7Hz is not new to the scene. They are up and running for 10 years and they crowned it with Eternal I reviewed a while ago. But since 10 years, no iems they released were like Timeless. First of all, let’s assume that I am an oldie cheapskate and these are what I would face when using 7hz Timeless with Sansa Clip+. Used stock tips. Zero burnin. OOTB condition.
After I pressed the play button , I was surprised about the sound quality I heard. Nothing like plugging a hd650 to the good old Clip+. A high mid presence is noted. Reminded me of Heart Mirror. Basses have weight when the drummer hits. But almost no microdetails in my reference song (the Decemberists – The Island). But Colin Melloy and his backing vocal are singing to me. Speaking of back, background is dead silent but tonality is suffering on this supposedly low power. Isolation is only okay. Good enough to block the micro detail sound out but besides it, almost none if you consider stock tips.
All these experiences were from a %75 volume leveled ordinary Sansa Clip+ without RB on. This showed me that even though the planar magnet is Timeless, I might be living the same situation with what I lived with on the iphone 5s + Hifiman he400s combo. This was only an assumption
Now let’s leave assuming aside and use some of the main force.
Using v30 + TRI TK-2, I can’t rotate the volume knob after 1 o’clock. So I settled for 10.5. I am now hearing a richer experience in which I can “feel” the acoustic guitar’s strings one by one. Melloy is behind a very thin and smooth velvet but his voice’s very slight deepness and crispness is heard. Insane level of details and stage width at well mastered tracks like of DT. Basses are defined with precision. Sorry not rumbling below. Or no bassy atmosphere and shakes at the bass drop seconds as it is it’s not midbass friendly. (The contradiction with its frequency graphs reminds me of a. driving b. burnin c. eartip issue. But finding out which is reserved for its review) Treble is plenty and in hq like HM. But rolling off fast in electronics. Micro Details add more satisfaction. Layering is speaking “planar magnet” loudly even at 0 hour burnin. And instrument separation is quite high. Mid band instruments flow like liquids in even electronic music.
What it gained with power gained from the V30 + TRI TK-2 combo? Smoothness, liquidity, airyness, texturings at both the vocal and the instruments, transparency, somewhat capacity to reflect the ambiance.
Before I begin a detailed review which will include in depth sound analysis, amping and cable rolling with a 6N Pure Copper; You have to read my PROS / CONS first. This unit is supplied to me in exchange for my honest ideas by Keephifi and this is not creating a bias for me.
PROS
Clean, lively and enveloping sound after properly fed and burnt in
Great details
Plenty of air in even studio recordings
Insane amount of modding with ear mesh and supplied eartips
CONS
Power requirement to sound best
Might feel some offended by the intimate staging
Stock cables aren’t the best in sound quality. Needs a high quality cable to shine
MMCX is a pain in the butt for some
Box, 7Hz Timeless and the Cable&Specs
Box is the usual 7Hz box. But the real catch is what’s inside. Aluminum carrying case which is holding the cable in, 2 sets of multiple eartips, documents
7Hz Timeless has a huge planar driver and a token sized backplate. Venting holes are actual holes which are around the same size but -1 in quantity from the TRI i3pro I reviewed here. Bore is somehow long, nozzle is wide and while there is a spare set of mesh in its box, spacing is loose in this mesh design and this might open the way for new mods. Connector is MMCX like the newest model Eternal.
Cable is silver plated almost like the Eternal but in a different color scheme. Somehow thick and supple. What is radically different from the latest model is the black and red color choice. First connector is black and red while the Y split is red and black. Chin guard piece is in black.
- Driver. 14.2mm planar driver.
- 14.8ohm.
- Sound pressure level. 104dB/1Khz.
- Frequency response range. 5-40000hz.
- THD. <0.2%/1KHZ.
- MMCX.
- Nozzle diameter. 5mm.
Sound
This is planar magnet driver iem and must be respected to its power demand. Thus I’ll be using Zishan z4 in the sound section. Dethonray ha-2 will join us in the amped section.
Timbre is neutral to slightly dark with insane detail level and tonality. Authority is great especially at live tracks. The whole instruments of SMV are in front of me with their bassy natures and textures. 3 Gentlemen (3 masters that are Stanley Clarke, Marcus Miller, and Victor Wooten) have proven a weird soundstage of their attack recording (I believe not even a single one hasn’t memorized a song they are playing at %1000 and the slight buzz of their recording microphone is a very sweet addition to these tracks spontaneity) I’d never expected such an example from an iem before. I think the mastery of SMV is pouring into my ears now. With electronic bassed track of Infected Mushroom – Nipple I am in an ethereal atmosphere after I close my eyes. Her vocal is almost in my head, not close to me. Basses are vibrating with the power of Z4, cut hard in this track and electronic rhyme below the main line.
When evaluating bass, bassy songs appear one by one at Z4. Now is a Knife Party remix – Porter Robinson. I am utterly speechless now! Whole thunderous storm of rocks is in my head again. And my head is wobbling with an impressed smile on my face. The clarity is very high in this planar magnet so I can hear many details as well.
Mid is another strong suite of this 7Hz Timeless along with its natural basses. They aren’t shredding in other genres like it was in electronic music. Alice Cooper or who is singing now is near you (I have to admit that Infected Mushroom was something different) and texturing is great. A man with a heinous image is singing to me. But things changed 180 degrees with Fourplay. Now I have a slightly distanced white male at 30 something. And the whole orchestra behind him with jazz and blues influences&bassy tuning. Joe Cocker is the middle aged – tired – white and struggling man just by considering his cripy vocal. He is closer than he was with Eternal) Stage is pretty wide as if this iem is open backed (was like this at i3pro too. I guess these air vents help the sound)
Treble is, well you might already guessed, just in the amount that is defined in the record. So I can tell that while Iron Maiden hadn’t preferred trebles to be front in the final mix, master David Gilmour is not troubled with them and I hear the whole drum set with somehow thinner extensions. To test if it is from the Timeless, I am playing another live. This time Hans Zimmer – Live in Prague. Absolutely no as I am hearing all the treble as much as they are allowed and they are set free. More free than Gilmour’s recording (allowance is an important word. What were 3 giant sized Cubase running i-macs doing in the live show?)
Amp and Cable Rolling Begin
Amping 7Hz Timeless
The sound is clearer than ever. And basses do pound on me stronger than they were. Electronic bassly and fast paced tracks can be tiring. I have to confess that I don’t want to get beaten up by Knife Party 🙂 But I’ll use V30 + Dethonray ha-2 and Pendulum – Live at the Brixton Academy to see its force.
But in “ Love Scene by Hostsonaten” I feel like I can cry with the beauty of this classic music / rock track. Italians do this art wonderfully and this was our HiFi test track 😉 Instruments are hauntingly natural and the sad mood in this track is solid.
Finally I couldn’t hold myself any more and plugged the 3.5mm 6N Hybrid cable to the V30 for Propane Nightmares at Brixton Academy. Even though the dac is off, I am slightly away from the scene and some feet above the roaring young crowd. Hearing all the electronic music loving UK fellas cheers and accompanies whenever possible and getting surrounded with all these is priceless. I was thinking this could only be possible at open back headphones. (ps: some time ago I had seen some guys gossiping and laughing at a guy’s ideas of his placement in the concert hall when listening his headphone. Now I feel and respect him. And if positioning of a particular player can be subject to talk about in live performances when listening earphones, we – the listener – can and should be positioned too)
Cable Rolling 7Hz Timeless
Used the classic 6N Pure Copper cable. Trebles thinned down, sound level rose up. With the increase in clarity I guess listening genres like EDM would result in ear pain. Here-is-the-Brixton-Academy and I am hearing a slightly crispy – less smooth Pendulum live performance. Seemed like original cable is giving “some” meat on the sound I hear and now I am hearing the sound just like as I should in real life.
I had been to many rock concerts in Istanbul back in the old days resulting with sound loss for a couple of days and now I am in a dark, foggy, crowded club with a beer on my hand and a pack of cigarettes in my right pocket 🙂 and banging my head like crazy. This song was so memorable in their sudden and unannounced concert at 2007. Turkey and The Automatic? It was a huge WOW moment in my life 23 years old life. The Automatic – By My Side https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=iuCXBhFdxEU&feature=share
7Hz Timeless Review Conclusions
This is how personal music must be IMO. Memory and emotion provoking. I had reviewed more than 350 earphones before but I never had experienced this setup both helping me revisit the concerts I had been to. If you have enough (the writer is meaning big) power at your hand, this iem is very good even at ordinary youtube records without congestion and lively sound be it recabled or not.
This is the non affiliated link if you are interested with Timeless. https://keephifi.com/products/7hz-timeless
