[Layman1]

Storm has become a bit of a meme in some quarters due to delays with production, inconsistent reports from London, present radio silence, as well a curious and blunderous lack of appearance at CanJam SoCal. That said does it really have a noteworthy bass response? That's what I was responding to mostly...I thought it was fundamentally a reference monitor.

Well, I had a brief listen, so take anything I say as a mere guide and indeed with a pinch of salt
To give an idea of my impressions, I was very impressed by both the Fir Xe6 and Kr5 which I listened to alongside the Storm.

I listened to Kr5 after Xe6, and what struck me about the Kr5 was that it had a *comparatively* much more neutral-sounding tuning to me, but with a really outstanding low end, great rumble and slam. I really enjoyed it.

With the Storm, which I listened to after the Kr5, my immediate impression was that I felt it to have a huge, holographic soundstage, sounded very airy and open, exquisitely detailed and yes, quite reference. But not at all sterile or boring, and the bass struck me as certainly being fairly elevated, with more slam/impact than rumble. Not as much in quantity as Kr5, but far from neutral
So I could describe the sound signature of the IEM overall (and very simplistically) as reference+bass, with, I'd guess, more of a sub-bass emphasis than mid-bass.

With all these impressions, bear in mind that I was listening to it immediately after listening to Kr5 (they were both on the table in front of me).
So if I hear it as having an elevated bass as opposed to neutral, that's even after having just listened to the Kr5, if that makes sense!

You know (I'd assume!) how if you go from (e.g.) Dorado 2020 or EXT to most other IEMs, they might sound a bit anaemic in comparison until your brain has time to adjust
But that wasn't the case going from Kr5 to the Storm.

Would have to hear again to give anything more detailed.
But I can simply say that I listened to it, and was very impressed. This doesn't happen to me often, even with other flagship level gear. It just sounded to me like one of those IEMs that you'd guess are among the elite ones out there.

NB: I was listening using a Nayparm-hardware-modded Sony ZX300 and an iFi Gryphon (sound tweaking functions engaged and disengaged).
My impressions are based on that combo with sound-tweaking functions disengaged.
Listening to rock, pop and acoustic tracks.

I feel you and I have very similar taste in IEMs, based on what I've read of your preferences so far - hence why I'm inclined to trust your judgement of the Trifecta more than others that I've read, simply because your descriptions and tastes (e.g. with EXT and Dorado 2020, amongst several others) matched my own experience and thoughts.
So again, take that with a pinch of salt, but just putting it out there, for what it's worth

 

[Layman1]

NB: Just realised this was being posted on the Supermoon thread rather than the Watercooler!
So apologies for being a bit off-topic. Feel free to quote my post over on the Watercooler thread if you feel it could be of use!

 

[Rockwell75]

Well, I had a brief listen, so take anything I say as a mere guide and indeed with a pinch of salt
To give an idea of my impressions, I was very impressed by both the Fir Xe6 and Kr5 which I listened to alongside the Storm.

I listened to Kr5 after Xe6, and what struck me about the Kr5 was that it had a *comparatively* much more neutral-sounding tuning to me, but with a really outstanding low end, great rumble and slam. I really enjoyed it.

With the Storm, which I listened to after the Kr5, my immediate impression was that I felt it to have a huge, holographic soundstage, sounded very airy and open, exquisitely detailed and yes, quite reference. But not at all sterile or boring, and the bass struck me as certainly being fairly elevated, with more slam/impact than rumble. Not as much in quantity as Kr5, but far from neutral
So I could describe the sound signature of the IEM overall (and very simplistically) as reference+bass, with, I'd guess, more of a sub-bass emphasis than mid-bass.

With all these impressions, bear in mind that I was listening to it immediately after listening to Kr5 (they were both on the table in front of me).
So if I hear it as having an elevated bass as opposed to neutral, that's even after having just listened to the Kr5, if that makes sense!

You know (I'd assume!) how if you go from (e.g.) Dorado 2020 or EXT to most other IEMs, they might sound a bit anaemic in comparison until your brain has time to adjust
But that wasn't the case going from Kr5 to the Storm.

Would have to hear again to give anything more detailed.
But I can simply say that I listened to it, and was very impressed. This doesn't happen to me often, even with other flagship level gear. It just sounded to me like one of those IEMs that you'd guess are among the elite ones out there.

NB: I was listening using a Nayparm-hardware-modded Sony ZX300 and an iFi Gryphon (sound tweaking functions engaged and disengaged).
My impressions are based on that combo with sound-tweaking functions disengaged.
Listening to rock, pop and acoustic tracks.

I feel you and I have very similar taste in IEMs, based on what I've read of your preferences so far - hence why I'm inclined to trust your judgement of the Trifecta more than others that I've read, simply because your descriptions and tastes (e.g. with EXT and Dorado 2020, amongst several others) matched my own experience and thoughts.
So again, take that with a pinch of salt, but just putting it out there, for what it's worth

Thanks these are probably the most substantive and interesting thoughts on Storm I've heard yet and yes, as you say this is in large measure due to our similarity in tastes (our shared love of the Dorado 2020 in particular). That said at its rumoured price of ~$5K it's right out of consideration for me, no matter how good it may or may not be. If it is this good I hope its makers get their act together and get them into discerning ears sooner than later. But yeah, Trifecta put a spell on me and I'm presently biding my time until I can snag a used one as I know it will be a divisive IEM and not everyone will love it. Classic CFA in other words.

 

[Skullar]

Storm level bass? You mean that IEM nobody is sure really exists?

Haha. Well at least you havent preordered one lol. The wait is tormenting for some who did.
Its imminent though.

Just because it did not appear in US does not mean its a catastrophe.

 

[drspeter]

Damn. I missed the chance to buy supermoom at 1100. Does anyone know if such discount is rare or at least once of twice a year thing? If they provide UIEM option at a cheaper price (as CIEMs are several hundreds more for kilobuck IEMs), it must be a blind buy endgame for me.

 

[mgmvegas]

I'm thinking of going in on this ....I have the Shanling M8 is that a good pairing ?

I'm also looking to buy a decent desk top amp maybe BURSON - will these be aa good match

 

[Layman1]

Damn. I missed the chance to buy supermoom at 1100. Does anyone know if such discount is rare or at least once of twice a year thing? If they provide UIEM option at a cheaper price (as CIEMs are several hundreds more for kilobuck IEMs), it must be a blind buy endgame for me.

Well, I can't say for sure, but it's pretty common for IEMs to have 10-25% discount during Black Friday and also some USA-specific holidays.
Given Campfire are also a proudly American company, I'd guess that you'd still have at least a couple of sale price opportunities before the year is out.
I'm pretty sure they've done it in previous years, but can't remember for sure, so take these words as guidance rather than gospel

 

[Skullar]

Well, I can't say for sure, but it's pretty common for IEMs to have 10-25% discount during Black Friday and also some USA-specific holidays.
Given Campfire are also a proudly American company, I'd guess that you'd still have at least a couple of sale price opportunities before the year is out.
I'm pretty sure they've done it in previous years, but can't remember for sure, so take these words as guidance rather than gospel

Whichever way. The price of 1.1k is a bloody steal. I have apid full price and still think is well worth it.

 

[yaps66]

Damn. I missed the chance to buy supermoom at 1100. Does anyone know if such discount is rare or at least once of twice a year thing? If they provide UIEM option at a cheaper price (as CIEMs are several hundreds more for kilobuck IEMs), it must be a blind buy endgame for me.

It is currently a CIEM only iem and while there are a number of universal demos floating around, good luck finding them! I got mine from a contact in Singapore who found one in China. I think if you wait for the sale to come back, you will find the CIEM to be cheaper than the universal. The universals are currently holding its value owing to scarcity. I did hear somewhere though that CA are considering a universal release but only after they have completed orders for the CIEM.

 

[iamcat]

Sorry to ask...may I know the unit comes with 2.5 or 4.4 or 3.5? My local shop has the demo with 3.5 which makes me not interested to test. I now use balance 2.5 or 4.4

 

[yaps66]

Sorry to ask...may I know the unit comes with 2.5 or 4.4 or 3.5? My local shop has the demo with 3.5 which makes me not interested to test. I now use balance 2.5 or 4.4

Some were 3.5 and some were 4.4. Mine was 4.4. Not sure how It was distributed.

 

[Schugar]

They've arrived! Already hooked the Eletech Plato up to them and put them through several tracks out of my library. First impressions I actually like these better than the UIEM version by a large margin, but granted I said previously here my left ear has an odd fit for UIEMs in general and even my audiologist says I've got the smallest ear canals she has ever seen.

Be that as it may with the UIEM version I felt like it was necessity to use foam tips to get the upper range a bit more comfortable for my tastes. With the CIEM version however everything comes through just perfectly and even more so the bass sounds so much more grand on the CIEM version than I recall it sounding on the UIEM (could be due to me just not getting the best of seals on the UIEM). The lower mids still feel about the same on the CIEM maybe a tad more clear than the UIEM, but still the only thing I feel like may be a tad lacking (again not enough to deduce a lack of clarity just not as emphasized and overall still pleasant).

Hot take right now is I'm likely going to enjoy these over my clears or empyreans to some degree. I guess I'm all aboard the hype train on these so far as they are truly exceptional for the price.

 

[yaps66]

They've arrived! Already hooked the Eletech Plato up to them and put them through several tracks out of my library. First impressions I actually like these better than the UIEM version by a large margin, but granted I said previously here my left ear has an odd fit for UIEMs in general and even my audiologist says I've got the smallest ear canals she has ever seen.

Be that as it may with the UIEM version I felt like it was necessity to use foam tips to get the upper range a bit more comfortable for my tastes. With the CIEM version however everything comes through just perfectly and even more so the bass sounds so much more grand on the CIEM version than I recall it sounding on the UIEM (could be due to me just not getting the best of seals on the UIEM). The lower mids still feel about the same on the CIEM maybe a tad more clear than the UIEM, but still the only thing I feel like may be a tad lacking (again not enough to deduce a lack of clarity just not as emphasized and overall still pleasant).

Hot take right now is I'm likely going to enjoy these over my clears or empyreans to some degree. I guess I'm all aboard the hype train on these so far as they are truly exceptional for the price.

Great impressions! Looks like CIEM is the way to go with the SM which bears out CAs decision to go CIEM exclusive and only handing out limited demo universals. What they did not expect was the hype train for the universals which on hindsight may be a shame it was not anticipated and a lost opportunity given how well they were received.

One thing is clear as @Rockwell75 posited early on in the game and before the train even left the station, SM is a game changer for planar transducers in the iem market. Let's hope that CA is recognised for this and does benefit from the inadvertent hype!

 

[cn11]

I managed to snag a late demo univ. unit last week, and have been getting used to the sound. So far I am thoroughly enjoying levels of details & resolution, layering, and separation that I haven't heard in an IEM before. I do think upper mids into the treble can get a tad aggressive sometimes, but only when it's there in the music material. I put a Fiio LC-RE spc cable on it, and that seems to help open up the sense of space even a hair more than normal. Penon's new Obsidian cable is en route and I look forward to seeing how that affects SM's sound. The way the SM immerses the listener in total clarity, strewn out over a huge 3D stage, is quite something to behold. Awesome SQ to dollar value with this planar.

 

[Schugar]

I managed to snag a late demo univ. unit last week, and have been getting used to the sound. So far I am thoroughly enjoying levels of details & resolution, layering, and separation that I haven't heard in an IEM before. I do think upper mids into the treble can get a tad aggressive sometimes, but only when it's there in the music material. I put a Fiio LC-RE spc cable on it, and that seems to help open up the sense of space even a hair more than normal. Penon's new Obsidian cable is en route and I look forward to seeing how that affects SM's sound. The way the SM immerses the listener in total clarity, strewn out over a huge 3D stage, is quite something to behold. Awesome SQ to dollar value with this planar.

I will say when I demoed the UIEM version I just used the stock cable it came with. My CIEM version as soon as I got it I just took off the stock cable and put my Eletech Plato on it automatically so there could be variation on what I originally heard on the UIEM due to the silver plated copper litz it came with versus the pure silver I'm running on my CIEM. I was considering a new Cleopatra, but ironically I went with the Plato because it was a bit more of a neutral cable. That said I tend to consider those differences more variable when I listen and all I can say is the upper mid to treble on the CIEM doesn't sound as dominant to the rest of the frequency response as they were on the UIEM. I don't know if that boils down to it being tuned ever so slightly differently on the CIEM, but it is more pleasing to me than the UIEM I demoed.

That said I was listening to the orchestrated box set of Chrono Trigger ripped to FLAC (yes I'm a bit of a nerd) today and the Supermoon handled most of the range very well echoing much of my initial impressions from yesterday. A specific track Scars of Time from the Chrono Cross portion comes to mind that has a violin solo that was a bit much for me on the UIEM (foam tips made it better) and on the CIEM it is basically perfect for me.