KLS
Headphoneus Supremus
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- Dec 31, 2008
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This is my first attempt writing a review
. Below is my thought on Creative Aurvana Air (below I refer these as Air).
I got these second-hand from my friend today for around 50 dollars. He has these burned in for more than 100 hours, so I don’t think that further burn-in is needed. I'd always wanted to try these as all reviews I came across about them are positive, so today I would like to share some of my thoughs here.
Things that strike me first time listening to them:
• Wow, impressive soundstage!
• Very good imaging for earbuds.
• Rather neutral, if not a little to the bright and warm side.
Now I have three pairs of earbuds: Air, Sennheiser MX90, and AKG K314P. I will be comparing the Air with MX90 first, then maybe later with K314P.
The comparison below is done with the ‘nude’ condition of the Air and MX90: no foams are added on them.
Soundstage:
The Air is a clear winner here. Soundstage is big, have a good sense of depth and height. MX90 has a narrower soundstage, and sometimes musics seem to be flowing within my head.
Imaging:
Hands on the Air. They do give you a 3D presentation. You will definitely be surprised as their 3D presentation, in my opinion is just few steps behind my beloved CK10 and IE8. As for MX90, instruments sometimes become ‘fuzzy’ and hard to pinpoint the location. Soundstage and imaging are the very strong points of the Air in my opinion.
Instrument Separation:
The Air obviously has better instrument separation. The Air is airier than MX90. Both of them however, suffer from midrange overlapping on the bass at times in busier passages.
Transparency:
This belongs to the Air again. Treble on MX90 is veiled compared to the Air. The Air has more detail, especially in bass and treble.
Bass:
I like the bass of IE8. So, please take this into account when I comment the bass of the Air and MX90. The Air has more bass quantity compared to MX90. It’s like “Where is the bass?” with MX90, but “So there is plenty of bass!” with Air. Drums have more weight on the Air, but with MX90 it’s like drummer hitting on plastic containers… Although not as much bass as the IE8’s, it is very pleasant and I like acoustic with the Air. By the way, it was CK10 that makes me realized that there is not only bass in music
Midrange:
Midrange of both are not too forward or recessed, but sometimes I have the ‘in-your face’ sensation with MX90. MX90 has a lush yet smooth midrange, better than the Air. I like vocal with the MX90. The Air has a more laid-back presentation in the midrange.
EDIT: Further listening with them, I find that midrange presentation is almost the same on both the Air and MX90, with the Air has a drier vocal. So, it was my mistake saying the MX90 to have lush, smooth and sometimes 'in-your-face' midrange.
Treble:
The Air has a good extension on treble but doesn’t fatigue the ears. ABing them side by side makes MX90’s treble seems to be veiled and less detail.
Fit:
I prefer the fit of MX90. Their 'twist to fit' holds the buds rather firmly. On the hand, it is quite a trouble fitting the Air on your ears, which you have to place the hook nicely around your ears so that they stay firm.
Conclusion:
I have yet to hear other high-end earbuds like the Yuin's or TM Blox, but I am pretty satisfied with the Air. I bought my MX90 almost 3 years ago, which was priced around 80 dollars that time. As for the Air, one can find a brand new for less than 100 dollars, in Japan. I will choose the Air over MX90 for sound quality. As for fit and comfort, I like the tradisional design of MX90.
However it is difficult to judge whether they are worth the 100 dollars. If you hate IEMs, you would like to try these. There are always cheap yet high quality IEMs out there for your choice, like Cyclone, Thinksound, Hippo, MEelectronics, Sound Magic...I have never tried these so I can't comment on how the Air worth the money comparing to these IEMs. To be honest, though the Air sounds fantastic, they are great being earbuds, but far behind the league of CK10 and IE8.
Again, this is my first time writing a review
, any comments or critics are welcomed. Please forgive my poor English.
I got these second-hand from my friend today for around 50 dollars. He has these burned in for more than 100 hours, so I don’t think that further burn-in is needed. I'd always wanted to try these as all reviews I came across about them are positive, so today I would like to share some of my thoughs here.
Things that strike me first time listening to them:
• Wow, impressive soundstage!
• Very good imaging for earbuds.
• Rather neutral, if not a little to the bright and warm side.
Now I have three pairs of earbuds: Air, Sennheiser MX90, and AKG K314P. I will be comparing the Air with MX90 first, then maybe later with K314P.
The comparison below is done with the ‘nude’ condition of the Air and MX90: no foams are added on them.
Soundstage:
The Air is a clear winner here. Soundstage is big, have a good sense of depth and height. MX90 has a narrower soundstage, and sometimes musics seem to be flowing within my head.
Imaging:
Hands on the Air. They do give you a 3D presentation. You will definitely be surprised as their 3D presentation, in my opinion is just few steps behind my beloved CK10 and IE8. As for MX90, instruments sometimes become ‘fuzzy’ and hard to pinpoint the location. Soundstage and imaging are the very strong points of the Air in my opinion.
Instrument Separation:
The Air obviously has better instrument separation. The Air is airier than MX90. Both of them however, suffer from midrange overlapping on the bass at times in busier passages.
Transparency:
This belongs to the Air again. Treble on MX90 is veiled compared to the Air. The Air has more detail, especially in bass and treble.
Bass:
I like the bass of IE8. So, please take this into account when I comment the bass of the Air and MX90. The Air has more bass quantity compared to MX90. It’s like “Where is the bass?” with MX90, but “So there is plenty of bass!” with Air. Drums have more weight on the Air, but with MX90 it’s like drummer hitting on plastic containers… Although not as much bass as the IE8’s, it is very pleasant and I like acoustic with the Air. By the way, it was CK10 that makes me realized that there is not only bass in music
Midrange:
Midrange of both are not too forward or recessed, but sometimes I have the ‘in-your face’ sensation with MX90. MX90 has a lush yet smooth midrange, better than the Air. I like vocal with the MX90. The Air has a more laid-back presentation in the midrange.
EDIT: Further listening with them, I find that midrange presentation is almost the same on both the Air and MX90, with the Air has a drier vocal. So, it was my mistake saying the MX90 to have lush, smooth and sometimes 'in-your-face' midrange.
Treble:
The Air has a good extension on treble but doesn’t fatigue the ears. ABing them side by side makes MX90’s treble seems to be veiled and less detail.
Fit:
I prefer the fit of MX90. Their 'twist to fit' holds the buds rather firmly. On the hand, it is quite a trouble fitting the Air on your ears, which you have to place the hook nicely around your ears so that they stay firm.
Conclusion:
I have yet to hear other high-end earbuds like the Yuin's or TM Blox, but I am pretty satisfied with the Air. I bought my MX90 almost 3 years ago, which was priced around 80 dollars that time. As for the Air, one can find a brand new for less than 100 dollars, in Japan. I will choose the Air over MX90 for sound quality. As for fit and comfort, I like the tradisional design of MX90.
However it is difficult to judge whether they are worth the 100 dollars. If you hate IEMs, you would like to try these. There are always cheap yet high quality IEMs out there for your choice, like Cyclone, Thinksound, Hippo, MEelectronics, Sound Magic...I have never tried these so I can't comment on how the Air worth the money comparing to these IEMs. To be honest, though the Air sounds fantastic, they are great being earbuds, but far behind the league of CK10 and IE8.
Again, this is my first time writing a review