Some crackpot theorists would argue that the existence of the Focal Utopia is to make the Focal Elear look like a great bang for the buck for $1000, but this is not the Art Bell Headphone Hour 🙂 Which brings us to the Focal Utopia, as of the time of writing, there are two units in-stock and ready to ship for the very flagship price of $4000 by Gramophone thru Amazon. They ship directly from Gramophone (of Maryland), so they are not Prime eligible. This is one of the rare cases where using the fastest shipping method is a great idea.
Sony MDR ZX330 BT (Bluetooth) for $50
One of the latest daily deal features at Best Buy are the new condition closed-back on-ear Bluetooth Sony MDR ZX330 BT going for $50 with free shipping or store pickup (if available nearby). You have to do the “add to cart” thing to see the price. Limit three per buyer during the sale. They are part of their serviceable ZX-series but with Bluetooth and NFC. NFC is handy if you mix and match different bluetooth playback sources and headphones, especially if you leave Bluetooth ON on your devices even when it’s not in use. It’s like a soap opera fight for the bluetooth connection 😉
Used Philips SHP2600/27 Closed Over-Ears for $10
If the success/hype of the Philips X1/X2 and 9500s got you Philips-curious and want to try more of their line-up, the closed-back over-ear Philips SHP2600/27 are currently available in “Used – Very Good” condition (damaged original packaging) for $10.05 by Amazon Warehouse Deals actual, so if you are a Prime member, you get a free 2-day shipping. They average 3.8 out of 5 based on 51 customer reviews. The box markets them as “Extra Bass”.
Used Beyerdynamic T90 Tesla for $217 [was $204; updated]
We continue our mini excursion into Amazon Warehouse Deals with the Beyerdynamic T90 Tesla headphones offered in “Used – Like New” for $217 “Used – Very Good” condition (cosmetic imperfections, damaged original packaging) going for $204~ with free shipping by Amazon Warehouse Deals actual. These average 4.4 out of 5 based on 46 customer reviews.
Used Master & Dynamic MW60 Wireless for $303
Retro-styled bluetooth action now where the Master & Dynamic MW60 Wireless are available in “Used – Good” condition for $302.53 in Brown and $304.84 in Black through Amazon Warehouse Deals. This link shows the lowest price per color, click on the “See all offers for this product” next to the color name to see all the options per color. These go for $550 in new condition.
[DEAD] Used Sennheiser HD 558 Open Over-Ears for $48
As of a late 10/3/16 re-check, this got scooped up at this price… If you can’t wait for future sales, and don’t want to wait for more on the new HD 5XX line-up, the open-back over-ear Sennheiser HD 558 is currently available in “Used – Very Good” condition for $48 and “Used – Like New” for $51 by Amazon Warehouse Deals actual. This is the middle of the previous generation HD 5xx line-up. It averages 4.6 out of 5 based on 961 customer reviews.
[DEAD] Monday’s Offers: MEE M6, Harman Soho Mini, Yamaha PRO 300, NuForce NE800M, Senn MM60 iP, Etc
Monday’s round of offers expired…
Shipping now: FiiO Multifunction Dock (DK1) for $25 w/free S&H
If you need to get the brand new FiiO Multifunction Dock (DK1), as of the time of writing, it is in-stock and ready to ship for $25 with free shipping by Pitfull Electronics thru Amazon (not Prime eligible) or $30 by Tinbel Store fulfilled by Amazon (Prime eligible) with a limit of three per customer. This fits some of their latest DAPs (X7, X5 II, X3 II, X1) along with the E17K.
Panasonic RP-HD10C-K Over-Ears for $200
The closed-back over-ear Panasonic RP-HD10C-K are currently going for $200 in new condition at Amazon.com with three seller options. Amazon actual which has a 2-5 week shipping estimate, along with two options from Focus Camera, either fulfilled by Amazon (Prime eligible) or shipping directly from New Jersey (Focus Camera location)… Alternately, you can get them for the same price by Focus’s eBay store… This looks like it could be a computer-generated price-match of the Focus Camera sale triggering the Amazon actual price-matching it…
Beyerdynamic Custom Street On-Ears for $67 [limit 3]
There are on sale again, matching the lightning deal price of last week. It’s the new condition closed-back on-ear Beyerdynamic Custom STREET On-Ears, in the black color scheme, going for $67 with free shipping at Amazon by Amazon actual with a limit of three per customer. These are not on a lightning deal, so the price continues until it changes (in other words I have no clue when it will change).
NOTE: these are on-ears, the “Street” is the On-Ear model. The non-Street Customs are over-ears.
I bought these as an impulse + curiosity buy. The Unboxing post I promised for last weekend was delayed, but delay no more, I just posted a Useful Unboxing (text and pictures only), no animations, no audio/video annoyances. A total of 22 pictures were posted (out of 160+ taken).
For some strange reason I decided not to listen to them until I posted the Unboxing post, so how they sound would not “color” the unboxing post. Not sure where this crazy idea came from 🙂
UPDATE:: the “Review Diary” for these is now LIVE will begin this weekend [hooray! Deadline met!]… A “review diary” is when the review develops over time, and I post findings as I use them. Instead of waiting until a review is “completed”. Not that anything is ever completed with audio since there are so many different ways to combine and interconnect things And a more practical reason, if I start a “review diary” I am more likely to review something versus not writing anything at all 🙂
Speaking of review-content related matters, the VE Monks Review Diary continues with more goofiness 🙂
Thinksound ON1 Headphones for $128 [MD]
The Wood Cult is one of the many special interest groups in headphones, perhaps only eclipsed by the Tubes Glow Cult 🙂 Which brings us to Massdrop, the new condition Thinksound ON1 Headphones are fully unlocked for $120 plus $8~ flat shipping. The offer is running for the next eight days (from blog-posting date) and comes with a 2-year warranty and will ship in late October 2016. Around 120 units are available for this particular offer per the listing.
[DEAD] Beyerdynamic Custom PRO Over-Ears for $140
This daily deal expired… The second option in the three Musician’s Friend Stupid Deals of the Day (they have three now instead of one per day) is the new condition closed-back over-ear Beyerdynamic Custom PRO headphones offered for $140 with free shipping. The price drops in the shopping cart. The product page displays a $220 price, but once you add to cart, there is a $80 off discount while this offer is running. The offer ends at 8am ET on Sunday or earlier if they run out of them.
Sony MDR XB 450 Extra Bass for $39
This is only “Extra Bass”, no Bluetooth, it is the new condition Sony MDR XB 450 in the “AP” mic/remote configuration (universal, aka Android Phone or something like that) going for $39 with free shipping by “Video and Audio Center” with the orders fulfilled by Amazon, so Prime shipping benefits.
PS: there’s a handful of refurbished options in the low 20s there, but none of them are recognizable seller names, and the “seller profile” scores do not look very encouraging. Especially if they are not “fulfilled by Amazon” so you won’t have to “fight the seller” to return something or resolve any other issues.
Skullcandy Grind Bluetooth On-Ears for $70
It has the makings of a price match, the most modest of the color schemes of the Skullcandy Grind Bluetooth On-Ears (the black/chrome color scheme) is on sale, in new condition, for $70 with free shipping at Target (free S&H or store pickup where available) and Amazon by Amazon actual.
PS: if you are curious about what’s in the box, here’s our Useful Unboxing (it’s only text and pictures, no annoying audio or video or animations). Reviews of everything are delayed 🙂
Jaybird X2 Sport Wireless Earbuds for $99 [two colors]
Two of the six color schemes (Storm and Midnight) of the Jaybird X2 Sport Wireless (Bluetooth) earbuds are on sale, in new condition, for $99 with free shipping at Amazon by Amazon actual where they average 3.4 out of 5 based on nearly 4000 customer reviews, and have 500+ answered questions there.
PS: still no date for the release of the upcoming Jaybird X3 as far as I can tell.
Sony MDR XB950 BT Extra Bass for $128 [or $100 certified refurbished]
If you like the Double Bs (Bass and Bluetooth), the new condition Sony XB950/BT Extra Bass is on sale, in new condition, for $128 with free shipping by “Video and Audio Center” (aka VAC in SoCal) through Amazon.com. The red color scheme is fulfilled by Amazon so it gets Prime shipping, while the black and blue colors ship directly from VAC, so no Prime shipping. The headphones average 4.3 out of 5 based on nearly 1100 customer reviews, and have 650+ questions answered, both indicators of consumer interest in “bass” and “bluetooth” 🙂
On the other hand, if you are comfortable with certified refurbished, the red goes for $100, and the other two colors for $110 by Secondipity thru Amazon. They ship from Secondipity, so they are not Prime eligible. The refurbished too are popular, they average 4.3 out of 5 based on 350+ customer reviews (interesting how they have the same average, wisdom of the masses in effect?) and have 90 questions peer-answered.
V-Moda M80 On-Ears for $80
In a 2-day sale ending Saturday night, Best Buy is offering the new condition silver color scheme of the V-Moda M80 Closed On-Ears for $80 with free shipping or store pickup (if/where available). This is the previous generation model, the current generation model are the XS on-ears.
15% off Headphones at Stacksocial with Coupon
Stacksocial carries a limited selection of headphones and for a limited time, coupon code CHEERS15 gets you 15% off their current prices. With the coupon factored in, among others, the prices drop as follows:
+ A-Audio Legacy Noise Cancelling Headphones with 3-Stage Technology for $68
+ FRESHeBUDS Pro Magnetic Bluetooth Earbuds for $34
+ Earin True Wireless Earbuds for $170
+ coupon expiration date unknown
[DEAD] Audeze SINE On-Ears and iFi Nano iDSD for $449
This sale ended… It’s bundle time again at Adorama.com, they are offering the closed-back Audeze SINE on-ears with the iFi Nano-iDSD PCM/DSD/DXD USB DAC, together for $449 with free shipping until 10/8/16.
[DEAD] Saturday’s Offers: Bluetooth party: Bluedio, Photive, Etc
These daily offers expired…
Skullcandy Headphone Travel Case for $16
On the name-brand headphone travel case front, the black/red color scheme of the Skullcandy Headphone Travel Case is down to $16.28 by a marketplace seller with the order fulfilled by Amazon. The other two color schemes go for more. This fits a variety of Skullcandy’s over/on-ear headphones non-folded, so it should be able to fit headphones from other brands that have similar dimensions. It also has a removable zippered pouch for cables/accessories, which may (or may not) fit earphones depending on size/shape. What’s a bit different with this travel case is that it has a handle and is more rectangular than roundish. A rounded rectangular, or a rectangular circle. I’m sure there are “geometrics” terms for these 😉 The usual Amazon free shipping terms apply (Prime or $49+).
Opened Box Logitech UE900S Ultimate Ears In-Ears for $216
Pitfull Audio’s eBay store is offering the new condition Logitech UE900S UltimateEars In-Ears for $280 and they are an authorized dealer, but if you want to save some, they have them in opened-box condition for $216 with free shipping (from Southern California).
Refurbished Klipsch R6i Earphones for $27 w/free S&H
More eBay action, the BuyDig eBay store is offering the certified Klipsch refurbished with a 90-day warranty Klipsch R6i Earphones with an iOS mic/remote combo for $27 with free shipping. Over 530 units have been sold so far according to the eBay page over there. Some of the remote functions works on non-iOS devices, but typically Volume Up/Down only work on iOS.
Audio-Technica ATH-AD500X Open-Back for $80
On the Audio Technica front, the new condition open-back over-ear ATH-AD500X (the “D” is the open-back designator) are on sale for $80 with free shipping by Beach Camera fulfilled by Amazon (Prime eligible) and by BuyDig on eBay.
SMS Audio Street PRO Over-Ears for $35 w/free S&H
The over-ear version of the 50 Cent’s “SMS Audio” Street that has the “PRO” tag in their name are currently on sale in new condition for $35 with free shipping with a limit of 50 per customer by Tech Rabbit on eBay. Over 870 units got sold so far form this listing. They are closed-back with detachable cable, in retail packaging.
[DEAD] eBay Coupon (ends Friday 1am ET): $15 OFF orders of $60+
This limited run coupon expired, but it’s a step in the right direction to generate more excitement about eBay sales, and try to wash out the stigma of PayPal as the only payment method :)…
[DEAD] Refurbished Bohm ANC Bluetooth On-Ears for $38 w/free S&H
It looks like I jinxed them, as of 9/30/16 AM, both colors are sold out and cannot be ordered…
[DEAD] Refurbished Plantronics BackBeat Go 2 Wireless (BT) for $29.70
This offer ended, it looks like it sold out before the 6-hours were up…
[DEAD] FiiO D3 (D03K) DAC w/6ft TOS for $21.24
This 4-hour sale, a $4~ discount, expired… Not much pre-scheduled for Friday at Amazon’s, the most recognizable thing is perhaps the FiiO D3 (D03K) Digital to Analog Audio Converter with a 6ft Micca TOS cable. The price before the sale is $25. The sale price is $21.24. Sale ends 6:20pm ET. It started at 2:20pm ET. These offers typically last 4 or in some cases 6 hours. [updated]
[DEAD] Refurbished 8GB iPod Touch 4 for $55 w/free S&H [limit 1]
As of 9/30/16 AM, this is sold-out and the price increased from $55 to $60…
Lord Byron is here (aka Beyerdynamic Byron BT in-stock for $100) [updated]
Officially announced at IFA 2016, the new Beyerdynamic Byron BT earphones are now in-stock and ready to ship for $100 at Amazon.com by Beach Camera. Amazon’s own shipping estimate has moved to October 3rd (eg they run out of what they previously had in-stock). [updated 9/29/16 AM]
Meanwhile the Byron wired in-ear is getting closer, its current estimate is “1 to 4 weeks” with a price of $79.
Massdrop x AKG K7XX Open-Back for $200
It’s back on again, the Massdrop x AKG K7XX open-back headphones are fully unlocked and going for $200 with free shipping. The offer is running for the next eight days (from blog-posting date, not the date you are reading this), comes with a 2-year AKG warranty and is estimated to ship mid-October 2016, which is fast by MD standards 🙂 A total of 590 units are available for this particular offering.
[DEAD] Used Beats UrBeats earphones w/new eargels for $20 w/free S&H
This daily deal expired…
[DEAD] Refurbished JBL Synchros E40BT Bluetooth On-Ears for $40 w/free S&H
This offer expired…
Store Demo Hifiman Edition S On-Ears for $209 [updated]
The Hifiman Edition S on-ears (not to be confused with the more expensive “Edition X”) go for $250 in new condition at authorized dealers, but if you want to save some, you can get them in “Store Demo” condition (less than 5 hours used) with full warranty from authorized dealer RazorDog Audio on eBay. These can be switched between open and closed. Note that these are NOT planar magnetic.
If they run out, seller “Audio Advisor” (100%, 8258 ratings) has them in “Used – Very Good” condition for $202 $212 at Amazon Warehouse Deals. [price updated in this post on 9/30/16]
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