[Wooglish]

Getting in the holiday mood...

 

[jeffreyw311]

I think it's a graph issue, but that's besides the point.

It isn't a graph issue. The argument was that the 4khz dip leads to some problems with tonality and timbre. That combined with the fact the BA-ness comes through strong might have some people figure there's a timbre or tonality issue with the IEM. I can see what the graphs mean when I listen to my typical Earth Wind and Fire test tracks but I can definitely see why people don't hear it or aren't really bothered by it. People love (rightfully so) the Campfire Audio Andromeda and that's a very BA sounding earphone.

So your mileage may vary. For what its worth, I prefer the Etymotic ER4SR over my Campfire Audio Andromedas for long listening periods. The timbre is a lot less BA-ish than most others.

 

[Kitechaser]

It isn't a graph issue. The argument was that the 4khz dip leads to some problems with tonality and timbre. That combined with the fact the BA-ness comes through strong might have some people figure there's a timbre or tonality issue with the IEM. I can see what the graphs mean when I listen to my typical Earth Wind and Fire test tracks but I can definitely see why people don't hear it or aren't really bothered by it. People love (rightfully so) the Campfire Audio Andromeda and that's a very BA sounding earphone.

So your mileage may vary. For what its worth, I prefer the Etymotic ER4SR over my Campfire Audio Andromedas for long listening periods. The timbre is a lot less BA-ish than most others.

Thanks for the breakdown. I'll be on the lookout for that issue when I get my hands on them. I am not a fan of that BA sound, so I'll be able to tell right away if this iem is for me or not.
Thanks

 

[davidmolliere]

Of all the things that come to mind regarding the Solaris, a BA-ish sound is the last that comes to mind... the DD covers both bass and mids and it clearly shows. Yes the highs clearly take the good aspects of great BA treble but other wise the mids and bass really have that DD quality that can't be mistaken.

Anyway not sure what a BA-ish timbre means, as some full BA IEM have quite accurate timbre while some DD have off timbre...not that I don't have a weakness for DD in that area but still timbre is not the thing that I would peg as the defintive advantage for DD over BA. Coherency now is another topic, but to me the Solaris is a highly coherent hybrid.

 

[Fatsosixsixsix]

Out of a dozen people auditioning the Solaris that day, none found vocal recessed quite the contrary
I guess this is a jpop vocal "issue" more than anything.

I haven't had enough time with the KSE1500 on classical but the few albums I have tried I winced at the treble... and maybe it's just the KSE highlighting bad mastering or my treble sensitivity or both...
I am not saying I own the truth. But for sure, the most transparent IEM I have ever heard and not by a small margin. It's really in a league of its own. No headphone I have heard has reached this either but I haven't heard electrostats before. Rock and (just to give it a test) Metal were not the best fit either. On everything else it's just amazingly beautiful...

It might be, I primarily listen to Japanese music at work so that's ~7 hours a day and find a lot of songs see to have quieter female vocals than the Andromeda, or it could be that the bass and treble are so pronounced now that the vocals seem like they're quieter

 

[jeffreyw311]

Of all the things that come to mind regarding the Solaris, a BA-ish sound is the last that comes to mind... the DD covers both bass and mids and it clearly shows. Yes the highs clearly take the good aspects of great BA treble but other wise the mids and bass really have that DD quality that can't be mistaken.

I'm talking about the midrange specifically.

The bass and lower mids are unmistakably a dynamic driver, with its longer decay. Its upper mids and treble are unmistakably lighter and airy than any dynamic driver can ever do in those frequency ranges, its a balanced amateur doing its business up there. Its very clearly a hybrid earphone to my ears.

Anyway not sure what a BA-ish timbre means, as some full BA IEM have quite accurate timbre while some DD have off timbre...not that I don't have a weakness for DD in that area but still timbre is not the thing that I would peg as the defintive advantage for DD over BA. Coherency now is another topic, but to me the Solaris is a highly coherent hybrid.

Coherency is fine, no problems there.

I don't think I've felt any BA IEM having particularly great timbre. Most are obviously crisp and weightless to an unnatural degree. I come from a loudspeaker background so my expectations of a natural timbre/tonality are probably different from most people's in here.

 

[Kitechaser]

The BA sound to me is combination of a few different things.
Incoherancy, weightlessness, and plasticky unnatural timbre. We all hear differently, and have different sounds that we are used to, and have expectations accordingly.
Looking forward to trying it out for myself.

 

[FangJoker]

I'd like to hear other impressions from people who listen to jpop if they also think that female singers sound recessed. If it is then that's a deal breaker for me.

 

[SLC1966]

Unless I got a ifi nano idsd BL with a defective iematch port, which I highly doubt because it indeed nearly eliminates the hiss, I certainly would not use the iematch thing, at least for Solaris or Andromeda due to the sound change. Things just sound so thin compared to the direct port or dragonfly red.

The most noticeable change in sound from the iematch port is the bass. Other than "thin", the closest words I can think of is that it makes a drum hit sound more like a cymbal hit, well may not be that extreme, but certainly more metallic kinda sound.

The cable adapter iematch could be different, or even the micro idsd, than the nano, but I doubt it.

I have played around with the Iematch via normal iematch cable, Nano idsd iematch and earbuddy cable. The only setting I liked was ultra setting on the actual iematch cable. This is most likely due the 1 ohm change vs 2,5,2.7and 4 ohm change with others. This is with the andro but the solaris change may be similar. I find with too low of ohm the bass gets muddy and with too high of ohm the andro sounds dead.

 

[BeerNuts]

Well its been quite awhile! I flew back to the states before thanksgiving and pulled the trigger on my Solaris. I also ebay'ed my Andros since I don't really need 2 pairs of IEMs. I am no where near an audiophile enough to describe the tonality like you guys do in your reviews. This is my second pair headphones after the Andros and entering the hi-fi world. What I can say is that the Solaris are mindblowingly better than the Andromeda's to me. I bought the Andros due to the hype and reviews about them and they were far more clear than anything I had owned before but I didn't feel I was totally blown away by them or that they were my endgame. I didn't like that on some songs the bass wasn't there or how the vocals on many songs seemed in the rear of the stage. The left and right instruments were pushed forward and vocals required me to turn on the 'Dynamic Normalizer' on my zx300 to pull vocals forward so they were not drowned out. For something I had paid so much money for I didn't like these short comings.

Now that I have my Solaris for a few weeks and burned them in things have changed. What has been the biggest change is sound separation and soundstage. This is the first pair of headphones I have owned where I feel like I have never actually heard the 'real' recordings of any of my music. Every time I play something the songs feel longer and have parts that I could have sworn were not there before. Like holy crap where did this solo part come from, or where did this come from. Everything sounds new and it is really crazy feeling. All of the things I didn't like about my Andros were fixed. The bass feels so much better a detailed I am not a bass head and I didn't need to feel the bass. It was more an issue with certain songs like 'O Green World' by Gorillaz where the bass just felt garbled. It wasn't impactful and it wasn't really detailed either. The 'Dynamic Normalizer' does next to nothing now. I turn it on and off and the actual song doesn't change all that much. It is no longer required which is amazing. I finally have a pair of headphones that feel like a honest endgame to me without any tradeoffs for what I am listening to. Every time I listen to an album it just re-enforces how great of a purchase this was. The hype you guys sold me on at the start of this thread was absolutely real and well worth the upgrade.

 

[Wooglish]

I'd like to hear other impressions from people who listen to jpop if they also think that female singers sound recessed. If it is then that's a deal breaker for me.

I don't listen to jpop, but the vocals sound recessed for me when there is heavy instrumentation paired with the female voice: Florence and the Machine, Amy Winehouse, St. Vincent as examples on some tracks. No one else seems to hear this, so maybe just me. I am using either a 1z or sp1000m and 4.4 or 2.5 balanced cables and double flanged spinfits. I tried some of the same with my Andros and the vocals are at least inline if not in front (Andros are not burned in). LCDi4 and the vocals are in front. Just MY observation...

 

[BananaOoyoo]

I don't listen to jpop, but the vocals sound recessed for me when there is heavy instrumentation paired with the female voice: Florence and the Machine, Amy Winehouse, St. Vincent as examples on some tracks. No one else seems to hear this, so maybe just me. I am using either a 1z or sp1000m and 4.4 or 2.5 balanced cables and double flanged spinfits. I tried some of the same with my Andros and the vocals are at least inline if not in front (Andros are not burned in). LCDi4 and the vocals are in front. Just MY observation...

I don’t think it’s the most common observation, but you don’t seem to be the only one with it. (And really, what does it matter what anyone else thinks if that’s how you experience it?)

Recessed female vocals wouldn’t be a dealbreaker for me personally - though if that’s how I perceive things, Solaris would more likely end up an addition to my IEM lineup than a replacement for one (or more) IEMs I already have.

 

[Fatsosixsixsix]

I don't listen to jpop, but the vocals sound recessed for me when there is heavy instrumentation paired with the female voice: Florence and the Machine, Amy Winehouse, St. Vincent as examples on some tracks. No one else seems to hear this, so maybe just me. I am using either a 1z or sp1000m and 4.4 or 2.5 balanced cables and double flanged spinfits. I tried some of the same with my Andros and the vocals are at least inline if not in front (Andros are not burned in). LCDi4 and the vocals are in front. Just MY observation...

I get that impression too, vocals are fine when in their own but instant the drums and other instruments come in they can sound a lot more recessed in comparison. I have also found that this effect is a lot more pronounced on some songs than others which is really weird since looking at the frequency response the vocals aren't in the 4k region. Persona 5's Life Will Change is one song I've found where one you notice this disparity, as I remember the vocals being a lot more forward than I get with the Solaris

I'm running it using peeled Symbio tips, Ref8 cable through iFi Black Label with IEMatch set on high sensitivity

 

[ExpatinJapan]

Hmm. Ref 8 cable sounds popular.

I might have to retry it again (with the Solaris).

 

[Kitechaser]

I get that impression too, vocals are fine when in their own but instant the drums and other instruments come in they can sound a lot more recessed in comparison. I have also found that this effect is a lot more pronounced on some songs than others which is really weird since looking at the frequency response the vocals aren't in the 4k region. Persona 5's Life Will Change is one song I've found where one you notice this disparity, as I remember the vocals being a lot more forward than I get with the Solaris

I'm running it using peeled Symbio tips, Ref8 cable through iFi Black Label with IEMatch set on high sensitivity

Sounds like the DD overpowers the BA drivers. Interesting. Is that only for J Pop?
What about male vocals?