PULSE Elite Review and |OT| "Where innovation meets sound" Releases Feb. 21, 2024

[ToTTenTranz]

Yeah planar magnetics are known to be fragile bc they rely on a thin metal film for the sound production. No dropsies

OTOH the sound performance on demanding scenarios is out of this world when compared to standard drivers on a similar price range. Throw anything at it and as long as the bitrate is adequate you'll never get any artifacts.

Anything else tends to muffle instruments together when faced with orchestral music with lots of timbre variety, but my Audeze Maxwells handle everything perfectly.

I couldn't speak for >$1000 audiophile cans as I don't own any of them, but at least for the price range the planar magnetics are really special.

 

[anonpuffs]

OTOH the sound performance on demanding scenarios is out of this world when compared to standard drivers on a similar price range. Throw anything at it and as long as the bitrate is adequate you'll never get any artifacts.

Anything else tends to muffle instruments together when faced with orchestral music with lots of timbre variety, but my Audeze Maxwells handle everything perfectly.

I couldn't speak for >$1000 audiophile cans as I don't own any of them, but at least for the price range the planar magnetics are really special.

Yes the audio performance is basically some of the best you can get. Although for some reason the wireless earbuds were noticeably better than the cans to me, its a shame I had to send them back due to a mfg defect

 

[Deto]

I'm using it and it works very well

I've already tested it on the front and rear USB and it works perfectly... It even works through a masonry wall

 

[JAHGamer]

I'm using it and it works very well

I've already tested it on the front and rear USB and it works perfectly... It even works through a masonry wall

I really liked it until it broke, make sure not to drop it, it’s extremely fragile. At least it’s still under warranty and I’ll be shipping it on Monday

 

[rofif]

Few more months and I like pulse 3d more.
On elite, the seal is so good, it’s creating some problems. It’s a bit hot and worst of all, I can constantly hear my heartbeat and blood pumping. It never went away. The microphonics are really a big downside despite this being wireless. I can hear my breath, moving around and my heart. It’s an uncomfortable pressure feeling without actual pressure.

Then I am not a big fan of the seal because it cuts off ambient noise. I want to hear my wife or doorbell. But it’s a minor issue.

Controls suck ass. Everything is on 1 button. Press, hold, let go. Ass. Switching between dongles is annoying. You have to hold power let go when it beeps the. Press a button on the damn dongle. Pulse 3d dongle was just simple plug and play. Faster to move it from ps5 to pc than switch 2 dongles on elite with a button. And elite dongles fit very tight but no issue since I have 2.

The audio quality is really good BUT there are big problems. Bass distorts on last 2 volume clicks. There is diaphrame crackling all the time when it’s quiet and it’s very sibilant.

Pulse 3d sounds more bassy, relaxed. No bass distortion, lighter, better controls, no heartbeat or blood pumping. And it’s not as hot. only battery is worse

 

[JAHGamer]

Few more months and I like pulse 3d more.
On elite, the seal is so good, it’s creating some problems. It’s a bit hot and worst of all, I can constantly hear my heartbeat and blood pumping. It never went away. The microphonics are really a big downside despite this being wireless. I can hear my breath, moving around and my heart. It’s an uncomfortable pressure feeling without actual pressure.

Then I am not a big fan of the seal because it cuts off ambient noise. I want to hear my wife or doorbell. But it’s a minor issue.

Controls suck ass. Everything is on 1 button. Press, hold, let go. Ass. Switching between dongles is annoying. You have to hold power let go when it beeps the. Press a button on the damn dongle. Pulse 3d dongle was just simple plug and play. Faster to move it from ps5 to pc than switch 2 dongles on elite with a button. And elite dongles fit very tight but no issue since I have 2.

The audio quality is really good BUT there are big problems. Bass distorts on last 2 volume clicks. There is diaphrame crackling all the time when it’s quiet and it’s very sibilant.

Pulse 3d sounds more bassy, relaxed. No bass distortion, lighter, better controls, no heartbeat or blood pumping. And it’s not as hot. only battery is worse

Satoru also said it got too hot, but these have never gotten hot on me and I've had em since day 1 with 6+ hours usage every day. That's really weird. Maybe some units are defective.

I agree about the controls though, they're terrible, especially trying to use bluetooth and Link Adapter at the same time. I have to restart it completely sometimes just to get both to pair.

 

[rofif]

Satoru also said it got too hot, but these have never gotten hot on me and I've had em since day 1 with 6+ hours usage every day. That's really weird. Maybe some units are defective.

I agree about the controls though, they're terrible, especially trying to use bluetooth and Link Adapter at the same time. I have to restart it completely sometimes just to get both to pair.

You didn’t hear your heartbeat in them when it’s quiet in game? Blood, breath, all movement. Maybe my head is too big and seals too well

 

[JAHGamer]

You didn’t hear your heartbeat in them when it’s quiet in game? Blood, breath, all movement. Maybe my head is too big and seals too well

No I don't hear anything at all...that's strange. Or maybe you have some superhuman hearing?

 

[rofif]

No I don't hear anything at all...that's strange. Or maybe you have some superhuman hearing?

I’ve seen this complaint from other users. Probably something some people have

 

[rofif]

Did a "whatever" experiment and removed the horrible leatherette (just rubber... it's just vulcanized sticky rubber after 3 years) from my pulses 3d and the foam EATS ALL THE SOUND. No bass at all I am almost surprised.
Wicked cushions are on the way, so I will compare Elites to Pulses 3d with new cushions.
And I found a term for what I am experiencing with Pulse Elites. It's Vascular noise. Effect of good seal and high clamping force.

Shame because that thing is really comfortable now

Spoiler: pictures of stupidity

 

[rofif]

Probably a bad choice but I’ve ordered audeze maxwells…

 

[rofif]

Update: maxwells are here and .... eeeh.... shit. I will have to keep em. They sound amazing and are so well built. heavy but that's not a problem actually.
Clamping force is also rather low-medium. Less than elites. But I do still hear my vascular noises and heartbeat. Maybe it will change in the future.
Holy crap the audio on these. Elites were already very impressive....
Although Pulses 3d and Elites had their drawbacks like no delay when starting audio (maxwell takes long to wake up and goes to sleep right after audio playback. you miss discord notifications... lame). And pulses had volume level showing in playstation. Felt like a better experience for PS
edit: It's been so many hours? I am still listening to them. Audio is kinda insane. The eq presets actually work and each sounds like a different headphone. When I EQed elites, it was just distortion.
edit2: I compared them more next day to elites and koss porta pro (my all time fav) and to be honest... I still like koss the most lol. Audeze and Elite are clearly crisper and Audeze got more low end capabilities but both make me hear my blood pumping and raise my ear pressure while koss porta pro, you can forget you are wearing them lol. Wicked cushions for pulse 3d should be here on monday so comparison will continue !

 

[rofif]

update: wicked cushions for pulse 3d came in today. Initial impressions - Feel great and I DONT HEAR MY OWN HEARTBEAT like with Elites and Audeze.
Pulse 3d genuinely sounds great too even after hearing Maxwell which I though it would be hard to return to.
I was afraid wicked cushions would seal too well and add the heartbeat to the pulse 3d but no. They seal well but maybe still have some room to breathe or it's the pulse 3d cup construction. But these do not cause tight seal and blood pumping feeling. Original pads on pulse 3d were also good in this regard.
I will test WC a bit more. Initially seem great but maybe they will be too hot later due to cooling gel getting hot probably

edit: now the question is... would wicked cushions like these help to reduce pumping noise on elites and maxwell. Maybe due to sports fabric on ear side but also - planars need that perfect seal to sound good. Dynamic drivers don't care unless you have exposed foam on the inside that eats the sound

 

[Gamernyc78]

update: wicked cushions for pulse 3d came in today. Initial impressions - Feel great and I DONT HEAR MY OWN HEARTBEAT like with Elites and Audeze.
Pulse 3d genuinely sounds great too even after hearing Maxwell which I though it would be hard to return to.
I was afraid wicked cushions would seal too well and add the heartbeat to the pulse 3d but no. They seal well but maybe still have some room to breathe or it's the pulse 3d cup construction. But these do not cause tight seal and blood pumping feeling. Original pads on pulse 3d were also good in this regard.
I will test WC a bit more. Initially seem great but maybe they will be too hot later due to cooling gel getting hot probably

Nice!

 

[Savagefrogdemon]

I've got a set of Audeze Maxwells they are great but the standard earpads are really harsh recommend getting the wicked earpads to make them more comfortable.

 

[anonpuffs]

I've got a set of Audeze Maxwells they are great but the standard earpads are really harsh recommend getting the wicked earpads to make them more comfortable.

I want those but I hear they are very heavy and get uncomfortable after a while

 

[rofif]

I've got a set of Audeze Maxwells they are great but the standard earpads are really harsh recommend getting the wicked earpads to make them more comfortable.

How harsh? Standard were really soft but for me caused seal effect

 

[Savagefrogdemon]

How harsh? Standard were really soft but for me caused seal effect

Wicked earpads are a fair bit larger and have cooling in them.

 

[rofif]

Wicked earpads are a fair bit larger and have cooling in them.

Yeah I am loving wicked pads on pulse 3d. I just dont think I want to risk ordering another pair but for Maxwell just to see if maybe with them maxwell wont try to crush my head

 

[rofif]

I can’t do it guys. The truth is pulse 3d sounds so muddled and unclear compared to elites and Maxwell. Especially elites have so much detail I hear more sounds in re2 or demons souls.
Pulse 3d - oh yeah this sounds great.
Elites or maxwell - eeehh yeah so there is rain outside the window, wending machine is buzzing and there are whispers.

And cool fact. Only on elites, even compared to Maxwell, the wending machine in re2 waiting room upstairs actually does bzzzzz humming.