CharlyBrown
1000+ Head-Fier
Omg, well, some will pay that much.The preliminary number we heard was, “At least $5K…”
CanJam Singapore 2023 Impressions Thread (March 25-26, 2023)
- Thread starter AxelCloris
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Thanks for the great post! A very different take on Canjam indeed.
Great report on an awesome trip! Like you, CanJam is more of a social event for me now, as well as food - unfortunately CanJam NYC this year was less social as I wasn't feeling all that great. Hope you make to Chicago later this year.
Unbelievable post. I especially loved how you described what you heard. To me, that's the high water mark that I want to achieve for describing sound. Well done!WARNING: This one’s gonna be very word-heavy and pic-light. As many plaudits as my photos have thankfully received, my documenting instincts are some of the worst you’ll ever find. So, there won’t be many pics of what went down, but I’ll make sure to do my best visualizing as we proceed.
After 2 years of local isolation, I was finally able to fly out and attend 2023’s CanJam Singapore. A lot’s changed in that time. I retired from reviewing, my interest in in-ears isn’t what it used to be, and with a wedding on the way, I can’t spend as much as I used to. So, for me, this was gonna be a show I attended not for THL, not for my collection and certainly not to maintain any sort of vain, influencer status. This was gonna be one for the people - for the connections I’ve made and wanna make - and what better time to do it than the year the Watercooler crew decided to come to town.
Just months ago, it was a pipe dream on Head-Fi. Then, weeks ago, it became a tiny, eager WhatsApp group. And, before I knew it, I was headed to the Kith Cafe at Ascott to meet face-to-face with the SEA Watercooler contingent; a bunch of profile pics and usernames I’d seen countless times on a computer screen, who were about to, as strange as it may sound, materialize into real human beings… and what wonderful human beings, they all were.
Sitting down at that table, shaking hands, swapping gifts and Jim handing me the wooden name tag he so generously had made, I instantly knew I was in for a great time. Between silent, focused listening and light-hearted, laugh-filled chats, the warmth, camaraderie and, just, fun was palpable. Between us, the Subtonic and Nightjar folks, the people they brought… there wasn’t a bad apple in the room. I was having a blast. Oh, and we listened to a fair amount of great stuff too. Let the impressions begin!
Subtonic STORM
Subtonic’s STORM has received as much hype as controversy. Those fortunate enough to try it early called it the best in-ear they’d heard, and those who bet their hard-earned money on those impressions have had to wait nearly two years for their orders to arrive. Now, in a room with not one, not two, but three Subtonic Storm’s, I finally got a chance to hear it for myself.
Subtonic’s Storm had some of the best technique I’d heard in an IEM. Transients were as clean as I’d heard them, so notes popped in and out with stunning speed. And, they pulled off this tightrope act whilst keeping that tonality plate spinning, so kudos to them there. With the stock, 2-wire Mira cable, it had a neutral-ish tone with a lower-midrange that could lean slightly dry, along with a treble that could glare - shimmer - every once in a while. But, this was the exception; not the rule. It fulfilled its promise of projecting like near-field monitors. Its notes were on the larger side, and they were nearer to me than the outermost reaches of the stage, which, on the 2-wire Mira, felt naturally-sized; neither boxed-in, nor artificially stretched. But, again, because of its razor-sharp transients and immense speed, resolution was light work for the STORM. It felt like you could analyze each microsecond of each bar, and it’s a great set if analysis is your pastime. And, of course, I’d be remiss not to highlight its bass, which, though short of a quality DD, was among the best I’d heard a BA thump, in no small part due to its clean sub-bass shelf.
Now, the only way I can critique the STORM is subjectively; personally. Despite all its technical accolades, it wasn’t an in-ear that necessarily moved me, whether for listening or for work. It lacked a bit of groove - sway - for my recreational use, and I could’ve done without the slightly-sandy notes the ESTs gave the mid-treble. Then, it was a touch too clean and dry for me to mix or master on. I tend to prefer a little warmth there to stave off fatigue, and the STORM sounded like a tool to check mixes with than to mix with. To me, the STORM was like one of those high-FPS TVs at tech stores. They always get a stop, a stare and a “Whoa, cool,” out of me, but nothing more. At the same time, to someone else, they could be the key to completing their endgame theatre system. So, it’s an IEM I heavily respect, and it’s one I can see its target demo loving. It wasn’t the one for me, but I can safely say that it deserves its seat (even the throne) at the high-end table for sure.
As a side note, the STORM was also one of the most malleable IEMs I’d ever heard. It tip-toed between calm and assured on my LPGT, then boisterous on my N6ii Ti. I was able to push it all the way to ultra-wide, ultra-airy and ultra-clinical with Nightjar’s upcoming flagship cable, while the PW Audio Orpheus hilariously turned it into my JHA Sharona. My jaw was on the floor, how similar it was. But, in the end, I felt the default 2-wire Mira gave it the finest balance between cutting-edge technique and natural-ish delivery.
Nightjar
Also in attendance was Chang from Nightjar Acoustics, who, similar to Symphonium Audio, somewhat reside under the Subtonic umbrella. They’ve only made IEM cables thus far, and I reviewed their flagship Mira fairly recently. But, it’s no secret that they’ve been trying their hand at developing IEMs as well. Chang brought 2 DD-equipped prototypes to the meet - the 1-DD Singularity and an unnamed 2-DD we’re tentatively calling the Duality - and it’s safe to say both were some of the weekend’s absolute highlights.
Singularity
The Nightjar Acoustics Singularity is the best single-DD IEM I’ve ever heard; bar none. Without getting into tuning or tone, the technique they were able to pull out of this single driver was stunning. I was in agreement with virtually everyone there (and even those who heard it at CanJam NY), it seemed like a BA or EST was up in the highs aiding its detail retrieval and speed. Unlike most single-DD’s that smooth over or ever-so-slightly smear the treble (even the ones with high extension), the Singularity would comb over them and accentuate those micro-transients. Whether it’s light ride cymbal rolls on a jazz track or the decaying chugs of an electric guitar, the Singularity never let details drift off or lose focus to my ears; a unique achievement for an IEM of its kind.
Presentation-wise, the Singularity had an engaging, colored, bass-lifted tuning, paired with substantial, yet clear mids and a clean treble. I’ve heard it compared to the recently-popular FatFreq MSE. I think it bears similarities (more so in delivery than tone) to Elysian’s OG DIVA. But, all in all, this’s a fun, dynamic tone without any audible “potholes” anywhere in its FR, and it jived perfectly well with any genre I threw at it. What I loved more than its tonal balance was its delivery. I called the Singularity enveloping at the meet, and that’s literally what it was. It had huge, bouncy notes that surround and wash over you. I found its height particularly impressive. And, the texture its treble was able to resolve made its walls of sound all the more rich. Its stage wasn’t the largest or vastest because of this, but I thought it had just enough space to keep it all open; never overwhelming.
So, as far as a toe-tapping, deep-digging, all-encompassing DD IEM, the Singularity was a frontrunner in all departments. Throw in the fact it’s set to come in at 1300 USD, you have yourselves a potential hit. I’ll be joining the 10+ people who’ve already committed to a pre-order when it comes out mid-2023, and I hope to see what others think of it as its launch date nears. ‘One of the stars of the show for me, for sure.
Duality
The 2-DD Duality aimed for a similar tone to the Singularity, but with a massive added dose of bass; sub-bass, to be clear. This was a no-holds-barred basshead monitor, but executed with a high level of finesse. Like its single-DD sibling, it had a clean, airy image, resulting in strong amounts of headroom. At the same time, it didn’t quite have the fine-toothed-comb precision and detail of the Singularity. It very much sounded like a DD in its mids and highs. Chang told us he’s still working on giving the mid-high driver the same speed as the Singularity, whether through tuning or a new, bespoke DD. So, that is still to be determined.
The reason for that disparity, though, was because the Singularity didn’t have anywhere near the rumble this Duality did. It really had sub-bass on sub-bass on sub-bass, but I can’t emphasize enough how clean the rest of its FR still came out. This was because of the IEM’s clean bass shelf and how clean the low-end itself was. It wasn’t a blubbery mess, nor was it a bunch of random vibrations. Even with the impedance adapter that boosted the bass even further (which Chang built for fun as a proof-of-concept), the woofers would not distort. It was a focused low-end rise that spanned the entire horizon of the image and hilariously felt like a deep-tissue massage. Now, I just can’t wait to hear it paired with mids and highs to match.
Following our lovely café meet, we moved on to Jaben Singapore, located in the Adelphi building. A few of us wanted to try the FitEar line-up, which Uncle Wilson and his crew generously laid out, despite having them already packed for CanJam. That was also where we finally met the lovely @drftr and Sajid. While the Cooler Crew had their mass FitEar demo, most of which I’d already heard in the past, I auditioned the Softears Tremolo. This was then followed by demos of @yaps66’s in-ears, which he kindly encouraged. So, here are some impressions of those, along with a couple IEMs Jim and Jemy kindly let me try too:
Softears Tremolo
The Tremolo unit I auditioned was actually a custom model moulded to Uncle Wilson’s ears. So, it was a less-than-ideal scenario, where I had to hold the units in place in my ears and hope that I wasn’t adding bass and/or treble by pressing them in too hard. Nevertheless, what I heard was a fairly impressive 1-DD IEM. It didn’t blow me away like the Singularity did. It didn’t have that resolution in the mids and highs, and it wasn’t as bombastic in presentation. It was a more relaxed IEM, which I could definitely appreciate. It was mid-bass-biased to my ears, followed by a neutral midrange and a clear, well-extended, smoothened treble. The width and cleanliness of the image was impressive for its config, but that aside, I thought it performed about on par with its price point. So, it didn’t blow my socks off, but it’s an EDC worth considering.
Also, I must credit Softears again for their superb build. The transparent shells on Uncle Wilson’s units were crystal clear, and the internals were excellently done too. The wires looked cut to measure, and there wasn’t a splotch of glue in sight. Bravo.
Campfire Audio Trifecta
The Trifecta, above all, is a strongly-colored IEM. I don’t think it’s anywhere near as bad as some have flippantly made it out to be, but I can see it being an in-ear that can easily throw anyone off. Its main bits of colouration were in the upper-mids and treble, for me. There’s a 3kHz dip that pulled instruments back and dulled them quite a bit. Horns, keys, vocals and the like weren’t as vibrant or as forwardly-projected as they ought to be. And, its treble was a medley of peaks and valleys that emphasized certain attacks and deadened others. The 6kHz and 12kHz regions were cut to limit the amount of glitz and crystalline air in the in-ear, even though it had a fair amount of cut, still, thanks to adjacent peaks.
Part of those treble colorations felt, to me, made to highlight the bass. Low-end notes had this strong, well-etched thwack to them. And, those highs extended enough to give the monitor spherical, holographic imaging to. So, it definitely was an earphone with several highlights, but it’s also one of the tougher signatures to get into. I can see, in equal measure, why some would love it and why others consider it overpriced. But, I reckon it’s an IEM worth hearing and understanding, and I can certainly understand its appeal.
Noble Audio Ronin
The Noble Ronin was a tough one for me, largely because of its wide, chunky shells. I could get them to seal, but I could never get them to sit comfortably inside my concha. It never quite locked in and sat in my ears, and I question how much of its sound I actually got to hear. Nevertheless, what I did manage to glean from my demo was a fairly linear, plain-Jane-sounding IEM. Nothing really grabbed me, and it didn’t do much wrong either, except for what I perceived to be a lack of a deep, black background. There seemed to be a fuzz to the Ronin’s backdrop that prevented notes from popping in with as much strength and impact as they could’ve. It limited dynamics and drama on certain mixes, so that was my only qualm. Otherwise, it’s a good, steady Eddie sorta IEM, but make sure you give the shells a try before you make a purchase. It isn’t the most universal of universals.
Unique Melody Multiverse Mentor
This one caught me a bit by surprise. The UM MM is an in-ear lauded for its resolution and detail, so I was a tad startled to find it had a very warm, rich, meaty sound. Now, that’s not a bad thing at all. I found its body satisfying for toms or rhythm guitars. The mids were of an especially high quality; sumptuous and full-blooded. And, it matched really well with mixes on the brighter, lighter side. Tommy Igoe’s big band records gained a fair bit of weight. And, FKJ’s catalog sounded beautifully analog. The only bit that kinda let me down was that it didn’t have the cutting-edge clarity I was expecting. The in-ear was actually on the woolier side, transient-wise, and I was missing some of the edge it was purported to have. I could possibly have been influenced by the STORM audition earlier that day, or perhaps a tip change could’ve helped. In any case, I still found the MM very good; just not what I was expecting.
Astell&Kern x Empire Ears Odyssey
The Odyssey is what I thought the Legend EVO truly should’ve been. It’s an in-ear that, like the LX when it came out, was bass-first, then warm, soothing and inoffensive overall. Its midrange was one of Empire’s better efforts, even if it still had that light smearing or saturation they’re known for. And, its top-end had a more linear, more balanced tonality than their low-treble-biased ODIN too. It extended well enough to let the lows do their thing - and do their thing, they certainly did - but I did find it missing that last iota of upper-treble air to compete with the likes of the STORM or the MM. In imaging, I thought it did well. It was expansive and sufficiently airy, while not superlatively clean, and it laid itself out like a nice, even sphere. I thought the dynamics of the monitor were good, but, as usual with EE’s recent efforts, the bass grooved more than the mids or highs to my ears. So, all in all, it was an in-ear that scored 8/10’s across the board for me, and I enjoyed my time with it a fair bit.
And, then, it was D-Day. By Saturday, 10.15AM, I’d finished breakfast at my hotel, donned my Watercooler tag, packed my bags and ordered a cab to the Pan Pacific Hotel. On the ride there, I was as anxious as I always am pre-CJ, but the nerves weren’t half as bad. Again, I needn’t do any coverage, nor did I have a Fujifilm camera weighing down my neck. This was a CanJam for the people, and I was really, really looking forward to it.
As soon as I got there, I reunited with the Cooler Crew, and we all headed to the hotel café for a pre-show cuppa. Some of us got the show started there with an audition of L&P DAPs. I was really impressed by the size and weight of the P6 Pro, even though my wallet begged I didn’t audition it. And, after a round of coffee and a few minutes of chit chat, it was show time. We all queued up, got our online ticket barcodes scanned, and headed in. After a quick lap around the show floor to get a feel for things, the first booth I headed to was...
FiR Audio
This was my 2nd time meeting Bogdan, as well as my 1st meeting Vlad. They were understandably reeling after the long flight over, plus the super-late window the hotel gave them to prep their booth. But, they were as courteous as always. They cleverly brought 3 Rn6’s to the show, and I was given one that was paired with FiR’s standard, SPC stock cable, as well as the red module installed. So, the following impressions will mostly be based on that.
Rn6
FiR Audio’s Rn6 came off like a bold interpretation of neutral. Notes had heft to them from a 1-2kHz bump, and it gave the midrange a thicker, richer timbre. It didn’t come off fatty or wet, though, because of its open, airy highs. That gave the IEM great staging, allowing it to image freely with superb left-right separation. Hard-panned rhythm guitars and horns had this surround sound feel to them. And, the headroom it produced was effortless too, probably due to its open design. It did this without resorting to a crystalline, tizz-y tone either, opting instead for thicker highs with more 7kHz texture than 5kHz glitz. Down low, despite having a light sub-bass bias, I felt it wasn’t too verve-y or rumbly. It had the littlest hints of wool; not the grittiest or the most crystalline. But, I felt it gave an earthy, analog quality that felt natural. More impressively, the layering and speed of the bass were superb despite that. Bass guitars and kick drums on the same track were nicely segregated. Nothing bled into each other. So, it was a surprisingly technical bass for the girth and decay it had, which, by the way, sat about level with its centre-mids.
Now, switching over to the custom silver cable the Rn6 comes stock with, I was met by a more intense, contrast-y sound. The sub-bass and low-treble were both lightly lifted, which added attack and impact, and it took the focus away from the 1-2kHz area to my ears. The in-ear gained a blacker background, which aided speed and resolution a great deal. The open hi-hats and chugging rhythm guitars on Daughtry’s Changes Are Coming, which previously barely bled into each other on the SPC cable, were now cleanly separated on the silver cable. This was certainly more of how I expected the Rn6 to sound based on earlier impressions. But, I reckon that SPC cable could still make for a viable, more soothing alternative if one already had it.
Xe6
Immediately after, I hopped on over to the now-classic Xe6, and I really took to its signature. It’s a much more character-filled, unique tuning than the Rn6, and I found it very nice and soothing. Volume-matching them at the bass, the Xe6 had a much calmer upper-midrange and mid-treble, which resulted in a smokier, less vibrant timbre. It was as if I heard the same musical performance, but sat further away. This also gave the Xe6 perceivably more depth. I don’t know if y’all can relate, but the difference between the Rn6 and the Xe6, to me, was like the difference between listening in a studio and listening in an arena. The Rn6 was like the former, where the monitors are firing directly at you in a treated room, so you’re getting all that information in a cleaner, more upfront way. The Xe6 was like the latter, where the PA system is meters away, and, by the time the sound reaches your ears, it’s already bounced against the walls a couple times. Or, you could say, the Rn6 was a musician playing a well-rehearsed gig, while the Xe6 was that same musician relaxed and free-styling at home with a glass of scotch.
Either way, I really enjoyed my time with both the Rn6 and Xe6, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t consider a custom Xe6 for a split-second there.
Vision Ears
Across the FiR booth were Marcel and Amin from Vision Ears, who I hadn’t seen in two, long years. After our obligatory hi’s, they showed me two prototypes - Red and Blue - which they wanted crowd feedback for. This was going to be a model to celebrate their 10th anniversary, and I gave both a go. It’s safe to say, I liked one significantly more than the other…
Vision Ears Red
This was the biggest shock of the show for me. The VE Red was a beautifully-lush, open-sounding in-ear drenched in soul. It’s reminiscent in parts of some of their previous releases; first and foremost, the OG ELYSIUM. The Red had its airy, open delivery, not unlike a sip of fresh, chilled spring water. Instruments like keys, guitars and horns were light on their feet and strongly melodic. Notes were on the larger side, and you heard them ever-so-slightly trail as they faded away. There’s this cross-feed-y, halo-y effect, as if their reverbs were ever-so-slightly heightened. But, because of its immensely-airy treble, the stage remained clean, and it maintained depth as well; never too intimate.
It’s an open, melodic signature that’s ELYSIUM-like, but this’s then paired with the earthy, lush, mid-forward warmth of the VE8. The Red wasn’t as wispy as the former, nor as down-and-dirty as the latter. It was a healthy in-between to my ears. And, that’s all brought together by a meaty, DD-driven bass that balanced the sub- and mid-bass frequencies very nicely. It’s a gorgeous, gorgeous sig for my preferences.
All in all, this could be a beautiful IEM for those who love that unmistakably VE sound; who’ve loved the VE5, the ELYSIUM and the VE8, especially. It’s not for those who prefer the crisp, staccato-like cuts of a Subtonic STORM or the ultra-wide, far-field sound of an Elysian Annihilator. But, if you want to sit back and enjoy your favorite band from the 3rd or 4th row, letting music just wash over you, this is certainly one to watch. It got my vote (along with almost every one of the Coolers’), and this was arguably my favorite thing I heard at CanJam; an absolute showstopper.
Vision Ears Blue
To be totally frank, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the Blue. If you’ve tried some of the recent TOTL hybrids - Empire’s Odyssey, FiR’s line, Elysian’s releases - this sounded like Vision Ears’ interpretation of that. It’s an IEM that, I feel, was tuned to play to the drivers than the music. It’s almost as if it’s yelling out, “Hey guys! We can do that sorta config too!” And, as a result, they got a sig with mids and highs flatter and less expressive than Red’s, paired with a bass that was rumbling and doing its own thing. It’s an IEM that also didn’t open up as much with “calmer” genres like jazz, instead requiring already-intense or full-sounding ones like pop to shine. At the very least, I got a thumpy-er sub-bass than the Red (to my ears, at least. A couple people at the show disagreed with me, so take that how you will). And, since the mids and highs sat further back, it had smaller, tighter instruments within a deeper-sounding stage too, I guess.
In the end, I maintain my opinion that Blue was VE not being themselves. This was a sound, no matter how well-executed, you could find several times in that room alone, and it’s not who VE are to me. Red is quintessentially them, and I honestly hope that’s the model that ultimately gets made. I think there is merit to being true to oneself, and I think it’ll only heighten the respect VE have among audiophiles; their fans, especially. I feel it’d be shame if they settled for that more-mainstream sound, instead of one of the absolute best in-ears I heard at the show. We’ll have to wait and see.
Empire Ears
Among the numerous friendships I’ve made throughout my time in the industry, Jack Vang is one of the closest ones, and I think that’s a sentiment a lot of us who’ve met him can share. He’s a warm, personable dude who’s generous with his time, honest to a fault and always open for a good bro hug. After catching up on what we’ve missed over the past couple years, ruminating on our individual struggles and successes and getting all that personal stuff out of the way, I gave his newest flagship - the EE Raven - a go.
Raven
The Raven was, without question, EE’s most balanced-sounding and most technically-sound monitor yet. And, all it took was them finally catching the frequency range that’s eluded them most: The treble. After disappointing on the EVO and falling short on the Odyssey, the Raven, at last, delivered a top-end that extended and aerified for days. Then, correcting where the ODIN and Phantom erred, the Raven featured a smooth, even-handed, abrupt-peak-free tone that hit the mark to my ears; just precise, crisp and open enough with no artificiality to speak of. It’s the first EE in-ear I’d heard that didn’t smear or trail at all throughout the FR; an effortlessly snappy piece.
Once that’s done, it just made everything they’d already nailed go up a level. EE’s signature W9+ woofers delivered their world-famous bass, now cleaner-etched and less intrusive; not because they’d cut them down in any way, but because the treble finally made the room for it. And, taking community feedback to heart, they’d balanced the midrange better than any of their previous monitors, resulting in more of a centre-mid focus that’s bold, meaty and, most of all, appropriately-sized against the lows. One of my issues with the Odyssey was midrange notes always seemed smaller than bass ones, such that crescendos in horns, guitars and vocals never really hit and peaked like they were supposed to. The only ones that did were bass drops. On the Raven, because everything’s on equal footing in quantity and in size, the whole FR ebbed as one, so those climaxes - those theatrics - hit like they should.
For me, the Raven hit so many just right’s; more than any of EE’s previous releases ever had. While every in-ear is bound to have if’s, but’s and maybe’s, this was the first time I could say EE properly addressed all of their previous complaints. The LX was an answer to the Legend Omega, but some found it a bit bloated or veiled. The ODIN was an answer to the LX, but the upper-mids were overloaded. The Legend EVO was an answer to that, but fell short massively in treble extension. And, the Odyssey was an answer to that, but fell flat in the midrange and the uppermost treble. The Raven was the long-awaited home run. It’s a well-balanced IEM where no frequency outright beat another, yet it managed to still highlight the individual components that make an EE IEM great; i.e. the bass, clearly. The mids were even-toned with the size and power to match. And, the treble was EE’s airiest, most precise and most balanced by a country mile.
So, though where it competes in the larger landscape - against the likes of Elysian, or VE, or Subtonic, or FiR, etc. - is far too soon to be determined, I can say that this was categorically a win for EE themselves. They put their best foot forward with this one, and I’m happy to see them stick the landing. This one’s tied with VE Red and the Nightjar Singularity for my best in show, and it couldn’t have happened to a better group of folks.
Now, with a few auditions in the bank, midway through the day, the Cooler Crew and I headed to the building adjacent to the Pan Pacific, Marina Square, for lunch with Eletech’s Eric Chong.
We settled at Putien, where we had a sweet array of modern Chinese food, and we each shared how we got to know Eric. The locals among us got to know him during his time in sales, a couple of us have followed him through shows, etc. It was a much-needed break, topped off with a slice of gorgeous Black Forest cake, provided by our very own @metaljem77. An hour later, we were back on the show floor, and where better to continue than…
Eletech
Eletech brought their refreshed entry-level line, consisting of the Azrael, Cassiel and the all-new Raphael. I had 2 of the 3 in my inventory already, so I decided to shift my focus toward their prototype collaboration monitors instead, and see what feedback I could give.
Prototype A
The A delivered that bouncy, contrasty, bass-enthused W-shape sig that’s become fairly popular nowadays. The VE Blue had it, the Elysian IEMs have it to a degree, and this was Eletech’s take on it. To me, its sub-bass rise was fairly clean, so you didn’t get any egregious warmth headed to the midrange. As a result, there was a brighter outline to its notes; fairly-cleanly etched. Although the treble ran the risk of dryness on certain tracks, its boisterous bass did do well in balancing it out. I called it a latte-like sound with a big, hefty bottom and an energetic upper-half, and it’s a fine-enough in-ear that’ll likely suit fans of contrast and impact.
Prototype B
The B sounded like a warmer, more relaxed version of the A; less bite-y and vibrant across its upper-mids and treble. This one had a wetter mid-bass to it with perceivably more presence, most likely because of its more relaxed highs. It was very reminiscent of the LX to me, where the bass and low-treble gave it pops of energy, while the midrange sat with a velvety-smooth tone. Though, it did have more of a sub-bass bias than the LX, and it had an airier upper-treble too, so one could say it’s a cleaner, tidier version of that sound.
Although one may perceive the B a touch veiled or flat coming from A, I did find B to grow on me more than A did. A’s first impression was its best. Whereas, the B started off a bit slow, but I found myself falling into a nice, cozy groove with it by the 2nd or 3rd track. It was an IEM I enjoyed more and more as it went along, and I almost didn’t want to take them out of my ears. So, ultimately, which of the two Eletech decide to move forward with will depend on which they appreciate more: Instant gratification or long-lasting pleasure.
Jomo Audio
Joseph Mou is another longtime industry pal. I’ve heard his in-ears from the Jomo brand’s very conception, and it’s been a treat watching him grow to the name he is today. As much as I wanted to try all his new models, I only had time for his two flagships: The GT600 and the all-new Alpha Ti.
GT600
Jomo’s GT600 reminded me a lot of my fiancé when I’m asking her for feedback on anything. As soon as I ask, she’ll turn to me with the blankest face a human being could possibly make and just give it to me straight; no ease-in, no sugarcoat, no preamble; nothing. That’s exactly how the GT600 delivered music. It’s a straightforward, nice-and-clean, just-there IEM that took the music you fed it and went, “Here you go.” Apart from its lightly-relaxed low-mids, which brought the slightest hint of dryness to its midrange, it’s largely an uncolored in-ear. The difference is, this applied throughout its entire delivery. There was no attempt to romanticize, or energize, or beautify here.
Now, on the bright side, that made its detailing seem extremely effortless. It resolved without any trickery; without lifting a finger. As an engineer, that seems like the exact signature I’d want as a reference tool. But, I personally found it a bit too blasé for even me to work with. When I’m mixing or mastering, I still need some oomph in texture, or dynamics, or imaging to keep me going; to keep me interested and to stave off the mental fatigue of the task. But, I can see this being an ideal IEM for someone who just wants the in-ear to step out of the way and let the mix do the talking. As long as you don’t mind the in-ear’s average depth, the GT600 offers superb detail, good left-right width and a linear, almost-perfectly-uncolored tonality to those who’s idea of an ideal IEM is passive and unenthused, and I mean that in the most positive way possible.
Alpha Ti
Compared to the cleaner, drier, more down-the-barrel GT600, the Alpha Ti was a looser, more pleasing, more euphonic-sounding IEM. Notes were larger, wetter, and they had more of a sway to them; an ebb and a flow. Part of that came down to its smoother treble. The Alpha didn’t emphasize air frequencies as much. It also had stronger dynamics. Tracks moved more here, and it also exhibited a quality I relate most to EE’s ODIN. Its stage felt empty (or had empty pockets of space) until the track filled it up. Uncompressed, well-mastered tracks did this, often doing so in stages as the song slowly builds to its climax. Whereas, compressed, strongly-limited tracks started out as tiny balls in the middle of the stage, then stayed that way ’til the end; no expansion, no build, and the outskirts of the stage would remain empty.
Speaking of that stage, it wasn’t the most expansive I’d heard. It didn’t span far out of head, and the Alpha’s larger notes filled it up a bit more noticeably than the GT600’s did, despite the former’s impressive stereo spread and layering. Its mids also had a decidedly BA sound. It lacked the 3D-ness and tactility a DD would deliver. But, ultimately, small niggles aside, the Alpha’s biggest sin to me was that it didn’t really offer anything extraordinarily unique. Arguably, its most unique trait was its titanium shell, and even that’s becoming less and less of a novelty. So, while it’s a well-done, well-balanced sound, it also wasn’t a sig that offered anything particularly unique. As much as it stood out externally, I struggled to find what set it apart in the flagship race in 2023, sonically.
Elysian Acoustic Labs
Another CanJam Singapore first, 2023 was when I first got to to meet Elysian Acoustic Labs’ Lee. The Cooler Crew and I basically mobbed his booth, and it was fun picking his brains about tuning, proprietary driver design and the changes he made for his line-up refresh. There, I gave two in-ears a go: The Annihilator 2023 and a prototype dubbed ‘Dio’.
Annihilator 2023
I found the 2023 Anni a welcome shift from the OG I tried last year. I found the latter wide, open and airy, but also ethereal to a degree. Instruments didn’t seem tactile, solid or dense. They were light and floaty. So, hearing the 2023, I was glad to hear the issue fixed. A lot of that openness and headroom was maintained, thanks no less to Elysian’s signature treble, but instruments now had more meat - fiber - to them. Toms no longer sounded open-bottomed, nor did singers sound like they were missing chests or diaphragms. I suspect an augmentation to the low-mid or centre-mid registers aided too. But, all in all, it resulted in a superb interpretation of that airy, breezy, yet analog sorta signature that I loved in the original Lime Ears Aether or the MrSpeakers… ETHER, funnily enough. It’s not reason enough to get if you already have the OG Anni, but this is definitely worth revisiting if you enjoyed the OG, but wanted a bit more substance; more solidity.
‘Dio’ Prototype
The Dio is a prototype Lee brought to the show, which was pretty confusing, since the Annihilator’s prototype was also called Dio. Perhaps, Dio is what he calls all his prototypes..? In any case, this one caused quite a bit of buzz among the Watercooler Crew. A couple of us dubbed it the clear IEM of the show. I personally didn’t fall head-over-heels for it, partly because of its unfinished treble, and partly because of its tentative price. I won’t say how much, but it was really, really, really high. But, it was a very impressive IEM in its unpolished state, still, and here’s why.
The Dio, tonally, wasn’t far removed from the Annihilator. I could see their FRs lining up fairly well. Where the Dio exceeded the Anni - and almost every other IEM I’ve heard, for that matter - was in raw scale. The Dio was a massive-sounding IEM. Not only was its stage effortlessly out-of-head, but the notes within it were huge to match. I listened to, again, Daughtry’s Changes Are Coming and, during the build to the chorus, I could’ve sworn I could see all 14 inches of that floor tom right in front of my face. The bass was a stellar achievement from a power and physicality POV, though I found its tone or texture largely decided by the treble. The same went for the midrange. It was similarly large and textured, but not the tidiest, due to the treble.
As you can probably guess, up high was where I took the greatest issue with the Dio. It didn’t have the clarity, refinement or ease of the Anni, and it needed more juice as well. On my Lotoo PAW Gold Touch, the Dio was borderline messy. It took my Cayin N6ii to get it in line, so the rest of its sig could hit. So, it really is up to Lee to polish that treble up; not just for the sake of what he’s already achieved in the lows and mids, but to deliver on the price range he’s set so ambitiously high for himself. I hope the Dio turns out well in the end, but it’s almost destined to be for the richer-blooded among us.
64 Audio
As my time at the show came to a close, I decided to walk around the show floor saying goodbye to everyone I’d had a pleasant reunion with at CanJam 2023. One of those people was AV One’s Jeremy, and, being the salesman he is, as soon as the pleasantries were over, he ushered me over to the 64 Audio booth for me to try their new U4S. How was it? Well…
U4S
The 64 Audio U4S was a 64 Audio IEM with a DD woofer. It sounded exactly how it read. The brand has developed a house FR curve with the U12t, U6t, A3t, etc., and the U4S took that familiar sound and added a warm, girth-y, full-blooded low-end. To my ears, it performed about as well technically as I’d expect a $1000 IEM to. It didn’t really blow me away in that respect; dynamics, imaging, resolution, etc. I also felt they were trying to show off that DD a bit too much. The lows were fairly warm and bloomy. I’m sure you could fix that by swapping out the apex module, but I unfortunately didn’t have the time to. Still, despite all that, it was about as close as one could get to a U12t with a DD bass. And, that price was hard to beat. So, if a DD-equipped U12t is what you’re looking for, and you don’t mind trading some technique for a lighter price tag, the U4S is certainly worth a look.
Soranik x xMEMS
And, the very last thing I tried as I was waiting for my cab to the airport was something outside the CanJam programme. The Cooler Crew and I were asked to try xMEMS’s all-new microspeaker, and it’s tech I admittedly know very little about. As far as I’m aware, it’s a new level of miniaturization, which includes the use of silicon semiconductors and a whole new method of fabrication. And, of course, like any new tech on the bleeding edge, it currently requires an annoying proprietary energizer to run.
Said driver was inside an IEM from Vietnamese brand, Soranik, and it was a hybrid with an xMEMS tweeter, then a BA for its mids and lows. Immediately, I loved how it presented the treble. The xMEMS tweeter delivered a top-end that was solid, crisp, well-etched and open, but it didn’t have any of the usual telltales of a BA or an EST. It needn’t a BA’s 5kHz glitz, nor its 8kHz etch, nor its 10kHz glare, and it had neither the sandy, powdery notes, nor the weightless floaty-ness of Sonion’s EST. It was a weighted treble with tons of tactility - very 3D-sounding - but without the colorations that that sound would typically need, and it was probably one of the most natural, uncolored treble reproductions I’d heard yet. Now, if they can only get rid of that slog of an amp unit.
Jokes aside, I think this xMEMS driver has tons of potential as a tweeter. It impressed me more than ESTs did when they were first coming out, and it’s already impressed me more than some of the optimized, matured EST configs I’m hearing now. So, as long as they can come up with a way to drop that energizer unit or massively scale it down, I think this driver will be the future as far as in-ear tweeters are concerned.
And, that was that. As the clock struck 5PM, I said my goodbyes to everyone I’d seen, whether for the very first time, or the first time in a long, long time. We shared laughs, we shared hugs, we shared until next time’s, and off I went; back to my hotel, then to the airport. Before I knew it, I was getting ready for Sunday service and, by 7AM, the day after, there I was:
I said it to everyone there, and I’ll say it again here: CanJam SG 2023 was the best one I’ve ever been to. And, absolutely none of it had to with the gear. As much as I’ve loved the products I got to listen to, or the review/business opportunities I’ve been able to make in the past, there really is quite nothing like giving and reciprocating human connection. The 2 days I got to spend with the Cooler Crew were some of my best times in the hobby, and the reunions I had with Amin, Marcel, Jack and Eric, just to name a few, were nothing short of special. I didn’t even mention the beautiful, private conversations I finally got to have with @jude and @Sebastien Chiu, who I’ve long, long admired online. So, once again, a team effort as it always is, I wanted to express my thanks to every single person for making this an event to remember. I had as much of a blast as I thought I was going to, but I truly didn’t think it was going to hit me in the feels this hard.
I hope all of you who were there with me got to reminisce on that special weekend through my post, and I hope all of you who weren’t able to make it got to live vicariously through it. I can’t wait to meet all of you again one day, and I surely hope there’ll be more of us there when we do. We’re gonna need a wide-angle lens to take these group photos at the rate we’re going. Live long and prosper, Cooler Crew! Daniel, out!
So sorry to hear that. Hope you are fully recovered now.Sad. Wanted to attend. But was literally sick for the whole month of Mar
Epic post Daniel. You set the bar so high that the rest of us can only aspire to reach your level. Thanks for such a great read!WARNING: This one’s gonna be very word-heavy and pic-light. As many plaudits as my photos have thankfully received, my documenting instincts are some of the worst you’ll ever find. So, there won’t be many pics of what went down, but I’ll make sure to do my best visualizing as we proceed.
After 2 years of local isolation, I was finally able to fly out and attend 2023’s CanJam Singapore. A lot’s changed in that time. I retired from reviewing, my interest in in-ears isn’t what it used to be, and with a wedding on the way, I can’t spend as much as I used to. So, for me, this was gonna be a show I attended not for THL, not for my collection and certainly not to maintain any sort of vain, influencer status. This was gonna be one for the people - for the connections I’ve made and wanna make - and what better time to do it than the year the Watercooler crew decided to come to town.
Just months ago, it was a pipe dream on Head-Fi. Then, weeks ago, it became a tiny, eager WhatsApp group. And, before I knew it, I was headed to the Kith Cafe at Ascott to meet face-to-face with the SEA Watercooler contingent; a bunch of profile pics and usernames I’d seen countless times on a computer screen, who were about to, as strange as it may sound, materialize into real human beings… and what wonderful human beings, they all were.
Sitting down at that table, shaking hands, swapping gifts and Jim handing me the wooden name tag he so generously had made, I instantly knew I was in for a great time. Between silent, focused listening and light-hearted, laugh-filled chats, the warmth, camaraderie and, just, fun was palpable. Between us, the Subtonic and Nightjar folks, the people they brought… there wasn’t a bad apple in the room. I was having a blast. Oh, and we listened to a fair amount of great stuff too. Let the impressions begin!
Subtonic STORM
Subtonic’s STORM has received as much hype as controversy. Those fortunate enough to try it early called it the best in-ear they’d heard, and those who bet their hard-earned money on those impressions have had to wait nearly two years for their orders to arrive. Now, in a room with not one, not two, but three Subtonic Storm’s, I finally got a chance to hear it for myself.
Subtonic’s Storm had some of the best technique I’d heard in an IEM. Transients were as clean as I’d heard them, so notes popped in and out with stunning speed. And, they pulled off this tightrope act whilst keeping that tonality plate spinning, so kudos to them there. With the stock, 2-wire Mira cable, it had a neutral-ish tone with a lower-midrange that could lean slightly dry, along with a treble that could glare - shimmer - every once in a while. But, this was the exception; not the rule. It fulfilled its promise of projecting like near-field monitors. Its notes were on the larger side, and they were nearer to me than the outermost reaches of the stage, which, on the 2-wire Mira, felt naturally-sized; neither boxed-in, nor artificially stretched. But, again, because of its razor-sharp transients and immense speed, resolution was light work for the STORM. It felt like you could analyze each microsecond of each bar, and it’s a great set if analysis is your pastime. And, of course, I’d be remiss not to highlight its bass, which, though short of a quality DD, was among the best I’d heard a BA thump, in no small part due to its clean sub-bass shelf.
Now, the only way I can critique the STORM is subjectively; personally. Despite all its technical accolades, it wasn’t an in-ear that necessarily moved me, whether for listening or for work. It lacked a bit of groove - sway - for my recreational use, and I could’ve done without the slightly-sandy notes the ESTs gave the mid-treble. Then, it was a touch too clean and dry for me to mix or master on. I tend to prefer a little warmth there to stave off fatigue, and the STORM sounded like a tool to check mixes with than to mix with. To me, the STORM was like one of those high-FPS TVs at tech stores. They always get a stop, a stare and a “Whoa, cool,” out of me, but nothing more. At the same time, to someone else, they could be the key to completing their endgame theatre system. So, it’s an IEM I heavily respect, and it’s one I can see its target demo loving. It wasn’t the one for me, but I can safely say that it deserves its seat (even the throne) at the high-end table for sure.
As a side note, the STORM was also one of the most malleable IEMs I’d ever heard. It tip-toed between calm and assured on my LPGT, then boisterous on my N6ii Ti. I was able to push it all the way to ultra-wide, ultra-airy and ultra-clinical with Nightjar’s upcoming flagship cable, while the PW Audio Orpheus hilariously turned it into my JHA Sharona. My jaw was on the floor, how similar it was. But, in the end, I felt the default 2-wire Mira gave it the finest balance between cutting-edge technique and natural-ish delivery.
Nightjar
Also in attendance was Chang from Nightjar Acoustics, who, similar to Symphonium Audio, somewhat reside under the Subtonic umbrella. They’ve only made IEM cables thus far, and I reviewed their flagship Mira fairly recently. But, it’s no secret that they’ve been trying their hand at developing IEMs as well. Chang brought 2 DD-equipped prototypes to the meet - the 1-DD Singularity and an unnamed 2-DD we’re tentatively calling the Duality - and it’s safe to say both were some of the weekend’s absolute highlights.
Singularity
The Nightjar Acoustics Singularity is the best single-DD IEM I’ve ever heard; bar none. Without getting into tuning or tone, the technique they were able to pull out of this single driver was stunning. I was in agreement with virtually everyone there (and even those who heard it at CanJam NY), it seemed like a BA or EST was up in the highs aiding its detail retrieval and speed. Unlike most single-DD’s that smooth over or ever-so-slightly smear the treble (even the ones with high extension), the Singularity would comb over them and accentuate those micro-transients. Whether it’s light ride cymbal rolls on a jazz track or the decaying chugs of an electric guitar, the Singularity never let details drift off or lose focus to my ears; a unique achievement for an IEM of its kind.
Presentation-wise, the Singularity had an engaging, colored, bass-lifted tuning, paired with substantial, yet clear mids and a clean treble. I’ve heard it compared to the recently-popular FatFreq MSE. I think it bears similarities (more so in delivery than tone) to Elysian’s OG DIVA. But, all in all, this’s a fun, dynamic tone without any audible “potholes” anywhere in its FR, and it jived perfectly well with any genre I threw at it. What I loved more than its tonal balance was its delivery. I called the Singularity enveloping at the meet, and that’s literally what it was. It had huge, bouncy notes that surround and wash over you. I found its height particularly impressive. And, the texture its treble was able to resolve made its walls of sound all the more rich. Its stage wasn’t the largest or vastest because of this, but I thought it had just enough space to keep it all open; never overwhelming.
So, as far as a toe-tapping, deep-digging, all-encompassing DD IEM, the Singularity was a frontrunner in all departments. Throw in the fact it’s set to come in at 1300 USD, you have yourselves a potential hit. I’ll be joining the 10+ people who’ve already committed to a pre-order when it comes out mid-2023, and I hope to see what others think of it as its launch date nears. ‘One of the stars of the show for me, for sure.
Duality
The 2-DD Duality aimed for a similar tone to the Singularity, but with a massive added dose of bass; sub-bass, to be clear. This was a no-holds-barred basshead monitor, but executed with a high level of finesse. Like its single-DD sibling, it had a clean, airy image, resulting in strong amounts of headroom. At the same time, it didn’t quite have the fine-toothed-comb precision and detail of the Singularity. It very much sounded like a DD in its mids and highs. Chang told us he’s still working on giving the mid-high driver the same speed as the Singularity, whether through tuning or a new, bespoke DD. So, that is still to be determined.
The reason for that disparity, though, was because the Singularity didn’t have anywhere near the rumble this Duality did. It really had sub-bass on sub-bass on sub-bass, but I can’t emphasize enough how clean the rest of its FR still came out. This was because of the IEM’s clean bass shelf and how clean the low-end itself was. It wasn’t a blubbery mess, nor was it a bunch of random vibrations. Even with the impedance adapter that boosted the bass even further (which Chang built for fun as a proof-of-concept), the woofers would not distort. It was a focused low-end rise that spanned the entire horizon of the image and hilariously felt like a deep-tissue massage. Now, I just can’t wait to hear it paired with mids and highs to match.
Following our lovely café meet, we moved on to Jaben Singapore, located in the Adelphi building. A few of us wanted to try the FitEar line-up, which Uncle Wilson and his crew generously laid out, despite having them already packed for CanJam. That was also where we finally met the lovely @drftr and Sajid. While the Cooler Crew had their mass FitEar demo, most of which I’d already heard in the past, I auditioned the Softears Tremolo. This was then followed by demos of @yaps66’s in-ears, which he kindly encouraged. So, here are some impressions of those, along with a couple IEMs Jim and Jemy kindly let me try too:
Softears Tremolo
The Tremolo unit I auditioned was actually a custom model moulded to Uncle Wilson’s ears. So, it was a less-than-ideal scenario, where I had to hold the units in place in my ears and hope that I wasn’t adding bass and/or treble by pressing them in too hard. Nevertheless, what I heard was a fairly impressive 1-DD IEM. It didn’t blow me away like the Singularity did. It didn’t have that resolution in the mids and highs, and it wasn’t as bombastic in presentation. It was a more relaxed IEM, which I could definitely appreciate. It was mid-bass-biased to my ears, followed by a neutral midrange and a clear, well-extended, smoothened treble. The width and cleanliness of the image was impressive for its config, but that aside, I thought it performed about on par with its price point. So, it didn’t blow my socks off, but it’s an EDC worth considering.
Also, I must credit Softears again for their superb build. The transparent shells on Uncle Wilson’s units were crystal clear, and the internals were excellently done too. The wires looked cut to measure, and there wasn’t a splotch of glue in sight. Bravo.
Campfire Audio Trifecta
The Trifecta, above all, is a strongly-colored IEM. I don’t think it’s anywhere near as bad as some have flippantly made it out to be, but I can see it being an in-ear that can easily throw anyone off. Its main bits of colouration were in the upper-mids and treble, for me. There’s a 3kHz dip that pulled instruments back and dulled them quite a bit. Horns, keys, vocals and the like weren’t as vibrant or as forwardly-projected as they ought to be. And, its treble was a medley of peaks and valleys that emphasized certain attacks and deadened others. The 6kHz and 12kHz regions were cut to limit the amount of glitz and crystalline air in the in-ear, even though it had a fair amount of cut, still, thanks to adjacent peaks.
Part of those treble colorations felt, to me, made to highlight the bass. Low-end notes had this strong, well-etched thwack to them. And, those highs extended enough to give the monitor spherical, holographic imaging to. So, it definitely was an earphone with several highlights, but it’s also one of the tougher signatures to get into. I can see, in equal measure, why some would love it and why others consider it overpriced. But, I reckon it’s an IEM worth hearing and understanding, and I can certainly understand its appeal.
Noble Audio Ronin
The Noble Ronin was a tough one for me, largely because of its wide, chunky shells. I could get them to seal, but I could never get them to sit comfortably inside my concha. It never quite locked in and sat in my ears, and I question how much of its sound I actually got to hear. Nevertheless, what I did manage to glean from my demo was a fairly linear, plain-Jane-sounding IEM. Nothing really grabbed me, and it didn’t do much wrong either, except for what I perceived to be a lack of a deep, black background. There seemed to be a fuzz to the Ronin’s backdrop that prevented notes from popping in with as much strength and impact as they could’ve. It limited dynamics and drama on certain mixes, so that was my only qualm. Otherwise, it’s a good, steady Eddie sorta IEM, but make sure you give the shells a try before you make a purchase. It isn’t the most universal of universals.
Unique Melody Multiverse Mentor
This one caught me a bit by surprise. The UM MM is an in-ear lauded for its resolution and detail, so I was a tad startled to find it had a very warm, rich, meaty sound. Now, that’s not a bad thing at all. I found its body satisfying for toms or rhythm guitars. The mids were of an especially high quality; sumptuous and full-blooded. And, it matched really well with mixes on the brighter, lighter side. Tommy Igoe’s big band records gained a fair bit of weight. And, FKJ’s catalog sounded beautifully analog. The only bit that kinda let me down was that it didn’t have the cutting-edge clarity I was expecting. The in-ear was actually on the woolier side, transient-wise, and I was missing some of the edge it was purported to have. I could possibly have been influenced by the STORM audition earlier that day, or perhaps a tip change could’ve helped. In any case, I still found the MM very good; just not what I was expecting.
Astell&Kern x Empire Ears Odyssey
The Odyssey is what I thought the Legend EVO truly should’ve been. It’s an in-ear that, like the LX when it came out, was bass-first, then warm, soothing and inoffensive overall. Its midrange was one of Empire’s better efforts, even if it still had that light smearing or saturation they’re known for. And, its top-end had a more linear, more balanced tonality than their low-treble-biased ODIN too. It extended well enough to let the lows do their thing - and do their thing, they certainly did - but I did find it missing that last iota of upper-treble air to compete with the likes of the STORM or the MM. In imaging, I thought it did well. It was expansive and sufficiently airy, while not superlatively clean, and it laid itself out like a nice, even sphere. I thought the dynamics of the monitor were good, but, as usual with EE’s recent efforts, the bass grooved more than the mids or highs to my ears. So, all in all, it was an in-ear that scored 8/10’s across the board for me, and I enjoyed my time with it a fair bit.
And, then, it was D-Day. By Saturday, 10.15AM, I’d finished breakfast at my hotel, donned my Watercooler tag, packed my bags and ordered a cab to the Pan Pacific Hotel. On the ride there, I was as anxious as I always am pre-CJ, but the nerves weren’t half as bad. Again, I needn’t do any coverage, nor did I have a Fujifilm camera weighing down my neck. This was a CanJam for the people, and I was really, really looking forward to it.
As soon as I got there, I reunited with the Cooler Crew, and we all headed to the hotel café for a pre-show cuppa. Some of us got the show started there with an audition of L&P DAPs. I was really impressed by the size and weight of the P6 Pro, even though my wallet begged I didn’t audition it. And, after a round of coffee and a few minutes of chit chat, it was show time. We all queued up, got our online ticket barcodes scanned, and headed in. After a quick lap around the show floor to get a feel for things, the first booth I headed to was...
FiR Audio
This was my 2nd time meeting Bogdan, as well as my 1st meeting Vlad. They were understandably reeling after the long flight over, plus the super-late window the hotel gave them to prep their booth. But, they were as courteous as always. They cleverly brought 3 Rn6’s to the show, and I was given one that was paired with FiR’s standard, SPC stock cable, as well as the red module installed. So, the following impressions will mostly be based on that.
Rn6
FiR Audio’s Rn6 came off like a bold interpretation of neutral. Notes had heft to them from a 1-2kHz bump, and it gave the midrange a thicker, richer timbre. It didn’t come off fatty or wet, though, because of its open, airy highs. That gave the IEM great staging, allowing it to image freely with superb left-right separation. Hard-panned rhythm guitars and horns had this surround sound feel to them. And, the headroom it produced was effortless too, probably due to its open design. It did this without resorting to a crystalline, tizz-y tone either, opting instead for thicker highs with more 7kHz texture than 5kHz glitz. Down low, despite having a light sub-bass bias, I felt it wasn’t too verve-y or rumbly. It had the littlest hints of wool; not the grittiest or the most crystalline. But, I felt it gave an earthy, analog quality that felt natural. More impressively, the layering and speed of the bass were superb despite that. Bass guitars and kick drums on the same track were nicely segregated. Nothing bled into each other. So, it was a surprisingly technical bass for the girth and decay it had, which, by the way, sat about level with its centre-mids.
Now, switching over to the custom silver cable the Rn6 comes stock with, I was met by a more intense, contrast-y sound. The sub-bass and low-treble were both lightly lifted, which added attack and impact, and it took the focus away from the 1-2kHz area to my ears. The in-ear gained a blacker background, which aided speed and resolution a great deal. The open hi-hats and chugging rhythm guitars on Daughtry’s Changes Are Coming, which previously barely bled into each other on the SPC cable, were now cleanly separated on the silver cable. This was certainly more of how I expected the Rn6 to sound based on earlier impressions. But, I reckon that SPC cable could still make for a viable, more soothing alternative if one already had it.
Xe6
Immediately after, I hopped on over to the now-classic Xe6, and I really took to its signature. It’s a much more character-filled, unique tuning than the Rn6, and I found it very nice and soothing. Volume-matching them at the bass, the Xe6 had a much calmer upper-midrange and mid-treble, which resulted in a smokier, less vibrant timbre. It was as if I heard the same musical performance, but sat further away. This also gave the Xe6 perceivably more depth. I don’t know if y’all can relate, but the difference between the Rn6 and the Xe6, to me, was like the difference between listening in a studio and listening in an arena. The Rn6 was like the former, where the monitors are firing directly at you in a treated room, so you’re getting all that information in a cleaner, more upfront way. The Xe6 was like the latter, where the PA system is meters away, and, by the time the sound reaches your ears, it’s already bounced against the walls a couple times. Or, you could say, the Rn6 was a musician playing a well-rehearsed gig, while the Xe6 was that same musician relaxed and free-styling at home with a glass of scotch.
Either way, I really enjoyed my time with both the Rn6 and Xe6, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t consider a custom Xe6 for a split-second there.
Vision Ears
Across the FiR booth were Marcel and Amin from Vision Ears, who I hadn’t seen in two, long years. After our obligatory hi’s, they showed me two prototypes - Red and Blue - which they wanted crowd feedback for. This was going to be a model to celebrate their 10th anniversary, and I gave both a go. It’s safe to say, I liked one significantly more than the other…
Vision Ears Red
This was the biggest shock of the show for me. The VE Red was a beautifully-lush, open-sounding in-ear drenched in soul. It’s reminiscent in parts of some of their previous releases; first and foremost, the OG ELYSIUM. The Red had its airy, open delivery, not unlike a sip of fresh, chilled spring water. Instruments like keys, guitars and horns were light on their feet and strongly melodic. Notes were on the larger side, and you heard them ever-so-slightly trail as they faded away. There’s this cross-feed-y, halo-y effect, as if their reverbs were ever-so-slightly heightened. But, because of its immensely-airy treble, the stage remained clean, and it maintained depth as well; never too intimate.
It’s an open, melodic signature that’s ELYSIUM-like, but this’s then paired with the earthy, lush, mid-forward warmth of the VE8. The Red wasn’t as wispy as the former, nor as down-and-dirty as the latter. It was a healthy in-between to my ears. And, that’s all brought together by a meaty, DD-driven bass that balanced the sub- and mid-bass frequencies very nicely. It’s a gorgeous, gorgeous sig for my preferences.
All in all, this could be a beautiful IEM for those who love that unmistakably VE sound; who’ve loved the VE5, the ELYSIUM and the VE8, especially. It’s not for those who prefer the crisp, staccato-like cuts of a Subtonic STORM or the ultra-wide, far-field sound of an Elysian Annihilator. But, if you want to sit back and enjoy your favorite band from the 3rd or 4th row, letting music just wash over you, this is certainly one to watch. It got my vote (along with almost every one of the Coolers’), and this was arguably my favorite thing I heard at CanJam; an absolute showstopper.
Vision Ears Blue
To be totally frank, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the Blue. If you’ve tried some of the recent TOTL hybrids - Empire’s Odyssey, FiR’s line, Elysian’s releases - this sounded like Vision Ears’ interpretation of that. It’s an IEM that, I feel, was tuned to play to the drivers than the music. It’s almost as if it’s yelling out, “Hey guys! We can do that sorta config too!” And, as a result, they got a sig with mids and highs flatter and less expressive than Red’s, paired with a bass that was rumbling and doing its own thing. It’s an IEM that also didn’t open up as much with “calmer” genres like jazz, instead requiring already-intense or full-sounding ones like pop to shine. At the very least, I got a thumpy-er sub-bass than the Red (to my ears, at least. A couple people at the show disagreed with me, so take that how you will). And, since the mids and highs sat further back, it had smaller, tighter instruments within a deeper-sounding stage too, I guess.
In the end, I maintain my opinion that Blue was VE not being themselves. This was a sound, no matter how well-executed, you could find several times in that room alone, and it’s not who VE are to me. Red is quintessentially them, and I honestly hope that’s the model that ultimately gets made. I think there is merit to being true to oneself, and I think it’ll only heighten the respect VE have among audiophiles; their fans, especially. I feel it’d be shame if they settled for that more-mainstream sound, instead of one of the absolute best in-ears I heard at the show. We’ll have to wait and see.
Empire Ears
Among the numerous friendships I’ve made throughout my time in the industry, Jack Vang is one of the closest ones, and I think that’s a sentiment a lot of us who’ve met him can share. He’s a warm, personable dude who’s generous with his time, honest to a fault and always open for a good bro hug. After catching up on what we’ve missed over the past couple years, ruminating on our individual struggles and successes and getting all that personal stuff out of the way, I gave his newest flagship - the EE Raven - a go.
Raven
The Raven was, without question, EE’s most balanced-sounding and most technically-sound monitor yet. And, all it took was them finally catching the frequency range that’s eluded them most: The treble. After disappointing on the EVO and falling short on the Odyssey, the Raven, at last, delivered a top-end that extended and aerified for days. Then, correcting where the ODIN and Phantom erred, the Raven featured a smooth, even-handed, abrupt-peak-free tone that hit the mark to my ears; just precise, crisp and open enough with no artificiality to speak of. It’s the first EE in-ear I’d heard that didn’t smear or trail at all throughout the FR; an effortlessly snappy piece.
Once that’s done, it just made everything they’d already nailed go up a level. EE’s signature W9+ woofers delivered their world-famous bass, now cleaner-etched and less intrusive; not because they’d cut them down in any way, but because the treble finally made the room for it. And, taking community feedback to heart, they’d balanced the midrange better than any of their previous monitors, resulting in more of a centre-mid focus that’s bold, meaty and, most of all, appropriately-sized against the lows. One of my issues with the Odyssey was midrange notes always seemed smaller than bass ones, such that crescendos in horns, guitars and vocals never really hit and peaked like they were supposed to. The only ones that did were bass drops. On the Raven, because everything’s on equal footing in quantity and in size, the whole FR ebbed as one, so those climaxes - those theatrics - hit like they should.
For me, the Raven hit so many just right’s; more than any of EE’s previous releases ever had. While every in-ear is bound to have if’s, but’s and maybe’s, this was the first time I could say EE properly addressed all of their previous complaints. The LX was an answer to the Legend Omega, but some found it a bit bloated or veiled. The ODIN was an answer to the LX, but the upper-mids were overloaded. The Legend EVO was an answer to that, but fell short massively in treble extension. And, the Odyssey was an answer to that, but fell flat in the midrange and the uppermost treble. The Raven was the long-awaited home run. It’s a well-balanced IEM where no frequency outright beat another, yet it managed to still highlight the individual components that make an EE IEM great; i.e. the bass, clearly. The mids were even-toned with the size and power to match. And, the treble was EE’s airiest, most precise and most balanced by a country mile.
So, though where it competes in the larger landscape - against the likes of Elysian, or VE, or Subtonic, or FiR, etc. - is far too soon to be determined, I can say that this was categorically a win for EE themselves. They put their best foot forward with this one, and I’m happy to see them stick the landing. This one’s tied with VE Red and the Nightjar Singularity for my best in show, and it couldn’t have happened to a better group of folks.
Now, with a few auditions in the bank, midway through the day, the Cooler Crew and I headed to the building adjacent to the Pan Pacific, Marina Square, for lunch with Eletech’s Eric Chong.
We settled at Putien, where we had a sweet array of modern Chinese food, and we each shared how we got to know Eric. The locals among us got to know him during his time in sales, a couple of us have followed him through shows, etc. It was a much-needed break, topped off with a slice of gorgeous Black Forest cake, provided by our very own @metaljem77. An hour later, we were back on the show floor, and where better to continue than…
Eletech
Eletech brought their refreshed entry-level line, consisting of the Azrael, Cassiel and the all-new Raphael. I had 2 of the 3 in my inventory already, so I decided to shift my focus toward their prototype collaboration monitors instead, and see what feedback I could give.
Prototype A
The A delivered that bouncy, contrasty, bass-enthused W-shape sig that’s become fairly popular nowadays. The VE Blue had it, the Elysian IEMs have it to a degree, and this was Eletech’s take on it. To me, its sub-bass rise was fairly clean, so you didn’t get any egregious warmth headed to the midrange. As a result, there was a brighter outline to its notes; fairly-cleanly etched. Although the treble ran the risk of dryness on certain tracks, its boisterous bass did do well in balancing it out. I called it a latte-like sound with a big, hefty bottom and an energetic upper-half, and it’s a fine-enough in-ear that’ll likely suit fans of contrast and impact.
Prototype B
The B sounded like a warmer, more relaxed version of the A; less bite-y and vibrant across its upper-mids and treble. This one had a wetter mid-bass to it with perceivably more presence, most likely because of its more relaxed highs. It was very reminiscent of the LX to me, where the bass and low-treble gave it pops of energy, while the midrange sat with a velvety-smooth tone. Though, it did have more of a sub-bass bias than the LX, and it had an airier upper-treble too, so one could say it’s a cleaner, tidier version of that sound.
Although one may perceive the B a touch veiled or flat coming from A, I did find B to grow on me more than A did. A’s first impression was its best. Whereas, the B started off a bit slow, but I found myself falling into a nice, cozy groove with it by the 2nd or 3rd track. It was an IEM I enjoyed more and more as it went along, and I almost didn’t want to take them out of my ears. So, ultimately, which of the two Eletech decide to move forward with will depend on which they appreciate more: Instant gratification or long-lasting pleasure.
Jomo Audio
Joseph Mou is another longtime industry pal. I’ve heard his in-ears from the Jomo brand’s very conception, and it’s been a treat watching him grow to the name he is today. As much as I wanted to try all his new models, I only had time for his two flagships: The GT600 and the all-new Alpha Ti.
GT600
Jomo’s GT600 reminded me a lot of my fiancé when I’m asking her for feedback on anything. As soon as I ask, she’ll turn to me with the blankest face a human being could possibly make and just give it to me straight; no ease-in, no sugarcoat, no preamble; nothing. That’s exactly how the GT600 delivered music. It’s a straightforward, nice-and-clean, just-there IEM that took the music you fed it and went, “Here you go.” Apart from its lightly-relaxed low-mids, which brought the slightest hint of dryness to its midrange, it’s largely an uncolored in-ear. The difference is, this applied throughout its entire delivery. There was no attempt to romanticize, or energize, or beautify here.
Now, on the bright side, that made its detailing seem extremely effortless. It resolved without any trickery; without lifting a finger. As an engineer, that seems like the exact signature I’d want as a reference tool. But, I personally found it a bit too blasé for even me to work with. When I’m mixing or mastering, I still need some oomph in texture, or dynamics, or imaging to keep me going; to keep me interested and to stave off the mental fatigue of the task. But, I can see this being an ideal IEM for someone who just wants the in-ear to step out of the way and let the mix do the talking. As long as you don’t mind the in-ear’s average depth, the GT600 offers superb detail, good left-right width and a linear, almost-perfectly-uncolored tonality to those who’s idea of an ideal IEM is passive and unenthused, and I mean that in the most positive way possible.
Alpha Ti
Compared to the cleaner, drier, more down-the-barrel GT600, the Alpha Ti was a looser, more pleasing, more euphonic-sounding IEM. Notes were larger, wetter, and they had more of a sway to them; an ebb and a flow. Part of that came down to its smoother treble. The Alpha didn’t emphasize air frequencies as much. It also had stronger dynamics. Tracks moved more here, and it also exhibited a quality I relate most to EE’s ODIN. Its stage felt empty (or had empty pockets of space) until the track filled it up. Uncompressed, well-mastered tracks did this, often doing so in stages as the song slowly builds to its climax. Whereas, compressed, strongly-limited tracks started out as tiny balls in the middle of the stage, then stayed that way ’til the end; no expansion, no build, and the outskirts of the stage would remain empty.
Speaking of that stage, it wasn’t the most expansive I’d heard. It didn’t span far out of head, and the Alpha’s larger notes filled it up a bit more noticeably than the GT600’s did, despite the former’s impressive stereo spread and layering. Its mids also had a decidedly BA sound. It lacked the 3D-ness and tactility a DD would deliver. But, ultimately, small niggles aside, the Alpha’s biggest sin to me was that it didn’t really offer anything extraordinarily unique. Arguably, its most unique trait was its titanium shell, and even that’s becoming less and less of a novelty. So, while it’s a well-done, well-balanced sound, it also wasn’t a sig that offered anything particularly unique. As much as it stood out externally, I struggled to find what set it apart in the flagship race in 2023, sonically.
Elysian Acoustic Labs
Another CanJam Singapore first, 2023 was when I first got to to meet Elysian Acoustic Labs’ Lee. The Cooler Crew and I basically mobbed his booth, and it was fun picking his brains about tuning, proprietary driver design and the changes he made for his line-up refresh. There, I gave two in-ears a go: The Annihilator 2023 and a prototype dubbed ‘Dio’.
Annihilator 2023
I found the 2023 Anni a welcome shift from the OG I tried last year. I found the latter wide, open and airy, but also ethereal to a degree. Instruments didn’t seem tactile, solid or dense. They were light and floaty. So, hearing the 2023, I was glad to hear the issue fixed. A lot of that openness and headroom was maintained, thanks no less to Elysian’s signature treble, but instruments now had more meat - fiber - to them. Toms no longer sounded open-bottomed, nor did singers sound like they were missing chests or diaphragms. I suspect an augmentation to the low-mid or centre-mid registers aided too. But, all in all, it resulted in a superb interpretation of that airy, breezy, yet analog sorta signature that I loved in the original Lime Ears Aether or the MrSpeakers… ETHER, funnily enough. It’s not reason enough to get if you already have the OG Anni, but this is definitely worth revisiting if you enjoyed the OG, but wanted a bit more substance; more solidity.
‘Dio’ Prototype
The Dio is a prototype Lee brought to the show, which was pretty confusing, since the Annihilator’s prototype was also called Dio. Perhaps, Dio is what he calls all his prototypes..? In any case, this one caused quite a bit of buzz among the Watercooler Crew. A couple of us dubbed it the clear IEM of the show. I personally didn’t fall head-over-heels for it, partly because of its unfinished treble, and partly because of its tentative price. I won’t say how much, but it was really, really, really high. But, it was a very impressive IEM in its unpolished state, still, and here’s why.
The Dio, tonally, wasn’t far removed from the Annihilator. I could see their FRs lining up fairly well. Where the Dio exceeded the Anni - and almost every other IEM I’ve heard, for that matter - was in raw scale. The Dio was a massive-sounding IEM. Not only was its stage effortlessly out-of-head, but the notes within it were huge to match. I listened to, again, Daughtry’s Changes Are Coming and, during the build to the chorus, I could’ve sworn I could see all 14 inches of that floor tom right in front of my face. The bass was a stellar achievement from a power and physicality POV, though I found its tone or texture largely decided by the treble. The same went for the midrange. It was similarly large and textured, but not the tidiest, due to the treble.
As you can probably guess, up high was where I took the greatest issue with the Dio. It didn’t have the clarity, refinement or ease of the Anni, and it needed more juice as well. On my Lotoo PAW Gold Touch, the Dio was borderline messy. It took my Cayin N6ii to get it in line, so the rest of its sig could hit. So, it really is up to Lee to polish that treble up; not just for the sake of what he’s already achieved in the lows and mids, but to deliver on the price range he’s set so ambitiously high for himself. I hope the Dio turns out well in the end, but it’s almost destined to be for the richer-blooded among us.
64 Audio
As my time at the show came to a close, I decided to walk around the show floor saying goodbye to everyone I’d had a pleasant reunion with at CanJam 2023. One of those people was AV One’s Jeremy, and, being the salesman he is, as soon as the pleasantries were over, he ushered me over to the 64 Audio booth for me to try their new U4S. How was it? Well…
U4S
The 64 Audio U4S was a 64 Audio IEM with a DD woofer. It sounded exactly how it read. The brand has developed a house FR curve with the U12t, U6t, A3t, etc., and the U4S took that familiar sound and added a warm, girth-y, full-blooded low-end. To my ears, it performed about as well technically as I’d expect a $1000 IEM to. It didn’t really blow me away in that respect; dynamics, imaging, resolution, etc. I also felt they were trying to show off that DD a bit too much. The lows were fairly warm and bloomy. I’m sure you could fix that by swapping out the apex module, but I unfortunately didn’t have the time to. Still, despite all that, it was about as close as one could get to a U12t with a DD bass. And, that price was hard to beat. So, if a DD-equipped U12t is what you’re looking for, and you don’t mind trading some technique for a lighter price tag, the U4S is certainly worth a look.
Soranik x xMEMS
And, the very last thing I tried as I was waiting for my cab to the airport was something outside the CanJam programme. The Cooler Crew and I were asked to try xMEMS’s all-new microspeaker, and it’s tech I admittedly know very little about. As far as I’m aware, it’s a new level of miniaturization, which includes the use of silicon semiconductors and a whole new method of fabrication. And, of course, like any new tech on the bleeding edge, it currently requires an annoying proprietary energizer to run.
Said driver was inside an IEM from Vietnamese brand, Soranik, and it was a hybrid with an xMEMS tweeter, then a BA for its mids and lows. Immediately, I loved how it presented the treble. The xMEMS tweeter delivered a top-end that was solid, crisp, well-etched and open, but it didn’t have any of the usual telltales of a BA or an EST. It needn’t a BA’s 5kHz glitz, nor its 8kHz etch, nor its 10kHz glare, and it had neither the sandy, powdery notes, nor the weightless floaty-ness of Sonion’s EST. It was a weighted treble with tons of tactility - very 3D-sounding - but without the colorations that that sound would typically need, and it was probably one of the most natural, uncolored treble reproductions I’d heard yet. Now, if they can only get rid of that slog of an amp unit.
Jokes aside, I think this xMEMS driver has tons of potential as a tweeter. It impressed me more than ESTs did when they were first coming out, and it’s already impressed me more than some of the optimized, matured EST configs I’m hearing now. So, as long as they can come up with a way to drop that energizer unit or massively scale it down, I think this driver will be the future as far as in-ear tweeters are concerned.
And, that was that. As the clock struck 5PM, I said my goodbyes to everyone I’d seen, whether for the very first time, or the first time in a long, long time. We shared laughs, we shared hugs, we shared until next time’s, and off I went; back to my hotel, then to the airport. Before I knew it, I was getting ready for Sunday service and, by 7AM, the day after, there I was:
I said it to everyone there, and I’ll say it again here: CanJam SG 2023 was the best one I’ve ever been to. And, absolutely none of it had to with the gear. As much as I’ve loved the products I got to listen to, or the review/business opportunities I’ve been able to make in the past, there really is quite nothing like giving and reciprocating human connection. The 2 days I got to spend with the Cooler Crew were some of my best times in the hobby, and the reunions I had with Amin, Marcel, Jack and Eric, just to name a few, were nothing short of special. I didn’t even mention the beautiful, private conversations I finally got to have with @jude and @Sebastien Chiu, who I’ve long, long admired online. So, once again, a team effort as it always is, I wanted to express my thanks to every single person for making this an event to remember. I had as much of a blast as I thought I was going to, but I truly didn’t think it was going to hit me in the feels this hard.
I hope all of you who were there with me got to reminisce on that special weekend through my post, and I hope all of you who weren’t able to make it got to live vicariously through it. I can’t wait to meet all of you again one day, and I surely hope there’ll be more of us there when we do. We’re gonna need a wide-angle lens to take these group photos at the rate we’re going. Live long and prosper, Cooler Crew! Daniel, out!
Sad. Wanted to attend. But was literally sick for the whole month of Mar
Did you get better?
CanJam is over but here’s my YouTube playlist for those of you who missed the action or are interested in reliving the wonderful event.
drftr
Headphoneus Supremus
Wonderful Sajid! Very nice to get to meet Jude on top of all of this too.
One video (#15) I couldn't get to work unfortunately. Will you repost that one later on perhaps?
drftr
wolfstar76
Headphoneus Supremus
Excellent and highly anticipated report. I can feel your enthusiasm in RN6, that you have reduced your previously No 1 XE6 twice to XE4What a fantastic experience CanJam SG has been. I was only in SG for 4 days which turns out to be the same number of days I was in NYC. Both were great and action packed. The main difference is that NYC was more spontaneous and SG was more planned. My time there was scheduled from the time I woke up before dawn until the moment I went to sleep mostly after midnight (Thanks @metaljem77). All I had to do was look at the daily itinerary and wait for someone to pick me up. We got to see Effect Audio, Jaben, Zeppelin, Subtonic, Aur Audio and Eletech before CanJam officially started. Since I had heard most of the new portable gear in NYC, I got to focus my attention on hearing prototypes for future product releases, talk in depth with product manufacturers about their products and businesses, and cable roll various IEMs to find optimal synergies. I even got to hear many of the IEMs that I usually skip like 64 Audio and QDC. This is the first CanJam that I got to hear everything I wanted to hear. I did focus mostly on portable, but did get some headphone listening in.
First, here is the SG Watercooler Contingent for this show with some extras:
From left to right: The Famous Ethan (@Ethanmusic7), Weihao (@klyzon), BTS Steve (@SteveK27), Jemy (@metaljem77), Jordon (Effect Audio), Daniel (@Deezel177), Jim (@HiFiHawaii808), Ben (@yaps66), Kiats (@Kiats), Joop (@drftr), Heley (Effect Audio), Simmy (@Sifo), Albert (@AxLvR), Sajid (@Sajid Amit)
We had a very nice lunch with Eletech. Eric (Eletech) is in the center of the picture between Jemy and Simmy. We probably have a dozen more pictures like this one for all of the wonderful meals we shared together. I will save those for the foodie post.
Due to space limitation in this post and the many impressions already provided on various products. I am going to focus my commentary on the products that had the most impact on me. Since I did not do an impressions post from NYC, this is going to be combined one focused on SG.
Here are the IEMs that I definitely plan to purchase or have purchased. They are amongst the many getting recognition from the extended watercooler team.
1. FIR Audio RN6. I fell in love with this product at CanJam NYC where it was my Best in Show. It takes my favorite IEM, the XE6, and reduces the lower mids to improve overall clarity in its musical presentation. For me, this makes the XE6 and RN6 a perfect combination to cover my entire library. The XE6 presents music like a rock concert, so it is great with Modern Pop music, R&B, Funk and anything that requires an energetic presentation. The RN6, with its improved clarity covers Jazz and Classical genre better where a more neutral leaning bright presentation works best. Favorite DAP pairing is with RS8 and cable is Iliad. I bought this in a CIEM and will hopeful take delivery within the next few weeks. When I have this, I will have XE4, RN6 and XE4 all in custom. Just need the KR5 to complete the set.
2. Noble Audio Ronin. I am a big fan of Noble Audio. I first bought the Ragnar at CanJam Socal because it is a resolution and clarity monster. Subsequently, I purchased the Kublai Khan due to its great bass. The Noble Audio Ronin focuses on tonality to make it my favorite all arounder. It has the best BA bass I have heard and the tuning is right in the pocket for me. The set is about tuning, tonality and timbre. So, I can listen to my whole range of music from Pop to Jazz and Classical. It is slightly less resolving than Ragnar, but it has superior tonality. I love this IEM. Runner up in NYC where I bought it. It is still a stand out in CanJam SG.
Fumie. My friend from Noble Audio
Jim and John Moulton. The Brains behind Noble Audio
3. Subtonic Storm. This IEM has been several years in the making. It is a technical monster that really attempts to redefine the sound quality that comes from a reference monitor. It is a kind of chameleon that will take on the best and worst characteristics of what it is playing back. It is brutally honest. If you have flaws in your recording, this will pick it up. It requires a lot of power to drive and it can be fine tuned with cables and DAPs. I really got to spend a lot of time with it. I found it to be best with sophisticated music such as my bebop jazz collection and large piece orchestral music. Pop music can sound average since much of it is poorly recorded.
I got to hear it with the Brise 8w and Python, 1950s Shielding, an Effect audio hybrid Chiron / Horus cable, and a custom cable made by NightJar called Symphony. It sounded the best with the Symphony cable. Then, the 1950s shielding, then the Chiron/Horus. Any of those 3 cables make my library sing. This is using the RS8 as source which has sufficient power and the natural sound I love. This will be one of two IEMs I purchase at CanJam SG. It is paired in this picture with EA Chiron. Lovely pairing.
Ken and Chang from Subtonic
4. NightJar Singularity. This is a special single DD IEM. I am a big fan of single DDs because they have such great tonality and timbre. Usually, where a single DD struggles in competing with TOTL offerings is in bass/treble extension, resolution and bass level. You automatically get coherence and timbre. The ultimate sound is always a trade off by optimizing one feature over another. Singularity defies this principle. It delivers a very nice elevated bass level which would normally result in muddiness in the mids and highs, but as I understand it, the chamber NightJar created for the driver allows it to maintain clarity in the mids and highs as if it has dual drivers with a crossover. So, with Singularity, you get an elevated bass shelf which is very satisfying to my taste, clarity in mids and highs and glorious DD timbre throughout. This IEM has instant and broad appeal. I think this IEM is going to be broadly loved by the community. Definitely buying this one when it is released.
The Singularity shell is not yet finalized, but we got a peak at to what it might look like:
5. Empire Ears Raven. I have been anxiously awaiting this product to be announced and released. I had the opportunity to hear this from the first prototype after CanJam Socal and throughout its development cycle. All I can say is that Empire Ears knocked this one out of the park. The way I hear Raven is as a bass head IEM. Its bass is like a combination of EVO and LX. EVO is more energetic. LX is more laid back. Raven is in between but at a bombastically elevated level. And then, the rest of the FR sounds nothing like an EE IEM. It's coherent and balanced with good clarity and extension. So, it's not L-shaped. More U-shaped if anything. What makes it EE to me is its bombast. Bombastic Bass that will satisfy any basshead. I will be purchasing this when it becomes available around the CanJam Chicago timeframe.
Picture Courtesy of Sajid Amit
6. Elysian Acoustic Labs DIO Prototype. This product is my best in show for CanJam SG. IIFC, it is a single DD, 4 BA and 4EST implementation. For the longest time, the Elysian Accoustic Labs Annihilator was in my top 3 IEMs. It fell out of the top 3 due to its poor bass driver which gave it pretty weak bass. Well, Lee went out an built a Custom bass driver which took him 7 attempts and 3500 samples. All I can see is that he nailed the bass. When you couple it with the brilliant treble and mids that Elysian is known for, this future flagship product is going to be a contender along with all of the IEMs in this post for IEM of the Year. I immediately fell in love with this IEM. I tried to put in a pre order, but Lee wouldn't take my money. Instead, I am on the pre pre order list. This is one I am going to buy when it becomes available near the end of the year hopefully in time for CanJam Socal.
I completely agree with @Deezel177 who said this about Dio and how it compares to Annihilator: "Dio has a similar tonality, but ups the scale across the board. Bigger stage, bigger instruments, and it’s especially more visceral in impact. I’m fairly sure it had more sub-bass."
The Famous Lee Quan Min
There were several other IEMs that really resonated with me and apparently are carving out space in the market.
Eletech really did a great job of collecting input from NYC on 2 prototypes for a flagship level IEM. In NYC, I really did not find the prototype to be good at all. Eric took all of the feedback he got and delivered some outstanding IEMs. Prototype A had a more open signature with nice treble. This was the new version of what I heard in NYC and it is stunning. I thought for sure I was going to like this the most. Then, heard Prototype B and to my ear, it was even better. It has a very nice warm presentation which supports its bass nicely and makes it very inviting for vocals. Both were fantastic though.
I did get a chance to hear the Vision Ears Prototypes in NYC. I really liked the Red prototype best. But, the Blue prototype was neck and neck in the NYC vote.
Electech Prototype A
Eletech Prototype B
In our onsite visit of Jaben, I got to hear the whole line of Fitear IEMs. By far my favorite of the bunch is the Fitear 334SR. It turns out that Simmy and I have very similar taste in IEMs. He liked it so much, he bought a custom. Thanks to Uncle Wilson for hosting us and letting us demo anything we wanted.
Here is a picture of Simmy getting his ear impressions for his Fitear 334SR. This was a great way to do impressions.
In addition, I got to hear for the first time the entire 64 Audio line up. Based on that listen, my order of preference is
1. U12t
2. Trio
3. U18s
4..U4s
5. Fourte Blanc
6. Fourte
7.. Nio
The U4s at $1099 USD is a great value for money. I would recommend any beginning into Audio to try it. It has a wide range. With the M20 module, it has great bass and with the new M12 module it really has a signature with well extended treble
In addition to IEMs, I got to spend a lot of time auditioning cables. Since SG is cable heaven, we got to hear great pairings.
Here are some of my favorite of the show.
Effect Audio Chiron / Horus. Not only does it sound great, but it looks great too.
<I realize this cable is not the Chiron/Horus, I will substitute the correct picture when I get it.>
Uncle Wilson was so kind to allow us to demo the entire Brise cable line. And, it is stunning it both build quality and sound quality. Here were my 2 favorites. I will be buying these:
Brise Audio BSEP for IER-Z1R
Brise Audio Yatano 8W Ultimate. I will be pairing this with Red Halo because it really enhance the treble and bass which provides great synergy for this midcentric IEM
Miscellaneous other Headphone Products
Sennheiser HE-1. I got to hear this set up in NYC. So, I knew it was stunning. But, I still couldn't believe how great it sounded. This time I got 15 minutes with a full Tidal / Roon set up. So, I got to hear a whole range of music.
That's it. Another epic CanJam in the bank. I want to once again provide a shout out to my baby sister in Headfi @metaljem77 for the hospitality and logistics for the watercooler gang. It was seamless and we could not have as much without your help and unwavering support. We love you.
And, we can't forget about Mr Style himself, little brother to Jin of BTS and the fashion Icon of headfi, @SteveK27.
Until we meet again!
Great impressions sir. Hope to join you guys some day to a CanJam!!What a fantastic experience CanJam SG has been. I was only in SG for 4 days which turns out to be the same number of days I was in NYC. Both were great and action packed. The main difference is that NYC was more spontaneous and SG was more planned. My time there was scheduled from the time I woke up before dawn until the moment I went to sleep mostly after midnight (Thanks @metaljem77). All I had to do was look at the daily itinerary and wait for someone to pick me up. We got to see Effect Audio, Jaben, Zeppelin, Subtonic, Aur Audio and Eletech before CanJam officially started. Since I had heard most of the new portable gear in NYC, I got to focus my attention on hearing prototypes for future product releases, talk in depth with product manufacturers about their products and businesses, and cable roll various IEMs to find optimal synergies. I even got to hear many of the IEMs that I usually skip like 64 Audio and QDC. This is the first CanJam that I got to hear everything I wanted to hear. I did focus mostly on portable, but did get some headphone listening in.
First, here is the SG Watercooler Contingent for this show with some extras:
From left to right: The Famous Ethan (@Ethanmusic7), Weihao (@klyzon), BTS Steve (@SteveK27), Jemy (@metaljem77), Jordon (Effect Audio), Daniel (@Deezel177), Jim (@HiFiHawaii808), Ben (@yaps66), Kiats (@Kiats), Joop (@drftr), Heley (Effect Audio), Simmy (@Sifo), Albert (@AxLvR), Sajid (@Sajid Amit)
We had a very nice lunch with Eletech. Eric (Eletech) is in the center of the picture between Jemy and Simmy. We probably have a dozen more pictures like this one for all of the wonderful meals we shared together. I will save those for the foodie post.
Due to space limitation in this post and the many impressions already provided on various products. I am going to focus my commentary on the products that had the most impact on me. Since I did not do an impressions post from NYC, this is going to be combined one focused on SG.
Here are the IEMs that I definitely plan to purchase or have purchased. They are amongst the many getting recognition from the extended watercooler team.
1. FIR Audio RN6. I fell in love with this product at CanJam NYC where it was my Best in Show. It takes my favorite IEM, the XE6, and reduces the lower mids to improve overall clarity in its musical presentation. For me, this makes the XE6 and RN6 a perfect combination to cover my entire library. The XE6 presents music like a rock concert, so it is great with Modern Pop music, R&B, Funk and anything that requires an energetic presentation. The RN6, with its improved clarity covers Jazz and Classical genre better where a more neutral leaning bright presentation works best. Favorite DAP pairing is with RS8 and cable is Iliad. I bought this in a CIEM and will hopeful take delivery within the next few weeks. When I have this, I will have XE4, RN6 and XE4 all in custom. Just need the KR5 to complete the set.
2. Noble Audio Ronin. I am a big fan of Noble Audio. I first bought the Ragnar at CanJam Socal because it is a resolution and clarity monster. Subsequently, I purchased the Kublai Khan due to its great bass. The Noble Audio Ronin focuses on tonality to make it my favorite all arounder. It has the best BA bass I have heard and the tuning is right in the pocket for me. The set is about tuning, tonality and timbre. So, I can listen to my whole range of music from Pop to Jazz and Classical. It is slightly less resolving than Ragnar, but it has superior tonality. I love this IEM. Runner up in NYC where I bought it. It is still a stand out in CanJam SG.
Fumie. My friend from Noble Audio
Jim and John Moulton. The Brains behind Noble Audio
3. Subtonic Storm. This IEM has been several years in the making. It is a technical monster that really attempts to redefine the sound quality that comes from a reference monitor. It is a kind of chameleon that will take on the best and worst characteristics of what it is playing back. It is brutally honest. If you have flaws in your recording, this will pick it up. It requires a lot of power to drive and it can be fine tuned with cables and DAPs. I really got to spend a lot of time with it. I found it to be best with sophisticated music such as my bebop jazz collection and large piece orchestral music. Pop music can sound average since much of it is poorly recorded.
I got to hear it with the Brise 8w and Python, 1950s Shielding, an Effect audio hybrid Chiron / Horus cable, and a custom cable made by NightJar called Symphony. It sounded the best with the Symphony cable. Then, the 1950s shielding, then the Chiron/Horus. Any of those 3 cables make my library sing. This is using the RS8 as source which has sufficient power and the natural sound I love. This will be one of two IEMs I purchase at CanJam SG. It is paired in this picture with EA Chiron. Lovely pairing.
Ken and Chang from Subtonic
4. NightJar Singularity. This is a special single DD IEM. I am a big fan of single DDs because they have such great tonality and timbre. Usually, where a single DD struggles in competing with TOTL offerings is in bass/treble extension, resolution and bass level. You automatically get coherence and timbre. The ultimate sound is always a trade off by optimizing one feature over another. Singularity defies this principle. It delivers a very nice elevated bass level which would normally result in muddiness in the mids and highs, but as I understand it, the chamber NightJar created for the driver allows it to maintain clarity in the mids and highs as if it has dual drivers with a crossover. So, with Singularity, you get an elevated bass shelf which is very satisfying to my taste, clarity in mids and highs and glorious DD timbre throughout. This IEM has instant and broad appeal. I think this IEM is going to be broadly loved by the community. Definitely buying this one when it is released.
The Singularity shell is not yet finalized, but we got a peak at to what it might look like:
5. Empire Ears Raven. I have been anxiously awaiting this product to be announced and released. I had the opportunity to hear this from the first prototype after CanJam Socal and throughout its development cycle. All I can say is that Empire Ears knocked this one out of the park. The way I hear Raven is as a bass head IEM. Its bass is like a combination of EVO and LX. EVO is more energetic. LX is more laid back. Raven is in between but at a bombastically elevated level. And then, the rest of the FR sounds nothing like an EE IEM. It's coherent and balanced with good clarity and extension. So, it's not L-shaped. More U-shaped if anything. What makes it EE to me is its bombast. Bombastic Bass that will satisfy any basshead. I will be purchasing this when it becomes available around the CanJam Chicago timeframe.
Picture Courtesy of Sajid Amit
6. Elysian Acoustic Labs DIO Prototype. This product is my best in show for CanJam SG. IIFC, it is a single DD, 4 BA and 4EST implementation. For the longest time, the Elysian Accoustic Labs Annihilator was in my top 3 IEMs. It fell out of the top 3 due to its poor bass driver which gave it pretty weak bass. Well, Lee went out an built a Custom bass driver which took him 7 attempts and 3500 samples. All I can see is that he nailed the bass. When you couple it with the brilliant treble and mids that Elysian is known for, this future flagship product is going to be a contender along with all of the IEMs in this post for IEM of the Year. I immediately fell in love with this IEM. I tried to put in a pre order, but Lee wouldn't take my money. Instead, I am on the pre pre order list. This is one I am going to buy when it becomes available near the end of the year hopefully in time for CanJam Socal.
I completely agree with @Deezel177 who said this about Dio and how it compares to Annihilator: "Dio has a similar tonality, but ups the scale across the board. Bigger stage, bigger instruments, and it’s especially more visceral in impact. I’m fairly sure it had more sub-bass."
The Famous Lee Quan Min
There were several other IEMs that really resonated with me and apparently are carving out space in the market.
Eletech really did a great job of collecting input from NYC on 2 prototypes for a flagship level IEM. In NYC, I really did not find the prototype to be good at all. Eric took all of the feedback he got and delivered some outstanding IEMs. Prototype A had a more open signature with nice treble. This was the new version of what I heard in NYC and it is stunning. I thought for sure I was going to like this the most. Then, heard Prototype B and to my ear, it was even better. It has a very nice warm presentation which supports its bass nicely and makes it very inviting for vocals. Both were fantastic though.
I did get a chance to hear the Vision Ears Prototypes in NYC. I really liked the Red prototype best. But, the Blue prototype was neck and neck in the NYC vote.
Electech Prototype A
Eletech Prototype B
In our onsite visit of Jaben, I got to hear the whole line of Fitear IEMs. By far my favorite of the bunch is the Fitear 334SR. It turns out that Simmy and I have very similar taste in IEMs. He liked it so much, he bought a custom. Thanks to Uncle Wilson for hosting us and letting us demo anything we wanted.
Here is a picture of Simmy getting his ear impressions for his Fitear 334SR. This was a great way to do impressions.
In addition, I got to hear for the first time the entire 64 Audio line up. Based on that listen, my order of preference is
1. U12t
2. Trio
3. U18s
4..U4s
5. Fourte Blanc
6. Fourte
7.. Nio
The U4s at $1099 USD is a great value for money. I would recommend any beginning into Audio to try it. It has a wide range. With the M20 module, it has great bass and with the new M12 module it really has a signature with well extended treble
In addition to IEMs, I got to spend a lot of time auditioning cables. Since SG is cable heaven, we got to hear great pairings.
Here are some of my favorite of the show.
Effect Audio Chiron / Horus. Not only does it sound great, but it looks great too.
<I realize this cable is not the Chiron/Horus, I will substitute the correct picture when I get it.>
Uncle Wilson was so kind to allow us to demo the entire Brise cable line. And, it is stunning it both build quality and sound quality. Here were my 2 favorites. I will be buying these:
Brise Audio BSEP for IER-Z1R
Brise Audio Yatano 8W Ultimate. I will be pairing this with Red Halo because it really enhance the treble and bass which provides great synergy for this midcentric IEM
Miscellaneous other Headphone Products
Sennheiser HE-1. I got to hear this set up in NYC. So, I knew it was stunning. But, I still couldn't believe how great it sounded. This time I got 15 minutes with a full Tidal / Roon set up. So, I got to hear a whole range of music.
That's it. Another epic CanJam in the bank. I want to once again provide a shout out to my baby sister in Headfi @metaljem77 for the hospitality and logistics for the watercooler gang. It was seamless and we could not have as much without your help and unwavering support. We love you.
And, we can't forget about Mr Style himself, little brother to Jin of BTS and the fashion Icon of headfi, @SteveK27.
Until we meet again!
godlikegamer
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Apr 4, 2015
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- 129
I thought FIR said this only available in UIEM?? So they also offer CIEM, then what is the purpose of categorized it as UIEM in their site?
You have chosen wisely brotha!
It is a UIEM only iem. My understanding however is that in very special circumstances and for special customers, they do make exceptions.
Jwm48324
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Sep 21, 2010
- Posts
- 399
- Likes
- 31
When you listened to these IEM's what settings did you use on you Hiby RS8 and did you use flat eq?What a fantastic experience CanJam SG has been. I was only in SG for 4 days which turns out to be the same number of days I was in NYC. Both were great and action packed. The main difference is that NYC was more spontaneous and SG was more planned. My time there was scheduled from the time I woke up before dawn until the moment I went to sleep mostly after midnight (Thanks @metaljem77). All I had to do was look at the daily itinerary and wait for someone to pick me up. We got to see Effect Audio, Jaben, Zeppelin, Subtonic, Aur Audio and Eletech before CanJam officially started. Since I had heard most of the new portable gear in NYC, I got to focus my attention on hearing prototypes for future product releases, talk in depth with product manufacturers about their products and businesses, and cable roll various IEMs to find optimal synergies. I even got to hear many of the IEMs that I usually skip like 64 Audio and QDC. This is the first CanJam that I got to hear everything I wanted to hear. I did focus mostly on portable, but did get some headphone listening in.
First, here is the SG Watercooler Contingent for this show with some extras:
From left to right: The Famous Ethan (@Ethanmusic7), Weihao (@klyzon), BTS Steve (@SteveK27), Jemy (@metaljem77), Jordon (Effect Audio), Daniel (@Deezel177), Jim (@HiFiHawaii808), Ben (@yaps66), Kiats (@Kiats), Joop (@drftr), Heley (Effect Audio), Simmy (@Sifo), Albert (@AxLvR), Sajid (@Sajid Amit)
We had a very nice lunch with Eletech. Eric (Eletech) is in the center of the picture between Jemy and Simmy. We probably have a dozen more pictures like this one for all of the wonderful meals we shared together. I will save those for the foodie post.
Due to space limitation in this post and the many impressions already provided on various products. I am going to focus my commentary on the products that had the most impact on me. Since I did not do an impressions post from NYC, this is going to be combined one focused on SG.
Here are the IEMs that I definitely plan to purchase or have purchased. They are amongst the many getting recognition from the extended watercooler team.
1. FIR Audio RN6. I fell in love with this product at CanJam NYC where it was my Best in Show. It takes my favorite IEM, the XE6, and reduces the lower mids to improve overall clarity in its musical presentation. For me, this makes the XE6 and RN6 a perfect combination to cover my entire library. The XE6 presents music like a rock concert, so it is great with Modern Pop music, R&B, Funk and anything that requires an energetic presentation. The RN6, with its improved clarity covers Jazz and Classical genre better where a more neutral leaning bright presentation works best. Favorite DAP pairing is with RS8 and cable is Iliad. I bought this in a CIEM and will hopeful take delivery within the next few weeks. When I have this, I will have XE4, RN6 and XE4 all in custom. Just need the KR5 to complete the set.
2. Noble Audio Ronin. I am a big fan of Noble Audio. I first bought the Ragnar at CanJam Socal because it is a resolution and clarity monster. Subsequently, I purchased the Kublai Khan due to its great bass. The Noble Audio Ronin focuses on tonality to make it my favorite all arounder. It has the best BA bass I have heard and the tuning is right in the pocket for me. The set is about tuning, tonality and timbre. So, I can listen to my whole range of music from Pop to Jazz and Classical. It is slightly less resolving than Ragnar, but it has superior tonality. I love this IEM. Runner up in NYC where I bought it. It is still a stand out in CanJam SG.
Fumie. My friend from Noble Audio
Jim and John Moulton. The Brains behind Noble Audio
3. Subtonic Storm. This IEM has been several years in the making. It is a technical monster that really attempts to redefine the sound quality that comes from a reference monitor. It is a kind of chameleon that will take on the best and worst characteristics of what it is playing back. It is brutally honest. If you have flaws in your recording, this will pick it up. It requires a lot of power to drive and it can be fine tuned with cables and DAPs. I really got to spend a lot of time with it. I found it to be best with sophisticated music such as my bebop jazz collection and large piece orchestral music. Pop music can sound average since much of it is poorly recorded.
I got to hear it with the Brise 8w and Python, 1950s Shielding, an Effect audio hybrid Chiron / Horus cable, and a custom cable made by NightJar called Symphony. It sounded the best with the Symphony cable. Then, the 1950s shielding, then the Chiron/Horus. Any of those 3 cables make my library sing. This is using the RS8 as source which has sufficient power and the natural sound I love. This will be one of two IEMs I purchase at CanJam SG. It is paired in this picture with EA Chiron. Lovely pairing.
Ken and Chang from Subtonic
4. NightJar Singularity. This is a special single DD IEM. I am a big fan of single DDs because they have such great tonality and timbre. Usually, where a single DD struggles in competing with TOTL offerings is in bass/treble extension, resolution and bass level. You automatically get coherence and timbre. The ultimate sound is always a trade off by optimizing one feature over another. Singularity defies this principle. It delivers a very nice elevated bass level which would normally result in muddiness in the mids and highs, but as I understand it, the chamber NightJar created for the driver allows it to maintain clarity in the mids and highs as if it has dual drivers with a crossover. So, with Singularity, you get an elevated bass shelf which is very satisfying to my taste, clarity in mids and highs and glorious DD timbre throughout. This IEM has instant and broad appeal. I think this IEM is going to be broadly loved by the community. Definitely buying this one when it is released.
The Singularity shell is not yet finalized, but we got a peak at to what it might look like:
5. Empire Ears Raven. I have been anxiously awaiting this product to be announced and released. I had the opportunity to hear this from the first prototype after CanJam Socal and throughout its development cycle. All I can say is that Empire Ears knocked this one out of the park. The way I hear Raven is as a bass head IEM. Its bass is like a combination of EVO and LX. EVO is more energetic. LX is more laid back. Raven is in between but at a bombastically elevated level. And then, the rest of the FR sounds nothing like an EE IEM. It's coherent and balanced with good clarity and extension. So, it's not L-shaped. More U-shaped if anything. What makes it EE to me is its bombast. Bombastic Bass that will satisfy any basshead. I will be purchasing this when it becomes available around the CanJam Chicago timeframe.
Picture Courtesy of Sajid Amit
6. Elysian Acoustic Labs DIO Prototype. This product is my best in show for CanJam SG. IIFC, it is a single DD, 4 BA and 4EST implementation. For the longest time, the Elysian Accoustic Labs Annihilator was in my top 3 IEMs. It fell out of the top 3 due to its poor bass driver which gave it pretty weak bass. Well, Lee went out an built a Custom bass driver which took him 7 attempts and 3500 samples. All I can see is that he nailed the bass. When you couple it with the brilliant treble and mids that Elysian is known for, this future flagship product is going to be a contender along with all of the IEMs in this post for IEM of the Year. I immediately fell in love with this IEM. I tried to put in a pre order, but Lee wouldn't take my money. Instead, I am on the pre pre order list. This is one I am going to buy when it becomes available near the end of the year hopefully in time for CanJam Socal.
I completely agree with @Deezel177 who said this about Dio and how it compares to Annihilator: "Dio has a similar tonality, but ups the scale across the board. Bigger stage, bigger instruments, and it’s especially more visceral in impact. I’m fairly sure it had more sub-bass."
The Famous Lee Quan Min
There were several other IEMs that really resonated with me and apparently are carving out space in the market.
Eletech really did a great job of collecting input from NYC on 2 prototypes for a flagship level IEM. In NYC, I really did not find the prototype to be good at all. Eric took all of the feedback he got and delivered some outstanding IEMs. Prototype A had a more open signature with nice treble. This was the new version of what I heard in NYC and it is stunning. I thought for sure I was going to like this the most. Then, heard Prototype B and to my ear, it was even better. It has a very nice warm presentation which supports its bass nicely and makes it very inviting for vocals. Both were fantastic though.
I did get a chance to hear the Vision Ears Prototypes in NYC. I really liked the Red prototype best. But, the Blue prototype was neck and neck in the NYC vote.
Electech Prototype A
Eletech Prototype B
In our onsite visit of Jaben, I got to hear the whole line of Fitear IEMs. By far my favorite of the bunch is the Fitear 334SR. It turns out that Simmy and I have very similar taste in IEMs. He liked it so much, he bought a custom. Thanks to Uncle Wilson for hosting us and letting us demo anything we wanted.
Here is a picture of Simmy getting his ear impressions for his Fitear 334SR. This was a great way to do impressions.
In addition, I got to hear for the first time the entire 64 Audio line up. Based on that listen, my order of preference is
1. U12t
2. Trio
3. U18s
4..U4s
5. Fourte Blanc
6. Fourte
7.. Nio
The U4s at $1099 USD is a great value for money. I would recommend any beginning into Audio to try it. It has a wide range. With the M20 module, it has great bass and with the new M12 module it really has a signature with well extended treble
In addition to IEMs, I got to spend a lot of time auditioning cables. Since SG is cable heaven, we got to hear great pairings.
Here are some of my favorite of the show.
Effect Audio Chiron / Horus. Not only does it sound great, but it looks great too.
<I realize this cable is not the Chiron/Horus, I will substitute the correct picture when I get it.>
Uncle Wilson was so kind to allow us to demo the entire Brise cable line. And, it is stunning it both build quality and sound quality. Here were my 2 favorites. I will be buying these:
Brise Audio BSEP for IER-Z1R
Brise Audio Yatano 8W Ultimate. I will be pairing this with Red Halo because it really enhance the treble and bass which provides great synergy for this midcentric IEM
Miscellaneous other Headphone Products
Sennheiser HE-1. I got to hear this set up in NYC. So, I knew it was stunning. But, I still couldn't believe how great it sounded. This time I got 15 minutes with a full Tidal / Roon set up. So, I got to hear a whole range of music.
That's it. Another epic CanJam in the bank. I want to once again provide a shout out to my baby sister in Headfi @metaljem77 for the hospitality and logistics for the watercooler gang. It was seamless and we could not have as much without your help and unwavering support. We love you.
And, we can't forget about Mr Style himself, little brother to Jin of BTS and the fashion Icon of headfi, @SteveK27.
Until we meet again!
Craft Ears
Sponsor: Craft Ears
As mentioned before, here are some of our pics from the event. Thanks again to all of you for stopping by Zeppelin Co. and giving us a shot. We appreciate you a lot!
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