iHeadphones - 18 November 2010

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Klipsch Image ONE Review

ononononon

Read the full review on the iHeadphones website

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Klipsch in ear headphones have been extremely popular since their launch, so it was inevitable that such a big player in consumer audio products would soon focus their attention to a full-sized headphone. Cue the Klipsch Image ONE, a stylish headband style portable headphone with remote control and microphone.

Packaging and Accessories

The Klipsch Image ONE comes packaged in a rather rigid, strong cardboard box, quite compact as well, hinting that these are portable consumer headphones rather than the larger studio or hi-fi headphones. Inside the box we have a hard case for the headphones and a little nylon pouch, which includes an airplane travel adapter as well as a 3.5mm to 6.3mm stereo adapter. The ear cups on the Image ONE rotate 90 degrees as to lie flat in the case. One thing to note here is though, the case is almost as big as the box they are packaged in, so not as portable as you’d expect. On the cable sits the remote – volume control and the usual music/call function button that operates the same as on the standard Apple iPhone headphones. On the rear of the remote is the tiny microphone for calls and voice control, the remote sits just below chest height when you’ve got the headphones on.

Style

Klipsch products have always ranked high in the style charts and the Image ONE is no exception; the ear cups are a glossy piano black with a chrome trim and a worn-looking leather panel. There’s a touch of class to the Image ONE, Klipsch have left the market wide open for themselves as they should appeal to anyone of any age or gender.

Build Quality

Overall the build quality of the Klipsch Image One is pretty good, the main frame is made out of a strong plastic supported by a thing metal headband running through the inside. They’re very flexible and easy to adjust, so will fit any size or shaped head. The cable is quite thin and lightweight, as is the remote; which is so unbelievably light you barely notice it’s there, it actually feels lighter than the cable. As always with a brand new product it’s hard to comment on a product’s durability but having sold a thousand other types of headphones we can hazard a good guess that the Klipsch Image ONE has been built to last.

Comfort

The soft leather cushioning on the headband and ear pads make the Image ONE a comfortable fit, and the headphones are very lightweight so you could wear them for hours and you shouldn’t any comfort issues. Supra aural or circumaural? They seem sit somewhere in between. Personally for me, I’d class them as circumaural as my ears just fit inside them but if you’ve got pretty big ears, I think you’d disagree. However the ear cushions are very soft so even if they were sitting on your ears they would still sit comfortably.

Sound

Boom! If there was one word to sum up our first impressions of the Image ONE from Klipsch, that would be it! We should have expected no less from Klipsch to be honest, as they have recognised that a huge proportion of general consumers will judge an audio device’s quality by the level of bass, and so that is what they have given us once again. There’s a 40mm driver in the Image ONE and it really does pump out some bass into your ears, some might find it a little too much but if you like the sound of the Klipsch in ear range then you’ll love these! It may be exaggerated but it still remains very clear, maybe in the extreme low frequencies it’s getting a bit cloudy, but there’s nothing too tuneful going on down there anyway.

As with all headphones focused on providing plenty of bass, something has to give elsewhere otherwise the bass wouldn’t stand out. Therefore the mids are a little subdued, especially in the male vocal region, although it depends what you’re listening to, if there’s not a lot of bass in your music then you will notice that the mids are actually pretty good they just don’t compete with the bass in terms of level.

Also giving the impression of a lull in the mids is the fact there are a couple of peaks in the top end as well, there’s certainly a lot more presence to the higher range of a female vocal. Hi-hats and cymbals also stand out very well, although they lack the sizzle and brilliance of a quality pair of open back headphones, we’ve got to remember what we’re listening to here, they are not supposed to be perfectly tuned accurate full sized hi-fi headphones, the Klipsch ONE is a lightweight portable closed back headphone costing only £129.99 and in that respect, they sound excellent.

Conclusions

Klipsch have come up with a premium grade portable headphone perfect for iPod and iPhone use, they might well just be the smallest, circumaural closed back headphones available. If you’re a fan of the Klipsch in ear headphones and you are currently in the market for a pair of full-sized portable headphones, then these are perfect for you. Similarly, if you are considering purchasing something like the Monster Beats Solo HD or any other headphones where an emphasized bass is key, these would be a very good alternative. In terms of sound the Image ONE are quite similar to the Solo HD, but we prefer the fit of the Klipsch and they don’t feel quite so flimsy either. Our only gripe with the Image ONE is they are portable headphones – why are they not foldable?

go to Image ONE On-Ear Headphones product page