Have been using the rockets for a few days now and the sound is simply brilliant! Pretty hard to imagine such a small IEM or a small driver can pump up such a full bodied sound.
Here are my short take on the rockets with some comparisons.
Aurisonics Rockets:
Lows:
Low ends on the rockets are nicely done. Bass ain't overwhelming nor lacking. Bass hits with authority just reaching sub bass region before it starts to roll off at around 35-40Hz. The bass is extremely tight and fast with short decay. Bass texture is very good and sounds full, however not a bass head choice of phones.
Mids:
Mids are the limelight of the show here. The rockets retain the house sound signature of Aurisonics mids and vocals. The rockets could pose off as slightly mid centric whilst still retaining a balanced sound tilting towards flat or neutral response. Vocals are very well done here easily outshining sets such as SE535Ltd. Vocals sound really lush and intimate putting you right up next to the vocalist. You can practically hear every ounce of the singer's breath and the "rawness" in it. Vocals here does resemble the ASG2 which is highly regarded for its presentation of mids and vocals. Both male and female vocals sound excellent out from the rockets. Instruments separation is superb as well, with each instrument having air and space in between them and layered in a manner that it can be picked up quite easily from the rest. String instruments sound extremely crisp as well. However, due to the fast nature of the driver and short decay, it seems to have a toll on the timbre of the instruments. Though the vocals are presented in a forward fashion, soundstage of the rockets is surprisingly good, beating its elder brother the ASG2. The rockets is able to achieve a wide soundstage with very good imaging and depth.
Highs:
[size=x-small]Highs and treble extension on the rockets is extremely linear though not as smooth as sets such as the Westone 4. The rockets can go bright on certain occasions depending on your setup and tracks used. It achieves impeccable clarity reaching the level of Hifiman RE272 but not as bright and sharp as the T-Peos H300. Due to the nature of the low end, the rockets have excellent detail [/size]retrieval capabilities and clarity which bests the ASG2. Instruments such as cymbals and snares does suffer slightly due to the fast nature of the driver resulting in very short decay.
Overall, the rockets are tuned more to a flat and neutral sound signature whilst retaining the Aurisonics trademark mids and vocals. [size=x-small]It is not a dark or warm sounding phone but rather balanced sounding. Bass is extremely tight and fast which focuses more on quality than on quantity. Timbre wise, the rockets takes a hit here due to the fast nature of the driver.[/size]
Comparison with ASG2:
Placed aside its elder brother the ASG2, it does sound bass light in comparison. That doesn't mean the rockets is bass light but the ASG2 focuses more on heavy thumping bass with a slight bump in the mid bass region. The rockets on the other hand, has much lesser mid bass bump with sub bass just touching around 40Hz packed with rocket speed.
Mids is where the fun begins. Mids in the rockets is simply nothing short of amazing. With side by side comparison with ASG2, it does sound pretty similar. Probably the ASG2 takes a slight edge here due to its warmer sounding signature and longer decay which increases the naturalness of vocals. However, it is worth noting that such a small driver in the rockets can churn out comparable mids with the ASG2 and easily beating SE535Ltd. Soundstaging is also slightly larger compared to the ASG2 probably due to the tamed nature of its low end.
The rockets does have better clarity and slightly better details retrieval due to lesser bass impact and a more linear and present treble extension. Timbre wise, the ASG2 is hard to beat.
Comparison with UE900:
The UE900 is another set of monitor that does not have a huge amount of low end coupled to it though it does have 2 dedicated drivers to take the role of lows. The UE900 is also a balanced sounding phone leaning more towards a flat response. Low ends on both rockets and UE900 seemed comparable with the rockets having a fuller sounding low end with a rounder bass impact. However, the UE900 does dig deeper than rockets especially when coupled with an amp. With the right setup, the bass on UE900 can be very fulfilling.
MIds on the UE900 can often be hindered with a slight veil or clouding. Vocals on UE900 is portrayed very well with just the right distance away from the singer sounding very natural too. The rockets makes the singer comes "alive" and making the UE900 sound slightly recessed. Note that this is only apparent when placed beside the rockets. Details on UE900 is typical of a BA driver with excellent touch and presentation. However, the rockets does have more air and space between instruments making it sound more on-stage.
Highs are comparable on both sets with UE900 sounding smoother and slightly further extension. The rockets does have better clarity and can be brighter than the UE900 on certain occasions.
Comparison with T-Peos H300:
These are two very different sounding sets of IEMs. With the H300 taking on both extreme ends of lows and highs. The H300 is a really special sounding phones with simply jaw dropping low end which destroys sub bass impact of ASG2 and even besting the SE846 which sports a woofer like bass. Bass impact is no fight here with H300 taking home brilliant sub bass impact, quality, quantity and texture. Nothing i have heard has come close to H300 bass performance with only SE846 coming near.
Treble extension wise, H300 achieves a further extension than rockets. But that comes with a cost. The H300 treble can be intolerable at times due to a treble spike which can also cause vocal sibilence. With that said, H300 is a bright sounding phone even when compared to Hifiman RE272. Details and clarity takes over the edge of rockets. But i do find that the rockets strikes a better balance than the H300. Clarity and brightness is done better on rockets than on H300.
MIds wise, no questions asked and rockets takes home the win pretty easily. Due to the emphasized low end and treble, the mids and vocals on H300 takes a back seat. Listening to vocals on H300 is like listening to a recording. It just simply lost the touch to make the music comes alive as opposed to rockets and ASG2.
With the comparisons done, i would say that the rockets are simply a brilliant offering from Aurisonics. However, microphonics can be unbearable at times (i have no idea on how to use the anti loop as the cable does not seem to stay on when placed over the ear).
The rockets is definitely a very good compliment to the ASG2 with UE900 taking the middle seat working well with almost all genres.
