Koss PortaPros drip-drop to $33.88 [limit 5]

The Koss PortaPros are f00kin legends in a retro kind of way, and if you can’t wait for a future discount or holiday season lightning deal, they have drip-dropped in price a bit at the moment, you can get them for $33.88 in new condition, with a limit of five units per customer at Amazon by Amazon actual. Two more marketplace sellers offer them for the exact same price, so it may be that Amazon automatically price-matched them. So pay attention to who the actual seller is. Look for Amazon’s own listing:

koss_portapro_amzn

Kennerton Magisters for $350 to $700 [MD]

Never a dull moment in the world of headphones these days, many and more new models and brands surface left and right, which brings us to the Kennerton Magisters being offered and fully unlocked at Massdrop. There are two options, the “Light” go for $350, while the standard non-Light go for $700. These are hand assembled in Russia and they allegedly use solid bog oak from trees older than 2000 years old. They have 64 ohm impedance and MD covers the warranty (the standard 1-year). Shipment is late October 2016, and the offer is running for the next seven days.

MEE Audio MMCX Cables for $28+ (fits various in-ears) [MD]

MEE Audio (formerly MEE Electronics) is diversifying with detachable cables that cannot only be used in their own P1 Pinnacle in-ears, but a handful of other popular brands that have models with MMCX. Their MEE Audio MMCX Cables are currently fully unlocked at Massdrop for $25 plus $3.50 flat shipping (without mic) or $30 plus $3.50 flat shipping for the mic/remote cable. The offer has seven days to go (from blog-posting date; approximate since MD does not provide an exact expiration date/time). Warranty is 1-year from MD, and the purchases will ship late October 2016.

On the other hand, if you don’t want to wait and instead prefer near-instant delivery, you can get them for $30 (no mic/remote) or $35 (with mic/remote) at Amazon.com, with the usual free shipping terms.

NOTE that not every MMCX earphone works with these. Check the listings at both places for more details.

[DEAD] Wednesday Offers: Symphonized, Outdoor Tech BT, Etc

This round of daily offerings expired…

[Read more…]

Bose MIE2 earphones for $56 w/free S&H [updated]

If you are caught in the land between in-ears and classic earbuds [eg the VE Monk+], one option are the Bose earphones that are somewhere in between, and one of their previous generation models (before they switched to the Soundtrue line-up) are on sale for $56 with free shipping at A4C online when you use coupon code SEPTEMBER20 (limited time coupon code). This particular model is the Bose MIE2 with an Android/etc remote/mic, not the iOS 3-button.

[DEAD] Audeze LCD-2 (Aluminum or Bamboo) for $700

These two sales expired as well… Another Audeze LCD-2, this one at authorized dealer Adorama.com until 10/3/16 or earlier if sold out, it is two different options of the LCD-2 going for $700 with free shipping, the Aluminum option or the Bamboo option.

KEF M400 On-Ears for $200

Well-known audio companies have been slowly but steadily flocking to the “fashion headphones” segment of the market, which brings us to the KEF M400 On-Ears now down to $200 with free shipping in three of the four color-schemes available at amazon.com. These have only two reviews, and both complain about the jack acting up. They were posted in April/May 2016, so I don’t know if it got fixed or how many were impacted. #FidelioX2GlueGate2016

20% off six Gaming Headsets with Coupon

Amazon is celebrating TWITCH CON 2016 with a special coupon promotion on Gaming gear. Coupon code TWITCHCON20 gets you 20% off Amazon’s own price on the items shown over there. Coupon is good until October 7 at 11:59pm pacific. There are currently six gaming headsets participating (one is in-ear) with models from Logitech, HyperX, SteelSeries, Turtle Beach and ROCCAT. Page down on the promotion page and select “Headsets” from the tab to locate these.

The detailed terms and conditions can be found here. Only items sold and shipped by Amazon actual (not marketplace sellers) are eligible for this promotion (which is often how these promotions run).

Sennheiser HD7 DJ for $90 w/free S&H after $15 MIR

For a limited time only, Adorama.com is offering the new condition closed-back Sennheiser HD7 DJ Headphones for $90 after a $15 mail-in rebate (MIR). Free shipping. They fold, they have detachable cables and earpads, and come with a carrying case. Even without the MIR, the price is pretty good.

UPDATE: price corrected, it is $90 after MIR, not $95 after MIR.

FiiO Multifunction Dock (DK1) under $30

Fiio is learning how to play the game, accessories is one of the paths on the stairway to profits and they have a new one, the FiiO Multifunction Dock, model DK1, is currently in-stock and ready to ship for $25 plus $5 flat shipping from Tinbel thru Amazon. Tinbel is an authorized dealer, but this listing is not Prime eligible. If you are a Prime member, and you don’t need it immediately, you may want to wait for a Prime-eligible model.

If you want to optimize for a lower-price or you have Adorama gift certificates they are accepting pre-orders for $20 plus shipping. The lowest shipping price is around $7 (depending on zipcode).

This is compatible with four of their DAPs (first generation X1 and X7, second generation X3 and X5) along with the E17K. In addition to the prominent micro-USB charging prong on the front, the back of the device has an audio Line Out and a micro-USB Power Input. See picture #4 at Amazon’s. The headphone out of the Fiios is on top, so you can just pull it out of the dock and go.

This could be handy, I’m currently putting my Fiio DAP on one of those flexible phone holders when I’m using it on a desk. I can’t charge it with this thrifty setup because the microUSB port is sitting on the bottom part of the phone holder. The dock would also provide a sprawling kind of portable set-up using a portable power brick to power the dock charging the Fiio. I haven’t measured them but those 10,000+ mAh ones could power/recharge the Fiios many times over (they re-charge tablets and 6-inch phones multiple times on a single power brick charge).

Sennheiser Urbanite XL Wireless (BT) for $185

This looks like a price-match of sorts, the Sennheiser Urbanite XL Wireless (Bluetooth), in new condition, are currently going for $185 with free shipping at Target and Best Buy and Amazon by Amazon actual (limit 5) where they average 4.0 out of 5.0 based on nearly 150 customer reviews and with 70 questions peer-answered.

Judging by the new condition prices, it looks like the Momentums are doing better than the Urbanites?

PS: the lowest used priced at Amazon Warehouse Deals (AWD) start at $139~ in “Used – Good” by AWD actual.

Vibes High-Fidelity Earplugs for $21 [MD]

These earplugs are all about hearing protection when listening to loud live music, but you could also use them to troll your friends, trying to convince them they are new Apple AirPods 🙂 It’s the Vibes High-Fidelity Earplugs fully unlocked at Massdrop for $18 plus $3~ flat shipping. The offer runs for the next eight days and comes with a 1-year warranty from Massdrop, with a late October 2016 shipping estimate.

If you don’t want to wait for that long, they are sold by Vibes for $24 with the orders fulfilled by Amazon, so a Prime membership gets them to your door in 2-ish days.

Refurbished Harman Kardon Soho-A On-Ears for $40 w/free s&h

They are back in the spotlight sale rotation again, it’s a front page deal by seller A4C (aka All 4 Cellular), they are offering the refurbished Harman Kardon Soho-A On-Ears for $40 with free shipping. Refurbished items come with a 90-day replacement warranty from A4C, not the manufacturer.

NOTE: when shopping there, pay attention to the individual listing. They sell a mix of new condition, refurbished, and use products. Everything there gets free shipping, even the $3 generic earbuds 🙂

WoodLab Royal Glam Headphone Stand for $59 [MD]

If you are part of the “audio wood” fan club, another offer has unlocked at Massdrop, with eight days to go (from blog-posting date = today), it is the WoodLab Royal Glam Headphone Stand going for $50 plus $9~ flat shipping. Three finishes are available, which you can select at checkout. Shipment estimate is early November 2016, patience is after all something heavily encouraged by the trees 🙂

[DEAD] In-Stock Now: Focal Elear for $1000

As of 9/27/16 at 3:22pm ET re-check, this listing sold out…

[Read more…]

[DEAD] Tuesday’s Offers: Symphonized, Apie, Ausdom, Etc

These daily offers expired…

[Read more…]

Chromecast Audio new low: $25 with free shipping

Google’s first generation Chromecast Audio has reached a new low in new condition from authorized dealers, it currently goes for $25 with free shipping by Best Buy on eBay and Staples.com (free S&H for Rewards member or free store pick-up).

PS: as of the time of writing, the price remains $35 at the official eBay Google Play store.

PS2: Google is planning an October 4 big announcement day. Leaks speak of a 4K Ultra Chromecast, but I haven’t seen anything about a second generation Chromecast Audio. But that doesn’t mean they will (or will not) have something revealed there.

PS3: If you are Chromecast-Audio-curious, here’s our text and pictures useful Unboxing. Fear not, there’s no audio and no video. It’s a non-disruptive unboxing 🙂

XDuoo XD-05 DAC/Amp for $168 [MD]

Unlocked at Massdrop, the XDuoo XD-05 DAC/Amp is going for $160 plus $8~ flat shipping in the next six days or so. This is available in black or silver. It has a display and even includes …wrist bands. They will ship late October 2016.

If you prefer a lower price and are willing to buy directly from China, it goes for under $160 with free shipping from GearBest and Everbuying.

Speaking of Massdrop, with just one day left, the Colorfly C3 Digital Audio Player is going for $45 plus $3~ flat shipping. You can optionally upgrade to the 8GB version for +$10. It does have a memory card slot too, so the on-board storage is not such a big deal (think Sandisk Clip+).

[DEAD] Monday’s Offers: Maxell BA-1 Earphones, Sony MDR-S70AP On-Ears, Etc

Monday’s over, and so are these offers…

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Thinksound ms02 IEMs for $68 [MD]

Another one is live, the Thinksound ms02 IEMs have reached their lowest price tier under this offer at Massdrop, going for $60 plus $8~ flat shipping. The offer runs for the next 7 days (from blog-posting date), and comes with a 1-year warranty and will ship in mid-October 2016.

Used Master & Dynamic MW60 Bluetooth Over-Ears for $322

The wireless (Bluetooth 4.1 with Apt-X) Master & Dynamic MW60 headphones go $500 to $550 in new condition, but if you are comfortable with used, there is a “Used – Good” condition option (cosmetic imperfections, damaged original packaging) going for $322~ by Amazon Warehouse Deals actual (AWD). AWD makes no claims of a manufacturer warranty but they offer a 30-day warranty, so when you buy something from them, make sure you are going to have enough time to put it through the paces to make sure it’s a lemony-lemony lemon cake 🙂

Monoprice Bluetooth On Ears (11536) for $20 w/free S&H

Good until Sunday night, at the Monoprice website, you can get the Monoprice Bluetooth On-Ears (model 11536) for $20 with free standard shipping (which is not common over there). These average 89% based on 94 customer reviews.

Now shipping: Sennheiser HD 4.30i and 4.30G for $100

The IFA headphones are slowly starting to roll out, on the Sennheiser front, their closed-back over-ear folding Sennheiser HD 4.30 (April 30?) in both the iOS (4.30i) version and the Android (4.30G) version are in-stock by a variety of sellers through Amazon.com for their starting price of $100 with free shipping. These are the early adopter prices, for those curious/anxious to try them out. I have no clue where the prices of these will settle after a few weeks/months, so if you don’t have to have them, it doesn’t hurt to wait.

[DEAD] Saturday: Blue Microphones Mo-Fi for $280

This particular offer ended, but the Mo-Fis are recurring “daily deals” offers across the interwebs…

[Read more…]

Open Box Fiio E10K USB DAC/amp for $64

The Fiio E10K USB DAC/amp goes for $75~ in new condition, but if you comfortable with open-box from authorized dealers, you can get it for $64 with free shipping by Gramophone through Amazon Warehouse Deals. This ships directly from Gramophone (Maryland) so it is not Prime eligible. Gary Williams NOT included 🙂

To “save up” on posts, the FiiO E12 MONT BLANC portable USB head-amp goes for $79 with free shipping in open-box condition, from the same seller (Gramophone) through Amazon Warehouse Deals.

Used Schiit Wyrd USB Decrapifier for $89

The Schiit Audio Wyrd USB Decrapifier goes for $100 plus mandatory shipping at the Schiit website in new condition, but if you are comfortable with used and like free shipping, Amazon seller “Audio Fanatic” (100%, 69 ratings) is offering it in “Used – Like New” condition for $89 with free shipping. This ships directly from them, so it is not Prime eligible. This is available through Amazon Warehouse Deals.

Open-Box HifiMan HE1000 for $1980

I am doing a mini-sweep of Amazon Warehouse Deals, which partially explains the randomness of some of the posts. We go planar flagship now, the HifiMan HE-1000 are available in open-box condition from authorized dealer Electronics Expo (EE) thru Amazon Warehouse Deals for $1980~. They ship directly from EE, so they are not eligible for Prime shipping. Their listing says all accessories and warranty are included.

hifiman_he1000_ee_awd

Used Focal Sphear In-Ears for $112

The Focal Sphear in-ears go for $150 in new condition at authorized dealers, but if you are comfortable with used, there is a “Used – Good” condition listing going for $112~ by Amazon Warehouse Deals (AWD). The listing says they will be repackaging and they are missing the “user manual”. This is sold by AWD actual, so you have Amazon’s 30-day return policy. The listing says this will be in-stock September 29, so factor that in your plans.

In-stock again: Focal Utopia (one unit left)

Because I love the juxtaposition of high and low, we now have something on the totally other end of the spectrum from the previously mentioned $5 Koss On-Ears. It’s an availability alert, there is one unit available of the Focal Utopia Reference flagships going for $4000 with free shipping by “HiDEF Lifestyle” through Amazon.com. This ships directly from HiDef so it is not Prime eligible. They are an authorized dealer. It should go without saying, if you are buying this, you must needs pick the fastest delivery method available. You don’t want a $4000 flagship languishing in the slow-shipping lanes 🙂

Koss KPH7B Lightweight On-Ears for $5 [limit 5]

On the lightweight-to-featherweight front, the blue color scheme of the Koss KPH7B On-Ears is on sale for under $5 at Amazon by Amazon actual and it is currently NOT an Add-On item, so if you are a Prime member, even if you only buy one pair, you still get free 2-day shipping. Limit five per customer… Of the other colors, the lime-green has a similar price but it is designated an Add-On Item… As a group, all the colors together average 3.9 out of 5 based on nearly 800 customer reviews and have 60+ questions answered…

Shanling M5 DAP for $348 [MD]

More DAP action, this time at Massdrop, where the slow-burn finally got the Shanling M5 digital audio player fully unlocked for $340 plus $8 flat shipping. This is available in either black or silver color schemes and can support up to 32-bit 384 kHz and DSD 64 and 128. This will ship in mid-October 2016. All sales are final and the offer has another six days to go (from blog-posting time).

If you instead prefer near-instant gratification, it offered for $400 with free S&H by ShenZenAudio through NewEgg Flash.

Monoprice Coupons Return: Desktop Amp for $80 (w/filler cable), USB DAC/Amp for $55 (or less), Etc

Weekend is coupon time once again at the Monoprice website, coupon SOLONG is $5 off $25+, and coupon SUMMER is $20 off $100+. Coupons expire Saturday 9/24/16 at 11:59pm or so.

+ Monoprice Desktop Headphone Amp, Product ID 11567, plus filler item (eg 3.5mm mobile cable) to get the total slightly over $100 and use the coupon, dropping the price to $80~

+ Monoprice Stereo Hybrid Tube Amp with Bluetooth, product ID 13194, for $130

+ Portable USB DAC/amp, model aka Product ID 15494 for $55 after coupon
+ but if your order total is $100+, you can use the $20 off coupon, bringing the price further down

Little Dot I+ Headphone Amp for $99 [MD]

Another day, yet another offer is currently fully-unlocked at the members-only Massdrop shopping club (free to join though). It is the Little Dot I+ Headphone Amp going for $90 plus $9~ flat shipping. This has seven days to go (from today = blog-posting date) and it is estimated to ship in early November 2016, so patience is an audiophile virtue 🙂 It comes with a 1-year manufacturer warranty. This is a tuby amp-only, as it is visually hinted by the inputs and outputs. Optionally at checkout there are two options for tube upgrades for +$13 or +$28.

[DEAD] Refurbished AUDEZE EL-8 Closed Back Planars for $350

This sale ended as well… The closed-back AUDEZE EL-8 Planar-magnetic headphones are currently offered in refurbished condition with a 1-year manufacturer warranty for $350 with free shipping at Adorama.com, good until 9/28/16 or earlier if sold out.

[DEAD] Spend $1000+ in select Premium Audio products, Get $100 Amazon Store Credit for future use (267 options including 27 headphones)

This particular promotion expired 10/1/16…

EXPIRED PROMOTION
This Premium Audio offer is back at Amazon, if you make a purchase of $1000 or more on any combination of select Premium Audio products (267 options), you will receive a $100 Amazon store credit to use in future purchases. This only works if Amazon is the actual seller of the product (not marketplace sellers).

Thankfully you can verify your order qualifies before you make the purchase, because if you have eligible items, the Checkout page (the last step before you place an order) will have a box notifying of this. Screenshot below:

amazon_100_1000_premium_audio

A total of 27 headphones are participating in this promotion including:

  • Sennheiser HD 700, IE 800
  • Beyerdynamic T1 (2nd G), T5p (2nd G), T90
  • B&O Play H8
  • Grado RS2e
  • Sony MDR-Z7
  • Master & Dynamic MH40, MH30
  • Denon MM400
  • Final Audio Design flagship, Sonorous IV
  • Fostex TH-500RP
  • Ultrasone Edition 10 Ltd, TIO, IQ
  • Definite Tech Symphony 1
  • Hifiman HE400i, HE560

REMEMBER: Amazon’s links in the Promotional page do not always point to Amazon’s own listing for the product. For this promotion, you have to make sure Amazon.com is the actual seller, not any of the many marketplace sellers over there.

This offer expires October 1st at 11:59pm pacific. Limit one per customer during this promotion. The $100 credit must be spent by August 2021 (yes, twenty-twenty-one)