Welllll it never rains, this time it never pours – it’s felines and canines business, thoroughly drenchworthy – another post.
We’ll make this quick. I have a few rules that make life less complicated, one is that I will only endorse things that I actually choose to use (except paid voice work – when I’m almost anybody’s, except for a couple of world raping corporates I have drawn the line at). So, especially when it comes to headphones, which I seem to have spent an inordinate amount of the last couple of decades in…I take that shit serious. I’ve been dead loyal to my HD25’s for a looooong time, ever since the much missed Anthony from Syntec sent a couple of pairs up for us to check out, after a trying time with the cans at bFM, doing Tranquility Bass with Kirk back in the murky 90’s. I certainly haven’t been in the market for any newun’s but my curiosity was piqued when I read on Ivan Smagghe’s blog about an upcoming model, developed and designed by DJ’s, that looked serious rather than some gimmick. Fast forward a couple of months and I get a call asking if I’d be interested in playing a gig and parlaying my sketchy services for a pair of some new fangled cans. Obviously I needed to check them first, I have enough duff gear and none of it gets better with age – it just takes up space. Sure enough, the very headphones that had made me think …hmmm would be good to have some for studio and some for playing out… well it was they.
So this Saturday I’m doing the gig postered below (playing 10-11 after the majestic Manuel Bundy, Scratch 22’s on from 1 too) and I now have a pair of TMA-1’s which so far I’ve been very happy with. I’ve yet to test them out in the all important gig scenario but they’ve done a bit of time on my lugs over the last weekend, and while you wouldn’t expect them to reach the bass response and all over aaaaaah-ness of the faithful Sennheisers (which also cost half as much again!) they sound proper. Loads of detail in the tops, very comfortable, they even made a several hour long sampling session not too grim as they sit really well.
So that’s what they look like below, and I guess we’ll all be on em at the gig! They aren’t at the cheap end of the market but thus far I’d say they were fairly priced, and it’s your ears…man…it’s your frikkin ears, you’ve got to look after them.
Next week steam mops, the revival of 8-track and have I got a deal for yooooooooooooooo… (apologies for the small poster, phrigging photobouquet)