Hi-Fi corner: Oppo’s PM-3 bring practicality to premium planar headphones

By Caleb Denison March 15, 2015

oppo pm3 headphones pm 3 5 manual

It’s been true for some time now that you could spend a boatload of cash on a pair of headphones if you want, and in many cases, you’d get a handsome return on your investment. But now Oppo has come along and absolutely changed the game for premium headphones. Meet the PM-3, a $400 planar magnetic-style headphone that blend practicality with premium sound and a luxurious feel.

Oppo’s first go at a premium headphone, the $1100 PM-1, were a knockout when it came to sound quality and comfort. Unfortunately, they are the sort of headphone that should be kept in their high-gloss lacquered cherry-wood storage box, right next to your humidor and bottle of Johnny Walker Blue. One of the PM-1’s few limiting factors is that they are open backed, so it’s easy to hear everything going on around you, and those around you will easily hear whatever you’re listening to. The PM-3, on the other hand, are closed-backed, providing better sound isolation, and a bit of reinforcement in the bass.

Related Videos

Related: Yamaha’s A-S2100 is a lean, mean, music-making machine

The PM-3 maintain a luxurious feel and exhibit excellent build quality. In addition to an extra-long standard headphone cable, Oppo makes an iOS-compatible three-button inline mic cable, and a single-button inline mic cable for Android devices.

Our only grip is with the PM-3 clamping force, which seems a little bit excessive. Those with wider noggins may find them a little tight, but between the exceptional sound quality and extremely comfortable earpads and headband, it is easy to excuse.

If you’re going to spend $400 on a pair of headphones, then you’re probably serious about sound quality and style. The PM-3 deliver both in spades, and challenge headphones costing twice as much.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

The Manual | The Essential Guide for Men

Culture

Hi-Fi Corner: Sonos’ new Play:5 is the king of multiroom speakers

sonos new play5 multiroom wireless speaker play 5 0001 the manual

Sonos may have invented wireless multiroom audio, but the past two years have brought it no shortage of competitors. Denon, LG, Samsung, and Bose have all developed their own platforms, while a host of loudspeaker veterans like Polk, Paradigm, and Harman Kardon have hopped on board with the open DTS Play-Fi standard. With all that noise and distraction, it might be easy to forget that Sonos started it all -- we almost did. But then Sonos issued a brand-new speaker, the Play:5, which came along just in time to remind us that Sonos not only knows this business better than anyone else, it executes better, too.

In many ways, Sonos is a lot like Apple: Its platform may be a walled garden for wireless music systems, but it is extremely approachable and exceptionally easy to use. The speakers carry the sort of cachet often associated with Apple products thanks to clean designs, simple interfaces, and best-in-class packaging. In short, Sonos stuff "just works," and that's all most people need before they pull out their wallets and start throwing down cash. Except Sonos isn't just another pretty brand with fancy packaging -- its speakers deliver outstanding sound quality, and the Play:5 is the company's best example yet.

Culture

Hi-Fi Corner: KEF’s brilliant M100 bring the sound and the swagger

kef m100 in ear headphones the manual

Those looking for a pair of in-ears offering that magic mix of style, comfort, and excellent performance would do well to look at the latest from KEF, the M100. The M100 are a sharp looking pair of ear buds, and although their $150 MSRP makes them the most affordable pair the brand has yet released, there's plenty of quality in the build to make these a coveted offering.

Related: Audeze goes direct to Lightning with new EL-8 Titaniums

Culture

Hi-Fi Corner: KEF puts big sound in small packages with the Egg

kef puts big sound in small packages with egg wireless bluetooth speakers kit manual

Can you really get just one speaker system that fulfills multiple needs? British speaker maker KEF thinks so. It might be hard to imagine how the KEF Egg digital wireless speaker system would make a better choice than a portable Bluetooth speaker or multiroom wireless system, but you’d be surprised to learn how well it fits just about everywhere. Connect them to your TV, your computer, or just place them in a room where you want music.

As a fully self-contained speaker system, the Egg comes with both a high-quality 24-bit/96kHz DAC capable of playing back many high-resolution digital audio files, and a 50-watt digital amplifier, all built right in. The USB connection will be useful when connecting to a desktop or laptop computer, while the digital optical/3.5 mm hybrid jack allows digital connections to televisions and analog connections to nearly anything else you can think of.