Meze 11Neo initial impressions:

Meze 11Neo initial impressions:

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I will openly admit I am a fan of Meze, but not the fanatic some are. While I enjoyed both the 99 Classic, and 99 Neo on tour, they seemed a bit lacking in the bass department for my tastes, and especially for a closed-back headphone. Please don’t take this as criticism, it isn’t. Two things factor in here: 1. I like more bass from my closed-back headphones, and 2. The aforementioned pair are tuned for overall sound quality, not for a specific type. And in that regard, they are spot on excellent. There is a reason they do have a fanatic following…that detail rich overall sound quality. Upon contacting Meze, they suggested two options. The 12 Classic’s or the 11 Neo’s. After a conversation with Doina, we both agreed the 11 Neo would be beneficial to both parties involved. With CRAZY-fast shipping, I had the pair IN-HAND within two shorts, and I do mean SHORT days. Wonderful. After my initial listen to insure all was good (and I will openly admit I listened to this particular pair longer than many of my recent offerings), I played the 11 Neo’s continuously on my Shanling M0 for 50+hours.

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Again, as my queue cleared, I was able to listen. Keeping the M0/11Neo pair together, I listened to Los Lonely Boys Senorita, and simply sat back. My brain was going through a re-evaluation phase with what I heard. Rich deep reaching bass, “talented” treble up top, and a wide sound stage highlighted that initial longer session. Playing Us And Them from Pink Floyd currently through my QP2R, I am wrought with good detail-rich sound. This was a good choice by Doina and me. I am happy. Sufficiently wide sound stage brought back together by a bit of rumble down low, the mids add to the very decent signature presented in songs such as Robert Cray’s Never Mattered Much. He has such a melodic voice, with a huge presence, it may overpower some, but the 11 Neo was up to the task. Guitar taking a slight back seat to his voice but holding down the mid-section as it should. And when he lets loose with a lick, the emanating sound does not scream at you but rather envelope your senses. This is turning into quite an adventure.

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Fit and finish is exemplary, as one would expect with the Meze standards, which came before. I am very impressed. There are microphonics involved with the cable, and this can get in the way of that wonderful sound. Presented in a treble-cleft laden box, even the IEM’s accentuate that look, once you open the package. So, from the beginning you know that the 11 Neo means business. Something I would expect from Meze. More later, chaps.

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