seanwee
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- Jun 9, 2015
- Posts
- 4,799
- Likes
- 3,375
FDX1 with the green filters. Not stock.
When stock it has piercing treble.
When stock it has piercing treble.
CHIFI LOVE Thread-A never ending IEM-Heaphones-DAP-Dongles Sound Value Quest
- Thread starter NymPHONOmaniac
- Start date
OpiateSkittles
100+ Head-Fier
I have an SPC cable on my T4, and I wish I could justify spending the money on a pure silver one, lol. Still trying to find an ideal cable for the FDX1. I'm thinking about getting a quality SPC/OCC mix cable like the Satin Audio Theia. Right now, I just have a cheap copper one on them but it works with the 9038s feeding them.
kmmbd
500+ Head-Fier
TRN VX
Unboxing and First Impressions
It's raining IEMs lately, as one new release after another has got us constantly distracted.
TRN VX (their flagship?) is a 7 driver hybrid IEM, with 1 DD for the lows and 6 BA handling the mids and treble. Talk about overkill.
Firstly, the packaging is barebones. TRN definitely cut corners here as they didn't even bother to put a carrying pouch/case in a ~$75 IEM. There are also only 3 pairs of eartips, no foam tips or such extras. The cable is rather poor given the price range and I'd recommend a third-party cable mostly due to durability concerns (stock cable is thin and the memory wire is too springy).
Build, on the other hand, is pretty good. The green version especially looks gorgeous, though those grooves on the back make them particularly difficult to photograph (I'm never quite sure of the area in focus). The finishing is also good with the earpiece joint being flush with no noticeable mis-alignment. One thing I noticed is how slippery the housing is, as you can see from the unboxing video attached below. On another note: these don't look or feel like the Rai Penta from up-close, for those who were wondering.
As for the sound, the bass is pretty good. It's not too over-the-top but extends well and has a moderately good speed (albeit lagging behind the accompanying BA drivers). My biggest concern was tonal coherency given the numerous drivers used here and the bass does feel a bit detached from the rest of the frequencies. Fortunately it's not distracting enough to stand out.
The lower-mids are recessed and thin, male vocals lack heft and snare hits have an initially thin attack. Upper-mids and lower-treble take a front seat. Bright/Energetic/Harsh - pick your nomenclature. There is a hint of sibilance but it's nowhere near as prominent as the TRN V80 of the yesterday. Despite that, the 4KHz boost is too much. It's make everything sound shiny and brutally murders the timbre.
There must a be a few Geneva convention breaches there.
Treble is on-your-face. If you're a treble-head, rejoice. If you're treble-averse, keep some painkillers handy. If you're somewhat in-between, you'll be impressed by the apparent details on display and then suddenly things will get too hot.
Soundstage is decent, imaging is fairly good, might even be very good. Gotta check that in the full review. Hopefully I can wrap that up soon.
Unboxing and First Impressions
It's raining IEMs lately, as one new release after another has got us constantly distracted.
TRN VX (their flagship?) is a 7 driver hybrid IEM, with 1 DD for the lows and 6 BA handling the mids and treble. Talk about overkill.
Firstly, the packaging is barebones. TRN definitely cut corners here as they didn't even bother to put a carrying pouch/case in a ~$75 IEM. There are also only 3 pairs of eartips, no foam tips or such extras. The cable is rather poor given the price range and I'd recommend a third-party cable mostly due to durability concerns (stock cable is thin and the memory wire is too springy).
Build, on the other hand, is pretty good. The green version especially looks gorgeous, though those grooves on the back make them particularly difficult to photograph (I'm never quite sure of the area in focus). The finishing is also good with the earpiece joint being flush with no noticeable mis-alignment. One thing I noticed is how slippery the housing is, as you can see from the unboxing video attached below. On another note: these don't look or feel like the Rai Penta from up-close, for those who were wondering.
As for the sound, the bass is pretty good. It's not too over-the-top but extends well and has a moderately good speed (albeit lagging behind the accompanying BA drivers). My biggest concern was tonal coherency given the numerous drivers used here and the bass does feel a bit detached from the rest of the frequencies. Fortunately it's not distracting enough to stand out.
The lower-mids are recessed and thin, male vocals lack heft and snare hits have an initially thin attack. Upper-mids and lower-treble take a front seat. Bright/Energetic/Harsh - pick your nomenclature. There is a hint of sibilance but it's nowhere near as prominent as the TRN V80 of the yesterday. Despite that, the 4KHz boost is too much. It's make everything sound shiny and brutally murders the timbre.
There must a be a few Geneva convention breaches there.
Treble is on-your-face. If you're a treble-head, rejoice. If you're treble-averse, keep some painkillers handy. If you're somewhat in-between, you'll be impressed by the apparent details on display and then suddenly things will get too hot.
Soundstage is decent, imaging is fairly good, might even be very good. Gotta check that in the full review. Hopefully I can wrap that up soon.
IEMusic
Headphoneus Supremus
I’m pretty cheap when it comes to cables. Because it wasn’t expensive. I tried the TRN T3 cables, which are supposedly silver cables. I was skeptical of it, but I immediately noticed a difference, particularly in the upper mids and treble. I’ve since purchased 2 more T3 cables. The BL03 also sounds great with it.
OpiateSkittles
100+ Head-Fier
I've seen that and heard good things, but right now FDX1 cable takes priority. I'm happy with the sound of my Tripowen Zonie on the T4. Very high quality cable for the money. I've also got a C8 that isn't being used right now. Maybe I'll try that on for s's and g's.
DBaldock9
Headphoneus Supremus
wackoip
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- May 12, 2014
- Posts
- 113
- Likes
- 105
I'm an in betweener for treble. Yep at times I was amazed by the details they can display but 50% of the time it suddenly gets too hot. It helps just a little bit with a coppoer cable and narrow bore tips but I find it just too harsh on trebleTRN VX
Unboxing and First Impressions
It's raining IEMs lately, as one new release after another has got us constantly distracted.
TRN VX (their flagship?) is a 7 driver hybrid IEM, with 1 DD for the lows and 6 BA handling the mids and treble. Talk about overkill.
Firstly, the packaging is barebones. TRN definitely cut corners here as they didn't even bother to put a carrying pouch/case in a ~$75 IEM. There are also only 3 pairs of eartips, no foam tips or such extras. The cable is rather poor given the price range and I'd recommend a third-party cable mostly due to durability concerns (stock cable is thin and the memory wire is too springy).
Build, on the other hand, is pretty good. The green version especially looks gorgeous, though those grooves on the back make them particularly difficult to photograph (I'm never quite sure of the area in focus). The finishing is also good with the earpiece joint being flush with no noticeable mis-alignment. One thing I noticed is how slippery the housing is, as you can see from the unboxing video attached below. On another note: these don't look or feel like the Rai Penta from up-close, for those who were wondering.
As for the sound, the bass is pretty good. It's not too over-the-top but extends well and has a moderately good speed (albeit lagging behind the accompanying BA drivers). My biggest concern was tonal coherency given the numerous drivers used here and the bass does feel a bit detached from the rest of the frequencies. Fortunately it's not distracting enough to stand out.
The lower-mids are recessed and thin, male vocals lack heft and snare hits have an initially thin attack. Upper-mids and lower-treble take a front seat. Bright/Energetic/Harsh - pick your nomenclature. There is a hint of sibilance but it's nowhere near as prominent as the TRN V80 of the yesterday. Despite that, the 4KHz boost is too much. It's make everything sound shiny and brutally murders the timbre.
There must a be a few Geneva convention breaches there.
Treble is on-your-face. If you're a treble-head, rejoice. If you're treble-averse, keep some painkillers handy. If you're somewhat in-between, you'll be impressed by the apparent details on display and then suddenly things will get too hot.
Soundstage is decent, imaging is fairly good, might even be very good. Gotta check that in the full review. Hopefully I can wrap that up soon.
This is after 106 hours approx burn in.
...vs. BA5?
wackoip
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- May 12, 2014
- Posts
- 113
- Likes
- 105
Sorry havent got BA5 not an all BA fan......
I have one on the way so I will post my impressions when I eventually receive them.
It's the collaborative effort with moondrop, ain't it?
I have no idea to be honest but it doesn't look like it.
mochill
Headphoneus Supremus
1. Brand: KBEAR
2. Model: KS2
3. Earphone type: In Ear
4. Impedance: 16Ω
5. Earphone sensitivity: 106dB at 1KHZ 1mW
6. Frequency response range: 20-20KHz
7. Plug Type: 3.5mm
8.Color: Black; Green
9.Whether with cable: Yes
10.Earphone connector: 0.78mm 2Pin
11.Whether with mic: with mic/without mic
12.Whether can use replacement cable: Yes
13.Driver unit: 10mm composite diaphragm(biological diaphragm+PU) dynamic driver+balanced armature
2. Model: KS2
3. Earphone type: In Ear
4. Impedance: 16Ω
5. Earphone sensitivity: 106dB at 1KHZ 1mW
6. Frequency response range: 20-20KHz
7. Plug Type: 3.5mm
8.Color: Black; Green
9.Whether with cable: Yes
10.Earphone connector: 0.78mm 2Pin
11.Whether with mic: with mic/without mic
12.Whether can use replacement cable: Yes
13.Driver unit: 10mm composite diaphragm(biological diaphragm+PU) dynamic driver+balanced armature
1. Brand: KBEAR
2. Model: KS2
3. Earphone type: In Ear
4. Impedance: 16Ω
5. Earphone sensitivity: 106dB at 1KHZ 1mW
6. Frequency response range: 20-20KHz
7. Plug Type: 3.5mm
8.Color: Black; Green
9.Whether with cable: Yes
10.Earphone connector: 0.78mm 2Pin
11.Whether with mic: with mic/without mic
12.Whether can use replacement cable: Yes
13.Driver unit: 10mm composite diaphragm(biological diaphragm+PU) dynamic driver+balanced armature
That's the one. I have the black variant on the way and no idea on the ETA.
Yeah I am treble sensitive and didn't like the upper mids/lower treble on the TRN VX, though I appreciate the good technicalities it brings to the table. Trebleheads will probably like the default TRN VX tuning though.
Thankfully, I found a few ways to tame the upper mids/lower treble, and the TRN VX sounds good for me after these methods:
1) Foam tips/narrow bore tips -> different folks have different ear anatomies and the TRN VX is tip sensitive, so u gotta try it to see what works for you.
2) Warm source with the VX helps
3) EQ - specifically to lower the 2, 4 and 8 kHz areas by around 3 dB helps.
4) Micropore mod -> stick a 2.5 mm x 2.5 mm 3M brand Micropore over the centre of the nozzle mesh. Lowers the upper mids. Don't cover entire mesh if not it will sound muffled!
5) Perhaps if u believe in copper cables taming treble (and ain't a cable skeptic), u can try that too, as the stock cable of the VX isn't the best. But I would think that cable changes to sound signature would be very subtle compared to the above methods. YMMV.
I personally use the TRN VX nowadays with EQ or the micropore mod, but I know some folks will probably find it too troublesome and wanna just listen to an IEM as it is OOTB.
Last edited:
Users who are viewing this thread
