I feel like I won the lottery with these headphones at $40. They work with my ears, and they’re not uncomfortable to wear even though they are fully extended and I don’t think I have that big of a head. I move the headphones back on my head to get the drivers closer to my ears, and don’t have any issues that way with the headphones sounded distant or muffled. Never experienced position dependent headphones before.
I don’t think these things are particularly amp dependent. They work just as well off of an Apple dongle as they do with a portable dac/amp, desktop amp, or stereo and home theater receivers. Right now I’m using a portable Sangean HD radio playing the local jazz classical station.
The spatial effects are neat. These do indeed sound outside of the head, even without the aid of a crossfeed circuit. The best example I can think of to describe it is when you’re sitting a little too close to a pair of stereo speakers. You get a soundstage that wraps from your ears to the center of your face, but just doesn’t quite make it all the way to the center. I also have the K701 and the K7XX, which are very soundstagey headphones, but they only extend out to your sides. They can sound really deep to your left and your right, but there’s nothing really in the center. The OAE1’s soundstage makes progress towards the center of your face, but just doesn’t quite make it.
I don’t personally have any issues with the timbre. But I wonder if this is my first long term experience with what’s been referred to as the Sennheiser veil? I’ve heard the HD600/650 in passing but I have never spent a prolonged period listening to them. The way I would describe the OAE1 is that it is a casual and relaxed listen. It doesn’t quite present the music (and all of its flaws potentially) underneath a microscope like other headphones do. Like my AKG K240 DF, and Beyer DT990/ DT 1770 do. The OAE1 on my head, with my ears, makes it just a little easier to just listen to the music, without overanalyzing the music. When comparing headphones and speakers you often hear folks state that headphones are a much more critical way to listen, and I agree. The OAE1 I think achieves its stated mission by replicating the part of the speaker experience where you can just let the music wash over you and you can just enjoy and take it in.
As an aside, Axel Grell has talked about the psychoacoustic tricks the OAE1’s bass boost can play by tricking your body into thinking it actually feels the bass like you would at a live performance. That experience sneaks up on me sometimes. Certainly not when I’m thinking about it. But sometimes I’ll just think I feel a rumble in the pit of my stomach or the tips of my toes, and then just like that it’s gone and I’m listening to headphones again.
Very unique headset. Highway robbery at $40. A steal at $80-$90 or whatever they’re still going for on close out on Amazon. I know they don’t work for everybody, but check the return policy, and if it’s suitable, see for yourself.
