Thanks for the reviews! Bought the re262 and lovin every single thing about them, especially the incredible mids. Too bad they're discontinued. Hope to see a review of the new re400 if you can fit that into your list.
I have the RE400 on hand. Pre burn-in it sounds very good. I'll get back to it in a week or two.
I liked the tinyear except for the top. The doubles were best suited of those given.
I think they went a little too far with the whole small ears thing - all of the included tips are on the smaller side and the bi-flanges don't seal for me.
Hello Joker,
First of all great job on the ever expanding review of IEMs. Keep up the great info!
Second, i purchased the Sony XBA-4ip a few weeks ago after a sticker price error had it at the XBA-2 range. The sound is very nice, clear and smooth. These are my first BA driver IEM, let alone quad drivers! What amazed me was the energy on the high end. Very nice without having sibilance or piercing. My previous IEM (aside from the horrible apple earbuds and the one that came with the Sony NWZ-A818, which I liked) are the Skullcandy FMJ, V-Moda Vibe Duo, and the Sol Republic Amps HD. After listening to the XBA-4ip, I cannot go back to the Vibe Duo or the Amps HD; just too much low end and not enough highs-almost muddy. But I only want to use the XBA-4ip occasionally.
My questions is, I am looking for a daily use IEM with similar sound characteristic (nice highs with some bass) as the XBA-4 but in the 50-and-under range. I was thinking of the astrotec AM-90, Rockit R-20 or maybe the Brainwavz R1 dual dynamic. Or something else that you can suggest. Thank you!
I would go for the VSonic VC02. Review should be posted pretty soon. The R-20 and AM-90 are very decent but the Knowles SR armature generally doesn't have the best treble energy and is stronger in the midrange.
After further research into the E7, I realized that the amp portion of it seems to be actually inferior in terms of sound quality to the E6 itself! The E7 also happens to have the same output power as the E6 and taking your word for the E7 being sufficient, I can only assume that the E6 will be better. As you can expect, the RE262s are on my way.
Thanks a bunch Joker!
Good call - seems they will all be gone soon.
Cool stuff, Joker. Now I'm torn:
- NuForce NE-700X. Had a pair months ago and my cat ate it (don't ask). Before that, they were the love of my life. NuForce updated and re-released the NuForce NE-700M and 700X not even three days ago, and I'm really curious.
- Rockit-Sounds R-50. Not too sure if I should take a chance on these, but they seem to be supremely bang-for-buck.
No DACs or Amps at the moment, and my only two sources are a Rockboxed Clip Zip and a Nexus 4 (if the output impedance is anything like its identical brother, the LG Optimus G, then it should be up to the task of driving solo without much fuss).
Do I put forth the extra dollars for Rockit-Sounds?
Edit: It's mostly on-the-go listening to just about every genre to exist
The R-50 and NE-700X probably couldn't sound more different. You'd be taking a huge chance on the R-50 if you liked the sound of the Nuforces. I would consider something closer to the NE-700X signature but from a higher tier - the Yamaha EPH-100, for example. But, who knows - maybe you'll like the R-50 anyway. It is very good for a BA monitor.
