[ian91]

An important part of why LBBS outperforms is the bell-like shape.
It allows to place the earbud playing directly into the ear canal, instead of facing the concha.
Imagine placing speakers facing a wall instead of facing you - that's why earbuds with the classic shape underperform.

Cost may not be a large factor in earbuds' performance, but quality components certainly are.

I think that's an extreme statement. Our ears naturally capture sound from multiple directions including reflected sound from the concha. Sound doesn't have to be directly piped into our ears. Regardless, while I appreciate fit is unique to the user, there are many shells that I manage to get adequate fit with where I can direct the sound to the ear canal, not just LBBS.

 

[mt877]

Oh my bad. I did misread. Sorry for that.

Yeah I see your sig all the time, but I think I'll finally click on the drag n drop link. And thank you for the other links to the tuning! This sounds like a very fun hobby and now see why do many diy here.

The only thing I'm concerned about is how precise you have to be, and working with tiny parts. See I have tremors so my hand are always doing a "dance" when I don't want them to. But I think I'll be able to do some kind of build regardless.

Thanks again for all your help

Look at the soldering guide in my signature, there are tips that may help to steady your arms / hands while soldering. One concern for you is applying a horseshoe tuning paper or tuning foam to the speaker or earbud shell. My hands are quite steady and sometimes I have difficulty landing a tuning paper or foam where I want it to stick. Of course after a couple attempts I always do it, but if your hands are really shaky, then I can only imagine your frustration trying to stick the small tuning papers / foams accurately.

 

[mt877]

Yeah, and the FF1 come with hella' good accessories (especially considering the price) as you mentioned. There is no case with it, but the cable has a volume/play/mic built in, which works with the (also) included USB-C DAC/dongle for most all phones as well as plugging directly into the headphone jack of an android phone (as for plugging directly into iDevice, I am not sure because I haven't tried it). Also, it comes with some ear wings that will solve having to worry about foams or whether they will fall out of your ears as well:


Finally, here are some great first impressions of these from when @mt877 bought his: HERE

That whole thread has some pretty good thoughts about all of the new(er) buds from FiiO, including some complaints about the new proprietary thinking about their cable for the FF1 and the FF3S, and other things as well.

The NiceHCK EB2S you would have to get from AE (from the link I posted in my... post), and they are around $14 or so.

Thanks for directing to my impressions... but there are 2 certified FF1 reviews right here for @Cheesebuggah to munch on. Ha, funny thought... I see "Cheesebuggah" and "FF1" in on sentence and what do I think, yup, French Fries 1... I'll have a Coke with that please.

 

[samandhi]

I think that's an extreme statement. Our ears naturally capture sound from multiple directions including reflected sound from the concha. Sound doesn't have to be directly piped into our ears. Regardless, while I appreciate fit is unique to the user, there are many shells that I manage to get adequate fit with where I can direct the sound to the ear canal, not just LBBS.

Now that I think about it, I don't actually own any sets that don't face directly into my ear canals. Having said that, there are many that absolutely relish "diffuse" tuning, which in essence is hearing sounds from reflections rather than directly (very much an oversimplification as that explanation is).

Thanks for directing to my impressions... but there are 2 certified FF1 reviews right here for @Cheesebuggah to munch on. Ha, funny thought... I see "Cheesebuggah" and "FF1" in on sentence and what do I think, yup, French Fries 1... I'll have a Coke with that please.

HAHA! Very nice!

Actually the FIRST thing I thought of when I saw his name was from the (very) old Saturday Night Live skit with John Belushi: Olympia Resteraunt: Cheebuga, chips, and Pepsi


But, I like your trane of thought as well...

 

[fooltoque]

I tried putting the 130 Beryllium drivers in these wooden shells, and the result is really nice! I had been listening to them in metal and plastic shells for a while, and tried various tunings, and while they sounded good, I couldn't find anything special compared to buds that I already had. But the wooden shells really suit them I think. They have a rich mid-centric sound that I don't have in any of my other buds. Spacious and detailed. Not as great as some of my other buds for jazz tracks, but guitar and vocals sound so nice.

 

[h8uthemost]

Look at the soldering guide in my signature, there are tips that may help to steady your arms / hands while soldering. One concern for you is applying a horseshoe tuning paper or tuning foam to the speaker or earbud shell. My hands are quite steady and sometimes I have difficulty landing a tuning paper or foam where I want it to stick. Of course after a couple attempts I always do it, but if your hands are really shaky, then I can only imagine your frustration trying to stick the small tuning papers / foams accurately.

I just read through the soldering guide in your sig, and I feel a bit better now. Lol. I've already have a soldering iron picked out, and with the help of a helping hands station(if I can find one), I think I'll be able to solder the mmcx and the driver's.

You know, some days are worst than others. And if I take a few breathes that helps a tiny bit(I've had to go pretty much mouseless on my computer). Also I was a mig welder for years. I'm surprised I never did any soldering. But I should be able to pick it up no problem.

The tuning is a whole other beast though. I've got to get the soldering down before I really look at tuning.

Thank you for all your guidance

Edit: oh wow, that showing station is actually called Helping Hands. I found it on Ali after typing in that.

I tried putting the 130 Beryllium drivers in these wooden shells, and the result is really nice! I had been listening to them in metal and plastic shells for a while, and tried various tunings, and while they sounded good, I couldn't find anything special compared to buds that I already had. But the wooden shells really suit them I think. They have a rich mid-centric sound that I don't have in any of my other buds. Spacious and detailed. Not as great as some of my other buds for jazz tracks, but guitar and vocals sound so nice.

Beauty of a build. I always noticed a difference in between the plastic Grados and the wooden cups. The wood always sounds better. A bit fuller

 

[0ostin0]

Is the Toneking Dendroaspis Viridis still relevant in 2024?

 

[sofastreamer]

Apologies, but you cannot purchase these (AFAIK). After I posted about them (and the rest), I felt badly, and I should have posted on the Fran appreciation thread instead. FranQL is one of the best DIYers out there, but he does it for the joy of it, rather than for profit. He pays for ALL the materials out of his own pocket.


I second the Chaconne (as you know from reading that post you quoted LOL). And thank you, sir for the praise... it is highly appreciated, and part of why I love helping people on Head-Fi in general.

I have been really sick, for what seems forever. I started with a sinus infection, then went into Influenza A (the worst case I have ever had), then straight into Pneumonia, and ended up with a topping of (more) sinus infection, all of which I am over now, except the sinus infection. It seems to want to cling to me come hell or high water...

Apologies for not being around much, though I have managed to read most everything since I last posted, I was just not feeling able to post (or even "like" with only half a brain in my head)..

I hope everyone has been doing well, and enjoying all of their toys...

And last but not least for a "return to the fold" post, as opposed to my usual individual congrats phrase, I will just say to ALL: Congrats on your new shiny(s); be it store bought or DIY!

For those that have not yet given impressions on their new stuff, I would love to read about them.

you make me wanting the chaconne now too, i thought it would be overly bright and typically moondrop overdone uppermids , but if its smooth, it could be something i like. i now imagine it as kind of the earbud equivalent of the AKG k701. am i right?

 

[sofastreamer]

Hi, I'm new to earbuds and I was wondering which of these earbuds would fit my tastes more:

- Fiio FF3s
- Fiio FF5
- RW-3000
- Yinman 600 ohm

I like electronic, trance, jazz and euro-pop.

Apart from music, I sometimes watch movies and play games from time to time, so it would be nice if the earbud had a good airy sound-stage and good instrument separation with enough verticality in the sound (I really don't know if it's possible to mimic verticality). To me, the earbud must have a good punchy bass with good extension, while being very controlled so it doesn't muddle other frequencies. Additionally, I like when the sound is clear, but not shout-y enough to cause me discomfort after a few minutes listening.

My priorities in sound quality would be as follows:

1. Clarity.
2. Bass quality.
3. Airy sound-stage.

According to what I've read, that would put the RW-3000 and FF5 at the top, but I've never tried earbuds, so I'm not sure.

Thanks!

i am not as experienced as the others, but owning alle the earbuds you named besides the rw3000 which will arive tomorrow, regarding your priorities to me i would choose the yinman in a heartbeat.

 

[sofastreamer]

Wow, thank you so much for taking your time to write up such a detailed explanation.

Reading your explanation very thoroughly — yes, I was mistaking treble with clarity. Consequently, it was one of the reasons I was so-so about the Yinman's; they seem to be exactly what I'm looking for, but I read they are bassy and "dark" (whatever that means), therefore I thought they lacked clarity in the sense that lower frequencies would "bleed" onto upper ones or, in other words, sound so prominent as to hide details.

So far, I'm thinking about going with the Yinman's or the FF5's, but the former sounds way too good to be true. Additionally, so many people seem to like them, so I'll probably end up buying those. I also want to try out the DIY route later, buying the drivers and other stuff separately.

_____
Anyone knows if Yinman has an official online store, other than buying them from a third-person on Aliexpress?

Oh, I have another question, but about Fiio's offerings: There's a FF3 and a FF3s, is there any difference in sound between both? The FF3 can be gotten for around 60 bucks, which is cheap enough; I could buy a Yinman or FF5 along with the FF3 for the price of the RW-3000 (around 200 bucks).

Some say the FF3s don't have the same bass magic its predecessor has, but is it overblown hyperbole or is it true and it's more like the FF5?

i am someone who says this about the ff3s. its still good, but the original is a little bit tighter and less wooly when it comes to electronic music. the original can give the feeling of a good techno sub in an illegal underground club. the ff3s on the otherside is a little less spectacular (for an earbud) let alone the ff5, which in my opion excells in rock and the likes.

 

[BenF]

I think that's an extreme statement. Our ears naturally capture sound from multiple directions including reflected sound from the concha. Sound doesn't have to be directly piped into our ears. Regardless, while I appreciate fit is unique to the user, there are many shells that I manage to get adequate fit with where I can direct the sound to the ear canal, not just LBBS.

Reality is even more extreme than my statement.
Imagine that you not only face speakers to the wall, but you put the speakers right up the wall, allowing the sound to escape only using the narrow space between the speakers and the wall. That would produce a terrible sound.

While I sometimes manage to direct the classically shaped earbuds somewhat towards the ear canal, the slightest movement can ruin the experience, as the earbud moves too easily.
Using bell-shaped earbuds cable up solves this problem.

I really don't understand some of the DIY earbud builders, that keep insisting on using the classic MX500 shape - they are literally facing a wall that prevents them to achieve best SQ

 

[SlhDub]

Reality is even more extreme than my statement.
Imagine that you not only face speakers to the wall, but you put the speakers right up the wall, allowing the sound to escape only using the narrow space between the speakers and the wall. That would produce a terrible sound.

While I sometimes manage to direct the classically shaped earbuds somewhat towards the ear canal, the slightest movement can ruin the experience, as the earbud moves too easily.
Using bell-shaped earbuds cable up solves this problem.

I really don't understand some of the DIY earbud builders, that keep insisting on using the classic MX500 shape - they are literally facing a wall that prevents them to achieve best SQ

so whats the best shell for 15,4mm driver? especially for bass tuning ?

 

[BenF]

so whats the best shell for 15,4mm driver? especially for bass tuning ?

I'd guess these should be great for bass tuning, as they have 3 tuning holes - allowing you to control bass by deciding how many you will keep open:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000273773541.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004437959495.html

Don't forget to put some damping material in the back - I suspect that the bell shape may create unwanted reflections.

 

[SlhDub]

I'd guess these should be great for bass tuning, as they have 3 tuning holes - allowing you to control bass by deciding how many you will keep open:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000273773541.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004437959495.html

Don't forget to put some damping material in the back - I suspect that the bell shape may create unwanted reflections.

how are these better than mx500 shell in terms of bass tuning?

 

[samandhi]

you make me wanting the chaconne now too, i thought it would be overly bright and typically moondrop overdone uppermids , but if its smooth, it could be something i like. i now imagine it as kind of the earbud equivalent of the AKG k701. am i right?

Apologies for getting you going! But, from all the other sets I have heard, Moondrop has made something unique to their normal offerings IMO in the Chaconne. There are no offensive uppermids at all (and I am super sensitive to this area in particular). And while treble is very bright and clear, there are no spikes to make it sibilant at all (IME). And even though I am not sensitive to the treble region (except the lower region that ties into the uppermids region), I can still hear sibilance when it happens, and I hear nothing but smooth accurate reproduction. The second harmonics from the clarity in the treble region also help make the mids and lows more accurate for things such as strings, stringed bass, cello, snares, flutes, pianos, horns of any kind, etc... If you can get a set from Amazon, you should give them a listen. And if you don't like them (or even if you do and don't want to shell out the cash for them), you can always send them back.

If the K701 sound anything like the K702 (which are the ones I own), then absolutely, yes. They are VERY similar in their sound profiles. Not having A/Bed them together for a very long time, I can also say with a decently high degree of certainty that the Chaconne have a bigger stage as well.