One great aspect of the mics is they give you some in-ear monitoring of your
own voice, which generally leads to speaking at more natural conversational
levels, thus leading to less mic distortion and a clearer overall signal.
When it comes to audio performance, on tracks with intense sub-bass content,
like The Knife’s “Silent Shout,” the headphones deliver powerful low-frequency
response without going overboard. At top volume levels, the bass doesn’t
distort, and at lower levels, the lows still sound robust and full without
overwhelming the mix.
Bill Callahan’s “Drover,” a track with far less deep bass in the mix, gives us a
better sense of the general sound signature. The drums on this track sound
wonderfully round and full without venturing into unnaturally thunderous
territory. Callahan’s baritone vocals are rich in the low-mids, but receive the
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higher-register percussive hits and acoustic strums are bright and crisp, and
overall, this is a wonderfully balanced sound signature.
On Jay-Z and Kanye West’s “No Church in the Wild,” the kick drum loop
receives a perfect blend of high-mid presence and low-frequency fullness—the
attack of the loop is clear, and the hits pack a nice thud, too. The sub-bass synth
hits that punctuate the beat are delivered with solid bass depth—we hear their
ominous rumble, but it’s not pushed to the fore and doesn’t overwhelm the mix.
The vocals on this track are delivered with excellent clarity, and without much
added sibilance.