[drewbadour]

The sound probably

I see.. Has anyone had a chance to demo both? Would be curious to see how different they sound

 

[thaslaya]

I see.. Has anyone had a chance to demo both? Would be curious to see how different they sound

Both were only just available for the first time at CanJam Singapore. You can check that thread for impressions I'm sure someone heard them both.

 

[theintention]

Been looking into the Elysian x Effect Pilgrim and despite initial rumors that Noir would be twice the price, it seems the Noir edition is just slightly more.

https://starspickeraudio.net/collec...-acoustic-labs-pilgrim-noir-1-custom-lsr-dd-3

It's from starspicker so it should be legit, I think?

That said, is there really any reason not to get the Noir over OG?

warmer sound, extra driver, expensive but high quality cable... im not sure about twice the money but the response to Noir is pretty positive. I'll be sitting on the sides until there is a clear standout.

 

[kaeswiss]

Been looking into the Elysian x Effect Pilgrim and despite initial rumors that Noir would be twice the price, it seems the Noir edition is just slightly more.

https://starspickeraudio.net/collec...-acoustic-labs-pilgrim-noir-1-custom-lsr-dd-3

It's from starspicker so it should be legit, I think?

That said, is there really any reason not to get the Noir over OG?

The Noir is showing up at twice the price for me

 

[pkcpga]

Ah the 1815 Chrono Boutique Edition. I've considered that one purely because of the movement but it just looks way too similar to my up/down, and also just a bit too expensive. Unbeatable movement and pushers tho.

There's the new Dato Lumen Honeygold, I heard it is around 600k tho

They’re not releasing very many, my rep stated a little over 200, unfortunately he thinks there’s none left but was checking.

 

[pkcpga]

I actually like the classic rose gold Lange 1 the most. The Moonphase was rather chunky. Though Lange have one of the most beautiful moon phase implementations in the business. The ALS price rises have been astronomical over the last 2 years. I personally went for the Saxonia Thin in WG as an understated dress watch. So understated, at one of our watch meets, it was politely complimented as a "nice Longines".

Today's watch of the day. #IYKYK



Moving on to today's impressions:

These are very, very early impressions only.

Thank you DHL for very rapid delivery. And for opening the box. I know. They want to be part of the unboxing experience. They did split the cardboard box. But at least my IEM's have been security checked and actually weren't replaced with pieces of newspaper.



Unboxing: We're not here for unboxing experiences. Included are Final tips which I never used ; a suede-like case with a magnetic closure for the cable and the IEM's themselves. The case is a little small for both cable and IEM.

Cable: I don't know what the stock cable is. It could be better. I found it a little too thin in the mids and doesn't have the technical aspects of a higher quality cable. Others have commented the techs are probably not summit-fi (well they're not) but they improve significantly with a cable upgrade. The timbre however isn't bad at all.

I initially reached for my W1 tips and found them too bright. Impressions are with Azla CRYSTAL

Neutral tuning: Well controlled DD bass. Quite okay speed and impact. I prefer my bass on the lighter side ; so would say the amount is about right. Don't expect kinetic bass. Could be faster also. Mids slightly forward, a little lean on the low mids and body and would call this on the bright > warm IEM as a result. Treble could do with more extension but there are no peaks or sibilance. As I listen to this some more, the tuning is quite well done. There are no unpleasant peaks with vocals being just that little bit prominent.

Warm tuning: Flick the switch with a fingernail. It's a little tight to click over. Mids become more musical ; there is more weight to the low mids and bass. Vocals sound more analogue. I personally feel it's just a bit congested at the bottom. Someone turned the bass and low mid knob clockwise a bit on the EQ sound desk.

I do not expect $5000US technicalities at this price point. This is a mid-tier IEM that does a lot of things well. Soundstage is out left and right. Not so much forward or vertical. Layering is on par for the price point. I would call MEST3 as having the superior soundstage from a technical aspect.

Cable Roll

Hybrid cable (palladium and gold plated silver ; copper). Eletech Enigma. Sorry, it's a limited release. But I thought it would be a good pairing for neutral mode and it is. Tightens up the bass, it's better controlled with less mid bass bleed. Mids are surprisingly smoother. Female vocals on this are lovely but a little forward. A natural, slightly soft timbre. Softness might be the SP3k so will have to try other sources. Separation and space much improved.

Dial in EDM and warm tuning. You don't get the impact from Kinetic Bass that you would on the FIR Frontier. Bass isn't as tight as I like. I still think it's a little messy personally but the tuning will appeal to many others. The Enigma is much more compatible to the natural switch. On the warm switch: Vocals have a slight unnaturally nasal, analogue tonality.

I preferred listening to ASOT 2024 on the Natural Switch.

For some reason it reminds me a little of the KN5 I auditioned recently though I don't think this would be an accurate comparison. I haven't heard Annihilator but wonder if the Alter Ego (minus the treble of the Anni and perhaps not as technically competent) could trade blows.

Trifecta lovers will probably enjoy the warm tuning.

Keen to go home and see how sounds with the Cayin C9 or Hugo 2.



*edit- Initial impressions of SP3000 -> Eletech OTL IC -> Cayin C9 in Class A / Tube mode ... are fairly positive. I think if you prefer using the neutral tuning, Alter Ego pairs better with a warmer source. I ended up changing tips to Azla Sednafit Max but very much still in the process of rolling.

Im wearing a GS today also:

 

[greymousetaxi]

This might be a weird thing but hear me out guys, this is probably my favourite single note in any song at 36 seconds. Such an extremely satisfying hit on the floor tom.
In fact in terms of "feel" this is probably my favourite song of all time, tickles my eardrums nicely lol.



What song "tickles" your eardrums?

the strings in this song, just beautifully done with all the surrounding instruments.

 

[PixelSquish]

I think the Pilgrim is supposed to be $399 and the Noir $799

 

[Lucikun]

Rn6 have landed. I had a hell of a time getting these in my ear…let’s see how they sound.

 

[PassionForMusic]

Rn6 have landed. I had a hell of a time getting these in my ear…let’s see how they sound.

Ground control to major Tom… we have lift off. Hope you enjoy them.

 

[KuroKitsu]

Rn6 have landed. I had a hell of a time getting these in my ear…let’s see how they sound.

Clearly a sign that you need customs. I had a hard time keeping Kr5 in my ears and knew any kinetic bass models would be a custom.

Thankfully the M4 showed me that FiR was going to give an identical sound going custom.

That said, other things:

Pull a Damz Hurst and sell my second bird I said. Recoup the money I said.

Nope I immediately turned around and pulled the trigger on 2 of Gladiator's not yet released cables: Argento II and Junius Brutus. Both in 8 wire configurations.

The former is the sucessor to Argento but with updated hybrid PTFE/ Hybrid insulation.Definitely going to be more supple and stable in the long run.

The latter is something Ive been aware of over the past half year. Included was sourcing 8N copper, having lab results confirming that for both the raw material and processed wires are indeed 8N and a purity report for the particular run of wire used for each cable. The wire iself is a coaxial design with copper shielding, a liquid ptfe layer and again the hybrid ptfe/tpu insulation Gladiator has been going for.

Of course this does come with a hefty price tag to the rest of the portfolio, but fairly reasonable compared to cables in the flagship copper tier.

There are available hardware options. Stock is copper/silver alloy connectors , titanium splitter and Aeco uncoated copper 4.4.

 

[Lucikun]

Clearly a sign that you need customs. I had a hard time keeping Kr5 in my ears and knew any kinetic bass models would be a custom.

Thankfully the M4 showed me that FiR was going to give an identical sound going custom.

That said, other things:

Pull a Damz Hurst and sell my second bird I said. Recoup the money I said.

Nope I immediately turned around and pulled the trigger on 2 of Gladiator's not yet released cables: Argento II and Junius Brutus. Both in 8 wire configurations.

The former is the sucessor to Argento but with updated hybrid PTFE/ Hybrid insulation.Definitely going to be more supple and stable in the long run.

The latter is something Ive been aware of over the past half year. Included was sourcing 8N copper, having lab results confirming that for both the raw material and processed wires are indeed 8N and a purity report for the particular run of wire used for each cable. The wire iself is a coaxial design with copper shielding, a liquid ptfe layer and again the hybrid ptfe/tpu insulation Gladiator has been going for.

Of course this does come with a hefty price tag to the rest of the portfolio, but fairly reasonable compared to cables in the flagship copper tier.

There are available hardware options. Stock is copper/silver alloy connectors , titanium splitter and Aeco uncoated copper 4.4.

Well I’m not liking the sound so far. A little sharp and a little shouty. I may have to try some different tips, though I’m pretty sure I’m getting proper seal now. Not a very happy camper..

 

[pkcpga]

Rn6 have landed. I had a hell of a time getting these in my ear…let’s see how they sound.

I wound up with custom, sounded better also, probably due to seal issues.

 

[Ike1985]

Im wearing a GS today also:

You a blue dial guy?

 

[pkcpga]

Well I’m not liking the sound so far. A little sharp and a little shouty. I may have to try some different tips, though I’m pretty sure I’m getting proper seal now. Not a very happy camper..

Definitely try a different tip, what DAP are you using? I didn’t particularly like the RN6 through the DX320 max ti, this was a bright combo.