Greetings everyone...after an involuntary hiatus, I'm doing something headphone-related...tonight's literally the first night in...nearly 2 months I've put on headphones (DCA Aeon 2c at the moment)... I'm going to give you my summary notes first, then wax poetic afterwards... Source: Tidal FLAC/MQA via Roon w/DSP + upsampling to 768kHz, Mac Mini Roon Core v1.8 MacBook Pro (Intel 2020), Roon v1.8, USB-C > USB-A, iFi iSilencer+, USB-A > USB-C cable DAC/amp: Questyle CMA Fifteen (USB-C input) > 4.4mm or 6.35mm output, standard bias, low gain...

Moondrop S8 IEM Review All listening was done with the S8s powered by the Chord Mojo DAC, fed Tidal Hifi track from my iPhone. Overview: First, the Moondrop Blessing 2 redefined what an IEM could do. Stunning tonality, stage, and just very good all around. The Moondrop S8 improves significantly on the sound signature and sound quality of the Blessing 2, delivering a pleasing experience that’s suitable for all genres and listening habits. Combine this with wonderfully comfortable fit in the ears and build quality, the S8 has easily earned itself a...

Moondrop Blessing 2 IEM review Introduction: I would like to thank Dave from Moondrop for reaching out to me regarding the review tour, and trusting me with not just one, but two IEMs, the latter of which shall be covered in a different review. I had both IEMs for one week, so I spent 3 days with the Blessing 2, and 4 days with the other IEM, the Moondrop S8. I did all my listening with the Blessing 2’s powered by the Chord Mojo DAC, fed Tidal Hifi quality lossless tracks from my iPhone X using a quality USB cable and the Apple USB Adapter. I...

Moondrop Illumination Review Overview First, thank you to David and the Moondrop Team for their review samples over the past few months. I have previously reviewed the Blessing 2 and S8 from them, and currently have the Illumination and Solis in for review, the latter of which will be covered in a separate review. When I first put the Illumination’s into my ears and pressed play (iPhone > Chord Mojo), the midrange tonality sounded wonky at first, so I put them away and instead spent a lot of time with the Solis. Now I’ve come back to the...

Jade II Review Pros: Excellent detail retrieval, separation, and resolution. Light weight, comfortable for long periods, zero sibilance even on tracks with lots of female vocals and harsher treble. You can always hear everything without having to focus overly hard on a given aspect of the music. Vocals are extremely natural and detailed in nature. Sometimes the presentation is very musical in character but other times it’s clinical and dead. Volume knob on the amp has a very nice, solid click as you turn it. Build quality between the amp and...

iFi iDSD Neo DAC Review Introduction: I am quite happy and grateful to have been included in iFi’s USA Review Tour for their recently released iDSD Neo fully balanced DAC and headphone amplifier. I’ve always been a fan of Burr-Brown-based DAC designs ever since I bought a Yamaha AVR back in 2009 that sported a very nice Burr-Brown DAC that was unusually high tier for the product class. That natural sense of space, tonality, and detail is intoxicating, and I was curious to see if the Neo offered a similar experience. My reference DAC is a Chord...

Hey everyone, this is going to be my first review so go easy on me hehe...   First off I'd like to say that I am still in the early stages of being an audiophile, I don't have any lossless sources yet and I have yet to get a really nice pairs of cans but I'm working towards it. As such this review is going to be geared a bit more towards the casual listener and not the serious audiophile who doesn't shy away from dropping $400 on a pair of headphones. I hope this will be helpful to some people as they research and do comparison shopping. Everything...