[Peter Hyatt]

I used to own the SE846 and it was a very good IEM. I sold it to purchase the Xelentos. As far as I remember the soundstage on the SE846 is equal to the Xelneto. I just prefer single dynamic driver IEMs because of the impactful bass (although I'm not a basshead). Even though the Xelento has good sensitivity it scales really well with better sources. With my Aurender Flow and Bacillus Tilia desktop head amp the soundstage increases and bass tightens up but is still very impactful (sounds more like a full sized headphone than with my Sony ZX2). In fact I really love this pairing: Windows 10 Surface Book>JR Media Center>Aurender Flow>Xelento. Conversely I found that the SE846 did not scale very well. With the blue filters the SE846 sounded too muffled and warm with the Tilia-never got to try it with the Flow because I had sold the SE846 by then). I also like Beyerdynamics new headphone tuning. They seem to be going with a warmer signature on the Xelento, T5p and T1 vs the brighter signature that existed with previous generation's T1 and T5p. The new T5p also has much better bass that the previous version. Just my two cents worth.

I'm a fan of the T1.2 and will be looking for new iem this summer.

List getting shorter as I've decided no to Shures.

My goal is to hear as close to T1.2 as possible in in ear monitors. The precision and soundstage especially.

Almost all genre of music except rap and electronic.

Not interested in phone connector.

Angie 2
TK 8 i.e. II
Xelento
Ultimate Ears 8
Noble?

Advice ? Thanks all.

 

[potatoe94]

I'm a fan of the T1.2 and will be looking for new iem this summer.

List getting shorter as I've decided no to Shures.

My goal is to hear as close to T1.2 as possible in in ear monitors. The precision and soundstage especially.

Almost all genre of music except rap and electronic.

Not interested in phone connector.

Angie 2
TK 8 i.e. II
Xelento
Ultimate Ears 8
Noble?

Advice ? Thanks all.

You do have quite a similar taste as mine , i would say give these a try , they are in no particular order or ranking .

- Beyerdynamic Xelento
- Etymotic ER4XR (no harm trying)
- Sennheiser IE800 (i had this , love it , but Xelento outperforms in "energy & liveliness" department , tested yesterday)
- Noble Savant (i had this , love it with 24awg copper litz)
- Ultimate Ears Reference Remastered (i almost got this)
- Angie ii (if your ears are big enough to fit)

 

[Peter Hyatt]

You do have quite a similar taste as mine , i would say give these a try , they are in no particular order or ranking .

- Beyerdynamic Xelento
- Etymotic ER4XR (no harm trying)
- Sennheiser IE800 (i had this , love it , but Xelento outperforms in "energy & liveliness" department , tested yesterday)
- Noble Savant (i had this , love it with 24awg copper litz)
- Ultimate Ears Reference Remastered (i almost got this)
- Angie ii (if your ears are big enough to fit)

Thanks so much! Are you too looking to come close to the T1.2 sound? **this is really important to me!

I think IE800 is really nice but just not for me.
Angie II--I am concerned about sizing and likely won't go the custom route.

I know its hard to go into memory to compare instead of AB'ing it but coming close to the T! would be really special. It makes sense that Xelento might come close. I think people here think they are more accurate than the Astel Kern version. Right?

 

[potatoe94]

Thanks so much! Are you too looking to come close to the T1.2 sound? **this is really important to me!

I think IE800 is really nice but just not for me.
Angie II--I am concerned about sizing and likely won't go the custom route.

I know its hard to go into memory to compare instead of AB'ing it but coming close to the T! would be really special. It makes sense that Xelento might come close. I think people here think they are more accurate than the Astel Kern version. Right?

i told myself not to put on any headphones anymore , afraid i would go back into open headphones and tubes .
So i now pursue the portable setup

Sadly i've not heard the T1.2 , but have demo-ed the AKT8ie ii prior to confirming my Xelento purchase .

I find that Xelento's tuning is very ... unique. it has a very attractive sound that just catches you .
After all sound is very preferential , i could only tell you the AKT8ie ii sounds extremely different compared to Xelento .

i partly forgot how the AKT8ie ii sounds , so yea this comment didnt help you at all . :x

 

[Scblacksunshine]

Got my Xelento yesterday, didn't get tons of time listening to it but comparing to my K3003, there are some differences I can detect immediately. The sound on Xelento is definitely warmer and thicker than K3003, treble extension is good the overall sound is more enclosed compare to K3003 with more energy in bass, more quantities than K3003 but not necessarily cleaner. For now, I am not sure if this is a keeper, K3003 might be too analytical at times but to my ears there's that lovely airyness, timbre, separation that seems to be lacking on the Xelento. On the other hand, the sound on the Xelento is smoother so for long listening session that might be a plus. Also, the fit and comfort is better on the Xelento but the shell casing feels like plastic and lack the build quality of K3003.

Just for reference, been listening mostly on my V20 and Oppo HA-2 and that's what I will use most of the time anyway. With the HA-2 Bass boost, the sound on the Xelento almost sounds too warm and thick to my liking. Nowhere as much as W40 but still might be too much for my taste.

 

[Shure or bust]

I'll compare the k3003 and xelento tomorrow.

 

[Peter Hyatt]

I'll compare the k3003 and xelento tomorrow.

Thanks, I look forward to your comments. Potato94, your comments are also helpful; thank you.

Anyone using Xelento and an upgraded cable? I am still trying to learn if paying $100+ for a cable is of real value. If anyone can point me to some basic (very basic) science of it, I would be grateful.

 

[potatoe94]

Tried

Thanks, I look forward to your comments. Potato94, your comments are also helpful; thank you.

Anyone using Xelento and an upgraded cable? I am still trying to learn if paying $100+ for a cable is of real value. If anyone can point me to some basic (very basic) science of it, I would be grateful.

Xelento with 24AWG Cu7N type2litz and it's too warm . 24AWG SPC Ag6N Cu7N type2litz and its slightly warmer with more forward mids , overall cleaner but very subjective tune . 24AWG Ag7N type2litz and its alittle overly bright .

So far , of the cables i've played with , the xelento performs better with SPC cables , and are very picky in it . Find the right one and it'll be very rewarding . As of now , im still using the stock cables , because it's pretty complementing , i honestly think their stock cables would be superior to most 100 dollar cables in market . Don't worry , they fit any mmcx that shures fit , not as picky as others said in that . So far all mmxc i tried fits the xelento , that's 100% fit .

The Xelento would sound smoother with burn in . Give it a good 100 hours of your typical music files at slightly above normal listening . You should hear some overall smoothness , less treble peaks , cleaner fuller bass . Im around 100 hours in and its sounding even more pleasing now .

 

[Noobmachine]

I'm a fan of the T1.2 and will be looking for new iem this summer.

List getting shorter as I've decided no to Shures.

My goal is to hear as close to T1.2 as possible in in ear monitors. The precision and soundstage especially.

Almost all genre of music except rap and electronic.

Not interested in phone connector.

Angie 2
TK 8 i.e. II
Xelento
Ultimate Ears 8
Noble?

Advice ? Thanks all.

Perhaps take a look at the DITA Answer and Truth Editions, their sound signature is really similar to the Xelentos and quite frankly they perform amazing with pretty much any genre of music.

Also maybe the Campfire Ausio Vega and Lyra II, a little more on the warm side but also very coherent and have amazing sound quality.

 

[twister6]

Thanks, I look forward to your comments. Potato94, your comments are also helpful; thank you.

Anyone using Xelento and an upgraded cable? I am still trying to learn if paying $100+ for a cable is of real value. If anyone can point me to some basic (very basic) science of it, I would be grateful.

Cable refines the sound, depending on wire material which could have a different pair up synergy. Some can hear it as a very subtle change, others can hear it is a more pronounce change, and some choose to rely on "snake oil" comments from people who only believe in change if it can be measured. Cables have a very polarized opinion, so don't even bother asking about the science

And even the cables using the same type of wire will not sound the same. Xelento comes with a great silver-plated copper (SPC) cable, while I personally enjoy better its pair up with ALO Litz SPC cable that comes standard with Campfire iems where I hear it smooths out the top end brightness and adds more texture to the bass. But those who enjoy, for example, K3003 reference sound with its airiness/brightness (which some others find rather harsh/shrill) - they will prefer stock SPC vs ALO SPC cable which going to add smoothness.

If you want a little smoother sound, it never hurts to go with a pure copper cables, where you can get something like Effect Audio Ares II or PWA No5 for about $150. If you want to skew the tonality toward the brighter side, you will have to look into a higher quality pure silver cables where it goes $250 and up depending on gauge and number of conductors.

 

[Peter Hyatt]

Can someone compare the cable content of Xelento with, for example, the AK version (II)? I think the original was black and had issues but the 2nd version is light colored and, I think, of different composition...and how they stack up with:

silver dragon: https://www.moon-audio.com/silver-dragon-iem-cable.html

thanks!

 

[twister6]

Can someone compare the cable content of Xelento with, for example, the AK version (II)? I think the original was black and had issues but the 2nd version is light colored and, I think, of different composition...and how they stack up with:

silver dragon: https://www.moon-audio.com/silver-dragon-iem-cable.html

thanks!

Did you read some of the reviews of their product quality and service (moon audio)? https://www.head-fi.org/f/showcase/moon-audio-iem-silver-dragon.13910/ and there are more postings like these you can come across head-fi

 

[Shure or bust]

So much for trying the Xelento. The box arrived sealed with nothing inside but a manual.

 

[Shure or bust]

I have heard and been told that the Hifiman Re-800 out does the Xelento's in every way. That's from my experience at CANJAM and others at Munich Audio Festival.

 

[chortya]

I have tested Xelento and Shure 846 in Munich yesterday and I am still not sure which I want more. Shure with Comply sounded amazing, I never expected such bass from IEMs. Xelento was much more comfortable but I struggled to get a good sealing. I only tried 2 different silicon tips. I would also not recommend Wireless only if you are not planing to interchange the cable, you will not be able to profit from high quality DAC. I have tested with LG G6 which has AptX HD but wired sounded significantly better.

According to the sales rep the wireless module will be probably availiable separately.

Maybe I will start with used Shure and switch to Xelento if there is a good offer.