If you're good, when you die . . .

[joelha]

If you're good, when you die, you'll go to Mingo's.

 

Earlier this week I visited Mingo’s in Kowloon. For those who have never visited, this place is something like a small department store of headphones and mobile audio products. If you love headphones, and possibly even if you don’t, this is a place you really want to visit if you’re anywhere close to the area.

 

Want to hear a pair of Stax SR-009’s? No problem. They’re in stock. How about top of the line Ultimate Ears or JH Audio in-ear monitors? They’re there. Head amps? You’d have trouble counting them all. From Chinese makes I suspect most of us have never heard of to better known makes costing several thousand dollars . . . all there.

 

Thomas was my salesman. There wasn’t much I could ask for from a service standpoint he wasn’t willing to grant. On two successive days, he allowed me to listen back and forth to the IEM’s of my choice. Every time I had a question, he came over to answer and discuss the points I raised. When I decided what I wanted, he scheduled an appointment for me with a local audiologist(!) to get my ear molds made and then spent a considerable amount of time setting up my order with all of the options necessary to give me the product I wanted. I asked, and he told me he doesn’t work on commission. This is just the level of service he offers.

 

What did I buy? Some of you might be familiar with this brand but I had never heard of it . . . Fit Ear. It’s a Japanese brand which included a pair of the best sounding IEM’s (in-ear monitors) I’ve ever heard. Mind you I’ve heard top-of-the-line Ultimate Ears and JH Audio models. And if you own these models, you’ve made great choices, no patronizing from me. But to these ears, the Fit Ears MH334’s were on another level. The MH335DW’s, while sold as a more expensive product than the MH334’s, had too much bass for me. And from comments I’ve read on-line, I’m not alone in that assessment. The store had universal fit demo models for me to audition so I could make the best choices possible.

 

Please excuse the poor photos below, between using my camera phone, the lighting reflections off of glass cases, and mostly a photographer bereft of any picture-taking talent, the photos could be much better.

 

Still, you should get a good idea of what the store looks like.

 

As I said before, if you’re ever in or close to Hong Kong . . .

 

Joel

[jcbenten]

The FitEars are well regarded in this list: Multi-IEM Review - 316 IEMs compared (TDK BA200 added 05/26/14 p. 914)

 

chris

[Paul R]

Wow... I don't even like headphones that much, and I wanna go there!

 

Thanks for posting!

 

-Paul

[joelha]

Thanks a lot, Paul.

 

I pretty much had the same experience.

 

I've always been a two channel speaker guy but then with all my travel, after having exhausted just about every decent carry-on speaker option known to mankind, I decided to pursue headphones.

 

Walking into that store and hearing what was possible was a revelation for me. Are the IEM's I purchased going to be a replacement for my home system? No. But is it so good that I'll look forward to listening to it again? Definitely. And that's plenty good for me.

 

What's more, the area in which this store is located is populated with other headphone stores . . . you have to love Hong Kong.

 

Joel

 

Joel

[Laowei Steve]

I've been to one King Sound shop on HK island and it looks very similar. It was like being a kid in a candy store. Got to compare Audeze LCD-2.2 with LCD-3. They had damn near everything one reads about over at Head-Fi.

 

Have heard they have a even bigger store in the Mong Kok district of West Kowloon too. Never been there.

[joelha]

Mon Kok was the location of the Mingo's store I visited. Literally downstairs was yet another headphone store. And only a couple of blocks away, another.

 

As many times as I've to Hong Kong (in the dozens now), I continue to discover new shops. It's a very "dangerous" place to visit if you're an audiophile.

 

Joel

[Laowei Steve]

Deleted. Double post.

[Laowei Steve]

I just googled and found out we are talking about the same store chain. Its called Mingo's in Mong Kok and Kingsound on the island. Incredible selection, even better customer service. The shop keeper in Kingsound said the Mong Kok store was bigger and had even more selection

 

Xiexie Joelha. Must check it out on my next trip. And agree that HK is a very "dangerous" place for shoppers with money. Best not to have a wife or girlfriend with you there. :-)