Polk enters headphone market

[Deleted User]

Keiko wrote: »

<a href="http://www.freeimagehosting.net/bb17b"><img src="http://www.freeimagehosting.net/newuploads/bb17b.jpg"></a&gt;

I'd polkthat three times. :biggrin:

....at least.

The joke is on you, she isn't even wearing headphones. :biggrin:

Vital

^^^ U know how i know u are ****? lol

Vital

Patrick C wrote: »

To answer your question the 3000's are available NOW. Get them while they last!

http://www.polkaudio.com/headphones/ultrafit/

Funny. I called Polk Direct and whoever i spoke to said that only orange colored ones are actually in stock. Rest is expected to come in sometime next week.

Patrick - can you or anyone else from Polk answer the rest of questions asked here?

1. Do 500, 1000 and 3000 share the same speaker and foam/wires/extra stuff is what drives up the price or do higher models actually have different speakers in them?

2. What's sensitivity rating on these headphones?

3. What frequency range do they reproduce?

Vital

I bet she would sell a lot more headphones then our soccer star

cfrizz

Alright guys enough with the effin women! That thread is dead remember? Unless you are willing to give equal time to scantily clad men. I grow tired of unexpectedly coming across them in every other thread.

[Deleted User]

cfrizz wrote: »

Alright guys enough with the effin women! That thread is dead remember? Unless you are willing to give equal time to scantily clad men. I grow tired of unexpectedly coming across them in every other thread.

Sorry, you can tell it was a Friday. :biggrin:

arun1963

cfrizz wrote: »

Alright guys enough with the effin women! That thread is dead remember? Unless you are willing to give equal time to scantily clad men. I grow tired of unexpectedly coming across them in every other thread.

Love the fact that it only takes 2 women to keep a 1,000 guys in check :biggrin:.

Mon40CSMM10

Did Polk at least put the frequency response and sensitivity on the headphones package? Makes me wonder since the specifications are not on the headphones website.

Numbers definitely count in terms of headphone performance: frequency response, impedance, sensitivity.

pietro944

Mon40CSMM10 wrote: »

Did Polk at least put the frequency response and sensitivity on the headphones package? Makes me wonder since the specifications are not on the headphones website.

Numbers definitely count in terms of headphone performance: frequency response, impedance, sensitivity.

I was wondering that,also...esp the sensitivity rating...I have a pair of ultimate ears that you could drive by rubbing two sticks together(lol)....very efficient...vip,imo

gdpeck

I just ordered a pair of the UltraFit 1000s. They look like exactly what I need for running, and possibly for general use with my iPhone. I didn't want something that isolates, so we'll see how these work out. I spoke with someone at Polk Customer Service line and they shared the specs for the UltraFit 1000 with me. They are 16 ohm headphones with 118dB sensitivity. The only thing I don't remember exactly was the freq. response, but I believe it was 18Hz - 23 kHz. I'm sure you could call and get the specs on other models, if interested.

Vital

^^^ That's why i asked if speaker itself is different/better between 1000 and 3000 or is it extra foam/pads/wires that ncrease the price.
I don't mind paying $100 for 3000s but i'm not 100% sure i want all the noise cancelations while i run as i do need to be aware of my surroundings which include sounds - cars, people, bikes... or am i expecting way too much from "noise cancelation" feature??

gdpeck

Vital wrote: »

^^^ That's why i asked if speaker itself is different/better between 1000 and 3000 or is it extra foam/pads/wires that ncrease the price.
I don't mind paying $100 for 3000s but i'm not 100% sure i want all the noise cancelations while i run as i do need to be aware of my surroundings which include sounds - cars, people, bikes... or am i expecting way too much from "noise cancelation" feature??

I'm sure I DON'T want all of the noise cancellation when running, plus I already have nice IEMs that isolate fine (Westone 3s). It would be good to know if the drivers are the same, but I figured if I hate them, at least Polk has a 30-day return policy, so I would only be out for return shipping. Also it seems that they just received the specs, when I called yesterday, so maybe they didn't have that info when you called.

jwhitakr

gdpeck wrote: »

I just ordered a pair of the UltraFit 1000s. They look like exactly what I need for running, and possibly for general use with my iPhone. I didn't want something that isolates, so we'll see how these work out. I spoke with someone at Polk Customer Service line and they shared the specs for the UltraFit 1000 with me. They are 16 ohm headphones with 118dB sensitivity. The only thing I don't remember exactly was the freq. response, but I believe it was 18Hz - 23 kHz. I'm sure you could call and get the specs on other models, if interested.

Cool. Definitely interested to hear how you like them. Considering getting some replacements for running (currently use Sennheiser PMX 680) and these could be just the ticket.

Mon40CSMM10

I saw a box of the Polk Audio UltraFit 500's with a price of $49.99 in the local Fry's Electronics Store.

I looked at the box and double-checked each side of the box, and there were no specifications to be found anywhere on the box exterior, just the same marketing wording that is on the website. However, the Sony MDR J10 headphones just to the left and priced at $9.99 had all the relevant sensitivity, impedance and frequency response numbers right on the back of the package.

I put the Polk Audio UltraFit 500's back on the shelf, I did not buy them. I don't want to have to call for specifications, so until Polk Audio can put those numbers clearly on the outside of the box, I won't be buying the Polk Audio UltraFit headphones anytime soon. That's too bad, because I specifically stopped by Fry's just to see about the Polk Audio headphones.

nadams

Sounds like Polk Marketing has some work to do... Even my old Koss 'phones have specs listed plainly on the box.

gdpeck

I received my UltraFit 1000s from Polk direct, a couple of days ago, and there are no specifications listed anywhere on the inside or outside of the packaging. I'm still getting used to them, and will comment on my impressions of them, later, after I have a chance to run with them.

[Deleted User]

I brought the subject of specifications for the headphones up and they will be made available on the web site very soon.

Vital

nadams wrote: »

Sounds like Polk Marketing has some work to do....

Polk's shipping isn't too far behind:

I ordered black 3000's on Friday AM which as Polk's customer service lady assured me will be shipped out the same day and they do have it in stock.
Come Monday my order is still "pending" as per Polk's site/order tracking.
I call up, guy tells me "we're sorry, it did not go out on Friday because of something something availability in different warehouses something something, I'll make sure it goes out today, you will get an email with tracking closer to end of the day today".
No email/tracking all day long, i go to sleep, wake up this morning and see an email that was send to me at 6AM east/3AM West with tracking number linked to Con-Ways website. According to Con-Way tracking number is not valid. So I try to make sense out of it and try this same tracking number with FedEx. It works AND my city is listed as final destination and ship out date is Monday's which makes me believe tracking number Polk send to me is FedEx, not Con-Way. But again info on FedEx's site and Polk sites are different - different Reference, different Purchase order number AND Department number is EBAY, not Polk's site....

Here's my questions:
1. Who the hell sends stuff out at 3:00 at night??? (since it's coming from California)
2. Con-Way is freight company, they only work with heavy cargo, pallets, not a few boxes.
3. Is that FedEx number really mine?? Weight and dates kinda match, rest of info is waay off.
4. How the hell does someone gets ALL that mixed up??? Imo you have to actually TRY to achieve all the mis-information I got, all that doesn't just happen as an honest mistake. Whoever's project it was did a good job, I just hope there weren't more things on his/hers to-do list.

gdpeck

I had the same situation with my order. I didn't call Polk, but I never noticed that the order status changed from pending. I also got the email sent to me at 3:00 AM PDT with the Order has shipped notification. My email "track this" hyperlink also pointed to Con-way, which said it wasn't a valid number. I googled the tracking number which showed up as a FedEx number.

FedEx did actually deliver my earbuds as promised in the tracking information on Saturday Sept. 24th. So I think you can trust the FedEx information.

Zitro

So does anyone have a review of this line? I would like to order a pair of 500's, but want to get some impressions of them first.

dorokusai

I have a pair of each model available for demo if anyone wants to try them out. What are your ideas on sending all three to one person and so on for demo, so you can try each one? Or should I send them to three different people?

Whatever, just let me know via PM if you want a pair to demo. First come, first serve.

Vital - If they haven't reached you yet, I'd expect them soon beings I received the ones for me today. Polk uses FedEx for residential shipments not Con-Way. I suspect it's simply an error based on the volume of emails received and a cut and paste issue....maybe not, I don't really know as it's not my department. If you have an order number, PM me and I'll look into it offline.

dorokusai

nadams wrote: »

Sounds like Polk Marketing has some work to do... Even my old Koss 'phones have specs listed plainly on the box.

Who cares about spec's on a pair of headphones? Seriously? It's a pair of headphones not full size loudspeakers. The frequency response range for all headphones is damn near the same from every manufacturer that makes them. 20-20 is all you need to expect, the rest is a bonus.

Zitro

I'll demo a pair of UltraFit 500's and I promise I will buy a pair if I like them . PM sent.

pietro944

Don't know if anyone posted this.....Crutchfield sent me an email today,highlighting the new Polk headphones.Nice pics.....WITH the specs......32ohm input impedance......gotta have a good head amp.

gdpeck

Zitro wrote: »

So does anyone have a review of this line? I would like to order a pair of 500's, but want to get some impressions of them first.

Here are my impressions. I think how much you will like them will depend on how you plan on using them.

I have the 1000s, which are very similar to the 500s, except that the 1000s have a play/volume control and mic for iPods and iPhones. I bought them to use for two things. First, I wanted something that I could use to listen to music at background volume levels from the iPhone. The mic/remote was a requirement, because I also want to be able to use them to make/take phone calls. The second purpose for me was as a headphone to wear outside while running.

I feel like they are ideal for outdoor exercise, and slightly less ideal for background/iphone use. The sound is nice, but seems a little laid back un-amped from my iPhone 4. They also kind of bug my ears when I'm just sitting at a desk.

I wore them for a run yesterday, and I love them for that purpose. My running rig is a 1st Gen iPod shuffle with a DLO neoprene armband. The short flat cable is a perfect length for me with the arm band, and there is no cable noise transmitted to my ears whatsoever. The fit is astounding for running, and at times I really felt like the earphones weren't even there. Also the sound was a little more exciting from the iPod shuffle.

The Polk Audio website states that the 500s and 1000s, have moderate noise isolation. My experience with them is that they have no noise isolation. That's fine with me, because I'm not looking for noise isolation when running outside. I haven't spent any time comparing them to my other favorite earphones (Yuin PK3s) just yet. All my listening with these headphones so far has been with mp3 files that I ripped using LAME and the V1 preset, which sounds very very good to my ears.

In summary, if you want these as headphones for exercising outdoors, where you need to be able to hear stuff like cars, these are nearly perfect. They may be less so for other purposes. I know I didn't comment too much on sound quality, but hope to do so at some point when I have time to do some comparisons with other headphones, and after these break-in (or I acclimate) a little more. I did feel like they sound better from the 1st Gen Shuffle than from the iPhone 4, but it also could be because I was listening louder when I was running.

HTH
George

gdpeck

pietro944 wrote: »

Don't know if anyone posted this.....Crutchfield sent me an email today,highlighting the new Polk headphones.Nice pics.....WITH the specs......32ohm input impedance......gotta have a good head amp.

I got that email too. It's worth noting that the only headphones Crutchfield shows stats for are the UltraFit 2000s, which are entirely different from the other models, as they are not earphone/in-ear, but are over the ear with a behind-the-head headband. It's really likely that those use different drivers than the earphone/in-ear models, so the specs may not apply to the UltraFit 500s, and 1000s.

cfrizz

Does the volume control only work on the I-stuff, or will it work on my SanDisk mp3 player?

BTW the specs are up on Polk's website.

Mon40CSMM10

dorokusai wrote: »

Who cares about spec's on a pair of headphones? Seriously? It's a pair of headphones not full size loudspeakers. The frequency response range for all headphones is damn near the same from every manufacturer that makes them. 20-20 is all you need to expect, the rest is a bonus.

I care.

I've used a much pair of Sennheiser portable headphones that were something like 50 Hz to 16,000 Hz--definitely could tell the missing bass and treble frequencies (I didn't buy them, they were included free back when I bought a cassette walkman type stereo from when the DOW stores still existed) even with bass and treble eq set to +6 on the cassette walkman type stereo. I've used (and still have) Sony MDR-E828 earbuds with specs of 20 Hz - 20000 Hz but to me the bass sort disappears around 40 Hz, I even put test tones through them and to hear the lower bass (but still not the lowest bass) I have to hook them up to my receiver and turn the volume to something like -30 dB with the max being -8 dB. I've used Koss The Plug that went down to 10 Hz in the specs and yet there was too much exaggerated bass, not the sound quality I wanted despite the low bass. I'm currently using Sony S2 J11 headphones with a frequency response of something like 16 Hz to 22000 Hz, they are decent, but still need a bass boost with an MP3 player equalizer (Rock or Jazz setting). I still have Koss TD-61's with a frequency response of 25 Hz to 15000 Hz--seems like not such good numbers on paper--and yet it seems they actually have lower bass and higher treble than the numbers would suggest; however, they are not very portable.

You get the idea. So yeah, it matters to me. Specs give me a good idea of where the frequencies roll off in the bass and treble. After that, it's how good the overall sound is.

I also understand that Polk now has the specs on the website so now I'll give their headphones the consideration they deserve. Edit: And after seeing the very impressive specifications for the UltraFit 500's, I will be getting the UltraFit 500's this weekend. I'll be able to get more output per volume unit with the combined ohms/sensitivity, which means my battery on my MP3 player will last longer. Furthermore, the frequency response for those exceed my expectations.

Vital

Frequency Response of 3000 is 8Hz-24Khz while 500 is 18Hz-23Khz
Which makes me raise my eyebrows lol. Really??? 3000s will go down to as low as 8Hz? WTF?

Drenis

If there placed in your ears properly I'm sure. Some models of in-ear ear buds sound like crap when not placed in your ear properly but when a proper seal is made... WOW the bass is awesome.