[UnknownOperator]

I tried most of them today. I liked Solaris Horizon best followed by the Trifecta. Others aren’t really on the same level.

What was it about Solaris Horizon that you preferred?

 

[Alenotta]

Can’t wait to read more impressions on Caldera Closed. The tuning seems like it is exactly what I was hoping for! Very excited.

 

[GarageBoy]

On the Technics reel to reel set up, are those the $500 tapes from elusive disc? Also, is there distortion/clipping on the vocals on that recording (led zep/ramble on)? Noticed it for a little bit on the woo audio/abyss combo.

 

[Todamm]

Any news on new products from Topping and ifi?

 

[salvatorereda]

Go down the list by price.
I also would like to recommend having a noise canceling headphone like AirPod max placed on top of the IEMs. Then your IEM will sound phenomenal. And if you don’t have noise canceling, at least you’ll find out if the IEM design is good enough to isolate the music.

Better yet I like to use the - 3M Peltor™ Optime™ 101 Earmuffs, or Any home depot Earmuff, Much Cheapier options than something from Apple.

 

[kumar402]

Any news on new products from Topping and ifi?

If I get a chance to go tomorrow then will check…

 

[salvatorereda]

Just home from CanJam, it was quite a show this year! A few brief impressions:

• Raal Magna & Immanis impressed, as promised. Immanis more so than Magna, but both were amazing. If you’re looking for bass weight and body to the sound, you won’t find it here. But if you want clarity & openness beyond what even e-stats deliver, you’ve come to the right place.
• Valkyria didn’t impress me quite as much as last year. Very midrangey with incredible clarity & dynamics. Similar to Utopia, but maybe a bit less balanced. Not sure why my impression this year is so different from last year - different chain, different ears?
• Caldera’s bass is at least equal to if not better than 1266 TC. Fight me.
• Caldera Closed was a mixed bag. I could definitely hear the Caldera DNA in it, but it was quite different from Caldera Open. Bit more soundstagey than CO, but the treble seemed a bit peaky. The one I heard had thin pads on it, though, and I’m not overly fond of CO with the thin pads either so take my thoughts here with a grain of salt.
• I really liked the looks of the new ZMF Aegis, though I didn’t have a chance to hear it with anything other than CO, so I can’t really comment on the sound.
• Tungsten deserves every bit of the hype. Heard it on the HeadTrip amp and had to turn the volume DOWN a notch when I switched to Susvara. Very much in the same lane as ZMF Caldera; quite different from Susvara.
• FIR Audio RN6 impressed every bit as much as the hype would suggest. Really well balanced, weighty sound with excellent timbre & clarity.
• Canpur CP622B wasn’t my jam. Too midrangey & thin, didn’t line up at all with the reviews I’ve read (maybe I had the wrong tips on them?). Its little brother Canpur CP54E, on the other hand, at half the cost of its big brother, was a surprise hit. Solid Legend EVO / FatFreq competition.
• Campfire Audio Trifecta was perhaps the biggest surprise of the day. I spent about 15 minutes listening to it just trying to understand what I was hearing. These do things I’ve never heard an iem do before, though a brief listen isn’t enough to figure out whether it’s revelatory or a gimmick that would get old fast. Definitely on my radar for further consideration, though.
• Got to listen to Susvara on 4 or 5 different chains and think I finally understand why it is so beloved. It does wide open soundstage in such a holographic organic way that I think it may sound more like a e-stat or ribbon than it sounds like any other planar or dynamic.
• Warwick Aperio did indeed come across as the most complete, even-keeled, “does absolutely everything well” system I’ve ever heard. Wide open soundstage? Check. Perfect timbre? Check. Deep dynamic bass? Check. Subbass rumble? Check. It does no wrong. I could easily be happy with just this and nothing else if I didn’t already have a rack full of gear.
• HE-1 was every bit as amazing as its legend suggests. It made average to above average recordings sound almost like binaural recordings. I listened to my favorite song of all time and it sounded as live and impactful as I’ve ever heard it. I can’t fathom spending $70K on it, nonetheless it probably deserves its reputation as THE best headphone in the world. *SPECIAL THANKS to @szore for sharing his demo slot with me - it was great meeting you!
• Led Zeppelin II on reel-to-reel via WA33 + 1266 TC was positively jaw dropping. I’ve never heard reel-to-reel before, the sense of being just 1 step removed from the live performance is very real. It’s a shame the cost of entry and availability of tapes puts this out of reach of anyone without very deep pockets. I’m grateful to the Abyss guys for lugging that to NYC for us, though, it was a real treat to hear.

My biggest takeaways are probably the question whether Campfire Trifecta is a revelation or a gimmick, and that there is almost certainly a Susvara in my future.

It was great seeing & meeting many of you there, I’m only sorry I didn’t have it in me to stick around longer to hang out with my fellow head-fi nutjobs. By early afternoon that crowd gets to me, my battery runs out, and I have to retreat back to my cave.

The Trifecta is the real deal, I have never heard "In thought the outdoor" like that before. I have tried multiple cables with them, just use the balance cables that come with it.

 

[Niyologist]

Hey folks. Remember, Daylights Savings Time starts tonight. That means we are gonna lose one hour of sleep.

 

[deep2285]

I assume you might mean less expensive, unless if you mean that the Singularity would be worth the extra cash if the TS-316 were 20% more expensive than it currently is. I can't get up there to try it, but I very much like prominent high quality bass which is why I wish I could give it a spin.

You are also the only one I really know who has been able to try both and give input, so I figured I'd get other impressions if possible since it never hurts.

Singularity is actually worth a try. It is one of the very best in my collection.

 

[kumar402]

Hey folks. Remember, Daylights Savings Time starts tonight. That means we are gonna lose one hour of sleep.

Oh no !

 

[RenoGu]

Any news on new products from Topping and ifi?

Not entirely new … but I tried the Diablo 2 in their stand, I tried some Abyss headphones in turbo mode, no problem driving them. They also had it with some iems for the xmems technology. Interesting , I cannot say for sure if I like it or not, instrument separation was very “extreme”. Like a strange 3D presentation, but it was a two minute listen for that mems technology, I primarily wanted to test it for headphones. Overall really liked the Diablo 2 . Very nice build quality.

 

[wizzman121]

Got a chance to try Tungsten today. Not a fan but I can see the appeal. Also it was crazy loud environment

Just curious what DAC/amp was driving the Tungsten? I have heard it sound really underwhelming out of some gear and mind blowing out of other gear. They are also VERY open open-backs.

 

[kumar402]

Just curious what DAC/amp was driving the Tungsten? I have heard it sound really underwhelming out of some gear and mind blowing out of other gear. They are also VERY open open-backs.

Exactly it is very open and it was too noisy to form any good impression.

 

[Anlan Dong]

Anyone had chance to listen to Audio Technika’s Narukami system? Is there a line or is it by reservation only?

 

[Niyologist]

I tried out the Moondrop Joker. It was a pretty impressive set of closed-back headphones for $80. The Truthears Nova was excellent, too. It's really good for $150. Balanced and detailed sound. Sound that surpasses its own price range and was putting up a good fight with my Penon Audio Fan.

Creative Labs has two products that caught my attention. The Aurvana Ace 2 and the Zen Hybrid Pro are set in my sights as potential candidates to join my collection. The Ace 2 has excellent sound quality and ANC. It's also IPX5 rated. So you can wear it in the rain. I could see myself using Ace 2 during study sessions or working out in the gym. Also, the xMEMS technology is no joke. The sound quality is precise. The Ace 2 sounded slightly north of neutral. Not enough bass to keep up with extremely bass-heavy tracks, but enough to be a good all-rounder. The mids and treble aren't shrill or shouty. There's something about that xMEMS technology that impresses me. One last thing about the Ace 2 is that it's very lightweight, and I really mean it. It's as light as a feather. It's the lightest TWS I have ever held. How did they do this!?!

Now, onto the Zen Hybrid Pro. These headphones are finely crafted for extended wear for music and gaming sessions. This includes wearing and battery life. It's rated for 100 hours of battery life without ANC, but 40% volume with ANC will reduce that to 80 hours. It was insanely impressive, and the sound pushed it further. Its Titanium Dynamic Driver didn't dimish the bass response but instead dampened it enough to provide a V-shaped sound signature (Enhanced bass and enhanced treble). The bass isn't overbearing, and I can see myself using it for COD, Helldivers 2, and Cyberpunk 2077. It has a sound signature that will appeal to the masses. I look forward to regularly using it.

I'll post some info about the Fiio M23 and how some initial impressions on how it compares to my Fiio M11 Plus LTD.