[chinmie]

Good advice.
The BL03 may look a little better than the Cardinal, metal look vs plastic look, if that's your preference (I tend to agree with you). That said, the shape of the Cardinal fits oh so much better (at least in my ears). We all would prefer a complete package but I'll take sound and fit over looks any day. I can't see it anyway

Other benefit of the BL03 might also be less protruding compared to the Cardinal, so might benefit as a more comfortable IEM for sleeping sideways

 

[RikudouGoku]

@fendiking Moondrop Starfield and the upcoming fearless audio Stellar "may" be good candidates, I say "may" because there is no reviews on them but the 2 brands are very good at what they are doing

 

[fendiking]

If it is just single CHIFI DD IEMs like the BLON, based on your requirements I would recommend you to check out:
1) TFZ No. 3 - more subbass extension and midbass quantity than the BLONs. Better technicalities (instrument separation, clarity, details, imaging) also. Soundstage and timbre slightly less good as the BLONs, but isolation is much better. It may be a bit brighter than the BLONs in the 2 - 4 kHz and 8kHz areas, but this gives it more sparkle and details than the BLON as such, so it's a tradeoff.

2) Semkarch SKC CNT1 - there's 2 filters, the gold one makes it more neutralish/brighter, whereas the black one makes it more bassy. It has better technicalities than the BLON, better fit. With black filters, the bass quantity is thereabouts, but it is faster in the bass than the BLONs. Also the lower mids are boosted relative to upper mids so male voices are more forward than female ones. But it is quite a nicely tuned set, no harsh peaks/valleys. BLON's timbre is slightly better.

3) Toneking Ninetails - has front + rear filters to give 9 tuning options, from V shaped to basshead to neutralish. On the 2nd most bassy filter config, it sounds a bit like the BLON but with better technicals, better soundstage. Isolation is weaker than BLONs. It looks weird but is actually very comfortable and well fitting. On most config options the BLON sounds to me to have more mids still than the Ninetails, so if u like the mids of the BLON, do be aware. BLON's timbre is slightly better.

4) BLON Cardinal/Bluejay - assuming u get a legit set. I think u can ask the sellers first before buying which set they have in stock. Mine is the "audition" type with no nozzles. It has similar tuning to the BLON BL-03, but with more subbass extension/quantity. Better fit/soundstage, better technicals. Stock tips/cables work fine OOTB, so no need to mess around.

If you want something pricier, do check out the Moondrop KXXS and Tanchjim Oxygen. I don't have them, but they generally have good reviews for a single DD set.

One other set that is not a single DD but that is warm and bassy like the BLON is the NiceHCK M6 (4 BA + 2 DD). Somewhat similar tonality and timbre, it has 3 tuning stock filters, but they are slightly gimicky. Definitely has better details/imaging/clarity/instrument separation than the BL-03, but might be bassier in the midbass with the default tuning nozzles.

All the best in your search!

thank you for your detailed reply

 

[fendiking]

@fendiking Moondrop Starfield and the upcoming fearless audio Stellar "may" be good candidates, I say "may" because there is no reviews on them but the 2 brands are very good at what they are doing

I’ll keep an “ear” out for their reviews. Thank you

 

[TimeSnow]

thank you

Tried the Earfits today and holy sh!t. Super super super tight sounding now.

Lovely combination. Will try a few more things and report back!

 

[TimeSnow]

Im interested in the cardinal as people talk about a cleaner/more detailed soind with out loosing the tuning of the bl-03.

But thing is the cardinal looks like every other "simple" plastic iem and de the bl-03 got the looks in my opinion.

I gotta say the Cardinal looks like anything BUT cheap plastic in real life. Super shiny and sturdy feeling. I prefer the look to the 03s having them both side by side.

 

[jsmiller58]

I gotta say the Cardinal looks like anything BUT cheap plastic in real life. Super shiny and sturdy feeling. I prefer the look to the 03s having them both side by side.

Love them both. Neither is cheap looking to me. But most importantly they both sound great. Happy to keep both in my rotation.

 

[TimeSnow]

So I'm now using an old LZ A4 upgrade cable - I think it was 50usd new about 1.5 years ago... And the AZLA earfits.

Sounds amazing. Noticeably better and wider soundstage. Tighter again across the board. Very neutral sounding now actually. So in that respect quite different to the 03s at the moment. The GF is happy as I gave her the 03s and she prefers them because "they're bassier".

Anyway, really really happy I bought the Cardinals now.

 

[HungryPanda]

Bought the Cardinal a few days ago and today got a message from seller saying they are not being manufactured and they cannot take down the listing so had to raise a dispute

 

[kukkurovaca]

So, I spent some time updating my impression of the BL03 today, and I pretty much feel the same, I think.

• They're very good value (poor earguides on the cable aside)
• The tuning is very pleasant for those who like things to run on the warm and dark side, and the fact that many people are so impressed with the BL03 speaks I think to the fact that there is unmet demand for this kind of tuning.
• I still don't think they're super source/power dependent, apart from the bass being a bit tighter and cleaner with higher output sources, which is common. FWIW, I didn't try it with any legitimately bad sources, 'cause I don't have any, but they don't sound particularly different on the ES100 single-ended output, which is definitely underpowered for hard-to-drive IEMs. (Other sources used: SR-71A, Onkyo DPS1, ES100 balanced, CDM single-ended and balanced, Phatlab Phantasy) They don't seem to respond strongly one way or another to high source impedance.
• The only things I would personally consider faults are: the subbass extension could be better, and it's not super resolving. For the price, nothing to complain about. I don't think I experience the issues others do with busy passages of music, but maybe that reflects what I'm listening to, or maybe I'm less picky about this. I would personally prefer a less forward midbass, probably, but I don't think it's a flaw as such.

Out of curiosity, for those who do find the Blons muddy or smeared on busy passages, what are some example tracks where it's particularly bad?

 

[Robius]

Damn that sound change from Spinfit Cp100 to KZ tips! I've been using BL-03 with spinfit Cp100's since the first day I tried them with KZ tips today and sound become fuller and soundstage got wider.

I'm talking about these KZ tips: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32726427364.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.6b324c4dzVENyD

 

[fendiking]

Damn that sound change from Spinfit Cp100 to KZ tips! I've been using BL-03 with spinfit Cp100's since the first day I tried them with KZ tips today and sound become fuller and soundstage got wider.

I'm talking about these KZ tips: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32726427364.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.6b324c4dzVENyD

crap just ordered spinfit CP145 in large. Hope sound isn’t to drastic

 

[Kressel]

I'm using Shure olives, the smallest one. Cut the small grid in the front and force it in the nozzle. Sounds good with great isolation.

 

[F700]

My "Cardinals" arrived today. No filter and "Audition" written on the shell

 

[RyuzakiL26]

Hi, I'm planning to step my toe on the DD universe and I'm just wondering if Blon-BL03 can beat the Sound Magic E11C in terms of overall SQ? If you happen to own both of these, please do share your experience with them.

Thanks