Hi,Hey, I've lurked around here for a while, but only just now set up an account. As information on flathead earbuds is not as easy to come by as info on IEMs, I was hoping to ask a few questions here since it seems like people here would be the ones to know this stuff.
1. I noticed a company/person called Fengru making copies of (presumably) discontinued Qigom products, namely the white lotus and black lotus. Are these as good as the originals? If so, are they still worth getting compared to modern competition?
2. Is there a significant difference in sound between the different price brackets? Like, if you blind tested a good $20, $40, $60, and $80 set could you easily tell the difference between them?
3. Are the big name products like the Fiio FF3 or the Dunu Alpha 3 worth the price, or would I be better off ordering from someone like Rikubuds?
Sorry if this is annoying or a bit to much, but like I said, this info is not as easy to find as people talking about IEMs or headphones. Any insight would be greatly appreciated, thanks.
I have no idea concerning your first question, but my dive into the flathead adventure might give you clues for your other questions. I first bought the yincrow calf, as I did not want to start supercheap, it cost me 65€. I did not get a decent fit at first and also was not too happy with the sound, so decided to order some cheap mx500 earbuds to check the fit for me, and also to have some reference, if I wanted to order from Riku or some other maker, as I know that Riku owns those cheap ones. I ordered a red vido, a green vido (they are tuned differently) and the faaeal iris 2. Additionally Silicone rings to improve the fit, as I have big ears.
The vido is 2,50€, The Faaeal 5,50€.
What can I say, I am shocked at how good all of these sound! The green Vido beeing the most natural sounding, the red Vido is slightly brighter with more ear gain, less bass, but boy the bass on this one has amazing slam, so you don't really notice the lesser quantity. The Iris has big bass and is quite warm sounding (some bleed into the midrange), but is totally smooth otherwise with really nice timbre.
Without eq the green Vido has the best sound out of the 3 for me, with eq the picture changes, as the driver in the Iris seems quite capable. I am totally mindblown by the sound I get from the Iris that way.
The Yincrow Calf goes back in the drawer. For me tonally it just cannot touch any of those three cheapo buds!
I guess I am saying that in the earbud realm diminishing returns seem to set in very quickly. My advice is to get some cheap earbud, that is well known in this community, like for instance the yincrow x6. Then talk to one of the independant makers and tell them what you like and dislike about it. That way they can offer you the right bud for you.
Don't make the error I made and waste money on an "good" earbud you might not like all that much. Put that money towards a bud that you will really enjoy!