Headphone Fiio X-1 AuGlamour R8

Headphone: The Bus Ride
Review: FIIO X-1, Part II
AuGlamour R8 In-Ear Earphones, Part II
Headphone Talk VI

Part I

Yesterday was yumcha day, and I travelled by bus. By the time I got home I had managed to listen to 9 Beethoven sonatas on my FIIO X-1. I used the AuGlamour R8.


Listening on the Bus
Like the UK, HK's buses are mostly double-deckers. Except for the stairwell, the upper deck is sealed and hence quite quiet in terms of isolation from outside noise, which makes it ideal for headphone listening. The MTR (subway) is in comparison less ideal.

I have only used the FIIO X-1 for a few weeks, and I usually only ride the bus on Saturdays, yet I have already listened to 2 cycles of Bach Cello Suites (Jean Max Clement, Jan Vogler) and 1 of his Solo Violin music (Amandine Beyer). Now I have started listening to Annie Fischer's almost complete Beethoven cycle.

What prompts me to write this article is that for at least two of the artists my perception of their playing through headphone is quite different from listening to the CDs on my regular systems:

In the case of Jean Max Clement, whose original L'Oiseau Lyre LP's cost a fortune, with my regular system I find the playing nuanced but too refined, ultimately a little flat and boring. With the upfront sound of the AuGlamour R8, I could relish more in the minutiae, subtle inflections and coloristic efforts. Indeed it seemed more lively and dynamic.

As for Annie Fischer's Beethoven, this is a rather idiosyncratic cycle, made late in her career with many out-takes and much editing. With my regular system, everything seem rather piecemeal, one moment (a few bars to a whole movement) of brilliance followed by something prosaic and unnatural. With the earphones, that feeling certainly does not completely go away, but one can revel more in her brilliance than her waywardness, making it a more enjoyable experience.

For the other musicians cited (Beyer's Bach, Vogler's Bach), the headphone experience is commensurate with listening to the regular systems.

I mulled on my experience and had a discussion with my friend whlee, who also once used earphones. We came up with some observations.

Thoughts on (Headphone) Listening

• The On-The-Go Factor The average audiophile thinks sitting down in the so-called "sweet-spot", perhaps drawing the curtains and dimming the lights, makes for the best listening. While that is indeed a simulation of the "live experience", I ask what are we focusing on? There is no real performer to hold our breath for...we can concentrate on listening to the music, but it still is a far cry from the real venue. On-The-Go is different - we feel alive, partaker of our own fate. It is well known people, even seasoned listeners, enjoy car music. In what is basically a bubble, one can listen to NYC's WQXR happily while travelling to upstate NY. This is because while riding, we get a lot of stimulation from the scenery. In a way, not so different from watching a movie - think Terrence Malick's Tree of Life, where the music and scenery reinforce each other. That we enjoy it so much on the go does not at all mean it is better than our home setup - it is just different. E.g., overall, the Annie Fischer and Jean Max Clement are lacking in overall flow and coherence, but with the earphones one gets distracted by the heightened microdynamics, minute details and not mind so much the lack of flow.   

• Near-Field vs Perspective While the headphone listening experience is for certain "near-field" ("near-head" is more accurate; how can it not be when we are wearing the cans on our heads?), it is not completely devoid of perspective, but no matter how good the phones are, they are still "near". Indeed, the sound is directly pumped into the ears, devoid of any reflections - absolutely no simulation of the live venue. Near-Field This is closer to the headphone experience, but not the same. Even a near-field setup in a room has plenty of reflected sound, though one may not be aware. Near-Field vs Mid or Back Row Perspective One can setup an audio system based on near-field listening (as studios do) or from a perspective farther away. Most home and hi-end systems gravitate more towards the latter. This would favor orchestral music and less so chamber and solo music. The headphone is exactly the opposite: The big music, Mahler, Bruckner, don't do so well on the earphones, but the smaller ensembles, jazz and chamber music, can do better. which is why I do not even load complex music onto my FIIO X-1.

• Judging a performance Listening to earphones yields a different perspective, but it is not one ideally suited to evaluating the merit of a component or a performance - being akin to the kind of "Heightened Awareness" under the influence of drugs or alcohol. The musical examples cited above illustrate my view. As a corollary, "reviews" by head-fi sites are to be taken with a grain of salt, if not worthless.

• Listen to More Music The whole point of using the media player and earphones is to listen to (catch up with) more music. A basic level of competency is enough. To make extravagant claims is ridiculous.

I enjoy my humble setup very much but have no desire to spend a lot more money for this kind of listening.

FIIO X-1, Logitech/Ultimate Ears, AuGlamour R8 In-Ear Earphones

Review: FIIO X-1, Part I
Review: Cheap Logitech/Ultimate Ears, AuGlamour R8 In-Ear Earphones
Heaphone Talk V

Many readers ask me why I review so few Chinese products. Well, in terms of the serious high-end, many questions about quality control, component authenticity and aesthetics remain. I also detest copy-cat items: I'd rather buy a real 47 Lab than a me-too (or worse, "improved") gain-clone (I don't like the name clone, period), you get the idea.

But the portability market (computers, cellphones, media players etc) is a different issue altogether. SM components can yield good sound but have much less value for counterfeiters, and we ourselves don't expect them to last very long. In this arena Chinese products are fiercely competitive - indeed they should be, and they are.

Head-Fi for Me?
Good question. I occasionally use headphones. But I certainly do not do it often. If one refers to reproduction of the live event, Head-Fi is inherently inferior and low-fi, period. The current Head-Fi scene is to me regrettable. These fellows rate DAC's and phonoamps and more based on what they hear in cans. AND, manufacturers cater to them just to sell things!

My Headphone Experience Lest you think I know nothing about headphones, read my Talk-Headphone articles, where you know exactly where I stand vis a vis headphones and the head-fi scene. And I haven't even posted my impressions of STAX!

BUT, this article is different. It is very basic, and I make use of only two very cheap In-Ear's.

Oh, I almost forgot to tell you where I use the setup. Occasionally on a long bus trip, sometimes while cooking...

FIIO X-1
The Chinese company Fiio has been making head-waves for quite a while. Their products have received great reviews.

Built What more can you ask for USD 99? I actually adore the black rubber outer casing.

Ergonomics Definitely not the best, but certainly good enough.

File Hiccups I haven't read about this in any review. Many classical sets have more than one CD. The X-1 gets thoroughly mixed up when it comes to multi-disc sets. The pictured 2-disc sets got jumbled together: instead of playing disc 1, track 2 of the violin set after its track 1, it plays instead disc 1, track 1 of the cello set, and so forth. You have to create albums on the computer to counter this. Manually file all the violin tracks into album "Bach Solo Violin Beyer" and do the same for the cello under "Bach Solo Cello Vogler" (names mine). Then "browse files" and hit the albums you have created.

Classical listeners have long known this. CAS has never been for them. A huge amount of editing is required to get where you want.

Logitech/Ultimate Ears (UE) In-Ears (right pic) While its pro offerings are well documented, Logitech/Ultimate Ears' cheap in-ears are orphans left in the wild. Mine are USD 20, similar to these.

Fit With the right earpieces, these simply insert into the ears with no fuss. They do not quite completely block outside sound but are well sealed off enough to hear the music even on trains and bus (I personally want a little outside sound to come through, for safety reasons).

AuGlamour R8 Some time ago, there was an official site, but it seemed to have been hacked and is defunct as of this writing. Read the head-fi article for info and pics. Mine is the black, supposedly more "neutral" version.

I dislike the name. "glamour" is feminine in French, hence "la glamour"; "au" is masculine and incorrect;  "a la glamour" would be more like it though still unidiomatic. This kind of thing is exactly what irks me about the Chinese products! Instead of a simple, plausible name, why be pretentious?

A friend recommended these for RMB200 (around USD 30) so I got a set not even knowing what it is. The packaging is luxurious but I dislike the looks of these phones because they are blatantly copies of their more expensive counterparts (including UE).

Fit With the complicated ear-loop and weight, these prove surprisingly difficult to fit. The "luxurious" metal weight, liked by some, is asinine to me, tiring in the long term. The seal is reasonably good, but for my left ear I could never get them to fit perfectly. I do find these a little too heavy for my taste. After listening for an hour, the outer skin of my ears get a little sore.

Sonic Impressions

• FIIO X1 No complaint at all. Except for the unfriendly interface for classical listeners (which is universal), it does what I'd like it to do. Sound is good enough, as it reveals recording differences and seems rather neutral to me. In NYC I did try it briefly with my Audio-Technica AT-750 and Grado SR80 phones, and it drove them with aplomb. I have the equalization OFF, but they are interesting (the classical one has bass boost). Recommended.

• UE No complaints either. These have a very comfortable fit and sound is airy and good enough for most material. I did use it to listen to a radio (RTHK4) broadcast of Bruckner Symphony No. 4. There it proved a little too lightweight. But these shall be my casual/go-to average use in-ears.

• AuGlamour R8 These need some run-in. Initially they are rather dry. The R8 stands out for ONE thing - a deeper and more powerful bass. The midband however is a little forward and the treble somewhat sand-papery in quality. In general, these sound somewhat shut-in. For casual listening, I prefer the cheap UE's. However, the R8  lends more needed weight and dynamics to the same Bruckner broadcast mentioned above. After almost an hour of Bruckner, the skin of my ears were just a little tired from bearing those metal weights. Overall, jazz fans, like my friend, may take to these more than I (bass impact, upfront sound).

I am glad to have both.