Hi all! Friends, do you remember such interesting hybrid headphones as Geek Wold GK10? In the summer and autumn of last year, heart-shaped headphones received simply unreal hype and huge popularity in the vastness of the CIS countries, while an even greater peak in the popularity of the device fell on Asian and Western countries. Headphones, at a low price, carried in their compact cases as many as 5 emitters (2 dynamic, 2 piezoelectric and one driver with a balanced armature), while the model also attracted attention simply with an incredibly low resistance of 6Ω, and for some measurements and even 5Ω, which, as it were, is not an easy load even for some players and portable DACs. Nevertheless, I managed to feel the headphones and even write a very emotional review on them. Of course, not everyone agreed with my opinion, but nevertheless, the device in the Russian-speaking community received well-deserved popularity, and did not go unnoticed. After more than six months of excellent sales of headphones, the popularity of the device began to gradually decline, as a result of which the manufacturer decided to refresh its last year's bestseller. One dynamic emitter was thrown out of the new headphones, the resistance of the model was brought up to sane 18Ω, and the face plates now, instead of multi-colored stabilized wood, flaunt a more strict carbon insert. The price of the new model was left approximately at the level of last year's headphones, and was called the Geek Wold GK80.
Specifications:
- Driver configuration: 1 balanced armature + 2 piezo drivers + 1 dynamic driver 8 mm diameter with graphene coating diaphragm
- Sensitivity: 106 dB
- Impedance: 18Ω
- Frequency response: 20Hz - 35kHz
- Cable material: 4-strand OFC
- Connector: 2pin 0.78mm
- Cable length: 1.2m
Packing and scope of delivery:
The headphones come in a small white cardboard box. The front of the package is covered with a transparent plastic blister through which you can see the headphones and two pairs of silicone ear pads on a special substrate.
On the back of the package, we will find a sticker with brief technical specifications of the headphones.
Inside the box we are greeted by:
- Headphones with ear pads attached
- Complete cable (which for some reason was not with my device)
- 5 pairs of additional two types of silicone ear tips
- Eco-leather pouch with drawstrings
Headphone appearance:
And again we have recognizable heart-shaped cases. The headphones are still compact, and apparently they use the same cases as the previous model, the difference in which is reduced only in the materials of the design of the face plates.
A pair of compensation holes, a 2Pin socket, all this is also located in the same places.
At the same time, the terrible quality of the glossy plastic and the burrs along the edges of the sound guides have not disappeared anywhere.
What exactly was changed in the set of new headphones is the cable, but unfortunately I won’t tell you how bad or good it is, because the headphones came to me without a conductor, but what I can show you is how the device sits in my ears.
Sound:
We tested headphones with a QLS QA361 player and Abigail portable DACs from Venture Electronics, as well as an ES9318 DAC.
Despite the rather unflattering frequency response graph, the headphones do not sound as terrible as it might seem at first glance, and, moreover, you can even enjoy listening to music in this model. Yes, this is definitely an extreme V-shaped characteristic with strongly pushed-in mids, while the sound of the heroes of the review is very assertive, uterine-evil and emotional. Headphones, of course, do not shine with details, the resolution here is rather average, but at the same time, an inexpensive device does not give in to fast and heavy music, does not dump the sound of complex compositions into an incomprehensible mess of instruments, musicians' voices and bright upper mids. Moreover, the areas of low-frequency emphasis, and the peaks at the upper middle and high frequencies practically coincide in amplitude, which actually eliminates the unpleasant metallic ringing and sibilants. Of course, below we will analyze the sound of the Geek Wold GK80 hybrid headphones in more detail:
Low frequencies
They act as a certain foundation for the sound of the novelty. The bass here is massive, angry, slightly softened, and surprisingly very fast. In most cases, its speed is enough even for very complex and fast music. At the same time, low frequencies do not have any high resolution, and sometimes I get the impression that they lack impact and definition, that is, there is no clear, tasty and biting slap, but only an imitation and some kind of vague daub.
Mid frequencies
Noticeably sunken. It is audible that the vocalist and musicians are at some distance from the listener, while the lower middle is clearly distinguished by the headphones, thanks to which the bass guitar game acquires the necessary physicality, volume and energy. Male vocal parts are full-bodied, there is no such feeling that something was not reported strongly, except that sometimes a little better resolution is not enough. The upper middle is a little highlighted by ear, but this range in most cases does not cause irritation, which is why the headphones can be listened to quite comfortably for a long time. The headphones build an imaginary scene of average depth and width, but the separation of the instruments in the device is very decent, especially considering their low price.
High frequencies
I would say that they are just comfortable. The peak at 8 kHz, which, according to the manufacturer's idea, should increase the detail, does not greatly affect anything here. In my opinion, the high frequencies are somewhat simplified in comparison with the previous bestseller. This range of the Geek Wold GK10 was smoother, more natural and more extended.
Comparisons:
Despite the relatively low price of the Geek Wold GK80, the model in its price category has quite a few very strong competitors, which sometimes leave absolutely no chance for the heroes of today's review.
Geek Wold GK80 vs Tanchjim Ola:
The Tanchjim Ola are very high-quality and incredibly interesting headphones that, at a similar price of $40, can offer simply outrageous sound for their money. The headphones are light, airy, and there are noticeably fewer low frequencies, but in terms of elaboration and bass definition, the model will outdo much more expensive in-ear headphones, not to mention the Geek Wold GK80. The mids here are also more airy and detailed, the vocal parts sound cleaner, richer in various overtones, but at the same time they are more lightweight and more dependent on the quality of the recording of the composition you are listening to. The high frequencies are cleaner, longer, the attacks are more pronounced, and the various attenuations from hitting the cymbals generally put the Geek Wold hybrid headphones on the shoulder blades, and all this is possible using just one high-quality dynamic radiator and competent headphone sound tuning by talented engineers.
Geek Wold GK80 vs Blon BL07:
The Blon BL07 is another dynamic headphone that falls into the price range of the hybrid model from Geek Wold. If in the first comparison example the choice was obvious, then this time everything is a little more complicated. Like the heroes of today's review, we have another model with a V-shaped sound characteristic, of which there are hundreds and even thousands in this price range. Dynamic headphones play much more massive and slower, the low frequencies are deeper and more percussive, but the bass is more imposing and slower. Low frequencies also have an unpleasant property to climb to the lower middle. The middle frequencies of the Blon BL07 are more clamped, while the dynamic headphones play more pronounced in depth, and the imaginary scene is somewhat inferior in width to the multi-driver model from Geek Wold. The separation of instruments in competitive headphones is quite average, so you better forget about any complex and fast multi-instrumental music. The high frequencies of the Blon BL07 are rather strange, they are simple, but due to a noticeable peak around 8 kHz, which is much higher than the low-frequency range, the device makes unpleasant accents on the hissing and whistling sounds that often accompany vocal parts, as well as hitting cymbals and the sound of other high-frequency instruments, often seasoned with a fair amount of sibilants, poking, and various unpleasant and harsh sounds.
Conclusion:
What is the result? In general, I liked the updated hearts, like the previous model of the manufacturer. Headphones are naturally not perfect, and judging by various reviews and some reviews, the quality of the device can vary from batch to batch. But, for relatively little money, you can get genre-universal headphones that do not succumb to complex and fast music, and can please not only with their appearance, but also with very good sound quality relative to their low price.
You can buy Geek Wold GK80 hybrid headphones from our friends in the
Penon Audio online store or in the
Penon Audio Store on AliExpress.