Monday, 31 December 2018

If you are on Facebook and like to scout around and talk about HiFi or HeadFi, I am pretty sure the advertisement on Nuraphones is on your feed almost everyday :) I have been ignoring such ads but at one time, I accidentally clicked on it and I started to watch people with their amazed and confused face when they put the headphones on. I started to read up on it a bit and got intrigued with its claims and also some scientific facts on human listening.

I discussed this a bit with the Mrs as she holds a Doctorate in Audiology and was a Cochlear Implant Specialist. She did say that basically what the Nura is doing is like a hearing test that I go through every 3 years in my main job. But for Nura to then come up with a hearing profile within a minute, that is something she said might be a manipulation of sound. So, I had 'no choice' but to order one. LOL!

For the unboxing, setting up and first impression of the unit, you can refer to my El Hefe TV videos. On this review, I will just write about the sound signature of it.

Love Me Tender by Andrea Bocelli

His vocal sounded deep and rich. A very engaging way to experience the richness of his talent. The bass can be slightly overwhelming but that can easily be overcome by reducing the immersion level. The overall presentation of this track was leaning towards warm with highly focused and enclosed ambient.

Take Five by Dave Brubeck

The best presentation of what this Nura can do to your musical enjoyment. Detail, refine and yet still deep with bass texture and jazzy ambient. Best listened to at about 1/3 rd of the immersion scale. Mind you, this most probably be different form one individual to another based on the hearing analysis the Nura has done on your ear. The wind instrument on this track sounded really airy with great dispersion of the notes. The percussion especially on the ride cymbal was at a very enjoyable clarity. The bass digs quite deep especially with the immersion mode on.

The Girl Is Mine by MJ and PM

Fun track to listen to and the Nura presented this track in a very lively and merry manner. One of those that will get you into one of the happy moods especially if you grew up with these kind of music. The drums especially the hi-hat being manipulated can clearly be heard and made me tap along. The bass line although simple was deep and extended the way I like it. The shrilling voice of MJ was nowhere hitting the point of annoying like on some other headphones.

One by Metallica

Sometimes, when I get a really good pair of cans, I wonder why I even bother listening to hifi. On this track, I just realised that James said something during the gunfire opening of the track. The solo intro was so lively that it became emotional. Truth be told, this was the track that made me fall in love with the impact of bass drum. Its hard hitting but at the same time subtle enough to present this war track in its true sense. Once the heavy guitar riffs kicked in, it truly delivered the metal music that I like to listen to. Kirk's solo sounded melodic and James's growls was natural sounding.

Rogue One - Movie

I use headphones for watching movies too. Having this movie on my Samsung S9, can't help but to test the Nuraphones with this movie. It was definitely a more immersive experience watching this movie with the Nuraphones especially during laser shooting scene or rumbling sound of explosion scenes. Sharp and unclustered sound on vocals even though in a noisy war scene.

Conclusion

I can say that this is my 2018 revolutionary HeadFi product. Something that is different from the typical new HeadFi product. At a fraction of a high end headphone price, you get a list of features that makes mainstream headphone brands seems like a rip off. Stable Bluetooth connectivity, Noise cancelling, music control (by tapping left cup), volume control (by tapping right cup), auto on and off when you put on the headphones and when you take them off and a plethora of customizable controls.

Inova (TM) is their patented architecture that combines in-ear and over-ear headphones. The inner buds deliver clearer melodies while over the ear cups deliver the bass that you can feel.

The best part of it, the bass that it produces does not drown the mids and highs of any track especially the vocals. The bass reproduction is natural, tight and delivered with speed and authority. I guess they may be right about the fact that sounds remains the same but its human hearing that differs from one person to another.

At the price I bought with 20% discount, its a no brainer and can easily match the sound quality of Sony or BOSE NC BT headphones. Heck, when it comes to wireless headphones, I must say this is the best I have so far.