šŸ”· Drop THX Panda

Let the hype begin with the recent reviews lol

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Next thing you know there will be a Panda Gang. :panda_face:

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:panda_face:

Apparently thatā€™s unicode. Thanks Joshua Valour, lol.

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Man, yeah so much hype. Hmmmm

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Iā€™ve never really understood closed-back portable headphones. Where are they useful compared to IEMs? Anywhere you go you would either need to hear the world around you to avoid dying, or theyā€™d be too bulky to carry while youā€™re not listening to them.

Too much lol, I am really skeptical with some of the statement said so far lol. Iā€™m sure itā€™s good, but a lot of the claims give me pause in the z video. I think the fact that itā€™s wireless, thx, and planar closed back is compounding the hype tbh. For an overall package for wireless Iā€™m sure itā€™s great, but pure sound I donā€™t know if it can hold up to the higher end closed backs already in the market

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Planesā€¦ Crying babiesā€¦ Lesley from Accounting that just does not shut up!!!

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You never really were a fan of thx tech though right?

I think Joshā€™s video might be the more well rounded review. I think his statement was that it was the best bluetooth headphone, but compared to wired closed backs in the same price range there are better sounding options.

Are you going to get a pair to try out though?

Iā€™m not bashing thx here, just noting that when thx is mentioned hype does increase a fair bit.

Now thatā€™s what I was expecting. DMS is also more reasonable in his review

I will try a pair when a friend gets his, but personally Iā€™m not in the market for wireless

Ah didnā€™t mean to say that you were.

Cool, let us know your thoughts in like half a year. Lol

Am I the only one weirded out by the fact that they are doing indie go go cause they you knowā€¦ Have drop.com but if itā€™s for marketing I guess I can see whatā€™s up

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Iā€™m not really worried, most likely just more convenient for them with preorders

True. Indie go probably had a better infrastructure for that kinda stuff

I mean, selling ā€œThe Worldā€™s highest fidelity wireless headphonesā€ on Indiegogo is one hell of a great ad, too.

(79% backed alreadyā€¦!)

Notice he said ā€œin the 400$ price rangeā€ā€¦ Early bird is 421$CAD for meā€¦ So itā€™s, 319$USD? For the lucky first 750 buyers.

Thatā€™s a pretty good price especially for canada

for me it would be around 345 Euro incl. 19% tax - not bad, though skip this one this time.

somehow it does not catch me, while doing most things right on paper:

no ANC - makes it interesting in first place
ok passive isloation
passive mode - beeing able to shut off the DSP is gold
LDAC support
design is not screaming anything
no touch controls

Edit:
no negative points on paper

still not hyped

Thatā€™s a win in my book lol

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Watching that review now. Z is certainly animated, but if you put an enthusiasm filter on what heā€™s saying, I donā€™t find him to be far off the mark.

One of the most eyebrow-raising claims was that the Pandas compete with closed-backs under $1500. I donā€™t find that to be hyperbole, though it probably deserves more discussion. I brought Stellias to the Listening Event and my musician friend who attended with me said he couldnā€™t really tell the difference between those and the Pandas. Granted, there are a lot of mitigating circumstances behind that comment (non-ideal listening environment, very short comparison with insufficiently varied test tracks), but the takeaway here should be that the differences were not immediately glaringly obvious to an experienced listener.

Yes, the Stellias are better, but theyā€™re better in the same ways that differentiate summit-fi perfection from $1000+ headphones: subtle refinement of details, and those last few drops of detail and coherency. A lot of that is stuff that stands out only with a good deal of A-B comparison and practiced critical listening (and then, once you know exactly what to listen for, becomes easier to repeatably confirm).

Point is, Pandas are damn good, and I donā€™t find Zā€™s assertion that they can play in the same league as $1500 cans to be outrageous. My own gut feel was that sound quality was more in line with $1000 cans than any of the $4-500 headphones Iā€™ve heard, although I admit thereā€™s probably plenty in that range that I havenā€™t heard. Iā€™d love to do some comparisons with Elegias and Ether CX (and will once my Pandas come in). And keep in mind that wired headphones will need a quality DAC and Amp to drive them; any way you slice it, the value proposition of the Pandas is really pretty amazing.

FWIW, I agree with @Lel that Joshā€™s preview was a nice level-headed analysis of what the Pandas do well. Personally, Iā€™m a little closer to Zā€™s take on imaging, although I only had a pretty limited time with the Pandas and I based my (very favorable) impression largely on one songā€“ā€œLittle Birdā€ by Imogen Heapā€“because of excellent chorusing and musical separation. I have seen a lot of impressions praising Pandas for their midrange, so perhaps I just stumbled into their sweet spot with that track.

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I think the closer competitors would be the elegia and the aeon 2 closed (which is a sizable improvement over the ether line imo). That I would be interested in hearing

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