If Timbre is your biggest concern, especially acoustic instruments, the IEM I recommend is the RHA CL2 Planar. I have owned a lot of IEMs, some TOTL in different price brackets, BAs, Dynamic Drivers, Hybrids, and they all for the most part do different things right, but acoustic timbre is...

Yeah the whole measurements camp is extremely out of touch. I am beginning to think they prefer sheet music to actual music. I had the battery and the copper foil laying around, and made the entire setup for about 10 dollars, ( I am good with soldering stuff) The best thing to do is to listen...

Nothing I am saying is hypothetical. I have a $15K plus stereo sound system that this DAC is hooked up to, and I have confirmed this with about 5 of my friends. They all hear it as clear as day. You are free to believe whatever you guys want to believe, I have the old power supply, and plugging...

Either they are lying, or they haven't experimented enough. I have it connected to a deep cycle battery via 16 gauge Copper foil cables, and it sounds quite a bit better (lowers distortion by quite a bit). 20 gauge Solid copper sounds grainy compared to copper foil power cables (DIY). The stock...

a wired connection will always be better than wireless. This IEM scales extremely well, so a copper cable is a worthwhile investment. Look at cables here https://www.mtmtaudio.com/

Good question. I have no answer...... Most manufacturers, go for the minimum effort required. The ultra high end audiophile gear uses the capacitors and wiring I am talking about, but they are in the 30+K price ranges. Using High end internals, pushes the price past the point that average...

To clear the air If I may..... I think most gear on Head-fi is grossly over priced, I mean grossly. AK :) I am looking at you.... plus those 56 BA iterations of every high-end manufacturer (monthly releases) :) The DMP is however something I would seriously consider spending money on, yes...

It's an arms race between my Full size Speaker system and my Portable Setup.....Right now the portable Kaesei 1A with this incredible DMP firmware is winning. Let's see what happens as my AMP capacitors go through a proper burn in..... One pushing the other, I am rooting for both teams...

Best Transportable-------DMP-Z1 Best portable--------- Kaesei Modded WM1A (DMP-W1 Firmware)

Just finished rebuilding my amplifiers. system sounds completely 3D, instruments sometimes sound like they are directly behind me, sound stage is monstrous. One tip for anyone that might be interested in doing something similar........""REPLACE ALL CERAMIC CAPACITORS"" with Film Polystyrene or...

Yup, hands Down the best firmware. I laid in bed for 4 hours last night, listening to Album after Album, Jazz just sounds divine.

Some reviewers say source doesn't make any difference. Go figure... I have seen reviews from some guys, well known on Head-fi, that review TOTL sets from 100 dollar Bluetooth receivers. And they are taken seriously, and have a following. :) Sorry Don't want this to turn into a reviewer...

It's usually the same 5-10 IEMs that everyone compares in their review. (At the TOTL level at least) My reference is something completely different at this point, and personally going forward I would like to hear even more unique signatures, something that doesn't sound like anything I have...

And that brings us back to the original point, my apple is an orange to you, and your apple is a pear to me. who decides what is what? what is the value of a reviewer here? Are there objective truths to subjective preferences?

As I heard it, the IER needed a lot of air, it sounded a bit muddy and dark. I have heard that people took out the Stock filters and replaced them with something lighter and that helped, but I personally have not tried that. Obviously my opinion regarding this IEM is in the minority on...

so @Nayparm said he has been using these batteries since 2018, and this was the 1st batch of duds. I am going to stick with the one I have, but keep a close eye on the player and report back if there are any problems. I purchased my battery from a different stock, and there is also an option to...

The IEM I was referring to is the RHA CL2. I listen to a lot of Classical, Jazz, instrumentals, EDM, Reggae, Classic Rock......A whole assortment of female Vocals...... Very little hip hop or modern music for the most part. I like modding my equipment, making cables etc etc, currently using a...

I bought my battery months ago, but only just recently have I installed it. So perhaps it is a good one. Sorry to hear that yours leaked, hopefully nothing else is damaged, and a simple cleanup is all your player needs.

which supplier is this? I need to double check my battery, if it's a similar batch from the same guy..... I'll swap it out. The other mods, outside of the larger battery should still be worth the trip to @Nayparm , but this is just tragic.

Your Firmware mod is beyond belief :) I am so thoroughly impressed it's not even funny. You just gave us all a portable player that is being credibly compared to the DMP-Z1, that is insane. I know not many people have the Nayparm mod, and as far as I know no one else has the Flat Foil cable...

I think this is my end game :) Been listening to the Modded 1A ALL DAY...... I mean allll day, and battery is still all bars full. . and the SQ is just beyond my wildest expectations. I don't see the next Sony release beating this hardware/Firmware combo. I am seriously considering buying a new...

One of my favorite IEMs is one of the most harshly and unprofessionally reviewed IEMs on Head-fi. One of the best and hyped IEMs on head-fi was a day 3 return for me, leaving me dazed and confused, bewildered to say the least. Reviewing is just another part of marketing, there are relationships...

++++++++++ PLUS ==========EQUALS

PSYCHILL on the CL2 via a Modded walkman 1A is something quite exquisite. what a pity that this IEM is not more hyped on head-fi :frowning2: :frowning2: :frowning2:

If you send in your 1z in, get the Flat Neotech cables instead of solid core ones. And be prepared for another jump in SQ :) Glad you are liking your player, @Nayparm does some fantastic work.