Mr. Speakers ETHER Flow Headphone(?) Upgrade(?)

But if you don't like your current phones and you believe the update will make them better (it might or might not) wouldn't it be best to sell that one and get another one? Good options seem to be coming out our around the corner... just wondering...

What don't you like about the current non flows!?

 

Well... STILL ALIVE!

Initial impressions.

- Excellent build. Looks gorgeous, is quite light for its size and although it looks different from everything out there, it doesn't scream "LOOK AT ME!"
- Quite comfortable on the head, pads feel great and the adjustment system looks good though not sure how sturdy nor how it might take months/years of abuse.
- Cable isn't as stiff as it looks == good in my book. Ok length for office use (my main use).

- Sound... Ok, so I first started with decently recorded stuff (i.e. Paquito D'Rivera, Buena Vista - De Camino a la Vereda/El Cuarto de Tula, HD Tracks samples, plus some Chesky recordings, DJ Koze - My Plans, Beethoven - Rondo Allegro, etc. etc.) and yeah... they sound VERY good. Better than I expected actually. Bass response is excellent and possibly better than both closed-backs I currently use the most (Ultrasone Signature DJ and Beyer DT1770). Need to do comparisons at home but I think apart from quantity, this one will have those 2 beat. Mids are forward and have a warm tinge but not too much. Everything comes out very clean to my ears, especially in comparison with the DT1770s which sounds a "scooped" and artificial. Definitely these are more "open" sounding and imaging is excellent as well. Thing is, well recorded music sounds good on almost all decent headphones . Tried not so well recorded punk, metal, reggaeton, salsa tracks and THERE you can catch what might be a 'con'... Brightness up-top. I'm guessing it might be from 6-8khz or so since on some tracks I detected a hint of sibilance but might have other peaks lower because sometimes guitars crunch can sound a bit aggressive (2.5? 3khz?). Increasing volume of course brings these things into prominence. Is this a show-stopper? Not sure yet...

What actually surprised me more about the headphones, after reading so many reports of "extreme brightness" or "lean sounding", is that they are not THAAAT bright nor lean. I mean, I own(ed) and tried Beyers, Ultrasones, Shure's, etc. and to me, bright is something like the SRH940, DT770 weird highs, and the JVC HA-MX100Z, Edition 8s, etc. Even the Hifiman HE-560s I consider brighter as well as the LCD-XCs I tried long ago (which I couldn't really listen for too long because it actually gave me headaches... probably a mix of their weight and weird upper mids...).

Haven't gotten a headache yet so...
(ears are not bleeding either!)

I was worried about bass quantity, and although not a bass monster, I like the punch from the tracks I've tested. Would have like a bit extra sub-bass presence but not bad at all while listening to tracks from Wiz Khalifa, Disclosure, Calle 13, etc.

Note:

1) I use glasses, sound might be different (seal dependent) for some.
2) No burn-in (if you live and die by this).
3) Gear used: HTC phone - USB OTG - iFi Micro iDSD

Will keep on listening and compare in the weekend against the others. Let's see if it (or my brain) "settles" as well.

 

I've been using my flow open roughly for three weeks. Presumably my flow sufficiently broke in (at least I assume so).
Indeed I like them much more than I initially worried - based on many others' negative impressions.

Here are some of my positions with regard to several common criticisms.

• Lack of cohesiveness: Don't agree. I clearly could feel different balance than most of 'well-balanced' tonalities, but I believe this is another style of good cohesiveness.
• Lack of body: Don't agree, either. Similar with the above. But I can understand why others could feel like that way.
• Lack of impact/punch: Don't agree. But sometimes I suspect my criteria of punchy bass might be a little different from others.
• Bassy: Agree. I think subbass is deep (could easily catch low organ notes and signals around 20hz), but not very clean mainly due to mid-bass emphasis. I could have great fun for many recordings, but I can never say that this is the 'accurate' bass.
• Treble peak: Agree. Although less sibilant than 800, I could easily feel somewhat excessive energy around 7k. But even when I tested the most sibilant recordings, I couldn't feel any annoyance.
• Bright: Agree. Not overly bright THO.
• Poor vocals/midrange: Don't agree. Vocal is a bit distant and less forwarded, but to my ears keeps very good harmony with other parts of musics without loss of sweetness.
• V/U shape tonality: Agree. Recessed mid + Bassy + Treble peak + Bright = V
• Narrow/small soundstage: Don't agree.
• Overpriced: Neutral. For me, flow uniquely satisfied many of my requirements, thus I never regretted this purchase. But not sure if it is generalizable.

So my verdict so far is "I love them, but I can understand why some dislike them".

 

So my either flows come in tomorrow. I just got the Modi Multibit yesterday warming up and the Valhalla 2 all set to go, but my main questions is beat way to burn them in?

I know it is supposed to be a long burn in, but what is best way to do it? I'm so excited to finally get these. Been using my g930 after selling my HD 800 .Let me tell you that was a culture a shock going that far backwards on audio spectrum.

 

Just use them and keep on listening...

 

My recommendation is to use low-power portable devices when I don't listen to them. I use my old iPhone with noise generator apps

Benefits
1) You can save a lot of electricity.
2) You can enjoy other headphones with your primary rig.

 

It's been a month since I got my pair of Flow.
I liked them, but I love them after driving them with jotun(se).

Will try jotun balance soon. My cable is en-route to my place. It was really a foolish decision that I didn't select 4pin xlr termination when I ordered my flow.

 

How does the Ether flow know which ear I am listening to well gaming? It doesn't have L/R like the HD 800 or K712? This headset is so much better then the HD 800 when compared in MGS 5 and GTA V. Music the bass is awesome too

 

This bothered me quite a bit too until I found that the left right markings are actually stamped on the headband. I wish they were more visible.

I'm a new owner of C Flows, and I actually sold my HD800 to fund the Ether. Discovered this thread after wondering why so many posts were being deleted from another website. I had to send mine back for a QC issue, but the one thing that really is different between the HD800 and the Ether is the sound stage.

The HD800 sound stage to me is shaped like a protractor. The C Flow soundstage feels very left and right as if it were shaped like pac-man. It feels like there is a pillar in front and slightly to the right creating a gap in the music. Is this a planar thing?

 

Wow I feel like a f'ing retard...

The soundstage opens up when you figure out how to wear the headphones on correct ear and that the red band on cable means plug into right side. Overall, after about 20 hours over the last 2 days I am very impressed with how much more clarity there is to the sound and isn't analytical as the HD 800.

 

3 weeks for my upgrade to be done....but they are the same driver ....mine didn't top out until about 160 to 180 hours.....
Killing me missing my Ethers.... Shame I have had some upgrades on my electrics just as I sent it away....
Going to have a balanced transformer come soon...... Need to dig here see if people have tried them......
Nice to know people enjoying the Flows. ..

 

Sounds very painful. Too bad..
My experience of the flow was similar. It took 150-200 hrs to feel the real potential.
But to me it's the best candidate to my 'end-game' headphones to the moment. I really like how flow reproduces through jotenheim (balance out).

 

Will be fun burning it in again I suppose and a lot cheaper upgrading to the flow..... Since the pound £ got hammered in Brexit ..not a bad deal for basically a new headphone....
My xmas present sorted.....

 

what did you find to get better with the flow after the burn in?

 

Many things changed. Some just slightly, others noticeably.
To my ear, the most significant changes are headstages and cohesiveness.
Staging improved in terms of depth. Midrange sounded more cohesive to bass and treble.

 

Looking forward to getting my "we're ready for your upgrade" email from Dan and crew. My Ether C's have been asking me when it's their turn...

Cheers

 

So, in summation, I would gather that the Flow is not a worthy upgrade to my Ether, in consideration that I love the relatively even response of the Ether? I like it's bass and top end as they are. I am loathe to send in for Flow upgrade and get back something that is a step backward.

 

Kudos to my rich friend. Finally could AB my flow and his utopia last Sunday.
I've heard utopia before, but it was not under ideal conditions (short time, noisy surrounding, not with my dac and amp configuration..) then. As a flow lover, I was quite wondering how flow competes against utopia after reading @Tyll Hertsens 's comparative review.

Setting

• Used my Jotunheim as a dac-amp combo.
• Wyrd provided filtered usb signals.
• I admit that this might not be optimal for utopia (particularly dac..), but I wanted to make 'others being equal'
• Tried to match volume using pink-noise and b-weighted SPL meter.

Here are some of my impressions:

Bass

• Clearly more bass with flow (in terms of overall quantity), bass extension is on par.
• But when it comes to the balance between sub and mid bass, utopia is way more neutral (subtly thin IMO). Flow's mid-bass emphasis is relatively much stronger. Either is not very perfect for me. Elear's bass balance was closest to my ideal.
• Both have a good tightness and cleanness.
• Punch and impact were great on both, but differently expressed. Flow sounds more artificial while utopia sounds more natural. I prefer flow here.
• Overall, I like flow's bass slightly more than utopia (particularly for EDM). But utopia's bass sounds a bit better for some classcal recordings such as symphonies with pipe organs (e.g. Sanit Saens)

Midrange

• Vocal is more forwarded and cleaner with utopia. A little richer. This enables me to enjoy the beauty of human voice for some recordings like Kari Bremnes or Melissa Menago.
• On the other hand, flow better mix vocals with other parts of the music. This particularly works for modern recordings with many electronic instruments. Lady Gaga's bad romance sounds more magical with flow.
• Midrange of both cans link to bass/treble very cohesively, but tonal balance is quite different.
• Deciding which one I prefer is very tough here, much tougher than bass.

Treble

• I think utopia is a clear winner here. Much evener and smoother. Brightness is also quite ideal. But more importantly no veil.
• IMHO I didn't recognize unevenness when I heard my flow alone. But AB comparison makes it clear flow is uneven around 5k-10k region. Flow generally has more treble than utopia (and of course brighter than utopia), but dips seem to exist around 6-7k hz.
• Top end extension is great for both cans.
• Although I think utopia is superior to flow in terms of treble, this does not mean flow's treble is annoying to me. I like how flow reproduce the sound of cymbals - they have the right mix of crash, clang, and shimmer. Also I can catch spatial and musical cues very easily with flow.

Headstage, imaging, and resolution

• Both work well with crossfeeders.
• With regard to headstage, utopia is wider while flow is deeper.
• Seperation of each instrument is great with both. But large-scale symphonies sound better with utopia. Mahler no 5 was so gorgeous with utopia.
• Flow sounds bigger (of course not louder lol) compared with utopia.

Ergonomics and build quality

• Utopia is heavier. No doubt. Weight difference is noticeable, particularly after 30 minutes. For me, flow clearly wins for long term listening.
• Both are very, very comfortable. But I like ear pads and cushions of utopia over flow. They feel really luxurious.
• I like flow's BQ a lot. But utopia is even better. They just looks and feels nicer, except cable. I prefer flow's cable to utopia's.

Conclusions and thoughts

• Flow didn't lose much when competing against utopia, at least to my ears. Utopia clearly does many things righter, and sometimes better. But there are also somethings that flow do better.
• My guess is that these two cans are developed from totally different philosophies.
• I generally agree with Tyll's comment that both are 'differently' well-balanced.
• I want to characterize utopia as a 'super hd650' (I never mean these two sounds similar) and flow as a 'super beats+beyer'.
• I really desire to own utopia, but even if I buy it someday I will never sell my flow.