[Rockwell75]

From everything I've read on these forums and reddit it seems as though the Solaris is more of an Andromeda upgrade (albeit more musical one) rather than going the route of the Vega and Atlas with their fun, V sounding signature. Would you say that's the case? I had to seriously consider opening my Atlas when they arrived as I was having seconds thoughts and was thinking of sending them back and forking out the 'little' extra (at this price point) for the Solaris. The Fact that I have the Andromeda stopped me as I thought they would get neglected and I should just have 2 vastly different sigs and pick and choose depending on genre's haha. No doubt Im going to pick up the Solaris at some point it's just a matter of time.

Honestly man if you're happy with your setup now roll with it. One of the biggest curses of this hobby is the tendency to always be tempted away from something you love by the next big thing. To your point though, if your ideal right now is a "fun V shaped signature" then the Solaris is not that. The Solaris is about balance. It was a revelation for me personally in that I had always tended towards V shaped signatures as I felt I needed big bass to be satisfied-- the Solaris has helped me realize that if done well a balanced signature lets you appreciate all levels without any one element constantly vying for your attention. I'm not sure it's fair to classify Solaris as an Andro upgrade specifically-- I myself considered it an upgrade from the Atlas and I was never a fan of the Andromeda on its own. I think it can be an upgrade from both depending on what you're looking for. All of that said if it's something you're thinking of down the road then hold that thought and enjoy what you have for the time being as you have two tremendous IEMs.

 

[fzman]

Campfire iems all do an excellent job of portraying acoustic instruments as they sound in real life. They do it in somewhat different ways, just like instruments' sound can be influenced by different acoustic environments of listening positions.... Different kinds of drivers have different strengths and weaknesses. BAs do excellent at capturing the leading edge, dds do better at the pressure wave the instruments launches.... so, e.g., a kick drum has both- which can best be done with a hybrid, IF you can blend them well.

KB does a great job of coherently blending both types of drivers in the Solaris. If you like pure BA or pure DD sound, you may prefer Andromeda, Vega or Atlas. They all are great- they have the same DNA for instrumental timbres.

 

[cytoSiN]

@Rockwell75 How's the microphonics on that Better Audio cable? Also, how would you compare it to the stock Super Litz cable. Considering trying one. Thanks.

 

[Rockwell75]

@Rockwell75 How's the microphonics on that Better Audio cable? Also, how would you compare it to the stock Super Litz cable. Considering trying one. Thanks.

I don't notice any microphonics at all. It's a very soft and supple cable-- wraps easily around my ears. At 16 cores I was afraid it would be like a boa constrictor around my neck but it's not bad at all. I can't really comment on sound quality as I don't know to what extent the differences I perceive are due to the balanced out on my ZX300 (which I suspect is most-- I'm not sure I possess the delicacy of perception to reliably note the differences between cables anyway). I can faithfully recommend it as a decent cable that won't break the bank.

 

[cytoSiN]

I don't notice any microphonics at all. It's a very soft and supple cable-- wraps easily around my ears. At 16 cores I was afraid it would be like a boa constrictor around my neck but it's not bad at all. I can't really comment on sound quality as I don't know to what extent the differences I perceive are due to the balanced out on my ZX300 (which I suspect is most-- I'm not sure I possess the delicacy of perception to reliably note the differences between cables anyway). I can faithfully recommend it as a decent cable that won't break the bank.

Thanks. It's Amazon Prime, so can always return if I don't like it, but if there's any microphonics it would be a nope for me, so I appreciate the feedback. No issues without the memory wire either?

 

[Rockwell75]

Thanks. It's Amazon Prime, so can always return if I don't like it, but if there's any microphonics it would be a nope for me, so I appreciate the feedback. No issues without the memory wire either?

Surprisingly no-- and I was actually a fan of the memory wire on the ALO cable. The cable is supple and soft enough that it drapes around my ears easily-- which also contributes to the lack of microphonics.

 

[harishmirror]

Thank you sir.

Kb

@kb.34806

When is the next version Solaris coming?

 

[Rockwell75]

@kb.34806

When is the next version Solaris coming?

Next version? You mean the custom?

 

[bumpyhead]

Campfire iems all do an excellent job of portraying acoustic instruments as they sound in real life. They do it in somewhat different ways, just like instruments' sound can be influenced by different acoustic environments of listening positions.... Different kinds of drivers have different strengths and weaknesses. BAs do excellent at capturing the leading edge, dds do better at the pressure wave the instruments launches.... so, e.g., a kick drum has both- which can best be done with a hybrid, IF you can blend them well.

KB does a great job of coherently blending both types of drivers in the Solaris. If you like pure BA or pure DD sound, you may prefer Andromeda, Vega or Atlas. They all are great- they have the same DNA for instrumental timbres.

Next version? You mean the custom?

Nah...A smaller, better fit version, if at all. Amen.

 

[harishmirror]

Next version? You mean the custom?

No I mean the next Stainless Steel or Snow white version of Solaris. To be even precise the version that can bring out the real sub bass potential of that adlc driver..

Ps: Honestly in need of a Solaris V2 soon.

 

[fokta]

Ooo.. I thought the Black version one..

 

[harishmirror]

Ooo.. I thought the Black version one..

$5 says the next Solaris edition would be Platinum'ish.

 

[CreditingKarma]

I just picked up the noble Khan yesterday at axpona. I have to say so far they sound great. I will put up a comparison after some more listening. My Solaris might end up in the for sale section but we will see after more time with the Khan. Has anyone else compared the Khan and Solaris. I am interested in your takes too.

 

[beholdclarity]

Quick question:

I have my Andromeda paired with the Fiio BTR3 and have gotten amazing results. The signature is right where I want it to be.
Pairing the Andromedas with the Fiio Q5 gave me too bright results. Not enjoyable. The Mojo made it sound congested and just too muddy without rewarding me with superior bass.
The BTR3 gives great detail, never makes them screeching and produces black solid bass. This is all my own opinion, of course. Your experience may differ significantly.

A forum member pointed out to me, that the Output Impedance plays a significant role in what I am experiencing here, with lower OI resulting in warmer flavour and higher OI in brighter.
I looked it up, and the numbers added up.

The Mojo has by far the lowest OI with <0.075
The BTR3 has something around 0.3
The iPhone 7 DAC dongle has 0.5 (which still sounds pretty nice to my ears in fact)
The Q5 has a staggering 1.4

What is your recommendation when it comes to the Solaris? I'd like to keep the Andromedas permanently attached to the BTR3 but wouldn't mind buying a second one.
The Solaris will mainly be played at home, so a used non-bluetooth DAC/AMP would be fine just as well. I'm looking to stay below 300USD.

What do you guys and girls recommend?

The Fiio K3 and Q1 (OI <0.3) seem to fit the equation. Any experience with those?
What about the Oppo HA-2SE (OI <0.5)?

 

[uthood]

Quick question:

I have my Andromeda paired with the Fiio BTR3 and have gotten amazing results. The signature is right where I want it to be.
Pairing the Andromedas with the Fiio Q5 gave me too bright results. Not enjoyable. The Mojo made it sound congested and just too muddy without rewarding me with superior bass.
The BTR3 gives great detail, never makes them screeching and produces black solid bass. This is all my own opinion, of course. Your experience may differ significantly.

A forum member pointed out to me, that the Output Impedance plays a significant role in what I am experiencing here, with lower OI resulting in warmer flavour and higher OI in brighter.
I looked it up, and the numbers added up.

The Mojo has by far the lowest OI with <0.075
The BTR3 has something around 0.3
The iPhone 7 DAC dongle has 0.5 (which still sounds pretty nice to my ears in fact)
The Q5 has a staggering 1.4

What is your recommendation when it comes to the Solaris? I'd like to keep the Andromedas permanently attached to the BTR3 but wouldn't mind buying a second one.
The Solaris will mainly be played at home, so a used non-bluetooth DAC/AMP would be fine just as well. I'm looking to stay below 300USD.

What do you guys and girls recommend?

The Fiio K3 and Q1 (OI <0.3) seem to fit the equation. Any experience with those?
What about the Oppo HA-2SE (OI <0.5)?

I'm by no means an expert on OI matching. But, I did have the mojo with the Solaris. I also have a HA2-SE. The Oppo is a MUCH better match for the Solaris in my opinion. Not sure if it's OI or the DAC implementation, but it is much better to me.