jus puchased xba-1 from klcc sony centre.

my first impression when i plugged it into my Sony walkman nwz-a726, listening to a vocal music is tat it sounds too bright, i.e. treble set too high. it almost sounded like a radio to me.

then i switched to xba-2, to my suprise, it sounded better. better in the sense tat i have tried it in the same store before this using sony own demo walkman. when i switched from xba1 to xba2, it sounded soft/low. but not today. i wonder if its a faulty device at tat point of time.

anyway, after standing there testing it out wif various songs available in my walkman ranging from fully vocal song, mix vocal and bass to fully bass songs, i have somehow adapted to its characteristic. no longer the treble sounds too high for me.

i can say tat the difference between xba2 and xba1 is definitely on the bass side only. the xba2 can really give tat whomping bass sound. xba1 has the bass but not whomping it out. i tried xba3 and xba4 for awhile only and it didnt give me enuff impression to fork out tat much of money for it.

i will try again at home and compare it wif my AKG 242HD headphone together wif a fiio E7 amp.

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Added on March 19, 2012, 9:26 pmi plugged it to my Fiio E7 and compare it to AKG 242 HD and this time i can definitely feel the treble is a tad too high, in my opinion...
it also sounds kinda like radio...not sure how to describe it or what's the word for it...lack of soundstage perhaps?

the bass does improved wif a thumping sound after pairing it wif E7. thumping...not whomping...err...meaning i can feel the bass clearly but it is still not as omph as the xba-2

so there goes - my personal review for XBA-1. hope u guys find it useful.

p/s: on a side note, i got 10% discount when purchasing it for being a Sony Member. But during my last weekend visit to Pavilion Sony Centre, the staff there claimed there's no discount for it for being a Sony Member. so beware...

This post has been edited by karwaidotnet: Mar 19 2012, 09:31 PM

after 'brain burn-in' and more comparison wif the AKG...i find the treble not so high anymore...but i do note that if its NOT plug-in into the ear tightly, it'll sound like radio. something some might find it uncomfortable after awhile....unlike a headphone...

but yeah...the soundstage is lesser compare to AKG.

using E7, i feel the bass improved.

This post has been edited by karwaidotnet: Apr 3 2012, 02:27 AM