NiceHCK ‘Himalaya’ Single Dynamic Driver RRP: $329 Introduction & Caveats A Head-Fi member reached out to me a number of weeks ago to say NiceHCK were going to be launching a single DD which will be a big step up for them, yet with a goal to compete with IEMs at even higher price points… this member felt as I’m a fan of single DDs, and have own/owned quite a few at various price points, that I might be interested in trying this. I was of course curious, even though I had only been thinking I would take my foot off the review pedal for a while...

Orivetti OH700VB 10mm Dynamic Driver and 6 Balanced Armatures RRP: $699 (available HERE) Introductions & Caveats I love when a review comes along that I would consider to be ‘easy’ - that being, the subject of the review is simply easy to enjoy or indeed love, as such the words can flow with relative enthusiasm. The OH700VB is exactly that - hard to find much fault here, especially at $699. Orivetti are a brand I’ve seen mentioned over the last couple of years and always in a very positive light - it was only this year however that I finally...

Craft Ears 'Aurum' Driver Configuration: 1x DD, 4x BA, 2x EST RRP: €1,395 (available HERE) Introductions & Caveats Something abundantly clear in this hobby is how quickly things come and go - the hype train often charges into the station, and quickly the platform is filled with those seeking to jump aboard… we travel a few stops and not unusual then for a set to become forgotten due to a queue of other new sets seeking to grab our attention and more importantly, our money. This is simply the nature of the hobby, and a few IEMs achieve a cult...

Simgot EA1000 - $219 Pictured above with the Simgot LC7 cable, sold separately and features modular jacks with 3.5mm and 4.4mm Introduction & Caveats etc… Any of you that know me will know I have quite a thing for single dynamic drivers, usually my preference in this hobby and I’ve explored a large number at this point. I’ve typically gone for mid to higher end sets and most recently reviewed the wonderful DITA Perpetua which is certainly at that higher end considering the $3K price tag. Simgot have had a lot of praise in the community over the...

Introductions & Caveats I first heard mention of the Project M following it’s debut at the Fujiya Avic Headphone festival in Tokyo back in October 2023. DITA did a great job of launching Project M and creating a bit of buzz in the community as those that heard it seemed to overwhelmingly share huge enthusiasm and excitement - both from an appearance and performance perspective, and that led to brief wonderment around the planned RRP - folks seemed to feel it must be somewhere north of $1,000 given both what they had experienced and indeed DITA’s...

Dita Audio Perpetua - Single Dynamic Driver: $2,999 Preamble When I was a young, innocent, and wet-behind-the-ear Head-Fi member waaaaaay back in late 2020 (tongue in cheek, I know it's not that long ago), I recall seeing mention of a collaboration between Final Audio and Dita Audio - the 'SHICHIKU.KANGEN' - I was intrigued by the huge enthusiasm from members with more tenure, and it was clear that the notion of what were obviously two incredibly well respected brands coming together could only mean an interesting outcome. That planted the...

TIMSOK TS-316 - $499 Single Dynamic Driver Introduction and Caveats I am a single dynamic driver fantatic - let me get that out of the way before I say anything else! I am drawn the coherency and overall charm of the humble single DD, and my radar always on high alert to any newcomers on the scene. So I was quite intrigued to see the TS-316 appear on Musicteck a few weeks back, and knew pretty quickly I had to have one. A large focus for me in this hobby over the last few years has been single DDs, and I've owned quite a few - and indeed held on...

Kinera Imperial Loki - $3,099 Introduction & Caveats First of all I would like to address the title for this review, just in case anyone has no idea why I am making reference to 'mischief' - in a nutshell, Loki was the Norse God of mischief, trickery, and deception... while I appreciate Kinera stick to a theme of Norse Gods for their IEMs, I cannot apply any of these labels to Loki! My journey with Kinera began in 2022 when I had the opportunity to try out and ultimately review the Nanna 2.0. I was very impressed at the time with my...

Disclaimer: I don't usually review cables, this is in fact my first - reason being, I am as yet to be fully convinced as to the differences they make to sound - I appreciate a sensitive topic, but just to make it clear before I kick off! I've had one scenario where I was certain of a significant difference - that being changing the stock cable from the Penon Serial to the Hansound Nyx, the difference was incredibly obvious, especially to the mids where they went from being somewhat lifeless and pushed back, to much more 'lush' and present in the...

Cayin N7 Master Quality 1-Bit Digital Audio Player - $1,999 Introductions & Caveats I chose the above picture as I took it not long after the Cayin N7 arrived back in March. I was on a work trip to Seattle, and woke early due to jet lag, I took this picture with the Seattle skyline as the backdrop from my hotel room - what better thing to do when you can't sleep but listen to music? - It was at this point that I really started to fall for the charm of the N7's 1-bit DAC, and especially with any IEM that involves a dynamic driver in some shape or...

Unique Melody MEST MKIII Carbon Fibre Edition - $1,919 (Blue) / $2,359 (Red) Introduction and Disclaimers This will be my 4th IEM from Unique Melody - my introduction to the brand was MEST MKII which I bought on release in early 2021. A few months later, I purchased MEXT, and took the plunge with the mighty Mentor late last year. While I enjoyed each of them quite a lot, I no longer own any of them for various reasons - mostly due to how I play in this hobby; which often means buying / enjoying / selling... repeat. We have different objectives in...

Nostalgia Audio Camelot - $2,599 (tribrid) Introduction & Disclaimers For those of you who may not know, Camelot is a legendary and mythical Castle which dates back to as early as 12th century literature and is centred around the wonderful story of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round table - I've no doubt the story evolved in various ways thoughout the years, and it includes everything from knights in shining armour to witches and fire-breathing dragons... oh and of course the wonderful wizard named Merlin. I have very fond memories of...

Shanling M6 Ultra - Put your foot to the floor with this powerful but compact DAP... $919 Introduction & Caveats I don't often review DAPs, the previous was actually the excellent Lotoo Paw 6000 last summer, and before that the @Shanling M9. I adore DAPs, and could easily own numerous if money weren't a consideration - this is rooted in my love for consumer electronics, dating back all the way to 1987 when I bought my first Walkman in Singapore when I was about 11 years old. I was visiting my uncle at the time with my Mum and brother, and during...

Custom Art 'Fibae 5' - $1,099 Introduction & Caveats As always, I like to note that I am not a professional reviewer - this is my hobby, and I enjoy trying out various sets and sharing my thoughts. I often get a discount in exchange, but this in no way influences the content of my review - I choose the sets I am keen to try, and this typically means I've done a fair bit of research before pulling the trigger, getting a good sense as to whether it will be a set I will likely enjoy - and for the most part, this has been the case... hence my...

Hifiman 'Svanar' Single Dynamic Driver - $1,999 Introductions and Caveats Svanar popped up sort of out of nowhere, and immediately had my attention being a massive fan of the humble single dynamic driver, a configuration that I obsess over, and own/have owned quite a few. I'm always curious to hear the various tuning profiles from different brands and across the pricing spectrum - admittedly, the more expensive sets grab my attention even more - not because I want to spend more money, but the curiousity as to what can they actually do with just...

"If at first you don't succeed, try, try again..." Kinera Nanna 2.0 Pro: Dynamic Driver, 1 x BA, 2 x EST - $949) Introductions & Disclaimer Why do I open with this line? - well it's not a slant towards Kinera. I've had the Nanna Pro 2.0 for a few months now, and I must admit, they were sort of parked on a shelf - I made a couple of attempts to listen, and just wasn't enjoying them. Rewind a few months: a representative from Kinera had reached out to me and asked to try one of their products, after some discussion back and forth, we agreed Nanna...

"An obscuring of the light from one celestial body by the passage of another between it and the observer or between it and its source of illumination" Oxford Dictionary Melodic Artification 'Eclipse' - Dual Dynamic Driver ($1,390) Introduction & Caveats The Eclipse sort of came out of nowhere, at least in the western world - making it's appearance without warning one day on Musicteck, and being a DD lover, they instantly had my attention - especially as they are a dual DD, and made from titanium - how could I resist?! As always, I like to note...

"The multiverse is a hypothetical group of multiple universes. Together, these universes comprise everything that exists: the entirety of space, time, matter, energy, information, and the physical laws and constants that describe them" Wikipedia Unique Melody Multiverse Mentor - 12 BA, 1 Bone Conduction Hybrid IEM ($4,499) Introduction & Caveats The Multiverse Mentor (MM) is the third set I've now owned from Unique Melody (UM), the previous two no longer with me - first was the infamous MEST MKII which I purchased around it's launch in 2021...

iKKO Asgard OH5 Single Dynamic Driver ($489.99) Introduction & Caveats I've known the iKKO brand from seeing mentions of the popular OH10, but up to now had not yet tried any of their products. When they announced the OH5 a few weeks ago, I was intrigued by the fact they use lithium-magnesium for the driver, which apparently is an industry first in an IEM, but more commonly used in speaker systems - this along with the price (as it's potentially ambitious to hit this mid-tier section of the market), grabbed my attention. I purchased the OH5...

Fir Audio Krypton 5 - $2,999 Hybrid IEM (Universal) Introduction & Caveats Fir Audio have been on my radar for quite a while - their branding has always drawn me to them, but only taken the plunge in the last few weeks with KR5. The XE6 gets huge praise from their latest range, and KR5 seems to be by comparison somewhat under the radar. I've tried the XE6 on a couple of occassions and it didn't really click, I found it a bit too warm/mid bass focused and somewhat overwhelming in that regard - I have however heard from a few fans of XE6 that it...