On The Graph And To The Ear
Source: Tom's Guide US | Keywords: 8, audio, player, earphones
- 1. Introduction
- 2. Isolation: Good Or Bad?
- 3. Testing And Evaluation Methods
- 4. Testing And Evaluation Methods, Continued
- 5. AKG K26P: Bass! But Too Much?
- 6. On The Graph And To The Ear
- 7. Koss PortaPro: Gramps Kicks Up A Fuss
- 8. On The Graph And To The Ear
- 9. Koss The Plug: Direct Injection
- 10. On The Graph And To The Ear
- 11. Sennheiser PX200: Quality You Can Count On
- 12. On The Graph And To The Ear
- 13. Sennheiser PXC250: Higher Quality, Lower Noise
- 14. On The Graph And To The Ear
- 15. Sennheiser MX500: Earbuds That Don't Hurt
- 16.
- 17. Sennheiser MX550: More Of The Same?
- 18. On The Graph And To The Ear
- 19. Sony MDR-EX71SL: Ow!
- 20. On The Graph And To The Ear
- 21. In Conclusion
8. On The Graph And To The Ear
We tested the PortaPro using the artificial ear, since from a technical point of view it is a traditional supraaural headphone.
Response was perfectly balanced and covered practically all of the audio spectrum, with a few limited amplitude peaks and valleys. Only the sub-bass was significantly attenuated, but that's to be expected.
- Audio Visual Accessory...
The impedance, as stated in the manufacturer's specs, is fairly high. This may be a positive point for limiting your player's power consumption.
These headphones are very comfortable to wear, and the adjustable ear pressure is a major plus in practical terms!
When listening, obviously we appreciated the good overall balance, which didn't exclude a hint of flair in the low midrange, however. The detailed reproduction let us get the full benefit of the nice timbre in the midrange and very good subjective dynamics. No equalization was necessary with the PortaPro! The sub-bass seemed a little attenuated, but only a little - it's very much present and accounted for.
The volume level possible without distortion or discomfort was high, and with a portable audio player we were able to get satisfactory sound amplitude.
Delivering perfectly balanced, very enjoyable reproduction with no tweaking needed, the PortaPro is among our favorites. But keep in mind that it provides almost no acoustic isolation, which can be either a disadvantage or an advantage depending on how and where you plan to use it.
- Previous page Koss PortaPro: Gramps Kicks Up A Fuss
- Next page Koss The Plug: Direct Injection
Hi .. here is a belated 2007 comment on the Sennheiser PX 200. It arrives now as I just received a non-returnable pair for Xmas to use with my iPod Touch.
I have never used headphones much.. but .. your review seems to me to be dead on. I know that there are better phones (e.g. the Grado SR 60/80 at al). However, as I "check the sliders" on the iPod EQ -- they seem to fill the mid-range hole that you have reported.
On close, they are pretty good -- but their closed design just cuts the kind of live ambience that you can get with a non-closed design like the Grado's.
The bass PUNCHES too -- just listen to The Eagles - Hotel California.