I think on the whole the solaris is my fav tuned iem even though I have technically better. What iem is a upgrade on the gold solaris?
I saw
@Damz87 saying the EE Odin. I think it's a fantastic IEM too, but not sure about referring to it as a pure upgrade.
@gazzington I just wanted to ask you if you could clarify what you mean by 'upgrade', as it might help me and others to give the best possible suggestions?
Do you just mean an IEM with a better technical performance? Or something with a very similar sound signature to the gold Solaris, but improved performance?
Or...?
From my own perspective, I have the Solaris 2020 and the EE Odin and I love both.
I heard the OG (gold) Solaris briefly at London CanJam, but that was in 2019 and I couldn't say what the differences are between the OG and 2020 versions.
However, as far as the 2020 version goes, for me there's a huge difference between Odin and Solaris 2020.
As I say, I don't know how that difference would be for the OG Solaris and the Odin, but if it's anything like Solaris 2020 vs Odin, I don't think I could say it's as simple as the Odin being a straight upgrade.
If I've spent a few days listening to the Solaris and then switch to the Odin, it's a pretty jarring shock.
To my hearing, the Odin seems to have quite bright and forward upper mids and treble.
The sub-bas is pretty powerful, but I hear it as being comparatively neutral in the mid-bass and lower mids.
Together, this makes the prominence of the upper mids and treble even more exacerbated and, until I get used to the new sound signature, it can make the lower mids seem pretty scooped-out and empty.
Once I've listened to the Odin for a while, this feeling mostly goes away.
I'd always wish for a bit more body, presence and richness in the lower mids, even after extensive listening, but I feel like that about most IEMs, so that's just a personal preference.
Aside from that, the Odin is astonishingly good and it's technical performance in particular is outstanding in my opinion.
I love Solaris 2020 for being non-fatiguing and having the body and weight in the mids that make vocal performances sound excellent and bring the best out of rock music.
I find the sound signature to be a bit dark and intimate, which at first can make me feel that it's not got such a great technical performance, but once I adjust to the sound signature, I start noticing the impressive detail retrieval and technical ability. The soundstage is fairly large, but I just don't perceive it immediately because of the sound signature.
Note that I'm using New Bee foam tips; I'd imagine Azla Sedna or the various silicone tips described on this thread would change that sound signature a bit.
Ditto a good silver cable; I tried Eletech's Plato and it really transformed the sound signature for me, making it significantly brighter and more open compared with the stock cable.
So to draw all this to a hopefully vaguely coherent conclusion, my point is that I personally wouldn't describe Odin as a straight upgrade to the Solaris.
I think they're tuned very differently and it's a privilege to have them both in my collection.
If you wanted an IEM with a more similar sound signature to Solaris (again, I can only go on my experience with the 2020 model) but with upgraded technical performance, then of the TOTL and Summit-Fi IEMs I've heard, I'd probably say the MMR Thummim is the one that springs to mind for having the most in common sound-wise, with an outstanding technical performance. Possibly the new JHA Jolene, but I'm only going on impressions that I've read
