[esoriel]

Mm...more questions:

1. the Soundwriter will be available in universal and/or custom form???

2. what was the source of the Soundwriter set up? Which DAP, amp/dac if any? Or plain smartphone?

1. I'm not sure whether soundwriter would be available in universal but I'm sure that it would be in custom. They also allow you to customize your own serial number.

2. WM1A, FiiO X7 Mark II and xDuoo X2. No amp/dac used.

 

[Deezel177]

Mm...thanks a lot for the impressions re: Soundwriter. It is the kind of posts that I very much appreciate from those who actually listened/auditioned headfi gear.....and not from some who just bitch about prices.

Looking forward to THL full review (my bible for in ears).

@flinkenick will be in charge of writing that, but thank you for your kind words!

Mm...more questions:

1. the Soundwriter will be available in universal and/or custom form???

2. what was the source of the Soundwriter set up? Which DAP, amp/dac if any? Or plain smartphone?

The Soundwriter will definitely be available in custom form, but I'm not sure whether or not it'll come in universal. It wasn't set up in any particular way, but I auditioned it with my MS-modded WM1A.

 

[darveniza]

Had the opportunity to attend the CanJam Singapore , it was great to see some vendors that I don't get to see in the USA plus see some of the new products.

• Vision Ears- First Universal: Great fit , sound was pretty interesting in detail and mids/high characteristics. However I was told that the unit is a demo with only one of the tuning's to be offered it will be a multi tuned unit. Following some of the latest developments of offering one IEM with multiple signatues
• Jomo - Enjoyed the Samba as always its just a great set of IEM. The Flamenco has a great signature. But I am always fumbling with the switches. Plus I have some challenges with the fit.
• LimeEars- New Universals Aether and Model X. Both sounded pretty great. Felt that Model X gave me enhanced MIds and some bass adjustment, however found some blurred areas with some songs. The Aether with the stock cable did not impress me, however when they gave me the one with the Whiplash TWAG , wow what a change!!!. When used the switch the bass was just pretty good
• Stagediver SD5. This company always knows how to deliver on the ergonomics side, the wood version was super light and soft within the ear. As a previous owner of the SD4, they were very close but found a bit more in the lower end.
• Colorfly, had some great conversation with these guys. They are experimenting a lot , their new DAP had some interesting signature but it was pre production unit so was not 100% final. It was interesting that they had a pair of Oriolus Mellianus at their booth to try with their DAP. That is quite an IEM great overall, the cable is silver. Had not tried this, I felt that it was a mix of the new Vision Ears and the SD5
• CTM The DaVInci units are awesome, the build, look,etc. If I had the $$$ I would buy the 10 driver liked the low end signature
• Meze Audio RAI -Aluminium. Nice fit and sound. However it did not really " want them" they are seem to neutral or trying to please everyone. Not sure
• IBASSO The IT04 are a nice option from the IT03, however I have the IT01 and not sure I get a lot more for the $ difference.
• DITA Audio Fealty and Fidelity liked them both. If I had to pick I would go with Fealty. However the cable was a pain to deal with. The silver and blue combination of the IEM body and the cable was interesting. But still prefer the black iteration from the past
• HYLA The Questyle booth had these for audition. Quite a bass. The units are pretty simple (plain purple) and would expect a bit more of "standout" for the pricing

Enjoyed the weather , its nice to get away from the cold

 

[WilcoRoger]

This was my first CanJam visit - really freaked me out, as I got to realize, that I can spend just as limitless amounts on this hobby as on my other one, photography

Case in point - justopping by the Sennheiser stand, without looking taking one earphone to test. Wow, this is fantastic, beats everything I have! Let's take a closer look, what model is this? Ah, something called IE800s. Let's look at the pricetag. Ouch, four figure in US$ or €.

Going upstairs, to check out some random headphones. Hmm, this is sweet! Dude next to me speaks Russian, we chat a bit, yeah, amazing sound, really like it, etc. I look at his badge, same company as the headphone. Kennerton. I look up the prices, hmm 3k range... and that's just the headphone, amps etc on top.

So, great fun, but glad to have left those credit cards at home

 

[raypin]

@flinkenick will be in charge of writing that, but thank you for your kind words!



The Soundwriter will definitely be available in custom form, but I'm not sure whether or not it'll come in universal. It wasn't set up in any particular way, but I auditioned it with my MS-modded WM1A.

Mm...thanks man. So that means the CIEM Soundwriter will be significantly better than the universal demo unit. Now, I am really interested.

OT: Since you mentioned it, what did the Mezzo Soprano mod did for your WM1A? My 1A is already out of warranty and I may have the same surgery done on my unit. Probably do the same to my vintage gear (4 year old and still flawlessly performing A&K 240; I just love A&K quality and durability).....

 

[Deezel177]

Mm...thanks man. So that means the CIEM Soundwriter will be significantly better than the universal demo unit. Now, I am really interested.

OT: Since you mentioned it, what did the Mezzo Soprano mod did for your WM1A? My 1A is already out of warranty and I may have the same surgery done on my unit. Probably do the same to my vintage gear (4 year old and still flawlessly performing A&K 240; I just love A&K quality and durability).....

Ahh, no - the MS I'm talking about is Music Sanctuary. They're the guys behind Project K and the mods they made to my WM1A are similar to the mods they made to the Soundwriter; PWAudio wiring, special solder, shielding, etc. You can check out my impressions of the mod here: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/ran...views-on-page-1.826876/page-524#post-14073661

 

[Blazer39]

• Colorfly, had some great conversation with these guys. They are experimenting a lot , their new DAP had some interesting signature but it was pre production unit so was not 100% final. It was interesting that they had a pair of Oriolus Mellianus at their booth to try with their DAP. That is quite an IEM great overall, the cable is silver. Had not tried this, I felt that it was a mix of the new Vision Ears and the SD5

Enjoyed the weather , its nice to get away from the cold

what did the colorfly DAP looked like?
touch screen?

 

[MezeTeam]

Guys, we hope you had as much fun as we did at CanJam Singapore.

Thank you for participating, for being so curious about our entire product line-up and especially about our newest entries - the Rai Penta IEMs and the Empyrean flagship headphone.
A bigfor the organizers!

 

[flinkenick]

Mm...thanks man. So that means the CIEM Soundwriter will be significantly better than the universal demo unit. Now, I am really interested.

OT: Since you mentioned it, what did the Mezzo Soprano mod did for your WM1A? My 1A is already out of warranty and I may have the same surgery done on my unit. Probably do the same to my vintage gear (4 year old and still flawlessly performing A&K 240; I just love A&K quality and durability).....

Hi there, I see there are some mixed impressions of the Soundwriter so I will add my 2cts. I have been listening to a custom version of the Soundwriter since Friday, and have the A18.

The Soundwriter has a neutral tone with an energetic presentation following its upper mid/lower treble lift. Its bass is different than the A18; the emphasis is on sub- over mid-bass, and it has less upper-bass than A18, especially with the M20 module. The mid-bass is quantity is still north of neutral, but its decay is very quick. Therefore, the mid-bass is present but contained, so mid-bass lines do not warm the stage or the midrange, resulting in a transparent midrange with a neutral tone. So personally, I would not label the Soundwriter as warm overall.

For reference, I would also not classify the A18 as warm, even with M20 module. The A18 has signficantly enhanced bass, but compensates with peaks in the lower and upper treble. While the Soundwriter has less upper-bass, it also has smoother and less prominent upper treble, which benefits its coherency; it places emphasis on the main components of a track (specfically vocals, guitars, and drums) without overarticulating finer detail. Which isn't to say the Soundwriter isn't smoother than the A18 overall, due to its upper-mid tuning.

A simple way of viewing the Soundwriter is an A18 with carrot module. However, with the carrot module the A18 sounds closer to the M20 in terms of bass and tone (a bit bassier even due to the closure of the ports), where the Soundwriter is tonally closer to the M15. However, as mentioned there are differences throughout their signature. The Soundwriter has a more bodied and transparent midrange and different bass/treble tuning, which results in a different tone. Conversely, the A18 for instance has a wider stage, smoother upper mids, but relatively more prominent upper treble.

As a sidenote, I also heard a demo version at CJ NY which I didn't like as much. That version I found a bit bassy, and the upper treble more prominent. However, I have heard MS brought the latest demo version closer to the custom version, although I haven't heard it myself.

 

[darveniza]

what did the colorfly DAP looked like?
touch screen?

Its a big leap from their previous offerings. I think somebos the differences that I liked is that they did nit have just a volume up and down bottoms but like a side track pad which was interesting. Could not check of this had a way to avoid incorrect operation while in pocket for example. Power button was shaped differently which would be easy to find in dark environment.
Its a crowded market so pricing will be aggresive.
The OS is based on Android, but it is ring fenced meaning you cannot download apps,etc

 

[Deezel177]

Hi there, I see there are some mixed impressions of the Soundwriter so I will add my 2cts. I have been listening to a custom version of the Soundwriter since Friday, and have the A18.

The Soundwriter has a neutral tone with an energetic presentation following its upper mid/lower treble lift. Its bass is different than the A18; the emphasis is on sub- over mid-bass, and it has less upper-bass than A18, especially with the M20 module. The mid-bass is quantity is still north of neutral, but its decay is very quick. Therefore, the mid-bass is present but contained, so mid-bass lines do not warm the stage or the midrange, resulting in a transparent midrange with a neutral tone. So personally, I would not label the Soundwriter as warm overall.

For reference, I would also not classify the A18 as warm, even with M20 module. The A18 has signficantly enhanced bass, but compensates with peaks in the lower and upper treble. While the Soundwriter has less upper-bass, it also has smoother and less prominent upper treble, which benefits its coherency; it places emphasis on the main components of a track (specfically vocals, guitars, and drums) without overarticulating finer detail. Which isn't to say the Soundwriter isn't smoother than the A18 overall, due to its upper-mid tuning.

A simple way of viewing the Soundwriter is an A18 with carrot module. However, with the carrot module the A18 sounds closer to the M20 in terms of bass and tone (a bit bassier even due to the closure of the ports), where the Soundwriter is tonally closer to the M15. However, as mentioned there are differences throughout their signature. The Soundwriter has a more bodied and transparent midrange and different bass/treble tuning, which results in a different tone. Conversely, the A18 for instance has a wider stage, smoother upper mids, but relatively more prominent upper treble.

As a sidenote, I also heard a demo version at CJ NY which I didn't like as much. That version I found a bit bassy, and the upper treble more prominent. However, I have heard MS brought the latest demo version closer to the custom version, although I haven't heard it myself.

Hmmm... interesting impressions, Nic. I may have mistaken upper-treble attenuation for upper-bass accentuation - nevertheless bringing the SW closer to neutral-warm than the U18’s markedly bright signature (though not as bright as the Tia Fourte due to its mid-bass). Then again, it could also be a discrepancy between the custom and universal variants of the U/A18.

 

[raypin]

Hi there, I see there are some mixed impressions of the Soundwriter so I will add my 2cts. I have been listening to a custom version of the Soundwriter since Friday, and have the A18.

The Soundwriter has a neutral tone with an energetic presentation following its upper mid/lower treble lift. Its bass is different than the A18; the emphasis is on sub- over mid-bass, and it has less upper-bass than A18, especially with the M20 module. The mid-bass is quantity is still north of neutral, but its decay is very quick. Therefore, the mid-bass is present but contained, so mid-bass lines do not warm the stage or the midrange, resulting in a transparent midrange with a neutral tone. So personally, I would not label the Soundwriter as warm overall.

For reference, I would also not classify the A18 as warm, even with M20 module. The A18 has signficantly enhanced bass, but compensates with peaks in the lower and upper treble. While the Soundwriter has less upper-bass, it also has smoother and less prominent upper treble, which benefits its coherency; it places emphasis on the main components of a track (specfically vocals, guitars, and drums) without overarticulating finer detail. Which isn't to say the Soundwriter isn't smoother than the A18 overall, due to its upper-mid tuning.

A simple way of viewing the Soundwriter is an A18 with carrot module. However, with the carrot module the A18 sounds closer to the M20 in terms of bass and tone (a bit bassier even due to the closure of the ports), where the Soundwriter is tonally closer to the M15. However, as mentioned there are differences throughout their signature. The Soundwriter has a more bodied and transparent midrange and different bass/treble tuning, which results in a different tone. Conversely, the A18 for instance has a wider stage, smoother upper mids, but relatively more prominent upper treble.

As a sidenote, I also heard a demo version at CJ NY which I didn't like as much. That version I found a bit bassy, and the upper treble more prominent. However, I have heard MS brought the latest demo version closer to the custom version, although I haven't heard it myself.

mm...thanks for the advance review of the Soundwriter Custom In-Ear Monitor with the PW Audio 1960s K cable. Lot of info to digest (have to read and re-read it again and again in the next few weeks as more info trickles here at Headfi.org).

Just to help me in my decision and I know that this is somewhat simplistic view and eschews the nuances as you've written, where do you think the Soundwriter CIEM footprint lie in this tone wheel:

(image from Lawton Audio).

Just to provide context, what I am looking for in my next CIEM is somewhere along types 3 (mostly), 4 and 5. In other words, the CIEM version that would complement my HE 1.

 

[Deezel177]

mm...thanks for the advance review of the Soundwriter Custom In-Ear Monitor with the PW Audio 1960s K cable. Lot of info to digest (have to read and re-read it again and again in the next few weeks as more info trickles here at Headfi.org).

Just to help me in my decision and I know that this is somewhat simplistic view and eschews the nuances as you've written, where do you think the Soundwriter CIEM footprint lie in this tone wheel:


(image from Lawton Audio).

Just to provide context, what I am looking for in my next CIEM is somewhere along type 3, 4 and 5. In other words, the CIEM version to complement my HE 1.

To my ears, it’s a combination of 1 and 4. There’s a fullness in the bass and midrange, but the crisp and sparkly treble adds that crispness and clarity into the mix.

 

[gLer]

Can somebody - anybody - please post photos of the Zebrawood ZMF Atticus...?

 

[davisouzarj]

mm...thanks for the advance review of the Soundwriter Custom In-Ear Monitor with the PW Audio 1960s K cable. Lot of info to digest (have to read and re-read it again and again in the next few weeks as more info trickles here at Headfi.org).

Just to help me in my decision and I know that this is somewhat simplistic view and eschews the nuances as you've written, where do you think the Soundwriter CIEM footprint lie in this tone wheel:


(image from Lawton Audio).

Just to provide context, what I am looking for in my next CIEM is somewhere along types 3 (mostly), 4 and 5. In other words, the CIEM version that would complement my HE 1.

Great diagram. Thanks a lot for sharing.