Hello all,
First time reviewer, long time lurker...
I would first like to disclose that I won these from a local headphone meet, where Periodic Audio could not attend, but generously donated three of their headphones for a raffle: their Magnesium (Mg), Titanium (Ti), and Beryllium (Be). I was lucky enough to have my name pulled for the Be.
My second disclosure is that I have never done a review of headphones, and have only seriously delved into this hobby for less than two years. I was very much into home theater (https://www.avsforum.com/forum/19-d...-starfield-ceiling-stadium-configuration.html) as you can see in my personal DIY build thread, and have been into electrostatic and planar speakers for a decent amount of time. That segued into planar and electrostatic earspeakers, and hence my first headphone meet and ultimately these Berylliums.
Therefore, my review will probably be considered by many as a novice, so please keep it in mind when reading my thoughts.
The meet occurred back in November, and I said I would provide my thoughts shortly thereafter. Life has run away since then. To be honest, there has been much apprehension on my part for doing this review, as I am not comfortable with the verbiage and phrases of what I can hear. I just know what I like and what I don't.
There are multiple reviews of the Be headphones, with plenty of photos of the headphones and accessories (most of which look 10x better than I ever could take with my camera), so unfortunately this will only have words.
My first impression was to look at the bare-bones packaging. Great for the environment, simple, and to the point, which I appreciate. I'm not sure how much fanfare I need when opening up packaging when I know I'll probably never use it again (I felt the same about opening my first iPhone, counter to everyone else's thoughts about presentation... you'll never place your iPhone back in there, so packaging is not a big thing for me if it's not utilitarian). I do want to point out that a beautiful timepiece, with it's special box and presentation that would likely be used again and again to store is a different thing altogether (I'm big time into horology). This came with a nice gold circular tin storage container that I have found useful for storage. It already has dents and dings from being carried in my bag along with my keys and other paraphernalia, so I appreciate how this protects the headphones better than a soft bag. There was a plethora of ear inserts to fit literally any shaped ear, and I was lucky that the default ones fit me perfectly. The 1/4" adapter comes in handy when plugging into my home system. The double plug used in airplanes seemed out of place, as I haven't been on a plane with one of these inserts in many moons. I guess it's better to provide it and have me place it aside, than to not, so it's not a bad thing.
The cord is relatively thin and flimsy. I am not sure what should be expected in $300 buds, but these felt similar to the $10 ones I've bought from a number of brick and mortar stores. I haven't had any issues or concerns with being tough on them and breaking them the past 1/2 year, but they do give me pause over other brands I've owned which seemed to have more sturdy cords, and cost significantly less. I do have to say that the 5 year warranty does give me peace of mind that they will stand behind their product if it fails.
Immediately, I noticed the red color inside the headphone chamber as the light from the window hit it perfectly, as if it was spotlighting it. Initially, I thought it quite clever for them to do so, although in the past few months, I have found it more of a hindrance at night when I'm trying to listen to them in bed. I now realize that having a raised "R" on the outside of it, or some other indicator (like an inline mic, but that's another thing) would be more helpful than having it inside, as I now have to use my phone flashlight to identify it. Again, not a big deal, but something to point out.
I actually let everyone attending the meet try out the headphones first before I finally tried it. The consensus was that they are great sounding headphones. Not one member had any bad things to say about them, and to me, that was saying a whole lot about the sound quality of the Be.
Once I placed them in my ears and listened to them through my Chord Mojo, I was very impressed. Nice tight bass, and clear highs. I can understand how other reviewers say it has a V-shaped profile, as I noticed that as well. Now I don't know that much about breaking in headphones like you would with speakers, but I have to say that in the past 6 months, they seem to sound better to me than my initial impressions. As portable as they are, I find they are my default headphones when I'm not at home (the different Stax earspeakers I have are my go-to's when home). I do have a set of Stax SRM-002 that are also considered "portable", and the portable Stax sound better than the Be, but carrying around the Chord DAC, the Stax energizer, and the earspeakers and headband (detachable but I always use them) really aren't convenient nor truly portable. Using the Be with either the Mojo or Fiio E18, or even just my LG V20 with the Quad DAC is seriously all I really need to enjoy the beautiful tones and clarity in almost any setting. I've let family and friends try them out, and they are all amazed at the quality of sound coming from them.
When I listen to Diana Krall live, or jam to some of my favorite 80's songs, I have not found one song where these headphones have not excelled in sound quality. Cymbals and audience noise and footsteps are clear, where on other non electrostatic IEMs, I did not oftentimes notice they were there. Imaging and sound stage are pretty distinct and wide. I can close my eyes and feel immersed in the music and the environment. These are top-notch IEMs that I will continue to enjoy for years to come (and ones in which will not be passed down to my kids).
I hope this has been helpful, and I will try to be more technical in future reviews, as I learn the nomenclature and train my ears in this wonderful hobby we all share.
First time reviewer, long time lurker...
I would first like to disclose that I won these from a local headphone meet, where Periodic Audio could not attend, but generously donated three of their headphones for a raffle: their Magnesium (Mg), Titanium (Ti), and Beryllium (Be). I was lucky enough to have my name pulled for the Be.
My second disclosure is that I have never done a review of headphones, and have only seriously delved into this hobby for less than two years. I was very much into home theater (https://www.avsforum.com/forum/19-d...-starfield-ceiling-stadium-configuration.html) as you can see in my personal DIY build thread, and have been into electrostatic and planar speakers for a decent amount of time. That segued into planar and electrostatic earspeakers, and hence my first headphone meet and ultimately these Berylliums.
Therefore, my review will probably be considered by many as a novice, so please keep it in mind when reading my thoughts.
The meet occurred back in November, and I said I would provide my thoughts shortly thereafter. Life has run away since then. To be honest, there has been much apprehension on my part for doing this review, as I am not comfortable with the verbiage and phrases of what I can hear. I just know what I like and what I don't.
There are multiple reviews of the Be headphones, with plenty of photos of the headphones and accessories (most of which look 10x better than I ever could take with my camera), so unfortunately this will only have words.
My first impression was to look at the bare-bones packaging. Great for the environment, simple, and to the point, which I appreciate. I'm not sure how much fanfare I need when opening up packaging when I know I'll probably never use it again (I felt the same about opening my first iPhone, counter to everyone else's thoughts about presentation... you'll never place your iPhone back in there, so packaging is not a big thing for me if it's not utilitarian). I do want to point out that a beautiful timepiece, with it's special box and presentation that would likely be used again and again to store is a different thing altogether (I'm big time into horology). This came with a nice gold circular tin storage container that I have found useful for storage. It already has dents and dings from being carried in my bag along with my keys and other paraphernalia, so I appreciate how this protects the headphones better than a soft bag. There was a plethora of ear inserts to fit literally any shaped ear, and I was lucky that the default ones fit me perfectly. The 1/4" adapter comes in handy when plugging into my home system. The double plug used in airplanes seemed out of place, as I haven't been on a plane with one of these inserts in many moons. I guess it's better to provide it and have me place it aside, than to not, so it's not a bad thing.
The cord is relatively thin and flimsy. I am not sure what should be expected in $300 buds, but these felt similar to the $10 ones I've bought from a number of brick and mortar stores. I haven't had any issues or concerns with being tough on them and breaking them the past 1/2 year, but they do give me pause over other brands I've owned which seemed to have more sturdy cords, and cost significantly less. I do have to say that the 5 year warranty does give me peace of mind that they will stand behind their product if it fails.
Immediately, I noticed the red color inside the headphone chamber as the light from the window hit it perfectly, as if it was spotlighting it. Initially, I thought it quite clever for them to do so, although in the past few months, I have found it more of a hindrance at night when I'm trying to listen to them in bed. I now realize that having a raised "R" on the outside of it, or some other indicator (like an inline mic, but that's another thing) would be more helpful than having it inside, as I now have to use my phone flashlight to identify it. Again, not a big deal, but something to point out.
I actually let everyone attending the meet try out the headphones first before I finally tried it. The consensus was that they are great sounding headphones. Not one member had any bad things to say about them, and to me, that was saying a whole lot about the sound quality of the Be.
Once I placed them in my ears and listened to them through my Chord Mojo, I was very impressed. Nice tight bass, and clear highs. I can understand how other reviewers say it has a V-shaped profile, as I noticed that as well. Now I don't know that much about breaking in headphones like you would with speakers, but I have to say that in the past 6 months, they seem to sound better to me than my initial impressions. As portable as they are, I find they are my default headphones when I'm not at home (the different Stax earspeakers I have are my go-to's when home). I do have a set of Stax SRM-002 that are also considered "portable", and the portable Stax sound better than the Be, but carrying around the Chord DAC, the Stax energizer, and the earspeakers and headband (detachable but I always use them) really aren't convenient nor truly portable. Using the Be with either the Mojo or Fiio E18, or even just my LG V20 with the Quad DAC is seriously all I really need to enjoy the beautiful tones and clarity in almost any setting. I've let family and friends try them out, and they are all amazed at the quality of sound coming from them.
When I listen to Diana Krall live, or jam to some of my favorite 80's songs, I have not found one song where these headphones have not excelled in sound quality. Cymbals and audience noise and footsteps are clear, where on other non electrostatic IEMs, I did not oftentimes notice they were there. Imaging and sound stage are pretty distinct and wide. I can close my eyes and feel immersed in the music and the environment. These are top-notch IEMs that I will continue to enjoy for years to come (and ones in which will not be passed down to my kids).
I hope this has been helpful, and I will try to be more technical in future reviews, as I learn the nomenclature and train my ears in this wonderful hobby we all share.
