Thought I'd help keep the ball rolling.
So I still didn't see anyone today somehow, but I really enjoyed the show. There were tons of new products as well as old familiar staples, and I thought I'd share my impressions of a few that struck me as very cool:
AZLA:
Very nice decay, very fast. The bass has a nice rumble (and a wobble (?)) to it, its like jelly-ish, which despite how it may sound in text sounds very good. The mids were very clean and the treble actually never got sharp. Nothing above the mids was harsh or piercing at all, which is great. Soundstage was very wide, in part I'm sure due to the really large tips that were used on the demos, which resulted in a very shallow fit. Depth and height were alright. However, there were some issues with the sound being too unfocused or diffused, especially in the treble regions.
It does require power, less than the Dita Answer/Dream (which the ALZA booth was stationed next to) but still a decent amount. Very impressive. I'm hoping that maybe slightly harder tips will be used in the end to help control the sound (especially treble) more. Micro detailing could also improve.
At the asking price of these (+/- $450USD), these are an absolute steal. Looking forward to trying to obtain one in the future.
Mother Audio EM8:
Lynch me if you will, but this is what I expected the Ocharaku Flat4s to sound like. Very punchy, tactile bass with extremely clear mids and a slight emphasis on upper mids/lower treble, with an above average soundstage. Great resolution and imaging too.
The IEM suffered some issues with sibilance, but nothing too serious. The build quality is fantastic, with removable MMCX connectors and the housing on the EM8 and its younger sister EM5 (different materials though) being very durable. Fit was easy to obtain due to the shape of the IEMs.
At about $1100USD I can't complain much about them. Definitely recommend a listen.
Brise Audio:
This is a cable company, so if you're A cable non-believers please skip ahead.
Got to audition the whole lineup minus one of the models (below the Ref??) and have to say I'm very excited about Brise. Their flex cable was quite supple and durable but suffered from a sort of compressed sound. The Ref was fantastic though; very controlled yet bombastic bass, intimate and warm mids and an inoffensive treble, along with a pretty big soundstage. Pity it was so inflexible. They also had their giant Murakamo in IEM terminations, so I had a blast trying that out.. Very punchy and clear sound, though the soundstage is smaller than expected for such a large cable.
I'm super excited to hear what they come up with in the future!
Satolex/Tubomi:
Decently priced offerings with different tunings brought about by different housings. Bought a Blue Tubomi, and will enjoy it as my beater/disregard-technicalities-acquire-music-fix IEM.
Acoustune:
Couldn't really sit and try their IEMs as I had to run for an appointment, but the Blue tuned Acoustune stunned me on initial listen. Hope to get to try these in the future, and hope that someone here can elaborate further on them.
Oriolus:
They had their new 12 (or was it 10??) BA IEM in a silver shell done by K2Craft Japan (a group of great guys), which sounded absolutely outstanding. Sparkly and outgoing yet smooth treble, sweet mids and punchy bass, all with great decay and a very big soundstage. Extremely resolving. Blew almost everything else at the show away IMO, except the other flagships which it easily competes with, with the Oriolus often coming out ahead (yes I mean it.) They also had a prototype with three different tunings, which I preferred in balanced tuning.
Final:
They had their new Piano Forte line, upgraded with SPC cables, up for display. As a PFIX owner I was very excited about these. They technically were a step up but at the same time the cables brought a interesting change to the sound. It was just as euphoric, but had a colder, more defined edge to instruments and vocals that was interesting. Worth a listen if you're a Piano Forte series fan.
Overall I really enjoyed myself in Tokyo, despite the really warm weather which thankfully wasn't too humid. Great food, great event, great fun.
Shoutout to the K2Craft guys (if you're reading this..) for being very friendly as usual and taking care of me and my friends while we were there!
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