Post by solderdude on Jan 11, 2017 16:57:47 GMT
IMPORTANT NOTE: ALAS The production model differs SUBSTANTIALLY from the prototype described below
Superlux sent me a headphone for evaluation.
Note that this is a prototype and NOT something that will be sold any time soon.
When it is sold it will probably look and most likely sound and measure slightly different.
When Superlux contacted me to evaluate something new I was curious and assumed it would be the long awaited HD668B-mkII.
At least the e-mail header mentioned testing a HD688 and assumed a typo .. thought HD668 ?
When I opened up the package out came a 'motörhead phönes' bag with Superlux sent a me a headphone for evaluation.
Note that this is a prototype and NOT something that will be sold any time soon.
When it is sold it will probably look and most likely sound and measure slightly different.
When Superlux contacted me to evaluate something new I was curious and assumed it would be the long awaited HD668B-mkII.
At least the e-mail header mentioned testing a HD688 and assumed a typo .. thought HD668 ?
When I opened up the package out came a 'motörhead phönes' bag with apparently a HD662-EVO in it ? pleather pads only and a long lead.
On the left HD688 Proto (with Superlux velours pads) and on the right a HD662-EVO with AKG K240 velours pads. Hence the colour differences in the pads.
Only other difference from the outside... the lack of type number markings.
So ... I put it on my head and expected HD662-EVO sound... but it wasn't
There was some resemblance but ... more balanced but with HD662-EVO bass.
Listened for a while and was impressed with the stock sound...
Very close to how I like it... gently raised bass, nice balanced mids and no ssssharp treble but clearly a slight but not annoying emphasis (which my old ears don't mind that much).
I could feel there was no felt disc in place which peaked my interest. In past days no felt on the driver meant 'ssssharp' edge.
To my surprise it had a quite different driver than what Superlux made before. The better sounding HDxxx range of headphones all had drivers that looked quite similar.
Same frame, same size, same voicecoil diameter, same connections. Only the membrane colour and perhaps materials differed in the past.
This was clearly new and figure is what they want evaluated.
I suspect Superlux plans on a closed headphone with this driver so stuck it in a HD662-EVO enclosure..
Anyway .. on the left the familiar Superlux driver with a 18mm voicecoil.. on the right the new driver with a much larger voicecoil (25mm) and bigger dome in the middle and smaller 'cone'.
Also the damping on the rear seems to have undergone some serious scruterny by the developpers.
One almost open hole and a few damped holes and a damped center hole.. very different from the previous drivers.
Had a play with blocking ports etc and it looks like Superlux's tuning of this driver is as optimal as can be in the way it is stock.
I believe the designers really know what they are doing ... kuddo's for them.
So ... how does the stock HD688 measure ?
Yep... big bass ... they seem to like that. Linear midrange ... a treble peak (almost obligatory ?) around 8kHz, an unexpected drop off above 16kHz.
CSD:
reasonably controled in the mids, treble shows some small resonances and mids have the usual 'lingering'.
hmm distortion is better than the previous drivers. Still not impressively low ... but measurably better, certainly in the treble area !
I could bore everyone here with the s#it1oad od experiments and tests but think for now I will skip the many plots and simply go directly to the (ever so slightly) modified version I ended up with.
Modifications: Added a small amount of wool inside, also added some anti-reflective felt in the recessed parts of the cups (like HD662-EVO) and added just one single ply of a single sheeth of 3 ply toilet paper. VERY thin piece of paper, half the thickness needed for HD662-EVO. And ... velours pads instead of the stock pads.
NO holes had to be sealed in this case... sealing holes reduced clarity.
Below the difference between stock and modified version.
below the left and right channel of the modified headphone.
Impressively 'flat' with no big sharp dips or peaks, just relatively small 'wiggles' here and there. <10Hz to 15kHz flat +/-3dB. 20kHz is just 6dB down.
The CSD below:
This is actually pretty good. Quite clean and 'fast' well damped drivers.
Distortion is pretty good from 200Hz up. Even the lower frequencies are quite good. The distortion overall is much better than the average I have measured and is only seen in the more expensive segment.
That makes me wonder at which price point headphones with these drivers will be sold... or could be sold.
Some will say.. I don't care what it measures like ... how does it sound ? Is it any good ?
Is it better sounding than HD662-EVO ? Hell yes...
Same 'dynamic' sound and good bass... but the mids are much more realistic..
The modified HD662-EVO is a bit too forward sounding, this one is not. I would say perfect tonal balance (once modified and with velours pads).
Not forward, not laid back... very dynamic and with normal clarity.
It does something else quite differently.
The HD662-EVO isn't a master of 'detailing' and placement of instruments. A bit (pleasantly) coloured sound. Not very refined sounding but very open and good clarity.
The HD688 IS very good in detailing... not hyped at all. Instruments are very easy to 'place' and soundstage is 'wide' and very 'stable'. It doesn't sound 'distorted' or harsh anywhere.
Even 'busy' music remains open, detailed and easy to 'place'.
The HD662-EVO can make a small 'mess' with this type of music where placement is blurred and nuances are lost. There is 'blending' with the HD662-EVO.
Not so with the HD688.. No mess, high quality sound.
How high ?
Well the HD662-EVO is a nice cheap complement to the HD650 (on Kameleon) where the differences are immediatly obvious when comparing.
The HD650 is miles ahead in this case when it comes to nuances and details. The HD662-EVO is slightly more 'dynamic' and slightly 'wider' sounding.
After a long period of listening the HD688 reminded me much of the HD800 (on Kameleon, so rich bass and no hyper treble).
Both are 'clear' sounding with a wider than usual soundstage and excellent detail retrieval.
The HD800 (on Kameleon) is MUCH wider and instruments etc. are easy to place and have a steady almost holographic placement (hard to describe) It lacks some clarity the HD650 has.
The HD650 (Kameleon) has a higher clarity, for some recordings sometimes a wee bit too much. The HD800 is going towards slightly on the laid back side.
The HD650 is a tonally very correct mish-mash of music with an overly 'narrow' soundstage and sounds 'busy' and 'filled'.
The HD800 is VERY wide and everything stands out perfectly ... no mish-mashy sound... instuments have more realism inp lacement/space/attack/decay/separation but are not tonally perfect. Close to perfect, just lacking slightly in clarity on well made recordings.
What does this have to do with the HD688 ?
Well I am going to compare them. (> is smaller difference than >> and >>>)
Note: HD800 on Kameleon, HD650 on Kameleon, HD688 modified, HD662-EVO modified
Sound stage width: HD800 >> HD688 >> HD662-EVO > HD650
Placement/separation of instruments: HD800 > HD688 >>> HD650 > HD662-EVO
Tonal correctness: HD688 > HD650 > HD800 >>> HD662-EVO
Bass: HD800 = HD688 > HD662EVO > HD650
Mids: HD800 > HD688 = HD650 >> HD662-EVO
Treble: HD800 > HD688 > HD650 >> HD662-EVO
Details: HD800 > HD688 > HD650 >> HD662-EVO
Comfort: HD800 >>>> HD650 > HD688 = HD662-EVO
Build quality: HD800 > HD650 >>> HD688 = HD662-EVO
In essence this is what the HD700 should have been ?
In sound quality the HD688 is BETTER (to me) than HD650 on Kameleon and just UNDER HD800 on Kameleon.
This is quite an achievement.
Now ... What Superlux should really do in MY opinion ?
Use this driver, maybe damp it a little bit more in front (not 3mm fellt)... Make a high quality closed enclosure, use a supple and VERY low microphonic replaceable cable. Deliver with velourspads and leather pads.
Make the headphone lightweight, comfortable and nice looking.
And ask for this somewhere between $100 and $200.- and they would corner that market... with enough plugging and sellers support / advertisements.
They REALLY have an excellent driver here and hope it will come on the market reasonably soon.
Superlux sent me a headphone for evaluation.
Note that this is a prototype and NOT something that will be sold any time soon.
When it is sold it will probably look and most likely sound and measure slightly different.
When Superlux contacted me to evaluate something new I was curious and assumed it would be the long awaited HD668B-mkII.
At least the e-mail header mentioned testing a HD688 and assumed a typo .. thought HD668 ?
When I opened up the package out came a 'motörhead phönes' bag with Superlux sent a me a headphone for evaluation.
Note that this is a prototype and NOT something that will be sold any time soon.
When it is sold it will probably look and most likely sound and measure slightly different.
When Superlux contacted me to evaluate something new I was curious and assumed it would be the long awaited HD668B-mkII.
At least the e-mail header mentioned testing a HD688 and assumed a typo .. thought HD668 ?
When I opened up the package out came a 'motörhead phönes' bag with apparently a HD662-EVO in it ? pleather pads only and a long lead.
On the left HD688 Proto (with Superlux velours pads) and on the right a HD662-EVO with AKG K240 velours pads. Hence the colour differences in the pads.
Only other difference from the outside... the lack of type number markings.
So ... I put it on my head and expected HD662-EVO sound... but it wasn't
There was some resemblance but ... more balanced but with HD662-EVO bass.
Listened for a while and was impressed with the stock sound...
Very close to how I like it... gently raised bass, nice balanced mids and no ssssharp treble but clearly a slight but not annoying emphasis (which my old ears don't mind that much).
I could feel there was no felt disc in place which peaked my interest. In past days no felt on the driver meant 'ssssharp' edge.
To my surprise it had a quite different driver than what Superlux made before. The better sounding HDxxx range of headphones all had drivers that looked quite similar.
Same frame, same size, same voicecoil diameter, same connections. Only the membrane colour and perhaps materials differed in the past.
This was clearly new and figure is what they want evaluated.
I suspect Superlux plans on a closed headphone with this driver so stuck it in a HD662-EVO enclosure..
Anyway .. on the left the familiar Superlux driver with a 18mm voicecoil.. on the right the new driver with a much larger voicecoil (25mm) and bigger dome in the middle and smaller 'cone'.
Also the damping on the rear seems to have undergone some serious scruterny by the developpers.
One almost open hole and a few damped holes and a damped center hole.. very different from the previous drivers.
Had a play with blocking ports etc and it looks like Superlux's tuning of this driver is as optimal as can be in the way it is stock.
I believe the designers really know what they are doing ... kuddo's for them.
So ... how does the stock HD688 measure ?
Yep... big bass ... they seem to like that. Linear midrange ... a treble peak (almost obligatory ?) around 8kHz, an unexpected drop off above 16kHz.
CSD:
reasonably controled in the mids, treble shows some small resonances and mids have the usual 'lingering'.
hmm distortion is better than the previous drivers. Still not impressively low ... but measurably better, certainly in the treble area !
I could bore everyone here with the s#it1oad od experiments and tests but think for now I will skip the many plots and simply go directly to the (ever so slightly) modified version I ended up with.
Modifications: Added a small amount of wool inside, also added some anti-reflective felt in the recessed parts of the cups (like HD662-EVO) and added just one single ply of a single sheeth of 3 ply toilet paper. VERY thin piece of paper, half the thickness needed for HD662-EVO. And ... velours pads instead of the stock pads.
NO holes had to be sealed in this case... sealing holes reduced clarity.
Below the difference between stock and modified version.
below the left and right channel of the modified headphone.
Impressively 'flat' with no big sharp dips or peaks, just relatively small 'wiggles' here and there. <10Hz to 15kHz flat +/-3dB. 20kHz is just 6dB down.
The CSD below:
This is actually pretty good. Quite clean and 'fast' well damped drivers.
Distortion is pretty good from 200Hz up. Even the lower frequencies are quite good. The distortion overall is much better than the average I have measured and is only seen in the more expensive segment.
That makes me wonder at which price point headphones with these drivers will be sold... or could be sold.
Some will say.. I don't care what it measures like ... how does it sound ? Is it any good ?
Is it better sounding than HD662-EVO ? Hell yes...
Same 'dynamic' sound and good bass... but the mids are much more realistic..
The modified HD662-EVO is a bit too forward sounding, this one is not. I would say perfect tonal balance (once modified and with velours pads).
Not forward, not laid back... very dynamic and with normal clarity.
It does something else quite differently.
The HD662-EVO isn't a master of 'detailing' and placement of instruments. A bit (pleasantly) coloured sound. Not very refined sounding but very open and good clarity.
The HD688 IS very good in detailing... not hyped at all. Instruments are very easy to 'place' and soundstage is 'wide' and very 'stable'. It doesn't sound 'distorted' or harsh anywhere.
Even 'busy' music remains open, detailed and easy to 'place'.
The HD662-EVO can make a small 'mess' with this type of music where placement is blurred and nuances are lost. There is 'blending' with the HD662-EVO.
Not so with the HD688.. No mess, high quality sound.
How high ?
Well the HD662-EVO is a nice cheap complement to the HD650 (on Kameleon) where the differences are immediatly obvious when comparing.
The HD650 is miles ahead in this case when it comes to nuances and details. The HD662-EVO is slightly more 'dynamic' and slightly 'wider' sounding.
After a long period of listening the HD688 reminded me much of the HD800 (on Kameleon, so rich bass and no hyper treble).
Both are 'clear' sounding with a wider than usual soundstage and excellent detail retrieval.
The HD800 (on Kameleon) is MUCH wider and instruments etc. are easy to place and have a steady almost holographic placement (hard to describe) It lacks some clarity the HD650 has.
The HD650 (Kameleon) has a higher clarity, for some recordings sometimes a wee bit too much. The HD800 is going towards slightly on the laid back side.
The HD650 is a tonally very correct mish-mash of music with an overly 'narrow' soundstage and sounds 'busy' and 'filled'.
The HD800 is VERY wide and everything stands out perfectly ... no mish-mashy sound... instuments have more realism inp lacement/space/attack/decay/separation but are not tonally perfect. Close to perfect, just lacking slightly in clarity on well made recordings.
What does this have to do with the HD688 ?
Well I am going to compare them. (> is smaller difference than >> and >>>)
Note: HD800 on Kameleon, HD650 on Kameleon, HD688 modified, HD662-EVO modified
Sound stage width: HD800 >> HD688 >> HD662-EVO > HD650
Placement/separation of instruments: HD800 > HD688 >>> HD650 > HD662-EVO
Tonal correctness: HD688 > HD650 > HD800 >>> HD662-EVO
Bass: HD800 = HD688 > HD662EVO > HD650
Mids: HD800 > HD688 = HD650 >> HD662-EVO
Treble: HD800 > HD688 > HD650 >> HD662-EVO
Details: HD800 > HD688 > HD650 >> HD662-EVO
Comfort: HD800 >>>> HD650 > HD688 = HD662-EVO
Build quality: HD800 > HD650 >>> HD688 = HD662-EVO
In essence this is what the HD700 should have been ?
In sound quality the HD688 is BETTER (to me) than HD650 on Kameleon and just UNDER HD800 on Kameleon.
This is quite an achievement.
Now ... What Superlux should really do in MY opinion ?
Use this driver, maybe damp it a little bit more in front (not 3mm fellt)... Make a high quality closed enclosure, use a supple and VERY low microphonic replaceable cable. Deliver with velourspads and leather pads.
Make the headphone lightweight, comfortable and nice looking.
And ask for this somewhere between $100 and $200.- and they would corner that market... with enough plugging and sellers support / advertisements.
They REALLY have an excellent driver here and hope it will come on the market reasonably soon.