[ColdWolfSong]

Recently posted a forum post trying to narrow down some IEM's for a wide range of listening. I have it down to two hybrid IEMs, the Oriveti New Primacy and the AKG N40. Has anyone heard both of these? Can you comment on the differences in SQ?

 

[HardstyleLoco96]

I have heard both and kept the New Primacy, the N40 is a tad brighter and has a little more sparkle in the treble, but with the New Primacy is has a special magic. The sound is very nicely balanced with great extension in both ends and plays every genre great. The thing is, the sound is seductively relaxing, you can listen to it for hours and hours and yet it is very very detailed, the bass is some of the nicest bass I have ever heard in a iem, it is nicely textured and plays it how it should sound, mids are a tad forward but with a relaxed nature and the treble is relaxed but nicely extened. Intrument seperation is very good and soundstage is bigger than most iems but not the largest I heard. The only thing you will need to worry is that it does like a good source and does detect hiss easily, so a good dac or dap is needed. Also it does scale very well with a nice amp, the soundstage opens up, instrument separation becomes much better and overall the sound becomes snappy and quick. Do give it to burn it, after 24 hours it starts to live. For the price of the new primacy, I say its seriously amazing bang for the back and competes high up there with the Sennheiser IE800, Westone W40 and Shure Se535 and many others. Best thing to do is try them out yourself.

 

[Ace Bee]

I have heard both and kept the New Primacy, the N40 is a tad brighter and has a little more sparkle in the treble, but with the New Primacy is has a special magic. The sound is very nicely balanced with great extension in both ends and plays every genre great. The thing is, the sound is seductively relaxing, you can listen to it for hours and hours and yet it is very very detailed, the bass is some of the nicest bass I have ever heard in a iem, it is nicely textured and plays it how it should sound, mids are a tad forward but with a relaxed nature and the treble is relaxed but nicely extened. Intrument seperation is very good and soundstage is bigger than most iems but not the largest I heard. The only thing you will need to worry is that it does like a good source and does detect hiss easily, so a good dac or dap is needed. Also it does scale very well with a nice amp, the soundstage opens up, instrument separation becomes much better and overall the sound becomes snappy and quick. Do give it to burn it, after 24 hours it starts to live. For the price of the new primacy, I say its seriously amazing bang for the back and competes high up there with the Sennheiser IE800, Westone W40 and Shure Se535 and many others. Best thing to do is try them out yourself.

I don't know if you're still around, but was your impression on New Primacy or N40?

 

[HardstyleLoco96]

I don't know if you're still around, but was your impression on New Primacy or N40?

It was of the New Primacy. But honestly, there is better value now and heaps more iems I would rec for around the same price. Theres the Moondrop Blessing 2 and many others

 

[Ace Bee]

It was of the New Primacy. But honestly, there is better value now and heaps more iems I would rec for around the same price. Theres the Moondrop Blessing 2 and many others

I heard Blessing 2. Too thin and piercing vocals and highs - sounds unnatural. I recently got an N30 for 60 bucks that sounds much better to my ears, much more matured, may be a touch less expansive soundstage but that's all. It's very much comparable to my Penon Orb.

And just yesterday, I got a sweet deal of 85 bucks shipped on a slightly used N40. Grabbed it.

Had fit issues with Blessing 2, too. No such issues with AKG.

 

[HardstyleLoco96]

I heard Blessing 2. Too thin and piercing vocals and highs - sounds unnatural. I recently got an N30 for 60 bucks that sounds much better to my ears, much more matured, may be a touch less expansive soundstage but that's all. It's very much comparable to my Penon Orb.

And just yesterday, I got a sweet deal of 85 bucks shipped on a slightly used N40. Grabbed it.

Had fit issues with Blessing 2, too. No such issues with AKG.

That's a very good deal I must say. Are you looking to find an upgrade or a different sound? Do you prefer dynamic, ba, planar? Neutral, bright neutral, warm neutral, V or U shaped? Etc etc haha

 

[Ace Bee]

I am a cheap audiophile. I do not have much time to enjoy music dedicatedly, hence I have just a small Shanling M0, and I tend to look for gears that will work good enough with a mic cable from my phone. Hence, no planars. DD and BA. I prefer both for their uniqueness, and well implemented hybrids even more. I have ISN D02 for single DD, Custom Art FIBAE 3 for multi-BA, Penon Orb and AKG N30 for hybrid. Once N40 reaches it'll be added to that arsenal.

I prefer good deep and meaty bass that does not stay long, but is not overly fast. N30 gives me that balance, Orb gives it too. H40 most certainly does not. The rumble seemed to never leave the stage.

I love good vocal presence. Not at the bottom of V. Not thin and piercing and unnatural like Blessing 2, not overly thick like Tansio Mirai TSMR-2. It has to hit a balance between crispness and thickness, and has to be transparent. Orb does it splendidly, N30 may be slightly on the leaner and crisper side, D02 slightly more, but none of them sound too unnatural for me. FIBAE 3 has transparency of an altogether different level, slightly on leaner side as well, but again, not unnatural. I had Simgot EN700 Pro, where the voices were at the bottom of the V. Even though the sound was transparent, I had to get rid of it.

I love to hear those tingling highs floating in the mix. A little forward or a little backward is okay, but has to be noticed clearly. Airy highs is what I seek. But not too much emphasised that it becomes piercing. I had LZ A6 mini that sounded like that - gave me headache. Got rid of that soon.

You can say I love a U to mildly W sound profile. Not Sharp W that vocal will be in my face though. Warm Neutral is my preference. Blessing 2 sounded very cold to me.

At this point of my life, I have understood I will not be happy with just one iem. I need variations. I have a collector mindset. I have made a line-up - ISN D02, Penon Orb, AKG N30, Custom Art FIBAE 3 (From worst to best performer, but I still love all of them equally, as they are all pretty great in their own price bracket). I am thinking of adding Shozy X AAW Pola in the line-up, to have a DD-EST hybrid as well. Although I am a bit comprehensive about its performance from a phone output.

I am not gonna go for a kilobuck iem any time soon, as the little usage I get to made of each of them will not justify the investment.