Heir Audio - new high end custom IEM company - Page 3

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ikarios 

 

The Wizard has talked about it in other threads, wondering about the economics of other companies' reshell services, at $70-90. Either way I too was quite surprised to see that transfer of ownership card when I opened up my package.

 

My package? Yep, I will also be (slowly) doing a review of the 4.A custom. I don't think I'll read anyone else's reviews first, since I've never heard a custom before, but hopefully individual impressions will corroborate each other.

I imagine it comes down to time spent - the materials used in a cheaper reshell by Fisher or Kozee are probably not too different from those used in more expensive reshells from 1964, UM, or Heir Audio. Maybe there is a slight premium but it can't be a huge difference. It has to come down to how many hours they spend on each one, making sure there are no bubbles or imperfections. Time equals money in this scenario, and you generally get what you pay for.

It makes perfect sense that both low and higher priced options should co-exist. If I had some decent universal IEMs with a failing cable, I might consider reshelling them for cheap just to extend their life. I wouldn't necessarily care about looks. But in the case of a flagship model such as Westone W4, or my LiveWires Trips customs that needed some help, a higher end choice like Heir Audio makes more sense.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on the 4.A, but of course take your time. At the price, it seems like it might become a popular choice since it is very accessible. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Poimandres 

I too am looking forward to your review.  I have placed the order for the 4a at Heir however I will probably will not get around to getting my impressions and sending them out for a couple of weeks.  Is fedex really the better way to go, I have shipped to China before via usps and haven't had any issues and it only took 4 or 5 business days to get there total.

 

I always send via US Postal Service to China. I have not yet had any issues (though of course that could be pure luck on my part). I've done it probably 10 times in the last few years. I don't recall the name of the service type but it ends up costing me roughly $13 to send ear impressions. Arrival is roughly 5 days after I send.

Clear shells are kind of boring though. I've got a bunch of customs in clear, because I really wanted to get a better view of the guts... Now I'm sick of teir appearance and wish I had gone a different route. My other customs with color options have held up better in my opinion. 

So I've been spending a lot of time with the Heir 8.A this week, and I'm really impressed. It's interesting that it has more of a fun sound than I expected - one would assume that the 6.A with quad low frequency drivers would have a big bass sound, and the 8.A with dual lows, dual mids, dual highs, and dual super highs would be a more balanced reference type sound. But that is not the case. 

Will post more detailed impressions later, but for now I'll say it is sort of a mix of LCD-2 and HE-500, with a lot of the Lawton Audio LA7000 characteristics. This might be my favorite headphone ever. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by newdm 

I enjoyed your UM Merlin review, hope for a comparison with the Heir 8.A.

Would be interesting to know, if the 8.A is a better choice for bass-lovers...

 

Yes, Merlin is the obvious comparison I'll have to do. They both have different flavors though,so I will try to explain each one as well as I can. One thing I'm appreciating more than I had thought I would is that the Heir model has excellent isolation. My Merlin doesn't isolate all that well due to the venting. I didn't think it was much of a problem but now I'm starting to feel differently.