I know a few people who have attempted planar buds but AFAIK nobody's developing one at the moment. Consensus seems to be that it's impossible to get bass out of them rather than the size of the driver being an issue.

Slightly off-topic, but for those that 3D print, what printer do you use? I bought an Ender S1 Pro last year and I've upgraded it with Klipper and tinkered with it but still couldn't get a consistent, reliable print on the first attempt. I'm getting tempted to go for a Bambu A1 and be done with it.

Thanks. I'm familiar with metals (mechanical engineer by profession) but i guess you can't always trust what's on the spec sheet on Aliexpress haha. Will have to hunt around for a trustworthy local supplier.

Where do you guys source your screws from? I tried some M3 self-tappers from Aliexpress and the just snapped if I put even a medium amount of torque on them.

The T2000 seems like it's the only IEM that's both wireless and wired. I'm not sure you can classify TWS IEMs as bullet or non-bullet as they have no cables at all. Could you clarify what it is you're looking for?

What BAs do Etymotics use?

I've updated the title to hopefully elicit more discussion. I'm a bit of a budget audiophile so sadly I haven't experienced a lot of these to offer my own opinions on them :/ These have been tempting me for ages, they regularly go for like on sale as well and I'm sure I've seen them dip below...

Oh for sure, I've got good buds (both bought and built) but I've already spent ~£80 on the buds that for all their faulty tuning are still really nicely built. It just bugs me that they're collecting dust.

Yep I missed that as well. At least I won't feel bad about skipping this one then. I might sticking an IEM mesh filter to an earbud, under the foam, and seeing if that has an effect.

Has Smabat finally come to their senses and tuned an earbud without an icepick?

I've updated the model with a bass port here

That would be great! Also depending on your slicer you might be able to just add a hole for the bass port.

The model is done, I just haven't gotten around to uploading it yet. There are also a bunch of other potential improvements that I want to test out. I'll also add that I haven't had the chance to test print the model yet (my printer's packed up ready for a house move) so I can't guarantee quality.

If you want MX500, I modeled one here. Or you could try the Val39 which is s good copy of the Qian39.

I made a model of the MX-500 shell for 3D printing (link)

Wait until you find out how thin the wires inside IEMs are.

That makes sense. The FF3 don't have the greastest quality bass even if they are fun. Interesting, in all of the discussion around the FF3 I don't think I saw anyone compare the two. I have the M4 and M5 with the ST-10S drivers and they were nowhere near the FF3, but that maybe due to the...

Can you explain what you mean by 'great levels' of bass? The FF3 are already the bassiest earbuds you can buy by far.

On second thought I was probably thinking of the MMCX version:laughing: Luckily it looks pretty easy to 3D print a copy. Do you still have the shell to take some measurements from? It looks like you're right, they're similar but slightly different. Although the sensitivity isn't necessarily a...

Has anyone tried to DIY a Yinman? Identical wooden shells are available on Ali and I think(?) the drivers are too. (600Ω Beryllium)

Having had multiple TRN BT** devices, I can't recommend them to anyone planning on using them out and about. The modular earhook uses a 2-pin connection that's prone to falling out, leading to me eventually losing one of the modules in a dark street. If they eventually redesign the hook to use...

If you're OK with using MMCX-to-QDC adaptors, there's a pretty decent Ety clone on Aliexpress: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003712610618.html

I wish there was more discussion, but I suppose you'd have to try and find reviews to get a feel about which ones are best. Personally I've seen these praised a lot: Tanchjim One/Darling, Etymotic (all of them), JVC FD01/FDx1, Sony XBA-N3, Final E5000, HifiMan RE800

Because 'better' and 'worse' are subjective. If burn-in actually affected the sound of an IEM then surely some people would find it better, but some people would find it worse. After all, we all hear differently right? So it's curious that burn-in only ever seems to make IEMs sound 'better'.

Added: KBEAR KW1 Spirit Torino Twin Pulse Beryllium I think the KBEAR Neon might be discontinued but I'll leave it on the list for now.