Latest Thread Images

The Watercooler -- Impressions, philosophical discussion and general banter. Index on first page. All welcome.
Apr 30, 2024 at 3:28 PM Post #87,992 of 89,708
One of the things I often wonder about here, is how y'all would like some IEMs from yesteryear?

Like any hobby, and the community that forms around it, Head-Fi tends to go through stages. At times, some prominent members have preferred neutrality. Fast forwarding from that, bass cannons were in vogue for a while. And now it seems that lusher and richer - but still balanced - signatures are in favor now.

I mention this because though the Z1R is popular amongst some here, it's equally not favored by others... and I can't help feeling that Sony's preceding flagship IEM could be loved by many of you. The XBA-Z5, with it's DD + 2BA configuration - was a richer and fuller listen than people preferred at the time. Could this be a case where that product was simply released at the wrong time (2014)? :thinking:

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/son...st-being-real-one-among-portable-iems.960837/
 
Apr 30, 2024 at 3:37 PM Post #87,993 of 89,708
warrenpchi said:
One of the things I often wonder about here, is how y'all would like some IEMs from yesteryear?

Like any hobby, and the community that forms around it, Head-Fi tends to go through stages. At times, some prominent members have preferred neutrality. Fast forwarding from that, bass cannons were in vogue for a while. And now it seems that lusher and richer - but still balanced - signatures are in favor now.

I mention this because though the Z1R is popular amongst some here, it's equally not favored by others... and I can't help feeling that Sony's preceding flagship IEM could be loved by many of you. The XBA-Z5, with it's DD + 2BA configuration - was a richer and fuller listen than people preferred at the time. Could this be a case where that product was simply released at the wrong time (2014)? :thinking:

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/son...st-being-real-one-among-portable-iems.960837/
Click to expand...
And coincidentally yours is on the Classifieds? :wink:

drftr
 
Apr 30, 2024 at 3:50 PM Post #87,995 of 89,708
Apr 30, 2024 at 3:55 PM Post #87,996 of 89,708
When someone is selling Hi-Fi... and the reason mentioned is..."I am getting out of the hobby?"
What does that even mean?
What was the purpose at the beginning of buying Hi-Fi?
I get it...if someone needs money for other purposes...but what does it mean, I am getting out of the hobby?
To me, that sounds like: "I am getting out of my skin", literally :)
 
Apr 30, 2024 at 3:56 PM Post #87,997 of 89,708
Interesting revisit to Tesseract tonight and really enjoying - they are quite a technical animal, and really incredible with more complex electronic music.

IMG_3462.jpeg
 
Apr 30, 2024 at 4:04 PM Post #87,998 of 89,708
Today I was visiting Como with my family, a village next to a lake in northern Italy.

I noticed people had a different kind of hobby there: flying and landing an airplane on water…
(Cant upload a video otherwise I would)
Not 1 or 2 people, no I think I saw more then 20 landing or taking off.

But my son was impressed, so much that he stated: “die wil ik” (translated: “I want that one”).

IMG_5772.jpeg

I now think my hifi hobby is still on the financial stable and safe side 😅 lets hope he likes hifi 2 lol
 
Apr 30, 2024 at 4:07 PM Post #87,999 of 89,708
fidgeraldo said:
When someone is selling Hi-Fi... and the reason mentioned is..."I am getting out of the hobby?"
What does that even mean?
What was the purpose at the beginning of buying Hi-Fi?
I get it...if someone needs money for other purposes...but what does it mean, I am getting out of the hobby?
To me, that sounds like: "I am getting out of my skin", literally :)
Click to expand...
Cant speak for others, but maybe it means the persuit of audio perfection through gear, or chasing the latest.

So stepping out could mean, not spending time on gear, reviews, research, selling, buying, forums? Etc.

And take the common approach, buy sonos / apple / sony and be happy 😅😛
 
Apr 30, 2024 at 4:09 PM Post #88,000 of 89,708
About Brise Fugaku

Overall, I love the sound and appreciate the technique behind the amp. It’s probably, as many have said, the best sound you can get from a portable system—with amazing resolution and a great soundstage (storm, creator level soundstage), but with a much cleaner background, I must say. The treble is probably the highlight of the unit, managing to be high like Viking Damascus but with a much thicker sound quality that makes Fugaku's sound rich enough to prevent it from becoming too aggressive. Overall, the sound performs perfectly in every track. The mids don’t show any mistakes either; I love how it handles its mids—smooth like the new Mason FS, but not as warm. Yet, I heard more detail out of Fugaku, honestly. Lastly, I’m going to talk about its bass. The bass has high resolution, using their 2 custom-made 8MM DDs, and especially when it comes to sub-bass, it offers the best quality bass out there. I know I’ve said so many positive things, making my comments hard to trust, but please believe me, guys. I think it really sounds this good. I think if we're only talking about sound, then after experiencing many high-end IEMs and cables, I can say it has no weakness and is currently the best technique (portable combo) you can get nowadays. But, as I must say again, it’s not for everyone, or even most of us in this group. The issue is when you get something this perfect, you will lose the beauty of this hobby. For people like me who love to switch up IEMs, every IEM, even those high-end flagships, has both negative and positive aspects to discuss. The imperfections are what make portable gears fun. Personally, I won’t buy Fugaku, honestly, and I believe it's for people who only want one system without switching gears. I also forgot to mention the ear hooks. I think they’re necessary because the Shirogane 16 wires cable is too thick and needs the ear hook to hold, but overall, I don’t have any issue wearing Fugaku. However, of course, I’m not a huge fan of its looks might take time to get used to it.
1714507956422.png
1714507974498.png

2ADD7101-65F0-4FE1-B178-5A6D9E5AFC25.jpg
IMG_0683.jpg
IMG_0687.jpg
IMG_0684.jpg
 
Last edited:
Apr 30, 2024 at 4:10 PM Post #88,001 of 89,708
warrenpchi said:
One of the things I often wonder about here, is how y'all would like some IEMs from yesteryear?

Like any hobby, and the community that forms around it, Head-Fi tends to go through stages. At times, some prominent members have preferred neutrality. Fast forwarding from that, bass cannons were in vogue for a while. And now it seems that lusher and richer - but still balanced - signatures are in favor now.

I mention this because though the Z1R is popular amongst some here, it's equally not favored by others... and I can't help feeling that Sony's preceding flagship IEM could be loved by many of you. The XBA-Z5, with it's DD + 2BA configuration - was a richer and fuller listen than people preferred at the time. Could this be a case where that product was simply released at the wrong time (2014)? :thinking:

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/son...st-being-real-one-among-portable-iems.960837/
Click to expand...
Sold my XBA-Z5 late summer 2020 and it is one of the very few audio pieces I've ever regretted selling. Trying to get a stable fit, for me, was a challenge, but I still loved them.
 
Apr 30, 2024 at 4:28 PM Post #88,003 of 89,708
fidgeraldo said:
When someone is selling Hi-Fi... and the reason mentioned is..."I am getting out of the hobby?"
What does that even mean?
What was the purpose at the beginning of buying Hi-Fi?
I get it...if someone needs money for other purposes...but what does it mean, I am getting out of the hobby?
To me, that sounds like: "I am getting out of my skin", literally :)
Click to expand...
to me, just means they have either -
a) reached their endgame and no longer want to be tempted
b) personal/life issues preventing further time and investment

both are quite understandable why they want to step away.
 
Apr 30, 2024 at 4:37 PM Post #88,004 of 89,708
feverfive said:
Sold my XBA-Z5 late summer 2020 and it is one of the very few audio pieces I've ever regretted selling. Trying to get a stable fit, for me, was a challenge, but I still loved them.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's the one drawback, the form factor. For me, that didn't manifest as a fit issue, more like a wind-noise issue. :p

Hmm, I didn't realize that there are few of these in the Classifieds. One as low as $250 shipped. I'm now srsly considering picking up a back-up pair. Oh nvm, listing closed.
 
Last edited:
Apr 30, 2024 at 4:42 PM Post #88,005 of 89,708
theintention said:
b) personal/life issues preventing further time and investment
Click to expand...
That's the one I have already mentioned...doesn't count :wink:

My thoughts are: How serious are you/they/we...about loving this? I am not calling it even a hobby.
I seriously love the music...and everything that comes with it.
I always loved Hi Fi...even when I couldn't afford it...but I could afford to enjoy observing it.
Okay, I don't search for the "end game sound," so I don't count, but how many of you are like me?
Seriously, loving music...and have an affection for gear.
I could probably stop having an interest in buying new gear...but I wouldn't start selling either.

Just chit-chatting...it's not a debate. :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Users who are viewing this thread

  • ... and 24 more.
    • Total: 128 (members: 58, guests: 70)
    Back
    Top