Hybrid electrostatic headphones for $249?

Anyone sign up for these?

 

Any specs?

 

on their webpage

 

http://www.bravoheadphones.com/technology/

 

The exploded diagram mentions electrets (in "Electrets Flexible Loudspeakers"). I wonder whether these are a hybrid dynamic/electret headphone, rather than a hybrid dynamic/electrostatic.

 

I think much like how Enigmacoustics calls the Dharma a "hybrid electrostatic Headphone", the Dharma's use an electret driver and just call it electrostatic. Technically an electret is electrostatic.

I think it's the same thing with the Sharkk Bravo headphones.

Marketing-wise, people have heard of electrostatic headphones and associate them with being high end and very expensive so it makes sense to want to call them electrostatic rather than electret. Electrostatic just sounds better, and it's true.

 

Back in the early 80s I bought STAX SR-34 Electret Earspeakers with Adaptor. I never thought of them as electrostatics, and STAX never referred to them as such.

I believe the Adaptor box just had a transformer in it, to allow hookup to the speaker terminals of a power amp (or integrated amp or receiver). Electrets use permanently charged material and don't require bias voltage, unlike electrostatics.

That is how I remember it anyway.

 

Yes. You can see a Stax SR-44 electret headphone box (SR-40 electret earspeakers and SRD-4 adaptor) in my avatar. That was a gift from my parents in 1979, if I remember correctly. One small correction: the polarization is not permanent, but lasts 30-40 years, typically. My SR-44s no longer work, likely because the polarization is lost. I liked their sound a lot.

 

My Stax SR-34 were my 3rd headphones and the 1st that I really enjoyed. I have fond memories of listening to them.

I wondered if they would still be working, for the reason you stated @MarcoGV.

 

You have nothing to lose, even if they are a fifth as good as the manufacturer states you'll have 2x better sound.
Way to take one for the team

 

Thanks. Subbed.

 

Hybrids always have me really iffy. I haven't really seen one that has been implemented well yet, but there is always a chance.
Plus they seem to be really reasonably priced and look like they can serve as a portable, closed pair of cans.

I'll be interested to see the measurements and impressions when they drop in the next month or so.

 

This should be just another Verisonix OEM. Taiwanese company, they've been developing electret products going back several years, including pretty cool portable speakers. In2uit and "Mitchell & Johnson" are its other brands.



http://www.verisonix.com/

http://www.head-fi.org/t/793225/verisonix-in2uit-verisonic

http://in2uit.jp/index.html

http://www.innerfidelity.com/content/ces-2016-new-line-dual-driver-headphones-mitchell-johnson

http://www.tw-teec.com/index.asp?lang=2

 

Yeah, this. I waaaant there to be a good, affordable pair of dual-driver cans out there.

I'm wary of the hypetastic marketing. Revolutionary? Not really. It's been done, hasn't it? Maybe it's new to most. I guess if they can pull it off, they'd be among the few. And I guess it wouldn't be a successful crowdfunding venture without hype. But why not put up the measurements now? If they measure well, that gives people incentive to pay in. And besides, not posting them has me wondering if maybe they have some weird tonal issues that they don't want us to know about. If they have models that people have heard, then they have models that they can measure. The specs they do share really don't reveal a whole lot.

Like how do you qualify "10x better" sound? 10x better than what? And by what metrics? It's just a silly thing to say without putting your money where your mouth is, is all.

Can I be the first to say these are uuugly? What were they thinking strapping those ugly black/red strips across the cups? I guess they wanted to send a message and make them stand out but. I dunno. To me, they just look really cheap and gaudy. But then, I prefer the utilitarian aesthetic. It's just weird to see something advertised as being a revolutionary studio headphone looking like cheap, Amazon chi-fi, no-name, bluetooth style cans. Doesn't really scream "serious" to me.

If that ends up being my worst gripe with it, then I suppose that's not a big deal. But still... ...I can't get over that look. Just. UUUUUHHHGH.

*shrugs* should be interesting...

 

Yeah, nonsensical.

(But, if they would have said 100x better they might have had me!)