Archives for October 2018

Now shipping: Monoprice HR-5 (Open or Closed options)

Monoprice continues to roll out new products, and among them are two new headphones under the HR-5 model. One pair is open-back, the other pair is closed-back. They sell for $70 each and they are, as of the time of writing, in-stock and shipping at the Monoprice website… These are wired with removable earpads (two pairs included), along with a case [see picture #4 in their gallery over there] and … I know little and less about these, so be sure to check your favorite audiophoolia websites and forums for more details…

UPDATE: thanks to Allan in the comments for pointing out this Head=Fi thread that discusses these headphones!

October 20, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Refurbished Sennheiser Momentum 2.0 On-Ears for $79

This is not Sennheiser Day, it’s just that price-checking and deal-hunting can sometimes surface multiple offers from one manufacturer as one price-check can lead to another [and things of that nature]…

This is a bit of a higher risk sale because it is sold by a clearing house type of a marketplace seller, but the order is “fulfilled by Amazon”, so you get to deal with Amazon’s customer service, billing system and shipping system, so you are inoculated against some of the common issues with marketplace sellers.

With that as a long intro, the closed-back on-ear Sennheiser Momentum 2.0 headphones are offered in certified refurbished condition for $79 with free shipping in your choice of brown or black color schemes…

These are with the Apple in-cable buttons but you can use them with any devices. It’s just that not all remote control functions will work as expected with non-Apple products (eg volume or skips). Typically play and pause work on most devices but I haven’t tested this particular model…

October 19, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

EU: BIG Sennheiser B-Stock sale includes HD 660S for 309, HD 650 for 245, HD 600 for 209, etc

The official Sennheiser German online store is having a BIG B-Stock sale that includes among many others:

+ open-back HD 660 S for 309 euro
+ open-back HD 650 for 245 euro
+ open-back HD 600 for 209

+ open HD 559 for 54
+ closed HD 569 for 84
+ open HD 579 for 109
+ open HD 599 for 109

+ HDVD 800 for 1349 euro

+ closed ANC PXC 550 Wireless for 209 euro
+ closed on-ear Momentum Wireless for 115

+ various RS series (non-bluetooth wireless), Gaming headphones, consumer-tied HD-series, earphones, etc

These come with a 2-year Sennheiser warranty, VAT included for all European Union countries, and free shipping and 30-day returns in Germany [I don’t know what the policy is outside Germany]. Per the page there, these are also 100% tested…

If you live outside the EU, taxes/customs and shipping depend on your location. Check with your local audiophiles who may have previously made online purchases to tell you what to expect…

October 19, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: , ,

EU: Sennheiser Momentum On-Ears for 99 euro

Good until November 9 of this year, the official Sennheiser France online store is having a headphone sale that includes the Momentum closed-back on-ears going for 99 euro. Anyone in the European Union can purchase this without additional taxes/VAT/customs but I don’t know what the shipping fees are…

PS: the “Momentum” series got renamed to the “HD1” in the US market, but it has maintained its …momentum [sorry I couldn’t resist] in the rest of the world…

October 18, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With:

Refurb Samsung AKG S9/S8 In-Ears for $8 w/FS

One of the latest (and recurring) deals at clearance specialist A4C (All 4 Cellular) is the seller-refurbished dual-name SAmsung AKG S9*/S8* in-ears offered for $8 with free US shipping. Everything at A4C comes with free shipping even the sub-$5 items they carry. But obviously it’s not Prime-like speed, especially if you are not on the East Coast.

These are wired in-ears. Samsung now owns AKG but this relationship began before Samsung purchased AKG’s parent company “Harman Kardon”. A4C offers a 90-day warranty for their seller-refurbished items….

October 18, 2018 Filed Under: in-ears Tagged With: , ,

NuForce BE2 Bluetooth In-Ears for $20

Good for until Saturday 10/20/18 at 11:59pm ET (New York time in other words) you can get the new condition NuForce BE2 Bluetooth In-Ears for $20 with free US shipping from B&H Photo in your choice of the black color-scheme or the white. These support AAC streaming over bluetooth (up to version 4.1 ~ bluetooth works in lower denominator fashion – highest common protocol among the source and the destination devices)…

PS: one benefit of these style earphones is that you don’t have a cable hanging below the neck since the cable connects one earphone to the other, there’s no headphone plug hunting for a music source in your pocket or on your desk…

October 18, 2018 Filed Under: in-ears Tagged With: ,

Thur: Pioneer Triple Play for $319 (HRM-5 headphones, Active Monitors, DJ)

What if you wanted a bit of everything? Studio headphones, active speakers, and a DJ controller? Good until Thursday OCT-18-2018 at 11:59pm eastern time, New York’s finest B&H Photo is offering this Pioneer bundle for $319 with free shipping. For that you get:

+ HRM-5 Studio Headphones
+ pair of DM-40 two-way active monitors
+ DDJ-WeGO4 Digital DJ Controller

October 17, 2018 Filed Under: audio gear, headphones Tagged With: , ,

Wedn: Pioneer XDP-30R DAP for $150

It’s DAP time among the deals of the day B&H Photo, good until Wednesday October 17 at 11:59pm eastern time. It is the new condition Pioneer XDP-30R offered for $150 with free shipping in the black color scheme.

This is not an Android DAP [but supports TIDAL and Tune IN Radio streaming], but it has some advanced features, such as balanced outputs, two microSD card slots [and 16GB on-board storage], dual SABRE, dual-band Wifi, bluetooth, small touchscreen for operations, DSD support [up to 5.6 MHz], AAC up to 192/32, They also promise MQA support with a future firmware update.

As we’ve seen with smartphones [and other devices too], promises of future updates often remain promises, so keep that in mind if this is a major decision point in your purchase!

It averages 4.2 out of 5 based on a dozen customer reviews at B&H, and 3.5 out of 5 based on 20 customer reviews at Amazon where it also has 17 answered questions by “viewers like you”…

October 16, 2018 Filed Under: digital audio players Tagged With:

EU: Sennheiser HD 559 Open Over-Ears for 73 euro

Sennheiser is a German company, so it’s not a surprise that some of the best prices for their headphones can be found on Amazon Germany, such as the new condition open-back over-ear HD 559 headphones currently going for 73 euro, with a limit of up to three per customer at the sale price. These are sold and shipped by Amazon actual.

VAT is included and no additional taxes/customs are charged in European Union countries. Outside the EU, it depends on your location. The shopping cart may give you estimates though.

I haven’t heard this or the predecessor HD 558, but some of the customer reviews say they prefer the predecessor. Check those and forums and such. It is not uncommon for some people to prefer a “previous generation” model as headphones are not like smartphones 🙂

October 14, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With:

Sunday: UrbanEars Hellas Bluetooth On-Ears for $49

Running until Sunday 10/14/18 at 11:59pm eastern time, as one of the “deals du jour”, New York’s B&H Photo is offering the new condition Urban Ears Hellas bluetooth closed-back on-ear headphones for $49 with free shipping in your choice of three color schemes. They average 3.8 out of 5 based on six customer reviews. I have not used or seen these, so YMMV…

October 13, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Budget Monoprice Two Pairs of Earphones with Free Shipping

Good until the end of day (in the pacific time zone), Monoprice is having an audio sale that also has two “secret” coupons! Coupon code EAR10 gets you TWO pairs of the MP10 budget earphones for $14 total with free shipping, while coupon code EAR20 gets you TWO pairs of the MP20 budget in-ears for $24 with likewise free shipping.

PS: the MP20 mayhaps look a little bit Symphonized?

October 11, 2018 Filed Under: in-ears Tagged With: ,

Used Audio Technica ATH-WS1100 iS for $95+

As of the time of writing, you can slash the new condition price in half for new closed-back Audio Technica ATH-WS 1100 iS, part of their closed-back “Solid Back” series. Sold through Amazon Warehouse Deals (AWD) by AWD actual, you can get it for $95~ in “Used – Acceptable” [a higher risk condition], or $109~ in “Very Good” or $116~ in “Used – Like New”. These headphones average 4.4 out of 5 based on over 110 customer reviews.

October 11, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Plantronics Backbeat Sense for $55 [bluetooth]

The “bluetooth on-ear” market is getting more and more price-competitive, so down it goes the new condition Plantronics Backbeat Sense Wireless (bluetooth) with mic, in the white color scheme (it’s not white, it’s a white-brown-etc blend), selling at the moment for $55 by a marketplace seller with the order fulfilled by Amazon where it averages 3.6 out of 5 based on 32 customer reviews; a sign of trade-offs, so read up on it if you are not already familiar with it….

October 11, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Used Focal Spirit One S closed-back for $49

FOCAL started slow with their headphone line-up before going on an audiophile big bang that got us many options, such as the Elear, Clear, Utopia and so forth…

Of the first wave of closed-back models, the Focal Spirit One S is currently offered in “Used – Like New” condition [no further details provided] for $49 with free shipping by marketplace seller “Fique” (96%, 730+ ratings) through Amazon Warehouse Deals. This ships directly from the marketplace seller and it is NOT Prime-eligible, so there is some higher risk since you won’t be dealing with Amazon shipment and customer service for any order-related issues…

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Sennheiser Urbanite XL Closed Over-Ears for $70

The Urbanite was one of Sennheiser’s attempts at counter the ever-growing popularity of the pre-Apple Beats headphones. It hasn’t grown as much as the Momentum line (now sold as HD1 in some markets) in terms of model line-up, but their new condition over-ear closed-back wired model, the “Urbanite XL” is currently on sale for $70 with free shipping by Amazon actual with up to three pairs per customer at the sale price… At Amazon, this averages 3.8 out of 5 based on nearly 200 customer reviews. I have seen them but have not listened to them…

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Used Sony MDR-1A Closed Over-Ears for 92 euro

UPDATE: as of 10/22/18 recheck, the price increased to around 92 euro for the silver color-scheme in the same condition. The other color is slightly more…

And now off to Germany we go, where the closed-back over-ear (previous generation) Sony MDR-1A is offered in multiple listings and in various conditions starting at around 87 euro in “Used – Good condition” by Amazon Warehouse Deals actual, with prices rising to 92~ euro in “Used – Very Good”, and 97~ in “Used – Like New” on the fifth page of the results.

Strategically, given all these listings, one can play the waiting game and see how low the Amazon price computers will drop their prices given all the pages and pages of listings.

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Audio Technica ATH-AD700X Open Over-Ears for $96

There are not that many open-back options under $100, especially with Philips bowing out with their half-legendary SHP-9500/S [see our unboxing] and the Status Audio OB-1 being hard to find… But Sennheiser and Grado are not the only games in town either! Audio Technica has its own ATH-AD series and the second entry in this line, their ATH-AD700X open-back over-ears is currently on sale for the very specific price of $95.72 by Amazon actual…

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Used Sony XP550 AP Extra Bass for $20

If you want to try the Sony Extra Bass line without breaking the bank, you can go the way of the used, as as of the time of writing, Amazon Warehouse Deals has the black color scheme of the 2017 model of the XB550 AP Extra Bass for under $20 in “Used – Very Good” condition with free shipping for Prime members. Make sure AWD itself is the seller [or any other sellers you recognize]… Of the other color schemes, the blue is available for $22~ BUT it is only in “Used – Acceptable” condition, so that’s a higher risk…

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Used Sony WH-CH700N ANC/BT for $90

If you are a fond of used, and bluetooth and ANC, the Sony WH-CH700N headphone is available at the moment in “Used – Very Good” condition for the very specific price of $89.50 with free shipping by Amazon Warehouse Deals itself (AWD). Make sure AWD is the actual seller, and not the iffy sellers over there…

We have a text and pictures un-boxing of this very headphone… The PORG is NOT included 🙂

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: , , ,

[DEAD] Used Grado SR80e open on-ear for $84

As of a 10/18/18 re-check, this sold out in used condition, but such is the cycle of used Grados on Amazon. If you wait, it will eventually return…

If you are Grado-curious but don’t want to pay the full price, then Amazon Warehouse Deals comes to the rescue as they currently have a “Used – Like New” (comes in original packaging [that’s a spartan “pizza box”]) for the very specific price of $84.15 with free shipping. The new condition price at authorized Grado dealers is $100… This is an open-back model and a low-risk entry-point into the “Grado sound”…

October 10, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

Wedn: Philips O’Neill The Construct (Closed On-Ears) for $29

One of the Woot daily deals for 10/10/18 at Woot Electronics is the new condition Philips SHO7205 O’Neill The Construct closed-back on-ear headphones going for $29 with free shipping for Prime members or $5 flat (regardless of order size during a single calendar day in the central time zone) for non-members. It is available in two color schemes with up to ten pairs per customer.

PS: speaking of on-ears, the Monoprice lightweight closed on-ears are in, and an “unboxing post” is in the works. These appear to share a common ancestry with the AmazonBasics version [which appear to be gone from Amazon’s USA and Germany websites] but I don’t have them anymore, so I can’t compare them directly. From early listening, it sounds like they have a similar sound signature: tastefully bassy, better suited for modern music; not classical…

October 9, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With:

[DEAD] EU: Used Creative Aurvana LIVE 2 for 41 euro

As of a 10/22/18 re-check, the used options sold out…

[Read more…]

October 2, 2018 Filed Under: headphones Tagged With: ,

EU: Yamaha EPH-M100 In-Ears for 34 euro

UPDATE 10/22/18: this price is now offered by a 3rd-party seller that is fulfilled by Amazon.

If you are a fan of the Yahama earphones, the new condition EPH-M100 in-ears, in the white color scheme (it’s black and white) is currently on sale for 34 euro at Amazon Germany. No additional taxes for EU residents. Elsewhere, it varies depending on your situation.

October 1, 2018 Filed Under: in-ears Tagged With: