[Kunlun]

My MG5hx (after a brief delay due to my first set of earmolds not being quite right) are on the way!

 

[Kunlun]

Just got these in a little while back!
Decided to have fun with the carrying case!

 

[alpha421]

Hello brother. My review will be delayed a bit as I need to make a silver PONO balanced cable.

 

[Kunlun]

Hello brother. My review will be delayed a bit as I need to make a silver PONO balanced cable.

Looks good! You make your own cables? That's cool.



Well, for folks who might be interested:
I've had a chance to do some initial listening and I can recommend the hx vents for sure to anyone who has the old version. Wind noise is vastly reduced and isolation generally is improved.

I can't A/B, obviously, but the sound seems improved (dynamic driver's sound can indeed be greatly affected by housing and vent changes even when the driver remains the same). I'm enjoying these!


Future Sonics claims better headroom, which is the absolute volume before which the driver's sound starts to break up--with improvement under that, hopefully as well.

The MG5hx remains true to a dual professional stage and studio version of the Future Sonics' house sound. That means deep, full bass with real air-moving bass feel, tilted to the sub-bass and north of neutral for sure, yet controlled. The vocal range is lifted to bring a musician's voice or lead instrument out of the mix on stage and the treble is present but takes a step back to reduce hearing fatigue at higher volumes. The MG5hx has that signature but in a more balanced way than the stage only MG6 line. So, this one is made and tuned for rocking out, not low-volume listening, that's important as volumes change fletcher-munson curves (Google it!). And the MG5hx really does rock!

So far, given that I enjoy this tuning (and you should pay attention to my description of it), I would take this ciem over the high end dynamic driver iems of the CA Vega (even more bass and some slight harshness on the note presentation throughout the range), the Rhapsodio Galaxy (slightly sibilant, less clear in the bass, and fiddly fit), and the Dita answer/truth (both have a treble peak and lack top level clarity beneath that). I'm one of the people who enjoys the Sennheiser ie800, but the cable, fit and ease of use of the MG5hx, after the earmold process for a ciem, make it an easy choice.

If you want that pro stage/studio monitor dynamic driver sound, this is a great ciem.

 

[Kunlun]

Having been listening for a few weeks, I can say that I've really been enjoying these and my appreciation of them has only grown.

 

[alpha421]

Well, after many weeks, below is my impression on the Future Sonics (FS) mg5pro HX attached to Triton8 cable:

I'm a DD fan, always has, always will be. There's something about the air movement inherent with DD that matches to how my ear drums hear and perceive sound. The two are like yin and yang. I want a natural sound. I want voices and non-synthesized instruments to sound as natural and analog as possible as if being played in front of me.

In hindsight, my early years of Head-fi started out with a v-shape signature thanks to the Triplefi.10. Over the years, my preference or signature shape transitioned towards a brighter and higher energized treble. These exiting signatures were just that and almost all came in the form of BA drivers, but I found my ears fatigue from the extremities. Back in the day when the Monster Turbine line and Miles Davis, Sennheiser IE8/80, and the FS Atrio offered serious low end performance, it was with the Monster Turbine Copper that I found the ideal DD at that time. However, those who purchased them at a steal from Dell knew that RMAs' were inevitable. Still, the more balanced signature of the Copper really captured the emotion from the voices of Norah Jones and Sade.

Needless to say, I've now settled on a more neutral and balanced signature that adds little to the sounds. The music must be able to breath and flow freely without being too stretched in width and depth. It can't be too detailed, as crazy as that may sound because too much plankton if you will, distracts from the overall listening experience. Yes, it's exiting to hear every detail at first, but I don't analyze nor break down what I hear or what was recorded, I simply just want to melt into la-la land and be one with the music.

Not many companies offers just a DD custom, and most don't have the longevity that Mr. Garcia of Future Sonics has under his belt. I'll admit it took some time to make the commitment. Unlike BA customs, FS customs cannot be reused/reshelled. Despite best in class customer service, if you don't like it, or have unresolved issues, you'll have a set of very expensive paper weights.

When I learned of an mg5pro update, I was intrigued. I was most interested in the HX model that has a vent built into the concha area of the custom mold. The purpose is for increased headroom. I took a gamble with my purchase and after sending in my self done impressions, and after a rather short 1.5 weeks, my mg5pro HX was delivered and they fit like a glove. I was confident that I didn't need to worry about the bass and mids, but worried some with the treble. No, I wasn't expecting ER4S treble, but more than what I experienced with the FS universal iems. Being on the side of the fence that believes DD benefits from a little burn in, I let them burn in at moderate volume levels for two days straight as my tracks were randomly played in JRiver MC21.

On the third day, I setup my expectations that I wasn't going to blown way with this and that. As expected, the bass was firm with impact, the mids slightly forward and detailed, and treble extension and decay was struggling just a bit. My initial listening session was with the stock cable, and it reconfirmed my expectation. I also happen to be on the side of the fence that cable material and construction can benefit both sides of the spectrum. I found a very nice balance with a hybrid copper and silver that yielded a little more low end punch and a little more treble - not night and day, but more than subtle. Also, my sources are less warm but slightly brighter in nature that really adds to the synergy scheme.

Most of what I listen to is vocals (mainly female) and live tracks. As stated earlier, I'm after a large but convincingly real stage that's slightly out of your head projection, natural sounding vocals and instrument timbre, all wrapped in a balanced and musical envelope of delivery. Even though the mg5pro HX won't have an immediate wow effect due to its balanced signature, all things considered and where I am now, it has proven to be a worthwhile investment.

 

[Kunlun]

Very balanced review to go with the nice cables and mg5hx! I'd give them two overnights of 20% louder volume than you could tolerate if they were in-ear and then continue to enjoy.

 

[soundblast75]

Hi guys, im about to order an FS custom, finally, been thinking about it for years,but tried many others meanwhile..
The question for me is 5hx ir 6hx, please help me decide, i wouldn't mind spending less if 5 is amazing already, huge thanks

 

[scottcw]

For those that have "upgraded" their MG5 Pros to either the MG5 FX or HX, is the tonal signature still the same? I ask because my Pros were stolen out of a rental car mid last year. I finally got around to ordering replacements. Marty suggested the HX. I trust his recommendation, but I will not be happy if the frequency response is noticeably different or if I need to crank these up to get the most out of them. I have very sensitive hearing, so I don't listen at high volumes. The thing I loved about the 5 Pros is that their frequency response sounded like a studio monitor and they did not need to be loud.

All that to say, is the HX the way to go or will the FX be closer the the Pros?

 

[scottcw]

Follow up on the above... Marty says that the frequency response is close to the same between the FX and HX. The only difference being isolation, which may impact bass.

 

[corygrapher]

Follow up on the above... Marty says that the frequency response is close to the same between the FX and HX. The only difference being isolation, which may impact bass.

So now I have a cable question. Here is the frequency response for the MG5 HX - https://crinacle.com/graphs/iems/future-sonics-mg5hx/

Is there a cable that would give me a 5-10 db bump in the area between 100Hz and just below 2k? Thanks in advance for any recommendations.

how to contact Marty? I tried to email info@futuresonics several times last month but no one has replied me.

 

[scottcw]

I've been getting prompt responses. Did you check your spam filter?

 

[HiFlight]

After several years of enjoying my MG5Pro and not so much liking my MG6Pro, I decided to have the 6's updated to the MG5HX! Yes, that is an option at no additional cost. I should have them back next week and will be able to make some direct comparisions.
Over the years since purchasing my MG5Pro, I have owned many different IEM's but always keep returning to the 5Pro, hence my decision to add the HX. My 5Pro will serve as my go-to wireless Bluetooth combo (paired with the BT20S adapter) which is a truly impressive match!