[Meester]

Hello Guys, I recently bought a Fiio M11pro listening to Tidal Hifi and Qobus Hi-res, my HD800S sounds great, although these aren’t made for mobile use.
Now I would like to purchase an iem, my budget is around the 1000 euros. Does anyone has a suggestion.. I like the sound signature of the 800s and 660s.. but for the iem I maybe could use some more Sub-base.. does anyone has any suggestions?
My preferences goes to the IE800S but aren’t these a bit behind the technic of these days IEm’s?

 

[surfgeorge]

Hello Guys, I recently bought a Fiio M11pro listening to Tidal Hifi and Qobus Hi-res, my HD800S sounds great, although these aren’t made for mobile use.
Now I would like to purchase an iem, my budget is around the 1000 euros. Does anyone has a suggestion.. I like the sound signature of the 800s and 660s.. but for the iem I maybe could use some more Sub-base.. does anyone has any suggestions?
My preferences goes to the IE800S but aren’t these a bit behind the technic of these days IEm’s?

As always, making a recommendation that will suit your needs is really difficult and what sounds gerat to one, may not sound great to you.

That said, a couple of things to consider:

Fit and comfort: Even more important than with headphones, fit and seal are highly personal and often require extensive testing and tip-rolling. Also connected with that is the isolation annd bleeding of sound. Not a big issue IMO even with vented DDs, but for maximum isolation, BA IEMs have an advantage with the downside of easily creating a vaccuum seal (uncomfortable)

Technology: BA, DD, Hybrid, exotic drivers...
I only have extensive experience with DD and all-BA IEMs, and to me they are very different. My Sony IER-M9 is precise, like a microscope, presenting the music in all it's details, with a very focused (miniature) sound stage.
My DD IEMs are all smoother, but emotionally more engaging and more dynamic, grander, but less focused, which simply lets me enjoy the music.
I am sure that there are BA IEMs which are closer to the DDs, but I have not heard them.

A good starting poing IMO is Crinacle's list: https://crinacle.com/rankings/iems/

If you are looking at DDs, the Xelento has come down in price quite a bit (I had the A&K version) the EX1000 is a very special IEM but hard to find, the JVC FDX1 or a modded FD01 or FD02 are great value.

One very special IEM is the Sony IER-Z1R, but that's far above the €1000 limit.

The very best would be if you could actually listen to a number of IEMs and make up your mind about them.
Unfortunately not easy in Europe... I had a chance last year in Japa, where you can listen to hundreds of IEMs at the e-earphones stores. Incredibly valuable experience to identify interesting products.

Hope that helps.

Cheers!

 

[Meester]

As always, making a recommendation that will suit your needs is really difficult and what sounds gerat to one, may not sound great to you.

That said, a couple of things to consider:

Fit and comfort: Even more important than with headphones, fit and seal are highly personal and often require extensive testing and tip-rolling. Also connected with that is the isolation annd bleeding of sound. Not a big issue IMO even with vented DDs, but for maximum isolation, BA IEMs have an advantage with the downside of easily creating a vaccuum seal (uncomfortable)

Technology: BA, DD, Hybrid, exotic drivers...
I only have extensive experience with DD and all-BA IEMs, and to me they are very different. My Sony IER-M9 is precise, like a microscope, presenting the music in all it's details, with a very focused (miniature) sound stage.
My DD IEMs are all smoother, but emotionally more engaging and more dynamic, grander, but less focused, which simply lets me enjoy the music.
I am sure that there are BA IEMs which are closer to the DDs, but I have not heard them.

A good starting poing IMO is Crinacle's list: https://crinacle.com/rankings/iems/

If you are looking at DDs, the Xelento has come down in price quite a bit (I had the A&K version) the EX1000 is a very special IEM but hard to find, the JVC FDX1 or a modded FD01 or FD02 are great value.

One very special IEM is the Sony IER-Z1R, but that's far above the €1000 limit.

The very best would be if you could actually listen to a number of IEMs and make up your mind about them.
Unfortunately not easy in Europe... I had a chance last year in Japa, where you can listen to hundreds of IEMs at the e-earphones stores. Incredibly valuable experience to identify interesting products.

Hope that helps.

Cheers!

hi,

thank you for your reply..

never looked to the kind of technic..
Could you explain some?

unlucky listening options are rare in Europe..

 

[surfgeorge]

hi,

thank you for your reply..

never looked to the kind of technic..
Could you explain some?

unlucky listening options are rare in Europe..

About the drivers - main technologies are the DD (Dynamic Driver) which are miniature cone drivers, like in regular speakers, the other is BA, Balanced Armature, a very tiny and fast driver (check Youtube)
DDs tend to sound more natural (timbre), are potentially slower and have lower resolution. But a good DD has very natural attack and decay, and moves more air, potentially making them more dynamic and powerful.
The degrees of freedom to tune DDs are limited, because you have 1 driver and have to work with the shell shape and venting and it's difficult to control and position resonance peaks.

BA is so fast that it can sound almost unnaturally fast, especially with decay, favoring resolution over a natural sound. That precision can also lead to very precise sound stage positioning, and because they are so small one single IEM can contain many drivers (it's not uncommon to have 8 or even 18 drivers per side). That allows a very precise frequency tuning, but also makes the construction really complicated and difficult to get the shell and channels right and the crossover electronics.

Combining both you get a Hybrid IEM, typically with DD for bass and BA for mids/treble, but it's hard to make it sound coherent with the different drivers.

So each design has it's strengths and weaknesses.

Yes, it really is hard for us in the EU. In Asia you can go and listen in the shops, in the US you can buy and return. In EU the best options are maybe buying used to try out and limit losses if you decided to re-sell.

What kind of music are you listening to and in under which circumstances? At home, commuting, in the office?

PS: I have IEMs with widely different costs, and while there's no doubt that technically my Sony IER-M9 are the best in my collection, I almost enjoy the music more with the cheap JVC FD02. Food for thought

 

[Meester]

About the drivers - main technologies are the DD (Dynamic Driver) which are miniature cone drivers, like in regular speakers, the other is BA, Balanced Armature, a very tiny and fast driver (check Youtube)
DDs tend to sound more natural (timbre), are potentially slower and have lower resolution. But a good DD has very natural attack and decay, and moves more air, potentially making them more dynamic and powerful.
The degrees of freedom to tune DDs are limited, because you have 1 driver and have to work with the shell shape and venting and it's difficult to control and position resonance peaks.

BA is so fast that it can sound almost unnaturally fast, especially with decay, favoring resolution over a natural sound. That precision can also lead to very precise sound stage positioning, and because they are so small one single IEM can contain many drivers (it's not uncommon to have 8 or even 18 drivers per side). That allows a very precise frequency tuning, but also makes the construction really complicated and difficult to get the shell and channels right and the crossover electronics.

Combining both you get a Hybrid IEM, typically with DD for bass and BA for mids/treble, but it's hard to make it sound coherent with the different drivers.

So each design has it's strengths and weaknesses.

Yes, it really is hard for us in the EU. In Asia you can go and listen in the shops, in the US you can buy and return. In EU the best options are maybe buying used to try out and limit losses if you decided to re-sell.

What kind of music are you listening to and in under which circumstances? At home, commuting, in the office?

hi,

this helps a lot..
So I have tried like the Shure 535.. on my fiio..
I sold the 535 because it isn’t what I am looking for.
i don’t want make the mistake to buy again and sell it with lost money, especially at my price range..
so I am not looking for a fun iem.. for that I am using my mtw2 of Sennheiser..
I need some detailed iem.. for a lot music.. the genre depends regarding my mood..
In common I listen to soul r&b pop hip-hop, but I also listen to symphonic music of orchestras, vocal music like andrea Bocelli ..
Electronic music like Woodkid, even metal/ rock

 

[surfgeorge]

hi,

this helps a lot..
So I have tried like the Shure 535.. on my fiio..
I sold the 535 because it isn’t what I am looking for.
i don’t want make the mistake to buy again and sell it with lost money, especially at my price range..
so I am not looking for a fun iem.. for that I am using my mtw2 of Sennheiser..
I need some detailed iem.. for a lot music.. the genre depends regarding my mood..
In common I listen to soul r&b pop hip-hop, but I also listen to symphonic music of orchestras, vocal music like andrea Bocelli ..
Electronic music like Woodkid, even metal/ rock

That also helps!
Crinacle writes about the 535: Tonally dead. One-note bass. No treble worth mentioning.
If you can say more about what you didn't like it would also help.

Generally sounds like you need a safe, slightly fun tuning, since you want to cover so many different genres, or maybe go for 2 different IEMs, one more V-shaped for pop and hip hop and another one with more mid/high focus for vocals and orchestra, and maybe one BA and one DD IEM...

The IE800S might actually work, but I have not heard it so can't speak about it.
Sony XBA-N3 is a very good balance between refinement and fun IMO, might be worth a look (Hybrid, DD bass + BA mid/treble)
Moondrop Blessing 2 is very popular but in short supply at the moment (Aliepress, Shezenaudio), but I think you'd need another one with more bass.
I'm still a big fan of the JVC FD02 or FD01 which you can buy from Amazon Japan, but need to modify, OR the JVC FDX1 from DROP in the US (factory modified)

Take a look at those and report back what you think of them.

 

[IEMusic]

In addition to the great JVC FDX1/FD01/FD02 or Moondrop Blessing 2,

Other considerations include the Tanchjim Oxygen (best overall), Moondrop Starfield (best price for performance), or Moondrop KXXS if wanting a Harman-tuned IEM.

Since you like the HD800S, I would think you like treble, so the new Tanchjim Hana is a consideration. There may be some coming up for sale soon, since some people found it to be too bright for them.

Basically, you don’t HAVE to spend €1000 to get a great IEM.

 

[arch023]

I suggest looking into CA andromedas, they are quite warm but not too warm. its laidback yet has incredible sparkle in the top end. Its my go to when i'm tired with my anole vx or looking for a relaxing signature that i can listen on to hours. Its quite well balanced in my opinion. I have also borrowed the ie800(not ie800s) from a friend of mine, and i found it very flat and boring in comparison to andromeda. I have not listened to the hd800s so i can't give you any comparisons of it with the andromedas

 

[Meester]

I suggest looking into CA andromedas, they are quite warm but not too warm. its laidback yet has incredible sparkle in the top end. Its my go to when i'm tired with my anole vx or looking for a relaxing signature that i can listen on to hours. Its quite well balanced in my opinion. I have also borrowed the ie800(not ie800s) from a friend of mine, and i found it very flat and boring in comparison to andromeda. I have not listened to the hd800s so i can't give you any comparisons of it with the andromedas

thank you for your reply do you think the ie800 could stand in these times iem’s?

 

[arch023]

thank you for your reply do you think the ie800 could stand in these times iem’s?

I personally do not like the ie800, I read somewhere that it depends on how your ear canal is shaped, they will sound amazing or absolute worthless. For me it sounds too neutral. Maybe you like a very neutral sound signature if that's the case than Andromedas will sound livelier, with better mids. I cant say much since its been a while since i last heard the ie800. keep in mind, that the andromedas is a 5BA setup while the senn IE800 are DD, i personally prefer BAs simply because of speed.

 

[Meester]

I personally do not like the ie800, I read somewhere that it depends on how your ear canal is shaped, they will sound amazing or absolute worthless. For me it sounds too neutral. Maybe you like a very neutral sound signature if that's the case than Andromedas will sound livelier, with better mids. I cant say much since its been a while since i last heard the ie800. keep in mind, that the andromedas is a 5BA setup while the senn IE800 are DD, i personally prefer BAs simply because of speed.

Ok thank You..

What do you think about the meze rai penta?

 

[arch023]

Ive never heard them but they from what i read they have better separation and have more emphasis on the high mids than over the andromeda. While the andromeda's has better low mids, it also has better soundstaging and spacing.

So overall if you listen to very dense music with many different instruments, i suggest the pentai

if you love more intimate forward vocal and better sound staging, and more full bodied sound, go andros

 

[arch023]

I suggest you find a way to audition, or buy from somewhere where you can return the iems if you dislike the sound. Its all preference. and the source also affects the sound signature. Audition them with your own gear and see how you like it if possible. But if you had to blind buy, either would be a good choice.

 

[Deolum]

If you live in Europe you should try to audition the InEar Prophile 8 which are made in Germany. If you get a good fit and seal they are the best IEMs i've heard till today and still my only pair.

 

[Meester]

I suggest you find a way to audition, or buy from somewhere where you can return the iems if you dislike the sound. Its all preference. and the source also affects the sound signature. Audition them with your own gear and see how you like it if possible. But if you had to blind buy, either would be a good choice.

yes ofcourse that would be the best, here in our country it is a bit hard. To return them, there are some webshops giving this possibility but they don’t sell these kind of stuff..
lucky I found a store specialized in headphones especially high end.. giving it a try to visit them