So the Maxx showed up yesterday. I'm impressed. I think people who purchase them will be very happy.

$600 with tax is a lot, but the build quality is impeccable and you pay a premium for how slick all the (cr)apple stuff works together. Switching from listening to a podcast on my phone to a YouTube video on the iPad to a work zoom call on the MacBook without pressing a single button is a neat trick.

As for sound quality I think it meets expectations. It will not blow anyone on HC away with how good it sounds, but I also think it won't offend either. The tuning is fairly neutral, which is appreciated. Beats by Steve Jobs™ with a warmed-over bass-boosted response they are not, and that makes me glad. 

I'm not a lover of closed headphones when open headphones are an option. The usual closed headphone characteristics are all present in the Maxx.

These are not a replacement for a proper headphone rig. My HD800S aren't going anywhere. My HD800S also aren't able to operate without being tethered to my ECP amps, which is where the Maxx come in.  If you want to listen to something while walking around the house or the office or on the airplane then these will hit the spot. Their mass is such that I don't think they would be a good fit for exercising.

Is the case as strange as it appears on photos?

Edited December 17, 20205 yr by gepardcv
Grammar

15 minutes ago, gepardcv said:

Is the case as strange as it appears on photos?

It'll sit in a drawer until we can travel again so I didn't pay much attention to it.

I wonder how it compares to the closed version of the Aeon Flow - the only pair of closed headphone (non-IEM) that I have found to be worth keeping.

I would love to have some nice sounding closed headphones without cords!

8 hours ago, TMoney said:

It'll sit in a drawer until we can travel again so I didn't pay much attention to it.

Don't you need to put them in the case for them to drop down to low power mode right away?  Otherwise I believe it's like 2 hours before they do it on their own.  Obviously if you can configure that time it's not a big deal.

Ordered some too. Decent performance, no hassles is about where I am in life right now.

3 hours ago, tkam said:

Don't you need to put them in the case for them to drop down to low power mode right away?  Otherwise I believe it's like 2 hours before they do it on their own.  Obviously if you can configure that time it's not a big deal.

Fuckin' Magnets. How do they work?

https://9to5mac.com/2020/12/17/how-to-switch-off-airpods-max/

I decided to wait after I saw they were set to arrive March 23.

11 hours ago, tkam said:

Don't you need to put them in the case for them to drop down to low power mode right away?  Otherwise I believe it's like 2 hours before they do it on their own.  Obviously if you can configure that time it's not a big deal.

I have no intention to use the case unless I need to transport them somewhere in my bag. 
 

That website banner / title / name seems, er, barely legal / Infringing ?

https://crinacle.com/2020/12/19/apple-airpods-max-review-the-audiophiles-perspective/

Would have been if Inner Fidelity were still active. And if Stereophile cared.

It's now objectively the better user of the name, too.

Apple Alliterative Abuse?

https://9to5mac.com/2020/12/20/airpods-max-unboxing-review-the-pinnacle-of-preposterous-pricing/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you want to stroll down memory lane... 20 important Macs.

https://sixcolors.com/post/2020/12/20-macs-for-2020-1-imac-g3/ 

Video version: 

 

Edited December 29, 20205 yr by blessingx

You know what, fuck you Apple.

https://www.macrumors.com/2021/01/28/macbook-pro-no-more-dongles/

Nir updated the slsk client(!): http://www.slsknet.org/news/node/3712

It fixes the broken text issues, and vastly improved legibility when using dark mode.

https://www.pcgamer.com/apple-subpoenas-valve-as-part-of-its-legal-battle-with-epic-valve-fights-back/

Good luck with that, AAPL.

Intel hits back

 

 

Edited March 17, 20215 yr by blessingx

Intel has got some real problems. What they need is better products.

I am not sad to see Apple and AMD kick their ass. They have been a bully in the chip world for a long time.

Edited March 17, 20215 yr by TMoney

5 hours ago, TMoney said:

Intel has got some real problems. What they need is better products.

I am not sad to see Apple and AMD kick their ass. They have been a bully in the chip world for a long time.

I wouldn't be sad to see AMD give Nvidia's ass a healthy spanking too.

I don't love AMD, but Intel and Nvidia are tho companies I absolutely loathe.

Edited March 17, 20215 yr by Knuckledragger

9 minutes ago, Knuckledragger said:

I don't love AMD, but Intel and Nvidia are tho companies I absolutely loathe.

While I'm fond of AMD as I had a K6-2 way back, I don't love them. I'm glad they got their act together again on the CPU front with Ryzen so I don't have to use Intel anymore, and really hope they can catch up to Nvidia on the GPU front because as much as I like Nvidia's hardware, they are an absolutely terrible company.

Do you remember your first 1GHz chip?

https://www.electronicsweekly.com/news/archived/resources-archived/amd-athlon-processor-rockets-to-1ghz-2000-03/

 

Mine was most likely an Athlon Thunderbird, complete with all the fun of using an alarming amount of force to secure the heatsink to a CPU with no IHS.