Yeah, for a long time I was not so impressed. With MEE Audio, once a former Meelectronics, I've known for a long time and I love their affordable but interesting models. More than a year ago, the company decided to "swing at William, you know, our Shakespeare" and release the top headphones. Implementation took more time than planned, but now lies in front of me, and I spent 2 weeks to formulate my impressions.
I do not think that I will reveal the secret, saying that the percentage of 90 headphones coming out to our markets is simply the OEM products of large Chinese factories. Sometimes you can be very surprised to find out who actually produces this or that model. In reality, it is very easy to release your own headphones, although it is expensive. We choose a suitable manufacturer, we are looking for an interesting variant in its catalog, we order samples, listen, we add packing, accessories in the delivery, we order a lot with our logo. The products of the same ESMOOTH, for example, are sold under dozens of brands (one of them, by the way, is now gaining popularity, but it's not about it).
Most connoisseurs of portable audio, with the words "development of headphones," imagine themselves wise experts of acousticians, who disappear in special soundproof rooms for days to create a formula for perfect sound. Part of the truth is there, without specialists in sound can not do, but much more work falls on the shoulders of product designers. They are developing packaging, printing, design, delivery, everything that headphones can not be without. At the same time, their work usually remains almost unnoticed. Remember what feelings you are experiencing from unpacking good headphones, if there is a sense of delight, then the product designer did his work for good reason. By the way, thoughtful and high-quality packaging is not so often, it usually fits the definition of "yes, not bad".
In Pinnacle (translated as "top") positive emotions haunted me during the whole dating. It's very nice to see the model that you worked on, and not just assembled from the finished OEM units.
MEE Audio, known for its affordable models, the price tag of which does not exceed $ 100, came to the development very carefully. The first prototypes were shown a year ago, but the final debugging took another year, and the release took place only in 2016. In this model, almost everything is unusual: the body material, speaker, cable, internal damping, a special acoustic resonator. Particularly surprising is that the price tag remains very affordable, the cost of P1 is $ 200. Of course, I can not say that this is directly cheap, but, compared to similar models of other companies, the price tag is more than good.
Well, it's time to move on to the review. Immediately please note, to praise the headphones I will be many, I liked the model, so I would like to explain in detail why.
Specifications
- Emitter: dynamic, 10 mm
- Frequency range: 20 Hz - 20 kHz
- Impedance: 50Ω @ 1 kHz
- Sensitivity: 96 ± 3 dB / mW @ 1 kHz
- Cable: balanced, removable with MMCX connectors
- Weight: 13 g without cable, 29 g full
- Microphone frequency range: 100 Hz - 5 kHz
- Microphone sensitivity: -40 ± 3 dB
Packing and delivery kit
Right at once it is clear that this model is a product of love. Packaging is traditionally two-layered, a thick box of thick black cardboard is placed in a "dust jacket" of cardboard of the usual. The design of this external cover used all modern printing technologies: embossing, relief printing, a combination of gloss and matte surface. At the same time everything looks very neat and appropriate. On the back side, traditionally, TTX in different languages, on the front - a photo of headphones. On one of the side faces there is a unique serial number assigned to each model.
The inner box is opened in the middle by tilting the two segments of the lid to the sides, which I have not seen before, it is definitely more amusing than the various magnetic valves. Under the cover in the traditional soft lodgment are headphones themselves, a cover and two separate cardboard boxes of accessories. It still hides the adapter for a 6.3 mm plug and a small instruction containing a maximum of useful information: how to disconnect and connect the cable, how to change the nozzles, how to use foam from COMPLY and so on.
One of the complete boxes contains attachments. With headphones you will get standard 3 pairs of single-flange nozzles of different sizes, two pairs of flanged ones, slightly different in configuration, and a pair of three-flanged ones. Also in the box you will find three pairs of COMPLY foam of different sizes.
The second box hides in itself two cables, more simple with a one-button headset and a very cool wire without a headset, but I'll tell you about the cables below. Also in this box was a clothes clip for fixing wires to clothes.
In general, both in packaging and in the package, the headphones meet expectations.
Design and Convenience
Appearance, I can not describe, without breaking constantly on various excellent epithets. To start MEE Audio used some unusual zinc alloy cast under pressure, and the final polishing is done manually. This gives the headphones a very unusual color, I do not even undertake to characterize it, something between silvery and bronze, with longitudinal stripes of metal texture. To match the material and form, it uses a combination of rounded lines and soft edges that give Pinnacle a touch of vintage charm. Complementing this is clearly stamped on the outside of the company logo. The forum even noted the similarity of the form of headphones with a golf club, which, in my opinion, is quite a compliment.
Headphones not only chill the hand with the metal of the case, but also pull it away with their weight. Fortunately, the thoughtful shape of the body allows you to correctly distribute the weight, and they do not deliver discomfort in wearing the slightest. You can wear them both in a behind-the-bucket fashion, and more traditionally, by cable down. To understand the drawings in the instructions. I personally prefer to wear a bat. With a competent selection of attachments, prolonged wearing does not cause the slightest discomfort. Sound insulation is good and depends on the attachments used.
Well, some good words deserve the complete wires. Of course, they are replaceable and use MMCX connectors. The one with the headset is a very good, thick "braid" made of copper in black silicone insulation, does not get tangled, does not make noise from friction when wearing a breeze, it looks good. The headset unit is made mainly of metal, the button has a good click. The microphone is also very good. The splitter block and the plug are made qualitatively and do not inspire fears for reliability.
But it fades against the background of the second wire, intended for use with players. Unusual color, complementing the style of the body of headphones, silver-plated copper, a successful combination of softness and reliability. In general, this is a cable with which you begin to understand why many are willing to spend more than one hundred dollars on interchangeable headphone wires. Immediately, such a wire is already included. By the way, the cables are sold separately on the MEE Audio website, I already think about buying a pair for use with other headphones. A good wire from "silver" costs more than $ 50 requested by MEE.
Sound
The following equipment was used for listening.
- NuPrime DAC-10H and Resonessence Labs Concero HP as DAC and Amplifier
- Apple MacBook Pro Retina 2013 as a source
- Fidelia as a player
- Fiio X7 and Luxury & Precission L5Pro as portable players
- VSonic Gr01, Dunu Titan 1 and Dunu DN-2000J as headphones for comparison
- High Definition Records in Lossless-formats (Dr. Chesky The Ultimate Headphone Demonstration Disc and others)
Before listening to the headphones were warmed for 48 hours.
Over the sound of P1, too, obviously worked. Inside the case, in addition to the radiator, a special resonator for HF is hidden, allowing them to play with more energy. Because of this, by the way, the sound of P1 turned out to be unusual and does not look like anything. The headphones are light, with a very detailed feed. Like many high-end models, Pinnacle is very demanding on the source, planting and selection of attachments. For example, foams from COMPLY slightly hide HF, and multi-flange attachments add bass, although at the cost of a slight deterioration in detail. After a series of experiments, I stopped on large single-flange nozzles, since with them the positive features of P1 appear best.
The bass is fast and very detailed. The main emphasis in the introduction of low frequencies is placed on the midbass region. Deep bass is present, but sometimes it is not enough quantitatively. That is, when you need it - it means its presence clearly enough, but not completely confident. I suspect that this was part of the developers' plans, since the headphones are clearly designed for serious genres that do not imply the dominance of the sub-bass, and the excessive emphasis on deep low frequencies could prevent the "middle" from revealing itself. Otherwise, the bass is very good, if you are a fan of quality, not quantitative filing of this range. It is fast, not smeared, textured, everything is as it should be.
As for the MF, this time it is not difficult to praise them. Of course, they are very good, detailed, emotional and so on and so forth. But then the P1 took another step forward and managed to surprise. The thing is that these headphones build for me the most incredible imaginary scene: wide, deep, with excellent separation of instruments and three-dimensional positioning. I do not know how they do it, because building a "scene" for IEM is largely a brain fraud, so it's subjective, but it's these headphones that have managed to make this focus for me. It is not a fact, however, that any other listener will have the same thing, but the subjectivity of sound perception dictates its laws. The flagship MEE Audio is especially good with genres that benefit from resolution and volume - chamber music, vocals, instrumental styles and so on. Especially vocals, to my ear, he's just incredibly good.
The high frequencies are the part that will cause a lot of controversy around P1. The headphones were ottyuningovany so as to transmit HF with excellent resolution and energy. In this case, they, for my taste, do not overdo with the amount, breaking into sharpness, and the area of sibilants took control, but the amount of information in the HF range, played by this model, is really staggering. I strongly suspect that this is the reason for the characteristics of the imaginary scene, of which I wrote above. Records with an abundance of percussion are sometimes revealed from the unexpected side and sound in a new way. Actually, from here also arise certain shortcomings, or, more precisely, features. First, the P1 is not exactly the headphones for HF fobs, their upper frequencies are not crushed, and therefore they will not suit those who at any cost avoid this range. Secondly, these headphones are incredibly critical to the quality of the source and recording, old albums with poorly mixed HF will sound very bad, and players that do not control this range very well will be "pleased" with a metallic sound. In general, classy headphones need the appropriate components.
Compatibility
I do not quite understand why the cable with a headset was added to the package, it's unreasonably frivolous to use these headphones with smartphones. Unless with players Fiio, supporting management from a set, there is though any sense. Headphones are critical to the source and show all the features and problems of players and amplifiers. From all my zoo players, most of all I liked them with the L & P L5Pro, as well as the Fiio X7 proved to be quite good.
Genre headphones I would recommend for connoisseurs of very well recorded and high-quality music. "Low genres" to listen with Pinnacle P1 meaning about the same as in the spreading of oysters with mustard. Also, I would not recommend these headphones to fans of heavy genres, there are often problems with HF in the records of these styles, and there is no need for volume and super-detail. Although Iron Maiden and Dream Theater, I listened to them with pleasure. The electronic music, of course, from among the intellectual subspecies is surprisingly not bad either. Without questions, jazz, especially modern ones in remasters, is excellent, vocals and chamber music are great, orchestral classics and instrumentalists are virtuoso.
Sensitivity to the quality of the record, I would rate 9 points out of 10.
As usual, a few sample tracks.
Goodspeed You! Black Emperor - We Drift Like Worried Fire. The creativity of such collectives has always been associated with painting in the genre of Suprematism. Disparate simple fragments that are absolutely not suitable for each other, merge into a powerful single canvas, acting at a subconscious level. The tracks of GYBE are filled with very multidisciplinary strokes and are volumetric-convex, so with these headphones they show themselves from the best side.
Sergei Rachmaninov - "Symphonic Dances" Op. 45: II. Andante con moto (Tempo di Valse). A wonderful record of the Minnesota orchestra conducted by Eiji Oue. That's it for this kind of music, for my taste, and created P1. Light as the wind, beautiful, like the fragrance of field flowers, voluminous, like the sound of a spring forest. And in this case, P1 is able to entice and transfer music to the level of emotions.
Kent Poon - I Should Care. Perhaps the most logical addition to the selection of tracks for this review will be something of jazz. I had a hard time resisting the choice of Miles Davis, he is very good for P1, but it would be too trite. Therefore, having rummaged in my library, I found this composition. The excellent quality of the recording, with the transfer of which the headphones perform well, allows you to simply imagine yourself next to the performers.
conclusions
A very bold experiment, which went to MEE Audio, gave its results. The headphones turned out to be unusual and very stylish. Separately it's good that the company did not begin to break into a huge price tag for them, as most "famous producers" would do. In general, I will not recommend these headphones all in a row, but if you listen to serious music and you have a suitable source - I advise you to pay attention to Pinnacle.
The article is based on materials .
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