer T51p. All of them are good headphones in their own right, but all of...

For larger views of any of the photos (1200 x 800) - please click on the individual images INTRODUCTION My introduction to DUNU Topsound (over a year ago) was with their triple hybrid DN-1000, which rapidly became a hit with Head-Fi buyers, and was one of the first triple hybrid IEMs to show that top quality could be achieved at an affordable price. This lead to having the opportunity to review the Titan hybrid IEM/earbud (one of my picks for top earphone releases in 2014), and more recently the DN-2000. Each time I’ve reviewed a DUNU product...

For larger views of any of the photos (1200 x 800) - please click on the individual images INTRODUCTION   Because I’ve been involved with some review samples with my Australian brethren in the last couple of years, I’ve had the chance to hear some IEMs I’ve been curious about in the last year or so, but haven’t been able to (or inclined to) purchase for myself. One of these has been the DUNU DN-2000 – and I’d like to take the opportunity to thank my Ozzie mate Vic for the loaner over the last 5 weeks.  I’ve enjoyed the opportunity immensely.  ...

INTRODUCTION Because I’ve been involved with some review samples with my Australian brethren in the last couple of years, I’ve had the chance to hear some IEMs I’ve been curious about in the last year or so, but haven’t been able to (or inclined to) purchase for myself. One of these has been the Havi B3 Pro1 – and I’d like to take the opportunity to thank my Ozzie mate Vic for the loaner over the last 4 weeks. I’ve enjoyed the opportunity immensely. For this review – I have abridged it slightly (compared to my normal reviews) mainly because...

INTRODUCTION Because I’ve been involved with some review samples with my Australian brethren in the last couple of years, I’ve had the chance to hear some IEMs I’ve been curious about in the last year or so, but haven’t been able to (or inclined to) purchase for myself. One of these has been the Ostry KC06 – and I’d like to take the opportunity to thank my Ozzie mate Vic for the loaner over the last 4 weeks. I’ve enjoyed the opportunity immensely. For this review – I have abridged it (compared to my normal reviews) for a couple of reasons...

For larger views of any of the photos (1200 x 800) - please click on the individual images INTRODUCTION I’ve been working with RockJaw UK for the last 12 months giving feedback on their IEM line, and providing reviews as they get to release point. So it was with great pleasure that I received a courier pack from Bob containing the Arcana V2, Hydra V2, and also their flagship Kommand IEM.  I’ve posted a review on both the Hydra and Arcana earlier – and for the past week and a bit I’ve been able to now concentrate on the Kommand.   RockJaw’s...

For larger views of any of the photos (1200 x 800) - please click on the individual images INTRODUCTION Brainwavz is a now well established manufacturer of headphones in the value for money category – offering many different options that suit almost anyone’s sonic preferences. I’ve previously had both good and bad experiences with their headphones / IEMs. I’ve previously reviewed and owned their B2 IEMs and HM5 headphones, and both were stellar performers. I’ve also sampled their R1, R3, S0, S5 and R3 V2 IEMs – and whilst the R3 V2, S0 and S5 were...

For larger views of any of the photos (1200 x 800) - please click on the individual images INTRODUCTION I’ve been working with RockJaw UK for the last 12 months giving feedback on their IEM line, and providing reviews as they get to release point. So it was with great pleasure that I received a courier pack from Bob containing not only the Arcana V2, but also the Kommand and Hydra V2. I posted a review on the Hydra a little earlier (not a big fan) and will be reviewing the Kommand in the near future. The original Arcana was supposed to be a dual...

For larger views of any of the photos (1200 x 800) - please click on the individual images INTRODUCTION I’ve been working with RockJaw UK for the last 12 months giving feedback on their IEM line, and providing reviews as they get to release point. So it was with great pleasure that I received a courier pack from Bob containing not only the Hydra V2, but also the Kommand and Arcana V2. I’ll be reviewing both in the near future. The original Hydra I first tried (a year ago), I didn’t end up reviewing in the end – as the sound signature was...

For larger views of any of the photos (1200 x 800) - please click on the individual images   INTRODUCTION My introduction to DUNU Topsound (over a year ago) was with their triple hybrid DN-1000, which rapidly became a hit with Head-Fi buyers, and was one of the first triple hybrid IEMs to show that top quality could be achieved at an affordable price. I lost touch a little with DUNU when Rocky left the company – so it was with great anticipation and gratitude that I was offered the chance to review their new Titan 1 IEM/earbud.  I just want to take...

This is part of a larger retrospective / review I wrote on the HM5 - which can be found here : http://www.head-fi.org/t/748855/review-revisiting-the-brainwavz-hm5-a-retrospective-plus-bonus-look-at-pad-and-cup-options   ADD-ONS PART 1 – PADS Audrey very generously sent me two extra pad options to try with the HM5 – a set of velours (black) and a set of thicker coloured pleather (mine are the dark red).   Red pleather (L), stock pleather (C) and velour (R) Red pleather (L), stock pleather (C) and velour (R) Red pleather vs stock.  ...

For larger views of any of the photos (1200 x 800) - please click on the individual images INTRODUCTION This is the third Fidue product I’ve been lucky enough to review, and the first dual dynamic IEM they’ve made (the others I have are the A81 single dynamic and A83 triple hybrid). My thanks go to Vic (djvkool) for facilitating the review samples, and also to Michael Lin from Fidue for giving us the chance to review their products. For those who aren’t aware, Fidue Acoustics is a Chinese earphone company founded by Benny Tan (who has more than...

For larger views of any of the photos (1200 x 800) - please click on the individual images INTRODUCTION The first I heard about RHA (or Reid Heath Acoustics) was a thread on Head-Fi calling for applicants for 3 reviewers to test their newest earphone - the RHA T10i. Some of the initial press was extremely encouraging, and the images being circulated looked downright gorgeous, so I quickly applied and waited to hear. Unfortunately I wasn’t among those chosen – but RHA arranged with David (lin0003 on Head-Fi) to stage an Australasian tour with...

INTRODUCTION Brainwavz is a well established manufacturer of headphones in the value for money category – offering many different options (especially for IEMs) that suit almost anyone’s sonic preferences.  I’ve had regular contact with Audrey from Brainwavz, and when she asked me to consider reviewing an entry point mini amplifier (the AP001), I immediately agreed – intrigued by a possible new direction for them.   I received the courier pack a few days ago – and although I haven’t had a lot of time with the AP001 , its basic functionality...

For larger views of any of the photos (1200 x 800) - please click on the individual images PREAMBLE Brainwavz is a well established manufacturer of headphones in the value for money category – offering many different options (especially for IEMs) that suit almost anyone’s sonic preferences. I’ve previously had both good and bad experiences with their headphones / IEMs – I previously reviewed and owned their B2 IEMs and HM5 headphones, and both were stellar performers. I also sampled their R1, R3, S5 and R3 V2 IEMs – and whilst the R3 V2 and S5...

Click any image for full size (1200 x 800) resolution INTRODUCTION I’m a proud owner of the Fiio X5 – it’s been my go to DAP for some time now, with the only drawback being ultimate portability if I’m jogging, or just out and about wanting a really simple set-up.  So when Fiio started talking about a new entry level DAP in the sub $100 market, and already knowing what they are capable of developing, I was immediately interested. I was originally supposed to be part of one of the X1 tours – unfortunately we had some “personnel issues” along the way –...

For larger views of any of the photos (1200 x 800) - please click on the individual images INTRODUCTION I’d read a little about the Fidues products on these forums, but really knew nothing about the company or their IEMs. And whilst I’d looked at a couple of the reviews of their products, and was genuinely interested, their TOTL Hybrid (A83) and Dynamic (A81) were both reasonably pricey at USD 279+, and considering I already had a set of Dunu DN-1000 and Altone200 (both also triple hybrids), I was a little reluctant to take the plunge...

For larger views of any of the photos (1200 x 800) - please click on the individual images INTRODUCTION I first reviewed the original Brainwavz R3 back in December 2013, and unfortunately although I did (and still do) like the sonic qualities of the R3, at the time I pretty much slated them for their unwieldy cable and almost impossible fit issues due to the ridiculously long memory cable. I have to give Brainwavz due praise here, as they listened to the comments from quite a few of us, and re-released an updated version which sought to...