Films, Music & Gadgets
Came across this album when browsing the web today. I’m a fan of King Crimson and these jazz re-interpretations are truly excellent across the board – not a single weak track on this album. The trio is led by former King Crimson drummer Ian Wallance.
Really funky music. Love the Fender Rhodes sound.
Last week, my ATH-IM70 broke. The two pin connector on the left ear piece broke. This gave me good reason to get another pair of IEMs for daily commute use!
I’ve read that the Fiio F9 Pro punch above their weight but Fiio headphones aren’t too easy to find. Luckily I did happen to find one shop in Wanchai computer centre that did stock them. And despite not being able to audition them, I purchased the earphones purely on the good reviews I read.
First off, these IEMS are comfy and I quickly forgot I had them on. They don’t penetrate deep into the ear canal and I was worried that isolation wouldn’t be great (esp. when using them in the underground). I was using the comply tips at first, but found that the spinfit tips work better – both in terms of fit, comfort and isolation.
Sound quality is excellent. At the moment, think it still needs more burn. Compared to the ATH-IM70, it seems more refined and less bassy (again, perhaps needs more burn in). The soundstage is good too.
The package is quite reasonable – one hard case, one soft pouch, a good variety of tips, 2 cables.
Overall, an enjoyable IEM.
Read many reviews online about the Audeze iSine 20 and was very intrigued. Went to give it a trial a few weeks ago and compared it to Campfire Audio’s dynamic driver-BA hybrid Polaris; liked the Audeze better and bought it.
After a week or so, have finally become accustomed to the fit. I now find the iSine 20 physically rather unobtrusive. It produces a nice and natural soundstage, and while bass may not be thumpy heavy as my other headphones (ATH M50, Beyer T51p) it’s really excellent at jazz and spacey psychedelic / prog rock genres.
This year’s birthday present is the rather nice KEF Egg active speaker. It is replacing my older M-Audio AV40 (which I took out from storage after I busted my Ruark MR1).
The KEF offer a much wider soundstage and great deal more detail. Bass is tighter too, although there is less of it.
Will give it more time to run in. Liking it very much already.
Owned this amazing book when I was a teenager and it provided me with lots of information of what authors and books to read.
The Pilot Prera writes very smoothly. The one used has a medium nib but is actually quite fine. Impressed and recommended.
Haven’t quite decided which app I prefer to use as my default eBook reader on the Nexus 7. Personally, I think the Kindle app has a little bit more finesse.
Below is a screenshot from Google Play Books :-
Below is a screenshot from Kindle app :-
Last week, I walked past an audio shop in Wanchai Computer Centre and heard an amazing pair of active speakers – the Ruark Audio MR1 Bluetooth Speakers. Another fellow and I auditioned the Ruark MR1 and Focal XS Book in the shop with some hi rez audio files and standard redbook FLACs. To my ears, the Ruark has a more expansive soundstage and more sparkling highs; the Focal sounder warmer but the bass wasn’t exactly tight and the treble didn’t sound as refined. Both of us ended purchasing the Ruark in walnut finish.
Back at home, I’ve connected the Ruark to my PC, playing FLACs and 320 MP3s via Foobar through the FiiO E10. Likely, when I re-rip all my CDs into FLACs, I may consider getting a better DAC 🙂
The Ruark is a definite upgrade from my M-Audio AV40, especially when listening to jazz, blues and classical. The speakers are well built and packs some very neat features. I really like the high quality feel of the volume knob and it is miles better than the plasticy AV40s.
I’m really happy with these. The M-Audio AV40s are good and I enjoyed them, but the Ruark is a step up and since I listen to music mostly at most desk these days, it’s a worthwhile investment.
UMMAGUMMA 