Angle & Curve joins the UK headphone market with £60 Classic

Amazing headphones, lightweight comfortable and great looking! Highly reccomend.

Got some free with the promo. Don't know what else competes with them at this price point: I'm comparing them to an old-ish set of Grado SR60s that I've got. But Sony et al probably have models that are more comparable to the Angle & Curve set.

Build quality is fine, but they'd really benefit from a thicker cable - the one supplied won't last long. Driver housing is plastic, not metal (as you'd expect), which may disappoint you.

Here's the comparison: Listened to Steely Dan's Aja through them, followed by Kate Bush's Hounds of Love. Compared to the transparency and depth of the Grados, the sound quality is slightly disappointing: There really is rich bass, but the mid-range is awfully muddy and there's noticeable resonance on some tracks (mostly in the mids - my set does it to Layla and Wind Chimes on Brian Wilson's SMiLE, I don't think that either comes from the recording and I doubt that the headphones are damaged). The muddy midrange does tends to ruin vocals (try Kate Bush), so they're not ideal for acoustic. The top end is slightly better, but not exactly stellar: all of the impact of the drum sounds on Pink Floyd's the Final Cut is lost (there's no bite in the cymbals or snares) and there's none of the airiness of the Grados. Owing to the strong bass, Angel on Massive Attack's Mezzanine really is great fun (The Grado's don't offer this sort of low-end grunt).

I later tested the hypothesis that due to the strong bottom and reasonable top, that electronica would sound much better (Kraftwerk's Minimum-Maximum), but it doesn't: While there's a slight improvement (and some bass heavy tracks sound ok),  there's a lack of texture in some of the sounds and samples kills the enjoyment for me. After a bit of listening, it becomes pretty clear that these really don't flatter anything that relies on a detailed or natural mid-range: acoustic, rock, jazz all sound muffled. I haven't listened to much classical through them but certainly, most of the ambient sounds (and much of the atmosphere) in BIS's excellent recording of Osmo Vänskä and the Lahti Symphony Orchestra performing Sibelius' Fifth Symphony are completely lost on the Angle & Curve set. Listening to Maria-João Pirés and The Chamber Orchestra of Europe performing Mozart's 17th and 21th Piano Concerto (on DG) doesn't sound much better: things are reasonable when the instruments are playing in the bottom end of the spectrum (and to a lesser extent, the top) but there seems to be occasional distortion somewhere between the middle and top (it's not from the recording). It's hard to pin down, but it spoils the clear tone of the piano sounds.

As far as headphones go, a set of budget Grados will be a class apart in terms of sound quality: mine give a much more airy rendition, reveal far more detail and somehow seem more solid and planted. It's a very noticeble difference. If you can get a set at a good price, this is where I'd spend my money. It's true that the Grado's are more expensive than the A&C set but if you're careful, maybe only by £20. Given that you'll be paying £60 for the A&C set, I'd argue that this is money well spent. I can't really comment on how they compare to other headphones closer in price.

I should point out one positive aspect of the design: Thanks to the strong bass and good isolation, these should be good on the tube if you've listening to something that's been recorded hot.

Looks like Angle and Curve are a recent start up. If they're actually serious about audio and being respected by the audio community (and, they might not be), they should firstly address the sound quality issues in the mid and top end. No one's asking for a B&W Nautilus at this price, but it shouldn't be too hard for a small company to produce an excellent set of headphones at a low price (try an open back?). The likes of Grado have certainly managed. There are some excellent headphones out there and these don't stand out. Some people have presented a very plausible argument that these are rebranded generic sets from China and there is little (to no) original engineering in them. I don't know if that is true but having heard them, it wouldn't surprise me. In any case, it would certainly be disappointing to see a British audio company end up as a design only shop, like Harmon Kardon, producing good looking products that are mediocre in terms of performance when we have the the likes of Cambridge Audio who are able to offer genuinely great products at a fantastic price. Angle & Curve need to take a look around and remind theirselves just how high standards are.

Real things aside, owing to their cool design and (judging by their website), strong branding it's clear that they have the potential to gain a following amongst fashionable sorts. After all, Dr Dre's Beats seem to have done well, a victory for Hip-Hop marketing and definitely not for their sonic abilities. As a start up, I wish them success. These headphones aren't audiophile headphones but if they're serious about audio and serious about producing good products, they may one day try their hand at producing higher-end stuff. Maybe they'll succeed. Competition in the market place always breeds excellence, which we all love.

The Executive Summary:

Sound: Depending on the recording, acceptable, but could be much more detailed: Bass is good (but far too prominent), mid and top aren't. Compared with the Grados, the midrange does sound terribly muffled (which is by far the most annoying part). Might open up a bit with running-in, but regardless, the resonance and distortion at the mid and top end are likely to remain. Fantastic bass though: In fact, Dance and Bass-oriented stuff sounds really good on this set. Understandably, A&C mention DJing in their marketing and you'll probably love them if most of your recording's detail lives in the bass (here, they are genuinely good).

Price: I'd argue that this is too high. I don't have anything in this price bracket, but I think that at £35 or maybe £40, they'd be a better buy.

Construction: Desperate for a better cable. Annoys me that the driver housing pretends to be machined from a block of Aluminium but is really a cheap bit of plastic that's been painted.

Looks: Fantastic
 
Bottom Line:

These are fashion headphones. You'll look cool, but spend a little bit more and your music could sound better. If you're 18 and stylish (in a middle-class, quilted jacket way), you'll probably be pretty happy with them. Maybe that's the point, and not the sound.

Great Headphones!  Love your website:)

When are you bringing out the new ones I read about? Please blog something so I can take a look.

Is WHFI going to review new ones soon? Please let everyone know what the cost will be, British manufactured sounds expensive.

Cheers

John

Excellent AC Headphones

I have had my shiney new headphones from AC for about 3 months and the are without doubt some of the best i tested at that price range.

The bass is rich and actually a bit loud for the every day commuter:) I think they call this leakage but really it's just playing Kasabian at maximum tilt. 

The headphone casing is very lightweight and has proven way more durable that my last set. I won't mention names but they were German, or German based made in China. I just wanted to pick up on this point a bit. It seems alot of people have knocked AC for making a China made product,designed in the UK. I'm not sure if this is a problem as long as they are good, which they are.

I wrote them some comments such as: would they have any earphones to match the styling and the answer I got was swift and very polite. Although they did not really let much out of the bag, other than they welcomed all feedback.

Back to the headphones, I would say if you want a reasonably priced pair for around £50 you can't do alot better. I purchased mine from headphonegold and they have since put their price up, not sure why.

If your getting on a bit I think the styling may put you off as these are very bling, particularly the gold ones:) but they do black and Navy as well, although I have never seen these.

Good luck to AC and I look forward to your next product!

Cheers

Josh

I received a pair of Angle & Curve headphones with the Orange promotion which were broken on arrival. I have tried to contact Angle and Curve several times. They never answer their phone. I left one message and a person called Richard called back. He asked me to email through my proof and that he would come back to me about the procedure to replace them. There has been no response to my emails and now their phone number doesn't accept messages.

I have gone back to Orange who are washing their hands of this. They say that you've got to go back to the manufacturer.

How can a big brand such as Orange work with a company with such poor customer service is beyond me...

I purchased a pair off the website and they were delivered in really nice packaging. Tried them with several different tracks from Debussy Clare De Lune and the piano detail was great, also tried Meloncholic Hill by Gorillas and the bass was just fantastic. they are very light and comfortable. For the money these are a good buy, Highly recommend.

Got some free with an Orange promotion. Sound quality is ok but not amazing, looks and construction are fine but cable and connector leave much to be desired. You'll *probably* get better value for money elsewhere.

look well built but no reviews anywhere online and website doesn't allow you to buy them