This is my first review on Headfi. English is not my mother tongue and I don't usually need to speak English, so I got help from google translator. The reviewers above me have already included many facts and excellent photos. So I don't have to repeat this.
Many thanks to Penon Audio, who provided us with the Impact for a round trip in Germany.
If you don't have time, jump straight to the conclusion.
General (about me and my musical preferences)
I heard the Penon Impact via DAP (A&K SP2000T) and the desktop setup (Violectric DAC V850 + KHV V280). The feed takes place via A&K App or foobar2000. He played balanced and unbalanced convincingly at both sources.
On the V850 I chose the "Best" sampling rate for resampling and on the DAP I usually chose OP Amp or 50% Hybrid as the amp settings. The SP200T has an additional tube section, which can be added to the OP amp in 5 different stages. My favorite filter on the A&K is the Hybrid Filter. It has a slightly W-shaped signature.
Unboxing
As with almost all Penon headphones, the packaging is minimalistic and does not use any (foam) material that is harmful to our planet. A chic hard case will be missed by some. I keep my IE with small mesh bags in an IE (collective) box. I don't really miss that. The clear housing gives a glimpse into the inner workings of the handset. The color of the faceplates matches the cable very well. All in all, I like the noble, unobtrusive understatement very much. The included eartips have a set of spiral dots in addition to tips I don't know.
Feel
Since the cable is not filigree, I exchanged it for a Tripowin Petrichor. The housing is not necessarily small, but it is still compact in view of the built-in 10BA and 4 EST drivers. The straight sound exit tubes suit my ear anatomy. I miss the defined seat for the tips a little, which was still available on my Serial and Fan2. I had to experiment a bit with different eartips to find the best seal. My favorites were Dunu Spring Tips, Softears Liquid Silicone and the gray green Penon Tips. The differences in sound are subtle.
How does the impact sound?
In the BASS, the name says it all. The bass is sometimes reminiscent of a dynamic driver in its power, but has the structure and precision known from BA drivers. A superbly musical yet precise combination as the bass remains fast and clean despite its physicality. He doesn't bleed in the mids. For me it has enough rumble in the sub-bass that it doesn't drown out the mid and high frequencies.
The MIDDLES are simply fantastic, always staying clear with good separation and at the same time musical. Not a trace of annoying guitar riffs that sound thin. On the contrary, electric guitars sound rousing. You can almost follow how the musician plays the individual strings of his instrument. Voices are clear and clean. Fortunately, they are not too far in front of the instruments.
In the HEIGHTS, the Impact stays true to its line. There is no showmanship here either. They are airy and detailed with beautiful details. Despite this, Penon has managed not to make them sound sharp or overemphasized. This means that there is no fatigue during long listening sessions.
The STAGE has a large spatial extent in both directions. Due to the excellent separation, the instruments can be localized very well in the room. Which also benefits the details mentioned.
A few personal notes on the EARTIPS used:
Softears liquid silicon enhances the bass, adds some root and takes a bit of energy out of the highs, which can be beneficial for some recordings, although I'm almost a bit addicted to the Impact's lofty highs. The Softears are a bit more reserved in the highs than the Dunu Springs Tips, which expand the impact nicely upwards and in the presence. But depending on the music, it can also become too much. From the Penon range, the gray-green (stronger base tone, less treble) and gray-orange tips (mids back) are my favourites.
Conclusion
Do you know that feeling when you don't want to stop at night and you're still thinking about a song? That's what happened to me with the Impact. You can really crank up the Impact when your favorite songs are playing. Even at high levels, it doesn't get on your nerves with excessive showmanship. Penon has stayed true to its house sound. But it is also suitable as a "quiet listener" due to its balanced tuning.
So the Impact for me is an excellent IE with absolute all-rounder qualities. I have only experienced this in this quality once before, with the Thieaudio V16 Divinity. However, since I did not have this at hand to compare, I refrain from comparisons.
The drivers are fast, which makes the Impact play very dynamically. The tuning is stirring for rock and metal listeners. He also cuts a very good figure in other genres. The BA Bass is powerful, musical and clean. Still, the Impact isn't IE for bassheads. The mids also remain absolutely suitable for a long time without swallowing up details. Due to the typical Penon sink around 6kHz, there are no sibilants. The highs are detailed and present, but remain musically round. His exciting calmness makes him an excellent IE for me. He dispenses with showmanship over the entire frequency range. That's why I think it takes a "listening time" until it fully ignites.
If you can live with the spartan packaging, which I think is contemporary, you get an excellently tuned listener that manages a successful balancing act between analysis and musicality.
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