[ChrisIsAwesome]

Those Napoleon hat tips are indeed a pita to get the seal right. It’s still doable if you wear them the right way and your ear canals are more matching with those tips profile. Don’t try to deep insert them as they only work with shallow insertion. Alternatively you can get 100% seal easily with any third party silicon tips like Spinfit, Spiral Dots, Symbio etc. and even generic silicon tips. For the T9iE I recommend you try Spinfit CP155 or Final Type E as so far I found they give the best clarity and overall great sound quality on the T9iE.

Hope it helps.

Thanks, I've been thinking about re demoing, this or xelento

 

[Spie1904]

I got a pair of xelento and tips are a pain in the ass.
The other problem I have with them is driver flex. It's so annoying imo.

 

[DavidS11]

My bad for the typo - I mean to suggest the Spinfit CP500 tips for the T9iE, not CP155. They have wider 5.5mm bore size and very soft silicon that seals extremely well.

 

[ChrisIsAwesome]

Demo t9ie had driver flex, it's just part of the design, there being no front vent. They should have addressed this, but then again the release is just another cash grab by ak.

Must know how to insert without pressure build up. I'm leaning towards xelento tbh.

 

[Spie1904]

Demo t9ie had driver flex, it's just part of the design, there being no front vent. They should have addressed this, but then again the release is just another cash grab by ak.

Must know how to insert without pressure build up. I'm leaning towards xelento tbh.

I have a Xelento myself and I'm starting to appreciate it more and more.
I was considering getting a pair of Shure SE846 but I'm not sure I want to anymore

 

[ChrisIsAwesome]

Second short demo. Edit: I demo'd t9ie with the Final E tips not stock tips.

Smooth sound with a reasonably neutral signature. Lacked sub bass quantity, female vocals sounded thin and minor details being masked; poor detail retrieval.
Cable swapping between stock and ALO smoky litz. Stock t9ie cable seems to be adding a bit of bloat and masking small details, this adds to a fuller less resolving sound. The sound is quite a bit more analytical with ALO Silver plated copper but benefits by increased detail retrieval. Still not at the level of Andromeda though which is surgical. Sound stage isn't expansive or ethereal like the Andromeda. Although i like the intimate, smooth presentation of t9ie equally.

I much prefer DD over balanced armatures so i will pull the trigger on either these or the xelento. Only thing scaring me away from Xelento is V shape, only things concerning me about these is the lack of sub bass and thin'ish vocals.

 

[DavidS11]

Second short demo. Edit: I demo'd t9ie with the Final E tips not stock tips.

Smooth sound with a reasonably neutral signature. Lacked sub bass quantity, female vocals sounded thin and minor details being masked; poor detail retrieval.
Cable swapping between stock and ALO smoky litz. Stock t9ie cable seems to be adding a bit of bloat and masking small details, this adds to a fuller less resolving sound. The sound is quite a bit more analytical with ALO Silver plated copper but benefits by increased detail retrieval. Still not at the level of Andromeda though which is surgical. Sound stage isn't expansive or ethereal like the Andromeda. Although i like the intimate, smooth presentation of t9ie equally.

I much prefer DD over balanced armatures so i will pull the trigger on either these or the xelento. Only thing scaring me away from Xelento is V shape, only things concerning me about these is the lack of sub bass and thin'ish vocals.

I don’t agree that they lack sub bass or have thinish vocals. These are single dynamic drivers tuned for a well balanced quality with a slight warmish, neutral signature that sound smooth and musical across all music genres. Perhaps you have different personal preferences to the iem type and sound you are after but just curious what source were used for the test and what iems were you comparing them against?

 

[ChrisIsAwesome]

I don’t agree that they lack sub bass or have thinish vocals. These are single dynamic drivers tuned for a well balanced quality with a slight warmish, neutral signature that sound smooth and musical across all music genres. Perhaps you have different personal preferences to the iem type and sound you are after but just curious what source were used for the test and what iems were you comparing them against?

I was using AK SP2000 and had Andromeda. Mind you, as mentioned i used Final E tips as store couldn't find stock tips in my size.


Xelento arrived today, and am experiencing less bass through Final E tips, tighter but less volume. I thought they'd give more bass as they seal well, but not the case.

 

[DavidS11]

For me T9iE has similar quantity or even deeper better quality bass than an SE846 for example (plenty of great bass for even a BA as a result from a great crossover design).

As for the Andro, there’s plenty of bass too but it’s doesn’t reach down low enough and is too hard for me (too much slam that gets over-powering and tiring after a while). Yes it has more sparkles in the high that some may prefer, while the mid is a bit recessed for me. At the end of the day, it’s a different tuning and it depends on individual preference and musical liking.

Final Type E tips will give a brighter and more airy sound with a softer bass sound. Try double flange tips if u want a bit more bass slam. You may also try other normal silicone tips to fine tune the sound and get better bass. Forget about those stock oval silicone tips as it’s hard to get 100% seal and as such they will not give you the best bass possible.

In the end, the T9 is still not a bass monster. For that go for bass heavy iems like Atlas, Z1R etc.

 

[maricius]

(deleted)

 

[maricius]

Apologies for the previous post. I accidentally posted impressions that were meant to go an another thread.

I got to demo these during a trip to Xiamen and these are some of my impressions. Disclaimer, I sadly only had a iPhone 6s playing Spotify Premium which is a slightly thinner sounding source but from what I read afterwards, the T9iE scale but still sound great even with okay sources/amplifiers.

The vocals on these are perfect for me. That was the first thing I noted. For vocals alone, I'd prefer this over the IER-Z1R (v shaped), IER-M9 (warm-neutral but I'd prefer a bit more warmth on lower midrange), IER-M7 (my personal IEM, which the M9 and the T9iE do better with female vocals), PP8 (amazing vocals as well but slightly lacking in warmth for my tastes), Andromeda (male vocals were thin), Solaris (better than Andromeda but male vocals were still lacking compared to the T9iE, female vocals were great on these though).

Timbre on these is quite well done here as well. These definitely have an emphasised midbass response which adds just a very slight amount of warmth into the lower midrange but not enough to push it away from neutral. Sub bass goes deep as well but I found the subbass to lack a bit of impact. I feel this is due to driving these out of an iPhone.

They also have a very smooth natural treble response albeit slightly rolled off. Separation, width, and imaging were good but not Z1R level. Depth however was through the roof, if the roof were forward and back!!

I really enjoyed these IEMs but they were beyond my budget at the moment (went home with the M7). From the IEMs I've tried, the vocals that come close are the ones on the Oriolus Reborn. That IEM is a lot bassier and lot more coloured though but it just does something that makes music so… musical?

 

[PinkyPowers]

To Tesla, or not to Telsa – A Review of the Astell&Kern T9iE
​

 

[erich6]

@PinkyPowers Thanks for the review. I'm curious about your comparison with the Dunu DK-3001 Pro. Beyond the sound signature and quality can you also comment on how they compare ergonomically? The DK-3001 Pro seems like a great value and I'm not sure I could tell the difference between the coherency of the single DD on the T9iE vs. a hybrid like the DK-3001 Pro. On the other hand, comfort issues can be a deal-breaker.

It's interesting the T9iE hasn't gotten much traction/commentary here on Head-Fi. Seems like it is a great product.

I'm also considering the Meze Rai Penta and Campfire Audio Adromeda 2020. I will be paring with the A&K SR-25 DAP.

Thanks in advance for any insights.

 

[PinkyPowers]

@PinkyPowers Thanks for the review. I'm curious about your comparison with the Dunu DK-3001 Pro. Beyond the sound signature and quality can you also comment on how they compare ergonomically? The DK-3001 Pro seems like a great value and I'm not sure I could tell the difference between the coherency of the single DD on the T9iE vs. a hybrid like the DK-3001 Pro. On the other hand, comfort issues can be a deal-breaker.

It's interesting the T9iE hasn't gotten much traction/commentary here on Head-Fi. Seems like it is a great product.

I'm also considering the Meze Rai Penta and Campfire Audio Adromeda 2020. I will be paring with the A&K SR-25 DAP.

Thanks in advance for any insights.

@erich6, DK-3001 Pro is very, very comfortable. Ergonomically, it fits me much nicer than the T9iE.

 

[James Shoegazer]

ugh, get the FDX01