I purchased an Oak Vali and have listened to it long enough to form a solid opinion on it. I will be comparing it to my other headphones the Fostex TH-600 and Focal Elegia. Instead of writing a very verbose long-winded review, I have decided to rank each headphone in various categories and provide a brief summary or clarification if needed.
Test Tracks:
Various Rock and Metal songs from Tidal and Spotify.
Equipment used:
RME ADI-2 DAC
Comparison:
Tonal Balance: Elegia > Vali > TH-600
Elegia is neutral leaning towards being bright, with slightly forward mids. Can be fatiguing. Vali is neutral with rolled off treble and sub-bass, non-fatiguing, but not dark like an Audeze. TH-600 is v-shaped, mega sub-bass, recessed mids and elevated slightly-sibilant highs, can be fatiguing.
Bass Impact/Slam: TH-600 >>>>>>>>>>>Vali> Elegia
Nothing slams like a Fostex, change my mind....
Bass Quantity:
Sub-bass: TH-600>>>>>>>>>>Elegia>Vali
I mean, Fostex's are sub-bass cannons. Elegia has slightly more sub-bass than the Vali, but both are lacking, the Vali is particularly rolled off here.
Mid-bass: Vali >> TH-600 > Elegia
The Vali takes the cake here, very fast, tight mid-bass. Drums, particularly snare drums sound fantastic. Fostex sounds very good here as well, although slightly overshadowed by the sub-bass. Elegia is very neutral, tight, clear, snappy. But just slightly behind compared to the other two.
Bass Quality: Elegia > TH-600 > Vali
This is all very close, Elegia is the clearest and most detailed, the TH-600 is something special, but slightly lacking in clarity and detail compared to Elegia. The Vali is just behind the other two, but we're splitting hairs here.
Mids Quantity: Elegia > Vali > TH-600
Elegia is slightly mid-forward although a little on the lean side. The Vali is very close, but still slightly recessed in comparison. The TH-600 is fairly recessed compared to the other two, clearly a V-shaped response going on here.
Mids Quality: TH-600 = Elegia* > Vali*
Surprisingly, despite having a recessed and set-back midrange the TH-600 has the most natural-sounding midrange of the three. The Elegia is slightly forward, very clear and detailed, but has a dip in the upper mids that gives a slightly hollow/lean sound to the mids. Vali has a strange nasal/cupped sound to the mids that I'm not sure if I like or not. Seems to favour male-vocals rather than female and can either enhance or become a draw-back depending on the song.
Treble Quantity: TH-600 > Elegia >>> Vali
TH-600 has boosted treble, Elegia is very neutral but significantly more than the Vali, which is significantly rolled off in the treble. Pros are that it is non-sibilant and non-fatiguing, but on the other hand, is lacking volume/detail/clarity in the treble. Reminds me of an Audeze in this regard, although not as bad.
Treble Quality: Elegia > TH-600 >> Vali
Elegia is the most clear and detailed here, slightly sibilant but not as much as the TH-600. Vali is rolled off in the treble and the quality suffers significantly compared to the other two.
Clarity: Elegia > TH-600 >> Vali
Elegia is very clear, lean, crisp sounding, noticeably more than the Fostex. But the Fostex is very clear and not veiled or muddy sounding at all. The Vali is still quite clean, not veiled or muddy sounding like some other headphones can be. But falls behind the Fostex in this department.
Detail Retrieval: Elegia > TH-600 = Vali
Soundstage/Imaging/Instrument Separation: TH-600 > Vali > Elegia
TH-600 has a fantastic soundstage slightly besting the fully open Vali. Elegia is a closed-back with an excellent soundstage for a closed-back. Very close here between the three.
Comfort: TH-600 > Elegia >>> Vali
TH-600 is the lightest, very light clamp and comfortable. Elegia is very comfortable but is heavier and tighter clamping the Fostex. Vali is quite heavy, clamps very strongly and is hard to get right comfort-wise. Not very comfortable, but not unbearable either.
Sound signature:
Vali = Neutral, leaning dark
TH-600 = V-shaped leaning bright
Elegia = Neutral, slightly mid-forward, leaning bright
Overall Preference: TH-600 > Vali > Elegia
Vali Summary:
Punchy, neutral, fun sounding. Not too lean or dark. Non-fatiguing and non-sibilant. Good for male vocals. Very nice build quality and use of materials. However, comfort and clamp are not ideal. Sound-wise clarity and detail, particularly in the treble are lacking, especially for the price. Sound-wise 4/5. Comfort 2.5/5. Definitely worth a listen/try.
Test Tracks:
Various Rock and Metal songs from Tidal and Spotify.
Equipment used:
RME ADI-2 DAC
Comparison:
Tonal Balance: Elegia > Vali > TH-600
Elegia is neutral leaning towards being bright, with slightly forward mids. Can be fatiguing. Vali is neutral with rolled off treble and sub-bass, non-fatiguing, but not dark like an Audeze. TH-600 is v-shaped, mega sub-bass, recessed mids and elevated slightly-sibilant highs, can be fatiguing.
Bass Impact/Slam: TH-600 >>>>>>>>>>>Vali> Elegia
Nothing slams like a Fostex, change my mind....
Bass Quantity:
Sub-bass: TH-600>>>>>>>>>>Elegia>Vali
I mean, Fostex's are sub-bass cannons. Elegia has slightly more sub-bass than the Vali, but both are lacking, the Vali is particularly rolled off here.
Mid-bass: Vali >> TH-600 > Elegia
The Vali takes the cake here, very fast, tight mid-bass. Drums, particularly snare drums sound fantastic. Fostex sounds very good here as well, although slightly overshadowed by the sub-bass. Elegia is very neutral, tight, clear, snappy. But just slightly behind compared to the other two.
Bass Quality: Elegia > TH-600 > Vali
This is all very close, Elegia is the clearest and most detailed, the TH-600 is something special, but slightly lacking in clarity and detail compared to Elegia. The Vali is just behind the other two, but we're splitting hairs here.
Mids Quantity: Elegia > Vali > TH-600
Elegia is slightly mid-forward although a little on the lean side. The Vali is very close, but still slightly recessed in comparison. The TH-600 is fairly recessed compared to the other two, clearly a V-shaped response going on here.
Mids Quality: TH-600 = Elegia* > Vali*
Surprisingly, despite having a recessed and set-back midrange the TH-600 has the most natural-sounding midrange of the three. The Elegia is slightly forward, very clear and detailed, but has a dip in the upper mids that gives a slightly hollow/lean sound to the mids. Vali has a strange nasal/cupped sound to the mids that I'm not sure if I like or not. Seems to favour male-vocals rather than female and can either enhance or become a draw-back depending on the song.
Treble Quantity: TH-600 > Elegia >>> Vali
TH-600 has boosted treble, Elegia is very neutral but significantly more than the Vali, which is significantly rolled off in the treble. Pros are that it is non-sibilant and non-fatiguing, but on the other hand, is lacking volume/detail/clarity in the treble. Reminds me of an Audeze in this regard, although not as bad.
Treble Quality: Elegia > TH-600 >> Vali
Elegia is the most clear and detailed here, slightly sibilant but not as much as the TH-600. Vali is rolled off in the treble and the quality suffers significantly compared to the other two.
Clarity: Elegia > TH-600 >> Vali
Elegia is very clear, lean, crisp sounding, noticeably more than the Fostex. But the Fostex is very clear and not veiled or muddy sounding at all. The Vali is still quite clean, not veiled or muddy sounding like some other headphones can be. But falls behind the Fostex in this department.
Detail Retrieval: Elegia > TH-600 = Vali
Soundstage/Imaging/Instrument Separation: TH-600 > Vali > Elegia
TH-600 has a fantastic soundstage slightly besting the fully open Vali. Elegia is a closed-back with an excellent soundstage for a closed-back. Very close here between the three.
Comfort: TH-600 > Elegia >>> Vali
TH-600 is the lightest, very light clamp and comfortable. Elegia is very comfortable but is heavier and tighter clamping the Fostex. Vali is quite heavy, clamps very strongly and is hard to get right comfort-wise. Not very comfortable, but not unbearable either.
Sound signature:
Vali = Neutral, leaning dark
TH-600 = V-shaped leaning bright
Elegia = Neutral, slightly mid-forward, leaning bright
Overall Preference: TH-600 > Vali > Elegia
Vali Summary:
Punchy, neutral, fun sounding. Not too lean or dark. Non-fatiguing and non-sibilant. Good for male vocals. Very nice build quality and use of materials. However, comfort and clamp are not ideal. Sound-wise clarity and detail, particularly in the treble are lacking, especially for the price. Sound-wise 4/5. Comfort 2.5/5. Definitely worth a listen/try.
