REVIEW: Klipsch Image S4 Headphones

[Guest dwallersv]

First, the quick background: I'm an audiophile, despite about 50% hearing loss in my right ear; only loudness is affected, I still have a good, flat frequency response, so for me it's simply a matter of amplification. I'm also too lazy/vain to get and wear a hearing aid, as it's only really a problem when I'm listening to headphones. So, I've been on a search for years for a good, high fidelity solution to my various listening modes/environments, etc.

My needs are demanding: Casual listening while working, focused music listening while relaxing, music while working out (weight lifting and cardio), while sweating in the sauna for 30-40 minutes after working out, and other environments. No single solution covers all these situations perfectly, so I have several accessories for my O2 to meet my needs.

Probably the first and most important component is the headphones themselves. No surprise, you get what you pay for. I'd break headphones into 3 general classes:

• Cheap, mass-market headphones, the ones used by most people. These usually cost less than $30, average around $15-20, and vary widely in quality and music reproduction. Basically, headphones in this class are a crapshoot, but NONE are very good (that is, when you've tried some good ones!)
  
• Hi fidelity "pro-sumer" headphones, targeted at the general consumer, but with much better quality and a substantially higher price. Usually in the $50-150 price range. You will know right away when you've put on a set like this... The crispness, clarity, faithful frequency response, and much more, is obvious to all but the stone-deaf.
  
• Professional earbuds, that can rival some over-ear headphones. Run $200+. The difference between these and class II headphones is not as dramatic, but there are subtle important differences very important to musicians and audio professional, like exceptional dynamic range, flat flat flat frequency response, etc. Not worth the extra bucks IMO for just listening to music in ordinary daily activity.
  
  
  First, the basics:
  • Available in Black or White (white only available through Vann's online)
    
  • Standard 3.5mm plug
    
  • In-ear soft silicone convex cup design, with novel oval shape that apparenly fits the ear canal better.
    
  • Angled design between the ear canal cup and the driver, again supposedly making a better fit.
    
  • Specs: Freq. response 10Hz - 19kHz; Sensitivity 110dB/mW; -16dB noise isolation
    
  • Comes with steel carrying case, 3 sets of different sized "ear gels" (the ear canal cup), cleaning tool for getting gunk out of the tiny sound channel
    
  • $70-79 most places I could find on the internet. Vann's has free shipping, so this makes their $79 price fairly competitive.
    

  General Impressions

  

  Nice packaging, I like the steel case. The construction and materials are solid quality, built well, no cheapy stuff like flashing on seams, stiff crappy wires, etc. I got the white version (I'm blond), and they are quite attractive. Small too. As with many headphones today, there is a sliding cinch where the cable splits in two for left and right, so you can shorten the split and cinch it up under your neck so it doesn't keep swinging in your face when you bend over or look down.

  The plug is angled, which I prefer, as it makes cable management easier.

  Overall, the quality, design, and manufacture meets expectations for headphones in this class.

  The Fit

  I found these to be among the most comfortable in-ear headphones I've ever had. Before you read too much into that, just about every set that use the same design (floating convex cup) are very similar in comfort. I will say that the ovoid shape of the cup seems to give a slightly more comfortable feel, but it's nothing overwhelming. What makes a significant difference, in my judgement, is the angled design of the earpiece relative to the driver component. This matches the shape of the outer ear / ear canal better than the typical straight-in (see picture).

  

  In addition to be quite comfortable, they stay in. I have had a lot of trouble with this design working its way out while I move around, with cheaper class I headphones. I am particular annoyed with this defect with my Plantronics Voyager 855 headset, which uses the same floating cup design. For some reason, the material Plantronics uses and the stiffness/pliability of it causes it to work its way out constantly. These Klipsch headphones stay put.

  The Sound

  One word: Fabulous! Nothing I've used compares. It's like going from being blind to gaining sight. Everything is so crisp and clear, and there is definition that I miss with cheaper headphones -- i.e. I can hear textures and aspects of instruments that just don't come through with cheapies. The bass response is good, but a little (just a little) disappointing compared to a cheap pair of sony's I bought recently. However, the more I listen with these, the more I'm convinced that what I'm hearing is accuracy, not sub optimal bass. The bass frequencies have a clarity to them as well that I just don't hear in the cheapos, and I also percieve better balance across the frequency spectrum. The perceptually weaker bass was easily compensated through equalizer adjustments in Pocket Player, so it's not a meaningful negative, IMO.

  As for loudness/power, this was a biggie for me. With my hearing loss in my right ear, I have to compensate by skewing the audio balance to the right, to get the percieved loudness to equal out. Finding headphones and Bluetooth recievers that can deliver enough acoustic power to still produce a rockin' experience for me has been a real trial.

  However, these headphones are the highest sensitivity in the class that I've been able to find, and they live up to the specs. Direct-connect to the Omnia, they're painfully loud for me at full volume, with the balancing adjustment in place discussed above for my asymmetrical ears. I have to turn it down several notches to get to what for me is "loud". This is something that has been a problem with cheapies, as most of them are <100dB/mW sensitivity. Also, these headphones deliver without any mechanical distortion at high volumes, so THD can be managed through settings on the player (basically, adjusting pre-amp and equalizer settings to eliminate clipping). IOW, there is a lot of power headroom in these babies.

  With the high sensitivity, my Jabra BT3030 dogtag bluetooth reciever now has enough punch to produce a fully satisfying experience when listening while working out. This has been a source of irritation for me for some time -- I can't really carry my phone around easily while working out (direct connect is way loud, no problem there), and the BT3030 physical arrangement is very convenient (it's a dogtag!). My next workout is going to be da bomb!

  Conclusion

  I am very impressed with these headphones, and delighted I bought them. The sound quality is so superior to all other headphones I have, including my Sony S9HD headset, that I may just use these all the time in all situations with my BT3030 when it's impractical to plug them into the O2 directly. We'll see... may be a used S9HD for sale here soon ;)

  If you place a high value on the quality of sound reproduction when listening to music, audio from other multimedia, etc., whether from your Omnia or some other device, I'd highly recommend investing in a pair of these. With a 3.5mm connector, they are, of course, more versatile than just some Omnia headphones. However, it will make your Omnia sound like a really good piece of playback hardware.

Edited April 10, 2010 by dwallersv

[Guest wyttp]

Hi,

Just want to let you know I am one of the owners too^^. Been enjoying it since I bought it 3 months ago^^. Cheers. A very nice set of earphones to go for. The best I ever tried and the most expensive earphones I ever bought @@.

[Guest silvos3189]

now.. imagine those on a Cowon S9

[Guest unholygid2006]

Hi,

Just want to let you know I am one of the owners too^^. Been enjoying it since I bought it 3 months ago^^. Cheers. A very nice set of earphones to go for. The best I ever tried and the most expensive earphones I ever bought @@.

How much u bought it for? and at which part of singapore ah?

[Guest combathero]

I have those too, frankly it is the best combination for our O2 device. Configured to WoW-HD with touch player, you never gonna turn it back