Thank you to you both. I need to think, and as you said experiment to find out where MY personal sweet spot is.

Thank you. Leaves me with questions, but... 1. Singularity with the artist: you are suggesting I must experiment and be prepared to spend? 2. Banging rocks: buy anything cheap-o long as it doesn't give me a headache? While the first route seems to be more palatable, how would I go about it...

Thanks redcarmoose. That's a useful suggestion. Let me ping you separately on this...

The analogy with Coffee is interesting. I am not sure it is accurate but interesting enough. With coffee, there are measurable differences in how the beans are processed, roasted, pressed, what temperature and pressure water is used and how long the water push lasts... With coffee, the origin...

I have no intention of spending more than US$50 in all this... And that too on connectivity between my IEM and the phone. Dongle, wire, Bluetooth - unsure yet. Certainly not new IEMs or a DAP for that matter. If what is said is true i.e. DAC chips are cheap and easily then a solution should...

How can I take this fatigue away... I haven't ever experienced this before? Even if this has more power, shouldn't lowering the volume be sufficient for preventing fatigue? A bit confused by this. The hiss on the older dongle was when there was no music playing. When the music did play, it...

The used market is pretty good. But that would mean buying I guess? E1 is close to me as is Music Sanctuary (both are in the same Mall). Stereo though might be a better place for me to start I think, it might not be focussed on IEMs but the variety is wider. Thanks a lot once again for the...

I have tried out Stereo and Jaben. Haven't tried Music Sanctuary or E1. Will check those out for sure. Thank you for the suggestion, much appreciated. Thank you very much again.

I never said that the choice was limited. I merely stated that trying out a wide variety is difficult because shops have limited pieces to audition. I don't really get the point of the snark. Edit: If you are finding this thread strange (I do admit my questions have been odd at times), why are...

Woaaah. Didn't mean to unleash a sh1tst0rm. But to all - thank you very much for the suggestions. My first set of IEMs were a cheapo Sony set, which came free with my Walkman back in 1993 - yes I am no longer young. My current gear was what I listed. I have had at various times in the past...

That makes a LOT of sense. I will do precisely what you suggest. Right now - I am not even certain if there is an improvement I can or should seek...

Thank you. I am perfectly happy with what I have, just trying to explore and learn more. Like I said - till now, the nuances which I have found are quirky or super technical at best, but nothing has changed the enjoyment. I have no intention of upgrading or changing my kit, just looking to...

Thank you. Confirms my suspicion. In the limited testing (though I can hardly call it that, rigorous it certainly wasn't), I was not able to detect any differences in using the Fiio tethered via USB versus via Bluetooth.

Err... What?

Thank you. That implies that as long as the Fiio does what it's supposed to do, I should observe no differences (unless I start hallucinating :)). Also, following other posts (including yours), I believe the consensus now is that bluetooth is transparent and sufficient enough to obviate the need...

Thank you very much. I tried to focus on bits as you suggested, using the songs recommended here. Interestingly, I did notice some differences. From a curiosity perspective - they were interesting. From a real world perspective - i.e. impacting my enjoyment of music and/or making me cringe...

Thank you. The issue though - is that I am not even able to differentiate between the transducers (I assume that fancy word means the speakers, drivers etc. which try and produce sound inside my earphones).

I have been an avid follower of this forum, and have been reading a lot of the debates. I am a relative noob to the scientific method - so (to my shame) I do own moderately pricey cables and all. I thought I would try and do some listening tests on my equipment. Do bear in mind that I was...

Using the 2x current - question. So currently I am running my Oppo PM3 with the ES100 via the balanced connection. It gives an option of using 2x current but warns that this might damage headphones with less than 300ohm impedance. What's this jazz? Apologies for my lack of knowledge. Any...

I just bought this cable and am running Sennheiser IE7 IEMS (got them modded to take mmcx) with the cable. The sound is awesome and everything about the cable is great (I personally liked the sound more than the Shure, and I am not getting any hiss). however, I am SUPER Disappointed at the...

For those using the PM3 with the ES100. I am thinking of getting a short cable and stick the ES100 to the side of the Oppo. Anyone tried this, if so - are you using balanced or other? Any advice on the cable? P.S. Just to add - right now using the FIIO BTR3 in precisely this format. the ES100...

I never tried moon audio. Just went with NA. My setup is straight not right angle. I do wish I had gone for that tho. Will post up a pic sometime else or can send on WhatsApp if you fancy sending me your #

Hi I have had the Sennheiser IE8 since they were launched. Still love their sound, but the cable has become frayed. The shell/housing/sound is still 100%. I have tried to look for places which can recable my IE8 (I am in Hong Kong), but haven't had much luck. Anyone done this? Any...

@atoniolin - the Arete over Lune was based on the copper/silver argument. I am not certain which way you want - but I like my audio a bit warmer, and from what I read (havent done any experimentation myself) copper is better at that than silver. So I went with Arete. Nothing scientific. The...